To anyone who might have read to this point, thanks a lot! The next chapter will be the final one and it's already being written. If you spot any mistakes, please, let me know.
19. Mr Rosier
"How long do you reckon it'll take for it to work?" Padma, seated on the floor by a copper cauldron, asked. "No, you won't be able to answer this... let me change it into a 'yes or no' question..." she sought to rephrase it. "Do you think it will take a long time to have an effect?"
Luna kept quiet for a moment, struggling against her hungger-mungger thoughts, leaning her back on the wall, focusing on not passing out, the empty vial still clutched in her trembling right hand. She strived to make any sound, but she failed. At first, Luna thought about communicating by squeezing Padma's hand, like she'd been doing for the last couple of days, but she realised it would be impossible, for the answer to the question was neither yes nor no.
"Ugh..." Luna moaned, making her best effort to produce any sound. "It... depends..." her voice came out so throaty it almost seemed it belonged to another person. "It seems... to have..." the sentence was interrupted by a coughing fit, "worked already."
"This is amazing, Luna!" Padma's expression lit up. "Tell me, are you feeling alright?"
"Head... shaking… thoughts... still... messy..." Luna clutched her eyes forcefully, seeking to avoid any source of light. "But I'll be fine..."
"Are you sure?" Padma suspected Luna could be on the verge of passing out.
"Don't worry..." Luna's voice was starting to sound like it should be. When she finally mustered enough force to open her eyes, she reached out for the staff she'd been using and sought to stand up. However, she lost balance; her right arm gave in and failed in supporting the entire weight of her body.
"Luna!" Padma exclaimed as she kept her from diving on the floor by using wandless magic. "Tell me, what are you really feeling?"
"I'm OK..."
"You're clearly not OK," Padma confronted her. "You're trembling and sweating more than you used to be these past days. By the way, what's happened with your left hand?"
"Nothing..." Luna fled her gaze.
"Don't lie to me, Luna. I've noticed it hours ago. Your left hand is clutched into a fist for hours. Why didn't you just use both your arms to support your weight? Your entire left arm's been trembling as if you were trying to carry a stone gargoyle..."
"This might be a minor paralysis. Not serious..."
"Minor...?" Padma analysed her and pulled her wand out. "Luna, let me lessen your pain..."
"I'm not in pain," Luna forced herself to keep lying, but her eyes were witnesses that nothing that came out of her mouth was the truth. "Fine," Luna gave in, tossing herself against the wall with her eyes tightly clutched. "Rip my finger off..." she asked in a begging tone as she finally gave Padma her twitching left hand. Even though the pain was on the verge of being unbearable, Luna forced himself to spread her fingers wide open. "The ring finger…" she indicated it with her other hand.
"Oh," Padma mourned as she examined Luna's hand carefully. "It's a cursed ring, isn't it? I know a thing or two about them, let me take a look…"
"There is no way out of it," Luna grunted, tears streaming down her eyes. "Please…" she stared at Padma pleadingly. "Rip it off…"
However, Padma didn't obey. She put her wand against Luna's wrist, humming a soothing sound as she lessened her pain. "I know it must be hurting, but you'll feel somewhat better now." Padma smiled at Luna when she realised she had calmed down a bit. "Let me examine it, OK? Trust me, I actually know a lot about these. Anthony's mother made a point of choosing my wedding ring. Since she's, well…" Padma felt a bitter taste in her mouth for criticising her mother-in-law out loud, "let's say… a questionable person… er... I made sure I could recognise any kind of cursed rings."
"It's… no… use…" Luna still moaned, even though she felt considerably relieved. "It is impossible… to take it off… please, rip my finger off…"
"It doesn't come off, huh?" Padma attempted to pull it out of Luna's finger, but it never moved. "Interesting," she began passing her wand over Luna's hand, ignoring her pleading. "How do you know so much about it, Luna? The Scamanders are not involved with dark magic whatsoever, does it come from his mother's family?"
"Muggle," Luna merely said.
"Does it come from his grandmother, then? I remember she was the only person in Anthony's family remotely linked to Dark Arts…"
"Never," Luna snapped. "Narcissa Malfoy."
"How come…?"
"Narcissa's my cousin," Luna made her best effort to explain. "Comes from Rosiers. My mother's maiden name…" she paused to cough. "Whenever women became Rosiers by marriage, they had to wear... could never take them off…"
"Wait, this comes from your ancestors?" Padma asked, and Luna nodded. "Take it off, Luna," Padma ordered.
"I told you, I can't…"
"Try it! Now!"
Just to avoid arguing with Padma, Luna did it. Most unexpectedly, the ring glided smoothly as she pulled it out of her finger, revealing that the skin beneath it had been ravaged by third-degree burns.
"For Merlin! 'Glacius!'" Padma cast, covering Luna's burn with ice. "I'll wake up the monks and ask for some Burn-Healing Paste…"
"Don't bother," even though her hand still bothered her, Luna cracked a genuine smile as she struggled to stand up. "I could never thank you enough. You deserve to rest, you've been on this for hours…"
"I'm not tired…"
"How d'you know?"
"Oh, the whole purpose of these cursed rings is to protect a family's lineage. If it comes from the Rosiers, it'd never hurt a person who has the Rosier blood. I know that well because… er… I feared that I might've been given a ring that could reveal that…" 'Panju is not Anthony's son,' she thought, but she couldn't bring herself to say it out loud. "Anyway, what I mean is, it's completely harmless to you. I reckon Rolf must also be on the impression that you can't take it off."
"It makes sense."
"You could give him payback if you wanted…" Padma pointed at the ring. "He's probably the one who can't take his off... since he's not a Rosier…"
"I'm not interested in revenge. I'll throw it away…"
"Maybe… could you lend it to me for a little while? It's a good material to research…"
"Aunt Ginny," Lorcan poked his godmother. "I haven't eaten anything in hours, could you please buy me anything? I'm starving…"
"We'll be late for our flight," Kingsley cut him off with his thunderous voice, checking his watch. "Why do you always come up with something, kid? Are you planning something?"
"Kingsley, be reasonable, he's just a boy," Cho intervened. "It is obvious that he is hungry, we didn't stop for lunch. Also, you have already checked in and dispatched your luggage, we're not in such a hurry..."
"You wouldn't understand, Kingsley, you don't have kids," Ginny agreed with Cho and took Lorcan by the hand. "Artemis, please, wait by the gate with Kingsley. I'll buy a snack for Lorcan real quick. We'll hurry there once we're done."
"It seems like a good plan. Are you familiar with muggle currency, Mrs Potter?" Cho asked the most politely she could. In response, Ginny showed her a debt card. "Impressive! You're a golden client!"
"Let's go, then, Minister," Artemis said, pointing in the direction of the gate they had to head to. "Lorcan, make sure you eat real quick and listen to your aunt Ginny, fine?"
