The Eighth Year Universe
Love Wins
Time Makes you Bolder
The chapter title comes from the song:
Landslide – Fleetwood Mac.
In St Mungo's, the mood was dire.
Victoire had shown up earlier than she needed to, and when she bumped into Nevee in the locker room, she discovered that her best friend had the same idea. They were both nervous, so they had grabbed coffee to settle their stomachs a little, then they had headed to their favourite place in the hospital.
It was a glass bridge, and it connected the main hospital with the maternity centre. At this time, the corridor was empty, visiting hours weren't for ages yet, and most Healers were switching from the night to the day shift.
The two girls sat down and watched the world go by outside the glass. They were silent, both of their minds elsewhere. So they didn't hear the clicking of shoes or notice another presence until Edith sat down next to them, also cradling a coffee.
"What are you doing here?" Nevee asked.
Edith fought a yawn, "Finishing a 14-hour shift, that should have been a 12-hour shift, but you know how it goes."
The other two nodded, and they all fell silent again.
"Is there a reason we're all depressed today?" Edith asked.
"We're going to Hungary," Victoire said, motioning between herself and Nevee, "On a mission with the Aurors, that's all we can tell you."
Edith nodded and leant against the glass.
"And I hate Caius," Nevee added. Caius was the Healer she had been sleeping with, who had just yesterday announced his engagement.
"He's marrying Louisa Holmes," Nevee sighed, "Who looks perfect and isn't from the Closes."
"Fuck Caius," Edith said matter of factly, "You should be with someone who appreciates you, not someone who just wants sex. And it doesn't mean a damn that you're from the Closes, Nevee. You're one of the best Trauma Healers this place has."
Nevaeh raised an eyebrow at her, "Oh, Edith, I'm blushing. Do you think I'm going to die or something? Is that why you're being nice to me?"
Edith rolled her eyes and nudged Nevaeh half-heartedly, "You'll be fine. You two will have each other's backs."
Nevaeh nodded thoughtfully, "Why are you miserable besides the 14-hour shift?"
Edith sighed, "I broke up with Alex. We argued, I found out he doesn't want kids, and I do so…" she shrugged, "He's moving back to Greece."
Victoire drained the rest of her coffee and rubbed her eyes, "Charlus is in love with me. He wants to have a relationship."
"Boys are stupid," Edith muttered.
"I'm gonna start sleeping with girls," Nevee said miserably.
"Girls are just as stupid, but they are usually more dramatic too," A new voice said.
They all looked up at Lilly. It was funny how she could look so put together when she was out with Daphne Potter – she was all red hair, red lipstick and lovely dresses. Most of the male healers (and some female ones) would stare at her when she walked out, obviously heading out for the night in a tight dress. For being over 40, she wore it so well.
But then there was this version of her – the Lilly Longbottom who didn't give a shit what she looked like because she had spent the entire day, or night, saving people's lives or birthing babies. Her hair was drawn into a bun, but it was a mess, with strands of hair falling from it. Her glamour charms were wearing thin, and she had about three different types of stains on her Healers robes.
She sat down with them on the floor, also nursing a cup of coffee.
"You finishing a 14-hour shift too?" Victoire asked the senior Healer.
Lilly scoffed, "You're complaining about 14-hour shifts? I've been here since yesterday morning. We had a different work ethic when I was younger. I worked for like 30 hours, then found out I was pregnant with twins once."
"Did they not have labour laws in your day?" Nevee asked sarcastically.
Lilly snorted, "Funny. Why are we all sitting in a corridor deciding we're going to stop shagging men?"
"I'm pretty sure you're the only person here who does shag girls, to be fair," Victoire muttered.
"One girl," Lilly cut in, "Woman, actually. God, if you called her a girl to her face, she'd curse you. And also, I'm pretty sure that's not entirely true."
Nevaeh rolled her eyes, "One time. Okay? I got drunk and slept with a girl once."
"Oh, it only takes once, then before you know it, every time you get drunk, you're right back there again," Lilly teased.
"Who the hell did you sleep with?" Victoire asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, who did you sleep with?" Edith echoed.
"No one that you know," Nevaeh said with a wave of her hand.
"Well, if Lilly knows, then it's obviously someone from the hospital. Therefore, we will know her," Edith said matter of factly.
"Stop being all cagey. Who was it?" Victoire prodded.
With a roll of her eyes, Nevaeh replied, "It was Delphi, okay?"
