A Family Duty by potterfan2008
Summary: *** Winner of Best Overall in the Burrow Secret Challenge ***
For five hundred years, the House of Prewett has kept watch over a secret artifact and protected a powerful secret. Molly Weasley, as the last member of the House, is called upon to protect the wizarding world. Bill, Ginny, and Harry assist her in completing the Prewett Family Duty.
Rating: PG-13
Categories: The Burrow Secret Challenge (2016-3), The Burrow Secret Challenge (2016-3)
Characters: None
Genres: None
Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Published: 2016.10.28
Updated: 2016.11.05
Index
Chapter 1: Chapter 1 A Family Duty
Chapter 2: Chapter 2 The Prewetts and Plantagenets
Chapter 3: Chapter 3 Hermione's Concerns
Chapter 4: Chapter 4 Searching for a Family
Chapter 5: Chapter 5 Victoire
Chapter 1: Chapter 1 A Family Duty
Author's Notes: Thanks to my betas Arnel and seekers_destiny for their help! I hope you enjoy my take on the Burrow Secret!
September 1981
Molly Weasley walked uneasily towards the rather posh law firm to which she’d been directed. She couldn’t imagine why her brothers had sent her here, especially when they asked her not to mention it to Arthur.
It had been a nerve-wracking trip on the Knight Bus. Ginny hadn’t liked the sudden starting and stopping motion of the bus and had been rather fussy during the whole ride. Glancing down into the pram, she was happy to see that Ginny had finally fallen asleep. Reaching down, she adjusted a pink blanket over her youngest. As she approached the office, she caught a glimpse of herself in the glass. Was she dressed appropriately? She thought so, but it was hard to tell.
In preparation for this trip she’d visited the charity shop in Ottery St Catchpole and purchased a simple Muggle outfit. The girl at the shop assured her that it looked good on her. It was a simple green, A-line dress that Molly thought helped hide the fact that she’d just given birth a month ago. In addition to the dress, Molly wore a pale green shawl that she’d made and a pair of sandals.
She didn’t often wear Muggle clothing, but she’d seen enough people both in the village and on Diagon Alley that she thought she would blend in. She’d also purchased some cute outfits for Ginny. It was a bit of a splurge, but she’d waited so long for a girl she couldn’t resist the sweet sleeper covered in ladybirds or the pink onesie with little white, fluffy lambs.
Taking a deep breath, she entered the office. The girl at the front desk was slightly intimidating with her professional attire, big hair, and makeup. It made Molly wonder again if she was dressed appropriately. She honestly hoped so.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes, ma’am, how may I help you?” The receptionist asked. To Molly’s relief she was much friendlier than her appearance would indicate.
“I have an appointment with Mr Slater,” Molly replied.
Consulting something on the desk, the girl asked, “Molly Weasley?”
“Yes, that is me.”
“Certainly, have a seat. Mr Slater will be right with you.”
Molly sat down in the row of chairs indicated by the receptionist. The office seemed rather busy. Arthur would be thrilled to be here. She thought the device the receptionist was talking into was a tellyphone, but she wasn’t entirely sure. Luckily, Mr Slater was a Squib so he was comfortable setting up an appointment by owl.
“Molly.”
Molly turned to see a solicitor standing in front of her. “Yes, sir.”
“I am Nigel Slater. Please allow me to extend my sympathies on the deaths of your brothers.”
Standing, Molly shook his hand. “Thank you.”
“Please follow me.”
Molly pushed the pram and followed the man back into a conference room. Her brothers had died a little over two weeks earlier — they had both been killed in a Death Eater attack. Auror Moody told her they were heroes and fought until the end. That didn’t really bring her much comfort. They had both been so much larger than life, it was difficult to realize they would never again visit and play with their nephews. They had never even met their long-awaited niece.
The small estate they had earned had been left to her for her children, but included in the will was a note telling her to contact Nigel Slater as soon as possible. It had taken longer than she would have liked to arrange for Aunt Muriel to watch Charlie and Percy while Doris Diggory was watching the twins and Selene Lovegood was watching little Ron. Ginny was so little, just a month old, and Molly hadn’t wanted to leave her with anyone.
“Molly, this is the box your brothers left for you. It has been sealed since they brought it in eight years ago. I was instructed to have you open it here and allow you to examine the contents in peace. You may decide to continue having us store this box or you may elect to remove it to a more secure location. I will give you privacy, you may use magic in here if needed, but I ask you to keep it to a minimum.”
Molly nodded, a bit overwhelmed by the seriousness of it all. When Mr Slater left, she withdrew her wand and cast a privacy spell over the room. She didn’t feel entirely comfortable using magic in such a Muggle environment, but she thought it needed to be done.
Dearest Molly,
If you are reading this, then both Gideon and I have died. We were hoping it would not come to this, but we know you are up to holding up our side of the bargain.
Almost five hundred years ago, one of our ancestors, Josiah Prewett, became privy to some information that could change the course of history. He swore to follow the actions demanded by his liege lord, Richard, the Duke of Gloucester. Josiah followed his instructions and for the past five hundred years one or more Prewetts have been assigned certain duties.
These duties will now pass on to you. You are the last Prewett from Josiah’s direct line. Please carefully read all of the documents enclosed in this box. They will explain Josiah’s actions and what we are obligated to do.
We know you understand how to determine which of your children has the most Prewett blood. It is critical that you do this as soon as possible. In these uncertain times we cannot leave this duty unprotected.
It is foretold that this duty will come to an end at the end of the millennium. If the circumstances are right, you will be able to fulfil our ancestor’s vow. We know that you will be able to complete our destiny and uphold our family honour.
We love you, Molly. Please take care of all of those beautiful babies. We will meet again one day.
Love,
Gideon and Fabian
Molly read the letter with tears in her eyes. She’d never heard of Josiah Prewett. She was a simply housewitch who loved to take care of her family. How could she help fulfil such an important family obligation?
With a trembling hand, she reached into the box and pulled out a sheaf of parchment wrapped with a velvet ribbon. Running her hand over the parchment, she realized it was old-fashioned vellum. It was very expensive and used only by the very wealthy. It also appeared to be quite old.
She started reading. It took her the better part of three hours to read and understand the story revealed by the documents. Although the story was elegantly written, it was difficult to read. During that time she’d fed Ginny and rocked her back to sleep. Mr Slater had returned to check on her and feeling a bit more comfortable Molly requested some tea which was brought to her.
Molly used the odd parchment and pencils the solicitor left and wrote out some notes so she could fix everything in her mind. Once she understood the people involved and their relationships, she cast several charms on her notes so no one other than her would be able to read them. It was a complicated story and she didn’t want to misremember anything.
Writing on a fresh sheet of what Mr Slater called a legal pad, she wrote out instructions for her yearly task. It was due to be done on August the seventeenth of each year and her brothers had done it this year, but she wanted to visit this year so she wouldn’t feel so nervous next year.
After resealing the box, she thanked Mr Slater. “I would like you to keep holding onto this for me.”
“Of course,” he replied. “I will be happy to do so.”
Glancing down at the notes she’d taken, she asked, “Mr Slater, where is the British Museum?”
The receptionist summoned a taxi and paid the fee for her. Molly was surprised that she was feeling more comfortable in the Muggle world as her day wore on. The museum was a fascinating building.
She decided that she wasn’t going to be shy, so gathering up her courage she approached the information desk. Several minutes later, she had directions for the gallery she needed to visit as well as a map of the galleries.
Heading up to the third floor, she visited the gallery featuring Sutton Hoo and Europe 300 to 1100 as well as the gallery on Europe 1400 to 1800. She wondered if maybe she should bring her children here when they were a bit older. It was a fascinating history; if rather different from the wizarding history she was used to. She imagined that Percy would find it interesting, but she didn’t think she would trust the twins in such a place.
After exploring the other two galleries, Molly headed to the one she was destined to visit — the Roman Britain gallery. She walked among the glass encased displays admiring the workmanship on various pieces. Some of the work was on a level with the goblin work with which she was more familiar.
In the middle of the gallery, she found the object for which she was searching. It was a golden circlet and Molly knew from the documents that it was improperly identified as a roman headpiece. There was a faint charm on the object that ensured it was always on display.
Feeling confident that she would be able to do this, she left the museum. After a stop at her brothers’ grave, she headed home.
Several hours later, she was sitting in the kitchen rereading her notes. She wasn’t overly surprised to discover a history book among her brothers’ belongings. She was glad; it would make it much easier to familiarize herself with the story. Arthur had accepted that she had a task to complete for her family. She hated not being able to discuss it with him, but at least she was able to tell him about her trip into Muggle London. He enjoyed that.
Once the children were asleep, Molly pulled out her cauldron and prepared the potion to detect family magic. One thing that many people did not understand about magic was how it was inherited.
A person’s magic was inherited from their parents, but a person didn’t inherit a set amount from each parent. Magic was a bit wild and unpredictable. One person might get abilities from each of their parents in an equal amount or inherit a majority of their abilities from one parent and not the other. In times past, it was important to determine who had more of one family’s magic so this potion was used to detect which family’s magic was stronger in a child for inheritance purposes.
Once the potion was complete, Molly poured it into seven vials and added one hair from each of her children. Setting the vials on a rack, she made some tea while she waited. Ten minutes later, the potion was ready. Molly carefully checked each vial.
The results weren’t all that surprising. Bill and Ginny were clearly more Prewett than Weasley. Ron and Charlie were significantly more Weasley than Prewett. Percy was fairly equally divided while the twins were slightly more Weasley. Bill and Ginny would be the two who could help her when the time came.
August 1991
Molly was relieved when Arthur had agreed to take Ron into work with him. It was ten years since her brothers’ deaths and she’d visited the British Museum faithfully every year. In the past years, Bill and then Charlie had been available to watch the younger children whilst she went into town, but this year both older boys were busy with their own lives — Bill in Egypt and Charlie in Romania. Percy was perfectly capable of staying home by himself. A friend of the twins, Lee, had invited both of them over. Ginny was going to London with her mother.
Molly carefully dressed in her Muggle outfit. She’d bought this at the charity shop as well. It was a simple pair of light brown trousers and a pretty blue patterned top. Ginny wore a simple purple shirt with a pair of jeans and trainers. Molly smiled as she watched her daughter pull her hair into a ponytail. If someone had told her ten years ago she would feel comfortable in the Muggle world, she wouldn’t have believed them, but she was. Ginny loved going into London with her and over the years Molly had taught Ginny a lot about the past.
Ginny loved the stories about medieval England. The decadence and treachery of the past was intriguing and Molly had carefully budgeted her money so she could supply her daughter with books that encouraged her interest. At first she wasn't sure if she was doing the right thing or not, but when none of the other children objected Molly felt much better about it. She’d been concerned that Ron or one of the other children would be upset that Ginny was being singled out, but they never seemed to notice - perhaps because they didn’t have any interest in Muggle London.
“Let’s go, Mum!” Ginny said with a smile.
As they travelled to London, they discussed one of the books Ginny had just finished reading. It was a fun and relaxing trip.
Arriving at King’s Cross, they decided to walk to the Museum. It was a little over a mile away and it was a beautiful summer day.
“Mum, why is this so important?”
Molly looked over at her daughter, not entirely surprised at the question. “I can’t answer that yet, but it is a family duty that I inherited from my brothers. I believe that you will be instrumental in helping fulfil it.”
Ginny brightened at the thought of being able to help rather than her brothers. “When will you tell me?”
“When you are older,” Molly replied. “I can explain this part. We are checking an artifact at the museum. If it is turned around, it will indicate that we need to act. Otherwise we will just continue to observe as a member of our family has done every year for the last five hundred years.”
Nodding, Ginny fell silent. As they walked through London, she wondered what this duty could be. She’d been accompanying her mother to the British Museum every August for as long as she could remember. They usually walked through several galleries, but they always finished in the Roman Britain gallery.
