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Chapter 11 - Fallout
Narcissa had not left his side since the day Harry had been brought to the hospital wing. Such was the severity of his injuries, that he had to be sent into a magically induced coma. This was a decision that both his mother and Poppy had agreed to. He was losing a lot of blood due to his exertion.
The fallout of the incident had been astronomical. Narcissa had never seen James this way. Gone was the charming and fun loving prankster and standing in his place was the Heir to one of the most powerful and influential families in history, the son of the decorated and feared, Lord Charlus Potter.
And she didn't even need to start talking about Bella. She had become vicious. The ten boys had not found a moment of peace and as asked by Harry, they were not provided timely treatment. The moment James had declared this as a family affair, Bellatrix had cast all sorts of spells that she knew and had gone overboard in cursing the fallen men. Suffice to say, they had been worse for wear by the time the DMLE had arrived and had taken the boys into custody.
Arcturus Black had been furious to know of what had transpired. The aged Lord had not been happy with Dumbledore nor with Slughorn. He had stormed into the castle and upon learning of what had transpired; he lost it.
Arcturus Black was a political mastermind and had quite a way with his words. However he was no slouch with a wand either. His skill with a wand was still as sharp and deadly as it had been during the great wand. The years after he had tempered down its use but the wand was still used whenever he needed it. He was a man who could solve his problems both with his shrewd thinking ability, and if need be with his monstrous magical ability.
But in the moment he had forgotten all about that and had delivered one hell of a punch to Lucius Malfoy that broke the boy's jaw. Once his short venting was done, he demanded an emergency Wizengamot meeting. But that session was put on hold until Harry had recovered enough to take part in it.
The entirety of Hogwarts' teaching staff had received the backlash of the event. The ones most affected were Dumbledore and Slughorn.
Harry's friends, though, had not cared about anything other than the young man, who was currently lying injured in the hospital wing. The classes had been cancelled for a week so as to stabilize the tense atmosphere in the school.
The news had taken the wizarding world by storm. Narcissa still didn't understand how the newspapers got their hands on a picture of Harry breaking down the ward.
He hated those things and he certainly won't be pleased to see all this in the newspaper.
"Has he woken up yet?" Bellatrix sat down on the other side of the bed as she kissed his forehead.
"No, but his color is returning and his magic is almost back to its usual levels. So, he should be waking up very soon." Narcissa answered her sister's question wistfully, her eyes not leaving the book in front of her.
"Are you sure you are alright, Cissy?" Bellatrix asked her sister, her voice filled with concern.
Narcissa was silent for a moment after she put her book down with a sigh.
"I will be honest. I was scared. I was very scared, and if not for the fact that I can cast the Patronus, I don't know what would have happened to me." She shuddered both in fear and revulsion of what could've happened.
"However once I sent my Patronus, I knew that he would come. And he didn't disappoint. He arrived at the spot and I knew at once that I would be safe. I knew that he would do anything in his power to get me out of that situation.
I didn't have an idea that they would use such a ward scheme. But then again, he is a surprise package. I could put two and two together and make four." She explained.
"Glad I have your approval, milady." A hoarse voice spoke up and the girls jumped at the noise before their eyes met Harry.
He was smiling at the two of them.
Narcissa was the first to jump to his side, grabbing his hand in hers.
"Hey." She greeted the boy, her voice relieved to see him awake. Harry grimaced as he tried to sit up. Bellatrix took hold of his other arm and helped him up.
"Thank you." He spoke with a strained voice.
"Are you feeling alright? Should I get Aunt Dorea or Poppy?" Narcissus started fussing over the boy who chuckled weakly.
"No, I am fine." His voice remained hoarse. "How are you?" He questioned the girl seriously.
Narcissa shook her head. "I am fine, Harry. I was taken by surprise. I have a few scratches but nothing more."
Harry shook his head tiredly.
"I am not talking about physical damage and you know it, Cissa. Don't lie to me." He muttered.
"It's nothing…."
Bellatrix interfered. "He is right. You are closed off, Cissy. You know it as well as I do. Just tell him."