"I always do, granddad," Lorcan answered, trying not to sound ironic.
"You have 10 minutes," Kingsley said as he left with Artemis. "Don't be late!"
"You," Ginny bent in Cho and James' direction, whispering to them. "Watch us, OK?"
"Don't have to ask," James had been holding his wand under his jacket.
"Oh, right," Cho grasped hers as well inside her designer handbag.
As Ginny walked away with Lorcan, Cho and James were startled by the sound of hurried steps coming from behind. 'We're in an airport,' Cho thought, seeking to assure herself. 'It's obvious that some people here will be in a hurry, some are late to catch their planes.' However, this thought didn't keep her from turning around, eager to find out the source of the sound. James, for his part, did the same.
"Dad!?" James exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"Huge problem, son! Head back to the Auror Office right away!"
"On it, dad!" without giving it much thought, James dashed to a desert corner, where he disapparated.
"Oh, Merlin… Harry…?" Cho asked, staring at the floor. There were few things she avoided more in her life than being in Harry and Ginny's presence at the same time. "What are you doing here?"
"Hot as always, Madam Chang," he smirked mischievously as he neared her, checking on her shamelessly. Then, most unexpectedly, he groped her butt.
"What!?" Ginny shouted from afar, running back in their direction, dragging Lorcan with her by the hand. With her other hand, she clutched her wand forcefully, in everyone's plain sight, ignoring that they were in a place packed with muggles. "Chang, where is James!?"
"Bloody Diadem!" Cho panicked, outraged and scared, for Ginny aimed her wand in their direction. "I'm not doing anything! I swear! I'm... I'm leaving…!"
"Don't leave, Chang!" Ginny shouted, catching everyone's attention, but Cho sprinted to the same corner in which James had disapparated moments ago, just to do the same thing. "It's a trap!"
"Why so insecure?" Harry grinned. "You should know it doesn't matter to me that she's better looking than you…"
Ginny kept holding her wand up high, aiming at Harry's heart. "How dare you impersonate him!?" she grunted. "I'll make you pay for what you did to Luna! 'Reparifarge!'"
When the charm hit his chest, Harry's face and body began transfigurating gradually into the ones of another person she knew. However, it wasn't exactly the same person she had met about 20 years ago. This one had his body entirely covered by thick black hair. It reminded her of a skinnier version of Greyback.
"Dad!" Lorcan screamed for his father when he finally realised it was him, meaning to dash in his direction, but Ginny stopped him.
"Stay, Lorcan!" Ginny ordered, tightening the grip she had on his hand.
"I underestimated you, Potter," Rolf smirked at her, facetiously. "You and Luna both lack beauty, but you do have some brains."
"Don't you dare to talk about Luna in front of me!" Ginny shouted. "'Stupefy!'"
Even though she had aimed perfectly at him, just when the spell was about to leave her wand, Lorcan pushed her with the entire weight of his body. He didn't manage to take her down nor to break free of her, but it caused the spell to miss its target.
"Lorcan, seriously! You can't be considering going with this man!" Ginny shouted.
"This man is my dad!" Lorcan retorted, staring hatefully at Ginny.
"Well done, son!" Rolf praised him. "I'd love to see you unleash your real power!"
Even though he always dreamed about being appreciated by his father, when he brought up the day he had almost killed his mother, he backed down. He didn't want to do the same again, he didn't want to hurt anyone. He surely wanted to go with his dad, but it didn't mean anything bad to happen to Ginny.
Whilst Lorcan was lost in his thoughts, Ginny fired another stunning spell at Rolf, but it was intercepted by an Unforgivable Curse. "Can you duel whilst holding a child by the hand? One who doesn't even want to be with you?" Rolf taunted.
"An average day in my life!" Ginny retorted, striking him full in the chest. Even though he howled in pain, he didn't fall unconscious on the floor as Ginny had expected. 'Why is this happening!? Should werewolves be resistant to stunning whilst they were not transformed!?' she asked herself.
"I'm done playing! That hurt!" he growled. "'Avada Kedavra!'"
"'Depulso!'" Ginny launched a random piece of luggage that someone had abandoned against the bright green light. It exploded in the air. "I dodge bludgers for a living, Scamander. I can do this all day."
"What on Earth is happening!?" Kingsley had just arrived. "You're under arrest! 'Encarcerous!'"
When thick chains were just about to restrain Rolf, he bounced so high he almost hit the ceiling. As he reached maximum height, he dove back to the floor slashing his wand from left to right. "'Sectumsempra!'" he snarled.
For an inch, the curse didn't hit Lorcan, but both Ginny and Kingsley were on the floor soaked in blood when Rolf landed on the floor.
"Aunt Ginny!" Lorcan called, tears streaming from his eyes. She was alive, but she had a nasty cut crossing her chest.
"I should've come fully transformed into wolf… halfway if not enough," Rolf commented nonchalantly as he surveyed Ginny's ravaged body. "You seem too tasty not to eat, Potter."
"Rolf! No!" a male voice called him from afar. It was Artemis. "What have you done this time!?"
Without even taking the time to gaze at his father, Rolf swung his wand hand in his direction. "'Avada Kedavra!'" this time, nothing blocked the curse, and Artemis' body fell flat on the floor. Before Lorcan could process what had just happened, Rolf snatched him by the hand and they disapparated.
…
"Finally!" Parvati grunted, making a scene, bringing her hand to her wounds. "Thought you'd never come back… thought you'd forgotten about me…"
"Why are you not sleeping already?" Padma asked, slightly uninterested, not taking her eyes off Luna's ring. She used a tiny rag over the ring in order to hold it, for she feared it could be harmful to her. "You should have taken your Dreamless Sleep Potion hours ago…"
"How could I sleep if you're not here to lessen my pain?" Parvati retorted.
"I'm sorry to interrupt you," Neville sought to join the conversation the most politely he could. "But how is Luna?"
"You don't need me to do it," Padma took a seat, still surveying the ring. "The potions you have here will kill your pain much more effectively."
"They're not enough, I need you…"
"Why didn't you ask Neville to do it for you?"
"You do it better…"
"Fine," Padma finally took her eyes off the ring and placed it on a cupboard. Thus, she put her wand to her sister's chest. "Take your potions now and go to sleep."
"You didn't make any effort! It was almost the same as nothing!"
"Can you tell me how Luna is, Padma?" Neville repeated the question, this time more urgently. "Is she still brewing?"
"The antidote's worked. Gone to sleep," eager to resume surveying the ring, Padma spoke in a nonchalant tone it almost didn't seem they had been invested in saving Luna for hours non-stop. "You should do the same, Parvati."
"If you won't give any love to your twin sister who's gravely injured," even though Parvati's still whined and sounded like making a scene, she seemed to have given up catching her sister's attention. "Will you at least let me drink a glass of Firewhisky?"