She supposed that was where the artifact was being kept. Thinking about what her mother told her, Ginny felt oddly honoured and grown up at the thought of helping to fulfil a family duty that had been in place for so long a period of time.
The trips to London with her mother were always very special. Bill was the only brother who had ever gone with them. Usually it was just Ginny and her mum. It always surprised her that her brothers didn’t put up more of a fuss at not being allowed to go with them. Ron usually spent the day with their father at the Ministry. Ginny rather thought he enjoyed the time alone with their father just as she did with their mother.
As they walked around the gallery, Molly stopped in front of one of the cases. Wrapping an arm around her daughter’s shoulders she leaned in and said quietly, “See the golden circlet?”
Scanning the case, Ginny nodded when she found it. Her mother explained, “This is the artifact we are to check every year.”
“How will we know if it is turned around?” Ginny whispered.
“The other side has three rampant lions engraved on it,” Molly replied.
“Three lions? That isn’t a Roman symbol,” Ginny replied after thinking it over. She’d seen something with the three lions — maybe a book cover. What was it? “The Plantagenet coat of arms!”
Molly nodded approvingly. “Very good. I can’t explain more at the moment, but this is what we need to check. If we see the lions, I will explain what it means and what needs to happen.”
August 1998
“Do you want to go to Diagon Alley? I can’t wait to go school shopping.” Hermione asked Ginny eagerly as she scanned her book list.
After the chaos of the past year, Hermione was eager to return to Hogwarts to finish her schooling. She knew Ginny wasn’t as excited as she was, but hopefully that would change. Hermione still hadn’t given up on talking the boys into returning with her.
Glancing over at her brother’s girlfriend, Ginny shook her head. “No, I’m going out with my mum.”
“Can’t you do that another day?”
“No,” Ginny retorted. “We need to go today.”
“Go where?”
“London.”
“Where in London?”
“Hermione, I can’t really talk about it,” Ginny said. “I’ve told you that before. It’s just a family obligation.”
Hermione frowned. For as long as she’d know the Weasleys, she knew Ginny and Molly spent one day in London together, but she’d always assumed it was just a mother daughter thing. Did they really go on the same day every year? What type of family obligation would require that?
She didn’t ask any further questions, but watched as Ginny headed upstairs to prepare to leave. She had to admit, Ginny and Molly did a good job dressing as Muggles. It was strange, she would have thought Mr Weasley would know more about the Muggle world, but she’d heard Molly talking about navigating London like she’d done it many times before. The two had even left the safety of Grimmauld Place the summer they’d stayed there to travel into Muggle London.
Ginny returned to the kitchen with Harry in tow. Ginny kissed Harry goodbye and waved to Hermione before leaving with her mother. Hermione waited a minute before approaching Harry. He was sitting down at the table with a bowl of cereal.
“What are you doing today, Hermione?”
“I wanted to go to Diagon Alley,” Hermione explained, “but Ginny is going out with her mother.”
Harry nodded. “They always go.”
“She says it’s a family obligation, but none of her brothers know about it. Doesn’t that make you curious?”
“A little,” Harry admitted.
“I don’t understand why she can’t tell anyone,” Hermione complained. “I know they go to the British Museum. I found a brochure the year we stayed at Grimmauld Place. They even went last year with everything going on.”
Harry turned to look at her. Hermione faltered a bit under his gaze. “Why does it bother you so much?”
Hermione shrugged. “I don’t like mysteries. It just seems strange. What if it is dangerous? What if they are being forced to do something against their will? What if someone is using them? They aren’t very worldly. They could easily be taken advantage of.”
“I think you’re reading way too much into this,” Harry said mildly.
“They even took a same day International Portkey to London for the day the year they were in Egypt.”
Harry raised his eyebrow.
She flushed. “I asked Ron and he didn’t remember so when I was arranging my Portkey to Australia I asked.”
“I don’t know if I’m more concerned that you are investigating or that the Portkey office gave you that information.”
Shrugging, Hermione said, “I told Megan, the clerk, that I was settling a bet between Ron and Ginny about what date they came back from Egypt.”
“That’s pretty good excuse,” Harry said in surprise.
“What’s pretty good?” Ron yawned as he stumbled into the kitchen.
Ignoring his question, Hermione announced, “Your mum and sister are going to London again.”
After pouring his tea, Ron loaded his plate with eggs and sausage from the plates warming on the counter. He shrugged. “They go every year.”
“I can’t believe no one is more worried about this,” Hermione complained. “Why do they specifically have to go today?”
Pushing his bowl away, Harry said, “I always thought it was an anniversary of some sort. I think it has something to do with Molly’s brothers.”
“I think you’re right,” Ron said.
“Is it their birthday? Or the day they died?”
Ron shrugged again. “I don’t know, Hermione. If you are this curious, ask.”
“I have,” Hermione complained. “Ginny won’t tell me anything.”
A thought occurred to her and she jumped up and hurried out of the room. The two left behind shared an exasperated look.
“If we were at Hogwarts, I’d say she was going to the library,” Harry joked.
Hermione returned with a large family Bible. It had been Molly’s mother’s and had been in the family forever. Ginny was actually the person who had originally showed her the Bible. Setting the large, gilt-edged leather bound book on the table, Hermione opened it to the family tree.
The tree wandered through almost three hundred years of Prewetts. Each of the Weasley siblings were listed on the bottom of the tree. Hermione followed Molly’s branch to her brothers. She frowned. “Her brothers’ birthday was May fifteenth and they died on September fifth.”
She scanned the family tree. “I don’t see August seventeenth anywhere.”
Ron glanced over her shoulder. “That only goes back three hundred years. If you’re really determined to do this, there is an old copy of Nature's Nobility: A Wizarding Genealogy in the sitting room. It goes into detail on a lot of the old Pureblood families like the Prewetts.”
Following his suggestion, Hermione was soon leafing through the genealogy book. She was soon engrossed in the contents.
Looking over at Harry, Ron said, “You want to fly?”
“Absolutely!” Harry had just replaced his beloved Firebolt with the new Lightning Strike. It was an amazing broom. He still missed the broom his godfather had given him, but he loved the new broom.
Ginny smiled at her mother as they headed towards the British Museum. She had always enjoyed her special day with her mother. While she still didn’t know all of the details, it didn’t really bother her. Her mother would tell her when the time was right.
“It’s amazing how little has changed here,” Molly commented. “Diagon Alley is in shambles and everything is slowly recovering, but here London is still a bustling city.”
Ginny nodded. “Hopefully that means we will recover as well.”
“What do you mean?”
“London was bombed during the Second World War, that was the Muggle war that was fought at the same time as Grindelwald’s War. One of the books Hermione gave me ‘The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe’ was set during that time. The bombing was so bad that some parents sent their children to the country so they would be safe.”
Molly nodded slowly. “I vaguely remember hearing about that. That’s another way our two worlds are alike. We are both resilient in the face of so much destruction. The past few years have been awful, but I just need to look at you and your brothers to see how bright the future will be. Percy has been so good with George — the two of them are helping each other heal. You and Harry as well as Ron and Hermione have such a bright future — no matter what you decide to do.
“I think Ron is still a bit unsure of his place, but he will find it. Hermione is brimming with ideas, I think once she finishes school she will blossom. Harry is so modest, yet he is so powerful. You can feel his magic when he enters the room.”
“What about me?” Ginny asked curiously.
“I’m not sure,” Molly admitted. “You are so strong and so clever; there are so many things you could do. What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know. I love Quidditch and I think it would be amazing to play professionally, but I also love hearing Bill’s stories about curse-breaking. I want to do something exciting. I don’t want to be stuck at the Ministry in a boring desk job.”
Molly laughed. “No, that wouldn’t do for you. I could see you doing either of those. What about Harry?”
Flushing slightly, Ginny smiled. “We are doing very well. He’s been amazing. He really listens to me and pays attention to me. He even stood up to Ron and Hermione for me.”
Molly raised an eyebrow. Ginny hurried to explain. “Ron and Hermione wanted him to go to Hogwarts with them to help with the rebuilding even after I said I wanted him to stay with me and help clean up the Burrow.”
“It’s been the three of them for a long time,” Molly said gently.
“I know, but they have no problem sneaking off alone. If Harry and I try for any time alone, Ron’s right there in our business. He thinks we’re sneaking off to…”
As Ginny trailed off embarrassed, her mother smiled. “Snog?”
Ginny nodded. “I mean, we do kiss, but we also talk a lot. He really listens to me and he’s been talking to me a lot. Stuff he doesn’t feel comfortable talking to them about.”
“I will speak to your brother,” Molly said after a moment. “He shouldn’t be giving you such a hard time. Mind you, I don’t want you taking advantage of that. You may be seventeen, but you still have a year of schooling left. I may be asking Bill about grandchildren, but I don’t want any from you.”
Ginny blushed. “We…we aren’t ready for that yet.”
Molly nodded. The pair climbed the steps to the portico that housed the main entrance to the museum. They decided to visit the Egyptian gallery before heading up to the Roman Britain gallery.
Walking around the well-lit cases, Ginny paused at the case that held silver platters that had been found in Suffolk in the 1940s. The engraving on the platters was beautiful. It rivalled any work she’d seen done by goblins.
She arrived in front of the case she was there to see and gasped out loud. The familiar circlet was turned around and the three lions were visible. She could feel her mother come up behind her. “Mum.”
“I see it,” Molly replied, her voice tight. Ginny started to turn, but her mother put a hand on her shoulder. “Stand in front of me, love. I need to cast a few spells.”
Nodding, Ginny stood still, blocking the sight of her mother drawing her wand. She could hear her mother muttering spells. She thought they were detection spells, but she wasn’t entirely certain.
“Ginny, we have work to do.”
Chapter 2: Chapter 2 The Prewetts and Plantagenets
Author's Notes: Thanks to Arnel and seekers_destiny for their beta work! I really appreciate it. This chapter goes into the history behind the story. There is a lot of actual history woven into the framework of the story. I will admit to being a history geek, but I tried to make it readable without a family tree next to you. Thanks for all of the wonderful reviews! Please enjoy.
August 1998
Ginny followed her mother as they exited the taxi and headed into an office building. It had been almost an hour since they had discovered the circlet was turned around. Ginny had watched her mother with pride and a bit of awe as she made arrangements. They’d stepped into the ladies room whilst Molly sent three Patronus messages out. To Ginny’s amazement, her mother then used the public telephone to make other arrangements. She’d never realized her mother knew how to use the telephone.
Seeing the look on her daughter’s face, Molly smiled. “I’ve been planning this for years. Or at least I’ve been thinking about what to do in this case.”
“Where are we?” Ginny asked as they headed into the office building.
“This is a law firm,” Molly explained. “Mr Slater is a Squib and works with both the wizarding and the Muggle world. Your uncles, Fabian and Gideon, left some information for me after their death and entrusted Mr Slater with the responsibility of guarding it for me. It is now time for me to share that information. Mr Slater will set us up in conference room so you can look over the documentation and we can plan what we need to do.”
“We?”
Molly nodded. “The two of us and Bill and Harry.”
“Harry?”
Molly nodded. “I believe he will be important in helping us. I will explain once they arrive.”
It was only a few moments before Harry and Bill stepped off the lift. Bill had obviously changed out of his work robes as he was wearing a pair of nice trousers and a button up shirt and tie. Ginny thought he fit in well with the other young professionals they’d seen. Harry was dressed in jeans and a collared shirt. Ginny thought he just looked sexy.
He smiled when he saw her. Walking to her side, he took her hand and leaned in to kiss her on the cheek. Molly smiled at the young couple.
“Let’s go inside.”
In short order they were ensconced in a conference room. Mr Slater had brought them the box Molly had examined so many years earlier. At Molly’s request, he’d provided them with several legal pads and pens as well as a tea tray complete with little cakes.
Once Mr Slater left them alone, Molly stood up. “I have a long story to tell you and it can be a bit confusing. I asked for the legal pads so you can take notes if you need to. When I first learned the story, I had to write it all out so it made sense to me. I ask that you wait to ask any questions until I am finished.”