Narcissa glared at her sister who threw back a challenging look. She sagged when she understood that there is no escaping the truth from them.
"Ok fine. I still have nightmares about that day. I see things in my dream that make me empty my stomach. I dream about what would have happened if I had not sent word to you and it's not nice." She started to shake, her head sending all kinds of unwanted images.
She felt her boyfriend pull her into his chest, and slowly started to rub the back of her head gently.
"Let it all go, love." He muttered and that broke the dam. Tears leaked from her eyes as she tightened her grip on him, holding onto him like her lifeline.
She lay there for some time, letting out her sadness before she sat up and smiled at him. "Thank you." She muttered, receiving a smile from her sister and boyfriend.
She started to chuckle all of a sudden as she remembered a rather interesting piece of information. Her abrupt laughter did cause the other two to frown.
"What is the matter?" Harry questioned curiously.
"Oh… you are going to love this." Narcissa replied with a shit eating grin as she placed the newspaper on his lap.
Harry let his eyes fall on the paper before they bugged out at the picture.
"Oh fuck." He blurted out before he was rewarded with a light bonk on his head.
"Language." Narcissa glared at him and he could only nod meekly, before grimacing as he saw the article once again.
"I need to burn down these newspaper offices permanently." He muttered in annoyance.
"Oh stop whining, Harry. It was bound to be a big matter." Bellatrix chastised him from the side she was sitting on.
"You have a trial to get to." She explained and Harry nodded stiffly.
"I sincerely hope that I can reign myself in. I will kill those shits for what they did." Harry growled, as his magic flared once again.
"Stop it, Harry." He heard his mother speak out as she entered the medical wing causing him to let out a sigh. His eyes then fell on his family standing at the entrance of the wing.
"Now is not the time to make your condition worse." She chastised.
"You will need another week and a half to heal yourself. The trial is set for next Sunday." She informed the boy who nodded.
She then placed four vials of potions next to him. Harry groaned as he knew what was coming next.
"Please don't give me those. They are disgusting." He pleaded with his mother much to the amusement of the others.
Dorea frowned at her son.
"These are very helpful, Harry. Now stop grumbling and take your potions." She said sternly although she was trying to hide her laughter upon seeing his face contort into a look of utter disgust as he eyed the potions.
"We finally did manage to find a way to defeat the great Harry Potter. Feed him health potions." James joked as a round of laughter was obtained at Harry's expense.
Harry closed his eyes and downed the four vials in a quick gulp, gagging as he finished with them.
"Oh Merlin, kill me." He moaned as he felt the foul-smelling potions on his tongue.
"Yep. The bane of Harry Potter. Potions." James joked with another round of laughter.
--&&&&&--
"Any news?" The impatient tone of the man and the slight tremor in his voice had been a fair indicator to tell the others that they were in a very dangerous position.
The other Death Eaters had been on the edge after the events at Hogwarts.
Their Lord had not been open with his thoughts, but something in the air told the men about the impending danger.
"No...my lord." Randolph was the one who took the initiative to speak, though his eyes spoke volumes of the fear he was feeling at the moment.
"I tried everything possible, my lord. Bagnold has slipped from our grasp." He hastened to explain as the man in front of him had narrowed his eyes in displeasure.
"The Potter Lord has all but assured that the boys don't escape, my lord. And no one in the Wizengamot has the nerve to antagonize the Potter Lord. Especially since Lord Black himself has thrown the entirety of his support behind Lord Potter." Randolph continued after swallowing his fear.
"Crucio!!!" Tom roared as the Lestrange lord felt the unimaginable pain as a result of his lord letting his displeasure known. He screamed in agony, collapsing on the spot and twitched pathetically.
"Fools. You speak of an old man as though he is the second coming of Merlin." Tom hissed in anger and displeasure.
"You fear a bunch of old men who have nothing but a name on their backs." He growled out.
"Almost the whole of the future generation of my Death Eaters is now in Azkaban due to your incompetence. You have assured me that you will have the ministry under control." Tom furiously pointed out.
