The Young Ones

Chapter 10: Talks and Pain

Harry was walking around the library with Orion snuggled in his arms, talking quietly to his son who giggled every now and then at what Harry was saying, as they watched what everyone else was doing. Severus walked into the room and over to Harry, smiling slightly, Harry smiled back.

"The potion is finished," Severus said, holding up a little vial filled with a dark, shimmering potion.

"Okay," Harry said before walking over to Tom and handing Orion to him, "Potion is finished. I think it best only mum, myself and Susan are there for now,"

"But-"

"Tom, I'll be fine. I promise. Madame Bones is fair, when she is in her right mind. I just don't think it a good idea that you are there the first time we speak properly. Just, look after the kids,"

Tom nodded reluctantly, smiling when Orion snuggled into his arms. Harry smiled and kissed Orion's cheek before leaving the room with Severus.

They walk slowly towards the room the elves had put Madame Bones in, mostly because Harry was taking it slow and Severus was walking in time with him.

"Are you okay, Harry?" Severus asked, worriedly.

"Hm, yeah, just nervous," Harry said quietly.

Harry knocked on the door of the room and Susan called them in. Harry smiled at her, and she smiled back from her spot on the bed, next to her aunt. Harry sat on the other side of Amelia and Severus sat in a chair next to the bed, next to Harry. Severus gave the potion to Susan and told her what to do, she poured the potion into Amelia's slightly parted lips and massaged her throat gently to get her to swallow. Then Severus cast a rennervate on her and they watched as Amelia's eyes blinked open and she shot up, leaning against the headboard, looking around the room in confusion, and shock when she saw who was with her.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Aunty, you were being controlled by… someone, we don't know who. But you came to potentially arrest people, even though we told you we weren't kidnapped,"

Amelia nodded as some of her rather blurry memories returned.

"I'm sorry for not believing you. I do want to ask if you two want to press charges against Albus, though," Amelia said, looking at Severus and Harry.

"Yes, but it will be difficult until we can plan ways to destroy his reputation. We have some basic ideas on how to do that but it will take time," Harry said, "It's not your fault, someone was controlling you, you couldn't believe us even if you wanted to,"

"It's still not right, Mr Potter," Amelia said as she relaxed against the pillows Susan had placed against the headboard, "Albus," her eyes widened.

"What about Albus?" Severus practically growled.

"He called me to his office. He wanted to try and get me to not press charges on him, and I said I would if that was what you both wanted. And I would for the Hufflepuff he hurt also. It is inexcusable to hurt a student like that. In front of hundreds of witnesses also. He showed me the memory the first time he told me and that was the only crime committed during the whole thing. But then he showed me the memory of Harry going to see him, and told me Harry was clearly being controlled by you all. But I looked and there were no signs of him being controlled, just him being, well, upset. He cut it off, but not before I saw the beginning of the spell he cast at Harry," she looked Harry up and down as if she were looking for any signs of damage, "Are you okay?"

"No," he whispered, "But I will be,"

"Do you want to press charges? It was a rather dark spell,"

"Yes,"

"Good. But when I started on him about it, he realised his mistake and stunned me, and everything was… fuzzy, until now,"

"We had assumed it was him, yes," Severus said, nodding, "We also believe he was waiting out there for us to let you in,"

Her eyes widened more.

"Don't worry. We had an elf bring you in, quickly, without letting anyone else in," Harry assured her.

"Good," she nodded, relief clear in her voice, "Is there anything else you would like to press charges on him for? Or anyone else? We can start compiling files, and evidence,"

"Plenty, but we will work out the details later. We still have a while to go before we can do much of anything since we have to destroy his reputation first. And you need your rest. Is there anything you need at all? Food, a drink, anything," Harry asked.

"Are you sure, Mr Potter?" she looked rather bewildered.

"Positive, you have just been through an ordeal and need time to rest. I am sure Susan would also like to spend some time with you," he looked at Susan, who nodded nervously, "Plus, you are a guest in our home, for as long as you need to be. We are happy to provide you with these things,"

"Okay," she nodded, "Perhaps just a small breakfast and some juice for Susan and I then, if it isn't too much trouble,"

"Of course it isn't. I will have an elf send some up shortly. You rest up and we can talk more later,"

"Thank you, Mr Potter,"

"No worries. Please, call me Harry. I am more comfortable with that," he said.

"Of course, Harry,"

"Thank you. We will be back later," Harry and Severus stood and left the room quietly.

Harry called for an elf and asked them to make a small breakfast and juice for the two women before starting down the hall, breathing deeply.

"Did I really just do that?" he breathed as Severus came up next to him.

"Yes," Severus smirked.

Harry glared at him briefly before letting out a little chuckle, shaking his head.