"Delphi?" Edith and Victoire echoed.
"Delphi Black?"
"How many other people do you know called Delphi?" Nevaeh remarked, giving Lilly a glare for good measure, "Did she tell you?"
"She asked me for advice the morning after," Lilly said with a smirk, "You were her gay awakening."
"Wow, you must have been good, Nevee," Victoire joked.
"Oh, bugger off," Nevaeh said offhandedly, "It was a one-time thing, alright? And I'm pretty sure we were joking about the sleeping with girls thing."
Edith swallowed her mouthful of coffee and snorted, "I don't know about that. Men are screwing us over left, right and centre right now."
She pointed at herself, "Break up," then Nevee, "Fuck-buddy got engaged," then Victoire, "Friends with benefits dropped the love bomb."
Lilly raised an eyebrow and took a swig of coffee, "Edith, there are plenty more fish in the sea. Alexei - "
"Alexios," Edith cut in.
"- was very hot and that Russian accent – "
"Greek," Edith yawned.
"Was also an added bonus, but life goes on," Lilly finished, "Nevaeh, get a grip. Caius Selwyn is a sleazy bastard, all he was ever going to offer you was sex, and if you married him, he'd fuck other people."
Nevee made a face but said nothing.
"And Victoire. What are you doing sitting here with us losers when you could be telling Charlus Nott you're in love with him?" Lilly asked bluntly.
"I don't believe in love," Victoire huffed.
"And I'm the Queen of England," Lilly muttered, which made Edith grin.
"She's got a point, Vic. Go get the boy."
"Yeah," Nevee said, "Go tell him you love him. We've got another half hour until we ship out."
Victoire got to her feet, "Fine! But if this goes badly, and we end up breaking up, and my heart gets broken, I'm going to blame all of you!"
"Blame Lilly. She started it," Nevee snorted.
Lilly got to her feet and held up her hands, "I'll give a speech at the wedding!" she called as she walked along the corridor.
"Go home, Longbottom!" A voice called from the other end of the hall. They looked over at Clara, who was a few years older than Lilly and not ageing quite as well. Her dark hair was flecked with grey, and she had a permanently frazzled look about her.
"You've got about three bodily fluids on you, and I don't trust you to deliver babies right now!"
"I'm going, I'm going," Lilly muttered as she disappeared off the bridge.
"Edith, that stands for you as well, minus the bodily fluids," Clara said from the doorway she was hovering in.
"Morning shift has taken over, and I'll make sure these two get where they need to be."
Edith got up and yawned. She walked forward and hugged Vic, "Be safe, and write if you can."
"I will," Victoire promised, kissing Edith on the cheek.
"Do I get a kiss?" Nevee joked.
Edith shot her an amused look, "Don't get yourself killed like an idiot."
"I'll try," Nevee said, "Don't do anything stupid while we're gone, yeah?"
"How can I?" Edith retorted, "You're taking all the stupid with you."
Victoire smiled slightly at the interplay between them, and Clara clapped her hands to get their attention.
"Nevee, let's get some breakfast into you before you ship out. Vic, the clock is ticking; get your arse to Blacknot Castle and tell the boy you love him."
"I'm doing it!" Victoire said, abandoning her coffee and jogging out of the hospital.
Charlus wasn't in the garden cottage, which meant that he was in the castle.
Victoire wasn't scared of his parents, but still, this conversation would be a hell of a lot harder to have in front of his huge, very loud family.
Still, she swallowed her pride and stepped through the intent wards into the entrance hall. She followed the sound of voices down to the kitchen, where Charlus was sitting at the table. The entire family was here, except for Almina.
He was pushing his cereal around, with no real interest in eating it, until he saw Victoire hovering in the doorway.
"Victoire," he frowned, "What are you doing here?"
Victoire bit her lip. The entire kitchen had gone silent.
"Uh…I…I heard what you said to my dad last night, on the beach," Victoire admitted, looking at Charlus and nobody else, "About how you fell in love with me slowly, and…. I didn't realise it right away, but I think I know what you mean."
Charlus's eyes widened, but Victoire kept going, afraid if she stopped talking, she wouldn't be able to start again.
"My dad told me that if you love someone, you should tell them because life is too short to be carrying regrets around," Victoire said quickly.
"Especially with this war coming, so the truth is that I'm terrified, Charlie. I'm in love with you, and I'm terrified, but I don't want my fear to be a regret, so if you want to try and give this a real shot after I come home, then I'm on board with that. I'm scared, but I'll try being scared with you."
