Bonus 1) Perspectives
When Draco returned to Snape's office after Easter dinner, he didn't leave, rather, he started pacing in front of the fireplace. Snape paused in his grading.
"Do you have something to discuss?"
Draco's eyes flashed irritatedly.
"This Sacred 28 thing. It's so stupid. Did you know because of Anastasia's bloodline I couldn't marry her? Even though we're already connected by the lifeline? It's ridiculous."
Snape looked up at him, unfeeling.
"Yes, I heard there were more stipulations then we once projected."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Draco complained.
"You forget, Mr. Malfoy that I am not a pureblood myself, so before you go blaming me, remember I have no reference point for archaic blood rules. Also, you may want to try getting back together with Miss Dumbledore before planning a proposal."
Draco sighed and continued.
"...but she's already got the blood of two Hogwarts founders and bloody Albus Dumbledore. What else could you need?"
Snape continued staring at Draco, quite annoyed at his student's persistence in bothering him about his personal life so casually.
"If it became an option for you in the future, you could have her bloodline verified. Now—"
"Someone was mentioning that at lunch...but still, what if by that time the old ninny is dead? Then we'd have no help."
Snape, now realizing Draco wasn't going to leave without finishing his outward thinking, gave up.
"I wish you'd think this far ahead about your potions homework."
"It's unfair."
Snape scoffed and rolled his eyes at his petulance.
"What?" Draco asked, a bit red in the face.
"Please, oh child of enormous fortune and magical inheritance with a hand-picked romantic interest, spare me the speech of how your life is so unfair," Snape waved off. He replaced the dying candle in the lantern on his desk and struck a match to light the new one.
"She may have been hand picked by my mother, but not my father. And whoever wrote the family wards isn't alive to listen, so yes, it is unfair. It's unfair that as much as I..." Draco suddenly became self conscious and cut his speech short, but his frustration must have shown on his face, for Snape finally took pity and answered.
"If there were really no options available to you...you could simply turn down the Malfoy inheritance," Snape suggested. "Abscond. Run away."
Draco seemed to think about this for quite some time.
"How can the wards cover Anastasia now by magic but be destroyed if we're married?"
Snape sighed and shook his head.
"I've told you your options, Malfoy. Now leave and stop pestering me with these innane questions."
"Right now, I just need Weasley out of the way..."
"Word to the wise, Malfoy. If Miss Dumbledore found out you sabotaged Weasley, what do you think that would do for you?"
"Fine...but if this goes on too much longer—"
"Plot elsewhere."
Only moments after Snape's door closed behind Malfoy, another student reared their obnoxious head. A tall ginger, followed by a rather solemn headmaster.
"I suppose you're not here to remedy your mediocre potions grade, Weasley? Good afternoon, headmaster."
"Where's Anastasia? Why isn't she back yet?" Fred demanded, placing his hands on the potions master's desk. "The Slytherins returned hours ago."
"Mr. Weasley, your tone isn't very polite," Albus warned, "but Severus, I too would like to know."
Snape closed his eyes, rubbed his fingers deep into the sides of his temples and replied.
"Malfoy returned and informed me that his mother kept Anastasia to help with a delivery."
"Wait, she's helping her?" Fred demanded. "That can't be true."
"Yes..." Snape said slowly. "...from what I understand, Miss Dumbledore is quite talented at alchemy, which is the type of healing Narcissa Malfoy specializes in. She's been apprenticing under her since August. Did neither of you know about this?" Snape couldn't repress a smirk.
While Albus frowned, deciphering, Fred seemed to have been struck over the head by a briefcase.
"Healing alchemy is illegal. Mum's told me about it, it is extremely dangerous. And Anastasia's doing it as a hobby?"
"While it might be illegal..." Albus said carefully, "I believe Narcissa's stance...and the stance of many witches is that it is necessary as a magical science. It is what saved Anastasia as a child, and it makes sense she would want to help others benefit from it now."
Fred was now even further from recovering.
Snape, already short tempered from humoring Malfoy, shot another jab at the teenager in front of him.
"I believe what Professor Dumbledore is saying, Weasley, is that unlike your family, not everyone in the world plans to litter the world with children."
"Severus, please don't put words in my mouth," Albus warned.
"Take it back—" But as Fred began to threaten Snape, the flames sputtered green, and Anastasia emerged with a similar proud smile on her face, until she saw everyone.
"Oh...hello...am I in trouble or something?" She tucked her hair behind her ear and stepped forward. Albus smiled.
"Ah, Anastasia. Professor Snape was just enlightening us of your recent activities with your godmother," Albus explained.
"Stasia, what is going on?" Fred demanded. Anastasia smiled even brighter.
"Narcissa said she didn't do it. The information I got was incorrect. Everything's fine," she nearly skipped to Fred's side, but by the time she reached it, he was fuming.
Snape covered his mouth and coughed to hide his laugh. Albus smiled nervously.
"Well whoop-de-doo," Fred said and stormed off into the hall, Anastasia followed.