The other three promised to do as she asked. Molly was pleased to see that each of them was taking it seriously. Taking a deep breath, she mentally reviewed what she was going to tell them.
“Many years ago, the Prewett family made a vow to help their liege lord. In basic terms, there was a Dark witch who used a combination of spells and potions to change the course of history. She was determined to put her progeny on the throne of England and even consulted a seer. The seer told her she would succeed in her quest, but there was a price to pay. One of her descendants would be doomed to a cursed life never to know love and turn to evil, possibly destroying magical Britain. While the Dark witch was not concerned with such a distant problem, the seer was very concerned and eventually found my ancestor, Josiah Prewett, and shared the information with him. The pair searched for a way to prevent this event from coming true.
“They didn’t leave many details on how they did this, but they did discover a way to prevent it from coming true. They placed a powerful charm on a golden crown. When the descendent is born, the crown must be placed on the child’s head. That should break the curse.”
“That is our task?” Ginny asked.
Molly nodded. “A prophecy was made that described those who would complete this task. It said ‘At the end of the millennium, the Chosen Champion would assist the loyal family after felling the Dark Lord. The child’s pending birth will be heralded by the appearance of the Plantagenet lions. The task must be completed within the year of the lions appearance.’
Harry groaned softly. Ginny smiled and kissed him on the cheek while Bill chuckled. Molly smiled gently. “I am sorry that you are being drawn into this, but the House of Prewett would be most grateful for your assistance.”
“I don’t mind helping,” Harry protested, “I’m just tired of being mentioned in prophecies.”
“I understand, dear,” Molly replied. “It is rather disconcerting to think that our actions are being directed, but I look at it as we are being given help in our task. Imagine if we were to play an important part, but weren’t given any hint that it was our duty.”
Harry wanted to protest, but he had to admit that knowing the prophecy had at times given him the impetus to carry on over the past year. He nodded slowly. “I hadn’t really thought of it that way.” A thought crossed his mind. “Voldemort did not know love and he attempted to destroy magical Britain.”
Molly nodded. “That thought has haunted me, that we missed our chance. When Albus was talking to us one night after a meeting about how Riddle was brought up without love and how important it was that you did not meet the same fate, I will admit I panicked a bit. I came here the next day and reread all of the documents. In the way of magic, there is a Muggle family of Gaunt associated with this story, but it does not intermarry with the wizarding branch of the family. I investigated the Ministry’s genealogy database. To my relief, I discovered that the magical Gaunt family was descended from Slytherin. I was able to trace his ancestry down the generations and confirmed that the Gaunts were true pure-bloods. During the time period in question, there was no marriage or other connection between the two families.”
Bill frowned as he thought over what she’d said so far. “So what family was involved?”
“This is where it gets a bit complicated. I am going to start with some background information.”
The three nodded as Molly waved her wand and an image appeared on the wall. It was a detailed family tree. With another wave of her wand, the image zoomed to the top of tree. Ginny recognized it as that of the House of Plantagenet — the royal house before the infamous Tudors.
“Have you heard of the Wars of the Roses?” Molly asked.
Bill shook his head, but Ginny and Harry nodded. Harry spoke up. “I remember the white rose and red rose and the Houses of York and Lancaster, but I don’t remember any details.”
Molly smiled. “I didn’t even know that much when I started. The Wars of the Roses were a series of battles over control of the throne of England between two different descendants of King Edward III. The two houses, the Lancasters and the Yorks, were descendants from two different sons of Edward III. The throne of England went back and forth between the two families for almost seventy years.”
As she spoke, she traced the family tree and highlighted the important family members. She traced the monarchy as it skipped from one branch of the family to the other.
“When was this?” Bill asked as he made notes.
“The fifteenth century,” Molly explained. Bill nodded and Molly continued. “As you can see, the House of Lancaster is descended from one of Edward III’s sons and the House of York is descended from another so everyone involved is related in some fashion.
“King Edward IV was a Yorkist king who deposed the Lancastrian King Henry VI in 1461. He ruled for the next ten years until Henry VI briefly took back the throne and exiled Edward. Edward and his brother, Richard, overthrew Henry within the year and Henry died shortly thereafter.
“Edward ruled for another ten years before he died suddenly at a relatively young age. His son and heir, Edward V, was only twelve years old so according his father’s wishes his Uncle Richard was appointed Protectorate to watch over the young king. That didn’t happen; instead Edward’s brother, Richard, assumed the throne and became King Richard III.”
“Richard III? Isn’t he the one who killed his nephews? The princes in the tower?” Harry asked.
“That is the one,” Molly agreed. “This is where the story gets complicated. Richard III took the throne because he discovered information that indicated Edward’s marriage was invalid and therefore his children were illegitimate and ineligible to rule. I’ve discovered that many Muggle historians disbelieve this story. Many Muggles believe that Richard murdered his nephews so he could become king, but that is not actually what happened.
“When Edward was a young man, he had a pre-contract with a young woman named Lady Eleanor Butler.”
“A pre-contract?” Bill asked.
“In medieval times, a pre-contract or saying ‘I will marry you’ was the same in the eyes of the law as saying ‘I do marry you.’ In other words, Edward married this young woman presumably to have his way with her,” Molly explained. “A Bishop Stillington supposedly witnessed the ceremony and was sworn to secrecy. Coincidentally, this Bishop was rewarded by Edward and given many honours. Eleanor Butler was never acknowledged as Edward’s wife and no one knew they’d had this pre-contract.
“Several years later, Edward married a Dark witch named Elizabeth Grey nèe Woodville. The marriage was irregular from the start as the king married her in secret and the marriage was not revealed for a full year. Lady Woodville was a Lancastrian widow with two small children when she married the king. Her marriage elevated her entire family to prominence — the Rivers, the Greys, and the Woodvilles. All of her thirteen siblings married advantageously and upset many of the established families.”
“Were they all witches or wizards?” Ginny asked as she looked up from the notes she was making.
Molly shook her head. “Some of them were, but most of them were not. Only one Rivers attended Hogwarts and two Woodvilles attended Beauxbatons. Elizabeth did not attend any wizarding school.”
“So how is our family involved?” Ginny asked curiously.
“Josiah Prewett was in service to Richard, the Duke of Gloucester who later became Richard III. At the request of the Duke, Josiah was able to confirm the story of the pre-contract and even obtained a memory from the Bishop. He then investigated the marriage of Elizabeth and Edward and discovered the use of love potions and semi-dark enchantment spells. With the death of Edward, Elizabeth was going to lose her prominence. Josiah speculates that Edward became suspicious of her because he asked his brother to be Edward’s Protectorate, cutting out Elizabeth’s large family.
“When she realized she was losing control after Edward’s death, she had her brother, Anthony Woodville, and her son, Richard Grey, accompany young Edward and his younger brother, Richard, to London. Richard joined them and learned they planned to kill him so the Woodvilles wouldn’t lose their position and prestige. Richard had them executed instead. When he arrived in London with the young boy, he was given the proof of his nephews’ illegitimacy. He had them placed in the Tower of London for their own safety. A document called the Titulus Regius was introduced to Parliament that outlined the pre-contract and illegitimacy of Edward’s children. Richard was then crowned king.”
“He placed them in a prison for their own safety?” Harry asked in disbelief.
Molly laughed. “Apparently, the Tower was used as a royal residence at that time.”
“So how did they die?” Bill asked.
“This is where the wizarding history differs from the Muggle history,” Molly said. “Elizabeth thought her marriage would assure her family’s prominence and put her child on the throne, but with Richard becoming king all of that was put in jeopardy. As long as Richard was king, her children would be illegitimate and not eligible to rule. She sought out the Lancastrian claimant to the throne, Henry Tudor. He had a very tenuous claim to the throne, but he promised to marry her oldest daughter, Elizabeth of York if she helped him overthrow Richard.
“Richard realized that Edward and his younger brother, also named Richard, could be used as figures for armies to rally around. Richard’s advisors warned him that the boys could be used to depose him, but he did not wish them to come to any harm. Richard asked Josiah to protect his nephews, but it was too late. An agent of Henry’s was dispatched to kill the boys and eliminate their stronger claim to the throne. Edward was killed, but Josiah managed to save Richard and smuggle him safely to Brittany.”
“The younger brother survived?” Harry asked in amazement.
Molly nodded. “Two years after the two brothers supposedly died, Henry Tudor led an army to overthrow Richard. Against all odds the inexperienced young noble with no fighting experience, killed Richard, who was a hardened warrior, in battle. Henry became King Henry VII and married Elizabeth of York uniting the Houses of York and Lancaster, ending the Wars of the Roses. Because of the circumstances of his ascendance to the throne, he faced several ‘pretenders’ in the first years of his reign — young men claiming to be one of the young Princes, but none were.”
“What happened to the other Richard?” Harry asked. He shook his head. “This is really confusing. So many of them have the same name.”
“I know,” Molly replied sympathetically as she sipped her tea. “Do you mean the younger Richard?”
Harry nodded.
“Richard of York was only nine years old when his father died and his brother was to become king. Richard was presumed to already be a widower as his child bride, Anne de Mowbray, was thought to have died two years before.”
“What?” Ginny and Harry both yelled. Glancing at Harry, Ginny continued, “Are you saying they were married at the age of seven?”
Molly shook her head. “I was shocked as well. Actually, Anne was five and Richard was four when their marriage was performed. I discovered that it was not uncommon for those of noble blood to be married at a young age, but it was not consummated until the couple were in their early teens.”
“I’m glad that tradition changed,” Bill muttered. Harry nodded in agreement while Ginny still seemed too shocked to say anything.
“As I was saying,” Molly continued, “In fact, Anne was a witch. After much careful thought on the part of her parents, Anne was entrusted into the care of staff of Hogwarts. It was not uncommon at the time to bring well born younger children to the school earlier than normal so their actions didn’t cause comment. This was before the Trace was initiated and any accidental magic would have terrified those around them. As the wife of a son of the reigning King, she would have come under a lot of scrutiny so she was removed from society. Whilst at Hogwarts, she was informed of the events in London and the fact that Richard had survived. She was able to contact Richard and they reunited in their mid-teens and began living as husband and wife. It is their descendent that we must find.”
“So we are looking for a descendant of a king?” Bill asked. “Would this have any impact on the Muggle world?”
Molly shook her head. “If it had been uncovered centuries ago it would have thrown a bombshell into the fight to rule Great Britain, but now it would not. First of all, the Monarchy is not as important, it is a ceremonial post rather than a ruling position. Secondly, the child would no longer have any claim on the Muggle throne. The Act of Settlement of 1701 settled the succession to the throne of Great Britain to be restricted to lawful non-Roman Catholic descendants of Sophia of Hanover. The Yorks as they were known were not descended of that line and they were Roman Catholic, thus ineligible for the throne. The family history had been mostly lost to the mists of time and only those with long memories recalled the rumours of being related to one of the princes of the tower.”
“That doesn’t help us much,” Ginny grumbled as she looked over her notes. “Are there any hints as to who this family is?”
“Unfortunately not,” Molly replied. “We have some clues, but it will be quite a task.”
“Is it just the four of us?” Bill asked.
“Only the four of us can know all of the details,” Molly replied. “I performed the family magic inheritance test once my brothers died and the two of you have the most Prewett magic.”
Bill nodded his understanding. Molly continued, “I thought to ask Hermione to assist us in researching this, but she is returning to Hogwarts in a few weeks. I’m afraid it would interfere with her schooling.” Looking at Harry, she asked, “What do you think?”
“She would be a great help,” Harry agreed, “but she wouldn’t be satisfied without the full story. As I understand it, you need to keep this a secret until the task is complete.”
“You’re right,” Ginny said. “She is a great researcher, but she always wants to understand everything. She would want the background information.”
“Wait, you said she will be returning to Hogwarts in a few weeks. So will Ginny, right?” Bill turned to look at his sister who flushed as she met his eyes.