"OK," she replied, dryly.
"You heard her, Neville!" Parvati cheered, excitedly. "She said 'OK'!"
"Padma, are you even paying attention?" for his experience with Luna, Xeno and Her Grace, Neville knew that, when Ravenclaws became somewhat obsessed with something, they could lose some of their good judgement. "Do you really think it's a good idea to allow Parvati to drink?"
"Sure, Parvati," Padma dismissed him, completely lost in her own thoughts.
"Since when am I Parvati!? Oh, Merlin…" Neville scratched his forehead worriedly.
"A single cup won't kill, eh!?" Parvati struggled to stand up, stumbling around the room.
"Sit back down, Parvati!" Neville ordered. "I'll grab it, OK?"
Neville searched quickly in his things and didn't take long to find it: a bottle of Firewhisky sent to them by Dean and Seamus through Cho. Of course, when she first delivered it to them, Padma freaked out and began yelling that her gravely ill sister couldn't drink. Strangely, this couldn't be farther from Padma's behaviour right now. Therefore, as Neville poured Firewhisky for Parvati, he decided to ask more about this ring. If Padma was so interested in it, it couldn't be something ordinary.
"What is this ring anyway, Padma?"
This time, she finally looked at them. "This is Luna's wedding ring. Apparently, Rolf had been cursing it. He caused a nasty burn to Luna's hand, but we've managed to take it off…"
"What!? How's she!?"
"Well, she's got what seems to be a third-degree burn on her ring finger, but I reckon she'll be fine. It didn't seem to be anything other than a regular physical burn."
"Cursed ring?" Parvati asked as she sipped her drink.
"Exactly," Padma nodded. "But it isn't normally harmful to Luna. It comes from her own family, the Rosiers, and these rings are normally dangerous only to people who are not their descendants. I suspect Rolf must have been targeting Luna using his own pair."
"We forgot to toast!" Parvati told Neville, raising her glass. "To Luna!"
"To Luna," Neville raised his glass as well, less excitedly but more respectfully. "To you as well, Parvati."
"Oh, thank you, Neville. I wish Hannah, Seamus and Dean were here…"
"That'd be good," Padma said. "I'd like to hear an auror's opinion about this ring… I wish Ernie were here as well… a historian's point of view…"
"Neville used to be an auror," Parvati stated, pointing at him.
"Neville," Padma dashed in his direction. "Please, if you could…" she handed him the little rag with the ring on top of it.
"Er… it was so long ago…" Neville blushed. At first, he thought he could never provide Padma with any useful insight on the ring. However, on second thought, his curiosity overcame his insecurities. "Right, let me take a look."
"Thanks, Neville," Padma nodded.
"Is this the Rosiers' family crest?" Neville asked, striving to read what had been engraved on the ring. "There is something written in here, maybe is their family motto?"
"Good thinking, Neville," Padma said. "I had been so invested in searching for enchantments in it that I'd forgotten about examining the ring's physical attributes. What is written in there?"
"It's too small, it's difficult to read, 'Lumos!'" Neville lit up his hand. "D'you have good vision, Padma?"
"Let me try it," Padma stretched her arm and Neville handed it back to her. "The Rosiers come from France, it might be in French, but I can read it." She sought to read with the naked eye for some moments, but she eventually gave up and conjured a magnifier. "Surprisingly it's English."
"Is it?" Neville held his lit wand up high, in order to help her. "What does it say?" However, Padma didn't respond. She stood there, statically, in pure shock. "Padma, are you fine?"
She finally swayed her head leisurely in his direction, then spoke. "Artemis is dead," she read it out loud. "I've got Lorcan. If you want to see your child again, you have 24 hours to hand yourself to me. I trust you'll easily figure out how to find me. Rolf."
"Mom!" James rushed to Ginny's side as he apparated back to the airport. "Mom, talk to me!"
"How… not… realise…" Ginny struggled to speak. "It… wasn't… him..."
"Don't speak, Ginny," Hermione told her, soaking herself in blood as well as she knelt down and held her sister-in-law in her arms. "Just breathe…"
"'Vulnera sanentur, Vulnera sanentur'…" Rose, for her part, bent down by Kingsley and began healing him.
"Stop it! We should apply Dittany infused with powdered silver!" James protested.
"Go on, Rose. He's lost too much blood," Hermione interfered. "What caused this?" she asked, surveying Ginny's open wounds.
"Sectum… sempra…" Kingsley's normally powerful voice sounded weaker than ever, but it still managed to reach Hermione's ears.
"'Vulnera sanentur, Vulnera sanentur, Vulnera sanentur'…" relieved to hear that their wounds were not caused by a werewolf bite, Hermione began doing the same Rose had been doing to Kingsley. Gradually, Ginny's blood began returning to her body. "You'll be fine, don't worry…"
"Is Mr Scamander… dead?" James asked, finally taking notice of the old man's unresponsive body sprawled on the floor.
"Killing curse," Kingsley's voice sounded somewhat stronger as he sought to raise himself from the floor. "We couldn't do anything."
"What about Madam Chang?" James asked. "Where's she?"
"Didn't she take leave in Hogsmeade when you met up with Ginny and James?" Hermione swayed her head to ask Kingsley. "As we planned?"
"She's alive," Ginny wheezed. "Fell for the trap as well, doesn't know we were attacked."
"She volunteered to help us escort the boy," Kingsley said as Rose helped him up. "I said we could use as many wands we could get."
"Hem," James coughed. "She wanted to leave, she was uncomfortable with my mother's presence, but Mr Shacklebolt insisted…"
"Most important, do you have any idea where Rolf may be headed to?" Hermione interrupted James. "Did he give you any hints?"
"I only know one thing," Kingsley answered. "The kid was the one who sold us up. He's made his choice." Kingsley crossed his arms. "He's gone to the other side. He doesn't want to be rescued."
Hermione couldn't find words to respond to that. She merely sighed. "Rose, James, please, take Ginny and Kingsley to our healers. I'll just talk to the obliviators in charge and catch up with you. I'll take care of Artemis' body."
"Panicking is not going to lead us anywhere, Neville. The sage goes beyond fear, decay, and death to enter into infinite peace," Parvati chanted. "Why don't you calm down?"
Neville felt like swigging the entire content of that Firewhisky bottle in one go, but he knew he shouldn't. Even though being told to calm down angered him, Parvati was right, he needed to keep cool. And sober. So he stopped pulling his hair out of his head, swallowed his tears and inhaled deeply.
"Well done," Parvati praised him. "Sis, you've been silent for very long. Say something."
However, Padma didn't respond.
"So," Neville raised his voice a bit more than he would've found polite. "What do we do, Padma?" Yet again, nothing. "You're the smartest person here!" Neville pushed her to speak. "C'mon!"
Padma stared deeply into Neville's eyes and mouthed just loud enough for them to hear. "You won't like to hear it," she crossed her arms, frowning sternly. "We need to tell Luna."