"We had my lord. Before this year both the Potter and Black lords had been absent from the Wizengamot and the overall politics. The two have a lot of sway in the body. And as predicted, they took back control." Jugson pointed out hesistatingly.
"You should have still done better." Tom snapped.
"I can manage to tame the Dementors but for that, we need to have enough sway in the ministry so that any suspicions would be avoided." Tom frowned.
"They should not get any idea that the Dementors are under my control. We can make Azkaban a very important base for our plans." He explained just as his expression turned stormy.
"And your foolish heirs had to go and mess it up. The future of all my plans is getting ready to be booted to Azkaban." He growled.
"Get out. There is a trial, isn't there?" He questioned, receiving nods in return.
"I want all of them to be freed. I need Lucius Malfoy. He still has a lot to account for in my plans. Make sure that you fight tooth and nail to get your heirs out." He ordered.
"But, my lord. Lucius….." The hooded man collapsed screaming in pain as a red beam of light hit him head-on.
"I do not take lightly to being interrupted when speaking. Hold your tongue." He hissed tongue at the twitching man.
"Do as I have instructed. I want results. Get out of my sight." He roared and the men rushed away from the room as quickly as they could.
"Fucking imbeciles" he hissed in anger and raised the glass of red wine next to him to calm himself.
All his plans were proceeding smoothly, but that Potter boy had messed up a lot of his plans. He lost Abraxas Malfoy the day he had arrived and he had yet to recover from that blow. The man might be a bastard, but he was an expert in manipulating the political world. Not to mention that he was also financing his vision without any qualms.
He would make this work. He had dreamt a lot about his methods, his vision and he would be damned if it got messed up due to some egotistical idiots.
He was Lord Voldemort. He was better than the rest. He was different from the rest. He can achieve more than the rest.
"Soon…." He hissed, his vision filling with images of him sitting atop this world and ruling with an iron fist.
"Soon."
--&&&&--
"Harry. You are glaring." James whispered from next to him as Harry realized that he had been glaring at the reporters. Thanks to Rita Skeeter, Harry had grown to hate and loathe the reporters, especially one's from the Daily Prophet.
"Can't help it. Our face-offs haven't been good and I certainly don't want them anywhere near me." He muttered out in a displeasure.
James and Sirius had stubbornly refused to Harry's argument of them not attending the session. They had been adamant about accompanying him and Narcissa.
Harry let the two boys step into the gallery. After that he walked straight into the Wizengamot chambers. Upon his arrival the room fell silent. It was the second time he was entering the chambers and he felt the signs of an approaching headache due to the constant muttering and pointing.
He walked straight towards the neutral section and occupied his seat between his father and Lord Black.
"Let's not drag this session too long. Is there any way that this trial can be done quickly? She is not in the state to talk about it and in front of so many of them." Harry whispered.
"Believe me, I would have done the same if it was possible. But this is a high profile case. A lot of pureblood heirs are on the line. You have to understand that they are going to make this very difficult." Arcturus grumbled out with narrowed eyes.
Dumbledore and Minister Bagnold took their seats at the front of the room.
"Let us begin the proceedings." The Chief Warlock said as he began the session.
A tall and thin man with a mustache that almost resembled that of Hitler's stood up.
'Barty Crouch.' Harry thought recognizing the man in front of him.
"The DMLE has arrested ten students this last week at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, due to the accusations of attempted rape on a girl." He announced as angry mutterings started to be heard all around the room.
The doors opened and Alastor Moody along with Edgar Bones and five more Aurors led the Slytherin boys into the courtrooms. Their hands were bound and they looked worse for wear.
Harry grinned ferally. Bellatrix and Sirius had not taken kindly to the attack on their sister/cousin. The various scars and blackened wounds told volumes to Harry about their reaction.
"The following are the students who were caught at the crime scene, they have been apprehended and have now been brought forward for their cross-examination. We would also like Ms Narcissa Black to join us along with her attorney." Barty Crouch announced to the room.
