Chapter 43 – Strike One
The week after they had been rescued from the prison room was an odd one for the group. Things were definitely different than what they were used to. Everyone had their own bed and clothes, they were expected to eat at least three times a day and breakfast always was with everyone at the table, unless someone was sick and, the oddest thing of all … they were encouraged to run around outside and to make noise while inside.
Needless to say, those five and under were the first to adjust to the new experience; something that was exacerbated and encouraged by Laynee's behaviour. Those from five to ten were slowly getting used to their new-found freedom; and while they were more relaxed than those older than them, sometimes they needed gentle encouragement to do things. The first time Harry set up a craft session for them, he ended up in tears as he, Carla and Laynee encouraged and calmed the panicking children who got glitter everywhere and thought they were in trouble.
The pre-teens and teens were another matter entirely. They had only just begun to relax around the people who constantly popped in and out when suddenly, two of their rescuers vanished, making them all on edge once again. It was an odd experience for Harry and Hermione – who had never actually attended a school – to explain such a phenomenon to people who had never even heard of it before. [Not only did this make Harry and Hermione upset on their behalf, but it also got names for a starting point for the ICMB to start investigating because all children should be taught even if it was by tutors]
The breaking point for one of the teens occurred when Draco arrived at their safe house saying he was taking Harry out for a few hours. As soon as she heard that Draco was removing him from the safe haven, the teen revealed her heritage of Jorogumo when she started to transform and attacked.
It took most of the afternoon, but Harry and Draco managed to calm her and explain to all of their new charges that they were currently courting and what it meant and what they had done.
After Draco left to complete a partially finished assignment before preparing for their evening, Harry sat with the distressed teen and cooed at her while running his fingers through her hair. It wasn't until he stopped humming that he caught the softly spoken question from her.
Harry sighed and moved so she was forced to sit up and look at him.
"No Megan," he responded honestly. "None of you will go back to how you were before this happened."
He watched sadly as a girl two years younger than him burst into tears before he could no longer resist and pulled her into a desperately hard hug.
"I wish I could make it so all of you could go back to before any of this happened," he said fiercely. "I wish it was possible to look at a person and know that they were responsible or participated in hurting a child in any way so they can be used as guinea pigs in the worst, most painful medical experiments that can be derived from the collective minds of the world's best Healers: but I can't, and it isn't possible. All I can do is work with you through the memories and emotions and fears that have been left in you."
He smiled softly as he gently wiped away the tears that were still on her face and she giggled wetly when he held a tissue up to her nose.
"All any of us can do is hold you tight enough that everything that is broken starts to heal; and that is exactly what me, Rinnie, Draco, Blaise, Willa and Nicolas are going to do."
"What if it isn't enough?" Megan asked.
"Then we will hold on tighter and bring in as many dogs, cats, Hamsters, snakes, spiders or whatever other animal we can find to help glue those gaps," Draco answered from the doorway. "Just because you may be a little bit more broken than we can fix alone doesn't mean we will abandon you.'
Draco entered the room and sat on Megan's other side and pulled both her and Harry into a hug, reasoning to himself that Harry had semi-adopted the previously imprisoned children as his own kittens, so that made them family.
"I don't know what you went through, and unless you tell me, I never will," he stated, "but Harry has claimed all of you as his, and that makes you family. This means all of you are now our responsibility and we won't leave you floundering. If you want to learn meditation, we will find someone who you feel safe with to teach you. You want to learn self-defence? We will teach you. You are worth it, every single bit of it."
Megan burst into tears and gripped both Draco's and Harry's shirts as they hugged her tighter.
Hedwig, who had been standing in the doorway in case something happened again, left with a feeling of contentment in her chest. These people were good people and were just what these young ones needed; and if she was honest, just what she needed as well.
~~~hopeeveryoneissafe~~~
Harry fidgeted as he and Draco waited for the door to open. Instead of taking his mate out to a restaurant, Draco revealed they were going to the home of the couple he bought Harry's latest book from. He did have something else planned for afterwards, but he didn't tell him that.
After several heartbeats, a beautiful woman opened the door and beamed at them.
