Using the prompt 'fight fire with fire'

Chapter Forty

It appeared that the issue of this imposter relative was a bigger issue than anyone intended. They waited in Diagon Alley for some time – more than an hour anyway.

They were each carrying a bag of things they had bought, and they all got to a point of sitting out the front of Ollivander's, waiting for Harry to return. Rose and Scorpius returned from their so-called walk, looking a lot happier compared to when they had left. Hugo wondered if anything had happened, but he realised now was not the time to ask.

Though, the two of them did sit slightly separately from the others, and Scorpius put his arm across Rose's shoulders. It was hard to tell if it was a friendly gesture or something more.

Eventually, Ginny sighed very loudly and got up. "Alright," she said. "We should go home. It looks like your father is taking longer at the Ministry than he anticipated, and we don't want to be hanging around here all day."

"But, didn't Daddy say he'd send an owl?" Lily asked.

"He also said he'd be less than an hour," Ginny answered. "You know what his work can be like, Lil. He'll know to go home."

"And, what about me?" Scorpius questioned. "Do you mind dropping me home?"

Ginny smiled. "As I said, Scorpius, you're welcome at our place."

This gesture obviously made the boy uncomfortable. "I… are you sure?" he asked.

"Don't be silly!" Rose said. "Of course."

Scorpius bit his lip. "Alright, thanks," he relented. "But, I really don't want to intrude."

"You're not!" Rose assured him. "You're very welcome, especially after all you did for us."

Scorpius blushed. "I didn't do much," he mumbled.

"Without your father, who knows what might have happened," Ginny answered with a smile. "And he is the first to admit that it is you who suggested he help."

Scorpius returned her smile. "Thanks," he said.

It was a lot easier to get to the Leaky Cauldron as the crowd had thinned, though it was a lot creepier in the actual pub. There had been relatively friendly faces when they had arrived, but now it was gloomier and the occupants were less than talkative.

Ginny hurried them through quickly.

Ginny had barely had time to step out of the fireplace when Harry arrived after her, and Draco quick to follow.

"What's happened?" Ginny questioned.

Even Hugo could see that his uncle was fuming. Obviously, things hadn't gone to plan. Clearly, it wasn't as easily as sorted as they had all hoped.

"Is she really a relative?" Hugo questioned, starting to panic slightly. What if this woman was telling the truth? What if his mum had told her that she'd get everything, but then forgotten about it?

No, that couldn't be right. His mum would never forget something so important. That wasn't like her.

Harry shook his head. "If she isn't, then she's covered her tracks really well," he said.

"But… Mum's family are all Muggles," Rose said. "Surely, she would have mentioned her if she had a magical relative. Mum and Dad left us to you, and everything else to us. That was in the Will."

Harry nodded. "Yes, I know, Rosie, but it's a belief that many Muggleborns do originally stem from magical blood. A lot of people believe that there was once a Squib in the family, and, well, it's quite a plausible explanation."

"So… you're saying that some of our distant relatives could have magic?" Hugo questioned.

Harry shrugged. "It's possible, but not in this case."

"But that doesn't change the fact that Mum has never mentioned this person before. And that she wasn't even mentioned in the Will," Rose added, appearing not to have heard what Harry had just said.

Harry nodded. "I know."

"So, then, what's the matter, Harry?" Ginny insisted.

"Well, there was a report that came through while we were there… from your grandparents – your Muggle grandparents. The letter wasn't from this woman who claims to be a relative, it was from your grandparents. They had received a letter from her, and they had thought to send it to us – which explains the owl post; they would have known. She knows nothing of your mother's magic."

"So, she's a phony, then," Hugo said.

"Apparently not, Hugo," Harry said. "Apparently, this person is a relative of yours – one who seems to only show interest when someone else dies."

"So, she's just after the money, then."

Harry nodded.

"Again, I ask, what's the problem?" Ginny said.

"Well, now we have to investigate whether this claim is true."

"Of course it isn't!"

"We still must investigate."

Rose sighed, collapsing onto one of the chairs. "Will this ever end?" she asked. "Will we ever just be able to let go?"

OOO

"We should see this imposter," Hugo stated a little later. "We should meet her, make sure we don't actually know her."

Rose looked up at him, and it seemed she was debating whether or not to take him seriously. But Hugo was dead serious. He needed to meet this woman. She claimed she was given custody of them, yet why would their parents have entrusted them with someone who didn't even know about their magic? It was stupid and he couldn't believe the Ministry were taking it so seriously.

Eventually, Rose said, "Why should we? You said so yourself – she'd just an imposter. Let Uncle Harry deal with it."