Narcissa stood up and Harry could see the unease on her face. He had to be there for her. He stopped Arcturus who was about to join his granddaughter, and he stood up.
Dead silence met his actions as he slowly walked to the girl and led her to the prosecution area, smiling to ease her nerves.
"Witness for Ms. Narcissa Black, Harry James Potter lord of the most ancient and noble house of Peverell." He said from next to his girlfriend, challenging any others to dare to interfere. "I will also be speaking on her behalf." He said.
The man standing adjacent to Harry smirks at him. Harry identified David Yaxley. One of the leading attorneys in Magical Britain. He had to save his nephew after all. Corban Yaxley was one of the students that had been caught in this mess.
"Very well, Mr Yaxley.?" Dumbledore began.
The tall dark-haired man then walked to the center of the room.
"Your arguments, Mr Yaxley."
The man cleared his throat as he gathered the attention of the courtroom.
"Lords and Ladies of the Wizengamot, a grave injustice has been done to these esteemed heirs of ancient and respected families." He began.
"On the twentieth of February, Lucius Malfoy and nine other of his friends had been falsely accused of sexual assault on Ms Narcissa Black." He announced to the courtroom. Harry could feel Narcissa shuffle nervously on her feet. He knew that it was a very sore subject to her and she was still far from forgetting the ordeal that she had gone through.
He gently squeezed her hand, offering comfort to the girl.
"These are not baseless accusations, Mr Yaxley. I would seriously advise you to reexamine your facts before presenting them to this esteemed body." Harry smoothly answered from across the man.
The man glared at the interruption from the young man, but he had work to do. The Dark Lord would not be pleased with him if he botched this up.
"As I was pointing it out, before the rude interruption from Lord Peverell, the accusations that have been made are not true, Chief Warlock." He drawled and Harry had to fight the urge to strangle the man. That tone. That tone was trademark Lucius Malfoy. He certainly was trying hard not to kill the son of a bitch for what he did. He was somewhat unhappy that he had not gotten his hands on the man.
"Just by discrediting Lord Peverells words, you are calling me a liar, Mr Yaxley." Arcturus said as he got the attention of the room.
"Are you sure that you want to call me a liar, Mr Yaxley?" The attorney gulped as he was scrutinized by the pair of steely grey eyes, but he steeled himself.
"Yes. That is exactly what I am accusing you of." He answered loudly causing the room to start muttering.
"Gentlemen." Dumbledore interfered. The atmosphere was tense and it was a good thing that the aged old wizard took it upon himself to break it.
"It's not a question of who is lying. We will be getting the truth out. That is the reason why the trail was called, is it not?" He questioned serenely in his grandfatherly voice.
"But I would request you to consider your words with caution, Mr Yaxley. Lord Black is one of the most respected personalities in magical Britain and a person who fought for our nation. I would urge you to respect the honor of the man." Dumbledore nodded to the elder Lord.
In truth, Dumbledore was always wary of Lord Black. He was a lot like his notorious family but at the same time, very different from the rest of his family.
The man went against his father, brother and elder sister who had thrown in their hats with Grindelwald. He walked to the battlefield and faced off against his blood and stood for his country.
He was a demon on the battlefield. A true warrior. He was sure that almost a huge chunk of Grindelwald's men fell to the wands of Charlus Potter and Arcturus Black.
He then went against a lot of families and married off his sister to Charlus Potter of all people.
Dumbledore had choked on his lemon drop when he had read the news of the union of the Potter Lord and the youngest daughter of the Blacks.
The two men were so similar yet so different. The Potter lord and Black Lord had a lot of ideas that differed but nature wise, are truly the same kind of men.
Both valued their families more than anything in the world. They paid less heed to others' opinions and lived by their morals and ideology. They always did what was right rather than what would be easy.
"Please continue, Mr Yaxley." Dumbledore requested the man.
"As I was saying, Lucius Malfoy and his friends had helped Ms Black that night. The girl had been found in an assaulted state before the boys even found her. This is just an elaborate plan to smear the names of the Heirs of the families." He explained.