"We need a plan," Harry sighed.

"And we will come up with one, together," Severus said.

"One that also gets Ron out of the picture?" he shivered, Severus wrapped an arm around his shoulder though and his frown turned into a small smile.

"Yes. Whatever it takes, we will do it,"

They entered the library again to find everyone where they had left them, though Orion was now asleep, snuggled in Tom's arms. And Tom watched him with an awed look that sent happiness and flutters through Harry that he had never felt before.

Little arms wrapped around his leg and he looked down, smiling when he saw Lyra looking up at him with big eyes. He bent to pick her up and beamed as she snuggled into his chest, hand clinging to his top. He rubbed her back gently.

"You okay, baby?" he asked.

"Mhm, you were gone, now you back,"

"I'll always come back, baby. I promise," he whispered, his heart twisting in pain slightly.

"I know," he smiled as she kissed his cheek, he kissed hers back.

Arthur walked up to them, smiling at Harry, Severus and Lyra.

"Harry, I was wondering if I could talk to you about… Only if you have the time, of course," Arthur said, and Harry could see in his eyes that he was struggling with things. He remembered briefly his letter about Molly and the youngest two and knew that it was probably about them.

"Of course," he said, looking down at Lyra to find that she was asleep, he smiled at her then looked back up at Arthur questioningly.

"She can come," the older man smiled.

Harry nodded in thanks and led Arthur out of the room. They went to a small sitting room down the hall and sat on the black, leather sofa in front of the lit fireplace.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked, looking up at his father figure with worried eyes.

"I've been better," Arthur chuckled slightly, a darkness, and a pain in it that Harry couldn't quite decipher.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for splitting up your family," Harry started, but he stopped when Arthur looked at him with wide eyes.

"No, Harry. Don't apologise. It's not your fault. You have done nothing wrong. Never," Arthur said, his voice strong and firm.

"But-"

"No, you are innocent, Harry. You have nothing to apologise for. My family… well, my family isn't what I thought it was, that is for sure," he looked so tired, and lost, that Harry didn't know what to do.

"What… What happened?"

"A lot, really. Too much," Arthur sighed, "Albus told us what happened in the Great Hall. Showed us the memory of it. I knew, right away, that something wasn't right. I mean, it had just been revealed that he had kidnapped you from Severus and he seemed to think there wasn't anything wrong with it at all. He hurt a child, in the presence of other children. And he was spouting off about how you were the ones in the wrong. That you were kidnapped. That your children were monsters who needed to be taken back and controlled. That they needed to get information out of them,"

Harry growled, holding Lyra closer to him.

"Most of the Order was appalled at him. As they should be. I mean, who kidnaps a child, and abuses one, and everything else, and thinks it is an okay thing to do? But Molly, she was agreeing with him, vehemently so. She was saying how you and the kids need to be taken back and worked on in order to ensure you didn't stray again. That they needed to know how they lost in the future so that they could ensure it didn't happen again. That the children needed to be used for information, then killed, so they couldn't go back to the future. That she would do whatever was needed to get you to stay on the right path. That you need to be kept away from Severus so he couldn't corrupt you. That the Hufflepuff needed to be hurt more so she wouldn't desert Albus again. And just, all this horrible stuff that I had never imagined her being able to say before,"

Harry didn't know how to feel about that. The fact that the woman he had once considered a mother of sorts would say those things about him, his children, and an innocent Hufflepuff girl that in no way deserved to be hurt by the Headmaster. He wanted to cry, to scream, to tear her a new one so that she couldn't lay a hand on his children. But he set it all aside as he could see that Arthur needed to talk.

"There was an argument, a massive one. The teachers, and the Order, against Molly and Albus. But the things those two were saying, they were getting worse and worse. I won't hurt you with more of them, because I don't even want to think of them myself. But I snapped, I had enough and I dragged Molly home. Bill, Charlie and the twins followed, they were also angry, and demanded answers from her. But she just kept insisting that you needed to be kept in line so you could kill Tom for them. And a lot worse. Eventually I just… walked out, I couldn't stay and listen to her anymore. Something just didn't feel, right, about me. I don't really know how to explain it,

"I didn't feel… good, safe, happy, in love, anything really. I felt numb. Like nothing could ever be right again, but also like nothing had ever been right in the first place. Like there was something wrong with me… So, I went to the goblins, I don't know why really other than that I knew their magic was different to ours and that they might be able to help me. In any case, there was no way I could stay married to her now that I knew she thought such horrible things about you, and our children. She said some rather horrible things about the four of them, and Percy, whilst we were arguing and I just couldn't..,

"I had an inheritance test, and I…" Arthur closed his eyes, his head leaning against the back of the couch as he breathed shakily and tried to control his tears.