Charlus stared at the girl standing in the doorway, but he couldn't seem to find any words.
Hermione raised an eyebrow at her son, "Charlus, are you going to say anything?"
"Yeah, mate, the girl just poured her heart out," Theo said, nudging his son, "This is the part where you say something profound."
"Or, you know, stare at her like a goldfish," Ada remarked.
"A stupid goldfish," Dora added.
Ella rolled her eyes and kicked Charlus under the table.
The kick did the trick. Charlus cleared his throat and nodded, "Yeah, Vic, I…I'm on board with being scared together."
Victoire blew out a breath, "Great because it was really scary coming here and saying this in front of your whole family."
"Yeah, it's not like our mum is the Minister for Magic or anything," Cas drawled.
"And our dad the Head of the DMLE," Ada echoed.
"Yeah, we're just a bunch of commoners," Dora said with a nod.
"Paupers, basically," Ada continued.
"Alms, alms!" Dora began to wail.
"Alms, for us miserable paupers!" Ada joined in.
Sadie smiled in amusement, "Girls, respectfully, shut up."
Victoire was chuckling though, and she looked a lot more at ease than she had done a few minutes ago.
Theo leant forward and murmured to his youngest children, "You two did that on purpose, didn't you?"
Ada winked at her father in response, and Dora just chuckled under her breath.
"Pair of Hufflepuffs, honestly," Theo said, a fond smile on his face as he looked at the two girls.
Charlus had a grin on his face when he got to his feet. He crossed the kitchen and pulled Victoire into a hug, "I'm glad you came."
Heels clicked on the flagstone floor, and Angel stepped past the hugging couple into the kitchen. She raised an eyebrow at them and looked at the rest of the family.
"What did I miss?"
"Oh, you know, just a grand declaration of love," Ella remarked.
"Whose declaration?" Addison's voice asked from the pantry.
Draco rolled his eyes, "How many people live in this castle? Have I got half the population of wizarding Britain in my castle?"
"Your castle?" Theo asked, raising an eyebrow at his best friend, "Last time I checked, it had both of our names on it."
"Yeah, but it's called Blacknot castle, Theo, not Nottblack Castle," Draco interjected.
Theo flicked him with a hex and called, "Addison, when the hell are you going home to your mother?"
"When she stops shagging her girlfriend in every room in the manor," Addison returned.
"That's a fair comment," Theo said, looking at the other three.
Hermione rolled her eyes, and Draco kicked Theo under the table.
"Is it always like this?" Victoire asked Charlus, a slight smile on her lips.
"Always," Charlus chuckled, "You sure you want to give this a go? Full disclosure right in front of you."
Ada and Dora looked at each other and frowned, "I'm offended," they echoed.
"Be offended quietly then, brats," Cas said as he got to his feet and patted Charlus on the shoulder on his way out of the kitchen. It was as close to approval as he would get from his teenage brother.
"You should eat something, Victoire," Sadie said, motioning to the bench seats on either side of the table. "I know you're probably nervous about shipping out, but in my experience, international apparition does horrid things to you on an empty stomach."
Theo shot her an amused look, "If you're talking about the months you commuted to Egypt, then you do know that was probably just morning sickness, right? Not the international floo travel."
Sadie gave him a long-suffering look, and Hermione cut in.
"I wasn't pregnant when I had to floo back and forth to Germany for a case, and Sadie's right, it makes your stomach churn if you haven't eaten anything."
"Have a pastry or something then," Theo said, nudging his head towards the table.
"Welcome to the family," Draco said with an amused smile, "They are feeders, all three of them."
Victoire laughed and grabbed a croissant, "This is so lively. I grew up with just my mum. I saw my dad and my half-brother at the weekends, but breakfasts were never like this. It reminds me of my Grandma's house, actually."
Hermione smiled slightly, "Would you ever have expected to hear that, Draco? That this reminds someone of the Burrow?"
Draco smiled back at her, "No, but I'm not bothered about it either. The Burrow was held up by superglue and love. That's not a bad thing to be compared to."
"Ugh, Dad, could you quit getting sappy?" Ada asked with a roll of her eyes.
"Yeah, we're glad you and Mum are together again cause it was getting weird seeing Mum and Pops snogging in the study, but could you be less cheesy about it?" Dora echoed.
Hermione nearly spat her coffee out, Theo chuckled, and Sadie shook her head in exasperation as she caught Draco's eye.