"Draco! Welcome to Heddfan (place of peace. Found on ). And this must be your Harry. You were right, he is adorable and I can see why you are so smitten with him"
"Bree! Let the poor Lads in already. You know it isn't polite to have introductions on the doorstep," a cheerful voice called from inside the house with hidden amusement.
"Oh, if I have too," the blonde lady playfully pouted with a wink at Harry as she opened the door wider.
Harry giggled softly and followed Draco into the house.
"It is good to see you again, young Draco!" a matronly woman grated the younger blond. Then she turned her attention to Harry and stopped.
"Oh, dearie me," she whispered, "you are a lucky one young Draco. He is adorable, just as you said."
Draco chuckled as Harry shyly hid is embarrassed face in Draco's shoulder.
"Harry, this is Miss Mabel and her life-partner, Miss Briallen."
"Please call me Bree," the beautiful lady interrupted as she twisted her fingers together to stop herself from smothering the dear boy before her.
"Miss Bree owns the shop I bought the book of healing crystals from," Draco continued with a nod. Then, in a loud whisper that travelled through the room, he added, "and Miss Mabel helped me find the shop. I got lost."
Harry giggled again and waved at the two ladies, who cooed at him.
"Make yourselves at home," Mable stated when she pulled herself together. "I'll get us drinks; is water with mint and lime alright?"
"That sounds wonderful, thank you," Harry replied. "Do you need help?"
"No thank you Dear, but thank you for asking. I'll also bring out staters if you don't mind."
"Would you like us to move to the table then?" Harry asked innocently, causing both ladies to laugh.
"That isn't necessary Sweetling," Bree said when she had calmed slightly. "We only use the table for Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day and dates."
"How cute!" Harry almost squealed. "You still have dates?
"We sure do young Harry," Mabel answered as she bought out a platter of drinks with a plate in the middle holding a large, round loaf of bread. When she set it down, Harry noted it was stuffed with a thick, creamy filling that was bubbling with heat and surrounded with a collection of randomly sized pieces of bread.
"Just because we have been together for almost twenty years, doesn't mean we have lost passion or enjoyment of either life of each other," Mabel continued with a chuckle. "It is just easier for us as we don't have children."
"This looks delicious," Draco interrupted as he noticed the look on Bree's face and tried to change the subject. "What is it?"
"It's a cob loaf with dip baked inside it," Mabel stated proudly. "I was debating on the filling then decided on Bree's favourite one: Mixed seafood in garlic cream sauce."
"It does sound good," Harry said as his stomach rumbled slightly, making everyone laugh.
"Dig in and tell me what you think," Mabel stated.
Harry politely waited for Bree to go first and carefully copied her actions in dipping and eating the new food. Mabel grinned when Harry moaned in appreciation of the taste.
With that, the next few minutes was dedicated to enjoying the delicious treat with no noise except the odd hum of delight and crunch of toasted bread.
"Did you enjoy the book?" Bree eventually asked as she reached for her drink.
Harry, who had just popped a larger-than-polite bite into his mouth, flushed and nodded quickly, reaching for his own drink as he struggled to swallow his food.
"I am enjoying it immensely," he answered once his mouth was empty. "I never thought of using crystals ad minerals to aide in healing, but I think I may start soon."
"Young Draco mentioned you were a Healer," Mabel stated, "said you had a summons the day he had to come for tests."
"Yeah, I was," Harry grimaced, "and it was the biggest waste of time I've ever experienced."
"And lead to the biggest headache for everyone who knows and loves you," Draco agreed with his own grimace.
"Which lead to even more trouble that we are still dealing with now – not that the kids are a problem in and of themselves, but their families are something I could do without," Harry continued. "Can't we just keep them all and not give them back?"
Draco chuckled and ran his hand through Harry's hair.
"You are only saying that because you want kittens," he soothed, "you know we have to give their family's a chance to prove they are innocent."
"Has something happened?" Bree asked worriedly.
"Yeah," Harry admitted as he and Draco exchanged looks. "A few months ago, some uppity red-head tried to claim me as her property after following her submissive father to the submissive's class I was supposed to have with him."
"Harry protected himself," Draco quickly assured the horrified women, "but they decided to get the Ministry involved: So, I got the ICMB involved."