"Once again, you better be willing to provide evidence to support those claims, Mr Yaxley. It is a woman's virtue that is at stake here. This is a very serious matter." Dumbledore warned, as he noticed the agitated state of Harry Potter.
"The boys had been obliviated before they lost consciousness and hence, destroying the evidence that could have been procured. The person who is responsible for this chose a secluded spot and because of that, there were no passers-by." He said noting that some of people seemed to believing him.
"We could always bring forth a Mind specialist from St Mungos." Harry offered, a suggestion which was immediately shot down by Yaxley.
"Absolutely not, Chief warlock. We know very well that there would be a lot of sensitive family issues and my clients would certainly not like a third person interfering in their minds." He spoke loudly rejecting the notion by appealing to the rest of the Wizengamot.
Harry had almost had enough. "Why don't we have a look at Ms Blacks memory?" He questioned and held back a growl as Yaxley once interfered.
"Not possible. The memory might be altered as with my clients." He announced.
Harry watched the man shoot a smug grin of his. Harry stared at the man for sometime before he grinned ferally, catching the older man off guard.
"What about Veritaserum?" Harry asked setting his trap, one which Yaxley fell into as he started laughing.
"I admittedly expected a lot more from you, Lord Peverell. Don't you know that minors are exempt from a truth serum test and they must be of age." David Yaxley couldn't stop laughing.
"Of course I know that, Mr Yaxley. Minors are certainly exempt. But not Lord Malfoy, is he?" He smiled and the man paled considerably, realizing where this was going.
"The family title that has been given to any minor, is tried as an adult in the court of law once he/she takes up the family title. So, Lord Malfoy, who according to our traditions is for all intent and purpose, an adult. That means that a veritaserum test can be performed on Lucius Malfoy without any qualms." Harry finished as he saw the man gulp.
"Lord Peverell is right. There is a provision that allows the use of veritaserum as long as it pertains only to the case of the accused. And since Lord Malfoy, in all intents and purposes, is a lord and is emancipated, he must be tested with the truth serum." Barty Crouch spoke from his seat.
Lucius frantically shook his head and pleaded with his attorney, but it was too late as Alastor Moody approached the young man with Veritaserum and roughly grabbed the man by his head and administered the serum.
Harry noticed a few members of the Wizengamot reach for their wands. He stood in front of the seats of the dark faction. "If I see any of you reaching for your wands, I will make sure that you are devoid of your hands for the rest of your life." He warned.
"You bastard!" Crabbe senior screamed as he raised his wand and Harry was quick. With a slash, the elder man's wand arm was on the ground as he screamed in pain.
"Aurors." Bagnold shrieked.
"Arrest Lord Crabbe." Edgar Bones didn't need to be told twice. He fired a stunner and the man dropped to the ground.
"Lord Peverell, Please refrain from using your wand in the courtroom again. You will be penalized for your offense." Bagnold said. Harry nodded, but his eyes didn't leave the dark faction's section.
"State your name and your age." Dumbledore started with the questioning.
"Lucius Antoine Malfoy. I am 17 years old." He said dully.
"State your Hogwarts house."
"Slytherin House." He said.
"Are you responsible for the sexual assault on Ms Black?"
Lucius seemed to be struggling to answer but eventually gave in.
"Yes." He whimpered.
"Why?" Came the next question as even Dumbledores expression grew stormy.
"Revenge on Harry Potter for taking away the girl who should have been my wife. And also to please the Dark Lord." That got a reaction from the people. A lot of screams and gasps rang around the courtroom.
"Are you a willing follower of the Dark Lord?" Dumbledore questioned sadly.
"Yes." The boy answered without hesitation.
"Do you have any remorse for your actions?"
"No. I am unhappy that I couldn't get my hands on the girl before getting caught." He replied.
"Were the other accused willing participants of your plan?"
Lucius scoffed. "They are a bunch of scared shits. They have no spine. I was the one who coerced them into this plan and they followed, although they were willing to carry out their actions." He said.
"Very well." Dumbledore shook his head.
"If I may, Chief Warlock?" Harry announced his presence.
