Hello again...

I'm writing this story while I'm praying to god Daily and in every moment to end the nightmare outside there, I hope everyone is safe ..please be safe and careful and soon this nightmare will ends.

Btw I once again thank all the reviews, honestly they are the reason why I'm working my best to not repeat my mistakes but unfortunately as many have told me, I need a beta reader. I looked but didn't found one. But if anyone is interested I will be happy..

Enjoy this chapter

Chapter 4

Grimmauld place

Harry spent most of his days cleaning the old cramped house with the Weasleys. Molly wasn't pleased with how Sirius treated him like an adult and sometimes their wicked comments turned into blasted, heated fights between the two—they had been lucky that Remus had stopped it once before it turned into a hexing duel. Arthur was tired of those so he had excused himself, saying something about work at ministry and leaving it all to Remus to handle...

He wondered why Molly still saw him as a child. Sure, he was a teenage boy, but he had faced things so close to death and each time, he had only managed to survive thanks to some miracle and saved the day... Even most of the high-ranking Aurors—or should he say all the high-ranking Aurors—wouldn't manage to equal Voldemort in a duel.

He had...

Hermione joined the group after Harry's arrival a few days later and the golden trio reunited. What Harry hadn't expected, though, was Hermione bursting into crying and apologising over and over for not owling him.

Harry didn't meet with Albus Dumbledore at all during his stay at Grimmauld; he had asked Remus to arrange a meeting but the latter had said Albus was busy.

He even met with Snape after one of the order's meetings—he thought that since he had married the Slytherin princess, he should be in the favour of Slytherin's head just in case.

He was having a lunch break with his friends after a long cleaning session around the house. (Well, Snape might refer to it as "cleaning" but in Harry's opinion, they were really waging war on the house, which was putting up a very good fight, aided and abetted by Kreacher. The house-elf kept appearing wherever they were congregated, his muttering becoming more and more offensive as he attempted to remove anything he could from the rubbish sacks. Sirius had gone as far as to threaten him with clothes.) He looked from his plate at them, laughing at each other's jokes, and a sudden idea popped into his mind—the same idea that had been playing in his head for days...

He excused himself to the toilet. He locked himself inside and sank to the toilet seat, burying his face in his hands, trying to control his breakdown and to hold his sharp breaths. The nightmares had come back again and this time they were stronger and darker than usual...the sleep potions he had been stealing from Sirius's chamber didn't help him at all. He wanted to talk to someone about them but couldn't.

He washed his face and looked in the mirror, thinking, 'I can't let them get involved, I can't let him lay a hand on them, oh God help me...' He washed again and took a deeper breath, leaving the toilet...

While he was passing the guest rooms the Weasleys were staying in, he heard Molly talking. He didn't intend to eavesdrop but couldn't help it when he heard Voldemort's name.

Molly was saying with a shaking voice, "I can't stop you, you're an adult, but I can't lose you... What if the plan goes wrong, Bill, the first war took from me my brothers, I can't lose another son with Perc—"

"Mom, stop, I'm just going to France for a couple of weeks with Fleur to finish some business the goblins want to be done with, you're worrying too much," Bill tried to smooth out Molly's worries.

Harry ran as fast as his feet could to his room. Ron and Ginny informed him of Percy's fight with their parents and how shattered the relationship between them had become. He felt sorry for Molly and he caught her once with red eyes.

Ron and Hermione were worried about Harry: he was closing himself off a lot lately. No matter how much he acted normal and smiled, they knew something was off—he spent most of his time reading books or lurking around the house. They had hoped that Sirius's been around would help him but it didn't...

Hermione looked at Ron, "Why don't you sleep with him tonight?"

Ron shook his head. "Even if I wanted to, Harry won't let me, and even if he agrees, I know he wouldn't feel comfortable. He wants some time alone, as his best mate, I can feel that. Give him time, he will come around eventually." And he left, leaving her staring at Harry's door. She wanted so badly to knock but something was stopping her. She sighed and left to her chores...

Harry was looking out his window, bored. The day was sunny and he just wanted to go for a jog but then Albus would know and send him back to the Dursleys because, as he was fond of saying, 'the outside wasn't safe'...

The last meeting of the order hadn't gone well: it seemed that Fudge was trying to turn the wizarding world against Dumbledore and people were believing him.

Harry asked Sirius on one of the nights if he could contact Daphne but his godfather disappointed him with a negative answer.

"I'm sorry, pup, according to Eva's words, Greengrass is making sure she stays under his eyes, even Eva couldn't reach her but if you like, you can meet with Eva instead. What do you think?"

Harry's eyes glanced at his goddad, who suggested his talking with Eva over the muggle phone. Sirius had bought it from Mundungus in secret and Harry could've kissed his godfather from happiness. He waited till everyone went to sleep, then looked at the muggle invention in his hands and kept waiting for the call. Finally, the phone rang and he answered it in a second. "Hello, Pads?"