"But…."

"Hugo, there were no Hannahs at the funeral. Nobody but Grandma and Grandpa seem to know who she is. I doubt Mum even knew who she was. If she didn't have the decency to show up at their funeral, then why should she get all their stuff? Mum and Dad left everything to us, and we're going to keep it. She can fight all she wants – what use would she have for wizarding money anyway? – but she's not getting her hands on anything."

His sister's words made Hugo think about their house. It had been a long time since he'd thought about it. It was just sitting there… empty…."

"We should probably sell the house," he suggested mildly.

Rose glared at him. "What?"

"Rosie, we're not going to go back there are we?" Hugo continued. "To begin with, we thought we might, but we're not going to. This is our home now. We have family here, and… I don't know if I can go back. I think we really need to consider selling the house."

"To that woman?" Rose questioned harshly.

"No, of course not," Hugo replied. "But she's another reason why we should sell it quickly. If she's trying to get her hands on Mum and Dad's stuff, we need to make sure she doesn't. They wouldn't want that."

Tears stung in Rose's eyes. "But… they left the house to us," she said softly.

Hugo nodded. "Yes, so it's ours. Rosie, we lived in that place our whole lives. It was where many things happened, and we have heaps of great memories from it, but I don't think I can go back and live there anymore. I'll just be expecting Mum and Dad to be there all the time. Here, at least, we know it's Uncle Harry's house. It's different, and… I like it here. I really do.

"Why not let another family have the memories that we had there? They'll be happy there too."

They were sitting in the small courtyard Harry called the backyard. Everyone else was inside – they had left the two to discuss things. Rose leaned back in the chair she was in, and sighed.

"You're right… as usual," she said. "I guess I just find it more difficult to let go than you do. But, yeah, I could never go back there again. I tried once, and I hated it."

"We loved it there, so someone else should have the chance to love it there too. You never know, maybe another wizarding family might move in."

Rose laughed. "Only Mum and Dad are crazy enough to buy a house right in the middle of a highly Muggle populated area and think it could work."

"Which what made it the best place to live," Hugo answered. He wasn't sure what he had said, but his words had sparked something in his sister. She jumped to her feet, gasping.

"I forgot to tell you!" she said. "You know Maddy?"

Hugo nodded. "The girl who lived down the street from us?"

"Yes, her!" Rose said excitedly. "Well, her mum is a witch!"

This news surprised Hugo greatly. He'd never been given any indication that Maddy had magical blood in her. She seemed like a perfectly normal, oblivious, Muggle to her.

"But –"

Rose cut him off. "She's not, though," she said, reading his mind. "Her dad's a Muggle, and so when they had Maddy, her mum cut off most ties with magic to make him feel more comfortable."

"But… Maddy doesn't live with her dad," Hugo said.

Rose nodded. "Yeah, when her parents split, her mum kind of just continued not using magic – kind of to make Maddy feel better because she couldn't use it. But she knew who we were the whole time. I really wish I'd known when we lived there. There was so much more we could have talked about!"

"You could always write to her?" Hugo suggested. "Anyway, maybe her mum can help to shake any suscpicions about our house when we sell it."

Rose nodded. "That's a great idea, Hu! I'll send a letter tonight!"

At those words, Harry pushed open the door.

"Send a letter to who?" he questioned.

"Maddy… a friend," Rose answered. "Don't worry, she knows about magic. Her mum's a witch."

Harry nodded. "I believe you," he said. "Anyway, I've just come to inform you that this Hannah woman has shown up at your grandparents' place. I can take you there now if you'd like? To meet her? You might recognise her if you do."

"Why would I recognise an imposter?" Hugo asked.

"Hugo, I really wish you'd stop referring to her as that. She'd not an imposter. She is a family member."

"Not our family member," Hugo mumbled.

"She's your family whether you like it or not and I think it best that we get this sorted as soon as possible. Be ready in ten minutes; your grandparents are expecting us." Harry went back inside, leaving Rose and Hugo to share a look.

"Harry's right," Rose said after a moment. "Anyway, I have some things I'd like to say to her."

"Oh no," Hugo said. "Rosie…."

"Well, she'll deserve it!" Rose retorted. "How dare she come in and step on Mum and Dad's memory like that just because she wants their money! They'd be furious."

"Dad would have some things to say about her," Hugo reasoned.

Rose nodded. "Exactly. Come on, let's go. I can't wait to see her face when I tell her what I think."

Hugo fought back a laugh. Oh, he couldn't wait either. The poor woman wouldn't know what hit her.