Shaking her head, she said, “I’ve already talked to Mum and Dad. I’m not returning to Hogwarts next year. I still plan on taking my NEWTs, but I won’t be going back to school.”
Reaching out for Harry’s hand, she explained, “I remembered listening to you and Charlie talking about Hogwarts and it seemed like such a wonderful place. My first year was a disaster as you know. My second year, I was trying to make the friends I wasn’t able to make in my first year while the school was surrounded by Dementors. My third year was marred by the events of the Triwizard Tournaments. Umbridge ruined my fourth year. My fifth year was the only good year I’ve had at Hogwarts. Last year I was taught by Death Eaters for Merlin’s sake.
“There was a battle fought there just a few months ago and one of our brothers died there. I don’t want to go back. It will be a rebuilding year and I’m sure that many exciting things might be happening, but I just can’t be there.”
“You’re okay with this?” Bill asked his mother incredulously.
Molly nodded sadly. “I would obviously prefer if she finished school, but with everything she’s been through I won’t force her to return.”
Harry wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “I loved Hogwarts, it was the first place that felt like home to me, but it hasn’t been that way for Ginny. We’re going to take our NEWTs together.”
Bill’s faced softened as he looked at his sister. “I guess I can understand that. Hogwarts was such a wonderful place for me; I wish it could have been that way for you. If you need any help preparing for NEWTs let me know. I will be happy to help.”
Reaching her hand across the table, Ginny squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”
Looking around the room, Molly smiled. “I know I’ve given you a lot of information at once. What questions do you have?”
The group spent another hour asking questions and then a further hour developing plans. They’d had lunch ordered in and the conference room was looking a bit worse for wear. A platter that had held sandwiches now held only a few crumbs and there were crumpled up bits of paper and empty cups littering the table.
Molly looked around the room and her children caught the look. Obediently, they began cleaning up. Harry gathered all of their notes and burned the scraps of paper. Molly boxed up the left-over food while Bill and Ginny generally tidied up the room.
Within a few minutes, no one would have guessed the room had been in use for hours. Bill added some wards and enchantments to the papers. Some papers Molly returned to Mr Slater for safekeeping, others they took with them to study in more detail.
“Mum, I think Harry and I should go over to the museum,” Bill said. “I want to see what type of security they used and what type of enchantments are on the crown itself.”
Harry glanced down at his watch. “We should have time, but we’ll have to hurry.”
“I’ll come too,” Ginny said.
Molly nodded. “That’s a good idea. I’m going to stop by my brothers’ gravesite. Tell them what happened.”
They all walked outside. Molly headed to the cemetery while Bill, Ginny, and Harry went to the British Museum. Because they were short on time, they hurried directly to the appropriate gallery.
“It seems amazing that something so small is so important,” Harry whispered as they looked over the case.
Bill laughed. “I know what you mean; it is beautifully made, though. It is Muggle made, but the workmanship would rival that of the goblins.”
“The engraving is beautiful,” Ginny agreed as she looped her arm through Harry’s.
“The enchantments on it are very powerful,” Harry said.
Bill looked over at him in confusion. “How do you know?”
Blushing, Harry admitted, “If I want to I can actually see the magic. It’s very difficult in the wizarding world where there is so much magic around all the time, but it is much easier in the Muggle world. I could have followed the trail of magic from the front door.”
“That is quite a handy skill,” Bill commented.
“It has come in handy,” Harry laughed. “It helped when we were hunting the Horcruxes.”
“Can you tell if people are wizards or Muggles?” Bill asked.
The younger wizard nodded. “I can feel the magic in a person as well as objects. Professor Dumbledore worked with me on telling who someone is simply by their magic. I can do pretty well if I’ve met someone once.”
“I think that will be helpful in our new task as well.” He glanced over at the dark haired wizard. “Will this mess up your plans? Aren’t you going to start Auror training?”
Harry shrugged. “No, I haven’t decided what I want to do yet. I’ve considered becoming an Auror for years, but I’m tired of chasing Dark wizards. I talked to Kingsley and he’s fine with me waiting a while.” He leaned forward to look at the case. “What is this charm? It feels like a memory charm, but not exactly.”
“I think it is a variant on the notice-me-not charm. If I am reading this correctly, if the crown is removed from the case by a wizard no one will remember it was ever there, but if a Muggle removes it many alarms will be set off.” Bill whistled softly. “Whoever did these charms was an expert.”
“They seem old,” Harry mused.
Bill chuckled. “Compared to Egypt, they are quite young, but some of them are about five hundred years old. It seems to be layered with a number of charms. I’d imagine a number of generations of Prewetts added their own charms.”
Harry nodded. “I can feel the magic is similar to yours and Ginny’s.”
“Family magic is very strong,” Bill admitted.
“Can we just take it now?” Harry asked quietly after he discretely cast the Muffliato Charm.
“I’d rather not,” Bill replied. “We aren’t ready to use it yet. It has been kept safe here for years, so I think the smartest thing to do would be to leave it here. Besides, there is still Muggle security on the case itself, we will have to defeat that. They might not realize what we took, but they would know the case was opened.”
“I wonder how it ended up here,” Harry mused. “The museum isn’t that old, is it?”
Bill shook his head. “The museum opened in the middle of the eighteenth century. I don’t remember exactly when, but we learned about it in our curse-breaking classes. Over the years different magical artefacts have ended up in their collection. I’m going to reach out to one of my mentors in Egypt and see what she can tell me about removing artefacts from the museum.”
“I thought we can’t talk about it,” Harry objected.
“We can’t talk about the details of our duty, but we can ask for general help,” Bill explained. “That is usually the way it works. I asked Mum. We can’t tell any of the family until the task is over, but if we need help we can ask outsiders as long as we don’t tell them why.”
The three of them explored the museum gift shop together. Bill purchased a museum guide to help familiarize himself with the building and the different galleries. If he was going to have to steal an artefact, he wanted as much information as possible.
Thoughtfully, Harry turned to Bill. “Is there a way to see the Hogwarts student lists from that time? We know at least Anne was a witch. Are their descendants? It might give us a starting place.”
“That’s a really good idea,” Bill mused. “I know there is a process. I believe you need permission from the Headmaster or Headmistress and the Minister of Magic. You wouldn’t have a problem getting permission.”
“We could also search the Muggle records, but I don’t really know how to do it,” Harry said. He thought for a minute. “I think we can go through the library.”
“You and Ginny should go to Hogwarts,” Bill decided. “It will probably be faster if the two of you looked through the records.”
Ginny nodded. “We could also try the Muggle records as well.”
“Mum can investigate the wizarding records while I go to Egypt and talk to my mentor.”
The plan set, Bill left for Shell Cottage promising to stop by the Burrow after dinner. Harry and Ginny decided to visit a nearby bookshop to see if they could find more background information. Harry especially felt behind. Ginny had read the books her mother had bought her in preparation for her task, but Harry’s knowledge of the time period was very vague.
Chapter 3: Chapter 3 Hermione's Concerns
Author's Notes: Thanks so much to my betas Arnel and seekers_destiny! Thanks especially to seekers_destiny for catching a major plot hole! I'm glad so many people are enjoying the story. I wasn't sure if Medieval England and Harry Potter would appeal to others, but I'm glad it does. Happy Halloween!
August 1998
Hermione looked up as Mrs Weasley returned from her trip. Her day’s research didn’t uncover anything and she was feeling more concerned than ever. Whilst she and Ron had gone into town, Harry had joined Ginny in London.
“I thought it was a family obligation and she couldn’t say anything about it,” Hermione said angrily.
“Don’t worry,” Ron reassured her. “Harry will tell us everything when he returns.”
“He better,” Hermione grumbled. “This worries me. What could be so important that they need to go every year on the same day?”
Ron shrugged unconcerned. “I don’t know, but my dad isn’t worried.”
“Does he know?”
“Hermione, you were the one who found out they went to London the year we went to Egypt. Obviously, my dad and Bill knew they’d gone. If it was anything worrying, they would have said something.”
Not entirely reassured, Hermione watched as Mrs Weasley started making dinner. Walking into the kitchen, she asked, “Can I help?”
Mrs Weasley looked up in surprise. “That would be lovely, dear. Would you mind chopping some carrots?”
“Of course not,” Hermione replied as she pulled a cutting board and knife closer to her. Once she started her chore, she asked, “How was your day?”
“It was lovely,” Mrs Weasley replied with an easy smile. “Harry joined us for lunch. He and Ginny decided to go visit the British Museum. Ginny and I enjoy visiting the museum and she wanted to show Harry some of her favourite exhibits. Did you and Ron have a nice day?”
“We did,” Hermione admitted. “Ron and I walked into town and had lunch together. We walked around the town square. I don’t remember spending much time there in the past.”
The two women worked together well and Hermione began to relax. The two chatted about the museum and Hermione was surprised to discover Mrs Weasley was quite familiar with it. Maybe this wasn’t so much a huge secret or a family obligation as a fun day between mother and daughter. Looking over at Mrs Weasley, Hermione couldn’t imagine her being involved in anything irregular.
Harry and Ginny arrived in time for dinner. Hermione noticed they were both carrying bags from the British Museum as well as bags from a bookshop. She was intrigued. When they pulled the books from the bag, she noticed several books on the Plantagenets, Richard III, and the Princes in the Tower.
“Richard III?” Hermione asked derisively.
“What’s wrong with that?” Ginny asked. “I find it interesting.”
“Do you even know who he is?” Hermione asked. “He usurped the throne and killed his nephews. He’s one of the most reviled kings in British history. I can’t imagine what you would find interesting about him.”
“I’ve read some books that don’t think he killed the princes,” Ginny said. She shrugged. “I like the mystery of it all. I’ve always been interested in that time period.”
Hermione shook her head. “I can’t see how much of a mystery it is. Richard wanted to be king and took out those who stood in his way.”
Shrugging, Ginny said, “Well, I am interested. I’m surprised you would discourage anyone from reading.”
“I’m not discouraging you,” Hermione protested. “I’m just surprised, that’s all. I didn’t think most witches and wizards were interested in Muggle history.”
“It’s our history too,” Ginny said. “Obviously, we have additional wizarding history, but what happens in the Muggle world affects everyone.”
“I wish more people had that attitude.” Glancing over at the younger witch, she asked, “Do you want to go to Diagon Alley tomorrow? I’m anxious to get my books.”
Ginny sighed. “I will go with you.”
Hermione sent a quizzical glance over towards Ginny. “Why aren’t you more excited about going to Diagon Alley? It used to be one of your favourite things to do.”
Realizing she was going to have to break the news to Hermione, Ginny sighed and pulled the older witch up to her room. “Hermione, I’m not going back to Hogwarts this year.”
“What?!”
Hermione’s shout brought Ron and Harry up the stairs. She rounded on them. “Did you know about this?”
Harry made his way over to Ginny’s side while Ron asked in confusion, “What are you talking about?”
“Ginny isn’t returning to Hogwarts!” Hermione yelled. She glared at Harry. “Was this your idea?”
“No!” Ginny yelled. “This isn’t Harry’s fault. It’s no one’s fault. I don’t want to go back. I’ve been tortured and seen people killed there.”
“I’ve been tortured and seen people killed there as well,” Hermione scoffed.
“You were tortured as part of a classroom exercise? For detention?”
“No,” Hermione huffed. “You are just using that as an excuse.”
“That’s out of line,” Harry said angrily. “Ginny went through some awful experiences her whole time at Hogwarts — she’s been possessed, been exposed to Dementors, and taught by Death Eaters. Why should she be forced to return?”
“She needs her education,” Hermione said shrilly.
“I’m going to continue my education,” Ginny said calmly. “I’m still going to take my NEWTs. I just won’t be at Hogwarts.”
Hermione glared at her, but Ginny calmly met her eyes. “I’m sorry, Hermione. I’m sorry you were planning on me going back to school, but I won’t be there. I’ve already discussed it with my parents and they’ve agreed to my plan.”
