I certainly have no rights to Harry Potter, but this won't stop me writing this story. However, you probably already know this. As it is my specialty, and as in my other big stories, this shows how things go if something went different right at the beginning. Please note that I'm not a fan of bashing and also don't expect the pairings to differ from canon. However, the path to them sertainly will be quite different. I also want to try and subvert certain plots and things that became common in the fandom over the years.
For now, the story will update every second Saturday, until I say otherwise.
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Chapter 8: Toujours Pur?
Harry was with his thoughts in a different place while walking home after school was over for the day in a Thursday in May.
A lot right now was revolving around Sirius and Diane and their announcement that they would marry in July. Not that Harry had something against that, he saw how happy Thomas and Veronica were and Sirius deserved such happiness more than anyone else, but the sheer circus the adults were making of the entire matter was quite a bit disruptive to everyday life. Harry understood it was a big thing to plan, but at times he felt the need to lock himself in his room to escape its omnipresence.
That of course didn't mean he wouldn't often think of it as well, especially since it did cause some other ripples as well.
For one thing, it meant that Diane would move in with Sirius, while Remus moved out. Thankfully, at least this had been resolved without much trouble, as Diane would simply transfer the contract for her flat in a housing block close to the center of Little Whinging to Remus, thus sparing Remus the annoying search. Harry knew it meant he'd see Remus a bit less often, but that couldn't be helped. After all, even Harry understood why it would be awkward for everyone if Remus didn't move.
Well, I don't stay whenever Uncle Tom and Aunt Verni get overly affectionate, Harry admitted, so he knew why Remus thought it best to move out of the house entirely.
There also was the fact that it was pretty much a given that sooner or later Sirius and Diane would have children of their own. Harry still didn't exactly know how that actually was accomplished, only that it took a man and a woman, but he knew it would happen. Thankfully, having Mark around had taught him not to be too greedy with attention and the virtue of sharing. Also, it certainly would make Sirius happy, which always was a plus.
Well, I could... Oh-uh! Harry's thought was suddenly cut off when seeing what was further ahead.
It seemed that Dudley and his little gang after over a year finally felt they could move against him again, ignoring the fact that beating him up would right away make them the prime suspects, not to speak of the fact that they already were on thin ice as it was. Seeing them approach from the far end of the street to ambush him and cut off the direct path home, Harry's survival instincts kicked in.
Turning around, he quickly tried to make a run for it, not even daring to imagine what they would do to him, should they catch him.
"Get him, boys! He's trying to get away!" Dudley called and Harry knew they were all trying to catch up with him.
Despite not being the sharpest tool in the shed, Dudley had learned from the last time he'd tried to catch Harry on the streets. Instead of being on his own, he had brought along reinforcements so that even if one of them falls, the others could still keep up the chase. Once they got him, they know they would beat him up until he was a bleeding wreck on the ground. They wasted no thought about the consequences.
Harry for his part had worked hard to be better at running after Dudley had almost caught him the last time something like this had happened. It certainly showed in him being able to run longer, but he also knew that Dennis and Malcolm were prized for being aces on the sports team and thus could easily outlast him.
Oh crap, this won't end well! Harry thought when seeing that they were chasing him to an area he was only little familiar with. No chance to find a hiding spot on the fly.
Being forced to run the entire time was taking its toll on him as well now, his breathing became labored, his skin sweaty and his face became red. He knew he would run out of steam soon, and that would be the end. In his imagination he already saw them beating him to death (hey, he was seven years old with quite the imagination).
Running around a corner, he felt like collapsing, his badly screaming in pain and exhaustion. They are getting me! I want to be home! HOME!
All of a sudden Harry got a very strange feeling that forced him to close his eyes. It felt like he was squeezed through a rubber tube that was way too narrow. The feeling was bad enough that he was ready to vomit. Then it was over and he no longer could keep up. Falling, he however noticed that instead of landing on pavement as he'd expected, he landed on grass instead. That however, quickly escaped his attention while he threw up his lunch.
"Harry? Harry, dear goodness, what happened to you?"
That sounded like his Aunt, so he slowly opened his eyes, only to see that he somehow had ended up on the front lawn of his home, and it indeed was his Aunt Veronica who was holding him, looking incredibly worried at how exhausted and scared he looked. Harry honestly had no idea how he'd managed to suddenly reach home, and he honestly also didn't care while croaking out Dudley's name.
Veronica's expression darkened when hearing that name. "That little hooligan. Not important now; let's get you inside first."
Veronica swore, that brat Dudley was a public menace, while Harry was just glad to have escaped a horrible fate, still wondering how exactly had had managed to get home so fast. It was all so confusing to him and due to the exhaustion, the memory was quite hazy.
Meanwhile, Dudley and his gang were confused.
"Where did this little shit go?!" Piers wondered while trying to find a trace of their prey. "No way he can disappear into thin air!"
"He must be hiding somewhere!" Gordon said, looking around for any kind of hiding spots, coming up empty. "No way he can run that fast."
Dudley for his part was livid. He'd waited until the other incident was way in the past - at least to a kid - and made sure to be well away from the school before springing the ambush on Harry. Yet, Harry had somehow escaped. The little freak had run around a corner, and when Dennis and Malcolm had followed, they suddenly saw that he was gone. The only sound apart from them had been the noise of a train from the nearby train tracks.
"We almost had him..." Dudley cursed, trying to find places where Harry could have hidden. "We need to find him or he's going to rat us out..."
The boys didn't notice two men with a horrible fashion sense - words simply couldn't describe the clashing clothes they were wearing - watching them from under the shadow of a tree for a whole minute already and listening in to what they were saying.
"You think we are actually needed?"
"No, they clearly didn't see anything. Good thing we don't have to step in; I dislike obliviating children."
Both of them had been alerted to a strong burst of accidental magic, strong enough to set off the detection spells, in the middle of a Muggle neighborhood. However, when they'd arrived they'd seen that they weren't actually needed. Just listening to the boys, they knew that whoever they had been chasing had his burst of accidental magic out of sight. They guessed it was instinctual apparation, something that didn't happen often.
"OK, let's write it up as no one having noticed the magic at work. No need to invide the paper-pushers to give us extra work."
The two Obliviators left, never learning of the fact that it had been Harry Potter who had done this feat of accidental magic.
...Diagon Alley, June 13th...
The people shopping in Diagon Alley were used to what they considered unusual, which was normal considering that each year parents of muggleborn wizards and witches were populating the alley. However, even then the sight of a man no one had ever before seen in Diagon Alley was causing everyone to try and understand what they were seeing.
While the man wouldn't have been an unusual sight in the streets of London, in Diagon Alley he stuck out like a sore thumb. He was a gentleman in his 50s, sporting a mustache, wearing a black business suit and bowler hat and carrying an attaché case in one hand. In London he could have easily been seen as a businessman or banker, but in these surroundings it looked really alien.