"Arthur, whatever it is, whatever you found out… you aren't alone. You have me, you have Bill, Charlie, the twins, hopefully Percy as well when he finds out the truth. You have everyone else that is here. We will help you with whatever you need, with whatever is happening. You aren't alone,"

Arthur opened his eyes and smiled at Harry, "You're a good man, Harry. I'm so sorry that you have been through everything you have in your short life, that I wasn't able to help you before. That I didn't realise what they were doing,"

"Arthur, you did nothing wrong. You took me into your home, and helped me, and talked to me like I was a normal human being. And I love you,"

"I love you, too," Arthur smiled.

"What's going on, Arthur?" Harry asked gently, leaning towards him slightly, his legs curling up under him, Lyra still in his arms though, being held like a baby, which was easy given how small she was, "Let me help you,"

Arthur breathed shakily, "She… She dosed me with love potions. She's been obliviating me over the years. She… she took control of our finances, which I was okay with because of the other potions she filled me with, and because I was always at work so I didn't really have the time to look into them. But I found out she has been stealing from you, and from me. She created a second account, for herself, and has been taking money from the family account and putting it in there every month, without any signed documentation from me saying she could. And she has been having money from your accounts being put into it also. She started stealing from yours about ten years ago. And when you started Hogwarts, she started another two accounts, one for Ginny, and one for Ron, where they also got money from you, and from me. The goblin in charge of the accounts then was the same one in charge of the Dumbledore accounts,

"I complained, because I never said that Molly could do anything with our money, other than use it for food and supplies for the house, and the kids. Other goblins got involved because I got rather loud and security needed to be called. I now have a new account manager, who has purged me, and sorted out the three accounts so that all the money has gone back to their rightful places, and when they earn new money it will be split between us until we have received all that is owed to us. I have left the Burrow to them, but Molly and I are now divorced. And I have disowned Ron and Ginny. I'm sorry they were stealing from you, Harry. You don't deserve it,"

"Neither do you," Harry said, though he wasn't entirely sure what to think, "You have no reason to be sorry, either. You didn't know. You had no reason to know. Where are you living now?"

"The twins are letting me sleep in their second bedroom," Arthur said.

"How did the purge go for you?" Harry asked nervously, because he could feel Arthur was holding back. There was more there, tormenting the man he loved like a father. And he knew the purges could reveal a lot of stuff that was confusing, messy, and everything else. It could also be painful.

"I…" he choked, and Harry almost didn't want to know, but he also wanted to because then he could better help this man who had helped him so much these past few years, "It bloody hurt, that is for sure," Arthur chuckled darkly, Harry nodded in understanding, "Gosh, she really did a number on me, Harry, her and Albus,"

"I bet. They did so on me, too," Harry said, causing Arthur to look at him in shock and pain.

"What? They… What?" he said.

"Oh, you know, obliviates, compulsion spells and potions, love potions keyed to Ginny, potions that made me follow their every order, and hate Slytherins, and keep away from actually learning anything. When they found out I was a bearer, they weren't happy. But they obliviated me, after trying some methods to destroy my womb, and failing because my magic wouldn't let them. So when the kids came, well, I tried to pretend that I only recently found out I was a bearer, I don't know if it worked. But I actually found out the during the summer holidays after that event because my stomach hurt and I didn't feel right, so I went to Gringotts and they sorted me out. They have been doing so every summer since,"

"They tried to destroy your womb?" Arthur asked painfully, tears streaming down his face.

"Yeah," Harry shivered, holding his baby closer to him, "Turns out they had given me a potion just before I left Hogwarts that year that came close to destroying it, hence the pain in my stomach, but my magic protected me by warning me, then when I got to the bank I threw it all up. The goblins got rid of any residual magic, and well, everything else in my system,"

"I was a bearer, too," Arthur whispered, looking down at his stomach sadly as he rubbed it, and Harry looked at him in shock, "Molly was obsessed with me since the moment she saw me. Kind of like Ginny is with you. She tried everything to be mine, but I wasn't interested. I was gay. Still am, I guess, I just didn't know it for a while. She got more persistent through the years, always following me around, always trying to flirt with me, always… She got worse when I started dating one of her twin brothers, Fabian. Started going on about how unnatural it was for two men to be together. How unnatural bearers were once she found out I was one,

"Shortly after we left Hogwarts I got pregnant,"

Harry thought he could see where, roughly, it was going, and he didn't want to think about the man he loved like a father in that kind of pain.