"The atrocity he was about to commit would have been a huge black mark in a young woman's life. Something that would have made her life difficult. He has no remorse for the actions he committed which were vile, cruel and inhumane." Harry had the Wizengamot listening to his every word.
"With that, I move that Lucius Malfoy be pushed through the veil of death for his unspeakable actions and the rest be sentenced to life in Azkaban. It's the least we can do to ensure justice." He said.
"It's high time that this honorable body shows what happens to criminals." He announced and a lot of bangs on the desks could be heard from the Lords and Ladies who agreed with the young man.
Dumbledore couldn't help but sigh. He had hoped that the young Potter would not go so far, but he did. He also had the support of other houses as well.
"Very well. Lucius Malfoy, for plotting this heinous crime and almost assaulting on a member of a Most Ancient and Noble House, you are hereby sentenced to death through the veil. Your assets will be frozen and a suitable compensation would be paid to the house Black for recompensation." He declared.
"As for the others, for aiding a crime of inhumane nature and for conspiring against a Most Ancient and Noble House, you are hereby sentenced to life in Azkaban." He announced.
"Also, each of your families would be paying the necessary recompensation to Ms Narcissa Black for all the trouble she had to go through." He finished his verdict.
Harry had been observing the men for the whole time. He was making them uncomfortable with his stare, but Harry didn't care. After the verdict, he grinned at the men.
"Tell your master that I said hello." He said looking at the defense attorney and walked back to his family.
He put an arm around Narcissa's shoulder and led her out of the courtroom. A man in red approached Harry and gave him a parchment. Harry took the parchment and glanced through it once and nodded.
He placed it inside his robes and started walking out of the ministry.
"Fucking reporters." He spat once again causing Narcissa to giggle by his side.
"It's alright Harry. They are just doing their job." She pointed out.
"Yeah. Their job apparently is to write about another one's life. So demanding." He snarked sarcastically.
"No need to become sarcastic, alright. Let's go back and have something to eat. I am starving." Narcissus felt him nod next to her.
--&&&&--
"Crucio!!" There were already two of them on the floor, twitching and whining pathetically. Randolph, Yaxley and Crabbe had suffered the full force of the dark lord's anger.
He had not been pleased when they had come back and given him the news that his financial backing had taken a major hit and nine of his youngest recruits were now in prison with Lucius being sent through the veil. With that, the Ancient House of Malfoy was extinct and would remain so unless there was an illegitimate heir that many didn't know of and somehow, Tom didn't see that person approaching him very soon even if there was anyone of that sort present.
His thoughts strayed back to Potter. Harry Potter had put a massive dent in his plans. This was the first time he had faced any setback and this setback set him back by months from his original plans. The fact that a boy of sixteen was able to cause so much trouble for him, had angered him.
He grudgingly had to accept the fact that a kid bested him and had been quiet, but not anymore.No. It was time to answer his questions. The boy had not only spoiled a lot but had dared to mock him at every step possible.
Sometimes, Tom wondered what made the boy tick. How can he be so confident and make an open enemy out of him? Did the boy know something that might have been missed by him? Is he just playing around? Or is he a fool?
He massaged his temple as signs of headache were beginning to show up. Due to this mess, he had lost any means of gaining the support of the Blacks. The other woman, Walburga Black was enthusiastic in her support, but her views and ideology were not shared by the rest of her family who were firmly against him.
"What a fucking mess?" He grumbled.
"Mulciber." A hooded figure bowed in front of him. "This has been put up for far too long. It's time that the Potters learn their place." He said softly.
"I want you to take some of my men and attack the elder son on the last hogsmeade visit. Harry Potter and Charlus Potter would need to be shown the error of their ways. It's high time that I get into the act. Till I give you the go, keep the recruitment going on." He ordered.
"Yes my lord." The hooded figure bowed.
"Rookwood? Where are we with Croaker?" He asked another sandy blonde-haired man.
"It's been difficult my lord. Croaker has become extremely paranoid and has moved all his files and folders to a safe area and I am quite certain that none in the department knows about it."