"A few weeks ago, we were summoned for a court appearance at the Ministry building. The red-headed family didn't appear so the four ICMB members who were present took control and we went to their house to sort this crap out," Harry continued, stopping only when his anger at the memories he was re-living started to make the shadows dance. Draco placed a hand on the back of his mate's neck and squeezed gently.
"They weren't there when we arrived," Draco continued, "but we found a locked room with cages holding females and submissive's of various inheritances and ages."
Both women let out sounds half-way between a hissed intake of breath and a shriek of outrage.
"We freed them all and got them safely to one of my properties," Harry sighed, leaning into Draco's hold. "We are healing them physical as fast as we can, but mentally will take longer and most of the young ones want to go home to their parents, but we can't let them go until their family all submits to testing to ensure they are innocent of their kid's disappearance, and that they themselves are spell and potion free."
"It sounds like a nightmare," Mabel stated softly.
"It is," Draco replied just as soft. "The older teens do not trust anyone who is a Dominant – though they seem to make an exception for me since I belong to Harry. That trust still gets overrun by fear though."
"When Draco said he was bringing me out tonight, one of the girls snapped and attacked him," Harry clarified before taking a sip of his drink. "Draco defended himself but because of her history, he didn't want to put her into a position that bought up bad memories or flashbacks."
Bree winced and moved to grab Mabel's hand for reassurance.
"We worked it out," Draco stated. "I left the vicinity after helping to calm her down, then I came back and re-enforced that all of them are family and they won't be left alone to deal with anything. It was just an episode of a scared teen lashing out at someone taking their security blanket away from them."
"What is going to happen to them?" Mabel asked as she squeezed Briallen's hand slightly.
"The thirty-six we found at this place are all from Ancient Clans," Harry stated. "The four ICMB members who were present when they were found have convinced their colleagues to send urgent letters to the ruling bodies of all Ancient Clans present in Europe explaining that a child-smuggling ring had been found and anyone who has had family members go missing to get to the ICMB meeting place as soon as yesterday just in case their missing member has been found and all individuals have to visit their local Healer's Guild for blood tests so any family members they don't know about can be introduced to them."
"They have also been told that before they can see their kids, they have to undergo scans for potions and spells as well as a session under either truth serum or Gryphon quill to ensure they had nothing to do with their disappearance and then a one-on-one meeting with Harry so he can tell them exactly what their child has gone through, what the results were, what he has recommended and what their child has chosen and if they have a problem with it, they can shove it," Draco stated with a grin of enjoyment.
"Nearly every child over the age of twelve is terrified their family won't accept them," Harry stated. "They need to know that someone is willing to stand for them, and it is my job as healer to stand with them. They know that they have a place on Willa's land and a room in my property or even in the property Siri is going to clean out and open for them, so there is plenty of room for everyone."
"What about human interaction?" Mabel asked, "How do they get that?"
"At the moment it is just the few of us who were present when they were rescued," Harry admitted, "but we are hoping to find foster parents or people to act like Aunts and Uncles or Grandparents or older siblings towards them until they are either reunited with their families or can be placed in loving homes."
"Where do we sign and what tests are required for us to undergo?" Bree asked.
"You don't … I didn't …" Harry stuttered.
"We know you didn't come here to get us to do anything Young 'Un," Mabel stated firmly, "We want to help."
"These are children who need to know that there are people out there who think they are special, no matter what," Bree added. "Mabel and I never had children: Mostly because I am unable to carry to full term. I always miscarry before my third month began."
"We decided to give up trying after I was tested and was found to have a barren womb and Bree was discovered to have scarring due to an accident she was in while in her teens. We focused on our relationship and our lives, but have recently begun thinking it was time to try again, this time by adopting or fostering," Mabel cut in.
"It would be good for both of us to help you with your lot as a way of testing the waters before diving into parenthood," Bree giggled.
Harry giggled along with Bree for a reason that completely went over Draco's head, but made him smile.
As Mabel left the room to get more drinks, Bree bought up the possibility of Harry visiting her shop for himself. Harry reacted exactly the way Draco had predicted: with much enthusiasm.
For the rest of the night, they discussed what they would need to do before both Mabel and Bree could become an extra pair of helpers for Harry.
~~~thoughtsarewitheveryonewhohavefamilyaffectedbyCoVid19~~~
The next morning found Harry buried under a mess of kids the second he walked into the loungeroom to do his daily meditation.
