The Crossroads of Fate
Chapter 10: Grimmauld Place
The last Albus saw of Lorcan, he was on his way through the portrait to Lycah's hut, presumably on his way to the bungalow to join Luna. Albus certainly hoped he would agree to print the truth. If the students, let alone their parents knew Incommodo's true identity, the Minister would be facing open rebellion. Of course, would even that be enough to defeat him? There was a reason why Merlin thought only Albus could do it so he doubted that a simple bit of truth telling would help. There were still those, after all, who would subscribe to Incommodo's style of magic, Herpo or not. Plus, the Minister was very powerful and would not necessarily care if the people supported him or not.
"Proxy!" Simon called as they walked out of the room of requirement. He folded his arms as he met her in the corridor, "The wolf was a wolf. So…"
"So, wha- oh…" her face fell. "How much do I owe you?"
"A hundred galleons!" Simon said happily. "And a little something you owe me called respect!"
"I'm a girl of my word," Proxima shrugged, though she looked like she wished she was not a girl of her word. "Give me a month and I'll have a hundred galleons. Sound fair?"
"Yup!" Simon said jumpily, much to Proxima's chagrin.
"I hate being wrong," she muttered.
"So, how's the Guard?" Simon asked casually and interestedly.
"Not bad," Albus shrugged. "You're welcome anytime, you know."
"When Seth and I start talking again and you let Seth in, I'll be happy to," Simon shrugged. "So, been anywhere?"
"It's rather surprising," Proxima said as she looked at the keys given to her. "One of those, I recognize. It's the Greengrass keys. We lived in a big villa off West End. I didn't know the Greengrass home was a safe house."
"Wait, West End?" Simon asked interestedly. "Erm… which part?"
"The center, I believe, why?"
"You live close to my old boarding school," Simon said with interest, looking at the keys. "Heard of Lady Elizabeth Boarding School? Seth and I went there when we were young, before Hogwarts."
"Seth is- wait- you did?"
"Yup, we were in the same year," Simon said reminiscently. "He was left there cause his parents didn't like him or something. I dunno the story. But he stayed with me over the summer. Those were the days. I didn't know I lived close by you."
"Well, you were a Muggle back then," Proxima said rather simply. "So, you wouldn't have known. What's a boarding school?"
"A boarding school is a school that keeps you over the year, like Hogwarts," Simon told her.
"Aren't all schools like that?"
Simon shook his head, "Most Muggle schools keep you until the afternoon so you leave every day and come back every day. Boarding school is something rather different. But I went to a boarding school because my parents hoped to toughen me up. Not that it worked any."
"I wouldn't say it did, but- wait- so where did you live?"
"Central London," Simon shrugged. "My mum was a pilot for the Royal Air Force and my father was a Colonel in the Marines."
"And you went to a school so far away?"
"I was admitted there and skipped a year," Simon told her.
"What, why?"
"Proxy, some of us are really smart," Simon told her informatively.
"So?"
"So, you're looking at one of them," Simon told her exasperatedly. "I had the highest grades of History, Latin, Mathematics, Science, English Language and Literature. I could even do Chemistry and that was pretty advanced for kids my age. That's probably why I'm a whiz at Potions."
"What the hell is Chemistry?"
"Like Muggle Potions but we use elemental knowledge to mix them up," Simon said.
"Simon, that's Alchemy," Proxima said with wonder.
"Our studies there fell short, we do Chemistry now," Simon said happily.
"Simon, us Wizards can create a frigging Philosopher's Stone, why should I respect"-
"Last I checked, Proxy, it's insanely difficult and dangerous creating a Stone."
Albus and Proxima were a little confused. Neither knew all that much about Muggle school curricula. Albus knew some things since Simon had tutored him but since Muggle Studies was cancelled, Albus barely retained any knowledge. But he was happy to see Simon talk about it so happily and reminiscently, days of happier times when his parents were alive and Seth was his best friend. Even Proxima seemed quite interested at this point, perhaps trying to show respect for the first time towards a boy she often chided for varying reasons from the way he was dressed to the food he ate and even his status as a Muggle-born. Simon looked quite happy explaining to Proxima about Muggle schools as well, probably feeling better that she was giving him a chance. In fact, Albus was beginning to get the vibe that Simon had a major crush on her.
By the next weekend, Albus had to admit that as evil as he was, as troublesome as he might have been, Incommodo had brought benefits to the school. The first thing that happened that Saturday was the first of the dueling matches Incommodo had set up. They took place in the Great Hall with a single house table set up in the middle of it. The table was clothed in red and at the very end where the High table stood was Mors Incommodo. He addressed all the students before the matches were to begin in his same, usual wispy voice. The hall, despite being crowded, was naturally quiet at his very presence, some students still shivering, not quite over the initial shock his presence sometimes inspired.
