The Crabbe family home was located on the Island Of Wonder. At noon, Willow, dressed in a pink fluffy robe with black spiders crawling all over it, and Victor, dressed in a simple black suit and robes, flooed to Whitehall Cottage to visit Drusilla. From here they would head over to the Crabbe's residents. Victor had given the Vampiress the cottage so she would have a place to stay sense he really didn't want her living in Whitehall Manor, soul or no soul.
Willow had set up some enchantments for Drusilla and Spike to make the cottage more modern hospitable. There was a working TV in the basement that could get satellite channels as well a fridge, microwave, and telephone. Willow had also bought Crawford Street Mansion in Sunnydale under her old name, Willow Rosenberg. If you walked in the back wall of the basement, you came to a locked door in the wall. The door was brown with a silver handle and ruins drawn on the frame, when you opened it you could walk into the basement of the Sunnydale Mansion. This was a powerful space time charm Willow had created that only her and the Scoobies knew about. The basement was kept under the Secret Keepers Charm with Willow as Secret Keeper.
Willow rotated her finger clockwise threw the air and a small portal opened that Sr. Huggs could pass through. After the snake crawled up beside Willow, the group made its way into the kitchen where Drusilla was waiting. Upon seeing the young girl, the vampire sprang up and hugged her.
"My little tree how you've grown. Come you must tell me and Ms. Edith all that you've been up to sense we last saw each other." Drusilla said happily while clapping her hands. She sat back down at the kitchen table and took a sip of warm blood she had in a Unicorn mug. The painted Unicorn was animated sense it was a magical mug Harry and Willow gave her, that kept all liquid warm. Her doll, Ms. Edith, was sitting in a chair beside her.
"I've been getting ready for school ever sense my birthday. I've completed my essays and met with all my teachers for the practical evaluation, only Potions and Herbology left to do. Most told me if Hogwarts allowed students to jump ahead to higher grades, they would let me. Professor Filtwick was so nice and sweet, and shared some stories about my mom with Harry and I." Willow said.
Victor watched his granddaughter interact with the Vampiress as he sat at the table drinking coffee. It was more like to small girls having teatime with a doll, rather than a Demon and Witch having a conversation. Drusilla would pick up the doll at times and tell Willow some of the humorous things the doll had done or said, and Willow would tell the doll that it should behave more for her mommy. It was all a little disconcerting to the old Wizard. How could this insane Vampiress have guardianship over his grandchildren's magical rights over him.
It was after about twenty minutes of playtime, as Victor called it, when Drusilla told Willow. "Oh, by the way, Angel sent you a present. It's down the hall in your room, and I'm sure he would love for you to have it when you meet your soon to be betrothed."
Willow bounced out of her set as she quickly got up and ran for the door with Sr. Huggs fast on her hells. Victor blinked as he realized that for the first time, he was alone with Drusilla. The Vampiress payed him no mind as she feed her doll a piece of bread from the table. Whitehall decided to try and be nice to the woman, as she was a part of their lives.
"Drusilla, I know you have doubts about Willow's plan regarding Vincent Crabbe, but I'm sure everything will work out for the best." Victor said with a smile. When everything was decided Drusilla and William had wanted to match Willow and Harry with Neville Longbottom and Ginny Weasley, but that wouldn't appease Lucius Malfoy. Willow convinced everyone that Crabbe was the only choice they had.
The attack happened faster than Whitehall could contemplate. One moment he was setting at the table sipping coffee then the next pinned to the wall. Drusilla held him up by his neck as if he weighed nothing with her right hand. In her left was his cane that held his wand at the top. Victor began to claw at her wrist in hopes of getting free.
"Do not think me a fool Wizard, for I know what you truly desire. You hope this marriage will go through. You hope Willow and the little brat can be together, but I tell you now it won't. You think if Willow controls the little foll then it means your sons could have been saved with stronger matches. You also believe this will produce proud strong hares to your family's legacy." Drusilla said in a calm and eerie voice.
Victor's struggling began to slow as he started to lose consciousness. Drusilla lend closer to his ear and whispered. "Willow only agrees to this so as to protect you. If you die, she doesn't need to go into an arrangement. Remember that old Wizard. Your or Vincent Crabbe's death ends this arrangement, that's why I know it will never happen."
Victor fell to the ground as Drusilla let go of his neck. He slowly stood up and retrieved his cane. Turning to look at the Vampiress, that was once again playing with her doll, he thought about cursing or destroying her. Instead he cast a healing charm on his neck and sat back down. The Vampiress paid him no mind.
