Chapter 2 – New Inheritance

Hera was working on the English assignment she had to turn in the next day for part of her homeschooling requirements when her mother stuck her head in her room. Tapping on the open door as she came in, she said, "Your daddy is calling a family meeting, sweetheart. Are you at a good stopping place or do you need a minute?"

The phoenix rubbed her eyes. "I can stop here, mama. I've only got a few more sentences to write anyway."

Rubbing her daughter's shoulders, Esme smiled fondly. "Alright baby. Let's go downstairs and see what's going on, shall we?"

Hera followed her mother down the stairs, feeling a bit wore out. Edward had followed up on his promise of extra lessons and had even hired a private Krav Maga instructor who also specialized in weapons training to come three days a week. She wouldn't give up her lessons for anything in the world and she really loved her tutor Jedidiah, but the phoenix was often left feeling sore and tired. Even though she'd only been receiving tutelage for two weeks she could already see little improvements in both her hand-to-hand combat and her work with the short sword.

And Edward was being so good about everything! At first Hera worried that her mate would be present during her lessons, prepared to eat Jedidiah the first time he threw her down on a mat or faked a lunge with a weapon, but her worries were for naught. The vampire was never present in the converted training room above the garage, making Hera wonder if Emmett and Jasper had him tied to a tree outside. If so, it was a small price to pay if it kept the instructor alive.

Hera gasped in surprise when she stepped inside the dining room. "Foulclaw!"

In the next second the goblin had his arms full of a very excited little phoenix. He chuckled and happily returned the inviting hug. "I have missed you as well, youngling. Those old caverns seem so much colder without your smile to warm them."

The child laughed. "How are you? And Dreadblade and Tmora? I miss them too. How big are the hatchlings now?"

"Calm down Hera," Carlisle gently chided. "Give Foulclaw room to breathe."

The goblin waved the concern away. "It's quite alright, Carlisle, for I have also missed Hera's spirited questions. Oh… speaking of Dreadblade and Tmora," he said while pulling something from inside his vest, "I have a present for you from them."

Hera took the beautifully carved wooden box. There were various runic symbols decorating the container, as well as a beautiful image of a dragon etched into the lid. She gasped in awe of its beauty. As soon as the wood touched her hand she could feel that it was a powerful artifact. "It's so pretty! What do the runes mean?"

"They are mostly for transportation, along with some for protection. We use these letter boxes to send mail back and forth over great distances." He took the box back and opened the lid, pulling a letter from Tmora out and handing it to the bubbly girl. "When you wish to reply, you simply place the letter inside and touch this rune. Dreadblade and Tmora have a matching box and will receive it almost instantly."

"Ingenious," said Carlisle.

"Totally! I'm going to send them a letter thanking them for the wonderful gift!" Edward grabbed the back of Hera's shirt before she could dart off.

"It can wait a bit, sunshine. We still have a family meeting, remember?"

Hera blushed. "Oh yeah… sorry."

Everyone took a seat around the massive dining table. Foulclaw got right to the point in pure goblin fashion. "Much has changed in the few weeks since you've been gone. Minister Bagnold will soon be replaced when the new ministerial elections come about next month. Albus Dumbledore's popularity has taken a nosedive, thanks to Daily Prophet journalist Rita Skeeter, and also James Potter has been stripped of his head of house status. His trial was two weeks ago and, despite Dumbledore's constant lobbying for his freedom, he was found guilty and sentenced to spend the rest of his life in Azkaban Prison."

Hera didn't really know what to think about her biological father. On one hand she hated him so much and was glad he was in jail. However, there was another tiny side of her that still felt guilty over the death of Lily Potter. Sometimes she felt as if she had simultaneously destroyed three lives that day. An image flashed through her mind of Charlus Potter covered with blood and screaming hysterically. She was brought out of her memories when Edward placed a hand on her back. Hera gave a hesitant smile in the attempt to wipe the worry from his eyes, but he just rubbed her back and refocused on the meeting.

"…as soon as he's made up his mind about running we can begin planning his campaign," Foulclaw was saying. "Of course the humans must never know that goblins are working behind the scenes or they'll vote against him simply out of spite."

Carlisle nodded. "I've never met him personally, but if he's anything like Augusta and Neville I think Frank Longbottom would be an excellent choice to take up the reins. The Longbottoms seem to have good moral values as well as a penchant to treat everyone fairly." Frowning in concern, the vampire asked, "But will he be healthy enough for the transition? The man has been in a vegetative state for years following the Death Eater attack on his family."