"We didn't want to tell her, because we knew how she was. So we didn't. But, somehow, she found out anyway. I was five months pregnant, and we were so happy, you know. We were so excited, despite our ages, and not being married yet, though certainly on our way there. But we were visiting his and Molly's parents, who knew about the baby and were equally excited to become grandparents. But I went to have a rest before dinner because I was exhausted. On my way to dinner though, she stopped me. There was an argument, and the others all came rushing up. But it was too late. She used a reductor on my stomach, on my baby,"

Arthur choked back a sob, and Harry was crying right next to him at the thought of this man going through something like that, he didn't deserve it, that baby didn't deserve it.

"When I first arrived I looked at Severus and I thought about how I couldn't imagine losing a child, or thinking I had for that long. I thought about how I couldn't possibly imagine the kind of pain he was going through. But at the same time I could. Because my memories were back, I just didn't want to feel it then, to feel the pain… to remember. I didn't want to remember my baby girl, because it hurt too much to know that that was when everything changed. I lost not only her, but my womb, too. And when I was released from the hospital I lost everything else because Molly and Albus got everyone who knew what really happened under their control. And I was being dosed with love potions to a person I could never, and would never love… because I hate her. More than I have ever hated anyone, or anything else, I just didn't know it. And it all just makes me sick, you know? That I let her take my baby away from me, that I let her use me, that I let her change me, that she…"

"Arthur," Harry said, but he didn't know what to say, how to help.

"Merlin, I am so glad you have gotten away from them Harry, that your children showed up when they did. Or you would have ended up like me, and you don't deserve that,"

"You didn't deserve it, either, neither did your baby," he moved forwards gently, trying not to wake Lyra, and he wrapped an arm around the older man, pulling him close as they both cried.

"I know," Arthur choked, but he sounded like he didn't quite believe it.

"We'll make sure she is punished, I promise. We will make sure you, and Fabian, and your baby, get the justice you deserve. No matter what it takes. Amelia is on our side, she will help. Do… do the others know?"

Arthur shook his head, "I don't know how to tell them," he whispered.

"Well, when you are ready, I will be with you, I promise. You have looked after me all these years, you sent me letters which helped me feel less alone, and I am going to look after you now. We all will,"

Harry swore to himself that everyone who had ever hurt his family, all of them, would pay. He couldn't allow them to run around still. Especially Molly and Dumbledore. They needed to be punished the most severely for all the children, and others, that had been hurt by them, because of them.

"Granpa, why you sad?" Lyra asked sleepily from between them, Harry pulled back slightly and looked down at her to see her worried eyes as she looked at Arthur.

Arthur smiled sadly at her, "Nothing for you to worry about, little one. A lot has just been happening lately, but I will be okay, eventually, I promise," Arthur said gently, stroking her hair with his long, somewhat shaking fingers.

"You sure?" she asked, the frown on her face was just adorable.

"I'm sure, little one. I have all of you around to help me, don't I?" he said, the longing, and questioning in his eyes made Harry's heart ache.

"Yeah, we going nowhere,"

Arthur chuckled slightly and pulled her close to him, Harry smiled as she snuggled into his chest and wrapped her little arms around his neck.

"I'm glad, little one," Arthur muttered, looking at Harry with awe in his eyes.

Harry smiled and curled up with the two of them, hoping he was doing okay with them both, and also needing the comfort himself. He couldn't stop himself from thinking about everything that he already knew that the hypocritical 'Light' had done, and the things he was sure he would find out.

But he would protect his family, and he would get justice for them, and for those that weren't there with them. He would make the world safe, with all these people at his side, and when his children finally came, they would be okay.

He hoped so anyway.

He wasn't sure if he was strong enough to succeed.

But he would try anyway.

He had to.

Hiya, how are you all? I hope you're all well!

Well, this week has been a mess for me, hence the time it took me to update something. But isn't it always, haha. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please believe me when I say this whole Arthur situation wasn't the original plan, just the love potions, compulsions, and money, not the baby. But, well, I don't know, I guess my mind got the best of me and took over. And my emotions. I am very emotional at the moment, haha. And hey, writing has always been one of my coping mechanisms, so here we are. I hope you liked what my emotions came up with, though. I mean, it works, I guess, with what is to come, eventually ;) it may take a while given who is involved and such, but we'll get there, and everyone will be happy, or as happy as they can be, eventually, I promise. It will just take a bit to get there, ya know? Next chapter will be them coming up with plans with Amelia, Harry will be particularly fierce about it, to say the least.

Anyhow, I have a Facebook group called Maraudering_Paige which you are all welcome to join if you would like to. It is where we can talk about Harry Potter, fanfics, life, share memes, and more. It is also where I have an update schedule and will be keeping you up to date on what I am working on, both original works and fanfics, and such. So, if you would like to join then I am happy to accept each and every one of you.

I hope you are having an amazing day!

Kind regards,

Paige xx