A/N: Hello everyone and welcome to the next installment in my saga. This picks up a week after the last book, "The Amice Coven and the Waiting Game." As the Order of the Phoenix, which this is based on, is long to begin with, I have a feeling this will likely go at least 150 chapters... I wanted to start with a quiet bang while still filling in a few blanks left at the end of the last...
"Disturbing Discovery in Diagon Alley
A grizzly sight greeted visitors to Diagon Alley this morning when charred and crucified human remains suddenly appeared in the middle of the street, a sign nailed to the chest bearing one word, "Traitor". On further investigation, it was discovered that the body belonged to none other than Peter Pettigrew. You may remember his role in the Potter's murder was revealed last year when Sirius Black, formerly accused of betraying James, Lily and their son Harry Potter, escaped Azkaban. Everyone believed he was on his way to finish the job his master had failed to do and kill young Harry. Through a bizarre series of events which remain a mystery to this day, Pettigrew's identity and guilt was unveiled. Unfortunately, Pettigrew escaped before receiving punishment for his crimes and his whereabouts were unknown until this morning.
While I'm certain this will end a painful chapter for Harry Potter, this writer cannot help but wonder how Pettigrew died and how he came to be displayed in Diagon Alley. So badly burned was the body that, if the perpetrator had not taken the time to restore his face and, perhaps more disturbingly, the brand on his left arm, he would not have been recognizable. I don't wish to alarm you, dear readers, but he bore the mark of the darkest wizard of this age, Lord Voldemort.
Now I know many are already rushing for parchment and quill to complain to the editor for my use of "You-Know-Who's" chosen name. Before you do that, I would like to reveal what I have found out about the Dark Lord. His name was Tom Marvolo Riddle. A simple rearranging of his name reveals; "I am Lord Voldemort". I am taking a stand, dear readers, as I do no feel a man capable of the atrocities he committed in the name of 'Blood Purity" deserves the respect to be called by a name he chose, (which, incidentally, is French for 'Flight from Death',). He was Tom Riddle, a half-blood orphan who preyed on the fears of Pure Blood elitists in attempt to punish the father that never wanted him.
My apologies, dear readers, for my little rant.
A Healer from St. Mungo's Hospital performed a preliminary autopsy on scene and confirmed that Pettigrew died from a combination of magical fire and blood loss from his missing right hand. More confusing, perhaps, is that he has been dead for almost two weeks.
One has to wonder, with the Dark Mark being cast last summer at the World Cup and now Peter Pettigrew's body being found with the same Mark carefully restored, what exactly is going on? Have Tommy's former minions taken up the cause again? Or has Tommy returned as he had always claimed he would? We can only wait, wonder, and hope the Ministry of Magic will do everything in its power to find the truth."
Nym sighed and put the Daily Prophet aside.
"You okay?" Sirius asked as he handed her a scotch and soda and sat down beside her.
Nym shook her head, she wasn't okay. She was very from it, in fact. But how could she explain to her cousin that she was in love with someone he believes isn't even sixteen yet and recently engaged? She took a sip of her drink and sighed again.
"You love her, don't you? Hermione?" he asked, smiling when she blushed. "She's only sixteen, Dora, and engaged..." he added gently.
"It's not that simple," she replied vaguely.
"Isn't it though?" he countered.
"If I tell you something you have to promise not to tell anyone, especially Hermione and the others, that I told you," Nym said. She didn't feel right telling Sirius their secret, but she needed someone unbiased to talk to. Amelia had been an incredible friend and willing to listen, but she knew too much about the girls to be objective.
Nym finally looked to him when he didn't answer and received a nod.
"She's not sixteen," she said quietly; "Last time they checked she was just over twenty-one and Luna and Ginny are both over nineteen," she shook her head; "Don't ask me to explain how or why... I shouldn't have even told you this much..."
"She's still engaged," Sirius reminded her, trying not to ask the many questions he had.
"I know," she sighed; "I took her to the Floo to go talk to Molly... it's complicated..."
"What are you saying? Do you already have a relationship with her?"
"We're 'dating'," she admitted; "Ginny knows and is encouraging it... the four of them... they have an interesting relationship... and they want me to be a part of it..."
"And how do you feel about that?" Sirius asked.
"You're not shocked?" Nym asked.
