The night before Halloween Harry and Melanie were called up to Dumbledore's office, together they walked there wondering why Dumbledore needed to see them. Upon arrival the pair found not only Dumbledore there but quite a few of the order members, all of them looking tense.
"Hey guys," Sirius greeted them, and looked somewhat surprised when Melanie came forward and hugged him.
"What's this all about?" Melanie asked once she had pulled back and looked around the office, which was full of familiar faces.
"Voldemort," Moody said gruffly, Melanie turned to him and shivered slightly, he was very creepy looking with that eye of his.
"Well what about him?" Harry asked, sounding impatient.
"We all know he is after power, and there are things he needs to get it," Remus said his eye set on Melanie; she turned around and looked panicked, she did not like how everyone in the room was now looking at her. It made her feel a little bit like her skin was crawling, she rather wished they would just stop.
"Why are you staring at me?" She asked, her voice a higher pitch then normal with her worry.
"Voldemort, although unable to feel love, needs an heir which he can control. For that he wants a witch, with the same blood as his, who is powerful, and who is beautiful. Melanie there are very few out there quite like you or your brother, however as your brother is in fact male, and so he would not do," Dumbledore informed her slowly, allowing his words to sink in. After a few seconds with a blank look on her face, her feature contorted into a look of disgust. There was no way of confusing what he was saying to her, and the suggestion alone was enough to make her feel physically sick.
"He wants me to have his kids?" Melanie asked horrified, her face a mask of shock and disgust. There was a sense of unease in the room, no one looked particularly happy to be there.
"HELL NO!" Harry yelled looking around at the faces he knew so well. Sirius, Remus, McGonagall, Molly, Arthur, Bill, Charlie, Fred, George, Tonks, Kingsley, Moody, Hagrid and even Snape. "Hell no. That- that … He will not touch my sister!" Harry said finally and firmly, but he knew better then to believe that just because he said it, that Voldemort wouldn't try to get her.
"Harry we're doing everything we can to protect Melanie," Arthur said honestly, and it was hard to believe they could ever do otherwise.
"You know we don't want anything to happen to her," Bill reasoned, just like his father his words were laced in sincerity.
"Hold on, there's more," Dumbledore informed them solemnly. "Voldemort also wants to be able to control future generations, the best way for him to do that is to take control is to kill the teachers, but he knows that it's too dangerous, and there's no guarantee, so I believe he will take the Key, Vox of Natu Minimus. From Latin it translates to 'Power of the young'. It is the key to Hogwarts and every other magical school in the world, though it will be mainly Hogwarts he is after."
"So not only does he want to get my baby sister pregnant, he wants to take over the school," Harry asked calmly, though his heart was beating rapidly, he was anything but calm. His fingers tightened on the arms of the chair, turning the knuckles white, Melanie looked at him with concern, fear glittering in her eyes.
"Pretty much." Sirius sighed, running his hands over his face, looking older at the very idea.
"He wants to get my baby sister pregnant?" Harry asked again, his voice wavering slightly.
"If it's any consolation, for the magic he wants to use to work, she has to be willing," Tonks squeaked, although it sounded a bit lame even as she said it.
"I repeat. HE WANT'S TO GET MY FREAKING BABY SISTER PREGNANT!" Harry bellowed, Melanie flinched slightly, but leaned towards Harry and wrapped her arms around his waist, in turned he put his arms around her shoulders and looked at the people incredulously. "Well, what are you doing about it all?" He demanded.
"Well we have a lot of protection on Melanie, and we ourselves are searching for the key." Charlie told Harry, knowing he must be in hell, if it were Ginny he'd been smashing something right then and there.
"Where is it?" Harry asked impatiently.
"We don't know, boy," Moody growled. "If we did, we'd have it boy."
"Great." Harry drawled and looked down at Melanie. "We got it alright, you're safe." Melanie sniffled slightly and nodded. She was scared, very scared.
"What about me, is he still after me?" Harry asked after a few moments.
"Yes, you still are the one who must bring his downfall, but Harry, you can't do it alone," Remus stressed, knowing all too well that Harry wouldn't want to endanger his friends, at the risk of endangering himself.
"You'll need a lot of help and support," Sirius told him, with something close to regret in his voice.
"What the hell am I?" Melanie shot at them, and the others in the room smiled at the sight before them. These two children held the weight of the world on their shoulders and yet they stood there defiantly, supporting and fighting for each other.
When Melanie and Harry got back to the common room, they sat down on the sofa in complete silence, Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Neville looked at them worriedly, however it was Neville who reacted first, he got up and went up to the dorms, when he came back down he was holding two bottles of butterbeer.