"Staff and students of Hogwarts," Marius Kimble said loudly. "The first matches of the Dueling tournament are about to begin. This weekend will see the first and second years duel, next weekend will see the third and fourth years duel, and so on and so forth until we reach the last weekend where the seventh years will duel. These will start as preliminaries to determine those who may move on to the finals. Each student will face three challengers. Those who score two or more victories will move on and those do not will be disqualified and face a penalty from the Headmaster. Rules are anything goes. The only curses forbidden are the Unforgivable Curses, death will be severely penalized."
"Remember:" Incommodo said in a wispy voice. "Hogwarts is aiming to become the top Magical school in the world so the weak can and will be weeded out. Those who score high on dueling are given exemptions if they are failing more than three subjects. Those who are failing subjects and dueling will be expelled. Now, as Professor Nott calls forth your names, you will come up and face your challenger."
"First duel," Nott called loudly. "Michael Aster. His opponent Cherry Goal."
Albus and Scorpius watched nearer the front, where the action was. Cherry had just managed to get a Knock-back Jinx down. Albus was disappointed to see that was the only spell used most of the time. Almost nobody above first year had mastered above the Knock-back Jinx though some, like Maria, had managed spells like the Bleeding Curse or the Curse of the Bogies. Now Albus was watching what other first years were capable of and comparing it to how he fared against Mark in first year, Albus discovered he was actually one of the rare first year students who mastered so many spells in the span of a single month.
Cherry had nonetheless managed to oust Michael Aster from the stage and went on to face a Gertrude Bedlam. Gertrude was a big, bulky girl in Ravenclaw and had actually managed to dodge quite well before taking Cherry out with such a well-placed Bogies Curse, it affected Cherry's performance in the third round and she barely scraped a pass. They continued watching for the rest of the day as students either passed or failed from the very first day. Morpheus Ollivander was clearly the best of the first years and the only one he ran even with was Maria Prince, who could only do a Knock-back Jinx but evaded like a Quidditch player.
So far, despite her frequent bragging, Maria had shown no knowledge beyond the basic spells a first year could do. Nonetheless, she seemed to possess a lot of power. Her spells did more damage than what they usually did. In fact, a Knock-back Jinx had nearly caused internal failure and needed medical attention. What bothered Albus, and Mark for that matter, was that she did not seem worried over her actions. She watched with an impassive face as her opponent was taken away.
As the afternoon settled and the last of the first year students had completed their rounds, the four house tables were Charmed back to their original position by Incommodo himself and all were ordered to sit for a late lunch. There, Albus had to endure Maria's loud insistence that she was hiding her true skill. "Well, if she is, she just gave away her strategy," Scorpius yawned, starting on his pudding.
"Pity we don't duel until the end of the month," Riley lamented.
"Oh, Al, how I would love to face you," Scorpius smirked. "I've always wondered who would win between us."
"I already know you'll win," Albus sighed.
"I dunno, the Dark Arts are my best bet and I'm limited in what I can do to a friend," Scorpius said honestly. "What about you, Mark?"
"If you use the Dark Arts on Al, I'll smack you," Mark said casually. "We're facing, aren't we, Al?"
"Yeah, we are, later this month," Albus said interestedly.
"Never thought we'd have another duel to determine the best between us," Mark smirked. "Know who Aries is facing?"
"Me," Scorpius said casually. "I'm also facing Laura though, so I might stand a chance."
The three stayed talking about the Dueling tournament for the rest of the meal. Albus had actually expressed worry that he would not manage to get through the preliminaries and guessing he would be expelled at the very end simply because Incommodo did not like him. Mark, of course, disagreed, "If he wants to discover why you survived, it'd be best to keep you around. In any case, I think we're all curious as to how you managed to get away from him."
As Albus shrugged, his eyes met Scorpius' accusatory ones. Albus' stomach sank. He did tell Scorpius about Voldemort's essence, didn't he? He had spilled the beans to Scorpius in fifth year, when Albus thought the essence had disappeared. Did Scorpius seriously still remember all of that? Was that why he shot Albus a look every time Albus claimed to not know his curse or when Albus shrugged off the reason he survived?
Another good thing was the Hogsmeade trips that happened far more often. Albus had to admit, he missed visits to Hogsmeade. He knew Incommodo was treating the place like his own little Kingdom, with a castle and populace, it struck Albus as almost medieval, but visiting the village had its good effects. For one thing, the parents of Hogwarts students could see their kids almost every weekend. Unfortunately, the DA had a minimal presence there. The alliance, now shaky, between the Arsenal and the DA still existed but it was clear Incommodo meant to run this part of the Wizarding world alone.