"No, it's Harry."

"Oh! Harry, didn't expect you, dear, how are you?"

"I'm good, thank you, Eva. I was wondering, Pads said that you couldn't keep in touch with her, why?" he questioned.

It took a few seconds before Eva answered him. "Harry, princess is depressed over losing her brother that night; she will probably close herself off for a while before she can face people again. As to why I couldn't, it's simply because old man Cyrus thinks that he has the key to his future glorious days in his hands, he will make sure his prize should not be lost so he keeps his eyes on her and watches all her moves closely to control her, that's why we can reach her only in the school," she finished.

"But he has no rights, she's not his daughter," Harry said quizzically.

"Harry, he may not be her father but he took care of her for years. He already has his powers on her; if he finds out what she has done, he will turn on her and the sword of justice will be expecting her as a traitor. She is trapped in a spider web and it won't be easy for her to move right now unless you stand by her side. We, on the other hand, we are doing the best we can to save you, both…I got to go now, we will stay in touch, send my regards to the dog, bye," with that, Eva hung up.

He wanted to throw the phone at the wall but he took a deep breath so he wouldn't do a stupid thing. The more he wanted answers, the more questions he got; this was far more complicated than he had thought. 'The sword of justice will be expecting her as a traitor'...

'What did she mean by that?' he wondered.

Surrey

She had been staring at the little ladybugs dancing around the flowers for what seemed to be hours. Roff called her in for her lunch and she looked up from where she was at the table in the middle of the garden.

It had been a week since she had arrived at the cottage. It was cosy, just like she had wanted... She spent her days reading books or lying in the grass of the garden, counting the stars; walking around the house or sleeping. She was taking sleep potions regularly under Roff the Butler's supervision. She had liked to call him Roff the Butler ever since she'd been young because of his outfit.

She finished eating and called him. "I spend too much time inside here, I want to visit the nearby city centre, what is it called?"

"Guildford, miss."

Daphne clapped her hands and said in excitement, "I will have a quick trip there and then I'll come back."

Roff just nodded, waiting for her to get ready. He apparated her to an alley in Guildford, where she thanked him and started walking around.

She hadn't been to a muggle place for so many years now; it was beautiful.

She was wearing a blue blouson sundress and her hair was in a messy half-bun, the other half of it reaching to her waist...

The town was full of life and joy. She passed a few blocks of shops, looking at the display cases. Suddenly, she caught sight of a wedding dress, queen Anne neckline in mermaid style. It reminded her of her wedding night—the day she had lost her loved ones, lost her house, her name and her free will as well but also the day she had joined another house even though she had not worn a beautiful dress nor had a celebration. Her family was her past and her husband was the future. Would her husband love her, she kept asking herself, would he protect her? She prayed. Would she make him happy, she wondered... She turned around but before she realised it, she bumped into someone... And she found herself on the ground.

"Oh my god! Are you alright? Didn't see you there."

She heard a male voice. She looked up to see a guy with light brown hair and a frown on his face. He lent her a hand to help her stand up, which she accepted gladly. He kept apologising but she took the blame, saying that she wasn't looking where she was going either.

She looked around and saw a big box on the ground with broken dishes in it. Kneeling down, he began to pick those up so she stooped beside him as well and started helping him. "Let me help you, I was the reason this happened in the first place." The guy wanted to reject but there were too many broken pieces. She looked closely at the dishes: they were beautifully designed, too bad they were broken...then out of the blue, the mysterious guy caught her right hand. "You're bleeding!"

She looked at her hand, surprised; it was coated in blood. She wondered when she'd cut it—maybe when she fell, she had landed on a shard...

He gave her a handkerchief to stop the bleeding. "Here, I have a first-aid kit in my house not far from here, I will heal you and oh god, your knee is injured too." She looked down, starting to panic—why wasn't she feeling any pain? She declined his offer politely but the guy insisted, telling her he wouldn't accept no for an answer since he was indebted to her... So she shrugged and followed him.

The worst that could happen, happened—she followed him to his car—he said his house was up the hill and opened the door for her. After a short ride, they stopped in front of a modern house and he let her in.

She was full guarded in case he attempted to do something. He led her to the living room to wait while he went to bring the supplies and a few short moments later, he returned and started administering medicine to her.

She looked at him in silence. He was a well-built man; under the Oxford shirt on him, she could see the muscles tighten on his arm while he was leaning to heal her. He said with concern, "Forgive me, miss, I'm not usually this reckless. I'm John, by the way," he looked her in the eyes with a smile.

"I'm Daphne," was all she said.

After he finished, she made to leave, saying, "I'm sorry about your dishes," but before she could turn, he said, playing with his hair, "Nah, it's okay, I can make more."

That arrested her attention.