OOO

Harry Apparated them onto their grandparents' quiet street. No one was about, but even so, Hugo thought it was a bit dangerous. But then again, he was Harry Potter, wasn't he? He could talk anyone round who wanted to challenge him.

"I forgot how much I like it here," Rose commented as they wandered up the narrow path.

Hugo couldn't help but be reminded of a few months ago when they had spent a few days here. It had been he, Rose and Harry and… was his grandmother even wearing the same outfit?

"Hi, my darling girl," she cried as Rose ran to her and threw her arms around the older woman. "How I've missed you these past months."

"I've missed you too," Rose said, burying her face into her grandmother. Hugo hadn't noticed last time, but Rose was almost as tall as her now.

"Your uncle has been keeping us updated on everything, though. I was so relieved to hear the good news about the trial. I wish we could have been there."

"Oh, but it was awful," Rose said. "Mum was your daughter, you would have hated it."

"Even so," her grandmother answered, ushering the three of them inside. "I would have liked to have been there."

Once safely in the house, it was Hugo's turn to be hugged by his grandmother. Despite himself, he hugged her back. He'd always liked coming here. It was always a break from the norm.

And the memories of his dad trying to work the bloody Muggle contraptions – as he had called them – still brought a smile to his face.

"Hi, Grandma," he said after she had broken away.

She placed a kiss to the top of his head. Hugo wasn't quite her height yet, but he was getting there… slowly.

"You're growing every day, Hugo," she commented.

Hugo smiled. "I'm trying," he said.

Their grandfather came into the room after that, and the greetings started all over again. "It's good to see you kids again," he said.

"We should come here more often," Rose added. "Like we used to."

A silence filled the room, but even so, Hugo finally pin-pointed the difference from this visit to the last. In general, everybody was much more cheerful.

"Anyway, should we begin this meeting?" The tone he spoke with and the expression on his face made Hugo realise that his grandfather was not at all pleased. It seemed he and Rose weren't the only ones frustrated that things weren't just ending.

Harry nodded. "She's still here, I assume?" he questioned.

"In the living room," Hugo's grandmother replied. "Pretending as if she's known us our whole lives. However, she keeps calling me Jeanette."

Hugo snorted with laughter.

"I assume you'll sort this out, Harry? I couldn't bear to see these kids go through anymore than what they already have."

Harry nodded in understanding. "I'll try my best he said, but I am just one person."

They were lead into the living room, and the first thing Hugo laid eyes on was a woman in her late thirties sitting on the couch, sipping from a teacup. He leaned forward to whisper in his sister's ear. "She looks like she has a stick up her arse," he commented mildly.

Rose smiled. "True," she said.

Upon seeing them, the woman called Hannah got to her feet. She gave them a sickening pleasant smile as she approached them.

"How lovely it is to see the two of you again," she said, smiling down at Hugo.

Hugo raised an eyebrow at her. He did not recognise this woman at all. "Rosemary and Hugh, what a pleasure."

"It's Rose and Hugo," Rose said through gritted teeth. She had her arms folded across her chest and was glaring at this Hannah with more venom than she'd even given Begonia Webb.

"Oh, my apologies," Hannah replied just as sweetly as her smile was. "It's been a long time."

"Yeah, like never," Rose muttered as they all sat down on the couch.

"Well, Hannah, this is Harry. A dear friend and brother-in-law to Hermione, and Rose and Hugo's uncle, godfather, and guardian."

"It's nice to meet you, Harry," Hannah said.

"Likewise," Harry replied less than enthusiastically. "Anyway, you claim that Hermione left everything to you?"

"Oh… well… yes, she did," Hannah answered innocently. "It was a long time ago, of course. Rosalie and Hubert were just toddlers then."

"And, you have this in writing?" Harry questioned plainly.

Hannah nodded, not faltering for a second. "Yes, it is all here." She passed Harry a piece of paper, which – as Hugo read it over his uncle's shoulder – he realised it was handwritten.

"That's not Mum's handwriting." Rose was the first to speak.

"Of course it is, dear," Hannah said.

"No, that's not Mum's handwriting. Mum has much neater handwriting than that. It seems to me you just forged that last night or something so you could get everything Mum and Dad owned."

Hannah seemed rather taken aback by Rose's bluntness. She blinked multiple times at her before continuing. "Well, as I said, it was a long time ago."

"As you may or may not be aware," Harry said, still looking over the one-paged letter, "Hermione worked in a very large department. It will not be difficult to match this handwriting with something she wrote before."

"Oh, but hand-writing can change," Hannah persisted.