The man however either was oblivious to the reactions of others, or he just didn't care. Instead, he homed in on the reason for why he was in the alley, approaching the white marble building that was Gringotts, the biggest and only bank of magical Britain.
The goblin guards at the entrance gave the man suspicious looks, something they did for almost half of the clients entering the bank, but were confident that in case of emergency they could take care of him without much problem.
The man quickly moved through the big marble hall where all the teller desks were located and most of the direct business was conducted. Unlike what one might expect, he didn't seem fazed at all by the opulence of the building. Instead, he quickly approached the shortest line he could find and waited orderly until it was his turn at the teller desk.
The goblin manning the desk gave the man a very telling look, making it clear he saw just another hapless Muggle that somehow was forced to do business with the bank. "Yes?" That blunt question also didn't speak of good customer service.
Wordlessly, the man reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a business card, giving it to the goblin. The goblin first was annoyed, but when looking at it, his eyes suddenly widened. "Oh. ... Oh! ... OH! Please forgive me, I hadn't known that you were representing it!"
That said, he pulled a cord that quickly summoned another goblin. "Gibbon, you take over! This man is here on official business with the bank and has the highest priority."
Normally, goblins were notorious for being difficult to deal with outside of standard bank services. Thus it would have been outright baffling to an observer how quick they were to set up a meeting between this man and the three directors of Gringotts, not to speak how they tried to be good hosts to the man. It culminated in the greeting the directors gave the man.
"Mr. Urqhardt, it is such a great honor to meet with a representative of the Bank of England. We had almost given up hope such would ever happen," they greeted him.
Mr. Urqhardt clearly had expected this. "This is exactly the reason for my visit. You see, even though the Ministry for Magic thinks different, Her Majesty's government does employ a certain number of people with magical ability, such as me. I am indeed representing the Bank of England. A little over three years ago, it was decided the BoE should have closer ties with the magical economy. A request was sent to the Ministry for Magic to get us into contact with Gringotts, which for all purposes is regulating the monetary system of magical Britain."
"This is unfortunate. Despite the vital services we provide, the Ministry does not hold us in high regard," one of the directors added, looking quite displeased.
"Indeed, the only thing we got were vague excuses and asking for more time. Since it became obvious the Ministry was not honestly interested in our request, it was decided to therefore approach Gringotts directly," Mr. Urqhardt explained further.
All three directors looked like this was their day of fortune.
Over an hour later, Mr. Urqhardt left Gringotts, being very pleased with the results.
That went well. They are good at what they are doing right now, but by God do they lack imagination and business sense, not to speak how they worship the Bank of England, he thought.
It wasn't that he had something against goblins themselves, as he wasn't seeing them as lesser lifeforms like many wizards did, but the goblins certainly didn't help their case. The two biggest problems that helped spark the multiple wars with wizards for one were the bizarre property laws goblins still tried to enforce on people outside of their community and the fact that goblins, as much as they suffered from racism, were very racist themselves, and that not only against wizards.
They did compare unfavorably to several other magical races that went into banking. Especially the Heinzelmänner in Germany, running the Heinzel-Bank, were not only much more pleasant to deal with, but had also adapted well to modern monetary concepts, as he'd read in the reports from his German counterpart.
Well, too bad for the goblins, but there are bigger fish to fry, he thought further.
Honestly, the monetary system of magical Britain, like that of many magical countries, was quite laughable. They had no concept of fiat or giral money and didn't use bank notes. The last point was especially bizarre, since Gringotts was quite busy with exchanges between Pound Sterling and Galleons. This was much more primitive than the gold standard, as all the money had to be physically present in the form of coins, even bank transfers involved physically moving the coins from one vault to the other instead of it just being an administrative act with a shared central cash pool.
Not many knew that the Galleons and Sickles were not even fully made of gold and silver. No, they did have a core of non-precious metal, since even the goblins couldn't pull precious metals out of nowhere. Also, there existed only one Philosopher's Stone, and thankfully the owner refused to use that monstrosity to create more gold.
Too bad for magical Britain, that in their worship of the Bank of England the goblins had played right into his hands and he now had an invaluable freight to deliver.
All of magical Britain would probably suffer a nervous breakdown when realizing the goblins had given away the keys to the mansion. The exact composition of the coins, coin dies for all three donations and the formula for the anti-counterfeit enchantment. Honestly, it had been too easy and the goblins clearly had no concept of how efficient modern coin minting machines were. If the situation demanded it, they could now flood magical Britain with mass-produced coinage - something that would only slightly impact the gold reserves of the Bank of England - and cause an utterly destructive inflation.
That reminds me of when I was asked years ago how a chocolate frog shows the weakness of their economy, he remembered.
The answer surprisingly was simple in that many of the ingredients, like the cocoa, sugar, milk and other things, had to be bought from the non-magical market, as either the small magical community outright had no means to produce these, or couldn't produce the needed quantity. Worse, this situation extended to many foodstuffs and other everyday items. After all, even magic can't negate the hard facts of economic realities. Seeing Fortescue's ice cream parlour on the way out, Mr. Urqhardt mentally went through how many ingredients the man actually had to buy from the non-magical market to make so many different flavors of ice cream. It was a lot.
Funny thing was, Gringotts made the bulk of their profits with the fee they raised for exchanging money. Considering the many daily business transactions with the non-magical world, which most wizards and witches were ignorant of, it explained how the goblins made so much profit with banking. It also explained why in general prices for many things were higher in the magical world.
Should these fascists, who had been beaten back some years ago, actually manage to somehow seize power over the magical government, they surely would have to decide to either let their insane ideology win and starve everyone to death, or be forced to admit that they can't survive on their own.
Leaving the Leaky Cauldron, he only had to walk a few meters down the street before an armored Rolls Royce stopped next to him and he quickly got in. The car then quickly sped away from the Leaky Cauldron.
"How did it go?" the woman waiting inside asked.
"Perfect. Besides the government gaining access to Gringotts, I have the whole haul in this attaché case. They clearly have no idea they gave me the key to the financial ruin of magical Britain and themselves," Mr. Urqhardt remarked, making sure to keep the case safe.
"Very good. Your services for the MI-X have proven to be invaluable," she agreed. "The others are expecting us in our office at Threadneedle Street"
The Rolls Royce drove on to Threadneedle Street, where the building of the Bank of England was located.
...Little Whinging chapel, July 14th...
The big day had finally arrived. Today was the day of the wedding of Sirius Black and Diane Watson.
The chapel of Little Whinging was of a modest size and certainly could not compare to the older and more opulent churches of the older and bigger towns, but it always had been enough. Today however, it was filled to capacity. The wedding of Sirius and Diane had many guests attending it. However, while Diane's wider family numbered over a dozen, the only family Sirius had invited were the Tonks. That was little wonder, since of his remaining family, Bellatrix was disowned and in Azkaban for life and Narcissa had married Lucius Malfoy and was in a state of mutual dislike with Sirius. Though, as if to make up for it, some other people knowing him were attending.