One weekend before the last of the month where Albus was meant to duel Mark, he finally took Alexis up on her offer to visit Hogsmeade with her. Even little Neil Nott, now a third year, poked his head in and walked cautiously alongside his father. Albus would've offered him to join them but Alexis made it clear she wanted to day alone and Neil was with his father. And now he noticed, Riley and Rose were dating too. The two seemed very secretive, so much so even Alexis was curious.
"In the last Arithmancy class, Rose came in late," she informed him. "And after class, she had a private conversation with the Professor and then went to see Riley. I don't know what her problem is but it's cutting on her class effort. She's going to get expelled."
Albus did not doubt this. Alexander was already expelled, "How's Alexander?"
"Ecstatic," Alexis said, throwing her hands up like she did not understand what he was thinking. "How he likes being expelled. And would you believe Rojer appealed to have him reinstated?"
"What?"
"Yeah, because Alexander is good with theoretical spells, Rojer felt he could be stronger if the theoretical part was applied more," Alexis explained conversationally.
"Would that- work?"
"No, I tried that," Alexis shook her head. "I think it's just Rojer being Rojer and wanting to bash the weak down even more. You should hear the way Alpha talks about him. Fears the ground he walks on or something."
"Well"-
"Leave me alone!" a voice yelled. Albus and Alexis stopped and looked. Lorcan and Lycah were sitting in an alleyway off the village. Lycah seemed particularly angry at something and Lorcan seemed to be trying to calm her down.
"Lycah, just"-
"I don't want to," she yelled. "I ran away for a reason. Why is everything just coming back to haunt me? I don't want this. I want out! Leave me alone!"
"Lycah, you're drunk," Lorcan said frankly.
Lycah opened her mouth to respond angrily but she closed it, considered, and went quiet. She allowed Lorcan to reach out and hug her tightly. He muttered something to her and she nodded silently. Lorcan kept his eye off Albus and Alexis but it was clear he noticed they were watching. The two walked away to give Lorcan privacy. "What was that about?" Alexis wondered.
"I know," Albus muttered. "But Sander swore me to secrecy."
Albus wondered if Alexis would push it, he knew he would've told her if she asked but she did not. She just nodded and wondered silently. "Does it- have something to do with Cherry and Lancet?" she asked. Albus just nodded and she smirked, "Ok, I know."
The rest of the month was indeed a little bliss for Albus. Probably one of the few good times. The end of the month could not come soon enough but come it did. Halloween had finally come and Albus had taken Alexis' advice against Sienna and won by summoning a single snake, and he also managed against Henry Trot in Hufflepuff. However, when Albus and Mark prepared themselves, Incommodo stepped between them. "This duel will have a shakeup. I believe the most can be gathered from your capabilities if I changed the match-up this time. At the behest of Professor Malfoy, I have decided that Potter will face Malfoy instead. Wallader will face Miss Kimble afterwards."
Albus blinked in surprise, but he noticed Draco's smirk. Aries and Mark eyed each other bemusedly, as if privately pleased that the two would be facing each other. Albus, however, froze. It was as if Scorpius got exactly what he wanted. Albus got what he wanted. A duel with Scorpius. All he had left was Scorpius Malfoy to face and Albus had two wins already so he knew he was through. Scorpius, of course, had also won two matches so the two of them could afford a playful duel. Doing as told, the two faced against each other on the table as ordered, wands at the ready. Albus had a sneaking suspicion that Draco did this on Scorpius' behalf. Scorpius used his connections to face off with his best friend.
A barrage of spells was running through Albus' mind, all of which Albus knew Scorpius, or Mark for that matter, could counter. How he would beat someone who could counter all of the spells thrown at him, Albus did not know but he sure as hell would try.
"Stupefy."
Nonverbally, Scorpius parried it as easy as it was to count. A counterattack of blue light was fired next which Albus avoided, but felt the air around his face grow hot. Albus' next spell clashed with Scorpius', the collision sending sparks flying out in different directions. The sparks themselves then reversed, converged, and charmed at Albus easily. Albus wished he knew how Seth could solidify the air in front of him but the best he could do was throw up a shield and watch it shatter with the fiery wheel Scorpius had made. Whatever Albus could do, he had to think fast because Scorpius had finally stopped going on the defensive. He rushed at Albus, firing spells madly.
Geminus Contego he thought desperately.