"I spent time with the four of them last Christmas," he smiled; "Remus and I suspected something more was going on between the four of them, but since they seem to be happy, we decided not to say anything," he put his arm around her shoulders; "Every time I spend time with those girls," he shook his head; "I'm amazed by their compassion and their capacity for love..." he paused a moment; "Do you love her?"
"I think so," Nym sighed; "I've never felt this way about anyone... or had someone feel this way about me..." she sniffed as she fought back tears; "But, despite how okay Ginny is with this... I still feel guilty about it," she rubbed her face with her hands; "But I'd never forgive myself if I didn't take the chance to be a part of her life... of all their lives, really," she smiled despite the tears that had started to fall; "When I'm with them... I feel whole... I'm usually so clumsy, but since I met them, all that's changed..."
"I don't know what to say," Sirius said with a sigh as he started to rub her back in comfort; "But something I've discovered is that you have to do what makes you happy... if being with Hermione and the others makes you happy... as long as the good outweighs the bad, then it's worth it... you have to do what is right for you, Dora, and don't worry so much what others might think... it's your life and only you can decide what is right for it..."
"Thanks, Sirius... I think I... I needed to hear that," Nym replied as she hugged him. "Now, let's get this interview over with so I can send this stuff off to Hermione..." she informed him as she retrieved a parchment, sucked the end of an acid green quill and placed it on the parchment. She looked to him and nodded.
He took a deep breath and began the story of how he, Remus, James and Pettigrew had become friends and ruled Hogwarts with pranks for seven years.
...
It was a week into their vacation in France and the girls finally felt as though they were beginning to relax. Fleur had misled them in regards to her family's wealth and the Chateau Delacour was far grander than even Luna, who had travelled there on Dreamwalks with Fleur, had ever guessed. The estate surrounding the château was enormous with its own tropical, and magically replicated, jungle lagoon complete with waterfall.
Hermione lay on her stomach in the sun, the sound of the waterfall lulling her to sleep despite the many things running through her overactive brain. After the party on the night of their arrival, they had spent every spare moment reading the Sister's journals. While the evolution of their relationship mirrored what was happening between the four of them and they were heartened that they were following the right path in deepening the connections between them, the tales of their revenge were disturbing.
The Sisters were single-minded in their defence of those who could not defend themselves and gave no one the chance to redeem themselves. If you hurt someone, you died. It was that simple to them. But even more than that, was how they inflicted their justice. The guilty would be made to suffer whatever they had done to others. The Sisters, however, took no pleasure in it. As they described it, they were only helping the helpless and discouraging others from perpetrating the same crimes.
Hermione fell deeper asleep and began to dream of their last full day at Hogwarts. It hadn't been as peaceful as they had hoped and had started way too early.
Hermione lay in much the same position she had fallen asleep, Ginny on one shoulder and Luna on the other with Fleur spooning Luna from behind.
"Hermione..." called Rowena's voice.
"What is it? What's wrong?" she asked sleepily.
"The rude redhead from last night is back and he's been banging on the door for the last half hour," Rowena informed her.
"Tell him to go away," mumbled Ginny. She was far too comfortable to let Hermione get up to deal with him.
"I would if I could, but I can't," Rowena replied.
Hermione groaned, kissed Ginny briefly, then pulled herself from the bed. She had no desire to leave the comfort of Ginny's arms, but he would have to be dealt with sooner or later.
Summoning her robe on her way downstairs, she steeled herself for the confrontation.
About ten feet from the door she opened it magically and stood waiting for him to enter with her arms across her chest.
"What do you want, Ron?" she asked him as he walked towards her, rubbing the hand he had used to pound on the door.
"You can't marry Ginny," he stated.
"Why not?"
"She's not even fourteen yet and you're not even sixteen... how can you possibly know she's the one?" he asked.
"Because I do," she said with a sigh. "Ron... I love Ginny and that is never going to change," she said evenly. "Even if something did happen and we split up... I'm a lesbian, Ron, and that means I'd never be with you, or any other boy for that matter... I'm sorry to be so blunt, Ron, but it's the truth," she walked up to him and put her hands on his arms. "The main reason we're getting married now is because..." she sighed, she wasn't sure how he would take it; "we've spent one night apart in the last year... it almost cost me my life in the second task... with Voldemort back," he shuddered and gasped; "Get a grip... it's only a name," she admonished him; "Anyway... we found out Fudge intends to interfere at the school next year... if it were found out how we were able to spend every night together it would raise too many questions... questions we can't answer.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," she continued; "I didn't mean for you to find out that way," she frowned; "How exactly did you find your way here anyway?"
