Merit and Inheritance
Chapter Twenty
Romilda, Briefly Examined
Harry's first stop was the Leaky Cauldron.
Despite Harry's admonition that they stay out of sight, Pansy and Romilda spotted him the instant he stepped out of the fireplace in the main room, waving him over to a small booth.
"Very low-profile," Harry noted as he walked up.
"Practically incognito," said Pansy.
"Do you really believe that?" Harry asked.
"No, but I do like to say the word," answered Pansy. "In-cog-NEE-to."
"Yes, just like Sofia Loren behind her sunglasses," Harry allowed. "Moving along then, you're finishing breakfast, I see."
Pansy and Romilda nodded.
"So we're ready to go?" asked Harry. He plowed on without waiting for an answer. "Ever been to Glasgow?"
Pansy started to answer before she noticed Harry was looking at Romilda.
"Never," Romilda said.
"Good," said Harry, "Because there is a magical village a short distance from Glasgow proper. I was there once shortly after the Battle. I expect we can get you a room where you can be genuinely incognito. Parkinson-level security. You really should stay inside most of the time, but a daily stroll for fresh air and exercise ought to be very low-risk. We'll use the next few days to come up with a solid alternative while you wait…for…the blessed event."
Pansy and Romilda couldn't help laughing at Harry's turns of phrase and fumbling-about.
"What a change," said Pansy, giving Harry a good looking-over. "Good night's sleep? Greengrass not keeping you up past bedtime?"
Harry toyed with the idea of formulating an explosive reply, but it was Pansy, and they'd long gone past him being annoyed with her highly-effective relationship radar.
"No," he said, thinking about the farewell at #12 just hours past. "No, definitely not that. Besides, Daphne is a much, oh, cooler personality, isn't she? She wouldn't fire up anything she couldn't tamp down."
Pansy held her tongue, somehow. She gave Harry a look that said she was onto him, though. He might fool everyone else, even himself, but he wouldn't fool Pansy Parkinson.
The village outside Glasgow was mostly wizards and witches, but not entirely. There were squibs who were integrated into the community. There was very little prejudice against people who couldn't use magic, so squibs tended to stay with their families until they had acquired the skills for self-sufficiency in the mundane world. There were even a few non-magical spouses in town, mysteriously tolerant of wands, spells and disapparations without forewarning. In other words, there was just enough oddity in the magical community for Romilda to check in, keep to herself, and not draw a lot of attention.
"One stop on the way, if you don't mind?" said Harry.
"Don't have a lot of choice, do I?" asked Romilda. "Thank-you for asking, though."
Harry took the witches to the alley and disapparated, rematerializing on the track that ran past Morag MacDougal's cottage.
"Harry, what?" said Pansy.
"Oh, I had an idea last night," said Harry. The way he said it made it sound as if he thought that a full explanation.
"Hullo, Morag!" Harry called out from a spot just across the stile.
Morag stepped out onto the stone slab just outside the door.
"Now what, Harry Potter?" she asked, not stepping off the stone.
Morag wore a long skirt, an undershirt with long sleeves, and a wool overshirt, the cuffs rolled up to the middle of her forearms.
"It sounded like Madam would like to see us again," said Harry. "According to your note, which we really appreciated, of course."
Morag smiled, despite making a visible effort not to.
"Come on in, then, I'll put off hexing you until next time," she said. Morag waited for the little party to cross the stile. Harry hoped that meant she was in a welcoming mood, because he was going to press a boundary or two in the next few minutes.
"I'll need a little time with Morag, alone," Harrry muttered to Pansy. "Maybe, without being too obvious, you could visit with Madam?"
Pansy had to limit her response to a nod as they were nearly to the front door, and Morag.
Introductions were an update for Morag on who Romilda was, and how she'd just returned from a stay in Europe.
"Well, I'd better get some water boiling," said Morag, stepping aside to let the group into the kitchen.
"Mother, someone's here to see you," Morag called out, adding, "You have visitors!"
She started putting out a teapot, a box of tea bags, and some very fragile-looking tea cups and saucers.
"Go on in, Pansy, she's been asking when you'd be back," Morag said.
Pansy took Romilda and crossed to the bedroom door.
"Madam Livia, it's Pansy! Remember? Of course you do! I've come to visit and I've brought my friends," said Pansy. The rest was muffled. Harry assumed she crossed the bedroom and was out of easy hearing range.
Harry took a couple of minutes with Morag, laying out a skeletal description of Romilda's situation.
"Humanitarian concerns aside, Harry Potter, this is highly irregular," Morag protested. "We need a proper setup, an examination room, an initial mother-baby check, follow-ups! There are facilities for that. She needs to get into the system. Even if she's been gone for a few years her childhood providers have records. There is a reason for all that, you know?"
"Yes, I do know," said Harry. "It's just that we have a situation. There were some people after her. There may still be. She hasn't seen a professional yet. Then there is a possibility of a trace."
"So why bring her to me?" asked Morag in an intense whisper that really wanted to be a shout.
"I don't have a choice, Morag," said Harry. "Just be a healer, and a witch, for thirty minutes, and tell us if she's pregnant, if she's in need of anything special for the next couple of months, and if there is any magic attached to her that we have to deal with."
After a pause for staring into one another's eyes, neither conceding an inch of ground, Harry added: "Of course I will personally resolve any security problems that may arise, Morag."
"Fine," said Morag with a long sigh. "Send her out."
Morag was already wanding the sturdy plank table clear when Harry got to the bedroom door.
"Madam Livia, hello!" Harry said. "How are you today?"