He blocked all of the spells and curses Scorpius had sent and they rebounded with double their original power. The shield was useless though. Upon a failed attempt by Scorpius to break it, he instead opted for a simple Knock-back Jinx. Albus blocked it and it rebounded, having Scorpius it as well. The spell rebounded once more on Albus before going against Scorpius once again. Just as Albus was beginning to wonder what game Scorpius had in mind, his shield had shattered and Albus fell back. He barely managed to roll out of the way of a yellow jet of light, firing a Trip-jinx as he did to throw his friend off.
Terra Dimoveo, Albus thought, wand pointing at the wood below Scorpius.
The wood below had broken but only because the ground underneath the wood had split. Scorpius had righted himself in time and repaired the table as the crowd cheered. Lubricus.
Scorpius had smirked as he spun his wand as if conjuring something. He jumped up and stayed suspended, hanging on to an invisible something. Like a rope. "Flamma!"
The lubrication set fire, forcing Albus to conjure water to protect himself and wasting precious time to defend himself. A beam of red light struck him straight in the chest and he fell back. Albus sighed as he hit the ground. He had lost. The crowd had indeed cheered and Scorpius, being Scorpius helped Albus up and cured his boiling injuring sprouting as Professor Nott announced the winner. "That…" Scorpius muttered. "Was brilliant."
Albus was happy to see the end to the duel and thought he'd cool off upstairs. That was after the duel between Mark and Aries. They faced off calmly, both ignoring the countdown. They started the second they took their places. The duel was- there was no other word for it- spectacular. If Incommodo was not satisfied with the display, nothing would satisfy him. Aries had dazzled them with incredible feats of power and Mark defended against even the most ferocious of spells easily. Albus could finally appreciate why Aries was touted as the most powerful, most skilled witch of their generation, or even their parents' generation.
Mark sent a jet of red light, fiery and destructive, at Aries. Albus wondered what its effects were, wondering how he would feel if Aries was hit and suffered injuries. Still, Aries defended easily. Some even rebounded on Mark and even with his bad leg, he could sidestep or simply throw a powerful shield up. She counterattacked with a jet of white light, a light so immense, that it let out a shockwave of power when it impacted Mark's shield. The shield itself turned into a fiery Frisbee which Mark jumped back, staggered on his leg, and flicked his wand. It turned on Aries immediately but she flicked her wand and it dissipated.
The duel went by in such quick motion, Albus did not catch everything that happened, but he noticed Aries had a way of dueling, a way Seth paid very close attention to. Maria herself was absorbing it all to her memory. Aries was so quick, almost fierce in her frequent wand-stabbing, that it was almost terrifying to look at. Albus could not see anything beyond what she displayed at the beginning of the duel, except her wand movments, bursts of dust and smoke, and Mark rolling forward, barely dodging her more destructive spells. It did not look like it would end either.
Bad leg or no bad leg, Mark was perfectly capable of holding his own, even against his fiancée. Five minutes in and the two were still at it, Incommodo watching with his yellow eyes. Finally, Draco let off a bang and the combatants stopped.
"So, like it?" Aries asked almost cheekily to Incommodo. It was clear she was taking advantage of the now-established fact that he would never expel her. His eyes met hers briefly and Nott announced a tie. Surprised that Mark even managed to tie with her, Albus left the room. Though it did occur to him as he walked up the marble staircase that Aries may have been holding back.
"Oi, Al." He sighed in relief just as Alexis showed up, "Al!"
Albus yelped and Alexis whistled as the two jumped, "Going somewhere?" he asked her.
"Was gonna ask the same about you," she said back.
"Just walking," Albus shrugged.
"So am I," she said, leaning unconvincingly against the wall, jingles being heard in her robe pocket. "Just got back from training with McGonagall. Good duel, by the way. You fought well."
Albus leaned beside her and sighed, "I knew he'd win. Extreme using fire though."
"Ah, burns are easily cured, he'd have stopped it before it did serious damage," Alexis assured. "The table's in ashes though."
Alexis seemed to want to ask something but she stayed silent, not breathing a word just yet. As they sat down against the wall, for the first time, Albus felt a sudden urge with Alexis. How would she react if he asked her to marry him? Would she accept? Or would she say once again that Alexander came first? Albus' thoughts were on that subject for a long time as they sat in silence. Albus must have looked so weird just sitting beside her for no reason. Did she have an errand to run? Was she just staying put for Albus' sake?
For five minutes, they sat quietly, watching Marius and Draco walk past them. Draco threw him an odd look and Marius looked rather interested but beyond that, nothing. Incommodo passed too but even he did not say anything. He walked past them without meeting any of their eyes. Albus saw Alexis throw a look of loathing at Incommodo's back though. He had expelled her brother. On the bright side, Alexander was very safe where he was and had easy access to the Room of Requirement, Lycah's hut and the Bungalow in Hogsmeade. Albus was actually split on whether to think Alexander was safer this way or not.