"Did you have fun?" Carla asked, revealing to Harry why he was ambushed.
"Did my Draco treat you right?" Laynee added before he could reply.
He could hear the soft laughter of Hermione, Willa and Nicholas from the next room and he got an idea.
"Good morning to you all as well, my kittens and puppies," he murmured to them all. "You all seem to be full of energy today. Yes Carla, I did enjoy myself and he did indeed treat me right, My Laynee, and it came to me that I was being selfish by keeping you all to myself. Therefore, I want all of you to go attack everyone in the house and get them up and ready for today while I finish planning what we are going to do."
"What are we going to do?" one of the more outgoing kids asked.
"We," Harry announced, bringing Hermione in from the other room, "are going to go out to the park next to where Rinnie and I grew up. It is time you made some friends your own age."
"Don't worry," Hermione said with a smile, "Everyone who is here will be with you and, if I know Harry, so will everyone from home."
"Of course," Harry giggled, "and even though they were only expecting us, Carla and Laynee, the rest of us will be more than welcome. Tomorrow the ladies Draco and I ate with last night are going to undergo tests so they can help by taking some of you out in small groups. They will be coming here a few times before that so you can get used the them."
"Why are they coming?" one of the older teens asked suspiciously.
"That," Harry said as he helped one the toddlers to his feet, "is up to you to ask them."
"In other words, he doesn't know," the oldest teen said snidely.
"Actually," Harry responded, staring down the slightly older boy, "I do know why they are interested in coming here. I am not telling you for two reasons: One is that it is for them to answer, should they feel like it. I do not go around giving out your reasonings for why you do things, and others deserve that respect as well."
The boy looked away guiltily.
"What is the second reason?" The girl who asked the original question asked after a few silent moments.
"All of you have been trapped with only those around you here," Harry answered. "This group is so dependant on each other that you have an unconscious habit of excluding those of us who are here to help until it gets too much for you to handle and you snap and try to attack someone."
Towards the back of the group, Megan blushed lightly and shuffled slightly.
"We understand why you do so," Harry continued, "but the truth of the matter is, all of you have forgotten – or have not yet had the opportunity to learn – how to interact with others. I will be getting bonded to Draco at the end of July. It is the beginning of March now. If I have any hope of any of you coming as guests and actually enjoying yourselves, I have five months – or until your family is found and tested, to start getting all of you started on returning to a semi-normal life."
"Why only semi-normal?" Carla asked, causing most of the older pre-teens and all the teens to flinch.
"Because normal is boring, Young One," Harry responded. "Normal means school and homework and work and sleeping and eating and more work, school and homework. Weird, odd or strange is too much for most people to accept, so semi-normal is best. It is normal with a sprinkling of the good stuff mixed in, such as going to school wearing socks with dragons on them, and wearing bright orange singlets under your school shirt, or even going out to an ice-cream shop to do your homework while eating banana splits and strawberry-honeycomb sundaes."
"Wow," Carla whispered, "do you think Blaise and 'Mione will take Laynee and me for an ice-cream homework party?"
"I don't know," Harry replied in a faux whisper, "maybe you should ask them, or pack something to do when you get there and ask one of them for help if you need it, or ask them to read something you wrote to make sure it makes sense."
Both girls gave what they thought was a quiet cheer and ran off in search of their parents to ask them for homework-like tasks they could ask their big brother for help with.
"That was … unexpected," Hedwig stated, blinking after the girls.
"Not really," Hermione laughed, "Harry mentioned three things the girls love the most aside from their parents and their twin brothers: Ice-cream, Blaise and writing stuff for Blaise. He gets at least one letter each from them every day, just so they can let him know they miss him."
"That … That's quite sweet," Megan said softly. She had, at some point in the conversation, moved from the back of the group to the front and had heard the exchange between the two. She quickly turned from their gaze to face Harry.
"Did you mean it?" she asked, voice trembling slightly, "when you said you wanted us as guests at your bonding?"
"Why wouldn't I want you there?" Harry asked, honestly confused. "The moment I entered that room all of you were mine. It doesn't matter if you are re-claimed by your real family or not, I am now a permanent part of your life."
"What do you mean?" Hedwig asked.