"I was there when Dobby came to fetch Harry and Morgan... I followed them," he replied, "I'm sorry... I just... I don't understand this... how you can commit your life to someone when you're both still so young..."
"What difference does it make?" she said with a smile; "We get married this summer or a few years down the road when we graduate?"
"I'm sorry... I don't know how you managed to convince my mother," he shook his head and began walking backwards towards the doors; "I can't accept this..."
"So I guess you don't want an invitation to the wedding?" Ginny asked sarcastically as she came to hug Hermione from behind. "We're having it a few days after my birthday..."
Ron stopped dead in his tracks.
"This summer?" he asked, Hermione and Ginny both nodding in response.
Ron just nodded and walked out the door.
"Rowena?" Hermione called, waiting until she appeared to continue; "I have a feeling there's more to our new home than you've let on..."
Rowena smiled as Fleur and Luna came to join them.
"This," she said as she turned in a circle with her arms spread out; "was our masterpiece," she smiled. "When others enter, this is what they will see," the room transformed around them. What was once the size of a small house with eight bedrooms, sitting room, large kitchen, bathroom, library and potions lab now appeared as one sitting room with an attached kitchen, three bedrooms and a serviceable bathroom. "The Goblins went out of their way to create this space for us," she smiled; "I guess I know why now..." she shook her head and the space returned to its normal state. "The Goblin tunnels do not run around your new home... this is, quite simply, a dead zone... you are protected from the emotions and thoughts of others as well as unwelcome visitors. No one will be able to enter here without your permission.
"Now, Hermione, I know you're probably itching to explore my library, but I'm going to have to limit your time there today," Rowena smiled; "or we won't see you again until you leave tomorrow..."
"Hmm... what?" Hermione asked sleepily as she woke.
"Sorry, love," Ginny said, then kissed her cheek. She hadn't meant to wake her when she lightly ran her finger down her back to stop her from burning; "You were getting really red... and you have mail," she said as she pointed to the patiently waiting owl that was sitting in front of her.
"What did you just do?" asked Narcissa, who was sitting in a comfortable chair beside them reading a book.
"Shit... I..." Ginny said as she sat up quickly and faced her.
"Forgot I was here?" Narcissa teased; "That, I'm getting used to," she smiled; "What did you just do?" she pressed.
Hermione sat up and untied the Daily Prophet and a tightly rolled parchment.
"We might as well tell her," Hermione said as she unrolled the parchment and smiled as she read the interview Nym had conducted with Sirius... it would be a nice follow-up to the article on the front of page of the Prophet.
"Are you sure, Sun?" Ginny asked.
"If we're going to ask Draco to risk his life then she should know that we can protect him," Hermione replied as she looked to the lake. Fleur and Luna were snogging and Draco, unnoticed by them, was laying on a raft watching them. "You might want to give Draco a splash," she thought to Luna and Fleur. She watched as, without drawing their attention from each other, Draco was thrown from his raft when it flipped over. "It's time we talk to them about our plan... come join us? Bring Draco..."
"Be right there," Luna replied.
"Care to tell me what you're talking about?" Narcissa asked.
In response Hermione handed her the newspaper while they waited for the others to join them.
"He's back, isn't it?" Narcissa asked in a hushed voice as her son and the two girls joined them.
Hermione nodded then looked to Ginny, Luna and Fleur.
"Ready?" she asked, they nodded and the three younger girls let Narcissa and Draco see their true selves for the first time. "Please... if you don't agree to help, just keep our secret?"
Draco and Narcissa nodded numbly then sat quietly as they explained how and why they had aged.
"That still doesn't explain how Ginny healed Hermione's sunburn with a touch," Narcissa said shrewdly. "Or, for that matter, how Ginny knew to have Madam Pomfrey perform an examination that revealed Draco's heart condition..." she trailed off, then smiled; "Or how you knew to offer us help... I thought it was just Ginny that was special, but it's all of you, isn't it?"
"We'll need you both to swear some oaths when we're done if you want to know more," Luna offered.
Draco laughed; "We both owe you life debts... we can't betray your confidence, even if we wanted to..."