"Al," Alexis said suddenly, staring at a point under his mouth. "Where'd you get that scar?"
"Huh? This?" Albus asked, touching the smiley-shaped scar on his chin. "It's an injury from the fight last June," he lied quickly.
"Oh…" she said slowly. "I'd thought it would heal by now."
Albus went quiet again. This was why he could not ask Alexis to marry him. Because odds were, he was leaving the world at the end of the year. The thought once again sent shivers up his spine. Albus did not know if he would die or not but it looked likely. In the end, it would be his two souls against Incommodo's two souls. If Voldemort's soul was not destroyed in the battle, Albus would have to sacrifice himself. He would have no choice lest Voldemort truly return at the end of Albus' natural life. Slowly, Albus became aware of his own beating heart, his lungs still working, his ability to see, and Alexis, Alexis still looking over at him through the same brown eye she always did.
"Is something bothering you?" she asked.
Albus saw no point in lying. She saw through them anyway. He just nodded shortly and said, "I can't talk about it. Maybe- maybe later. Definitely not now."
"Sure," Alexis shrugged. She did not know what was truly bothering him or that it was a matter of life and death. "Al, I'm going to go through the Dumbledore's Army Headquarters and look around. There are loads of keys and it's only right we see where they lead to, in case we need them if you know what I mean."
To fight the Reservation. As far as Albus knew, no one had fought a front against the Reservation yet and if they did, nothing happened. Albus consented though and followed Alexis to the Room of Requirement which was now naturally open for her and Albus since they were part of the Guard. As they walked in, Alexander seemed to be in the middle of a jump from his bed to the mat where he rolled and fell flat on his front. "Wow!" he said happily. "I never thought being expelled would be so much fun!"
"Erm…"
"Well, I'm glad Incommodo and Rojer made you so happy," Alexis said uncertainly.
"Happy? This is brilliant!" Alexander whooped. Albus had never seen him so happy before. "I was always gonna fail but now I can fail in style."
"Yes," Alexis sighed. "Yes, you can. Just stay here and practice as much as you want. Al and I are going to look around."
"Wait"- Alexander called and jumped up. The plump boy raced across the small room to his bedside where he kept his wand. "I want to go with you. I was bored anyway. Come on. Where to?" he asked enthusiastically.
"Alexander, are you ok?" Alexis asked as they climbed through the portrait. "I haven't seen you so happy for seven years now."
They raced across the portrait's tunnel, getting closer to the hut. Alexander was panting behind them and finally rested once they got to the hut itself. It was partitioned once again but voices on the other side indicated Lycah and Lorcan were talking ad by additional voices, Lancet and Cherry were there too. Remembering what Lysander suggested about Lycah having two half siblings, Abus' stomach inexplicably sunk. He had toi admit he was curious but he could not eavesdrop, especially with Alexis and Alexander there. From the tones, Lycah seemed upset about something but Albus did not want to hear their talk. They climbed through the portrait leading to the Bungalow and walked on at a slower pace. "I think- even if we win the war- I'm gonna drop out."
Alexis stopped suddenly, neck going red as she turned. She turned, "What?"
"I don't want to come back," Alexander said simply.
Alexis stared for a bit at him, gaping open-mouthed as he regarded her bravely. Was he serious? Then, "Ok, no, you're continuing."
"No, I'm not! You're not the boss of me!"
"Oh, then who is? Because you're twelve years old, Alexander, someone is the boss of you," Alexis said rationally.
They continued walking in tense silence after that. It was not until they reached the now empty Bungalow (Albus supposed Luna set up shop somewhere else) when Alexander said in a low voice, "Better you than mum."
"Exactly, now get behind us for a bit. Wow, I feel weird here."
"So do I," Albus agreed.
"This place has a Vanishing Spell on it," Alexis said factually. "A major one. That's why you feel disconnected here. You're in a state of nonexistence as long as you're here. Al, do you know where those keys lead?" she asked casually.
"Well," Albus said as they fiddled through their keys. Albus had s sudden image of him and Alexis as an older couple, going through their house keys together with their kids behind them. He shook it out of his head. "The yellow one is Lovegood tower. Probably useless now. The green one is Malfoy Manor."
"The blue one is our Ackerly apartment," Alexis said knowingly. "I recognize the key shape."
"And the gold one is the Potter house," Albus said wistfully. "But the black one…" Albus and Alexis stared at it for a bit. It looked almost ominous and its head had a small snake engraved. Where did that key lead?
"Well, never know till you try," Alexander said happily, swooping in with his own black key. He turned it once to unlock the front door, making Albus feel like they had landed again. Alexis seemed to feel that way too.