"Harry was the Healer in charge when you were found," Blake said from his position in the doorway. "In face, he was the only one present."
He and the other two Heads walked in and sat with a soft moan of pleasure.
"What isn't widely known to the public is that we have needed to start an investigation into the majority of our members," Blake said as he accepted the tea Hermione gave him while Harry saw to the other two.
"It was originally just the Elven Healers," Blake continued after taking a fortifying sip, "but once we discovered that other races' Ministry's had taken it upon themselves to create their own Healers and send them out falsely saying they were registered and trained properly, we've had to investigate everyone."
"It's getting to the point we are thinking of creating a seal to magically imprint into the skin of all our graduates," Emma scowled. "It isn't something we want to do but it might be necessary."
"The point is that at this point in time, there are three Healers that are fully 100% completely trusted by us three and they are Harry, Hermione and Lady Evangeline – who is currently working her way through her second day of testing people in order to see if we have their missing family member here," Blake stated, once again bringing their attention to Hedwig's question.
"We see no problem with other people continuing to see their Healers after we announce the ongoing investigation, but urge them to request to see their credentials as the Guild's papers cannot be forged. In the case of all the young ones here, it is imperative that they see one of our trusted Healers until we can clear their personal Healer's from anything that could harm them."
"This is one reason Harry will say you are his: You are all his responsibility," Emma stated when her male companions paused.
"What is the other?" Megan asked, unable to prevent herself from speaking.
"I want kittens," Harry stated bluntly, causing all those who understood to flush. "I am not yet of age to bond and am under a bonding contract that restricts what is permissible between my Draco and I until our bonding day."
"So, this means what, exactly?" a normally reserved male teen with obvious elven features asked.
"This mean," Harry grinned, "that you are all my substitute kittens until you are with your proper family or find a mate, or move into a place of your own."
The room was completely silent except from the happy humming from Harry as he began packing a large basket of food and the sound of Hermione's hand slapping against her face.
~~~shoutouttoallessentialworkers~~~
Harry received a missive only seconds before they left for the day. Everyone present – meaning all those rescued, Willa, Nicholas, the girls and Ezra, who had taken the day off to help with the Little Ones when informed of their plans – were concerned when Harry's ears and tail lowered as he read it.
"Several of your families have been found," Harry stated in a sad voice. "They are being held for further tests and to be made aware of your medical history from while you were separated from them."
Many of the older children paled and those who had children during their captivity pulled them closer to them nervously.
"The only way they will be allowed here is if they have nothing to do with what happened," Hermione reminded them, "and they will not be seeing you alone. You will have me, Harry and Willa with you."
Those who had paled returned to their normal colour slowly and looked at the three mentioned thankfully.
"You won't be going home with them until we are positive you will not be endangered again," Ezra stated firmly. "It is my understanding that Harry's godfather is opening one of his properties for the families to use for up to a month, so we can ensure proper wards have been set."
"On top of this," Harry stated, still not very happy, "you will be given a ring or bracelet like Carla and Laynee have on that will bring you to me if you are ever trapped, taken, lost or feel scared. It doesn't matter if all that happens is someone knocks on the door and everyone else is in another room; You feel scared or nervous, you come to me."
"Don't mind him," Hermione rolled her eyes fondly, "he's just upset that he won't be able to keep you."
Everyone chuckled or giggled when Harry pouted and looked away from them, proving Hermione's point.
"Aren't we going out?" Laynee asked innocently.
"Yes, yes we are," Harry stated firmly as he snapped his arms forward and pulled her towards him into a tight hug. "Now I feel better. Off we go!"
Harry, still holding a giggling Laynee, ran out the door and was swiftly followed by the more energetic of their guests.
"That boy," Hermione muttered, shaking her head fondly.
"Leave him be, 'Mione," Willa said with a smile. "He has been the busiest of all of us baring Draco: He deserves to act like the teenager he is."
Hermione nodded her acceptance and followed the group out. It was good that her brother was not changing completely.
~~~LetsalltoasttheDoctorsandNurseswhoareworkingsohard~~~
It was just before bedtime for the younger children when the large group returned. Much to Hedwig's surprise, everyone, herself included, had loved the day out. At first, they had been confused and a little hurt at being taken to an orphanage, but that had vanished the second the door had opened and Harry was bombarded by a flock of shrieking kids, all chanting 'Mama P" while Harry himself happily greeted each one, only for the entire scene to begin again with Hermione when she was spotted.