"It's literally always like this," Charlus muttered, "It's why I moved into the Garden Cottage."
"Where you live with Angel?" Victoire asked.
Charlus nodded and lowered his voice, "You don't have to worry about that, though. I think of her like a sister, and she's been hopelessly in love with this guy she works with forever."
Victoire chuckled and took a bite of her croissant.
Hermione looked over at them with a smile, "If you want to see Victoire off, you had better go, Charlie."
Charlus nodded and put an arm around Victoire, "Thanks, Mum. Oh, and Dad, I don't blame you for signing off on the mission, you know. You were just doing your job."
Draco smiled and nodded at his son, "Thanks, Charlie. Now, on you go, see your girl off at the apparition point."
Charlus grinned and took Victoire's hand, "I will," he said, pulling her out of the room.
Theo smiled and put an arm around Sadie, "They remind me of us."
"Why, because Charlus eventually grew up and realised that there was a profound relationship waiting to happen right in front of him?" Sadie quipped, raising an eyebrow at her husband.
Ella snorted and got to her feet, "Solid burn."
"It's always the quiet ones," Theo said, grinning at his wife.
The air in the kitchen of Potter Manor was relatively lighthearted, to begin with, that morning.
Thea was reading Witch Weekly, and Andrea was silently judging her for it. Alastor had his head buried in a book, and Teddy was flicking through the newspaper's sports section.
Thea swallowed a mouthful of blueberry muffin and asked, "Is four a lot?"
"That depends on the context," Harry replied from behind his coffee mug.
Thea looked up at him, "Huh?"
"Galleons? No, four is not a lot. Murders? Yes," Harry said sarcastically.
Daphne snorted from across the table, and Harry grinned at her.
Thea didn't even roll her eyes. Instead, she said, "Well, I was talking about boys I've kissed,"
Harry looked up sharply at that, "You're not even in sixth year yet, so yes, that is too many. Four is far too many."
Thea rolled her eyes, "I bet Mum had kissed four boys before she started her sixth year."
"Uh-uh," Daphne said matter of factly, "Know your facts, young lady. I had kissed one boy and one girl."
"And that one boy was Uncle Draco, so it's a miracle it didn't put her off for life," Harry joked.
Daphne chuckled, and Andrea asked, "Who was the girl?"
"Tracey," Teddy replied calmly, "The portrait she's always gossiping to."
Daphne sipped her tea, "Hm, exactly."
"How many boys had you kissed by your sixth year, Dad?" Thea asked sarcastically.
Harry was used to his daughter's way of attempting to rile him up now though so it no longer worked.
"Oh, loads," He said with a nod, "So many boys."
Daphne scoffed, "He had one kiss with a girl, and he said it was wet."
"What girl?"
"Aunt Cho."
"You kissed Uncle Dud's wife?" Andrea exclaimed.
"She was my girlfriend long before she was Uncle Dud's wife," Harry said as he held back a laugh.
"God, we're so inbred," Thea muttered under her breath.
"True, but at least we're not the Black-Notts," Daphne remarked with a smirk, "No offence, Teddy."
"None taken," Teddy chuckled, "Mina would have been offended if she were here, though. She's so defensive of her family."
"Ah, they all are," Harry said offhandedly, "It's nice how close-knit they are."
Thea nodded, "How many people had you kissed before your sixth year, Ted?"
Teddy looked up and thought about that for a minute, "Uh, three. Nevee Hall, Delphi and Stevie Burns."
"You kissed Delphi?" Harry asked in surprise.
"Yeah, we weren't a thing or anything though," Teddy said offhandedly, "It was awkward and weird. She said she thought she liked girls, but she didn't know for sure, so I kissed her, and she said it was disgusting."
"Maybe you're just a bad kisser," Thea snorted.
"And it was four," Alastor added, "You're not including Nick."
Teddy looked up at Alastor, "Dude, really? That didn't count; it was for a dare."
Daphne raised an eyebrow at him, "Do you really think we don't know that you have been in love with Nicholas Wolfe since you were about 15 years old?"
Harry snorted and leant back in his chair.
"You know?" Teddy asked in surprise.
"Of course I know," Daphne replied calmly, "You spend an awful lot of time at his flat with him, Nina and Almina. I don't know why you felt uncomfortable telling us."
"I didn't," Teddy admitted, "It was more Wolfie. If we told you guys and not him, it would be weird, and I don't know how he's going to be about it."