Morag did an exam, as thoroughly as she was able, given the conditions. She also took her time looking for any alien spells or hexes that might be clinging to Romilda.
"Can I borrow them, Mum?" Morag asked, just her head popped through the door into the bedroom. Pansy was on her knees next to the bed, holding Livia's good hand and listening to the stories of Livia's adventures with Pansy the Shetland pony. Livia wasn't quite ready to let Pansy go, pulling her close for a smacking kiss to the cheek and some back-patting.
"Bye-bye for now, Madam MacDougal, love you," said Pansy.
The old lady looked at Pansy and waved. She took her time, letting the words come out at their own speed.
"Love you, Pans. Love you, Pans," she said, as clear as day.
Pansy ducked her head to make sure she kept her tears invisible to Livia and crossed the room to the door. Once she was back in the kitchen end of the cottage she rushed to Morag and pulled her into a crushing embrace, sobbing into Morag's wool overshirt.
"She's a saint," Pansy repeated, three or four times. "A saint."
Morag, the healer with hyper-developed empathy, let Pansy recover before she separated herself. She looked Pansy in the face and nodded in agreement.
"Yes, Pansy, she is," she said. "Now, shall we?"
Morag served tea while everyone found a place to stand or sit before she took up business.
"I have discussed my physical exam findings with my patient, and am bound by confidentiality as to the results. She understands my concerns about regular visits with a healer of her choice, and it is now up to her to make her own decisions about what she wants to do. You do not have to do anything for her immediately," Morag began. She looked at Romilda and the two smiled, back and forth.
"And thank-you, Morag, for seeing me, and thank-you Harry, and Pansy, for improvising and making me come today. I won't let this become a waste of your time. I promise," said Romilda.
"Magic," said Morag. "Something we can all talk about, since we would all be concerned with the answer to that, wouldn't we, Harry? I didn't detect anything in or around Romilda, hex, jinx, spell, nothing. Still, you should be careful. I only know what I know. Should an adversary have used something outside my training and experience, I'd be oblivious. That is true of everyone, isn't it? You might want to look for a detection manual, if you don't already own one. The magical bookstores have them. Where are you headed?"
"Glasgow," said Harry. It wasn't true, technically, but it served the purpose and preserved a little ambiguity.
"There's a branch of Flourish and Blotts there," Morag said. "They've even got a little café attached."
All agreed that was a delightful circumstance, one that bore further exploration.
"I'd like to try Glasgow, to stay, Harry," said Romilda.
"Oh?" asked Harry. They were nearing the stile.
"Yes," Romilda said. "It will be easier to blend. There will be more than one hotel, so I can move, three days here, four days there. I need to catch my breath."
"I understand," said Harry. "You should consider the caravan village."
"I'll do that," said Romilda.
"Need us to come along?" asked Pansy.
"I need one or both of you to get me to Glasgow, to the wizarding neighborhood," answered Romilda. "Then, I think you should go. So you don't know, don't you think? Oh, and I'll need my wand."
Harry, luckily enough, did put Romilda's wand in his pocket that morning, so he was able to hand it over. After everyone called out thanks to Morag once more, the party recrossed the stile and stood on the track across the fence.
"Let's go, then," Harry said, holding out his arms for the witches.
Getting Romilda settled proved easy enough. Harry headed back to London while Pansy stayed behind to find Flourish and Blotts and buy the magical detection manual Morag recommended. Pansy's errand kept her in Glasgow another hour, then she followed Harry.
"Come on in," Harry called out to Pansy when she returned to the office. He turned around after closing his safe and dropped a canvas bag of coins on the desk.
"What's that?" Pansy asked.
"How is your advance holding out? Didn't you have to dip into it a few days ago?" Harry asked.
"Oh, that's right," Pansy said.
"Did you get the book? Did you pay for that?"
Sorting out the advance and replenishing Pansy's funds took a few minutes. It wasn't complicated. In between accounting for expenditures and counting out coins to make Pansy whole, Harry and Pansy went over their adventures since Romilda's return from the magical Alpine principality.
"Think we're done?" Pansy asked at one point.
Harry didn't answer right away.
"I want to say yes," he began. "But I have no evidence to support it."
"Exactly," said Pansy. "Glad you made her take off her ring. What did you do with it?"
"It's in a trackless wilderness," said Harry. "About two meters below the surface. Even if a Berg finds the spot, they probably won't find the ring. If they get the ring, they'll be standing there, looking around, not another person or habitation to be seen. Maybe a tent."
"Wow, creative!" said Pansy. "Or possibly diabolical, depending on one's perspective."
"What do you think?" asked Harry. "Does Romilda appear to be finding her place in the woodwork?"
"Hard to say," Pansy answered. "It isn't just Romilda, is it? There's her young laird, or lairdess, to consider. Romilda might be able to find a safe retreat and tend to her own knitting. Maybe find a witch or two, if she craves a little community. I'd still recommend the village. The youngster, if we presume it can work magic, will need proper nurturing, a magical education, too."
Harry didn't say anything, but he was thinking while he counted.
"We've had some direct experience with what happens when a magical orphan doesn't get the right support early on," Harry mused. "Well, then, are we even?"
Pansy raked the coins together and put them in a canvas bag.
"If we're not, it's close enough," she said. "Let me deposit this."
Pansy left with the bag. Harry heard the distinctive metal scraping sound as the file cabinet in Pansy's office opened and closed. A moment later, Pansy returned to Harry's doorway.
"We're stuck with her, aren't we?" she asked as she stood, half in and half outside the office.
"Send her an owl, now and then," said Harry. "Morag, too. We have to think about Morag and Livia. They are in a vulnerable position, it appears to me."