Finally, Alexander opened the door for Albus and Alexis to step inside. Albus gaped. He had seen this house very few times in his life because his father did not like visiting it often. In fact, the last time Albus saw it was when he was eleven, the summer before he was to start Hogwarts. The house looked unusually clean but still looked ominous. For one thing the umbrella stand was made from a troll leg and a chandelier hung from the ceiling of an almost-gloomy looking room. It was the only source of light in the house because the very walls were black, not from dirt but from true color. The house did not befit Harry's Potter name at all hence why they had never lived in it and why Harry wrote in the deed that upon the first of his children turning seventeen, the house would go on to that child. James had turned seventeen but he had died so… the house was actually Albus' house now.
"Wow!" Alexander said in such a soft, admiring voice. "What is this place?"
"This guys, is Number Twelve Grimmauld Place," Albus introduced. "Our summer getaway and… it's actually my first house. In the deed. Pardon the darkness, feel free to criticize. In fact, feel obliged."
"I'm living in this place," Alexander said. "When I drop out."
"It's his house," Alexis reminded him.
"Trust me, I need the company," Albus quipped.
Albus was not too overly fond of the house himself but he supposed it would do. It was his after all. So, why was it clean? Harry hated living in it. They walked through it. Despite feeling disconnected from the house, Albus still felt obliged to at least tour it. They did not tour it for long when they heard voices from the kitchen. They stopped. Albus' hand was halfway to his wand when he stopped. No. He recognized those voices.
"Are we intruding?" Alexis asked uncertainly.
"If anything, they are," Albus said, heart pounding.
"He's right," a sudden voice from behind said. They jumped, all three of them, as Albus spun round to regard his own father, Harry Potter. "It's not ours, but we're using it for now. It's the best form of protective enhancement we got and it's the headquarters of our predecessors, the Order of the Phoenix. It'll do. Unless Al kicks us out of course."
"Of- of course not…"
"So, Al, changed your mind?" Harry mused. "Dropping out of Hogwarts?"
"No, just checking around," Albus said truthfully.
"You are Harry Potter," Alexander said matter-of-factly as if he was not noticing but actually commanding the man before him to take up that persona. "Wow!"
"Taking minors, now, Al?"
"He was expelled," Alexis said as Alexander started looking around. "He's accompanying Al and I as we look around. Just taking a break from that infernal castle I can't wait till I graduate from."
Before anyone could say anything in response to this, Albus felt his heart skip a beat. The next one to show herself from the stairs was Ginny. His mum. Albus felt his breath leave him as she walked slowly towards him. She looked like she was treading carefully for some reason that Albus could not fathom at the moment. Harry immediately turned to Alexis and Alexander and offered to give them a tour of the place while Albus was left in the entry way with his mum. At least, Albus thought, he was on good terms with his mum and at least it looked like Harry had returned home. Or as close to home as he could get now the DA were using Grimmauld Place as a base.
Albus hugged Ginny tightly, feeling tears leak out now and grateful neither Alexis nor Alexander were there to see. A wave of so many emotions rushed through him. He knew this might be the last time he would hug her and the last time he would speak to her. The house would go to Lily later. As they broke apart, Ginny took him wordlessly to the backyard outside. The garden was small compared to the house seeing as how they were sharing a complex with neighbors. As Ginny walked him through it, she finally spoke, "As you can see, your father came back."
"I noticed," Albus said quietly as they watched the gnomes scurry on away as the night began falling. "Is he ok?"
"Somewhat," Ginny responded, taking a seat on the back porch steps.
Once again, she handled herself carefully as she sat and that got Albus worried again. Before he could say anything, another person made his presence known. Albus had seen him so few times but this was the second time in a year. Otto Blackberry, their savior from the Lovegood tower battle, stepped into the nighttime scenery. "Mr. Potter," he said calmly. "You were fighting at Lovegood tower, I presume? We've managed to stave them off."
"Otto has been tracking the Reservation through his vampire clans," Ginny told him calmly. "He's been living here for two years now, taking in more vampires who decide the Reservation cannot be trusted."
"Numbering more and more by the month," Otto said happily. "How are my kids?"
"Both fine," Albus said gratefully.
"Good to hear," Otto said as he walked further down and basked in the moonlight. He looked up at it and back at the house, "Riley seems a little preoccupied with something, however."
"What would it be?" Albus asked curioiusly.
"Well, he asked me to keep it secret, so I am not at liberty to say," Otto said casually. He almost looked like Riley himself but it got Albus thinking. Another secret? The last time Riley had a secret to keep, it was in second year that served as James' trigger for the Hogwarts Hurricane. What was it now? He was acting secretive, now he thought of it. Him and Rose were both being withdrawn, and the one time where Rose might've raged at Scorpius for calling her fat, she just walked off.