"I think he'll surprise you," Harry said honestly.
"And I think you ought to invite them around more often," Daphne said calmly, "Poor Nina has no family. You should invite her and Nick along to Christmas this year."
Teddy smiled and nodded, "I will, Mum. Thanks for being so cool about it."
"It takes a lot to phase us," Harry remarked with a smile, "I thought you would have worked that out by now."
"You really should have," Al said dryly.
Harry smiled slightly and cleared his throat, "Now, your mum and I do have something to say this morning. Teddy already knows, but this will be news for the rest of you - "
"You're going to Hungary to fight the Statute Saboteurs and save the world," Alastor said, his tone still dry.
Harry and Daphne looked at him in surprise, "How did you know that?"
"You and Teddy fight loudly," Andrea said, giving her father a pointed look, "And you're terrible with silencing charms."
"You really are," Thea snorted, "You know, Laurie said she's never heard her parents have sex. She was was like maybe they don't even have sex - "
Harry choked on his coffee, and Daphne hid her grin behind her mug.
"But you two always forget silencing charms. I wish I hadn't heard you," Thea said with a roll of her eyes.
Daphne shook her head in amusement, "We will endeavour to get better at casting silencing charms if you stop kissing so many boys."
Thea weighed that up then nodded, "Okay. But I've got to make up the numbers, haven't I? Al likes kissing boys, but he's so shit scared of them that he's only kissed one, and Andie likes kissing girls."
"I do not like kissing girls!" Andrea remarked. She flicked a stinging hex at Thea for good measure.
"Ow!" Thea exclaimed, swiping across the table at her sister.
Harry rolled his eyes, "Guys! We are leaving for Hungary this morning, and we expect you four to look out for each other while we are gone."
"Not throw curses at each other," Daphne said, giving Andrea a pointed look.
"She called me a lesbian again!"
"I know, but you should know better by now," Daphne said calmly, "She is trying to get a rise out of you, Andrea."
Harry crossed his arms and nodded, "Three of you are adults and Thea, as you've said yourself, you are nearly 16 years old. We trust that you can look after yourselves without cursing each other or burning the house down."
Thea nodded and cast her gaze down.
Teddy sighed and got to his feet, "I'm sorry about the things I said the other day, Dad."
Harry shook his head and pulled his son into a hug, "You were right, Teddy. I kicked you off the task force because I was scared."
"And because I forced him to," Daphne added.
Teddy pulled away from the hug to look at his mother.
"Because I am terrified of anything happening to any one of you," Daphne finished, "But I was wrong to ask your dad to do that, Teddy. You are an adult, and you are old enough to make your own decisions."
Teddy sighed and hugged his mum quickly, "I appreciate the apology, but you were right in this case. I am needed here; Nick needs me."
Harry nodded and patted his son on the shoulder, "You look after him then, the way you always have."
Teddy nodded. He took a step back and breathed in deeply, "Look, guys…this thing with me, Nick, Nina and Almina…it's real, okay? It's not a phase. I love Nick as much as I love Almina."
Harry and Daphne both nodded.
"And once this is all over, I'm moving out," Teddy finished, "We've been saving up, the four of us, and we want to buy a flat. Off our own backs, you know?"
Daphne smiled slightly, "Okay. I'm happy for you, Teddy."
"We both are," Harry added.
Alastor snorted, "Literally everyone knows you're in love with Nick, so this isn't really the big 'coming out' you expected. Is it?"
"Coming from you?" Andrea retorted, "With the glass door on your closet."
"Andie!"
"We knew you were gay, Al," Harry said with a chuckle, "And it's alright, really. When we told you to be whoever you wanted to be, to love whoever you wanted, we meant it."
Alastor nodded, "Yeah…uh, thanks, guys."
Thea clapped her hands together, "Congratulations on telling the fam that you dig boys, Alastor. That was bold of you, it's a real big shock, honestly."
"Thea," Daphne said in a warning tone.
Thea stuck her tongue out at Daphne and leaned back in her chair, "And congratulations with your foursome, Tedward. Although I don't think it's fair that Teddy gets to have a boyfriend and a girlfriend, and I'm not even allowed to have one boyfriend."
"You're 15 years old, Thea," Daphne said matter of factly, "That's the difference."
Teddy snorted, "Thanks anyway, Theodora. And thanks for letting me tell everyone in my own time, Dad."
Daphne glanced at Harry in surprise, "You knew?"