Tom had been curious to know about the identity of Blaze. This man had another headache. He had never expected Antione Malfoy of all people to fall that soon. A lot of recruitment had taken a major hit due to his death and a lot of doors around France had become closed to him and others were getting out of reach. He had not been able to locate the man responsible for this mess and he wanted to have a look at Croaker's files.
"Keep trying. I need to know who that person was." He ordered.
A lot of things have been messing up lately. He needed to act fast. And for that, there was another obstacle. Albus Dumbledore.
His life would have been so much better if the man was dead. But he wouldn't stop now. Not when he was so close to his dreams. A pair of old men and a sixteen-year-old could not stop him.
"I am Lord Voldemort and I will not let such silly matters affect me. There is nobody on this planet that can stop the Heir of Salazar Slytherin." He nodded firmly.
--&&&--
The school had settled down to a normal routine after all the fallout from the unsuccessful revenge by the senior Slytherins. Harry's group had now started to focus on their exams that would be starting soon. But Harry had made sure everyone was in top form. He trained every day just like he did before and the others followed suit.
Harry knew that he had provoked Tom enough and he would begin to start acting upon his threats now. He had conveyed the same to his father and his uncle. He knew that he would be closely scrutinized by the Death Eaters after all this fiasco. He had insisted that all of them stay as sharp and alert as possible.
"Bloody Merlin, I have a headache." Sirius moaned.
"Why?" James questioned the boy not bothering to look up from the book.
"There is so much." He moaned pointing to the books. "And bloody herbology is useless." He pointed out.
"You should have thought about it before you took the subject, Sirius." Marlene giggled at his face.
"Hey. Herbology is a fascinating subject." Frank Longbottom defended his favorite subject.
"You are an exception, Frank. I swear that I would say that you are having sex with those plants of yours most of the time, if not for your betrothal to Alice." Sirius piped causing chuckles.
"You got to control that big mouth of yours Sirius." Marlene pointed out with slight disgust.
"Should you use such crass language?" She questioned the boy.
Sirius did something that any other mature boy wouldn't do. Stick out his tongue.
"The git is not mature, nor will he ever be." Harry pointed out from Bella's lap where he was taking a small nap.
"The hero awakens," Sirius says dramatically.
"How the hell do you cope, Harry?" Alice questioned. "I don't see you trying to study a lot. A lot of us are very worried about our exams." She said.
Harry chuckled. "Nothing like that. It's only that I have enough knowledge of what is required to score in the exams. So I won't go overboard." He explained.
"What they do in classes seems lacking to me. I am fairly capable of sitting my NEWTs today and scoring very well." He explained.
"But I have another point. I study at night. I don't know why, but I need a maximum of four to five hours of sleep. So, I study from ten to one before going to sleep. I make sure to listen in class. That is more than enough to get good marks." He explained.
"Unlike these gits who spend the class scheming for pranks and sleeping." He pointed to the other Marauders.
Lily, who was silent until that point, was about to speak before she thought otherwise and remained silent.
"You have to speak to him and clear your mind, Lily," Marlene whispered. "If not, you will never speak with him."
"What if he is still mad at me?" Lily questioned worriedly.
"Just speak to him and clear this confusion," Alice whispered to her.
Lily nodded as she saw Harry get up. She followed the boy as he walked away from the group.
"Harry?" The boy stopped and turned to her. "Yes?"
She suddenly felt nervous and scared.
"I'm… I am sorry." She blurted out.
Harry chuckled as his mother from his original timeline shuffled nervously.
"You don't have to apologize, Lily. It was in the heat of the moment. Pay no mind to it." He waved her off.
"But you have to admit that you were pretty harsh on him." Lily nodded as she felt ashamed of those words she said that day.
"In the end, if James can forgive you, then I certainly won't make an issue out of it. To be frank, I had let that issue slide away a long time ago." He pointed out.
"Why didn't you say anything?" She frowned in confusion. Harry grinned mischievously.
"Because it was fun to see you all nervous and shuffling in front of me."