"No way!" Neville shouted, tears yet again beginning to stream down his eyes. "Telling Luna!? Are you out of your mind!?"
"Please, Neville, don't shout…" another time, Parvati began trying to calm Neville down.
However, much to Parvati's surprise, now it was Padma who was raising her voice. "You don't know the first thing about being a mother, Neville!" she paced nervously. "If it was my son who had been taken, I'd demand to be the first to know! Luna has the right to know!"
"Sissy, please…"
"Don't tell me to calm down!" Padma cut her sister off. "I didn't sign up for the 'inner peace' agenda! It doesn't work on mothers!"
"And to think you should be the rational one!" Parvati moaned as she reeled on the wall, struggling to stand up. "Neville lacks wisdom and peace of mind… you usually have it, but you lack guts…" Parvati reasoned. "Then I believe it will fall on me to decide what to do."
"I'm all ears," Neville stared at her expectantly.
"Telling Luna is out of the question. In her condition, she can't possibly do anything to retrieve her boy from that man. She would end up putting herself in danger for nothing. That'd be a waste, we should remember she has another child to take care of."
"That's what I was trying to say!" Neville backed her up.
"The most rational course of action would be contacting the people back in the Ministry," Parvati continued. "We have to share this new piece of information with the aurors. There must be people in charge of following Professor Scamander's trail, and they need to hear that he's been trying to contact Luna."
"Well, I must admit this sounds a bit better than telling Luna," Padma relented. "How do we contact them? Patronus?"
"That'd be good. But I was thinking about talking to someone who actually lives in Harry's Office," Parvati suggested. "And he happens to be here with us right now. Professor Snape."
"I've seen Artemis Scamander earlier today," Professor Snape told them. "With Chang and his grandson. In the Headmistress' Office. Later on, I heard Minerva telling Filius that he'd died. The retired Minister and Weasley were also injured, but they will survive."
"This is old news… are you talking about Rolf's attack on Hermione and Ron days ago?" Neville asked, hopefully, in denial after hearing that more people had gotten hurt.
"In case you're not paying attention, I said the retired Minister," Snape emphasized. "Kingsley Shacklebolt. Also, the Weasley I was referring to is Mrs Potter."
"What!?" Neville's heart stopped for a moment. "Ginny was attacked!?"
"As I was saying, she will survive," Snape repeated. "Professor Scamander is keen to a curse invented by me. As an expert, I guarantee it is not deadly if treated readily with the proper counter-curse."
"Professor, can you inform the Minister about the ring?" Padma asked. "Is she there? In her office?"
"No one is currently in the Ministry."
"Huh?" Padma looked puzzled. "This can't be right. My husband and child are there."
"I assure you they are not, Normal Patil."
"He works there! In a core function! They haven't dismissed him!" she began losing her mind. "Where could he be, then?"
"I don't know why you assume I'd know who your husband is, but every bit of the Ministry's staff is currently on the field. The wolves' headquarters has been located, hence the aurors are currently waging war against their forces. Everyone who wouldn't take part in that endeavour was dismissed, even the ones who usually serve in the so-called core functions."
"People in the Department of Magical Transportation…?" she asked.
"In the field. Assisting in the escape routes and general logistics," Snape told her.
"Bloody Diadem…!" Padma appeared to be on the verge of passing out.
"Sis, this doesn't seem that dangerous," Parvati assured her. "What we've been through at the hospital was much worse…
"However," Snape continued. "The Minister's son arrived in Hogwarts hours ago. I believe he was accompanied."
"See?" soothingly, Parvati smiled widely at her sister. "Don't worry. Panju is safe…"
"Can you contact Hermione, professor?" Neville asked. "Do you know where she is?"
"I can contact Minerva," Snape replied. "I reckon she might be able to send a message to the Minister. Nonetheless, I can't promise anything. I fear I have no idea where the Minister might be now. She might be hiding, for she is still in a weakened state."
"Harry? Mr Henderson? Anyone from the Auror Office?"
"Everyone is busy," Snape sighed.
"Isn't there anyone responsible for tracking Professor Scamander down?" Parvati asked.
"The hypothesis is that Professor Scamander is most likely to be found with the other wolves, in their headquarters."
"He won't!" Neville despaired. "We need to pass on the information we have! He's trying to ambush Luna somewhere! We have to find him!"
"You have already sent a Patronus?" upon hearing Snape's question, Padma confirmed with her head. "Good. There's no guarantee it will actually find the Minister, I don't know which magic may be protecting the place in which she's hidden, but it won't hurt. For my part, what I can do is merely pass the message to Minerva."
"Thanks, professor Snape," Parvati said.
"So, no one is searching for Scamander, huh?" Neville yelled, most to himself than to anyone else in the room. "Professor!" he turned his gaze to Snape. "I'll go after him myself! Help me!" he pleaded, bowing his head humbly. "I beg you!"
"Uh…?" Snape sounded a bit caught off guard. Since he had threatened to throw his portrait from the window, he didn't expect Neville to change his attitude towards him. "What do you need, Longbottom?"
"You can't!" most unexpectedly, Padma intervened. "Out of the question!"
Since he had been sent there by the Minister with the mission of assisting the group, Snape couldn't deny Neville's request. Nonetheless, this time, Snape felt a genuine urge to help. He wouldn't admit it, but he was sympathetic to the man's nerve to risk himself to save the kid of a woman he couldn't have. "Since when are you the boss of Longbottom, Normal Patil?" Snape retorted. "Longbottom will most certainly end up dying, but he is an adult, he's allowed to take the risk if he so wishes."
"It's…" Padma stared at the floor for some moments. Then, she nervously exchanged looks with Parvati. "This… erm… what I'm trying to say is… this is not a rational plan, Professor Snape. We shouldn't risk more lives…"
"Parvati," Neville addressed the monk, who had been too quiet for a while. She'd begun pouring Firewhisky for herself and had been overly focused on drinking. "Is there something you both know that I don't?"
Parvati gradually sipped the entire content of her cup, placed it carefully on a cupboard and sighed. "Since Lavender's gone, I've decided not to close my Inner Eye anymore," she stared deeply into Neville's eyes. "Earlier today, I was telling Padma that you have the Grim hovering above your head."
"This isn't news. We know this from Panju." Neville didn't understand what was Parvati's point. "Can't you just tell the Grim to go away? Like we've heard Panju's done to Hermione?"
"No, Neville," Parvati's tone resembled Professor McGonagall's stern one. Neville had never seen her that serious. "The omen hovering her head had already lapsed. Yours… well… I'm afraid…" she gazed at him with a condescending expression. "Yours hasn't."
"I see… I haven't overcome death, then?" Neville questioned casually as if he were not talking about his own death. "That's it?"
"That's what my Inner Eye is leading me to think. I'm so sorry."