"Yeah, I worked it out a few weeks ago," Harry said offhandedly.
"Harry Potter," Daphne said with an amused smile, "For once in your life, you were not that oblivious."
Harry chuckled and held his hand out towards Alastor, "Look after Grandpa while we're away."
Alastor took his hand and shook it, "Of course."
Harry held out his arms for Andrea, who got to her feet and hugged him tightly.
"I'll keep Thea in line," She promised.
"Thanks, honey," Harry said, kissing her on the forehead then looking at Thea.
She rolled her eyes but got to her feet and hugged her dad. She wanted to act like the cool, calm, collected girl everyone thought she was, but the words, "Come back, Dad," fell from her lips anyway.
"Always," Harry said, patting her on the shoulder and smiling at his four children before leaving the kitchen.
Daphne smiled too, although it didn't quite reach her eyes.
Alastor got to his feet and hugged her, and Daphne wrapped her arms around him.
"If things look bad, you make sure you tell Grandpa I love him, alright?" Daphne asked, drawing back from the hug to look at her son, "If he asks for a message from me, then you tell that he wasn't always perfect, but I've always loved him."
Alastor nodded tearfully, "You're going to come back, aren't you?"
"Of course I am," Daphne promised.
Then she held out her arms and said, "Come here, girls."
Andrea and Thea both walked over, and Daphne hugged them both, placing a kiss on each of their foreheads.
"Look after each other," She said, drawing back to smile at Teddy, "All of you."
There were nods and choruses of 'yes, Mum' and goodbye. Then Daphne took her leave, keeping her false smile on until she reached Harry in the entrance hall. Then, and only then, did she let out the shaky breath that she had been holding and allow any tears to fall.
Harry gripped her hand, his fingers intertwining through hers.
"It's going to be okay," He promised.
"What makes you so sure about that?" Daphne asked, glancing over at him.
"Because we're together," Harry replied softly.
"I hate this."
Neville nodded and walked along the path with her, "I know. But it's not like we have much choice, is it?"
Lilly sighed, her eyes on the house ahead of them. It was called Ivy House, and it was a horrible structure – terribly Georgian, designed to look bigger and grander than it was. But then again, that just summed up the family who had always lived in it – the Corners.
And yes, maybe Lilly was unnecessarily cruel where they were concerned. Still, Neville could condone that, considering her history with Michael II Corner.
When they reached the front door, it swung open automatically, and the Longbottom trio stepped in before their parents.
"We're here, Granny!" James yelled.
"We're outside, Jamie!" Linda's voice returned.
Lilly took a steadying breath and stepped into the entrance hall.
"It's a quick drop off," Neville whispered, "Don't lose your temper with anyone."
"I'll try my best," Lilly muttered in response.
Neville gripped her hand tightly, and they walked through the house together to join their children in the back garden, which wasn't very child-friendly. It was full of ornate ponds and flower gardens. The Corners had been trying so hard to be like the Malfoy's that Lilly was surprised by the lack of peacocks.
"Hey, Lilly!"
Lilly smiled at her half-sister, "Hey Gracie. How are the holidays going?"
"Okay," Grace said, shrugging, "Dad is being kind of annoying lately. He yells at me every time I talk to him with the paper in his hand. It's like living with Satan."
Lilly grinned and lowered her voice, "What have I told you about comparing your father to the devil?"
"That it's offensive to the devil?" Grace returned.
"Honestly," A familiar voice said from behind them, "Would you quit corrupting your sister?"
Lilly put on a smile and turned around, "Mum, hi! How are you?"
Linda planted her hands on her hips and looked at Lilly sceptically, "Give me a break. You're only here because you need a babysitter so you can go off on a big adventure."
"It's not an adventure. It's a very important mission," Lilly said matter of factly, "And babysitting shouldn't be an issue, should it? My children are virtually the same age as Grace; call it an extended sleepover."
Linda sighed and lowered her voice, "Are you ever going to stop being bitter about this?"
"Am I ever going to stop being bitter about the fact that my ex-boyfriend knocked my mother up and married her?" Lilly asked sarcastically. She pretended to consider that for a moment, then she shook her head, "Do you know what? No, I don't think I am."
Linda rolled her eyes and glanced behind Lilly to make sure that Grace was out of hearing shot. The 13-year-old had moved over to Lilly's three children.
There were two years between Grace and Harry and James, almost to the day. She had been born in March 2008, a few days before the twins' second birthday. Laurel was a few months younger and had always known that she was adopted. When people had started asking her if she and the boys were triplets, Neville and Lilly had explained everything to her.