Meanwhile, Willow made her way to her second bedroom. When Drusilla took over the cottage, it was expanded from one bedroom and bathroom, to three bedrooms and two bathrooms so Harry and Willow could have a place to stay if they wanted. Willow's room was an exact replica of her old room back in Sunnydale. She made her way through the door and saw a basket on the bed.
The young lady heard a hissing coming from the basket. "Mean cold man with no heartbeat, how dare he put me in this small soft cave. I will bite him again as soon as I'm free."
Sr. Huggs looked at the basket curiously. He wondered what kind of kin was locked inside. "Greetings fellow serpent, of what house are you?" He asked.
Willow heard the snake in the basket go quiet. It finally decided to answer. "I am from the poison house, though I am small."
The young witch walked up to the basket and opened the lid. Inside, looking up at her curiously but cautiously, was a beautiful small black and green snake with black eyes. It flicked out his tongue to taste the air. "You taste like a snake human." He said.
"Oh, you're so cute! I'm going to call you Snuggles." Willow said.
"You speak are tongue Witch. I've heard of people like you put never met one. Is Snuggles a strong name?" The know named Snuggles asked.
"No, Snuggles is a cute soft name you are now cursed with. She calls me Sr. Huggs." The Moon Snake hissed.
Willow reached down and picked up the snake that was now asking for a stronger name. Willow ignored him for the moment as she turned to address the other occupant in the room. "Hello Angel." She greeted.
The ensouled master vampire was standing in the corner by the door. He was dressed in his usual black duster and red shirt. He looked at the redhead and smiled. "How did you know I was here. I'm fairly good at masking my presence from you and your snake?" He said.
"Drusilla said Angel, not Daddy, so I figured you were here and wanted to talk." The young witch answered.
Angel took on a serious look as he spoke. "I heard you employed Raza. There is only one reason you would need his help. I already confirmed your mother's magical core was given to your cousin Dudley. He is now a Wizard and will go to Hogwarts this year with you and your brother. I get you had reasons, but why would you do this. It's not like you to play with other people's lives like this." Angel finished as he lend back on the wall and crossed his arms in front of himself.
Willow looked at her friend and tried to figure out a way to explain her actions. " I did what I did because Albus Dumbledore was giving me no choice. There are quite a few things that I need to protect Harry from, and right now he is top of the list."
The Vampire looked confused, but Willow continued. "Do you know what I felt from Harry the first time we meet? Not his emotions, but the horrible thing in his lightning bolt scar? There is a small piece of someone's soul trapped in there and I'm pretty sure you don't need me to tell you who's.
"Is that how Voldemort can still be alive even without a body, does Harry somehow anchor him to the living world?" Angel asked Willow.
"Yes, even worse is that I'm positive Albus knows this and believes there is only one way to kill Voldemort. Harry must die so there is no longer an anchor, and Voldemort himself is the only one that can sever the connection by killing Harry. If anyone else where to kill Harry his corpse would still act as an anchor." Willow explained.
"Are there any other ways to remove the soul fragment?" Angel questioned.
Willow absently picked at a drawn spider on her sleeve that was darting every which way trying to get around her fingers. " I'm not sure yet, I need to do more research. I don't think Voldemort put a piece of his soul in my brother on purpose, so there is probably more behind what's happening than I'm seeing. I'm sure Dumbledore has an idea but therein lies the problem."
The young Witch finally made eye contact with Angel. "Albus Dumbledore has been the leading authority on magic for too long without ever being questioned. He justifies everything he does as being for the greater good and will never admit he's wrong. Even if he didn't know, he kept Lily Potter's soul bound to the Earth with those wards. Even if he did know, he would have seen it as justified to protect Harry. He couldn't have his sacrificial lamb dying to early."
"He doesn't know what really powered the wards. He thinks it was Dudley's core sense he has no idea that you gave him your mother's old core. What did you tell him would have happened if Dudley didn't have a magic core?" Angel asked angrily.
Willow had a guilty look on her face as she answered. "I told him Dudley would have died. It was the only thing I could think of to make Dumbledore regret his actions. I need guilty leverage over him to make him listen when I give suggestions about magic, and to convince him to share his knowledge without hold back information. I believe together we can figure out some way to end Voldemort without hurting Harry."