It also looked like almost half of the police of Little Whinging was in the audience, considering the number of men and women wearing their best police parade uniforms, which did include the Chief Inspector. That was little wonder, since Sirius and Diane were quite popular within the local police.
"I really wonder what is taking them this long to get her ready?" Sirius wondered, again looking outside.
"Why are you so nervous? It's not like she will suddenly decide to leave you at the altar," Peter Watson told Sirius while they were waiting at the entrance for the bride to arrive, so that the ceremony could start. "Even I was not that nervous when I married my Gwen, which says something."
"I can't help it. After all, this is only one of the most important days in our lives and I'm trying hard not to imagine the many ways this could go wrong. I also don't have the best of memories of most of the weddings I attended as a guest," Sirius said, trying his best not to check the cufflinks after already having done so three times.
"How bad are we talking about?" Diane's brother Archie asked in morbid curiosity.
"Everyone included in those events were ultra-conservative, stuck-up upper class snobs with too much money, little taste and even less sense. The kind of people who think everyone outside of their circles is lesser than dirt," Sirius replied, remembering in horror these pure-blood circles the Blacks used to frequent.
"Ouch." Mr. Watson as a born and raised blue-collar man felt the pain. "That sounds nasty."
"Practically the only good wedding I attended was that of Harry's parents, and that was a low-key affair since they had no wish to make a circus out of it," Sirius continued, holding fond memories of the day in question.
Both Watson men by now knew of Harry's family situation, though instead a magical supremacist, they were told a regular terrorist had murdered Harry's parents. After all, that also was what Harry knew - not knowing it had been a magical terrorist. Considering the constant terror danger in the United Kingdom from the IRA, that explanation wasn't even far-fetched.
"You should have seen him at that wedding. I had no idea who was more nervous: James as the groom, or Sirius as the witness," Remus joked while approaching the group. "Honestly, for someone with so many girlfriends in school it was bizarre to see him go celibate after school."
"I wasn't that bad, Moony," Sirius protested.
"I remember you bragging to James about how he still got no further with Lily, while you have already become quite experienced," Remus reminded his friend.
"Well, I don't care what he did in his school years as long as he stays faithful to Diane," Mr. Watson said. "After all, I wasn't much better in my school days, and the only thing that counts is, that you stay faithful once making the vow."
Sirius couldn't help but to think how the two men sharing the first name of Peter couldn't be more different, with one being supportive and wise while the other one had turned out to be a false friend and traitor. It had been a little confusing for him at first, but in time he'd shifted the name to the father of his soon-to-be wife, and decided to only title the traitor with his last name - even the nickname now was too good for him.
At the same time, the Evans and Tonks families were meeting.
Thankfully, Sirius had told the Tonks' in advance about Harry being present to prevent any kind of scene, which was especially aimed at Dora. Dora for her part was a bit miffed. Not only did she have to use her natural hair color, but her mother had forced her to drink a potion that numbed down her abilities temporarily to prevent her from accidentally changing her hair color should her emotions get the better of her.
The two families had never met before, but the ice had been broken almost instantly when Andromeda told them how cute little Mark looked.
"We honestly tried for more children, but sadly due to my family history, it stayed at just Nymphadora," Andromeda told them.
That was her code for blaming the in retrospect stupid wedding practices of the Blacks, resulting in the family getting less healthy with each generation. She was lucky enough to have escaped with a healthy mind, but at the cost of a bad fertility. She also was afraid of what kind of health problems Sirius would be saddled with in the long term.
"Mum!" Dora said while rolling her eyes. "Everyone else, even Dad, calls me Dora. Why are you so difficult about it?"
"Because I named you. I honestly can't understand why you don't..."
Dora interrupted her mother before she could continue. "We've gone through that a thousand times, so please spare me."
"I think it's Andy not wanting to admit that her ideas of what is a good name isn't shared by anyone else," Ted told Thomas with a slight chuckle, then saw the look his wife gave him. "You know that yourself, Andy, and don't tell me I did agree. I was not exactly thinking rational just after the birth of our daughter."
"Hmpf!" Andromeda pouted for a moment, before returning her attention to Mark, who clearly enjoyed the attention from this nice woman. It helped him as well, as crowds made him nervous.
Dora meanwhile put her attention on Harry.
She, like many children in the magical world, had heard countless stories about the boy who had defeated the most evil wizard of their time. However, knowing her Uncle Sirius actually was protecting Harry already showed her that many of these stories were nothing but imagination running wild. Now seeing him in person, he was nothing like the person everyone imagined him to be - at least for the children these stupid Harry Potter Adventure Books could blamed for the false image they had of him.
No, Harry looked like a ordinary kid and also acted like one. That he was fully ignorant of magic was the final nail and Dora decided to simply treat him like the nice kid he was. "Now, Harry, what do you think about your Uncle Sirius getting married?"
"I like how he finally found someone who makes him happy. I like her, too. She's lots of fun and won't let anyone bully her." Harry did remember an episode in the play park, where Diane had put a very bitchy mother into her place. "Uh, I also know it takes the two of them to start a family, but I don't know how that exactly works."
"Well, some good advice, Harry: there is never a good moment for learning how it works," Dora told him.
She did remember in horror her third year when Madame Pomfrey had given them mandatory sex ed. Not that she needed it, since her mother as a healer had seen it fit to explain everything to her before she entered Hogwarts. Too bad that while Andromeda's explanation had been embarrassing, Madame Pomfrey's was much worse. In the end, everyone looked like they wanted to hide somewhere and she herself needed almost an entire day to stop her hair from being red with embarrassment.
She didn't have to explain everything is so much detail, she remembered.
Harry for his part liked Dora. She was unlike these other teenagers in the area who wanted nothing to do with 'little pipsqueaks'. That she was family with Sirius was a plus as well, since by now he knew that most of Sirius' family had been horrible people. The Tonks were the only exception, and Harry saw, why.
Truth to be told, today he'd learned quite a bit about Sirius' life before he'd moved to Little Whinging.
Beides meeting the Tonks, he had also met two people from the school that not only Sirius, but also Remus and his parents had attended. Both these people had left quite an impression on Harry. While Ms. McGonagall simply looked like a lady with graying hair, Harry knew enough about teachers to know that she was someone who could call a class to order and no one would dare to ignore her.
Her companion, Mr. Dumbledore, actually was the Headmaster of the school! Harry still felt a bit stupid, since the first thing he'd asked the man, was, how he'd managed to get his beard this long. Thankfully, the old man had taken it with humor and explained it simply was a case of lots of patience. However, underneath Harry saw the same determination he saw in the Headmaster of his own school.
What Harry didn't know was, that Dumbledore and McGonagall felt moved that despite Sirius wanting to minimize his contact to the magical world, he still wanted them to witness his wedding. Also, Dumbledore felt that this was a olive branch from Sirius. The man had some remaining trust issues with him, but perhaps the years gone by meant that he was finally putting it to rest.