"Technically, your mother owes Dobby a life debt..." started Ginny.
"No... I don't," corrected Narcissa; "A human can't owe a life debt to a house elf," she held up her hand; "I'm not saying it's right, but had you not sent him, he would not have come... he only did what he thought you would want him to do..."
"That doesn't seem fair," Hermione replied with a frown, shook her head and looked to Draco; "I'm sorry... but we're still going to need an oath from you if you choose to be a part of our plan..."
"Plan?" Draco said with an uncertain smile.
"How would you like to make a difference at Hogwarts?" Luna asked.
"He can't go back there," Narcissa said, a trace of fear in her voice.
"We wouldn't be asking if we didn't think we could keep him safe," Hermione assured her. "No one would know who he is..."
"I've been working on a variation of Polyjuice potion that would need an antidote to wear off," Luna provided. "You would still need to take a break from it once in a while, but it won't wear off unless you want it to..."
"We were also thinking you should be sorted into Hufflepuff," added Ginny, receiving a snort of derision from Draco.
"It's part of a bigger plan," Hermione started; "My half-brother, Morgan," she smiled at his look of surprise; "is transferring to Hogwarts for his last year and will be sorted into Slytherin... he'll need help navigating the political waters of that house, but I'm afraid if you were sorted with him, someone might recognize you... few people know you very well outside of Slytherin..."
"But why Hufflepuff?" he asked.
"Because Fudge intends to meddle at the school next year and we're planning to fight it," Fleur replied.
"We intend to start training our fellow students to defend themselves and we need a Hufflepuff contact, but with Morgan as your brother, you'll also have an 'in' in Slytherin," Hermione smiled; "I never thought I'd say this, but we need your help Draco... you know the Slytherins. Who we can trust and who wants to change..."
"And no one would know who I am?" Draco asked thoughtfully, a small smile on his lips.
"Only those we trust," replied Ginny.
"And anyone you trust, but they still can't know about us," amended Hermione.
"About that..." prodded Narcissa.
"I'm a Healer," Ginny provided.
"What's so special about that?" asked Draco.
"You misunderstand, Draco, Ginny heals with a touch... not magic," Narcissa explained.
"Actually, I have studied with Madam Pomfrey," Ginny corrected; "I use a combination of both," she looked to Draco; "For example... my ability allows me to take a person's injury and then heal myself... with you, I used my gift to figure out what was wrong and then sent a burst of my healing to your heart to start it again..." she looked back to Narcissa, "When you showed up in our quarters," she shook her head as she saw Narcissa's beaten body again; "You were far too injured for me to take it on... I gave you a controlled burst of healing to stabilize you and get you to the Hospital Wing..." she smiled; "Would you like me to check on your baby? Maybe tell you the gender?"
"I'd like that, thank you," Narcissa replied.
Ginny went to kneel beside her and put her hand on her belly.
"She's healthy," Ginny said quietly; "But Madam Pomfrey was wrong... she wasn't conceived that night... she's maybe," she concentrated; "three or four weeks older," she looked up to Narcissa; "You must have magically protected her... it's part of the reason you were so tired..."
"Mother?" Draco said tentatively and waited for her to meet his eyes; "You don't remember?"
"What?" she asked, almost afraid of the answer.
"When I was home over Easter... I heard you arguing with him," he looked at her in wonder; "The bastard... he stole your memory..." he hissed angrily.
"If that's true, we can help," offered Hermione. "We've done it a few times now..."
"And what is your gift?" Narcissa asked despite her shock.
"I'm a Telepath and Luna is a Empath," Hermione said with a smile as recognition dawned on Narcissa's face; "Yes... that is how we knew to offer you help... I didn't actively read you, but you let your guard down for just a few seconds..."
"How can you help her?" asked Draco.
"I use my gift to find the blocked memories," started Hermione.
"Then I use mine to heal the charm and any physical damage," continued Ginny.
"And I use my gift to help keep you calm," added Luna.
"And Fleur lends us her magic to make everything work better," finished Hermione.
"You've done this before?" asked Narcissa in awe.
"Twice," Hermione answered; "And their memories were more than a decade old... I have a feeling yours are more recent..."
"They are," Draco said in anger; "You met her at the World Cup... that's where you were when shithead was off acting like an idiot..."
"Who?" Narcissa asked.