"Oh, you…" she slapped his arm but couldn't help but chuckle along with him.
"Just do me a favor and give him a chance." Harry requested the girl. "He could be a pain in the arse, but he is a wonderful person."
Lily smiled." I know him better than that. And you do not need to vouch for him. I genuinely am very much interested in him. It's just that, I was scared to admit my feelings for a boy to whom I had been saying no for the past five years." She explained.
Harry nodded. "You are the one that is being pursued by him and he is the one that needs an answer. Others don't matter here at all. It's your life. I would recommend that you do not pay heed to what they think. It is not them that has to live with your decision, is it?" He questioned.
Lily frowned curiously. "For someone so young, you feel awfully old, Harry. Why is that?" She questioned
Harry shrugged. "Someday, I hope that I can give you the full story."
Lily nodded.
"I'll wait." She said.
"I will be back soon. Do you need me to get you anything?" He questioned the girl as he turned back and started to walk away.
"No, I am good." She replied as she went back to the group.
She pushed open the door to the Room of Requirements and was faced with the expectant face of the others.
"What?" She questioned.
"What happened?" Alice was the first to ask her.
Lily chuckled.
"It's fine. We have solved our issues." She joined the group. James placed his hand on hers.
"Did he say anything? Should I speak to him?" She smiled at the boy.
"No. We are fine James. He had apparently forgiven me a long time ago." She said.
"Git." James chuckled after hearing their entire conversation.
"That may be an understatement." She grinned before leaning forward and kissing his cheek.
"I can't wait for the next Hogsmede trip." James smiled dreamily as he touched the spot where she placed a kiss.
Lily blushed a little before burying her head in the book to hide her blush.
"Me neither." She whispered as quietly as possible.
--&&&--
"That was brilliant." Andromeda pushed a strand of her light brown hair away from her eyes as she brought her breathing under control. The body next to her was still panting from the pleasurable activity they had engaged in.
"Yes. It was."
Andromeda smiled as she heard his voice. He was still in a daze. In her daze.
"Andromeda?" The boy broke her from her thoughts.
"Yes, Ted?" She replied.
"I love you." He said in an almost smug tone that she did not notice.
Andromeda should have known that it was impossible. And right after sex. But she was so carried away by his charms that she couldn't see if he was sincere in his admission or not. It was only twenty days since they had started seeing each other.
But Andromeda didn't see the entire picture clearly. So desperate she was to find love that her sisters had found, she had latched onto Ted Tonks quickly.
"I love you too, Ted." She whispered happily.
She glanced at the boy next to him. He was not tall or built like a model, but he was rather handsome. Short brown hair and a round face.
'He is no Harry Potter.' A weird voice that sounded suspiciously like her own spoke on her head.
'Where did that come from?' She thought.
She shook her head. There was something not completely satisfactory like something was wrong and out of place but she was not able to place it.
She shook her head once more.
"I love you too Ted."
TBC--
Ok. That's that for now. Well, I hope this chapter met your expectations. I am very happy with the response that I am receiving such a good response to this fic. I hope you continue to read and review.
As I mentioned, I hope to see you at my discord server.
htt ps/disco rd.gg/g9M SqB GDgJ(no space)
I would also like to point out that I have a patr3on server in which you can read 4 chapters ahead.
The link goes like this-
ht tps/ ww w.patre /hadrian potter peverell( no space)
I hope you join up and support me.
I would also like to announce that my new fic
"Here we go again" will be live on the patr3on portal and for now, will be exclusive. I hope most of you join up and enjoy my new work.
Here is a gist of my work..
".
The Goblin warriors in the bank braced themselves for an attack on their bank, but imagine their surprise when two human bodies crashed in their main hall.
"Centuries old wards. How in the name of Gringots did these two bypass our wards?"
"I am as curious as you are, Bearclaw."
The older goblin replied calmly as he pointed toward the male figure who had three rings on his finger. Their subject of interest was the first two that adorned his finger.
"--
Well, I hope I will see more of you at my page. With that, I will take my leave. See you guys soon…..