"You need to remember that you are not the leading authority on magic ether Willow. There's a lot about the World you still don't know. Have you forgotten Sunnydale and the damage you did?" Angel asked harshly.
Willow looked back at Angel angrily. "That is something I will never forget Angel. That was the day I was humbled, and I want to spare Dumbledore that pain before it's too late."
Willow angrily headed for the door and stopped. She looked back at the Vampire and said. "Thank you for the Boomslang Snake." She left before Angel could say anything else.
Willow had calmed down by the time she reached the kitchen. Her grandfather and Magical Guardian where oddly quiet and ignoring one another. She had hopped Victor would have warmed up to Drusilla by now. She thought about reading his emotions but decided not to sense it wasn't nice to pry. She had resolved long ago not to use her powers on friends and family, unless it was an emergency.
Victor stood and they walked to the front door with Sr. Huggs close behind. Drusilla walked with them and hugged Willow goodbye, handing her a letter that was already open. Willow looked at the front to see it was addressed to Drusilla from Arthur Weasley. Whitehall and Willow walked down the short path to the street.
The young witch wondered if they would walk to Crabbe house when a horse and carriage pulled up in front of them. The carriage was solid white with stainless steel wheels and the horse was a white marble moving statue. Willow turned to her grandfather and asked. "Is this the normal form of transportation on the island, or is this your normal form of travel around the island?"
Victor was a little embarrassed to admit that he had never really explored the island. He moved into his cottage and stayed there. All his groceries where bought by the House Elves so he didn't really have a normal means of travel around the island.
"No dear, this belongs to the Crabbe family. Lord Rigel sent it to collect us when I explained how you would like to see the town. He thought you would like to ride in the carriage, rather than walk or ride brooms." Victor said as he helped the young girl climb up into the seat. Sr. Huggs climbed in after Victor.
The ride across the island was what you would expect from an all magic island community. Every house and yard showed signs of magic and wonder. There were quite the few magical pets and garden decorations to delight the eyes. Despite all the beautiful wonder on display, Willow still saw the ugly truth underneath.
The park had a sign that read 'Witches and Wizards only'. Willow was confused at first until she remembered Squibs. It made sense that some adults and children would be Squibs or Muggles that had married a Witch or Wizard. She saw some people in orange robes walking about picking up trash and trimming hedges. She realized that they were probably Squibs and this was the only job available for them. Didn't Harry say the Caretaker at Hogwarts was also a Squib?
It angered Willow a great deal when she thought about how backwards the Wizarding World was. If they would simply acknowledge Earth Magic, they could easily give classes at Hogwarts in a safe environment. A little modification to a couple of magical innovations, like the Floo Network, and they could easily incorporate Earth Magic into their society. Then Squibs would no longer have to live in a Wizarding World without magic.
Looking around Willow saw a small brick school. The sign on the front said, 'Young Sprouts Starting Center'. She looked at her grandfather and asked. "Why do they have a school here? I thought Magic learning didn't start until the age of eleven at Hogwarts?"
Victor looked down at his granddaughter and said. "That's true for the most part dear. That school mainly teaches children how to read and write as well as the basics of mathematics. Some children are taught some Magic at home by their parents or a tutor."
"I thought the Underage Magical Restriction Laws would prevent that?" Willow questioned curiously.
"Well technically you're correct, but because of all the magic used on Paradise Island the Ministry can't really monitor the children. There for the families here teach their kids at a younger age. They are solely responsible for their children's safety and can be fined if they need to go to Saint Mungo's, but other than that it's mostly ignored." Victor explained.
The older Wizard didn't know it but his answer angered Willow further. This was just another example of how the Celestials from magical families where more privileged than those who were from nonmagical families. She was not looking forward to this dinner date and was already in a bad mood before she got to the house. She decided to distract herself with the letter Drusilla gave her. She opened the envelope and found two sheets of parchment. The first read.
'Hello Drusilla,
This letter is in response to the message you sent me and my wife regarding Harry's safety. Though we are a little reluctant to do such a thing as place are daughter in a marriage contract, we understand the reason behind it. Malfoy has always been a bigot that will never let go of the Wizard glory days of old and will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Please let me know if you would also like to place Willow in a fake contract with one of my sons for her protection. Me and Molly will explain things to are children, so they know what to expect.
You will also find in this envelope a second formal letter about the match. This should suffice Victor Whitehall and Lucius Malfoy. Only the Weasleys, Potters, you, Lord Whitehall, and Albus Dumbledore will know the truth. If we need to include others later, we will.