"Helen Greengrass," he replied, then looked to Hermione; "Still think I can't keep a secret? I had to keep that from Daphne all year..."
"She's... she's alive?" Narcissa whispered; "That bastard..."
"Narcissa?" Ginny asked as she went to take her hand; "I think... maybe we should have you asleep while we do this... it'll be easier for you to absorb..."
"That's a good idea, Shy," Hermione said as she, Luna and Fleur stood.
"Why would you suggest that?" Narcissa asked.
"We don't how many memories are hidden or what their contents are," Hermione explained; "Or, for that matter, if Lucy is responsible... how bad the memory charms are..."
"No," she said ruefully; "That was something that bastard learned well," Narcissa sighed; "He learned from Him..." she shook her head as they laid her down; "He wasn't weak... just lazy..."
Ginny went to kneel at her head, Hermione behind her and holding her tight for a moment before they both placed their hands on the side of her head, Hermione's hand on top on one side, Ginny's on top on the other. Luna and Fleur knelt beside them, Fleur putting her hand on Hermione's back while Luna did the same with Ginny. They took a deep breath as they completed their circle to center themselves before Luna and Fleur reached for Narcissa's hands.
Ginny leaned down and kissed her forehead softly.
"I know, from personal experience," Hermione said softly; "what it's like to have your memories taken from you... I had the better part of five years taken from me," she explained; "some of the memories weren't good ones, but I am more myself now than I was before... I'm happier now that I remember..."
Narcissa tilted her head back and looked up to Hermione, who had her head on Ginny's shoulder.
"Thank you for this..." she said softly as tears leaked from her eyes. Narcissa hardly felt she deserved their kindness or their help.
"We do it because we can," Luna said softly.
"There's little point in having these gifts if we can't use them to help people," Ginny added then kissed her forehead again. "I'll put you to sleep slowly... just try not to fight it..."
"I trust you," Narcissa replied softly and closed her eyes.
"Thank you," whispered Draco.
Ginny smiled, nodded and closed her eyes.
She allowed the combined magic of her coven flow through her as she gently sent Narcissa to sleep. Hermione kissed her neck to let her know she was ready to start.
Hermione drifted into Narcissa's mind. What she found surprised her. Narcissa's mind was almost as orderly as Severus' and she wondered, idly, if all those in Tom's presence had taken measures to protect themselves from him. Hermione smiled despite herself... while there were several older memories also hidden, most of them were from the last year and were easily found. Lucy's charms had, no doubt, been effective, however they were sloppy and weak. Another week in Ginny's presence and there was a good chance they would have healed themselves.
One by one she located the memories, starting with the oldest ones and working forward. As they worked Hermione noticed that not all the older ones were the work of the same person but she didn't recognize the magic. With each memory they healed, she saw a short flash of it before moving on. The older memories were disturbing, to say the least, and she began to see a pattern... whoever had hidden these memories from Narcissa had done so to protect her.
She and Ginny both started to relax as they reached the newer memories as all but the last was a happy memory. As the last one healed, Ginny let go a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, then leaned forward and kissed Narcissa forehead again, waking her with a short burst of energy.
"You okay?" Hermione asked as she felt Ginny go limp in her arms.
Ginny nodded.
"Water?" Hermione asked.
Ginny opened her mouth to reply, frowned, then nodded again.
"Can't you speak?" Hermione asked, growing concerned as she looked into her eyes. "Can you hear me?" she thought to hear, her fear growing as no reply came from Ginny.
Ginny, however, was growing frustrated. She understood what was going on but she had no way to communicate it. She sat up from Hermione's arms and summoned parchment and quill from their backpack.
"I'll be fine," she wrote hastily; "It was a part of the older charms... I think even if they were removed magically there was a back up built-in to silence whoever cast the charm to remove them. I'LL BE OKAY!" Ginny paused to kiss Hermione, and then begin writing quickly again; "It's prioritizing.. healing the brain damage first before fixing that... just relax, okay?"
"How can you be so sure?" Hermione asked.
"After the first of the older charms I knew something was different," she looked to Narcissa then back to the parchment, "The newest will be back in a few hours but the others will take longer to come back... I only did enough to start the process or I'm sure I would have been silent for weeks," she paused as she heard her girlfriend laugh. She cocked her eyebrow at her.
"I was thinking that might not have been so bad..." Hermione teased, causing Ginny to giggle.