Between the two of them, introductions had been made and within moments, everyone was seated on the ground or a chair listening to Harry make a list of games they could play, and what the rules were. Before lunch, the entire group had played several rounds of 'What's the time Mr. Wolf', 'dodgeball', 'Crocodile, Crocodile' and some game that involved passing a ball to the last person in the row through a tunnel of legs.
Lunch had been a wonderful assortment of wraps, crisps and a large container of mixed sliced fruit. After eating everyone relaxed for a while to allow digestion to start, and cards were produced with the new comers being introduced to Uno, Fish, Snap, Memory, Solitaire, Speed and Jim-Runny before a game of 'Stuck-In-The-Mud' was begun that had all the participants laughing along with the toddlers – who were the ones to crawl through people's legs to unstick them.
The thickening of Harry's magic in the air snapped Hedwig from her thoughts and caused her to raise her own magic in case she needed to use it in defence.
"They are with me, Young One," a voice stated, causing the magic in the air to vanish as quickly as it came.
"I apologise Mistress," Harry stated with a bow, "I had not felt your presence."
The beautiful lady, who fondly chided the boy by telling him to call her by her name, laughed.
"Of course, you didn't feel my presence, Harry. You set your wards to alert you of unfamiliar auras."
Harry blushed slightly and went to say something when one of the fourteen-year-old females let out a shriek of delight and flew at the unknown – and beautiful – couple standing behind and to the right of the elderly elf.
"Gabbie?" the blonde woman sobbed, pulling the younger girl to her while beginning to jabber away in French.
The girl, Gabbie, happily jabbered back, ignoring the happy tears that were streaming down both their faces.
"This is Fleur and William Delacour," Evangeline introduced the couple – who were now both being strangled by the younger girl. "Fleur is young Gabrielle's sister and is married to William. Madam and Monsieur Delacour couldn't be here as they were hospitalized after Madam Delacour severely damaged the man we now believe to have been responsible for Gabbie's removal from her family. Sephtis and Alistair have escorted Mind Healer Yanize to the man's bedside to find out if he was responsible as well as escort the older Delacour couple here."
"Welcome to our Sanctuary," Harry said with a bow in the couple's direction, "if there is anything we can do for you while we wait for the Elder couple to arrive, please let us know."
"There is something, if you don't mind," the very masculine voice of William said. "You can allow me to help with the search for those bastards who did this to our family: Even if it is just taking my advice on where to look for them."
"That would be easily enough done," Alastair rumbled out from behind the couple, where he had just teleported in, "but what gives you the idea you will know where to look?"
"I was previously known as Bill Weasley," William stated, his disgust at the name evident in his voice. "My younger brother, Charlie, and I moved to separate ourselves from our parents when we were old enough to know what was happening around us. The Goblin's managed to allow us a partial emancipation from them: meaning the Prewitt line, but the Minister wouldn't hear of allowing us to leave the Weasley line. Nor would he believe anything we reported about their activities."
William looked down and smiled at the two women in his arms.
"I met Fleur the year after I graduated from Hogwarts and it wasn't long after that we discovered we were mates. That same day I introduced myself to her parents and told them it would honour me to take their family name. When my mother, "he grimaced at the spat word, "found out, she had father disown me from the family, but the family magic never confirmed it."
Silence reigned in the room while the ICMB members that were present silently argued between themselves.
"You should know," Harry stated, breaking the silence, "many of the kids in the orphanage came from bad homes and couldn't stand their parents so we just called them "Sperm Donner and "incubator". You can feel free to use them if you wish."
William, Fleur and Gabbie started laughing and soon Alastair was before them with a terrifying grin on his face.
"Welcome to the group, Mr Delacour," Alastair stated, thrusting his hand at William to shake, "You will officially join the party after the five of you settle into your temporary accommodations and finish bonding as a family once more. Until then, anywhere you can recommend we search will be greatly appreciated."
The grin that spread across William's face as he took the larger creature's hand was terrifying and everyone wondered if he had learnt it from the goblins.