Best regards
Arthur Weasley'
Willow handed both letters to her grandfather. Victor looked them over and said. "This will work for now in keeping the Purebloods of my back. Perfect timing to as Simon Parkinson and his daughter will be at the dinner."
They finally pulled up in front of a two-story brick home that was almost right in the middle of town. The whole town was in a circle layout with the richer families more towards the middle. Willow knew Cornelius Fudge lived close by.
The young girl began to examine the home of her possible future in-laws. The entire house was made of brown brick with two large double doors in the front. The square home sat on a one-acre plot of land with a stone path leading up to the door from the road. It had two flowerbeds along the front of the house on both sides of the front door. Willow noticed that the houses on both sides of the street had almost the same exact layout.
Willow and Victor exited the carriage and walked up to the front door with Sr. Huggs in the lead. Cuddles was curled around Willow's arm under her sleeve. When they reached the front door it magically opened to a small white hallway with a coat and boot rack.
Willow noticed that there seemed to be no entrance to go inside the house. She felt out with her magic and discovered that the wall was there, but also not there. She walked up to the structure and passed through, felling the magic part to allow her in. Her right arm would not cross, however.
"You have to be invited to crossover the security wall. Your familiars don't have an invite so I will need to get someone with magical authority over the wards to give them one." Victor explained as he crossed the wall.
Willow looked from her grandfather to the wall and seemed to come to a decision. The redhead crossed back over to the entrance hall with her snakes. Victor believed Willow tended to stay with her snakes until they were let in. Rigel had not wanted the light blue Moon Snake intimidating Vincent as he tried to cozy up to Willow, and was planning on telling the young witch that the snake couldn't come in today.
Victor was going to beg Willow to simply except the inevitable when the air in front of him opened. His granddaughter's familiars crawled through the opening and Willow fallowed behind them. The young Witch then picked up the Boomslang snake so it could curl back around her arm underneath the sleeve.
Victor was in shock at what he had just witnessed. Wards where the greatest forms of magical security available and, though the wards the Crabbe family used where nowhere near the strongest available, Willow had gone right threw them. There was also the fact that it hadn't registered with the wards at all.
Given enough time Victor could get through the wards on the house. It would take him a day at the most and you would know he was there. He had no idea what Willow had just done.
Just as Victor was finally finding his voice to ask Willow how she had done the impossible, Lady Crabbe walked in. "Good afternoon, Lord Whitehall, Willow, may I show you to the table? Everyone else had just arrived and dinner will be served soon."
Willow noticed that something was wrong almost immediately. Irma was wearing a lovely green evening dress and seamed much livelier today than she did at the birthday party only a few weeks ago. The redhead felt a foreign magic coming from the housewife that instantly made her queasy. The woman had been dosed with a potion to make her happy, but Willow didn't know if she was forced to or decided to take it of her own free will.
The young Witch had wondered what kind of life the woman had in the Crabbe family. She had discovered that Irma was in fact a Pureblood Squib that had been arranged to marry Rigel Crabbe at a young age. The fact that the woman met them at the door, instead of sending a servant or House Elf, spoke volumes to Willow. The Squib woman was on the same level as a House Elf because she married a Pureblood Wizard. She was Lady Crabbe in name only.
The guests fallowed behind the brown-haired woman as she led them out of the Living Room and into the Dining Room. Willow took in her surroundings as the left. The Living Room was furnished with thick brown carpet and a five-piece set of furniture consisting of a couch, love set, and three armchairs. The hole set was black leather. A fireplace was on the back wall with an opening large enough for a full-grown man to walk in, and the walls where light blue.
The Dining Room was black and white checker style tiled floor, with a large rectangular granite stone table and chairs that seated sixteen at a time. As it was situated in the corner of the house, there was a large bay window behind the head seat and on the right wall. The other wall held the door to the kitchen.
Willow noticed Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Pansy Parkinson, and Daphne Greengrass all setting together at the foot of the table. The elders of the Malfoy and Crabbe families where setting at the head of the table, along with Simon Parkinson, Lord Garret Goyle, and a man Willow's never met. Rigel Crabbe sat at the head of the table.
Willow looked at the new guy and said. "How do you do sir? I'm Willow Potter, and you are?"
"Willow, this is Severus Snape, your Hogwarts Potions Professor. Severus, may I introduce Victor Whitehall and his granddaughter Willow Potter." Lord Crabbe said somewhat rude and slow. It was as if he had to think about each word before he spoke.