“But I just want one year with us all together,” Hermione protested. “One quiet, fun year.”
“I’m sorry, Hermione.” Ginny said blinking back tears. “I wish I could have that, but I honestly don’t think that is right for me.”
Hermione’s face softened as she took in Ginny’s expression. She’d heard some of the stories about what happened the previous year. The thought occurred to her that she would hate if someone forced her to return to Malfoy Manor.
“I’m going to miss you,” Hermione said.
Ron and Harry watched as the two girls tearfully embraced. Shaking his head, Ron left the room. Harry stayed for a minute to make sure the two weren’t going to start arguing again, but then he left as well.
Dinner was a quiet affair. Hermione noticed Ginny speaking quietly to her mother on several occasions. After dinner, Ron gestured for Harry to join them. Harry kissed Ginny on the cheek and joined them outside. As they walked towards the paddock they used for a Quidditch pitch, Hermione couldn’t restrain her questions anymore.
“What is going on? Where did you go? What did you find out? Is everything okay?”
Harry held up his hand laughing. “Hermione, calm down.” Sobering, he replied, “I can’t answer any of your questions. Mrs Weasley asked me, Ginny, and Bill to help her with her family obligation. I can’t reveal anything else. I promise at some point in the future we will be able to tell you.”
“What?” Hermione was aghast at his answer. “Harry, you’ve shared everything with us in the past.”
“Yeah, mate, if you have a task to do, you just tell us what we need to do,” Ron spoke up. “We’ll have your back.”
“I can’t,” Harry repeated miserably.
“It’s my family,” Ron said heatedly. “You need to let me know what is going on.”
“No, he doesn’t,” came a voice from behind them.
Hermione and Ron turned in irritation while Harry turned in relief to find Bill behind them. Bill glared at his brother. “Ron, you know about family duty. Mum has always let us know that she has a family duty she can’t talk about.”
“So why does Harry know?” Hermione asked.
“Why do you and Ginny know?” Ron asked.
Shaking his head, Bill replied, “I can’t answer all of your questions either. This is a Prewett family matter. Harry was asked to assist us.”
“A Prewett family matter?” Hermione looked between the two brothers. “Why does that mean you and Ginny can know, but not Ron?”
“Mum performed the magical inheritance test and Ginny and I have the most Prewett magic,” Bill explained. “Please don’t be angry at us. If we could tell you we would, but we can’t.”
“But secrets are dangerous!” Hermione burst out. Turning to Harry she said, “Didn’t you say that you didn’t like Dumbledore’s habit of keeping secrets? Why are you doing the same?”
“I still don’t like or agree with Dumbledore’s decision to keep so much information from me,” Harry agreed. “This is different. Secrets are important at times. Did you tell anyone what our mission was last year? We still have some secrets that very few people know. Would you like me to start telling everyone about the Deathly Hallows?”
“How do you know you won’t need our help?” she asked. “I’m good at research.”
Harry smiled gently. “You are brilliant at research, but we will have to muddle along without your help. You know it would make you crazy not to know everything. I promise if there is something we need your help for, I will ask you.”
Turning, Harry and Bill headed back to the house leaving behind a frustrated Hermione and Ron.
“We need to find out what is going on,” Hermione said in a determined voice.
“I don’t think so,” Ron said in resignation. “They would have told us if they could.”
Widening her eyes, Hermione glared at her boyfriend. “How can you say that? We need to help them.”
“Hermione, I know you hate not knowing what is going on, but if there is old magic involved we don’t want to mess around with it.” Seeing her disagreement, he pressed on. “Bill is very clever. He will make sure everything is done properly. It might not be anything.”
“If it’s not anything, why can’t they tell us about it?”
“Merlin, Hermione, there is old magic involved! Several people have told us so. Do you want to trigger some horrid reprisal because we stuck our nose where it wasn’t wanted?”
Hermione rolled her eyes and gave in with little grace. “I suppose not. I just hate that Harry has another task. He hates research and is much better with just jumping into things. Who will keep him from acting too soon? Who will make sure he has all the information he needs?”
“I don’t know that we had all that much luck from keeping him from acting too soon,” Ron laughed. “Did we keep him from robbing Gringotts and riding out on a dragon? Hell, we couldn’t even keep him from walking out to face You-Know-Who. He manages just fine on his own. Bill and Ginny are both quite clever and my mum is pretty brilliant too.”
As he was talking, Ron slid his arm around her shoulders. “Don’t worry. You’ll be starting back to school soon.”
The pair slowly made their way back to the Burrow, stopping a few times to enjoy the beautiful night with someone special. When they arrived in the back garden, they found Mr Weasley walking towards his shed.
“Ron, Hermione, come and join me for a few minutes.”
Hermione looked around Mr Weasley’s shed in interest. She’d never been in before. There were many deconstructed items on the workbench. She could identify a blender and phone, but some items she would have to study to identify.
Mr Weasley smiled at the couple. “I understand that the two of you have some concerns about your mother’s and sister’s family obligation.”
“Yes!” Hermione burst out.
He held up his hand to stop Hermione from continuing. “I want the two of you to listen to me carefully. This is important.”
Pausing he met each of their gazes to waited for them to nod. Looking at Ron, he began. “Soon after I married your mother, your grandfather Prewett pulled me aside. He explained that their family was under an obligation to fulfil a duty. Obviously, he was unable to go into details, but he was able to tell me it was a longstanding obligation dating back several hundred years. He also told me that he believed this generation might be called upon to complete this duty and fulfil their ancestor’s promise.”
Hermione listened in confusion. “But he didn’t tell you anything.”
“He couldn’t,” Mr Weasley said simply. “Several weeks after Molly’s brothers died, I came home to find her upset but determined. I realized that the family obligation had passed on to her. While I don’t know what it is, I am determined to support her as much as possible. When the children were younger I used to take Ron to work with me so Ginny could go with her mother.”
“Bill said something about him and Ginny having more Prewett magic than the others,” Hermione said. “What does that mean? Wouldn’t everyone inherit the same amount of magic?”
Mr Weasley shook his head. “Magic is a wonderful and sometime fickle gift. Just look at how some families produce Squibs. When a baby is in the mother’s womb, they are swimming in magic from both families. The way my father explained it to me is that the magic finds compatibility in a child. That is why some people are so much stronger in their magic than others.”
“But you can make yourself stronger by learning and practising spells,” Hermione objected.
“You can improve your knowledge and ability,” Mr Weasley agreed, “but the strength of your magic stays the same. Look at Harry — I understand that even back in his first year you knew he was a great wizard in the making. That is the strength of his magic that you felt.”
“Is that why he’s allowed to know what is going on?” Ron asked.
“I honestly don’t know,” Mr Weasley replied. “I know your mother is very diligent and careful. She is very aware of the honour of being able to fulfil a family obligation. She would not involve Harry unless she was convinced he was important.”
Looking at the young couple, he said, “What I am saying is that our obligation is to support them, not badger them with questions they can’t answer.”
“But what if they need our help?” Hermione asked.
“If they truly need our help, they will ask. I know it is frustrating, but I trust my wife. Bill and Ginny will both fulfil their part and our part is to be there for them.”
Ron nodded and Hermione reluctantly agreed. Mr Weasley smiled. “While I have the two of you here, I wanted to remind you that your sister is an adult. Allow her and Harry to spend time together or you may find your own private time together severely restricted.”
The tips of Ron’s ears turned red. “Dad, she’s…”
“She is an adult and a beautiful young woman. Harry is your best friend. I would imagine you would want them to be happy.”
“I do,” Ron admitted.
“Good, leave them alone.”
Ginny squeezed Harry’s hand as they walked from Hogsmeade up to the castle. It had taken Harry a matter of minutes to obtain Kingsley’s permission to review the Hogwarts’ past class lists, now they were going to talk to Professor McGonagall.
“We should stop in Hogsmeade and have lunch,” Harry said. He grinned at her. “I’ve wanted to take you to Hogsmeade for a long time.”
She laughed. “I wanted to go with you for a long time.”
Harry stopped walking and tugged her toward him. Wrapping his arms around her, he said, “Ginny, will you go to Hogsmeade with me?”
Laughing she wrapped her arms around his neck. “Absolutely,” she whispered before kissing him deeply.
Time lost meaning as Harry lost himself in the beauty and fire that was Ginny. He slid one hand into her hair whilst the other explored the soft, enticing skin of her lower back. When he finally pulled back, he rested his forehead on hers. “I love you, Ginny.”
She beamed. “I love you, too.”
When Harry had first confessed his feelings, Ginny had been shocked. Not so much at what they were, but that he admitted them. She’d thought it would take him a while to admit he loved her, but she discovered that when the two of them were alone he could be very open with her.
Kissing her again, Harry said, “Let’s go. There are some places in the castle I’ve always wanted to kiss you.”
When they came within sight of the gates, they stopped again. This time it was to look at the new memorial. It was beautiful marble wall with an eternal flame in front of it. The wall was inscribed with the names of all of those who died in the Battle of Hogwarts. Memorials were also being created in the castle itself and one at the Ministry of Magic to acknowledge all of those who died in the war. Professor McGonagall felt it was important that people be able to easily visit this memorial without trespassing on Hogwarts’ grounds. The memorial had just been completed.
“It’s beautiful,” Harry said as he glanced over at his girlfriend.
She blinked back tears as she looked over the names. Running her fingers over her brother’s name, tears fell down her cheeks. Harry wrapped his arms around her and offered her comfort as she had done when they’d visited his parents’ grave site in Godric’s Hollow.
After a few minutes, she took the handkerchief that Harry offered her. Wiping her eyes, she pulled her wand and conjured up some daffodils — Fred loved daffodils. They joined the other offerings that had already been left at the wall.
Harry was coming to terms with all of the deaths he felt he could have prevented. Kingsley had spent a lot of time with the young wizard and helped him realize that if he continued to blame himself for those who died, it took away their sacrifice. Everyone who fought did so because they wanted to see the end of Voldemort’s rule. It was hard, but he was slowly letting go of his guilt.
Ginny kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, love.”
He smiled and they continued on through the gate. Hagrid waved to them. He was busy repairing the damage to the grounds and Forbidden Forest. Harry had helped him several days and enjoyed the time spent with his largest friend. Two construction teams were working on the towers and from the sounds of it, there were more teams working inside the castle.
“It looks good,” Harry said.
“Are you questioning your decision not to return?”
He shook his head. “No, I love Hogwarts, but I need to move on. I’m sure there is still a lot more they could teach me, but I don’t think I could do it. I feel so much older than most of the students. The thought of eleven-year-olds attending school with those who fought in a war doesn’t seem right.
“I know Hermione is determined to return, but I don’t think she should. In a perfect world, the student body would start over without those affected by the war. I know that’s not possible — all of you were exposed to Death Eaters ideals and punishments.” He squeezed her hand as he mentioned punishments. Some of the stories she’d told him caused more than a few nightmares.
Ginny nodded. “I know. I’m not the only seventh year student not returning. Luna still hasn’t decided. I think it will be harder for Hermione than she realizes. She will be quite a bit older than most of the students and she never tried very hard to make friends.”
“She means well, but sometimes her attitude turns people against her,” Harry said with a smile. “I bet she will surprise us. She’s certainly changed a lot from her first year when your brother described her as a nightmare.”
She laughed. “He’s certainly changed that opinion.”
“Didn’t you find it odd that Ron didn’t even try to come with us this morning?”
“I think dad talked to him. I mentioned to mum what he’d been doing, not giving us any time alone.”
“That was nice. I would have thought your parents would agree with him.”
“I was actually a bit surprised as well, but Mum was rather understanding when I talked to her.”
By this time they’d arrived at the castle. Professor McGonagall was waiting for them in the Entrance Hall.
“Mr Potter, Miss Weasley.”
“Professor.”
The three talked about the rebuilding as they walked up to the Headmistress’ office. While she expressed her disappointment they wouldn’t be returning, she understood their feelings. Professor McGonagall had not yet moved into the Headmaster’s office so she showed them to her old office.