"So, Longbottom," Professor Snape said. "As I was asking, what do you need?"
"Professor, with all due respect, you can't seriously be thinking of encouraging Neville to engage in this suicide mission!" Padma argued.
"Oh, Normal Patil, I'm trying not to be that optimistic, I don't want to end up disappointed."
"Professor, this is serious!"
"With all due respect," Snape hissed. "I give Mental Patil the same credit I've always given Sybill, which is close to none."
"This is a huge mistake! My sister is a real Seer!"
"So is Sybill," Snape responded. "So, Longbottom, for the third time, what do you need from me?"
"Professor," Neville turned to him, showing him the ring. "The message in the ring says that Luna could figure out how to find him. Do you have any idea what he might be talking about?"
"Actually, I do," this answer came as a huge surprise to Neville, who was almost certain Snape would just throw an ironic comment. "Some of these rings are capable of leading one directly to one's spouse."
"Do you think…" Neville's heart began pounding in his chest with excitement. "This one can take me to Scamander?"
"It might," Snape confirmed. "I guess Normal Patil might've thought the same. If her husband works with Magical Transportation…"
"I don't know much about his work," Padma answered, uncomfortably.
"But you surely know that cursed rings that reveal the spouse's location were banned years ago," Snape insisted. "You do remember someone in that Department was murdered while trying to enforce that law. You might've attended her funeral with him."
"I…" Padma brought a hand to her hair. "I did."
"How do I make it work?" Neville asked.
"Neville, you can't seriously be thinking…"
"I am seriously thinking of going," he cut Padma off. "The only thing Luna wants is to live peacefully with her children… and I am making that happen."
"How can you make that happen if you die!?"
"If I can't make that happen, I'll die trying," he stated, resolutely. "Professor, how do I make it work?"
"OK, then… we can try to activate it tomorrow morning. We can go to his location and return immediately, then we warn the Ministry. Hopefully, the attack on the wolves' hideout will be over, we can hit Professor Scamander's hiding place with some backup…" Padma rambled. "Going there alone is out of the question, Neville…"
"If Scamander's done his homework, you won't be able to leave once you reach his location," Snape remarked. "And I bet he has."
"I'll go alone," Neville announced, solemnly. "Don't follow me."
"This is absurd… how can you…"
"Professor Snape, how does it work?" Neville ignored her protests.
"I don't know exactly, there is a myriad of possibilities," Snape closed his eyes as his mind worked. "The most widely known is by means of the Portkey Charm."
"I must insist," Padma still hadn't given up. "Using these rings is illegal, Neville…!"
"If I survive, Cho'll have much work with me," Neville joked. "If you want to send Anthony to arrest me, I promise I won't try to kill him. 'Portus'," he cast on the ring. "Did it work?"
"Huh…" Snape coughed, trying to conceal his embarrassment. "I must admit I don't know."
"That's something I never expected to hear from the one and only Professor Snape," Parvati giggled, slightly inebriated. When Padma glanced daggers at her, she instantly became silent.
"Portkeys sometimes work instantly, sometimes they are triggered from time to time. Maybe it hasn't worked, maybe it is taking its time to be triggered," Snape clarified.
Contradicted, Padma exhaled deeply. "It hasn't worked," she declared, passing her wand through the ring.
"Do you know what I did wrong?" Neville almost broke his neck as he swung his head in her direction. "Padma," yet again, he had a pleading expression. "I really need your help."
"Seriously, this is mad…"
"I urge you," Neville stared profoundly into her eyes. "Maybe I'm doing it wrong. Maybe… maybe it will work if you do it…"
"It may take her to Professor Scamander in your stead," Professor Snape warned. "I wouldn't do it."
"If I were you," Padma threw him a judgmental glance. "I'd try wearing the ring. If its purpose is to enable espouses to watch each other, it makes sense that one should be wearing it." Neville made as if wearing the ring, but she gestured for him to wait. "However," she spoke in an ethereal voice that sounded almost identical to Parvati's. "I must remind you that is packed with dark magic. Unlike Luna, you are not a Rosier." Padma emphasized. "Anything might happen to you once you wear that ring. You may die instantly, in case these are designed to prevent two people not belonging to the Rosier family from wearing it."
"If we're lucky enough, Rolf would die as well," Neville smiled.
"I can guarantee you," Padma continued as if he hadn't made an inappropriate joke, staring at him gravely. "That you will never be able to take it off. This is what we are sure that these rings do. I stress, once a person who is not a Rosier wears it, he or she can never take it off. It's forever. If you still wish to go on even knowing of the risks…" she sighed, resigned. "I can't do anything to stop you."
"I couldn't be more thankful, Padma," he smiled as he casually pushed the ring around his finger. Padma flinched at the sight of it, but nothing happened. "Parvati, you too. We wouldn't have saved Luna without you. The general public may not know what you did... they may not give you due credit, but I know. You're a hero."
Parvati didn't like how it sounded like a farewell, but she couldn't deny that it most probably was, after all, she could see an enormous black Grim clearer than ever hovering above his head. "To you, Neville," she raised her glass to him. "I'll be praying for Lord Krishna to bring you back safely."
"In case I don't, I'll make sure I'm taking that man with me."
"Fair enough."
"I never thought I'd ever say that, but I'm glad you're here, professor," Neville turned to Professor Snape's portrait. "I guess… I'd like to thank you too. 'Portus'." Neville aimed at the ring on his finger, which instantly began to rattle. "I think it's working!"
"Longbottom, you're an incurable airhead!" Professor Snape yelled. "Do you plan on defeating Scamander without the sword!?"
"I forgot! 'Accio'!"
"Never summon a sword, it's extremely dangerous!" Snape growled.
"Sis, dodge!" Padma screamed as she pushed her sister aside. Moments later, the sword of Gryffindor came flying inches from the place she had been. The sword ended up stuck in the bed's headboard.
"Erm… sorry for that," Neville said as he snatched the sword by the rem, leaving a hole shallow hole in the wooden furniture. He disappeared completely in a quick motion blur immediately after that.
"You don't sleep?" since the Minister had told him to keep an eye on them, after an awkward and uneventful half an hour of watching one Patil watching the other sleep, Professor Snape finally asked.
"I'm just too worried to sleep," she explained, cracking a tiny smile. "It's not that big of a deal."
"Don't lose your sleep over Longbottom, he's accepted whatever he may face. Unless you're nervous about something else."
"It's nothing, seriously. Parvati is right, it is probably not that dangerous… he'll be back in one piece, and in no time…" Padma forced herself to be optimistic. "My husband. It's his job, so I can't complain…"
"If you're worried about your husband, why are you here and not out there with him?"
"But I have no idea where he is…"
"You should have asked."
She stood up abruptly, making too much noise in the process, but Parvati wouldn't wake anyway, she was completely out due to the effects of the Dreamless Sleep Potion. "Can you tell me where he is, professor?"