Harry then noticed Dora being distracted. Following her line of sight, Harry realized who she was looking at. "Dora, you are giving Uncle Remus funny looks."
"Wha...?" It seemed Dora herself only now noticed. "No, Harry, I didn't," she tried to deny it.
"Oh, you did."Harry then realized something. "Oh, does that mean you like him?"
"Not that way. I'm a teenage girl and he's an adult man. Besides, I only met him today," Dora quickly shot down Harry's observations.
Deep inside however, Dora had to admit that Remus did look attractive in a dangerously wild way that yet was no danger to those he cared for. She then realized where her thoughts were drifting. Get real, Dora! He's a man almost twelve years your senior and right now you are little more than jailbait to him. Don't let your southern regions do the thinking.
"Well, if you say so..." Clearly, Harry didn't believe her, but surely he'd forget soon enough... hopefully.
Watching Harry and Dora interact, the adults chuckled.
"Just look at her. She can handle Harry so well and she clearly earned Harry's respect, which isn't easy," Veronica observed.
"I think it helps that she didn't believe any of these things that are said about Harry. Honestly, some of it is plain absurd and makes me wonder what others will think about him in a few years," Ted explained.
Thomas and Veronica took a short look to Mark, but he was busy with something else and paid them no attention. "To be honest, I dread the day we do have to tell him. There hardly is an ideal time and place to reveal such a big secret to him," Thomas admitted, remembering how they had talked about that with Sirius and Remus.
"We have no idea how he will react once will tell him," Veronica added.
"Sadly, neither me nor Nymphadora can give much advice about that." Andromeda then looked to her husband. "What about you, Ted? You after all are muggleborn."
"Well, I didn't learn about it until the professor came with my Hogwarts letter. My parents, even after all these years, still haven't forgiven the school for only telling us at the last possible chance, thus causing us needless grief," Ted remembered the moment. "Honestly, right now the system is horribly broken, but no one makes any effort to fix it."
Their conversation was interrupted when they heard activity from the entrance.
"Looks like things are starting finally," Thomas remarked.
Indeed, outside the car holding Diane and her retainers was arriving at the front of the chapel. It had taken a bit longer than anticipated, since the bride had been somewhat difficult about certain aspects, but in the end had been forced to give in. Diane for her part was a bit annoyed at the reason why it had taken so long.
"Honestly, I feel overdressed," she complained, not feeling comfortable in the wedding dress, which she felt was way over the top. Not to speak of the things they did with her hair, which had been quite time-consuming.
"No, don't even try it, girl. This is one of the most important days in your life, so you have to put aside your tomboyish tendencies for today," the woman sitting next to her told her under no terms.
Her retainers were a mix of female co-workers and women from more distant family. To Diane they had felt like torture artists, since getting her ready for the wedding meant them trampling over all her sensibilities and dislike of - in her mind - overly feminine behavior. For Diane, who had never gotten warm with the stereotypical ideas about femininity, this turned out to be sheer torture. Though, at least she now was ready.
"See, they are eagerly waiting for you!" the driver pointed out while driving the final meters.
Indeed, she now could see Sirius waiting with Remus, her father and her brother outside of the chapel. At the sight of all of them wearing their best, which was especially astounding in the case of her father whom she only remembered in coveralls or comfortable clothes, her annoyance at what she was wearing melted away, being replaced by a slight nervousness.
"You look wonderful!" her father told her right when she got out of the car.
"Dad..." Diane couldn't hold down the blush.
The older man chuckled. "No, you do look wonderful. You remind me so much of your mother at our wedding, right down to the fact the she also was a blushing bride."
That of course only caused Diane to became a bit more red in the face.
Thankfully, Sirius did come to her rescue. "While I do have to agree Diane looks great, we still have a wedding ahead of us and it won't do if you cause the bride to faint."
"Indeed, we do have." The was the somewhat elderly priest who presided over the chapel, who had just joined them. "Now, if everyone does exactly as they were told, we can get this wedding underway."
That finally got things to order.
Now, neither Sirius nor Diane were overly religious people, in Sirius' case even less so due to his heritage, but they somehow did end up with a ceremony in a chapel instead of just a civil ceremony after the administrative act. The priest certainly didn't care about how religious they were, feeling this was more of a personal choice than anything.
Sitting in the audience, Harry watched while the ceremony started and began to take place.
He was a bit torn. On one hand it was a beautiful ceremony, something that Sirius and Diane really deserved, and Harry could appreciate all the work that went into it. On the other hand, Harry also was an eight-year old boy, and those were prone to get bored easily. As much as Harry found the ceremony beautiful, just sitting there on the wooden bench to watch was a bit of torture to him.
Beautiful... but it takes a loooong time. No, Harry wouldn't say anything, but he did wonder why this had to be so drawn out.
Glancing to the side, he saw that Mark actually had fallen asleep and his mother didn't mind, since her son was just three years old. Harry knew that he wouldn't get such consideration and he really didn't want to disappoint Sirius and Diane. He had to sit this one out and hope he wouldn't do anything stupid.
Two other people watched the ceremony in great interest.
Dumbledore and McGonagall found it to be a beautiful ceremony as well, but they also were fascinated at the difference to weddings in the magical world. The biggest difference of course was the fact that organized religion played only a small role in the magical world, and those who practiced it were mostly muggleborn. Thus the chapel itself already had been fascinating to them, though both of them were educated enough to also have visited at least one real cathedral in their lives.
Of course they also were happy for Sirius. They had witnessed a good part of his life, and with the way he had grown up, it looked like he would never be able to truly settle down and have his own little family luck, thanks to how bad of an example of family his own upbringing had given him. It seemed however, Sirius had learned to take the Blacks as an example how family should not be.
Also a way to put his horrible childhood experiences to good use.
Finally, the ceremony was done, rings exchanged and everyone stood up to applaud the newly married pair.
Sirius felt like this was the start of something wonderful, while Diane still was a bit astounded that she now would be called Mrs. Black. All members of the police present formed a row on each side of the middle path through the benches, the newlyweds walking down the row of honor under the applause and cheers of everyone.
...the Burrow, August 22nd...
It was surprisingly quiet in the Burrow. That was not something to be taken for granted, since with Fred and George Weasley in the house there tended to be lots of noise and, in the end, lots of angry shouting as well. That warm summer day however everything was peaceful, thanks to the twins being busy outside with training their broom skills - and their brother Charlie pelting them with small projectiles, claiming it was good Quidditch practice.
In the house meanwhile, the Weasley parents were watching something entirely different. The had known that their son Ron had developed a liking for playing chess and was improving himself constantly. However, it was only with his brothers returning from Hogwarts that his improvement became clear. Watching him right at the moment playing against Bill, who was really good at the game, was a massive eye-opener.