“What can I do for you?”
“We are helping my mum with some research,” Ginny explained. “We wanted to search the past lists of Hogwarts’ students going back almost five hundred years. Due to a family obligation, we are searching for a particular family. We know that at least one member attended Hogwarts so we are hoping that more of them did.”
Reaching into his pocket, Harry pulled out the note of permission from the Minister for Magic. “I was told we needed approval of both the Headmistress and the Minister for Magic.”
The older witch nodded as she read the note from Kingsley. “I have no problem with you searching our records — once classes are back in session. While the repairs are almost complete, there are still areas of the castle that are dangerous and unfortunately one of those areas is the library. After the first of September, you can use our facilities as long as you don’t interfere with anyone’s education.”
She surveyed the couple over the top of her glasses. “I will make an announcement at the Welcome Feast that you will be here from time to time. I’m afraid if I don’t it might start a riot. We can intimate that you are studying for your NEWTs.”
Harry nodded. He didn’t like the fact that his presence would be announced, but he could understand her caution.
3 September, 1998
Dear Mum, Ginny, and Harry,
Fleur and I are having a wonderful time in Egypt. I’ve been able to take her to some of the tombs on which I worked. I love spending time in the desert.
I’ve spoken to my mentor, Mina Harker. She has several ideas for our projects. We will be spending some time in Cairo exploring the Cairo Museum. We will test some of her ideas.
We will return by the twenty-fourth of September.
Love to everyone,
Bill and Fleur
October 1998
Harry brought another book back to the table he and Ginny had appropriated in the back of the library. When she looked up, he kissed her briefly.
She smiled. “What did you find?”
“This is a history of the fifteenth century,” Harry said as he used his wand to dispel all of the dust. “I don’t think anyone has opened it since then. I found a reference to it in another book and thought I’d see what is in here.”
Nodding, she went back to reading through the school awards from the seventeenth century. It was rough going as they really didn’t know what name the family may have used. Richard’s official name was Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, Duke of Norfolk. It was unlikely they used any name associated with him, but they also couldn’t use de Mowbray as Anne had been declared dead.
With Professor McGonagall’s permission, Ginny had spoken to the Headmaster Edmund Sedlow who had been headmaster during the late fifteenth century. He was able to verify that Anne de Mowbray had been a student. Unusually for women of that era, she completed all seven years and obtained five NEWTs. Many women of the day stopped after achieving their OWLs. Unfortunately, Headmaster Sedlow did not know anything else about her. He did not involve himself in his students’ private lives, so he was unsure if she was married or even if her husband lived with her. He was fairly certain that Richard did not attend Hogwarts, but he didn’t know for sure.
“Do you know why the Prewetts didn’t simply keep track of Anne de Mowbray’s and Richard’s family? It would make this task much easier.”
Ginny laughed. “I asked Mum the same question. In the documents her brothers left her, they explained that in the late seventeenth century the Prewett charged with the duty died young and his children were young — his oldest son was an infant. When the oldest son reached his majority, he found the information his father had the foresight to save for him, but it had been twenty years and there was no sign of the family. I guess the information was patchy. He was able to put the story together, but he couldn’t find the family name.”
Harry groaned. Ginny nodded. “I know, but it is amazing that so much information has come down to us intact. The charm work done by Josiah Prewett saved the original information, but some of the information added later was lost.”
“Well, I guess if the task was easy there wouldn’t be so much honour in being able to fulfil it,” Harry smiled.
Turning back to the book, Harry used the indexing charm that Hermione had taught them and found the first page with a mention of Anna de Mowbray. He gasped at what he saw.
“What’s wrong?” Ginny asked.
Wordlessly Harry slid the book in front of her. Her eyes widened when she saw the picture of a beautiful young lady dress in dark blue robes. She had long red hair that was worn in a long plait over one shoulder. She looked a lot like Ginny with beautiful red hair except she had blue eyes.
“She’s pretty,” Harry commented. “Of course, all of the prettiest witches are red-heads.”
Ginny laughed as she rolled her eyes. Pulling the picture closer she examined it carefully. “She doesn’t have any of these horrid freckles — in some ways she reminds me pictures I’ve seen of my great-great-great aunt.” She wrinkled her nose in thought. “There might be a few more greats in there I’m not sure. She was the last female Weasley.”
“I like your freckles.” Harry objected.
Looking up at Harry who was now standing over her looking down at the picture, Ginny kissed him before returning her focus to the picture.
“Could you be related to her?” Harry asked cautiously.
Ginny shrugged. “I don’t really know. My parents have never made a really big deal over blood lines. I can trace my family back a few generations on each side and I know they are both part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight of pure-blooded families. I will ask Mum. She’s researching the wizarding genealogy. I can’t really imagine it would be our family — there is no one pregnant.”
“Are you sure?” Harry asked.
“We need to talk to Bill.”
Chapter 4: Chapter 4 Searching for a Family
Author's Notes: Thanks to Arnel and seekers_destiny for their excellent beta work and amazingly fast turn around time! Don't worry there are no vampires, I just thought it would be interesting to see how many people could place Mina Harker's name - a lot it turns out!
October 1998
Bill stared at his sister in shock. “The Weasleys? You think our family is the family descended from Richard and Anne?”
“It’s possible,” Ginny admitted. “We haven’t found anything to disprove it, but we haven’t found anything to prove it either.”
“Ginny looks so much like Anne,” Harry said. “That’s what made me even think it might be.”
She looked at her brother. “Is it possible?”
Swallowing, Bill said, “Fleur is two months pregnant, she is due at the beginning of May, on the sixth. She went to her mother’s Healer whilst we were in France. He has a lot of experience with pregnant Veelas so she felt more comfortable with him. We were waiting until her third month to tell the family.” He cursed softly. “Our child could be…what did it say? They would be doomed to a cursed life never to know love and turn to evil, possibly destroying magical Britain.”
“Bill, that’s what we are trying to prevent,” Harry spoke up for the first time. “If it is your child, we have the advantage.”
Focusing on the young wizard, Bill took a deep breath and nodded. He looked at his mother. “What do we do?”
“Congratulations, my love. I am so happy for you,” Molly said tearfully as she embraced her son. Ginny also hugged her brother while Harry nodded to him, a bit uncomfortable with the emotions washing around him and unsure what he should do.
Once Molly sat back down, she said, “We need to confirm that your baby is the one mentioned. The birth would line up. As I figure it, the baby would have been conceived just prior to our annual visit to the museum.”
“But we didn’t even know she was pregnant then,” Bill protested, blushing at the thought of his mother speculating about his sex life.
“Magic works in mysterious ways,” Molly said gently. “Your father’s parents have a chest full of family documents. We should see what we can find in there.”
“Ginny and I have started working backwards to trace the Weasley family back to the fifteenth century,” Harry said.
Nodding, Bill asked, “Can I tell Fleur?”
Molly paused. “I don’t think you can tell her the details. I think you should tell her that your child is potentially under a curse.”
“She will lose her mind,” Bill said. “An angry, pregnant Veela is not something I want to deal with.”
“If it is your child, Fleur will need to know,” Molly said gently. “I can talk to her as well. She needs to know there is a curse, but also that there is a way to prevent it from taking hold of the child.”
December 1998
“I think this will work,” Harry agreed quietly as he watched Bill quietly cast spells on a case they’d set up in the drawing room at Grimmauld Place. Working with his mentor, Mina Harker, Bill had replicated the spells and Muggle security set up on the case in the museum.
When the last spell hit the case, Bill slipped his hand in and removed the fake crown they’d fabricated for this test.
“Good,” Molly murmured. “We’re sure the Freezing Charm will work?”
Harry nodded. “Professor Slughorn was the one who suggested it. Before he started working at Hogwarts, he would move from house to house using a Freezing Charm on the burglar alarms. I went back and confirmed it with him.” Flushing slightly, he admitted, “I tried it on my relatives’ house. They have a new state of the art alarm system since they moved back into their house. It worked very well. I entered the house several times without setting off the alarm.”
“I still think you should have let me come with you,” Ginny grumbled.
Leaning over, he kissed her on the cheek. “I thought it would be easier if you didn’t go with me.”
“I wouldn’t have done much damage,” she protested.
Molly smiled at the couple. She didn’t blame her daughter; she had a more than a few things she would like to say to Harry’s relatives.
“When do you think we should retrieve the crown?” Bill asked his mother.
“I’ve been thinking about that,” Molly admitted. “I’d like to leave it in place as long as possible. It has been safe there for over two hundred years.”
“Mrs Weasley, you don’t think Elizabeth Woodville could have placed any sort of protection on the crown, do you?” Harry asked, thinking of what Voldemort had done to protect his Horcruxes. “Did she even know that Josiah Prewett was able to put it in place?”
“I don’t believe so,” Molly answered. “From what I’ve read, Josiah was able to place the charms on young Richard’s own crown to counteract the curse. I don’t believe she was at all concerned about the far future that she’d been warned about. Her focus seemed to be placed her progeny on the throne and she was able to do that. Unfortunately for her she was not able to enjoy the status of dowager queen; she spent the last five years of her life at Bermondsey Abbey — some say at the insistence of her son-in-law Henry VII.”
“I’m surprised she didn’t do anything to prevent that,” Ginny commented.
“From what I’ve read, Elizabeth was skilled in enchantments, but she wasn’t a fully trained witch. She may not have had the necessary skills to protect herself against him,” Molly explained. “It is rumoured that she backed more than one rebellion against her son-in-law including one of the so-called pretenders to the throne. This indicates that she may have been aware that one of her sons survived.”
Turning back to the case, Molly considered it for a moment. “I’m tempted to say that we wait until we need the crown unless there seems to be any interest in it.”
Bill nodded. “Mina placed a monitoring charm on the gallery. If any witch or wizard visits the gallery, we will be notified. We will know if anyone seems suddenly interested in it.”
January 1999
Harry walked up behind Ginny and wrapped his arms around her. They were looking over the beach at Shell Cottage.
“How are you doing, love?” he murmured into her hair.
Sliding her arms along his arms, she smiled up at him. “Surprisingly well. Christmas was hard, but even George seemed better.”
“Ron and Hermione certainly had an interesting Christmas,” Harry added.
Ginny burst out laughing. “I thought once they started dating, they would stop fighting so much.”
“I think they enjoy it,” Harry said shaking his head. “I don’t get it, but they seem to like it. Did you figure out what all the drama was about?”
Sighing she stepped out of his arms and taking his hand, tugged him to sit with her on the bench Bill had placed overlooking the sea. “Hermione’s parents wanted her to spend Christmas with them. When she told Ron, he didn’t take it well. They started arguing over whose family needed them more. Dad finally took Ron aside and told him he needed to learn to compromise. Hermione has spent Christmas with us in the past and it was only right for him to spend Christmas with her family.”
Harry smiled at the thought of Ron panicking over spending time in a Muggle house. In fact, Ron actually had a great time at the Grangers’ house. He’d discovered that he and Mr Granger had a quite a bit in common. When Mr Granger heard that Ron was a huge Quidditch fan, he’d taken Ron to a football game while Hermione and her mother went to an art museum. They’d all learned much more about each other. Hermione was thrilled to see Ron and her parents get along so well while Ron discovered that Muggles weren’t quite as scary as he’d been led to believe.
“I wondered why he suddenly decided to go to her parent’s house. I’m glad he did,” Harry said. “I asked him before he left, but he didn’t make much sense. He just told me he was going to Hermione’s and he’d be back after Christmas.”
She stretched out her left hand to admire the ring Harry had given her for Christmas. “He didn’t even seem upset about our engagement.”
Harry smiled and shook his head. “He told me he was glad it was me because he knew I would take care of you. I told him that you take care of me.”
Ginny rewarded the sentiments with a sweet kiss. “That was nice of him. Hermione congratulated me with a lecture to make sure I finished my education.”