"Charmed, I'm sure." Snape said in a low drawl as he straightened out his black robes. Willow was trying to get a read on the man's aura, Harry and his friends had all mentioned him in at one time or another. She was curious if was truly evil like Ron said he was, or simply misunderstood like Hermione claimed him too be.
"Will you be around my house Monday to test me in Potions sir? That and Herbology are the last two remaining subjects I need for school." Willow asked curious as she tried to get a better fell for Snape's aura.
"Yes, I'll be along Monday. I hope you have your mother's talent for Potions as you do her looks." Snape said still in a slow drawl.
Victor went to set with the grownups and Willow, after saying goodbye to Snape, sat with the kids. Lady Crabbe went into the kitchen to see how much longer dinner would be. She returned and set with her husband saying appetizers would be out shortly.
Lucius Malfoy looked over to the end of the table and said. "We have private business to discuss children, so we will cast a temporary Privacy Ward in the middle of the room." After he was done talking an almost invisible haze seamed to appear in the air, separating the room in the middle. Irma kissed her husband on the check and came and set on the children's side right beside the barrier, Narcissa and Lady Goyle set down in front of her.
Willow looked at Narcissa curiously as she started up a conversation with the other wives about some newspaper gossip. Didn't she have a say in the affairs of her family, or did she want to be on this side of the barrier to eavesdrop on the soon to be fake couple. She understood why poor Irma was on this side, as she probably didn't have much say in what she herself did much less the family business investments.
Rigel Crabbe looked at his son who was looking nervous at Willow's large Moon Snake. "I thought we agreed to keep those creatures out of my house.!" He exclaimed angrily looking at Whitehall.
Victor looked from his cohorts to the Privacy Barrier and wondered if it was truly keeping Willow out of this conversation. With all he had seen her do so far, it wouldn't really surprise him if she could deflect the Killing Curse with her bare hand. He actually paused as the though crossed his mind and wondered if she really could.
Getting back his train of thought quickly, he looked at Rigel and said. "Yes, we did decide that, but Willow decided to bring them in anyway. The wards on the house, at first, prevented them from entering, so Willow went around them. She was able to create a hole in thin air for them to crawl through."
"That's not possible Whitehall. The alarms would have sounded." Lucius stated in shock.
"Then one of you please explain how those snakes got through the wards when they were barred?" Victor mocked.
Snape sat quietly at the table. Lucius had asked him to come as everyone believed that Lily's daughter would be in Slytherin. The Potions Master was on the fence regarding this notion. On one hand he wanted Willow in Slytherin because it had been far too long sense someone with any real talent had graced the halls of the Slytherin Dormitory but, on the other hand, he wanted to protect her from the Pureblood politics. He couldn't believe Whitehall would allow her to marry Vincent Crabbe of all people. He was one of the few in his generation that would gladly serve the Dark Lord willingly.
Snape, like every other grown up at the table, was also pondering how Willow managed to get her snakes across the wards. The only possible way for her to do it without setting of an alarm would be to literally leave this plane of existence, travel to another plane, and then back again, arriving in another location. If that was the case, then she could probably teleport out of Hogwarts.
"It doesn't matter now. We can investigate this matter later. We are here today for one reason and that is to match Willow with Vincent and Harry with my daughter." Simon Parkinson said in a low growl.
As Snape composed himself, he noticed Lord Garret Goyle bristled a little at the statement. He was apparently not happy with the plan. Lucius decided to address him. "You're still not hung up on the fact that where pairing Willow up with Vincent are you?"
"I don't think it's all that fair personally. My son and family need a strong match and Willow and Gregory would be perfect for each other." Goyle Sr. Said.
It was Snape who spoke up this time. "I'm not positive but aren't Willow and Gregory second or third cousins?" Snape asked.
"It doesn't Matter. My son's magic is more than strong enough to overcome such an obstacle. Combined with Willow's magic, their children could be some of the strongest of their generation." Goyle Sr. said with angry conviction.
Snape wanted to curse the fool. It was thinking like that which got them idiots like The Goyle and Crabbe families. One could argue that blood was the foundation of magic, there for if blood was weak, magic, no matter how strong, could never overcome birth defect.
"This matter was closed already weeks ago. It was decided my son, not yours, would marry Willow. They will produce strong sons and daughters together." Rigel Crabbe said with a smug face.