"The newer ones were weak... they would've come back on their own by the time we headed home... you'll remember everything in a few hours..." Ginny paused in her writing and looked up to Narcissa, her expression serious, as she looked back to the parchment; "The nights will be bad until all the old ones are back... you shouldn't be alone..."
Hermione had read as Ginny wrote then watched as she handed the parchment to the older witch. Narcissa held it so both Luna and Fleur could also read it.
"Why am I not affected by the spell?" asked Hermione.
Ginny shook her head and shrugged.
"Because Ginny blocked it from you?" Luna asked as she looked to Ginny.
Ginny shook her head.
"Because it was your magic?" Fleur guessed.
Ginny smiled and nodded.
"And I was using my gift..." Hermione concluded thoughtfully.
There were tears in Narcissa's eyes as she looked to Ginny. She was right. The newest of her memories were already coming back, but she could only guess at what the older memories were.
"Thank you," she all but sobbed as she reached for Ginny and Hermione and enfolded the two in a strong hug. She let them go only to turn and hug both Luna and Fleur. Last she looked to a stunned Draco and took his face in her hands; "Thank you for keeping my secret..."
He smiled and blushed.
"You were happy," he said quietly, tears swimming in his eyes, "and I had a great example to get used to the idea all year," he looked to Hermione and Ginny, who were back in each others arms; "You were different this last year... the three of you," he shook his head as he took his mother's hands from his face and gently guided her back to her seat; "You scared the shit out of me at the World Cup..." he said with a smile as he looked to Hermione; "Remember... I had just saw my mother kissing Mrs Greengrass," he blushed furiously; "And my father was being a drunken idiot..." he shook his head; "I was angry at him... angry at the role I've had to play all these years and," he looked off into the distance with a smile on his face but unable to meet their eyes; "I was so jealous," he laughed under his breath at he looked back to them; "Here's me, who's been told all my life that I'm better everyone but I was the one, alone, hanging out in the forest... you two," nodding at Ginny and Hermione; "I saw you during the game," he blushed; "I couldn't take my eyes off you... I could see how in love you were, even though you were trying to be subtle about it... and I've never seen either of you happier..." he looked back to his mother; "How could I not want the same for you after all you've been through?" he asked her earnestly, tears coursing down his reddened face at his own confession.
"Why didn't you say something sooner?" Luna asked softly.
"I told Aunt Andi," he replied; "She went to Helen and told her what happened," he looked back to his mother; "Helen told her they knew this might happen, but worried about the danger... I was just waiting to tell you until they left..." he smiled; "All you have to do is call her house elf."
"Let my mother know to adjust the wards?" Fleur asked, looking at Hermione as she stood then helped Luna to her feet. "We'll go explain what is happening..."
"No... Fleur... it's too much.." Narcissa interrupted.
"Nonsense," Fleur replied with a tinkling laugh; "We have more than enough room..."
"What is her elf's name?" Hermione asked, reinforcing the impression that Narcissa had no choice in the matter.
"Noddy," Narcissa replied with a smile.
"Lynne?" Hermione thought to Fleur's mother, whose full name was Apolline, but like Hermione, had never been overly fond of her name.
"Oui, chere?" came her reply.
"Can you adjust the wards to allow the Greengrass family and their elf Noddy? Fleur is on her way to explain..." Hermione answered.
"Of course... give me ten minutes," Lynne replied; "I'll let you know when it is done..."
"Merci, Lynne..."
"De rein," she replied.
"She's waiting on an explanation," Hermione said to Fleur then looked to Narcissa, "Unless you'd like more time?"
"No," she said, smiling through her tears; "We've wasted more than enough time," she took a deep breath and sighed heavily; "And if those older memories are what I think they are," she shook her head; "I'm going to need Helen..."
"You understand we'd like to keep who we are from Daphne for now?" asked Luna.
"Of course," Narcissa smiled; "I only want Helen at the moment..."
"We'll see you in a bit?" asked Fleur, then added in thought; "My room? See if we can't help Ginny?"
Hermione smiled and nodded.
"I'll let you know when the wards are adjusted," Fleur said aloud and looked to Draco; "Care to join us?"
He blushed, nodded and stood.
"Will you be alright?" he asked his mother.
"I will be now," she said as she stood and enveloped him in a hug; "Thank you Draco... for watching over me..."