He laughed out loud. “That sounds like her. She worries about all of us. You have to admit she came around about our research — teaching us the indexing charm and pointing us in the right direction. She told me she thought we were too young to be thinking about getting married.” He shrugged. “I think she needs to wrap her head around it. She and Ron aren’t close to getting married so she finds it a hard time to imagine we are.”
“I guess that makes sense. She was happy for us and she complemented you on the beautiful ring.”
“Bill helped me,” he admitted. “I was a bit overwhelmed by all of choices.”
Before she could respond, Bill opened the door and called out to them. “It’s freezing out there! Come on inside.”
Bill was waiting for them in his sitting room. He smiled at Ginny’s bright eyes and cheeks pink with the cold. Leaning over he kissed her on the cheek. “You look very happy.”
“I am,” Ginny smiled.
The three sat down and for the next two hours Bill helped them practice their Transfiguration and Charms. He’d proven a capable and patient tutor to them as they worked towards their NEWTs.
“You are doing well,” he smiled. The wonderful aroma of the stew Fleur was preparing had been tantalizing them for the past hour. “Why don’t we eat and then we can work on our museum plan?”
The two couples had grown close over the past few months. Fleur had been devastated to learn there was potentially a curse on her baby, but she’d once again shown her strength with her steadfast belief that between Bill, Harry, Ginny, and Molly they would be able to protect them.
March 1999
“I found it!” Ginny yelled.
Harry looked up from the document he’d been straining to decipher. “What?”
She thrust the yellowed scroll in his face. Taking the scroll from her, he squinted to read the faded, but elegant writing. He was holding a birth certificate for Marie Neville born in September of 1495. Her parents were listed as Anne Neville née de Mowbray and Richard Shrewsbury.
“Marie Neville,” Harry read. “They took the name Neville?”
“That was Richard’s grandmother Cecily’s maiden name,” Ginny explained. “She was the mother of Edward IV and Richard III. After I tried all of the obvious names and didn’t come up with anything, I realized that Richard knew what his mother had done and what his uncle tried to do to help him. I figured any name they used would be from his paternal line.”
Harry smiled at her. “You are brilliant!”
Laughing, she kissed him. “I don’t know about that, but I’m happy we found that out. We can go to Hogwarts to research the Neville family.”
In the end it only took three weeks to discover that Cecily Anne Neville married Nathaniel Weasley in April of 1788. In another two weeks, they traced a direct line from the children of Cecily and Nathaniel to Arthur Weasley and his children.
April 1999
Bill’s hand shook as he took a copy of the form. He blew out a breath as he read it. “I don’t know if I’m happy we found this or not.”
Wrapping an arm around her son, Molly hugged him. “I know this is scary, but we have proof. We know that your baby is the baby mentioned. We know where the crown is to cancel out the curse.”
Leaning against his mother for a moment, Bill straightened up. “You’re right.”
She smiled sympathetically. “Trust me, love. I know how scary it is to have your children in danger, but we have a good plan. We will be able to save him or her.”
Bill smiled weakly. “Fleur has assured me we will be having a girl.”
“I hope so,” Ginny spoke up. “We need another female Weasley.”
Molly nodded. “We need a few more girls around.” Glancing at the clock, she sighed. “I need to head home. I’m a bit behind on my chores.”
Harry and Ginny decided to join Bill at Shell Cottage. The three used the Floo to travel from Grimmauld Place to Shell Cottage. Bill went first followed by Ginny and then Harry stumbled out of the fireplace.
“Fleur?” Bill called out. Fleur didn’t answer.
Smoke was rolling out of an empty pot on the hob. Hurrying over, Harry levitated the pot over to the sink. Bill swore as he hurried upstairs to search for his wife. “Maybe she fell asleep and forgot she put something on the stove.”
Harry looked over at his fiancée after Bill left the room. “It looked like it boiled dry. Fleur wouldn’t do that.”
“Fleur!!!”
The young couple ran upstairs in response to Bill’s anguished cry. He was standing in front of his bedroom looking in at a scene of disarray. There had obviously been a struggle. Spell’s had left black marks on the wall. The mirror over Fleur’s vanity had been shattered and most ominously, there was blood on the wall. Fleur was nowhere to be found.
Kingsley looked around the room automatically cataloguing the spells that had been cast in the room. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Harry doing the same. Turning to the younger man, he asked, “What do you think?”
“It was a Lestrange,” Harry said positively. “Rodolphus, I think.” He wrinkled his forehead in thought. “There were no Unforgivables used. He didn’t try to kill her.”
“I agree,” Kingsley said gravely. “He wanted to kidnap her, not kill her. We will start tracking her.” Looking at Harry, he asked, “Is there anything you can tell me?”
Slowly Harry shook his head. “No.”
Kingsley said, “I’ve heard there is a family duty to be fulfilled. Do you believe this to be connected?”
“Yes,” Harry said simply.
“There is nothing else you can tell me?”
“Fleur is eight months pregnant and needs to be found and returned home,” Harry said simply.
Kingsley nodded. He stopped briefly to speak with the Aurors on the scene before heading downstairs to talk to the Weasleys. The family had rallied around Bill who was sitting at the kitchen table looking lost. Molly was bustling around making tea while Arthur was sitting next to his son murmuring calmly. Ginny was talking to Percy, George, and Ron who’d been summoned from work.
“Bill,” Kingsley said, “We will do everything we can to find your wife. If there is anything you need, please let me know.”
“How the hell did the Lestranges escape?” Bill demanded.
“The Lestrange brothers have been fugitives since the Battle at Hogwarts,” Kingsley explained. “The two of them are the only members of Voldemort’s inner circle that we have not caught yet. We are working on it.”
Bill nodded, his anger spent. He didn’t have the energy to stay angry. His thoughts were with his wife and unborn child. Arthur stood and shook the Minister’s hand, before walking him out to the Apparition point. Kingsley filled the Weasley patriarch in on what had been discovered thus far. Arthur sighed. “I pray we recover her. The Lestranges are brutal. Do you think this might be in retaliation for Bellatrix’s death?”
“It likely is,” Kingsley admitted. “Harry feels it might be associated with this family duty as well. Is that possible?”
Arthur shrugged. “Unfortunately, it is a Prewett family duty so I don’t know any details. Molly was able to share that Harry’s involvement was foreseen by prophecy. He would likely know better than I.”
Harry swore as he smashed his hand into the wall of Bill’s study. He, Ginny, and Molly had retired there to talk things over. Bill had been given a Calming Draught and was sleeping upstairs while Arthur and his other sons were renewing the wards on Shell Cottage. It was a sign of Harry’s distress that he didn’t even seem to notice the pain. “I don’t know how we didn’t see it earlier.”
“What do you mean?” Molly asked as she attended to his hand.
“What is the best way to assure that a child grows up knowing nothing of love? Separating them from their family, beating their worthlessness into them, and lying to them about their family. That’s what the Durselys tried with me. That’s what happened to Voldemort.” He sank down into a chair with a sigh. “We were so focused on knowing where the damn crown was that we forgot why we needed it.”
“You’re right,” Molly admitted. “As soon as I realized it was Bill’s child, I didn’t worry because obviously a Weasley would be surrounded
by love and could never grow up not knowing love. I thought the difficult part was over.”
“I thought that the danger was from something that happened in the past,” Ginny said in confusion.
“It may be,” Molly replied. “A curse could have been cast in the past that would take effect in certain circumstances which occurred in the future. The seer could have seen the birth of the child and the circumstances that led to the child to become Dark. I don’t know that there is any way to know what she saw, but she told Elizabeth that to continue to try to put her child on the throne could trigger this disastrous future. Josiah was determined to protect the future and devised a way to do so; therefore I think we assumed the danger was from the past.”
“We need to find her and soon,” Ginny said as Harry finally sat down next to her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she leaned into him.
He nodded. “The Lestranges have her. Kingsley said he’d keep us updated on the investigation.”
April 1999
Fleur looked around the room in which she’d been left. It was a large, opulently appointed room. She was lying on a large four poster bed. Placing her hand on her belly, she calmed as she felt the baby move beneath her hand.
Lifting her head, she felt the room swirl around her. She quickly put her head back down as she tried to recall what happened. She’d
been preparing dinner when she’d felt someone behind her. Thinking it was Bill, she turned around to see an unknown wizard.
Her eyes widened and she took off running. The wizard must have expected her to be slower, because it took him a few minutes to chase her. She’d reached the bedroom and grabbed her wand from where she’d left it earlier that day.
A spell streaked by her and she whirled around firing a Cutting Curse. The wizard howled in pain and ducked behind the door.
“Rabastian, you fool! Can’t you grab one pregnant witch?”
Fleur swore as she realized who the wizards were. Rabastian and Rodolphus Lestrange, two of Voldemort’s most dedicated Death Eaters. Not only did they hate blood-traitors, but her mother-in-law had killed Bellatrix Lestrange, Rodolphus’s wife and Rabastian’s sister-in-law.
Were they here for revenge? Why did they want to grab her? She tried to Apparate, but was unable to do so. They must have erected anti-Apparition wards.
Rodolphus appeared at the top of the stairs and started firing. He was a much better fighter than his brother. Fleur found herself backed against the wall. A spell slammed her against that wall and her world had gone black.
Gingerly, she reached back and felt the back of her head. There was a lump and she felt a bit of blood. Her wand of course was gone, so she had no way to heal her injury. Slowly she sat up. When she didn’t experience dizziness this time, she sat on the edge of the bed for a moment.
The bedsheets were expensive, matching the rest of the room. She frowned as she wondered where she could be. Finding her shoes on the floor, she slid her feet into them and walked around the room.
The door that she presumed led to the corridor was locked, but there was another door leading to a bathroom. There were several windows, but they were locked and she couldn’t see through them. She couldn’t tell if it was a spell or something on the outside of the window.
A pop made her whirl around. To her relief, it was a house-elf. It was a pitiful looking creature dressed in a dirty rag. Fleur thought maybe she was female.
“’ello.”
“Bonjour Madame,” the elf said.
Relief flowed through her as the elf chattered shyly at first, but with gaining confidence. The little elf healed her injuries and provided some water and snacks. Fleur discovered she was being held is a chateau in her native France, but the elf couldn’t tell her anything about her master or where exactly the chateau was located. The fact that she’d been left alive gave her some hope.
Hermione rushed into Ron’s arms as soon as she stepped out of the Floo. “Ron! This is awful! Is there anything new?”
Shaking his head, Ron led his girlfriend out into the back garden of the Burrow. “I’m glad Professor McGonagall let you come. I don’t know anything new. The Lestranges kidnapped Fleur and we haven’t heard anything.”
“No ransom demands?”
Ron shook his head. “Harry offered to cover any ransom amount, but so far there has been no word from the kidnappers. Harry, Ginny, and my mum have been holed up with Bill most of the day.”
“Is this more of that family duty nonsense?” Hermione demanded. “Obviously the time for secrets has passed. They need to tell us what is going on.”
“It is not nonsense!” came an angry voice from behind them.
Ron and Hermione turned to find Bill glaring at them. Hermione flushed. “I didn’t mean to upset you, but you need help.”
“My wife and unborn child are missing. I will not risk their lives by betraying my family duty at this point. Their lives depend on our keeping our secrets. Ron wanted you here, but if you try to interfere or if you start badgering Harry or my sister for information you will have to leave.”
“Bill!” Ron shouted. The tips of his ears were bright red as he glared at his oldest brother.
Bill was not fazed by the anger. “I’m serious. We are dealing with old and powerful magic. I will not risk something worse happening because the two of you are curious.”
“I’m sorry, Bill,” Hermione said with her voice cracking. “I didn’t…I just thought…”
Hermione trailed away as Bill turned and walked towards his father’s shed. Looking at Ron with tears in her eyes, she said, “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to upset him.”
Hugging her tightly, Ron shook his head. “They’ve all gone barmy. Harry, Ginny, and Mum are working on something with him. They have secret meetings. They aren’t even telling Kingsley and his Aurors everything. I don’t understand it. Dad says we need to trust them.”