It still weirded Lilly out to think that her children's aunt was younger than them. It was why she hadn't spoken to her mother for at least a year after Grace's birth. They had patched things up, but like any old patchwork quilt, you could still see the places where the rips had once been.
"So you talk to me when it's convenient?" Linda asked, cutting through Lilly's thoughts.
Lilly looked at her in disbelief, "When it's convenient? Mum, grow up! You're a Muggle, but you live in this world. You see Michael's newspapers, there is a war coming, and unlike you, I was a part of this world for the last one."
"And why has that war got anything to do with you?" Linda asked irritably.
"Because she's the best," Michael said before Neville could cut in to defend his wife.
They all looked around to the spot where Michael was leaning against the wall. He brushed his curly brown hair away from his face and stepped forward, "She's the best Trauma Healer St. Mungo's has seen in a long time, Lin. That's why, even though she's a midwifery healer now, she's leading this thing instead of Clara Cauldwell."
Lilly raised an eyebrow at him, "You're defending me? Really?"
Michael sighed, "I've never hated you, Lilly. It's you who hates me, and maybe rightfully so for what I did."
Lilly scoffed and gave him a look that said, 'Yeah, exactly'.
"But I've got nothing but respect for you," Michael admitted, "You've gotta go, so yeah, your kids are going to be just fine here while you save the world."
Linda looked at Michael sceptically, and he caught her eye, "Cause that's what this is, Lin. She isn't going on some stupid suicidal mission; she isn't chasing adventure. She's saving the world because that's what your daughter has always done."
Neville looked between them and whistled, "Michael Corner, calling someone else the best at something and caring about something other than himself? Holy Mother of Helga, maybe the world is ending."
Michael laughed and patted Neville on the shoulder, "Shut up, man."
Lilly could have rolled her eyes because of course Michael and Neville were still friends. But no, she didn't. Instead, she nodded and said, "Thank you, Michael."
Linda sighed and nodded, pulling her daughter into a hug, "You go save the world then, love."
Lilly looked over at her children and nodded, "I will. Once I've said goodbye."
Neville followed her, but he let her take the lead.
"Alright guys, that's us heading off," Lilly said with a smile, "We shouldn't be gone too long, and I want you to be on your best behaviour. Jamie and Harry, do not set fire to anything."
"One time," James muttered.
"Honestly, Mum. You can't hold it against us forever," Harry added.
"Watch me," Lilly said, an amused smile playing on her lips as she turned to her daughter, "Laurie, you keep them in line, okay? And if they start pissing you off too much, write to Sadie. I'm sure she'll let you bunk with Ada and Dora for a while."
Laurel nodded and stepped forward to hug her, "Thanks, Mum. Just…be careful, yeah?"
"We always are," Neville promised, pulling Laurel in for a hug.
"I'm not hugging you," James said. He crossed his arms over his chest, "I'm 15. I don't do hugs."
Harry rolled his eyes and nudged his brother in the ribs, then he hugged his mum.
"Hufflepuff," James jibed.
"Pussy," Harry shot back.
Lilly chuckled and hugged him tightly, "Don't let him get in too much trouble while we're gone, okay?"
"Okay," Harry said. He pulled back and held out his hand to Neville.
Neville laughed and took it, shaking it firmly.
"See you guys soon," Harry said.
"Yeah," Lilly promised, "You will."
Neville nodded and pulled Lilly towards the house. When they were out of earshot of everyone else, he whispered.
"Is that a promise we can keep?"
"Of course it is," Lilly said confidently, "With Daphne there to kill any curses and me to heal you all, I think it's a pretty safe bet that we're all coming home from this one."
"Never say never," Neville said, patting the bannister on the way through the hall.
"And touch wood."
"It will be fine," Lilly promised, with confidence that Neville did not possess.
There wasn't much of a send-off in the apparition chamber off of the Auror department that morning. The mission was top secret; only the family of those assigned to it and high ranking ministry officials knew about it, after all.
Harry stood at the front of the room as everyone else filtered in. Daphne, Neville and Lilly were standing at the front of the room, then everyone else appeared.
John Sheppard was accompanied by his wife. Liz had aged better than John, considering they had both hit 60 this year. John had hosted a poker night, and Elizabeth had refused a party because, in her own words, "Nobody needs to know that I'm 60". Harry still couldn't remember Rob's 60th. Everything after 9pm was blank, thanks to cookies that had been spiked with mandrake leaf.