Foulclaw nodded. "Absolutely. Through a series of potions and exercise, Lord Longbottom has returned almost to the same fitness level he was before the attack, as has his wife. When we approached him with the idea he seemed greatly interested to join our cause. The Longbottoms have always been fierce advocates for the rights of magical beings, particularly those who are looked down upon by the ministry."

"As far as James Potter is concerned," the goblin continued after a thoughtful pause, "once he lost his status as head of house, the entire estate was passed to the heir."

Emmett snorted. "Well I hope whomever has guardianship of Charlus is more responsible than his parents were and doesn't let him blow the fortune on toys."

"Actually, Charlus isn't the next in line to inherit the estate… Hera is."

Hera immediately began shaking her head in protest. "No… I don't want it. Let Charlus have everything." She had already been at least partially responsible for taking the boy's parents away. There was no way she was going to leave her twin without an inheritance that should rightfully belong to him anyway. Besides, she already had money… a lot of money if she was understanding the statements her parents received from Foulclaw correctly.

"How in the world could Hera have been in line to inherit at all, Foulclaw," asked Esme. "The wizarding world didn't even know of her existence until recently."

"When it comes to heirs and inheritances, Gringotts requires a document from the attending healer or midwife every time a baby is brought into the world. The form lists the children by name, gender, and order in which they emerged, (in the case of multiple births). This is sometimes necessary in order to resolve any disputes among siblings when the head of house dies. Anyway, the Potter estate manager found this document in the file and, because the Potter line is not patriarchal, Hera stands as heiress to the line." The goblin added, "In order to bypass your daughter, her biological family would have had to file a motion to disinherit her with the ministry. The Potters would have had to expose their misdeeds in the process."

"Foulclaw please," Hera all but begged, "I don't want anything of theirs! I don't care about their money or houses or anything else they have… Charlus is the one who just lost his family. I don't want him to lose his security as well."

Edward reached out to grab her hand in support. "Hera's right. Between us and the Flamels she has more than enough to last her through multiple lifetimes. It wouldn't be fair to make Charlus suffer even more than he has already by taking away his future."

The goblin nodded. "I knew you would feel this way, Hera. Only the head of house can disinherit an heir, and I'm afraid you're not allowed to disinherit yourself. This law is in place to keep impatient heirs from simply placing their head of house under a mind control curse and have them pass everything down the line. However," he added as Hera's expression began to sour, "what I can do is ensure that Charlus Potter retains full rights to all the Potter assets upon his seventeenth birthday."

Hera looked up in hope. "Does that mean he gets to keep his money?"

Edward chuckled. "Yes, sunshine. Technically you both would be able to use the money and other things that belonged to James and Lily, but you don't have to if you don't want to."

"Okay," she said with a smile. "He can have it all!"

As the meeting continued, Foulclaw mentioned the extra voting rights Hera had inherited along with those from Nicolas and Perenelle. "Ordinarily you would have no cause to use these votes since you're not living in the magical community. However, because all of you have a vested interest in the outcome of the elections, I would suggest choosing a witch or wizard you trust as a proxy. He or she would then be able to cast Hera's votes in front of the Wizengamot in her stead."

The Cullens all immediately thought of Madam Longbottom, knowing the stern but fair lady would be completely trustworthy. After all, if Frank finally consented to running for office, why would she ever vote against him?

Once the family meeting had concluded and Foulclaw had left, the family all took a seat in the living room to think about everything that was going on in the British magical community. Carlisle had sent a letter along with the goblin to be delivered to Charlus' new guardian, Sirius Black. He had requested a meeting with them in order to discuss everything which had transpired in regards to Hera's unwanted inheritance. He secretly hoped that his daughter and her twin could eventually develop a good relationship despite the trauma caused by the Potters' actions.

Foulclaw had approved of the vampire's foresight, and even offered to send the family an international portkey that would bring them directly to Gringotts. Overjoyed at the thought of not having to endure another long flight, Carlisle immediately took him up on the offer. Hera was thrilled to be able to check up on Dreadblade and Tmora… not to mention Skull Crusher and her babies.

He didn't know how a meeting between the blood siblings would go, but Carlisle, as usual, was hoping for the best.

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