Harry shrugged. "It's dated two-thousand-and-eight," he said. "Hermione worked there then, too. All documents are filed forever."

Hugo smirked at the look on this so-called relative's face. It seemed she had not predicted this.

"In the Will Hermione and Ron left, it clearly stated that all they owned were left to their two children. And, until Rose turns seventeen, she and her brother are left in the care of my wife and I."

"May I ask how you are related?" Hannah questioned. "It does seem all a bit suspicious. I have never heard Hermione speak of you before."

"That's because you never met my mother!" Rose snapped.

Harry put a hand on her arm, and turned to Hannah. "I am married to their father's sister," he said. "And I went to school with Hermione."

Hannah pretended to not be convinced. "Very odd," she muttered.

Hugo caught Harry rolling his eyes. He sucked in a deep breath, and then continued. "Okay, so you claim that Hermione gave you possession of everything she owned, including her children. However, what you have shown me is a piece of paper with handwriting on it that her daughter claims does not even belong to Hermione.

"Yet, not so long ago, a Will – a legally binding document – was read out to us which gave everything – including the house – to their children."

"And, the children to you," Hannah said.

"Do you even know who Mum married?" Rose questioned. "Do you even know my dad's name?"

Hannah looked to her. "A feisty one, aren't you?" Her tone had lost all the sweetness in it, and Hugo realised he really didn't like this woman at all. She was a phony, and just wanted the little money his parents had had. And he was determined not to give it to them.

"I am," Rose answered icily. "I get that from my dad."

"Are you going to stand by this claim?" Harry questioned, distracting Rose from continuing.

"I am," Hannah answered. "I will not have my rights taken away from me."

Harry nodded. "Very well," he said.

"Roseanne and Hugo mean a lot to me."

Harry nodded again, clearly not buying it. "That much is obvious," he muttered, the sarcasm clear in his voice. "Well, I thank you for your concern, but I will have you know that Rose and Hugo are very much cared for and loved where they currently are. And, I do not see fit that you will be able to cater for all of their needs sufficiently.

"I can have their lawyer read the Will to you if you'd like, but if you'd rather not, all you have given us is a scrappy bit of paper to make your claim."

Hannah glared at him, but Harry seemed undeterred by the situation.

"Reading over this, it has been made apparent that all you desire is the house they owned, and any belongings you might be able to get your hands on. I have heard –" He glanced to Hugo's grandparents, "– that this is not the first time something like this has happened. I can get the lawyer in, but I see it as a waste of time. He'll tell you exactly what I have, and he probably won't be as nice about it."

Hannah huffed in indignation.

"Anyway, we're selling the house!" Rose said.

"Rosie!" Hugo hissed. Why was she telling her this? Now she was going to want to buy it off them.

"And you're not getting your hands on it," Rose continued, ignoring Hugo. "It's our house, and we're going to sell it to a nice family, so they can have all the memories that we had in it."

Hannah didn't say anything; she just looked at Rose with an expression that was a cross between surprise and irritation. It was clear she had not expected such a challenge, which made Hugo think maybe other times hadn't been so difficult for her.

Then again, she'd probably never had to deal with magical law before – even if she didn't know that was what she was dealing with.

"Well, if that'd be all," Hugo's grandfather said, getting to his feet. "I think you can leave now, Hannah."

Hannah didn't move.

"Grandpa asked you to leave!" Rose spat. "And this is his house!"

"I have never seen or heard such a rude, insolent child!" Hannah snapped.

"That's my granddaughter you're talking about!" Hugo had never heard his grandfather so furious before. "I think it's time you left."

When Hannah still refused to move, he lifted her up by the arm and led her to the front door. "It was good seeing you again," he said sarcastically. "I'll see you next time someone in the family dies." He slammed the door.

"What an interesting woman she is," Harry commented mildly after that.

"So, she's not getting anything of Mum and Dad's?" Hugo questioned.

"Not a Sickle," Harry assured him. "I was given the impression she had a legal document – as she claimed. Mr Malfoy would have laughed at her for that."

"That's good, at least," Hugo answered.

"Have you really decided to sell the house, dears?" their grandmother then questioned.

Hugo and Rose looked to each other, and then back to her. "Yes," the said in unison.

"We think it's the right thing to do," Hugo added. He waited for an outburst from someone, but it never came. They all simply nodded.

"I think that that is a very good idea," Harry said.

Hugo smiled. "We were happy there," he said. "So we might as well make some other people happy, rather than it just sitting there, empty."

Harry nodded, returning his smile. "We will talk about it further in the morning," he said. "For now, just be thankful that you're not sharing it with anyone else."