Arthur told his wife, who had little sense for the deep tactics of the game, what was going on. "Molly, to be frank, our Ron is right now creaming Bill, who is nine years his senior."
"To think that it was Bill who actually taught him the game in the first place..." Molly had always been concerned that their youngest son would feel inadequate compared to his ambitious brothers, but seeing that...
"Yes, our Ron is a bit of an enigma. Despite now applying himself properly in school, he's not the intellectual type like Percy, yet we are seeing him demolish someone at chess who is double his age. It will be interesting once he starts Hogwarts," Arthur observed further.
They watched the game continue on and judging by Bill's troubled expression, he knew that he was in serious trouble.
It was five minutes later that Ron made the crucial move and Bill's king had to surrender his crown. "Checkmate," Ron told him with a very pleased look.
"I really can't believe it. To think that I taught you the game in the first place... It's actually amusing that the student surpassed the master." Bill didn't seem broken over it, more amused and even impressed. "How are you doing it?"
"I honestly don't know, I just do," Ron told him honestly. He had no idea why when playing chess, everything just clicked together.
"Well, whatever it is, you should keep it up. This is impressive," Bill told his brother and enjoyed seeing him look happy about this praise.
-Bomp- "Charlie, what the heck?!"
"Sounds like Charlie is preparing in earnest for being the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain," Arthur remarked when hearing one of the twins, he had no idea if it was Fred or George, curse outside.
"At least he's not trying to polish his Perfect badge," Ron remarked, his mood suddenly taking a downturn.
Bill was observant and thus noticed. Ever since the letters from Hogwarts had arrived, in which he himself had been pronounced Head Boy, while Charlie had not only become a Perfect but also been named as the new Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, Ron's mood had been strange. To be honest, it concerned Bill that while Ron was happy for them, it looked like his heart was not fully into it. That was unlike the brother he knew.
He gave his parents a quick look and they understood. "Looks like we need to moderate between Charlie and the twins," Molly announced, before both of them left under that pretext.
"Ron, what's wrong?" Bill asked his brother once they were alone.
"Nothing, why do you ask?" Ron knew it was lame and the look Bill gave him spoke volumes.
"Ron, I've known you since your first day and I can tell that something is bothering you. Please be honest with me," Bill reminded his brother.
Ron knew it was useless to deny it, and he trusted Bill, who had always been very patient and understanding with him. "It's... seeing how well you and Charlie are doing. Perfects, Head Boy, Quidditch Captain... What's left for me?"
Hearing that, Bill became a little concerned. "Ron, this isn't a competition."
"Well, Mum clearly seems to think so, as does Percy, since he's reading through his schoolbooks ever since he came home for the summer. He became obsessed with being the best in school," Ron shot back, having been quite observant. "Fred and George couldn't care less and Ginny already got a big bonus as the only girl."
What in all names did Mum tell them which gave him these ideas? Bill wondered, then saw that Ron seemed to feel even worse than before.
"Ron, your worth is not connected to what you accomplish..." Bill tried, but was cut off.
"Oh, really?! Then Mum has a funny way to show it! And I know accomplishment means money, something we are always lacking!" Ron then realized how he had ranted and got up. "I feel tired." Without any further word, Ron left for upstairs.
Bill was left a bit shaken from this outburst.
Since when was Ron feeling like that? Bill couldn't remember, so perhaps it was a recent development with both Charlie and himself being so successful? No, now that he thought about it, Ron had already been unhappy with how their mother had heaped so much attention on Ginny - though thankfully due to Ginny not appreciating the special treatment, Ron didn't hold it against their sister. He could understand Ginny's frustration with their mother, since Molly's attempts to mold her feminine and her stubborn refusal to allow her to learn how to fly a broom was driving Ginny up the wall.
Bill guessed that most of the things that made Ron feel like he was in a competition with his siblings happened while he himself was away at Hogwarts. That was why he hadn't noticed earlier. However, he was at a loss what to do about Ron feel inadequate compared to his siblings. Additionally, it was no big secret that Ron especially didn't like how their family compared financially to others, so that didn't come out of the blue.
He would tell his parents as soon as possible, but he was at a loss how ny of them could convince Ron they weren't measuring him against his siblings.
o
Regardless how often she saw it, Ginny never got tired of Luna's room.
That wasn't because it was especially magical - which would have been unremarkable for Ginny - it was partially due to how unmagical it was. That obviously had to be expected, since the Lovegoods had a house in the town itself, even if it wasn't in the center, but that family went the extra mile to make it look as unmagical as possible. Honestly, the magical things like Mrs. Lovegood's potions lab were in the cellar, behind a heavy metal door.
Many said it showed how eccentric the Lovegoods are to chose such a lifestyle on purpose, which of course marked them as blood-traitors to the more conservative circles.
It however not only was that what made Luna's room so interesting. No, it also reflected that Luna actually was an eccentric. The signs were pretty obvious, like the glued collage made from crown caps, the doll dressed like a mixture of a wizard and a teacher and the pictures of some imaginary creatures Luna had drawn herself. Yes, this truly was different and Luna liked it that way.
Right at the moment, however, Luna was unhappy.
"It still feels alien having them on my face," Luna complained, making no secret of her feelings.
Ginny for her part was surprised how openly Luna showed her feelings on it. "Luna, many people wear glasses. Why are you so annoyed about it?"
"You don't have to wear them," Luna reminded her.
"Yes, but you're still annoyed after two weeks?" Ginny asked.
Luna said nothing, clearly knowing that she was being unreasonable about it.
It had started a bit over two months ago, when at the end of the school year, Luna's parents had gotten a note from the school that their daughter had difficulties reading the blackboard and that they should get her eyes checked. They did so over the summer and as it turned out, Luna was developing near-sightedness and would be in need of glasses. She got these two weeks ago, and that was where her unhappiness had started.
Truth to be told, Luna didn't find them ugly per se, their thin silver frame made them look nice enough. She just was a seven-year old girl who despite her strange way of seeing the world dreaded showing up in school wearing her new glasses.
"Well, at school they think I'm weird anyway," Luna finally decided, turning her attention back to the little little project she was working on with Ginny.
Ginny didn't exactly like that Luna said things like that, but that was how she was, so Ginny took the glue to continue their work as well. After some minutes, she needed to break the silence. "Still strange for me that you are an only child."
"Well, Mommy really wants a sibling for me, but Daddy is a bit reluctant." Luna said that without thinking about the fact that she was talking about her parents' love life. "He says they should wait until I start Hogwarts."
To Ginny, with so many older siblings, this made little sense. "Maybe she doesn't want to give only half attention..." Ginny then took a look at what they were actually gluing together - paper parts Luna had already drawn on, which formed a strange... thing. "Eh, what's that supposed to be?"
"Oh, that's a Crumple-Horned Snorkack," Luna told her with a straight face.
"Eh, what?" Ginny at first had thought Luna had suffered a coughing fit. "Never heard of that."