"You're all I have," he admitted quietly, his voice choked with emotion.
"You have us now too, Draco," Luna said quietly; "You're kind of like an annoying little brother but... you won't be alone if you choose to come back."
He nodded and looked up to his mother.
"It's your choice," Narcissa told him quietly; "I would fear for your safety, but I know how important this is to you..." she kissed his forehead tenderly; "Not everyone gets a second chance..."
Draco stepped from his mother's arms and searched her eyes a moment.
"I think... I think I'd really like that..."
"I'm so proud of you," Narcissa said, tears, that had never really stopped, coursing down her face again.
"Come... I need to go see my mother," Fleur prodded gently, she wanted Narcissa to have a chance to gather herself before Helen arrived.
Draco nodded and followed her and Luna back towards the château.
"We'll keep him safe, Cissy," Hermione said quietly; "And if it looks like he's in danger we'll get him out immediately..."
"Thank you," Cissy replied as Hermione handed her a glass of water she had conjured, Ginny already sipping one of her own. "I know you will," she continued after taking a sip; "I can almost feel the magic radiating off the four of you in the morning..." she looked to Hermione thoughtfully; "Can I ask what your intentions are towards my niece?"
Hermione blushed and buried her hair in Ginny's shoulder.
"I've heard you talking about her," Cissy prodded gently, "I can tell you all care for her..."
Hermione looked up hesitantly.
"Andi told me what she's been through, Dora," she smiled as she watched twin grins spread across the girls faces at the mention of Nym's name; "Due to her nature as a Metamorph," she shook her head; "She was taken advantage of a lot and hurt many times," she said softly; "You care for her?"
"We do," Hermione replied quietly.
"Then I think the four of you are exactly what she needs," she replied, her tone mischievous; "What? You think I've missed how affectionate the four of you are?" she laughed; "If I were twenty years younger..." she laughed and shook her head; "The four of you are very beautiful and your beauty is only made all the more brilliant by the love that you so obviously share for each other," she grew serious; "Just don't hurt her, Dora..."
"Not in a million years," Hermione replied adamantly as Ginny nodded her head.
"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Cissy asked with concern as she looked to Ginny.
"Three or four hours," came Ginny's soft reply in Hermione's head who immediately sighed in relief as she smiled and kissed her cheek.
She looked to see Narcissa looking on confused.
"She just projected a thought to me," Hermione explained. "May I ask... who's the father?"
"Jeffery Greengrass... Helen's husband," she shook her head and laughed; "It was a foolish plan... Posh didn't take my relationship..."
"Posh?" Hermione interrupted.
"My personal nickname for Lucius," Cissy laughed; "Piece of shit human," she clarified to their laughter.
"I am so using that," Hermione gasped out.
"Be my guest," Cissy replied good naturedly; "Even after Posh found out about me and Helen he was too distracted by his Mark to care... until I turned up pregnant with Jeffy's baby..." they saw anger flash across her features before she took a deep breath then met Hermione's eyes. "If you think you can't trust me..." she took a deep breath; "I don't know who Draco's father is, and I haven't told him..." seeing the shock on their faces she continued; "Posh was incapable of children... he had his..." she shook her head and began to sob.
Hermione and Ginny were up and had Cissy in their arms before she knew what had happened.
"I forced his hand too far... I thought he'd throw me and Draco out..." she admitted as her breathing returned to normal and she gently pushed the two girls away; "I think it was always his plan to claim the child as his own..."
"The older memories," Hermione said quietly as she and Ginny resumed their spot on the grass. "They weren't him," she looked to Cissy thoughtfully; "Did Severus teach you Occlumancy?" she asked to her surprise; "He shared a memory with us... I recognize his style and his magic... some of the older ones are his, but there's another," she shook her head; "It's similar, but..."
"Bella..." Cissy said, her voice barely above a whisper, then looked to the girls; "Slytherin house was a different place before Severus became its Head... she protected me," she shook her head and looked down at her hands; "Whatever she became because of Tom... she is my sister..." she looked back to them; "But I'll tell you more about Bella another day... she's as safe as she can be, for the moment, and I have happier things to remember today..."
As if on cue, Hermione heard Fleur's voice in her head letting them know it was safe to call for Noddy.
"If you're ready..." Hermione said with a smile; "You can go ahead..."