"Fred, what is wrong? The in bloody hell is happening?" she asked, looking over her shoulder to see if Albus or Snape had followed.
"You know what Narcissa Malfoy does, right?" Fred asked.
Anastasia paused, she knew what he meant.
"Fred...that procedure's maybe only one tenth of what she does—"
"Isn't that enough? How many have you helped with?"
Anastasia scoffed.
"She wouldn't let me go to the only one she performed while I was visiting. And that was because the mother was a recent...graduate."
"A Hogwarts graduate?" Fred asked.
Anastasia kept her mouth buttoned, already afraid she had said too much.
"Well," Fred started, "I'm glad at least she's making sensible decisions by not letting you get involved with illegal magic."
"Illegal?" Anastasia asked, outraged.
"Yes, illegal. Healing alchemy is illegal."
"Since when are you so concerned with rules?" Anastasia scowled.
"Healing alchemy is as dangerous if not more dangerous than dark magic."
"You are so—" she began, her memory flipping back to the conversation she had with Draco. You'll have to admit one day that the only way to get anything done is by learning the magic that everyone else is afraid to learn.
"I'm what?" he dared.
"Blind." Anastasia asserted. "Not every family in this world is as perfect as yours. Sometimes you have to fix your mistakes after the fact. More people than you know have had to do it, and some people you know have had to do it. So don't get preachy on me for helping a healer do her damn job."
"What people?" Fred asked behind her. "Who are you talking about?"
Anastasia, realizing her mistake, ignored his question.
"Anastasia—" Albus appeared on her left and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "I need you for a moment. Excuse us, Mr. Weasley."
Albus brought her down to the kitchens where they sat at their normal dinner table, but instead of a full spread, the elves brought them an Easter trifle with tea. Anastasia, who wasn't hungry, picked at hers unwillingly.
"That was quite a tense conversation you were having." Albus opened the conversation and took a bite of his own pudding. Anastasia glared.
"I don't understand. Why is healing alchemy banned? Every time Narcissa's used it, it's been to help someone."
Albus gave her a curious glance.
"Can you think of none? You are an example yourself. The lifeline is a form of healing alchemy, and as you know it has its drawbacks despite its conveniences."
Anastasia reeled.
"Sure, but all magic has drawbacks. It's not all dangerous. And why is Fred so sensitive about it? It's got nothing to do with him," she complained flippantly.
Albus sighed.
"Healing alchemy is often equated with dark magic by those who are determined to misunderstand it. They also overlap with one another at times. Dark magic can, if used improperly, leave scars upon the soul."
"Scars upon the soul," she whispered to herself. "So is Fred afraid I'm going to scar my soul or something?"
"Partially," Albus nodded.
"What's the other part?" she asked, now taking a bite of her own dessert. "Why else is he being a total arse?"
Albus rolled his eyes at her choice of words.
"As you know, for many centuries now, magics have lived in hiding from muggles. Comparatively to the number of muggles, the number of magics is very small."
"Right…so what?" she asked.
"So, our society sees there being two ways of fixing this. Families like the Malfoys believe the only way to keep magic alive in its purest form, is to protect our version of the species, is to only let the next generations marry and interbreed with pureblood magics. That is one extreme."
"Sure…and the other?"
"The other extreme believes that magics should marry muggles and muggle-born magics alike and have as many children as possible. Thereby making magic more prevalent, it will engender peace between muggles and ourselves. They believe that one day everyone will have a bit of magic in them, which very well may be true, but they want it to happen at a faster rate than is usually possible with every family only having one to three children," Albus described.
"So, the Weasleys fall into that category?" Anastasia asked. "Is that why Fred is so angry with me for helping Narcissa?"
"Yes," Albus clarified. "You and I, and most wizarding families fall somewhere in the middle of those two extremes. We want our children to be happy and make the decisions that are right for them, no matter who they marry or how many children they have, but it is the pockets of extreme beliefs that have caused tension and trauma."
"Oh." Anastasia said, picking at her dessert again. "But most of the magic Narcissa offers is necessary. The baby today—"
Albus's piercing eyes met hers as Anastasia drifted off, remembering the still infant body, grey and cold.
"It was already dead," she whispered. Albus's eyes softened with compassion.
"The magic Narcissa does is more than necessary, and I know that due to my own teachings in alchemy, you have quite the predilection for it. Still, I'm wondering if it would be best if you took a break from helping her for a while."
"No!" Anastasia cried. "I want to help. What's the point of knowing alchemy if I can't use it for anything important?"
He smiled gently at her.
"Maybe it is the part of me that doesn't want to see you grow up too quickly," he admitted. "You have already been exposed to so much darkness in the world, Anastasia. Part of me wishes I could protect you from it forever."
Anastasia smiled faintly.
"If you could consider it next time, at least tell me when and where you are going?" Albus asked. "And what you're up to?"
And for the first time, Anastasia realized, she hadn't even bothered to tell him she was going to the Malfoys. And that on its own could in fact, be quite dangerous.