"It's a shame the day limits our movements. We could've covered much more ground if we were able to move in sunlight," Otto was telling Ginny.
"We'll manage," Ginny sighed.
"Are you ok, Mrs. Potter?" Otto asked concernedly. "Do not exert yourself too much. I shall be back later to give you your medicine."
"Where are you off to?" Ginny asked.
Otto turned and fixed them with an almost dangerous glare, giving Albus chills and reminding him of Neil's deep fear of vampires, "To hunt."
Albus was half grateful Otto had left because he was getting worried. What was he talking about? Ginny exerting herself, Ginny being ok, her slow way of walking, her careful way of sitting down. Was she ok? If Albus discovered she was sick or dying, he was not sure he could handle it. Almost daringly, he asked, "Mum, are you ok?"
Ginny smiled and slowly, ever so slowly, she got up and stood straight. Albus noticed no change anywhere. She still looked the same but he was getting the impression that a change was happening slowly. Had just started, perhaps. "I'm fine, Al. I'm pregnant." Her words were not met with the appropriate surprise just yet. It was one thing hearing Astoria was pregnant. Having a baby seemed so foreign to the world now, in Albus' eyes. He could not even envision a life with Alexis because of the war. His mum. Slowly, his mouth fell open as Ginny led him back inside. "Mrs. Malfoy and I are in the same boat. In fact, I'm probably going to stay with her during this time. Whoever is inside me," she motioned to her stomach. "And whoever is inside her will likely start Hogwarts together if- if all goes well."
Albus could do nothing except sigh in relief, "Wow. I erm… a little brother or a sister. And that age difference."
"You'll be eighteen by the time this one is born," she said. "It seems strange, doesn't it? I felt the same way, when I had James, after living through a war, fighting through its climax, and fighting multiple wars for the Holyhead Harpies," she added with a smirk. "It's very foreign, having a baby after such times. But you get used to it. You accept it. And in many ways, you'll be looking after this one too as an older brother."
The very thought made Albus feel down again. The house would go to Lily, Alexis would stay with her brother, and Scorpius would look over the Malfoy Manor with his younger sister and his parents, the family still whole. Albus would be dead. "I- I won't survive this," he finished quietly.
Albus was worried. Did Ginny take that as a childish plea for help. She didn't. She put a hand on his shoulder, "You will. And don't tell yourself otherwise, Al. Your father has a plan and it will work. So just trust him, ok? By all means, stay in Hogwarts, study, get good grades, and continue excelling, even get married. But trust your father. He knows what he's doing this time, even if you do consider Incommodo's real identity, he knows. We can do it. So don't worry."
Albus did not know if Ginny could be trusted or not. Could Harry win the war? Did he perhaps know something that Albus did not? Albus did not know but even if he did, it mattered little. In fact, if Harry was the one to kill Incommodo, Albus would definitely have to die. The thought haunted Albus for so long, the rational things seemed to be to just tell Harry the truth, but Albus was needed at Hogwarts. Albus feared being kept at home, out of Hogwarts, out of the war, and well away from his friends. Plus, Harry asked for Aries to get involved for a reason. The kids could not stay out of this. They were in it for good.
Whatever Harry had in mind, Albus was not able to ponder. Alexis and Alexander returned from their tour, Alexander surer than ever in his desire to just drop out and relax in a house Alexis kept reminding did not belong to him. Albus could not let his mind wander too far from his mum though. Pregnant. The last time she was pregnant was when Albus was two and that was with Lily. The memory was so vague but it was actually Albus' earliest memory. Lily's birth.
They heard Harry returning with the Ackerlys and Albus knew their visit was at an end. "Stay safe, ok? Please. Don't fight."
Ginny scoffed, "You sound like Harry. Honestly, Al, I am perfectly capable of defending myself and the baby who I might remind you is nowhere near delivery yet and won't be until July."
Alexis and Alexander eventually did return only for them to be diverted into a smaller room for tea before they returned to the castle. The three sat down at a small table while Harry and Ginny walked off. Albus gave his mum a final hug, caught a last look from his father who nonetheless seemed angry with Albus for what they discussed mere months ago, and returned his attention to his girlfriend.
"So, what'd you talk to him about?" Albus asked interestedly as Alexis spun the cup full of tea in its place for her brother's amusement.
"Oh, just trying to impress on me how useless Hogwarts education is," Alexis sighed. "He doesn't want us going back but I told him we had to and he can't exactly pull me out, can he?"
"No, he tried pulling me out few months ago," Albus mentioned as Alexander regarded his tea with distaste.