"And to think you should be the smart one…" out of patience, he adjusted his black cape. "Obviously. Professor McGonagall's had access to the Ministry's plans." He swung in his portrait, "I'll be back," he said, then he left.
"Parvati, wake up," Padma began shaking her sister. It took a considerable amount of time before she finally woke up. "I need to leave."
"Huh? Lavender, kick Padma out of my room, please…" Parvati rambled, still half-asleep. Padma kept shaking her, thus, the other began complaining in Hindi. "What is it, Padma, for Merlin's sake!?" Parvati opened her eyes at last, staring at her sister aggressively. "I'm gravely wounded, seriously! I need to rest! What do you want!?"
"I'm so sorry, sis, but I need to leave. Will you be OK on your own?"
"Leave? Why?"
"I've got to find Anthony… and make sure he doesn't… die…" Padma resisted the urge to cry. "I'm sorry to leave you, OK? I'll hurry back as soon as I can."
"This is the right thing to do, sis," even though she was insanely tired, Parvati still found the energy to smile at her twin. "He can't die, especially not now that you've finally quit pushing him away," she giggled. "It's your job to keep everyone in this family alive."
"Right," Padma returned the smile, holding her sister's hand. "Lavender is probably going through some rough time stalling Yama for us. Her efforts can't be in vain."
"Exactly," an amused Parvati agreed. "Do what you have to do, OK? Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself."
"I love you," Padma pulled her sister into a warm hug. "I promise I'll come back."
"I love you more," Parvati returned the embrace. This time, Parvati refused to think this could be a goodbye, she couldn't stand the thought of not having her sister. However, just in case, she decided she'd share something her sister absolutely couldn't die without hearing. "I was wrong about Panju," Parvati said. "He wasn't meant to be an outcast after all."
"Huh? Why that subject now?"
"Do you remember what happened to the original Panju? The stray?" Padma listened attentively as her sister spoke. "That elder lady next door ended up adopting him. She'd feed the dog, play with it, she'd even let it sleep in her own bed. It was the most precious thing to her. My point is… even though you and Panju were really abandoned at some point, you are very much loved by Anthony now. In the end, that's what matters, isn't it?"
"And by you as well," Padma dried a single tear that insisted on falling. "You are the reason I didn't give up in the first place. You came running when I needed you, you gave me strength..."
"The stray dog is actually me," Parvati continued. "I was destined to be a stray. Every month…" she brought her hand to the wound next to her ribs.
"Don't ever say that again," Padma reprimanded her. "We'll be with you… every month, every night…"
"Nah, it's alright. Don't bother. I'm a monk, I'll just meditate through it."
"A great monk," Padma let go of her sister.
"Not a sloppy one?"
"Far from that," Padma prostrated herself on the floor. Then, she addressed her sister in Hindi, respectfully asking for her to bless before she left. Parvati, for her part, began standing up. "No!" Padma exclaimed, worriedly. "Sissy, don't push yourself, please..."
She didn't listen and got up anyway. Hence, Padma bowed her head, her nose almost bruising the ground, and touched the monk's feet as she chanted prayers in Sanskirt. When she was done, Parvati outstretched her hand in her twin's direction. Padma took it, but she made sure she didn't push it, seeking to stand up entirely with the force for her own legs. "If you went through all the trouble of bowing down, how could I not stand up?" she smiled as she pulled her twin into a hug, kissing her forehead affectionately. Padma returned the embrace the most carefully she could, making sure not to hurt the wounded one.
"Go back to sleep now," Padma helped the other lay back on the bed. "Good night, sis."
"Good luck, sis…" as soon as Parvati closed her eyes, she fell back into a heavy sleep.
"I'm back," Professor Snape's voice rose in the room. "I hope you have already conjured parchment and ink. Start writing down…"
…
"Parvati…?" Luna called, softly. The sun had already begun to rise, but it was still somewhat dark. "Parvati, please, wake up…" Luna called more urgently, but she slept through it. "Please…" Luna began shaking her with her healthy hand. "I need to talk to you."
"No, no, not again… Lavender, I'm tired…" Parvati talked in her sleep. "Let me…"
"It's Luna," she urged. "I'm sorry, but it's important…"
"What is it, Loony?" Professor Snape's portrait asked. "You look somewhat better than last time."
"Professor Snape," slowly, Luna turned to face him. "Can you help me? I can't find Neville."
"What do you need Longbottom for?"
"I… I'm just worried, that's all. I also expected Padma would be here, where is she?"
"They're both gone. They are taking part in the battle against the werewolves."
"Oh… right…" Luna forced herself not to worry about others, she had to put herself and her children first. She couldn't afford to care about Neville, or the curse could end up being triggered again. "That's good to know. I'm sorry for bothering you, professor."
"Go back to bed, Lovegood," Snape said, dryly.
"Professor," Luna neared the portrait. "I'm sorry to burden you with all these questions, but I am really worried about my son, Lorcan. I haven't heard any news about him in a while. Do you happen to know whether he is with Artemis or not?"
"I do," even though the illumination in the room was scarce, Snape could spot the woman's face light up with expectation as his words reached her ears.
"Well, can you tell me, please?" since he remained quiet, she broke the silence.
Even a person as cold-natured as he found it hard to deliver the hopeful mother the news. "Artemis is dead," he spoke. "Lorcan was taken by his father, Professor Scamander." Much to Snape's surprise. Luna didn't react. She froze like a statue, remaining unresponsive for almost a minute. Felling unpleasantly empathetic of his former student, this time, it was Snape who broke the silence. "Longbottom is out to rescue him."
"That's why they left? To rescue Lorcan?" surprised, Luna asked. "Why didn't anyone warn me!?" she began raising her voice. "I wanted to go along!"
"Only one person could go," Snape explained. "Professor Scamander has sent a message by means of the ring that caused you that…" he pointed at his hand covered in Burn-Healing Paste. "He wanted you to meet him. The ring could serve as a Portkey to take a person to his location, but the person in question had to be wearing it. Patil is out to join the Ministry's forces, but Longbottom has volunteered to…"
"Nobody thought of telling me!?" Luna crashed violently into tears, sobbing uncontrollably. "I am his mother! He is my child! Didn't it occur that maybe I'd like to be the person to save him!?"
"Don't be a fool!" Snape was glad she had raised the tone, for yelling at each other was a language in which he was fluent. "In the state that you are, you can barely walk in a straight line without reeling on walls!"
"Can you lot calm down…?" Parvati moaned as she rolled in bed. "I'm trying to sleep…"
"No, I can't calm down!" Luna exploded in a fit of desperation, her face as red as pepper due to harsh crying. "A maniac werewolf has taken my child!"
Hearing this made Parvati instantly sit up in bed on full alert. "How do you know that?"
"I just told her," Professor Snape said.