"You made all of those?" He nodded. Her mouth forming an 'O', she felt her face burn from embarrassment—she had broken something he'd worked so hard on. She panicked, then all of a sudden reached for her bag, saying she would pay for them. But he stopped her and said it was fine. That didn't satisfy her though.

John looked at her. "Well, if you feel guilty, you can help me make another set, can't you?"

She thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "I want to, but I don't know how."

He then offered to teach her. She smiled happily, asking when she could start and he answered that tomorrow would do. She bade him adieu and left, and the moment she was out of sight, she summoned Roff.

The day after, she came to John's house again. When she knocked, a woman opened it; Daphne felt anxious but the woman smiled and greeted her, "You must be the intern. Come in, John is already working in his studio. I'm Lucy, by the way, John's mother."

Daphne introduced herself to the woman, who led her to John's studio while talking. "Oh boy! When I woke up at five, he was already up! When it comes to pottery, he becomes so lively, it's rare for blokes of his age to do ceramics, most of them do sports or play in bands but my John is different," she reached the wooden door, giggling.

"Here we go, have fun." Lucy left. When Daphne entered, she saw him sitting in the centre of the room working to classical music. She looked around the room: the big window let the light in, and there was a big shelf full of many ceramic bowls, cups, vases, and dishes that came in all colours and shapes; she was amazed. He greeted her from his seat and asked her to join him to watch him work so that she could observe how ceramic dinnerware was made...

"Since when have you been doing it?"

"Since I was eleven, I guess. My grandfather was a big ceramicist and I fancied his artworks so here we are."

"And you sell them?" she asked, curious.

He leaned to the bowl to look closer and answered, "You could say that. I give them to the gift shop and the money they make off of them goes to the charity associations nearby."

She smiled at him, appreciating his attitude.

She spent the next days helping him and learning more about him. John was...something; he was a muggle, yes, but he was amazing.

She learnt pottery. It was such a relaxing hobby and she loved it; she bought supplies and tools and when she wasn't at John and Lucy's place, she stayed home. She knew that she was under surveillance: her father would make sure she didn't do anything suspicious. She made sure to let him think that she fancied the muggle boy...only if he knew that she already belonged to another house now...

The Greengrass manor

Two men were sitting facing each other in a big study room. The grey-haired man was detailing at the contract in his hand while the other man, who had given it to him, was waiting. The other man was tall, with long blond hair tied behind his ears, wearing the most expensive robes; he was talking arrogantly: "I assure you, my friend, our lord will be so pleased with you."

The other man moved his eyebrows. "My friend Lucius, I will let you know my decision. After all, this is the future we're talking about."

The blond man nodded and stood up, shaking Cyrus Greengrass's hand.

He waited until he was out of the room and called for his elf. Roff appeared, bowing, and he asked him about his girl.

"She's been behaving, my lord, spending most of her days in the cottage and at the muggle's house, working pottery, and sometimes she goes to the town to shop and nothing more than that."

"Has she contacted anyone else? And the potion?" Cyrus questioned the elf, taking sips of his drink between his words.

"No one except miss Davis and I've checked the content of the letters before owling them and nothing suspicious was found. As for the potions, she is taking them regularly and under my observation."

"Good," was all lord Greengrass said, waving with his hand, letting the elf go.

John and Lucy invited her to attend a contest in one of the town's pubs. Celebrating Lucy's first leaving the house in fours month... Lucy was a famous author; she had just finished her new book so they were going to a pub.

She wore blue jeans with an open printed black and red shirt. It was chilly at night.

There was a music competition and they had fun there too; there were so many singers. Then, John urged her to sing, daring her to climb onstage. She didn't know too many muggle songs. She remembered one her sister and Eva used to sing so she gathered her courage and started singing at the stage a Queen song 'Somebody to love'.

And before she knew it, everyone was dancing and singing with her. She was so happy. John said, "Where were you hiding this talent, you have an amazing voice, Daph!"

She blushed at that when the bartender came up to them, saying that John's mother had left without paying, pretty much drunk..

They started a search party to look for Lucy and spent the entire night in quest of a middle-aged drunk woman. When they found her at the bus station, asleep, they laughed so hard...

She was fatigued after those misadventures so she slept at John's place.

Lucy wasn't surprised to hear a recount of her actions at the breakfast. "I've done worse than that, Daphne," she said proudly, which reminded Daphne of the times when she was with her siblings going on crazy adventures and getting punished for it. She laughed at those memories.

These two muggles had given her back a piece of herself she had thought she had lost a long time ago.

Days ran fast and she found herself saying goodbye to her muggle friends she had met this summer, the normal people that had helped her out of her depression. She handed both Lucy and John gifts so they would never forget about her.

"So, can I see you again?" asked John, seeking for the hope of meeting the sweet girl again.

She looked at her male friend and smiled sadly. "No..." she said in a whisper.

She hugged him and left without looking back, returning to the real world.

I hope you liked this chapter

see ya in the next one

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX