Disclaimer: JKR owns everything. I own nothing. I make no money from writing fan fiction.
He was Loved
The funeral was modest and small. Only a few people came. In life Argus hadn't had many friends and most of them had died long before him, along with his wife and cat.
But George Weasley and his wife, Angelina came to pay their respects. Angelina was very pregnant with her first child so they couldn't stay very long, but Amanda appreciated the gesture. She would have hated to have the funeral alone.
It had been a long year after her Mother and cat had died within a few hours of each other. Amanda had spent most of the past year with her father, in his office and quarters. She wasn't able to do much for him, but it helped.
"I am sorry." Headmistress McGonagall startled Amanda and she jumped.
"Hello Professor." Amanda said quietly. The woman had been a great help during her father's last days. His body had slowly started to shut down and he began to weaken and die before her eyes. Professor McGonagall had allowed her father to stay in the hospital wing and had hired new help.
"He was a good worker. We'll miss him." Her stern look softened for a moment. "We're missing you too. The Slytherins wanted to know when you'd be back."
"Soon." Amanda clenched her fists. She was still a prefect and a sixth year. But sometimes it was harder to deal with her classmates than her muggle friends. At least many of them had also lost parents in the war.
Professor McGonagall didn't try to talk to her. She nodded gravely and engaged the Weasley's in conversation.
Amanda wanted to cry. She wanted to run and scream. She wanted to feel her pain. The numbness of her sadness and dispare didn't help her feel better. It made her feel horrible and alone.
A representative from the Squib registration was coming to before the funeral. He arrived and the few people stood and followed him out into the open, while his assistant levitated the coffin behind the group.
The representative dusted the dirt off his plain black robes and stood at the front of the grave. Everyone crowded around him and his assistant had difficulty getting the coffin close enough to bury Argus Filch.
Amanda listened as he talked for a few minutes about her father. There wasn't much to say. He'd been a squib, only had a few friends and he'd spent his entire life trying and struggling to keep Hogwarts clean. It wasn't like his death would bring any great impact to the world. Not like Dumbledore's.
This saddened her slightly. Mother was dead, Mrs. Norris was dead. And now her Father was dead. She was technically an orphan. Parentless.
The funeral went quickly after that. No one had anything to say and Amanda couldn't bring herself to say anything. The representative was in a rush to get out and his assistant dumped a pile of dirt onto the grave and everyone slowly began to leave. There was no longer a reason to stay. Argus Filch wouldn't miss them.
"Time to leave Miss Norris." Professor McGonagall placed a gentle hand on her student's arm. "Take my hand. I'll apparate to Hogsmeade."
Amanda managed to choke a, "Thank you," out before taking the offered hand. One horrid, headache inducing journey later they stood outside the Three Broomsticks.
But instead of continuing up to the school, Professor McGonagall steered her into the pub. "No hurry." She said when Amanda threw her a questioning look.
"Hello Professor! What can I get you?" Madame Rosmerta reached for a jar. "Gilly water? Fire whiskey?"
"No thank you. Two butterbeers please." She handed over a few coins and accepted the bottles. "Come on Miss Norris." She led her student into a booth near the back and handed her a bottle after popping out the cork. "Drink."
Amanda clutched the bottle tightly. She couldn't remember the last time she'd eaten or drank anything. She'd been too upset. She did remember the last time she'd drank butterbeer. It had been with her Father.
"Drink." The Professor was stern again. Like she was in the classroom.
Amanda took a large gulp of the drink. The heat spread through her body. "Ah." She could feel herself relaxing. Tears began to gather at the edges of her eyes now that she wasn't as tense.
"It's all right." Someone was rubbing her back and helping her drink more of the butterbeer. "You're fine. Just relax."
Amanda listened to the voice and found that following the instructions simply caused her to cry more and more. Not less. She let her grief pour out of her body until there were no more tears to cry and she fell into a deep sleep.
"Morning." Someone was holding her hand. "I'm glad you finally woke up."
Amanda reached up and tried to scrap the salty remains of tears out of her eyes. Once they were clean she opened them, ignoring the difficulty from the way they'd dried shut. Her observer noticed her difficulty.
"Here." She was handed a damp cloth. "It'll help with your eyes."
Amanda followed the instructions and wiped her face and eyes clean. "Thanks."
"You're welcome sweetheart." Anthony Wolf gave her a kiss. "I missed you."
Amanda smiled and kissed him back. "Me too."
"I'm sorry." Anthony tightened his grip on her hand. "If there is anything, anything at all, that I can do for you, just let me know."
"Course." Amanda snuggled into his warm body. "Have you seen Professor McGonagall?"
"Yeah. She wanted to talk to you." Anthony ran his hand through her hair. "Do you want me to go get her now?"
"Please." Amanda took the hairbrush of her bedside table and began to pull it though her hair.
Anthony gave her one last kiss. "I'll be right back." He hurried out of the girls dormitories for the Headmistress's office.
Amanda fixed her hair into a messy braid as quickly as she could. She thought about getting dressed, but the dungeons were cold and she didn't feel like freezing to death. So she stayed in the warm bed and waited for the Professor to arrive.
"Miss Norris." Professor McGonagall walked quickly into the room. "Good morning."
"Good morning Professor." Amanda said. But she couldn't bring herself to smile.
McGonagall studied her for a moment before turning to Anthony. "Mr. Wolf, I need a moment with Miss Norris. Please excuse us." She opened the door for him.
Anthony shot a quick look to Amanda. As if he was reassuring himself that she'd be fine. She gave him a nodded and he hurried out of the room.
"Can I do something for you Professor?" Amanda asked. The woman's time was precious. She most defiantly hadn't come to share small talk.
"I wanted to inform you that we've gone through your Father's things. He's left everything to you."
"Thank you." Amanda sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was talk about her Father.
"I also found this paper." Professor McGonagall handed a form from the Ministry over. It large letters across the top it read Name Changing Application. The name on the first line (Current Name) read; Amanda Julie Norris.
"Oh." Amanda's eyes widened.
"I think he wanted you to change it to this." The Professor flicked her wand and the next line (New Name) was filled. It read; Amanda Julie Filch.
"I-I don't know what to say." Amanda knew that he'd spoken about changing her last name before. Norris was a muggle name and after her Mother had died the family had cut all ties to the muggle world.
"Do you want to change it?" McGonagall asked seriously.
"Yes." Amanda whispered. It was a big step to take. But she never wanted to forget her parents. They meant too much to her. "But could I have both?"
The Professor understood what she meant and a flick of her wand later and Amanda's name was now Amanda Julie Norris-Filch. She swore to never forget either of her parents. They loved her and she loved them back.
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The story's over now. I am thinking about writing another story about Filch or Amanda and Anthony. I hope you found this chapter interesting.