"You told her!?" Parvati panicked. "Professor! Not cool! We had agreed not to tell!"
"I don't recall agreeing to anything."
"Oh, right… you weren't there at that point…" Parvati stared transfixed at Professor Snape, for she was afraid to meet Luna's eyes. "Luna, I understand you must be anxious, but everything will turn out alright. Before he left, Neville promised he'd bring your boy back, even if he had to die trying. I know that the Grim part is worrisome, but let's have faith in Neville…"
"What Grim?" Luna asked, puzzled and angered at the same time.
"How come 'what Grim'? Didn't Professor Snape tell you everything…?" since Luna's face become increasingly enraged every second, Parvati began suspecting she'd made a bad move. "You didn't tell her that part, did you?"
"No," Professor Snape simply said. "According to Mental Patil, Longbottom has a death omen hovering above his head. Not that I give it any credit."
"I heard you commenting that your nephew has managed to scare a death omen out of Hermione," Luna said, trying hard to swallow her tears. "Couldn't you do the same to Neville?"
"Hermione's death omen had already lapsed when Panju did that… erm… huh…" Parvati still fled Luna's stare. "And that didn't happen in Neville's case."
"Are you… seriously… telling me… you let… Neville… leave… to find a psychopath werewolf… even though you've predicted his death!?" Luna crashed her ribs hard against a near cupboard, for her already inconvenient constant shaking increased so harshly she almost lost her balance. She resumed sobbing, but not due to physical pain. "I'm coming after him!"
"Loony, get yourself together!" Snape censored her. "Even crying for Longbottom is extremely dangerous in your state. This will most certainly trigger your curse sooner or later. I stress that Mental Patil and that old weirdo who teaches Divination at Hogwarts are more often wrong than right."
"Neville rescuing Lorcan is suicide! Lorcan would never accept it!" Luna moaned. "In the hypothesis Neville manages to defeat Rolf, Lorcan would most certainly seek to avenge his dad! My son could end up turning into a murderer!"
"Loony, you are being delusional," Snape frowned. "I urge you to stay in this world." Luna didn't even respond, she merely turned in her heels and walked towards the door. When she outstretched her hand to grab the doorknob, Snape ordered, "Stop her, Patil."
"Colloportus," Parvati cast at the door just in time to keep Luna from leaving.
"How exactly do you plan you rescuing them if you don't even have a wand?" Snape asked. "Take a Dreamless Sleep Potion and try to rest. As you said, the future foreseen to the Minister hasn't fulfilled itself. By that same logic, there is no guarantee that whatever has been predicted about Longbottom will become true."
"It hasn't been fulfilled because someone's changed it!" Luna retorted. "And that's what I'm trying to do. You lot had been trying to think of ways to change the future," Luna addressed Parvati. "Did you come up with something?"
"Well… not much… our best plan was… to stick together…" Parvati wasn't sure it was a good idea to tell Luna that, "with a person we love immensely. Pure love is the most powerful kind of magic."
"Great," Luna gazed at her with a beseeching expression. "I love my son and I love Neville. Please, let me go?" After a moment of hesitation, most unexpectedly, Parvati waved her wand and broke the Locking Charm on the door. "Thank you very much, Parvati."
"How many times do I have to repeat it!? By any means, you can't love Longbottom, Loony!" Snape snarled. "It doesn't matter how immense it is, your love can't save him! By the time you reach him, you'll be completely consumed by your curse!"
"I'll pray to my guardian angel not to let it happen," sounding resolute, but feeling unsure, Luna said.
"Guardian angel? Guardian angel…!?" Snape lost his calm. "Galloping gargoyles, Loony! This is yet another figment of your imagination!"
"If you could have seen…"
"It doesn't exist! It absolutely doesn't!" he didn't let her speak. "This is not my opinion, it is Ravenclaw's opinion too!"
"I'm sorry, but don't even let me tell you what happened. Also, I believe I would know Her Grace's opinions better than you…"
"Yes, I do know what happened," he retorted. "Professor Scamander couldn't touch the blonde twin, a powerful light stopped him. It was never a guardian angel, Loony, it was you."
"What!? This is…"
"This is the truth," Snape cut her off. "That powerful magic comes from you. It is your powerful love towards your child that makes him invulnerable to his father's attacks. Your love is much more powerful than his hatred." Luna kept silent, paying much attention. "All teachers and portraits in Hogwarts have discussed this matter, and everyone agrees it could only be pure magic coming from you. In fact, even Longbottom." Snape paused to catch some air. It hurt Luna a little hearing that Neville didn't actually believe their daughter had turned into her protector, but, at the same time, it was so like him not to confront her on her delusions. "That same kind of magic saved Potter's life when the Dark Lord first sought to murder him. Albus' portrait has instructed Filius and Minerva on performing a powerful charm on your child, which causes him to be invulnerable to Professor Scamander's dark power. It was the same charm Albus himself performed on Potter when he was a child and that kept the Dark Lord from murdering him so many times."
"So… you're telling me… Rolf can't touch Lysander? Like You-Know-Who couldn't touch Harry?"
"Correct," Snape nodded. "Your love is possibly strong enough to save the other twin as well, but it seems that he is rejecting it. He appears to have embraced his father's dark powers instead." Snape sighed. "Knowing about this, if it's your wish to go after Longbottom, do so. However, I stress your only chance to win is if you take the boy with you. Dumbledore would probably suggest that course of action. Personally, I still don't believe a wounded woman and a first-year would be of much help to Longbottom in the task of defeating a werewolf, but at least his invulnerability could be a trump card."
"Not a bad idea," Parvati agreed with Snape.
"Are you seriously suggesting I should take Lysander to the eye of the storm?" Luna frowned in disbelief. "What kind of mother would I be!? He's eleven!"
"Be rational, Loony," Snape said out loud, but, in his head, he was also not keen on using children to fill an agenda of fighting the Dark Arts. When he was alive, he had spent too many hours imagining how would Lilly feel if she knew her only son had been raised like a pig for slaughter. "It's risky, but it would significantly improve your chances."
"No chance," Luna declared, harshly. "If Lysander's protection comes from my power, from my love, then…" she paused. "That's a good thing that I've got the original source with me. Now I know that I have everything it takes to defeat Rolf for good. Parvati," she swayed her neck to the monk. "Can you summon the books Tina has sent to me from the US?"
"Summon? Sure… 'Accio'," the books landed by her bed.
"Thanks," Luna bent to take them from the floor. It wasn't easy, for she still trembled and twitched from time to time. "Can I borrow this for a second?" Luna asked for Parvati's wand, who lent it to the other. Thus, Luna began browsing the books.
"What are you doing, Loony?" Snape asked, surveying her curiously.
"Is she… trying to break her own curse…?" Parvati said.
"Impossible! Don't be naive!" Snape sneered.