The Hogwarts Professor noticed the smoldering look in Victor Whitehall's eyes as he glared at the two men. They were both talking about his granddaughter like she was a piece of meat on market and he didn't like it. This, more than anything else, confirmed to Snape that Lucius Malfoy had dirt on Whitehall and was forcing the match through blackmail.
"Enough, as Rigel said the matter is closed. We will find a good match for your son later, Garret, but for now we must focus on the ones at hand. Judging by what I'm seeing so far, Willow and Vincent seem to get along nicely." Lord Malfoy said looking at his wife. Narcissa looked at her husband and gave a small smile and nod, telling him that the children were socializing with Willow well so far. If she became friends with the group, it would help cement her and the young Crabbe Heir. "I would have preferred her to have worn the hair clip though."
This caught Snape's attention. What hair clip are they talking about.
"I tried to get her to wear it today, but she said, and I quote. 'Spiders and Butterflies don't go together.' From what I can see though it isn't needed." Victor explained.
"All is good with your granddaughter then, but what about your grandson? Why didn't the Charm on the ring affect him like the hair clip affected Willow?" Simon Parkinson asked forcibly.
"If I may ask, what Charm are we talking about?" Snape asked. He had to physically stop himself from smiling when Whitehall spoke of Willow's quote, as it reminded him so much of Lily.
"To ensure Willow would take an interest in Vincent, we placed a Love At First Sight Charm on a hair clip. We did the same to a ring and gave it to Harry. Mind you, this would only make them take an interest not actually enchant them to fall in love but, Harry was not affected in any noticeable way." Victor explained to the Professor.
So that was the game. They gave Gregory Goyle and Pansy Parkinson magical help to woe Harry and Willow, but it only worked on Willow. Snape knew why that was to. "Potter knows Pansy from school and every interaction they have had has been negative to your plan. The Charm would have died the moment it activated while he looked at Pansy, sense his knowledge of the girl would have crushed the enchanted feelings instantly."
"I was afraid of that. Draco has told me pretty much the same when I asked him. Potter could learn to like her if he spent more time around Pansy and got a different opinion. Maybe if she and Willow become friends and she visited Whitehall Manor from time to time, the Charm could still work. The only problem would be ensuring the boy wore something enchanted with the Charm every time he saw her." Lucius said. He seemed to be deep in thought as he planned the next move.
"What about a stronger Charm?" Asked Goyle Sr.
Snape noticed Simon glare briefly at his daughter before addressing Garret Goyle. "If we were to use an actual Love Charm, a magical contract won't be valid. It would literally destroy itself the moment Harry Potter signed his name to consent. As it stands, the Love At First Sight Charm is questionable."
Severus felt queasy as he looked at Simon. He figured that he had instructed his daughter to play both sides at Hogwarts, but the girl had no idea how to. She had joined Slytherin and latched on to Draco Malfoy like a life preserver. Whatever her plan was came to a halt at the beginning of second year when Draco was matched with Astoria Greengrass, Daphne's younger sister.
Simon Parkinson was a widow. His wife died the year before Pansy started Hogwarts. The official story was she tripped down the stairs, but Severus had never believed that. Simon Parkinson was a bully as a child and had grown into a drunk bully that still liked hitting things that upset him. It was quietly talked about in the Pureblood circles that he had accidentally killed his wife. To make matters worse, it had probably happened in front of his daughter. With the loss of his wife the man's anger had more than likely turned on Pansy, but she had yet to confide in anyone about it. If he blamed her for the loss of the marriage contract things could get ugly quick.
"We have a problem on the Parkinson and Potter Contract." Victor said, sounding aggravated. "Apparently, someone explained to the Weasley family that I was looking for a match for both Harry and Willow. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem but, instead of writing me, Arthur Weasley wrote Drusilla. The Vampiress hasn't exactly said no ether."
Snape observed the reactions of everyone around him. Lucius knuckles turned white because he tightened his fist in anger. Crabbe and Goyle had a confused look on their face as if they didn't see the problem. The most disturbing was Simon, he had not moved a muscle but was smoldering with rage.
"What could they offer you that my family could not. My daughter is just as pure as there's, and she has a large dowry." Simon growled.
Snape realized what the Weasley family was doing. They had no intention of forcing Ginny to marry Harry unless she and the boy wanted to one day. They were only trying to protect Potter with a fake contract. "Last year at school, Ginevra Weasley became trapped in the Chamber Of Secrets and it was Potter who saved her. Technically, the girl owes the boy her life. The Weasleys are claiming a Life Debt owed to Potter as grounds for the contract, I'm guessing." Snape speculated.