"Oh, I heard Daddy talk about it and thought I make him something special," Luna told her, unfazed. "That's how I imagine it to look like."
"If you say so..." Ginny didn't feel the need to ask any further. If her friend imagined up a strange magical animal, who was she to spoil her fun?
Yes, Luna was strange, even seven-year old Ginny understood that. However, Luna also was a good friend with a good heart and a really great imagination. That Crumple-Horned Snorkack only proved how much of an imagination that girl got. Also, unlike the other girls at school, Luna never gave her any grief over her lack of interest in typically feminine activities - perhaps because she herself was so different from other girls.
Seeing the sunlight reflect off Luna's new glasses, Ginny decided to go along with this strange little project. She really wanted to see the face of Mr. Lovegood when he was presented with it, before being escorted back to her home.
...September 1st, Hogwarts...
"Feels a bit weird, that this will be the final sorting I watch," Bill commented while they sat at the Gryffindor table to wait for the first years to be escorted in. "At least this year there don't seem to be any surprises coming our way."
"Well, no surprises for you, but I got a nasty one when I heard through the grapevine that that colossal tosser Howart was named the Slytherin Quidditch Captain. He was bad enough as a player, but him leading the team?" Charlie clearly wasn't happy with that development. "They'll start breaking bones to win."
"Well, at least Howart is a sixth-year, meaning you won't have to deal with him for your entire time at school," Bill reminded his brother.
Charlie shook his head. "Yes, but look..."
Looking where Charlie was pointing to at the Slytherin table, he saw Howart talking with a boy that was unusually big, but he knew had to be a third-year. The boy looked a little dim-witted but still listened attentively to everything Howart was telling him. To be honest, it looked a bit disturbing. Then Bill recognized him.
"Isn't that the one who made the team last year as beater?" he asked his brother.
"Oh yes, Marcus Flint. An idiot as written in the book, but utterly bloodthirsty on the pitch. Looks like Howart has decided to groom him as his successor," Charlie said grimly. "I already heard Flint got a low opinion of girls, so I don't expect any to remain on their team once he takes over."
"Is Quidditch all that people in this school talk about?" Percy asked while rolling his eyes.
"I know you like the sport as well," Bill reminded Percy.
"In small doses, yes, but some people obsess about it," Percy complained. One of the boys in my dorm, one Oliver Wood, is a Quidditch fanatic. Hearing him talk about it every day like it's the most important thing in the world tends to make you dislike the topic. Now that he can try for the team, he'll be even worse."
"Is he really that bad?" Charlie asked, finding it hard to imagine that someone could annoy Percy that much.
Percy looked over to a fellow second year Gryffindor and his brothers understood that had to be Oliver Wood. "He's got pajamas that look like a Quidditch uniform and has a keeper helmet hanging over the headboard of his bed."
Bill and Charlie gave him looks of disbelief for a moment, before Bill snickered. "Oh, Charlie, you better prepare for quite a scene once he turns up for the tryouts."
"Don't remind me..." While Charlie would be on the lookout for good players, some people, despite their skill, tended to be difficult characters. He then let his eyes roam the other tables until noticing someone. That other person noticed him as well.
"Any specific reason why that Huffepuff girl is waving her hand at you and smiles like she's eaten honey?" Bill asked his brother. "Not to speak that her hair turned bright pink when seeing you."
While Charlie felt no particular need to explain himself, he knew Bill otherwise would continue to needle him. "That's Dora. She's a friend of mine in Hufflepuff. She can do all kind of weird things with her appearance, but usually she restricts herself to her hair."
"Friend?" Bill asked, the implications clear from how he said it.
Charlie needed a moment before he understood. "Yes, friend. And that means only friend. Don't let your imagination run wild just because you didn't manage to find a girl that was only interested in short-term stuff."
Percy tried to ignore what his brothers were talking about, finding it gross and not a fitting topic for the middle of the great hall.
At the Hufflepuff table, Dora had seen how Charlie had noticed her, but understood why he couldn't wave back due to his brothers sitting right next to him. She had seen the badge on his uniform, but didn't feel any jealously that he got picked as a Perfect and she didn't. Honestly, she understood why she had not been picked at this year's female Hufflepuff Perfect. She had been in a bit too much trouble to be considered for the role, not to speak of the fact she was a bit of a klutz as well.
Honestly, it's not like I stumbled on purpose and spilled all the stink-sap over Professor Sprout. Though, thinking about it, it perhaps did contribute to her decision, Dora remembered.
She also remembered that she again would have Snape as a teacher, starting with Defense. Considering the bad memories she had of his teaching style, she could only pray that she would not again get on his bad side. She still remembered that one Potions class where she also had stumbled and caused a veritable disaster, earning her Snape's displeasure for the rest of the year.
"Dora, you got a sweetheart in Gryffindor?" one of her roommates asked, smelling gossip.
"No, he's just a friend," Dora insisted, her hair turning to her natural brown to show how defensive she was.
"Well, if you say so." It was pretty obvious she didn't believe Dora and Dora knew she would be under observation from now on.
All the talking ceased when the door to the hall was opened. McGonagall and Myrtle were escorting in the newest first years, who looked around nervously while taking in the huge hall, floating candles and ceiling with an image of the outside sky.
While the sorting was about to start, the kitchen of Hogwarts was a center of busy activity.
As each year, the opening feast was one of the busiest days in the year, one that called for every single elf being drafted for kitchen duty, with the sole exception of those who had to move the luggage to the correct rooms, which in case of the first years could only happen after their sorting. Despite taking great pride in their work, even house-elves could show signs of work-related stress, which thankfully only happened twice a year at the opening and closing feasts.
"No, that has priority, it comes first! Quick, the sorting has just started!" Yander called, hoping the orders would be followed.
Despite no longer doing the kitchen work themselves, Yander and Blinky as elders still fulfilled their desire, even if it was through directing the other elves. Speaking of Blinky... looking to her, he saw her also being busy, but it seemed some elves had difficulties following her orders. He recognized them as two female elves that had come to serve Hogwarts recently, as the household their parents served didn't have a use for so many elves. Clearly, they were not yet used to work under orders.
The two newcomers were easy to recognize. Unlike the the other elves they had not yet adapted the new dress code their small community had devised. Instead of what used to be altered pillow covers, the elves by now were wearing tunics that looked a lot like Kreacher's, only more cheap in the material and with the Hogwart's crest on it. While nothing was said, many of them felt a certain pride they were now representing the school they work for quite a bit better.
"Every time! ... Every time new elves start here, this happens!" Blinky hissed, barely holding back her displeasure. Clearly, she had witnessed it too often in her long life.
"Should Kreacher set the new elves straight?"
Turning they saw Kreacher approach, after he had skillfully delivered parts of the main course to the area where it would be kept warm until being transported to the great hall. Kreacher certainly had become a big help to them with his great work ethos and vast experience. It did help that his disposition had improved over time as well and it became easier to work with him.