Alexis looked on in interest as Albus started explaining how Harry said that Albus was endangering his fellow students. Alexis, while paying attention, transfigured Alexander's tea to another drink of his choosing. When Albus finished his story, Alexis said, "Well, we are endangering students but… I dunno… it's a moral dilemma, isn't it? The Heirs are meant to be involved and half of them are underage and if we can't exactly wait till they're of age or it'd be too late."
"Well"-
"Lemonade," Alexander mumbled quietly.
Alexis transfigured the drink one more time before returning her attention to Albus. Their small cups were already half done. "Are you going to live here?"
"Probably, if I live," Albus shrugged, taking a final sip and charming the cup clean.
Alexis, he found, was done too and they'd just started practicing old charms on their cups before reverting back to their old favorite pastime of cup battle. "When're you going to start thinking more positively?" she asked, successfully charming her cup to walk over to Albus' engorged cup, and hop in.
Albus did not respond immediately. He tried reducing his cup's size but Alexis' cup had stopped it. Alexis laughed heartily, charming her cup out, and swishing her wand to battle Albus' cup. Albus' cup put a good fight up, but Alexis' cup hit it off the desk to shatter on the floor cuing Alexander's laughter. As it fell, Albus looked up in surprise. Albus repaired his cup and Charmed it to jump on the table and battle once again.
"Probably after the war ends," Albus sighed, directing his cup to battle once more. "And I'm thinking realistically. I might not live, you know."
"I mean while the war is going on," Alexis clarified, directing her cup to wrangle with Albus'.
"You mean be happy while everyone is dying?" Albus asked, suffering another defeat with his cup. He wasted no time in repairing it to continue its fight.
"I mean being this way is exactly what people like the Reservation want," she reminded him, as her cup was smashed in revenge. She shook her head and repaired it.
"I wish… after losing my cousin and friend, Hagrid, and my brother, I just don't see it," Albus mumbled, using his cup's legs this time to fight Alexis' cup off. Her cup got on his back and fought with its legs too.
Her cup used a free leg to punch a hole in Albus' cup. It got up and pushed it down again. She laughed as Albus cursed at his loss and repaired it again. "Al, you're trying too hard. A Ravenclaw is smart. Try using brains for once and don't try for brute strength."
"How come I can see it after my mother walks out, my father dies, and we're under the craziest Headmaster Hogwarts ever had?" Alexis mused. She watched as Albus tried again. His cup jumped up high and landed softly on its legs, using a free one to punch a hole. Alexis barely dodged the attack.
"Because that's who you are," Albus mumbled. "And that's what I appreciate about you." His cup barely dodged a smashing attack, causing a small crack in Alexis' cup.
They watched as Albus' cup landed perfectly in Alexis' cup. Both cups used their own legs to smash holes in each other before Albus directed his cup back up, engorged it in the air, and smashed her cup down.
"You're probably right, it's been a while since I've had fun," Albus sighed.
"You don't call what we had fun?" Alexis asked, pointing to her giggling brother. "Come on, let's go home."
Alexander seemed to start liking Albus as they went on their way to the bungalow the quicker way. As they climbed through the portrait's passage, Alexander started asking Albus where he got the house from and whether he would sell it one day. Alexis seemed to disapprove of the constant questions but Albus did not mind. It was a fine break but the usual snide remarks from him about how displeased he was that Albus was going out with his older sister to begin with. Albus started wondering. Would he ever be happy again? Or would he just die and find peace?
They finally landed in the partitioned hut Lycah had. The hut was open now but Lycah was not there. Cherry and Lancet were. The two stopped talking abruptly as Albus and Alexis clambered out and Cherry put on an artificial smile. "I guess people don't have any regard for other people's privacy. Oh, well."
"It's ok with Lycah, what do you care?" Alexander challenged.
"Snappish too," Lancet claimed. "I'm liking the Wizarding world less and less."
Alexander was about to respond, probably to say he disliked it too, when Alexis took him by the shoulder and steered him out of the hut and across the grounds. "Honestly, Alexander, you're the rudest thing possible when you're expelled."
"Did you see how she talked to us?" Alexander complained.
"It's just as bad that you did the same," Alexis scolded. "You're better than that."
"Yes, mum," Alexander mumbled.
They made their way out and across the lawn towards the castle. Just as they reached the front doors, Albus had a rush of foreboding. He heard Incommodo's voice speaking and as Alexis opened the door, she shrieked, causing Incommodo to pause in the middle of his speech. The scene was terrorizing for after they fought their way through a circle of onlookers, at the foot of the marble staircase, clearly having been pushed down the stairs by whoever standing at the top, Zandar Lex it seemed, was Professor Trelawney. She was dead.