Lucius Malfoy didn't visibly react to the news, but Snape figured the man had figured out Arthur Weasley's true motives as well. The fact that it was he who gave the Weasley family an opening was also not lost on him. Lucius looked towards Whitehall and asked. "How keen is the Vampiress about the match?"
"Very, I'm afraid. She kept going on and on about knights in shining armor and damsels in distress. The fact that Harry killed a large Basilisk, somewhat like a dragon, to save the girl has also got her fancy up." Whitehall explained in an exasperated tone.
"It must have been Dumbledore!" Simon exclaimed. "How dare he meddle in are affairs. This can't be allowed to stand, surly there must be some way to block this?"
"I personal have no legal say in the magical rights of my grandchildren as far as a marriage contract goes. If I were to recommend Pansy, I would need a good reason. That was why we were trying to get them to date first. If Drusilla has no objection to Ginevra Weasley and Harry agrees, then there isn't much I can do." Victor explained to the angry Pureblood.
"Albus Dumbledore has been a problem for far too long. Is there something we can do to keep him out of this?" Crabbe Sr. asked looking around.
"I actually might have something on that front." A smug Victor told the group.
"Well don't keep us in suspense Victor, do tell." Lucius said intrigued. Every man at the table payed close attention to what Whitehall had to say.
The older Wizard explained how this morning, Dumbledore had shown up with surprising news regarding the Muggleborn Dudley Dursley. He then went on to explain Willow's understanding of the magics involved that Dumbledore didn't know. He finished by telling what Willow had told the old fool about his tendency to do whatever he had to for the greater good, and her own personal beliefs of his character.
"It would have been better had the little Mudblood died. Then we could have brought Dumbledore up on charges however, I don't see how this could help us know. The Weasley family has already wrote Drusilla, so blackmailing them and Dumbledore is pointless. We could always try to have them take back the formal request." Parkinson said somewhat hopefully.
"For now, we wait and see how things develop. Even if The Weasley contract is made doesn't mean it's over. Willow and Pansy seem to get along and could become friends, and that could bring Parkinson and Potter closer together. If the boy asked Drusilla to void the contract, she most likely would. Will focus on Willow for now and come back to Harry when an opportunity presents itself. Any more business to discuss." Lucius finished.
"There are a few ventures overseas that could prove profitable to look into." Victor said.
Simon Parkinson continued to stare at nothing as his mind worked over everything that had been said. His daughter had been given very specific instructions about how to conduct herself at Hogwarts and she hadn't lessened to his orders. She was as stupid as her mother.
Meanwhile, conversation at the kid's side of the table was mostly friendly. The girls had started by trying to talk with Willow about the latest gossip in Witch Weekly. It was about some magical singer that had been caught in a compromising position with a wealthy lords daughter. It was quite possible that they would be forced to marry in order to save face. Willow had to tell both girls that she had never read Witch Weekly.
The boys tried to engage her with Quidditch stories and talk about the National League. Willow barely knew how to fly a broom much less about a sport played on broomsticks. Willow's apprehension about brooms was funny when she could fly on her own power.
Instead they talked about magical studies and mishaps. The Slytherins where able to share quite a few funny stories about Hogwarts students and accidental misfortune. Willow began noticing that most of the people they talked about where from other houses, and a few mishaps weren't so much accident as they were sabotage. It became obviously clear to the young Wicca exactly what kind of people the boys where.
The girls on the other hand were different when you really got to know them. When Willow saw Pansy at the birthday party, she speculated the girl was simply mean and nasty to those she thought inferior to herself. Know Willow realized she was just trying to protect herself from the cruel world she lived in. She had to act the part to play in the society that she was born into, it was something she wasn't very good at. Harry had also not helped by already painting Pansy negative before Willow ever meet her.
Daphne Greengrass was also nice enough but very reserved. She tried to pry into other people's lives without sharing anything of her own. She would try and tell you about other people she knew in hopes that you would tell her about yourself or people you knew. Her tactics where very clever and Willow learned a lot about the other people at the table, especially when Draco and the other two boys talked about a time just after their first year in which they got a hold of some Fire Whiskey.
The three mothers didn't really talk to the children much other than to tell the boys to mind their manners. They kept putting their elbows on the table and talking with their mouths full. Willow didn't miss how Narcissa paid attention to her and how she got along with the other girls.