If not for his connection to House Black, he surely would have taken over Yander's position in due time. Alas, he only was at Hogwarts on loan.
"Please, Blinky simply can't get it into their heads," Blinky complained, inviting Kreacher to do his best.
"Good." Walking over to the two elves in question, Kreacher used some rather harsh words not to be repeated in polite company. However, it worked, as the two now finally got what they were supposed to do. Kreacher then returned. "It's noticeable these two never worked for a household before."
-brriiiiiiingg-
That was the bell which signaled that the sorting was over. Thankfully, only the desserts had to be finished. Once that was done while the feast already was underway, the elves sighed in relief that they once again had managed to do the seemingly impossible and finished all of it in time. This very fact gave them much satisfaction.
It was like this every year, but no way they wanted to miss it, as it taxed their skills to the maximum, which was something they really anticipated.
...Privet Drive, October 5th...
Walking back home, Sirius' thought again went to his wife. She had been feeling somewhat under the weather recently. Then, two days ago on Monday she had suddenly shot out of bed at for in the morning and made a run for the bathroom to vomit violently. It was at that point that Sirius had told her to better go to a doctor to see what was wrong with her. It was only at that point that Diane had given in.
Today she also had been unable to go to work after another sick spell, this time right at the breakfast table, which had caused quite a mess. After that it was decided to better call the station and explain why Diane couldn't be at work that day. There however also had been no phone calls from her, which Sirius found strange.
Either she's sleeping a lot, or there's something she wants to tell me in person.
Walking down Privet Drive to their home, Sirius had to walk by No. 4 and as bad luck would have it, Petunia was being busy with the flowerbeds in front of the house - which was strange enough, as it already was autumn.
Petunia tried hard to act like she didn't notice him, but he knew she was following his very move. Ever since Remus had moved out, an especially since the wedding, Petunia had doubled her efforts to snoop into his private life. Diane had gotten into an argument with her more than once, making no secret of her opinion, which in turn clearly made Petunia turn up the dislike and her hubby Vernon of course agreed with her.
Doesn't she have anything better to do with her time? Like making sure her brat finally gains some manners? Sirius wondered.
Two weeks ago had been the latest incident with Dudley; the brat somehow had gotten hold of a real air rifle. Some of the neighbors had called the police since seeing him mess around with something that could cause real injury to others had spooked them. Thankfully, the situation had solved itself when Dudley accidentally sat onto the rife, his weight bending the barrel, turning it useless.
Deciding he didn't want to dwell on his unpleasant neighbors, Sirius walked to his front door and let himself in. "Diane, I'm home!" he called.
"I'm over here!"
Following her voice, he found her getting up from the couch, where she clearly had had a little nap. She still looked a little pale, but otherwise she seemed to have recovered. Her mood however seemed to be really good, which was confusing Sirius greatly considering how she had felt at the morning. Indeed, the past two day, her mood had been a little strange.
"Diane, are you feeling better?" Sirius asked carefully.
"Oh, yes and no." Seeing his questioning look, Diane decided to explain. "No, because I still feel somewhat tired and my stomach reminds me it could revolt if it feels like it. Yes, because I was told what's going on with me, and it's nothing bad."
"How can you be sick and it can be good?" Sirius wondered, though at the back of the mind there was something.
Seeing that she needed to be more direct, Diane walked up to him, took his hand and put it flat onto her belly. "I'm not sick. I just got the results today that's it's the normal side-effects of me expecting."
Sirius was silent for a moment, then suddenly hugged her and held her close.
This was something he should have expected to happen. After all, marrying a woman and them doing their private activities without any kind of protection - both of them had honestly not wasted any thought on that after the wedding - this was bound to happen. He honestly had not thought for most of his life he would be in this very situation, due to his own upbringing having caused the fear that despite everything he could turn out to be like his parents. Of course that fear now look absurd to him.
"I... I'm really happy. But this comes so early..." Sirius tried to express his thoughts.
"I know... but we honestly have no one to blame but ourselves, don't we?" It seemed Diane also was well aware of their lack of care. "On the other hand, I don't blame us. Yes, this is really early, but I'm still happy that this happened." Suddenly Diane started to laugh. "Oh... after all this time... I now did the most feminine thing possible!"
"You know this will change a lot for us?" Sirius asked her.
"I know... We thought we could wait a few years. Oh, so much for our plans and it still feels right." She then notices that Sirius had been silent for a moment. "So, Sirius, we won't turn out to be anything like these horrible parents of yours."
"It's not that, I'm over that now. No, I wondered how we'll break there news to your father." Sirius saw he had hit home when seeing Diane gave him a worried look.
"Ohhh, he will be unbearable, complaining that we make him feel old by making him a grandfather." Diane knew her father too well. "On the other hand, he always complains that Archie is still single, so maybe we can point Dad's attention in his direction?"
"Oh, I don't think that's going to work," Sirius said with humor, then remembered something. "You know we also have to tell everyone at the station?"
Clearly, Diane hadn't thought about that yet. "Oh, this will be a nightmare, not to speak of the fact that I have to tell our superior why I have to be put on desk duty for the foreseeable future. I can already guess I will be made permanent tech support."
What she didn't tell, was, that she worried about the other women at the station. Not that they would take the news badly, but that they would take the news too well. As far as she knew, she would become the first mother working there and she already had an idea that some of them would project their unfulfilled desires on her and ask how she did get it all.
Then she remembered something else. "Sirius, what if our child does inherit your magical powers?"
"After spending so much time with Harry and Mark, do you really think this would be a problem?" Sirius laughed. "If he or she really has magic, then I got the last laugh on my parents and all their bigoted friends who thought the blood has to be kept pure. But that that's not important for the moment..."
Walking behind Diane, he held her close, his hands flat on her belly. "That in there... that's important."
...Hogwarts, divination tower, November 18th...
The Divination classroom was silent apart from the warming fire in the fireplace while Sybill Trelawney was being busy early in the evening with looking through the 6th year homework of analyzing the past behavior of a politician to anticipate how he would act in the future. Since actual precognitive powers were only inherited, this was the closest everyone else could get to predicting what would come next.
She however was not putting all of her concentration on the task while putting an A under the essay of one student who had not put much serious work into it - clearly, even after over a year some had trouble to adapt to her now serious teaching plan. No, her mind was drifting a bit while doing this work.
Her life certainly had improved and in retrospect her previous behavior had been embarrassing.
Honestly, most of her life prior to her getting put through the wringer by Madam Flan had been a trainwreck. She had fully expected to ride on her great-great-grandmother's coattails and thus the only NEWT she got was Divination. Her marriage to Higglebottom - which could have saved her from much grief - had fallen apart fast because of her childish refusal to take on his family name. Factor in that her narrow-minded definition about divination and her arrogance about it torpedoed all job interviews, and it looked grim.