"Here you look like you could use these," He said handing both Harry and Melanie the bottles, Melanie who had never tasted butterbeer before savoured the feeling of the warm liquid, and the taste.
"Do you guys want to talk?" Ginny asked, as Harry placed his bottle down on the table having drunk pretty much all of it in one gulp. He shook his head then left to go up to his dorm.
"I don't know if-if we can… damn," Melanie muttered unsurely, not knowing what was secret and what wasn't… but these were her friends, and if they were really going to be safe, those closet needed to know. "Look just do not tell anyone." Melanie said seriously. "Voldemort has plans, to take over the school and have an heir. He wants me to be the one to have his child." Melanie said quietly, there was a gasp from Hermione and Ginny, Ron and Neville looked fairly sick. "There's also this key to the school that he wants, and of course to kill Harry."
Hermione shot a look at Ron, Ginny and Neville.
"I'll search the library, if I can, I'll find out what this key is, I might also try and find something- wait Ginny take Melanie upstairs and show her the thing in Witch Weekly," Hermione instructed, after a look of realisation dawned on Ginny's face, she nodded and led Melanie up to the girls' dorms. "And you two watch Harry." Hermione instructed then followed Ginny and Melanie.
Up in the girls' dorm Ginny and Melanie were sitting on her bed and looking at a magazine, Ginny was fliucking quick through the issue, before pausing on a bright purple page, an advert.
"Did you find it Gin?" Hermione asked when she reached the room, peering over Ginny's shoulder at the magazine.
"Yeah, smart one Hermione," Ginny said smiling at Hermione as they looked at the contraception charm, it was simple enough, and came with instructions.
"So this stops me from getting pregnant? This charm?" Melanie said looking at the page it was shown on, she wouldn't have to go to a doctors to get it done, she could place it on herself, as long as if she had an accident she told the healers.
"Yeah it lasts twenty-four hours apparently," Ginny said, sounding interested as she read.
"I saw it the other day and wondered why it would be in a teen's magazine, but only recently I found a lot of the girls we know use it," Hermione admitted.
"Like who?"
"Well Parkinson, she uses the spell and a monthly potion," Hermione admitted. "And I think Lavender was saying something to Parvati about it working a dream when she used it."
"Lovely, wait who did she use it with?" Melanie asked interested in this piece of gossip.
"Lavender I don't know. Parkinson we think was Malfoy," Hermione answered curtly, it was a known fact that Parkinson and Malfoy were at it like rabbits.
"The gorgeous Slytherin?" Melanie asked intrigued.
"Don't say that in front of Harry," Ginny giggled.
The next day came and Harry was feeling a bit better, he had lesson today as it was a Monday, then he remember it was Halloween, he grinned got up washed and changed then went down to the common room.
"Morning Ron," Harry said flopping down onto the comfy sofa next to Ron. "What you doing still here, shouldn't you be down in the great hall getting breakfast?" Harry questioned.
"Probably, but I'm waiting for 'Mione," Ron told Harry.
"You gonna tell her how much you fancy her?" Harry chuckled, teasing his redheaded friend who quickly turned a brilliant shade of red.
"No! I was just waiting for her…" Ron mumbled blushing madly, feeling his ear get hot as the blood ran to them with his embarrassment.
"Sure Ron," Harry said patting Ron's head as he himself got up and walked towards the portrait hole, he stopped short however when he heard someone yell his name. He turned to see Lavender running towards him.
"Hi Harry," She said smiling breathlessly as she reached him. "I noticed you were going down to breakfast, do you mind me walking with you to the Great Hall?" Lavender asked in a sweet voice which made Harry raise his eyebrows but nod anyway. "So how have you been Harry?"
"Erm, alright I guess," Harry said unsurely what she was getting at, Lavender had somewhat a reputation in Hogwarts, and it wasn't like they were hugely friendly.
"It must have been such a shock to have Melanie thrown into your life," Lavender said placing a hand on Harry's shoulder and looking sympathetic. He looked at her warily.
"I guess, I'm happy to have her though," Harry said slowly.
"You know what I think. I think you need another woman in your life Harry, someone you could love," Harry stopped dead at this, and taking it as an encouragement Lavender stepped up close to Harry so that they could feel the heat from the other. "Someone beautiful, smart, mature, someone Harry, who will be there for you." Then she leant in and brushed her lips against Harry's, and he was too in shock to push her away.
"Harry!" Someone yelled, the raven haired boy finally out of shock pushed Lavender away and whipped around to see Melanie standing there, and a mane of fiery hair darting around the corner.