"Oh, dear..." Cissy exclaimed, "I must look a mess..."
"You're beautiful," Hermione assured her as she handed her a wet cloth to wipe the evidence of the tears from her face. "And I doubt she'll care..."
Narcissa wiped her face, ran her hands through her hair and called for Noddy.
The little elf appeared and ran into her waiting arms.
"You're safe!" he squealed.
"I am little one... can you bring me Helen?" she asked.
He nodded and disappeared, Narcissa watching the place he had vanished, nervously wringing her hands until she felt two hands rubbing her back in comfort. She relaxed marginally then started when Noddy returned with another sharp crack.
"Narry!" Helen exclaimed, and ran into an already crying Narcissa's arms.
The girls stepped away to give them a little privacy and quietly started to gather their things only looking back to them when they heard their names.
"Helen... I'd like you to meet two of the girls responsible for, well, everything really..." Cissy said as she wiped away her tears.
"Thank you," Helen said as she rushed forward and hugged the two girls tightly. She stepped back and took Narcissa back into her arms, a hand over her slightly protruding belly. "I knew she was safe..." she turned her head and kissed Narcissa's cheek; "I missed you so much though... how could I not come?"
"We'll see you for dinner?" Hermione asked, drawing their attention, understanding for once how her own displays of affection were viewed by others.
"Breakfast... maybe..." Narcissa joked, her voice already husky.
"And please... you needn't thank us," Hermione said warmly as she reached for their hands; "Given what's coming..." she sighed; "The more love in the world, the better..."
Helen and Narcissa drew the two into a hug and thanked them again, smiling broadly despite their tears.
Hermione and Ginny walked back towards the chateau, their arms around each other, both smiling.
"You should have left the older ones alone," Hermione said gently; "We'd have found another way..."
Ginny shook her head; "After first... too late..." she thought quietly to Hermione. She couldn't explain now and it was frustrating her greatly. Even projecting a thought to her fiancée was difficult. She knew something was different after the first memory, but even though she worried about what the effect would be, she was able to adjust and not take on more of the damaging charm than necessary... unfortunately, the cumulative effect of the small amount she had taken had, literally, rendered her speechless.
"I got all that... just so you know..." Hermione said gently. She was worried about Ginny and had gently read her thoughts as they walked. "Sorry... I knew you would be thinking about it..."
Ginny shook her head, smiled, and hugged her close... letting her know she understood and she was okay with it.
"Guess we don't need words, huh?" Hermione joked and kissed her temple.
Ginny laughed and shook her head.
"I didn't mean to second guess love... just worried..." Hermione said quietly but was silenced by Ginny's kiss.
Hermione pulled away with a sigh, kissed her forehead, then leaned her own against it.
"We'll be okay," she kissed her softly and searched her eyes; "C'mon... let's go join Luna and Fleur and see if we can't get your voice back..." Hermione said, her voice growing deeper near then end, trailing off at the look of desire in Ginny's eyes. "Thank God it's only a few more weeks..."
...
It was much later that night, Helen and Narcissa lay exhausted, sated, and content in each others arms. After a walk around the lagoon catching up on all they had missed they retreated to Narcissa's room to catch up in an entirely different way.
"There were older memories too..." Cissy said quietly, her head nestled on Helen's shoulder. "They told me it might take a few weeks and the nights might be rough..."
"I'm not going anywhere," Helen interrupted and turned on her side so she could see her beloved's eyes; "I'm never letting you go again..." she reached out and stroked her cheek gently; "I've missed you so much..." she kissed her softly. "How would you feel about being Jeff's second wife?"
"Rather marry you," Cissy replied smiling.
"But this way you could come home... we can keep you and Draco safe..."
"I'll think about it..."
"We could have our own little ceremony," Helen offered as she began to stroke Cissy arm.
"You know I'm probably going to say yes," Cissy replied with a light laugh; "Just let me be a little proper and have him ask me himself..."
"Okay..." Helen replied brightly and pulled her close again. "I know it's not the perfect solution, love..."
"Any solution that means I never have to leave you again," Cissy said quietly, pulling her even closer; "Sounds pretty close to me..."
A/N 2: Thanks to all for your great reviews at the end of the last book... it was a long journey and it was with great relief I hit complete. I will try to post a chapter a week but it all depends on my work schedule... hope you enjoyed the chapter and welcome back!