Not to speak of her alcoholism problems and falling so low that she was making fake predictions by 1980, which only got her blacklisted by most serious seers. She still wondered what made Dumbledore change his mind and actually hire her, as he moments before had been ready to refuse her. Of couse, the new job only caused her to develop a major ego, causing her to become regarded as a joke by the other teachers.
This is all in the past now. I'm doing much better, she told herself.
That moment, she heard someone walk up the stairs into her classrooms.
"Good evening, Sybill," Dumbledore greeted her.
"Oh, hello Headmaster. It's not often you visit the divination tower," she greeted him, putting her quill down for the moment.
"I've recently made it my policy to meet with my teachers and talk with them how they are faring. It's a duty that I had been unable to attend before, due to my workload," Dumbledore explained while sitting down at one of the student desks.
"Well, this certainly is the very first time you visited me up here." She then looked around. "Thankfully, it's only after I remodeled the entire tower. I now would have been greatly embarrassed had you seen the decor prior to that."
"You, dear Sybill, certainly have changed a lot from the day I hired you," Dumbledore observed.
"Ah, yes, Headmaster, that is something that is bothering me. Before, I just ignored it, but why exactly did you hire me in the first place? I'm no longer too proud to admit that back then I didn't have much to offer," Trelawney asked him.
Dumbledore knew he couldn't tell her the entire truth, but parts of it couldn't hurt. "To be honest, I was ready to simply discontinue Divination entirely. It was to your luck that your gift kicked in at that moment and proved to me that you do have these powers."
"Ah. Too bad I can't remember it, but I think it was the correct choice to not tell me back then, as it would have caused my ego to go through the roof." While saying that, Trelawney reached for the glass with grape juice sitting on her desk...
... ... ...
... ... ...
Shaking her head, Trelawney tried to get the cobwebs out her her mind. She noticed that the glass had been knocked to the floor, shattering on impact. She also saw the Headmaster looking shocked and grim, being noticeably paler. Her training from Madame Flan kicked in, which included recognizing the signs that she'd suffered one of the typical blackouts when making a prophecy.
"Headmaster, did I...?" She knew, the rules of prophecies stated that they had to be made to someone, thus why it never happened when a seer was alone.
"You did," the Headmaster confirmed. "It was most disturbing."
Trelawney quickly reached for something under her blouse and pulled out something that looked like a big seashell necklace, only that there was a gem embedded in its middle. That also was new - a standard equipment for seers she had arrogantly ignored before. Essentially, it was a recording necklace that would kick in when detecting the magical signature of someone being about to make a prophecy. That way, you would not be in the blind about the prophecies you made.
Pressing the gem, which was flashing to show it had recorded, she listened to the recording.
"The Dark Lord lies alone and friendless, abandoned by his followers - but not all of them. In the year when the three canines clash, the rat-faced man and those with him finally harvest the fruits of their long search. ... With their help, the Dark Lord will rise again and unleash untold terrors. ... Yet all is not lost, for the Chosen Six will arise as well. Six close friends ... to fight back ... the flood of darkness..."
Now Trelawney was pale as well, barely managing to keep her terror under control. "Headmaster, does that mean what I think it means?"
Dumbledore perhaps looked even grimmer now. "I fear it does."
All his suspicions were now proven to be true, Voldemort had cheated death and would arise again. The rat-faced man clearly had to be the missing traitor Pettigrew, who had not been seen since that fateful day. However, as always with prophecies, it also created more questions. For one, the time of when that happened was very vague, as it was unclear what could be meant with three canines.
Even more puzzling was the mention of these 'Chosen Six'. While it was pretty obvious that six close friends were meant, that essentially was worthless information, as there was no way to determine who these six people could be. The only thing they knew, was, that there would be these Chosen Six, but nothing else. Very mysterious all that.
The trouble is, when to start preparing for the inevitable? If only the wording of the time hadn't been so vague, the Headmaster thought.
"Sybill, please tell no one about this," he then told Trelawney.
"But Headmaster, shouldn't well tell the Ministry...?" Her question was halted when seeing the Headmaster's raised hand.
"Would they believe us?" Seeing her say nothing was answer enough. "See, a prophecy alone will never be enough proof for them to do anything. Also, many simply will never accept the idea that Lord Voldemort could actually return one day. They are too afraid of the implications of what that would entail."
"So this means nothing will be done about it?!" Before her mind's eye, she could see horrible things happen.
"I never said that. Things certainly will be done about it; it just has to be done at the correct moment." Dumbledore knew that with so little information, it was impossible to find out when that would be.
"I understand... I won't tell anyone. Wait a moment, won't the Department of Mysteries know?" she realized, remembering how they had a method of recording every prophecy made on the British Isles.
"No. While they do know who made a prophecy and to whom, they can only get a vague impression about the topic. There is no danger, especially since no one actually can listen to their recording, apart from the two of us and those in the prophecy. That means Lord Voldemort, his helpers and whoever the Chosen Six are," Dumbledore explained to Trelawney.
"I find it difficult to live with the knowledge of what will happen," she finally confessed, making no secret of her fear.
"That, my dear Sybill, is the burden of all seers. Sadly, you were saddled with an especially big burden." Dumbledore looked sad, feeling that foreknowledge at times was more a curse than anything. "Please excuse me, but I have to think about what was revealed in the prophecy."
Leaving the divination tower, Dumbledore was deep in thought while walking back to his office.
There were several people who needed to know about this prophecy; mainly those who already knew about the first prophecy - a circle that was a bit bigger than it had been originally. McGonagall needed to know for sure. Sirius and Remus needed to know as well, but he couldn't simply reach out for them, he had to wait for an opportunity to tell them. After all, this was a prophecy that was bound to make Harry Potter's life much more complicated.
It was a grim reminder how an innocent child was the biggest victim in all of this.
to be continued...
Next Episode:
"The New House of Black"
Notes:
Here the notes.
Now finally we get to see more activity from the government of the UK, and boy do they manage to catch a big fish. I always felt that while the goblins are without doubt smart, the sheer reverence they give the Bank of England blinded them to the danger. I found my economics degree being very useful for that scene, since I loved to rips into the monetary system of the magical world and they weaknesses it has. I hope that wasn't boring.
Now, I felt you wouldn't want to read about the wedding ceremony itself (you probably have read enough of those in other stories) and I felt the things surrounding the wedding would be more interesting. That also gave me the chance to show Harry meeting Dora. Admit it, you wanted to see that.
Of course Ron wouldn't be Ron without at least some angsting.
I got the idea that Luna needs glasses from another story and used it here. My reasoning is, that in canon she simply was too weird to notice. The scene also gave me a chance to show off the Crumple-Horned Snorkack.
Sirius continuing the House of Black is a massive irony, since with having children of his own with Diane, he essentially turned the reputation of the Blacks on its head.
Oh, and finally we get an explanation for the "Chosen Six".