John was almost entirely grey now, while Elizabeth only had the odd strand in her dark hair. If he was a more vain man, Harry supposed John would care, but he didn't seem to. And Elizabeth would run her hands through it and make a comment about how she liked a silver fox when someone did mention it.
Rob was the worst for it, and he was entirely grey. Harry would normally have smiled at the memories those thoughts provoked, but he couldn't. Elizabeth's eyes were bloodshot, and John looked tired – not as if he needed sleep, but just tired of all of this.
"You make sure you bring him back in one piece, Harry Potter," Liz said, and even now that she had been retired for years, Harry stood to attention when she spoke to him like that.
"Yes, ma'am," He said, smiling at the woman he had once worked with.
"He's going to be a grandad in November," Liz said as she let go of John's hand.
"I know," Harry smiled, "Theo told me. I didn't know who was going to be more excited to be called grandad, him or you."
"Oh, it's a close battle," Elizabeth said, a smile playing on her lips.
John chuckled and reached down to kiss Elizabeth gently, "I'll come home, don't worry."
Elizabeth looked at him and nodded, but her eyes were full of worry.
All the same, John let go of Harry and moved to stand next to Neville. He patted him on the back and put on a smile as he asked, "How have you been getting on, son?"
Harry drew his gaze away from them as the final three Aurors who made up their task force entered the room. He nodded at Cameron Mitchell, whose wife was seeing him off.
"Mitch."
Cameron smiled, "Hey, kid. You called?"
Sam rolled her eyes and kissed him on the cheek, "Be safe."
"Of course," Cameron said with an easy smile as he crossed the room to join John.
"Hey, man," John said when he saw his old friend.
Cameron hugged him, "Hey, Shep. Sorry about Natasha."
"Yeah, we all are," John said quietly.
Across the room, Sam had said something similar to Liz and given her a hug.
The final two Aurors were Oliver Wood and Evan Lorne, who were both being seen off by their wives. Katie was a relatively quiet person these days, not quite as loud as she had been during their Hogwarts years, so she quietly said goodbye to Oliver.
But Ophelia Lorne was less quiet. She raised an eyebrow at Harry and said, "Hey, hotshot Head Auror."
Harry smiled fondly at the woman he had gone through training with, "Not anymore, but hey, Fee."
"You better make sure both these idiots get home," Ophelia said. There was no real malice to her voice though, "Some cheek you've got, sending my husband and my brother into the thick of it."
"They're the best," Harry said apologetically, "I'm sorry."
"Nothing to be sorry for, Harry," Oliver said, clapping him on the shoulder, "We volunteered. That's why we're here, isn't it?"
"To do our duty," Evan agreed.
"To our country, and to those we served with," Harry said with a nod, "For Natasha Wolfe."
All of the Aurors bowed their head in silent agreement. Then the last few members of the team showed up. Bill stepped in on his own, and Daphne caught his eye.
"Lara?" She asked.
Bill just shook his head, and Daphne sighed.
Just after him, Nevaeh entered the hall. She waved a nonchalant goodbye to Clara, who had transported her here.
And finally, Charlus stepped in with his hand in Victoire's.
Nevaeh chuckled and said, "She got the guy."
Lilly smiled slightly and nodded, "Yeah, she did."
Charlus kissed Victoire and let go of her hand.
"I'll be here when you get back," He promised.
She smiled and kissed him once more, a chaste kiss on the lips, "I know," she said, keeping her eyes on him as she made her way over to Nevaeh.
Nevaeh nudged her in the ribs, "Watch out that almost looked domestic."
Victoire rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath, "Shut up, Nevee."
With everyone gathered in the room, Harry raised his voice and said.
"Good morning, everyone. In a few minutes, we will apparate to the Hungarian ministry. We will be briefed on the political situation and shown to our safe house. From there on out, the hard work begins. But I have personally selected this team, and I know that we have the best Reserve Aurors, Healers and Curse Breakers working with us on this one. So I'm not worried."
There were several nods, so Harry smiled out at them all.
"Alright, let's get going then!" He said, waving his wand to activate the international apparition portal.
Lilly took a breath, and Daphne reached down to grab her hand.
"It is always darkest before the dawn," she murmured.
Lilly nodded and smiled ruefully at Daphne.
"Out of the fire, into the frying pan, I guess."
- TBC -