Narcissa and Abigail Goyle talked about various things like housewife gossip and the government. Irma didn't really say much of anything as she looked around the room and smiled at everyone. Finally, the food began to come out from the kitchen being carried by House Elf Levitation Charms. The little guys bowed and left.
After dinner which consisted of roasted duck, everyone relocated to the Parlor for a night cap. All the grownups had ether a Fire Whisky or Brandy and the kids all had warm Butterbeer. The Butterbeer being served had a much higher alcohol content than what was normally served. Willow decided not to drink any but instead continued to try and make conversation with Pansy and Daphne.
"What will you two be doing next week?" She asked the girls.
Daphne, who had two beers already, blinked her eyes as she thought of her answer. She looked at the redhead and said. "I'll be going to London to visit my grandparents."
Pansy who had also refused any Butterbeer said. "I probably won't be doing too much myself. My father has a girlfriend in France that we may go see for a few days."
Willow didn't miss how the grownups all seemed to lessen closely to their conversation. She also didn't miss Simon Parkinson's rage; it had worried her enough to dig deeper. He was extremely angry at Pansy for something and the redhead suspected it had to do with the marriage contract situation.
"Why don't you come and stay a few days during the week. You can come over Monday if your dad and my grandfather have no objections." Willow told the black-haired girl. She looked at her grandfather for permission.
Victor looked between Willow and the hopeful Pansy wondering how this happened. He honestly didn't mind, but wondered what Willow's angle was. He knew his granddaughter was smart enough to know the Purebloods had not given up on a Parkinson and Potter wedding.
"Will this not interfere with your studies dear? If not, then I have no objections." Whitehall informed her. "She could even come over tomorrow if you like."
"No, tomorrow isn't good as Harry and I have to work on alternate magics." Willow explained. Ever sense she and Harry's birthday, her brother's magical core had begun to acquire her magic. His powers over the night where different than hers though. He couldn't become an animal, but apparently had a large Shadow Wolf Spirit as a familiar that was proving difficult to control. He was also having problems forming into mist and staying mist. So far there had been no signs of Harry manifesting powers from Eryishon or Osiris, nor any empath or powers over illusion.
Snape looked on curiously. "You're teaching your brother wandless magic? Even with your diplomatic immunity I thought you weren't allowed?" Snape inquired. 'The last thing James Potter's son needs is more privilege.' He thought.
Willow frowned at the Professor as she felt his annoyance, but quickly masked her facial expression. "Ever sense our birthday, Harry has begun to gain magic from me that comes with certain abilities. These abilities can be dangerous if they can't be controlled properly, so I'm teaching him how."
"There is no danger to him or others, I hope. Perhaps we could help somehow?" Narcissa asked. Willow felt her eagerness as she sought information.
"No ma'am. Everything will be fully under control after tomorrow, so there is no need to worry. However, it is getting late so I think we should be leaving. Thank you all for the lovely dinner." Willow politely said.
Whitehall was more than willing to leave as he said his own goodbyes. He and Willow headed for the door but ran into the same problem they first had when the snakes got stuck. "I could just leave both of you here to terrorize the Crabbe family, but I happened to like Irma Crabbe." Willow said to her snakes.
Snuggles didn't look happy about the suggestion. "Please Mistressss don't leave usss with thesssse people. They seem poisonous to me." He told Willow as he curled tighter around her arm.
Sr. Huggs didn't look amused ether. "Can I eat the small fat one?" He seemed almost eager.
"No, you cannot eat my future husband. Though Harry would be happy if you did. Ron probably would want you to eat the other two boys as well." Willow told him.
"The skinnier one could probably passsss for a juicy ferret. He might actually tassste good." Sr. Huggs said seriously as he truly pondered what Draco would taste like.
Willow began to laugh out loud as she created a portal directly to the carriage outside. Lord Whitehall turned to look at the stunned and shocked crowd behind him. "I wish you all a good night." With that he went and joined Willow in the carriage.
They road back towards the cottage in silence, until they passed the park. Willow looked at her grandfather and said. "Somethings are private Victor, especially when they concern family. Next time don't volunteer so much information. We still need Dumbledore to help us fight the Purebloods and Voldemort when he returns."
Whitehall looked at his granddaughter and remember Lorne's warning. 'If she must choose between you or Harry, she will pick Harry.' Victor said nothing as they continued to Whitehall Cottage.