"If Bellatrix could do it, so can I," Luna kept scanning pages and pages from various ancient books, all of them packed damaged by moth, some in Spanish, some in French, some in German, only a few in English. There were also a few ones in a language that didn't use the Roman alphabet (she suspected it to be Hebrew), but she didn't even try opening them.
One by one, she tried some of the most eccentric incantations and wand motions she'd ever seen. Finally, to Snape's utter dismay, a bright light emanated from Luna for a brief second, and a loud cracking sound could be heard. She didn't even have to check, she knew at the exact moment that it had worked. She felt like the weight of the world had been taken off her shoulders.
"I don't believe it," Snape mouthed.
"You were right, professor. It wasn't a guardian angel, it was my love and it is really that strong," Luna returned Parvati's wand. "I'll use all of it to save my child. And Neville."
"Don't go without a wand, Loony…!"
"About that, Luna, Cho's left your wand here," Parvati told her, pointing at a bag. "It's there, with the other things she's brought us. I'd have told you that instead you lending you mine if I knew you'd be trying to perform complex magic, I'm sorry."
"My wand?" Luna rushed there and snatched her wand as if she were hungry for it. The moment its wood touched her fingers, she felt power filling the entirety of her body, from head to toe, she could almost see power leaking through her fingers. In fact, her twitching reduced considerably at the mere touch of her wand. "No worries, Parvati, thanks a lot."
"Just one thing, Luna…" Parvati asked as Luna headed to the door. "I reckon we forgot to think about something. How will you reach them if you don't have the ring?"
"If Rolf is not hiding from me, and he really expected me to find me," Luna explained as she walked through the door. "Finding him will be just too easy."
"Felix!" Luna shouted, standing and clapping on the outside of a wide mansion that a normal person wouldn't even get close to. The muggles would surely find it to be haunted. "Felix, are you there!?"
"Loony?" a middle-aged unclean man, very alive by the way, came sprinting out of the building. "Ha! You're really alive! I was told you could be coming…"
"Did someone tell you I could be dead?"
"On the contrary, Cissy owled me to tell me that you were alive and would probably reach out to me, but I doubted her. I've been reading the Prophet and I didn't believe you'd survive Scamander now that he's turned into a beast. You just don't seem strong enough to deal with him."
She aimed her wand directly at his heart and asked, in her most standard dreamy and airy tone, "D'you wanna see for yourself if I'm strong enough?"
"Ha! Put that down, Loony. I'm glad that you're alive. You're my best relative! Everyone else seems to be after… this…" he gestured towards the mansion. "Anyway, come in."
"Who wouldn't want it?" ironically, Luna remarked, examining the dusty house as she entered.
"Yeah, right? Any normal person would die to have it. Thank Merlin you're not one!" he laughed hard. "Changing the subject, no people from the Ministry?"
"Huh?"
"Cissy wrote that you would come… probably with their people. Aurors and such. Looking for Scamander," he turned a right in a very dark corridor. "Cissy promised I wouldn't be arrested, questioned or investigated, though."
"Oh, no, it's just me."
"That's better, I don't want any mudbloods in my house." Luna sought not to flinch as she heard that word. "Here we are."
They stood in a very dark and mouldy room filled with books. Felix bent down and took one from a shelf. He spread it open on the last page and placed it on a desk.
"Thank you very much, Felix. What do I have to do?"
"Look at your name in here, Luna," he pointed at the book and Luna realised that it depicted their family tree. Pandora and Felix's father, her brother, Evan Rosier, a Death Eater who Mad-Eye had killed, were both marked as deceased. Pandora's name was linked to Xenophilius Lovegood, and a single line linked them to Luna's own name. This one, lastly, was linked to Rolf Scamander, and two lines linked them to Lysander and Lorcan. After reading it, Luna felt a huge relief as she spotted that her father and her twins were marked as alive. "You have to prove to the book that you really possess Rosier blood."
"How do I do it?"
"Well, do you have a knife or do you want to borrow mine?" Felix showed his rotten teeth as he cracked a wide smile.
"Typical," Luna sighed, cutting her own arm with a spell. "Next?"
"Touch your own name in the book…" hearing this, Luna complied. "No, not like that, the blood has to touch the book."
"Really? This is so unhygienic…" however, when Luna soaked her finger in the blood and touched the book, the blood disappeared immediately.
"Madame Scamander, comment puis-je vous servir?" in perfect French, a magical voice addressed Luna.
"Do I have to answer in French as well?" Luna asked Felix. She understood French, particularly written French, but she wasn't that good at speaking it. She knew the voice had asked how it could serve her, but she wasn't sure how to respond to that.
"Bien sur!" an amused Felix cackled. "You're the scholar in the family and can't even speak our ancestors' language? Maybe the person who turned the back on the House of Slytherin in favour of a house supposedly for the intelligent finds French too hard?"
"I've turned my back on nothing, my real ancestors have been in Ravenclaw since Hogwarts was founded," Luna retorted. "Je dois... trrrouver…" Felix had a fit of laughter as Luna's ignominious French pronunciation reached his ears, "mon... époux." 'I need to find my husband,' Luna thought with all her might.
"That's unexpected!" the book began emanating a light. "It did understand you, Loony!"
"Ce fut un plaisir de vous servir, Madame Scamander," the voice sounded again. 'Is it saying that it was a pleasure to serve me?' Luna thought to herself. 'Then it must have worked.'
"Au revoir, Loony! I hope you don't die! I'm really looking forward to that filthy beast being wiped out of our noble family tree! Please, by no means let him live!" Felix waved frantically at her. "In the case he does, I hope you don't mind, but I'll burn both of your names out of here. I was just about to do it, actually… nothing personal, one just can't have a werewolf in the family. But Cissy stopped me, she thought you could need the book. She was right, wasn't she?"
"How long will it take to work?"
"I don't know, maybe it didn't find Scamander, who knows?" Felix shrugged. "Either way, if you live, make sure that pet mudblood of yours knows that I helped you, fine? Tell her I'm a model member of our community, that I'm not a dark wizard…"
"Sure, I'll tell her you're a peace-loving pure-blood supremacist."
"Please, do it!" he cheered. "That's exactly what I am!"
"You should clean the house, Felix. It's filthy."
"How will I clean this damned house if that nosy mudblood whose arse you and Cissy never stop licking has decided that paying the bloody house-elves is a good idea!?" to Luna's luck, she didn't have to respond to that, for she disappeared in the exact moment he finished the sentence.
TRIVIA: For those who don't know, Felix Rosier is a character in Hogwarts Mystery (not Hogwarts Legacy, the console game, Hogwarts Mystery, the mobile game). It is not confirmed that Evan Rosier is his father, though, but he might be.
There were two Rosiers who served Voldemort, Evan Rosier and an unnamed Rosier. In this story, the latter is Luna's grandfather, whereas the former is her uncle.