Hermione shook her head in confusion. “I don’t understand. Why aren’t they doing everything they can to help? What exactly happened?”
“Bill was with Harry and Ginny. He’s been helping them prepare for their NEWTs. I didn’t even realize they were doing anything more with this family secret. They went to Shell Cottage and found Fleur missing.” Ron swallowed hard as he remembered the details his father had shared with him. “There were signs of a fight and there was some blood. They say she was kidnapped by the Lestrange brothers.”
“Why do they think it has to do with this family duty? I can imagine the Lestranges would be angry because of Bellatrix’s death.”
“That’s what I thought,” Ron agreed as the pair entered the back garden and sat down under one of the large trees on the property. “I don’t even know anymore. I can’t imagine what would be so important. Do you have any idea what they were researching?”
Hermione sighed. “I tried to figure it out, but I think Harry knew that. So he would sometimes pull random books. At least I think they were random. I know they researched a lot of people from the fifteenth century. I think they were looking for someone in particular, but I don’t know who. Ginny bought several books over the summer that covered that time frame — Muggle books.”
“Muggles?”
She nodded. “She was reading about King Richard III. He stole the throne from his nephew and killed his two nephews. They are called the Princes in the Tower because they were last seen at the Tower of London.”
“Do you think -” Ron broke off in confusion. “How in Merlin’s name would that be related to a magical family duty?”
“I have no idea,” Hermione sighed. “I just hope they aren’t wasting a lot of time. I could help. I am really good at research.”
The sound of the back door of the Burrow opening made them look up. Molly exited the house and headed towards them. She smiled as the pair stood up and she hugged Hermione.
“Hermione, dear. I’m glad you could come. I know that Ron really appreciates your company.”
“Of course, Mrs Weasley,” Hermione said.
“Bill said he had words with you. I hope he didn’t make you feel uncomfortable. I know you don’t understand or maybe you don’t believe, I’m not sure, but please accept that I have a duty to perform. Bill, Ginny, and Harry are critical to helping me. Fleur’s kidnapping we believe to be part of this duty.”
Hermione didn’t feel comfortable arguing with the woman she considered a second mother, so she nodded. Molly could read her emotions. She cupped Hermione’s cheek in her hand and kissed her on the forehead. “Thank you for the respect you have shown me.”
Blushing, Hermione nodded. Molly continued, “I am going to France with Bill. Harry and Ginny shall be join me shortly. Percy and George will be staying at Shell Cottage just in case there is any type of ransom call. Mr Weasley will be going into the Ministry later and working with Auror Williamson. They are searching for any home associated with the Lestrange family. I was hoping that you would help me.”
“Of course,” Hermione answered at once. “I just want to be able to help.”
“Excellent,” Molly replied. “I can’t tell you why I need this information. Can you accept that?”
Swallowing Hermione nodded nervously. Molly surveyed her for a moment before she nodded. “I would like you to research any property associated with the Rivers or Woodville families. The families have both wizarding and Muggle descendants, but I suspect we are looking for the wizarding branch of the family. The family originated in Luxembourg, so it is possible there is a property there as well.”
Hermione’s eyes widened and she was itching to get started. “Of course.”
“Thank you,” Molly replied. Looking at her son, she said, “Please help her and if you come up with any answers send a Patronus — immediately. This is very important.”
Chapter 5: Chapter 5 Victoire
Author's Notes: Thank you to my wonderful betas, Arnel and seekers_destiny! I'm glad to discover that I am not the only one who loves both Harry Potter and British history! This chapter does contain spoilers for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The history of Jacquetta of Luxembourg that I have given is true, she was put on trial for witchcraft. I couldn't help but include her in the story!
This story does go slightly over the 20,000 word limit suggested for the challenge. I tried to keep it under the limit, but I wanted to wrap up the loose ends. Sorry about that.
April 1999
It was a beautiful spring afternoon that seemed at odds with a missing pregnant woman. Harry and Ginny were waiting on the columned portico of the British Museum for Bill’s mentor Mina Harker. They were casually dressed. Harry was wearing jeans and a t-shirt with a denim jacket. Ginny wore a blue sundress with a lighter blue sweater. Together they easily blended in with the rest of the museum visitors.
Harry was seemingly leaning casually against one of the columns, but if one looked carefully his surveillance of the area was visible. With one hand he held Ginny’s hand, but the other was resting on the handle of his wand.
He spotted a young woman also dressed in Muggle clothing. Harry could tell she was a witch, but like them she easily blended into the crowd. Her intelligent blue eyes were what drew his attention. Her eyes completed the normal peek to the scar on his forehead before looking directly at him. “Mr Potter?”
“I am Harry Potter. Please call me Harry. Are you Mina Harker?”
The witch nodded and smiled. “Miss Weasley, it is nice to meet you. Your brother talks about you quite a lot. He is very proud of you.”
“Thank you,” Ginny said. “Please call me Ginny.”
Mina nodded. “Harry, Ginny, are you ready?”
The couple nodded. The three entered the museum and made their way up to the proper gallery. Along the way they passed two school groups following their teachers through the gallery.
Ginny giggled when she spotted two young boys straggling behind their group whispering. “That would have been you and Ron.”
Harry smiled. “I don’t know what you are talking about. We were always well behaved.”
Rolling her eyes, she simply laughed. “Of course.”
He squeezed her hand and kissed her on the cheek. When they reached the Roman Britain gallery, they discovered a small tour group following an older lady who was lecturing them about the artefacts on display.
“We will wait for them to finish,” Mina whispered. “I don’t want them to later wonder why they didn’t hear all about the gallery.”
Harry nodded. Ginny tugged on his hand and showed him some of her favourite pieces. They walked around keeping an eye on the other patrons. When the tour group left, Mina discretely drew her wand and cast a strong Muggle-Repelling Charm. Harry watched as it took hold of those still in the gallery. They started looking around and Harry heard a few conversations about needing to leave the gallery.
The gallery was cleared out in just a few moments. Harry cast an obscuring spell so no one looking into the gallery would see them. Mina walked over to the case holding the golden crown of Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York; Duke of Norfolk. Casting sensing spells on the case, she raised an eyebrow. “This is saturated with spells.”
Harry nodded. “Are you ready?”
With Harry standing guard, Mina cast the Freezing Charm and cast a preservation spell on the contents of the case so that none of the artefacts would be harmed. She carefully removed the glass while Ginny reached in and took the crown. They had decided that it would be best if a Prewett was the one who actually handled the crown in case there were spells on the crown they hadn’t anticipated. She was able to easily pull it out of the case.
The crown was quickly placed in a velvet bag which Ginny placed in a pocket inside her sweater. The bag faded out of sight, leaving no sign of the precious artefact she was carrying. Mina quickly replaced the glass and made sure the Muggle alarms were intact. When she was done, she nodded to Harry who removed the Muggle-Repelling and Obscuring Charms.
As tourists started filing into the gallery once again, the three magical people hurried out of the museum. When the exited the building, Mina turned to the other two. “If you need any more help, let me know. Bill is one of the best men I’ve worked with and he’s saved my life on more than one occasion. If I can help with his wife and child, I will.”
“Thank you,” Ginny said. “I will let you know.”
May 1999
Fleur stifled a groan as she felt another labour pain take hold. Over the past two days, she’d felt the baby drop and she knew she could go into full blown labour at any time. She’d tried to keep track of time in her beautiful cell. It had been a little over a week since she’d been taken from her home. If she’d calculated the days correctly, it was May the first. Her due date was in less than a week.
Hurry, Bill! she thought. To her surprise, she’d seen no one except the little elf who she’d finally discovered was named Jelena. Occasionally she could hear others moving around the house, but she didn’t know why she’d been captured.
Jelena popped into the room. “Bonjour, Madame.”
“Bonjour, Jelena.”
Jelena looked at the beautiful woman in concern. “Madame, you didn’t tell me you are almost ready for your baby.”
“Please, Jelena. I cannot have my baby here.”
The little elf was conflicted. She knew the baby would be in danger.
“Jelena, do you know who Harry Potter is?”
Jelena’s eyes widened. Of course she knew of the great Harry Potter, he had defeated the Dark Lord. She’d heard rumours of his greatness and his concern even for lowly house-elves. Cautiously she nodded.
“Harry is my brother-in-law,” Fleur said figuring he wouldn’t mind if she made their relationship a bit closer than it actually was. After all they would be in-laws someday. “He is helping my husband look for me. Can you tell him where I am?”
The little elf started shaking at the thought of betraying her masters. Could she? Technically she’d belonged to Bellatrix Lestrange and Rodolphus had never confirmed his ownership. Was that enough of a technicality that she could betray him? “I don’t know,” she whispered.
“Do you know why they want my baby?”
Reluctantly Jelena nodded. “It is something bad. They wants a new Dark Lord or Dark Lady.”
“Why my baby?”
“I doesn’t know,” Jelena said sadly. “The Dark Lord’s baby died. They needs a new baby.”
“The Dark Lord? Voldemort had a baby?”
A scared look came over Jelena’s face. “Jelena is not allowed to talk about it.”
May 1999
Harry looked as an otter Patronus sailed into the hotel room where he was working with Molly. Bill and Ginny had gone out to check another possible location.
“Harry, Elizabeth Woodville’s mother, Jacquetta of Luxembourg was a member of the House of Luxembourg. She was raised in a manor home in the County of Artois in what was then part of the Duchy of Burgundy, but is now in northern France.” Hermione’s voice rang throughout the room. Molly hurried to the large map on the wall and found the area Hermione was referencing.
The Patronus continued, “I don’t know if this helps, but Jacquetta was rumoured to be a witch. She supposedly helped her daughter become Queen of England.”
As the Patronus faded away, Molly waved her wand over the area in question. “There is a wizarding estate in the area.”
Harry rummaged among the documents on the desk. He pulled out a scroll and quickly scanned it. “Yes! There is a possible Lestrange estate in that area.”
Molly quickly sent a message to her son and daughter who joined them in less than ten minutes. Bill’s face was hopeful as Molly explained what they’d discovered.
“Harry is downstairs checking us out of the hotel,” Molly explained. “He was able to find a hotel in the town near the manor and he made reservations for us.”
Three hours later, the four were checking into their hotel suite. Molly and Ginny shared one room while Bill had the other bedroom. Harry would sleep in the main room. Even though it was late, Bill wanted to head right out to see the manor house.
“We need to eat first,” Molly said firmly. “I don’t think any of you have eaten since this morning. You need to keep up your strength.”
While Bill grumbled slightly, he agreed. The four went down to the hotel restaurant on the ground floor. They were seating near the large window overlooking the town square. There was a beautiful fountain in front of them.
As Bill finished his steak, he gave his mother a faint smile. “You were right. We needed to eat.”
She patted his hand. “Why don’t we change into more appropriate clothes? We will go out and explore the area around the manor.”
Harry had just finished pulling on a long sleeved black shirt when there was a pop behind him. A small, dirty house-elf stood in front of him. For a moment, Harry had a strong sense of déjà vu. “Can I help you?”
By this time, the others had emerged from their rooms with their wands drawn. The elf seemed to draw back into herself. Harry waved them back and knelt near the elf. “I’m Harry Potter. Were you looking for me?”
The little elf nodded. “Madame told me to find you. It is almost time for her baby.”
“Fleur?” Bill burst out. “My wife?”
“You are Bill?”
He nodded with tears in his eyes. The elf looked around at the other two. Harry hastily introduced the two women.
“I am Jelena, sir.” Looking between Harry and Ginny, she asked, “She be your mate?”
Harry nodded. “Can you take us to Fleur?”
“I can’t go through the magic with other peoples.”
Pointing to the location of the manor on the map, Harry asked, “Is this where we need to go?”
Jelena nodded. “You need to come quickly. Jelena will protect Madame and the baby until you come.”
“If you can’t go through the magic with us, can you take us to just outside the magic?”
After hesitating a moment, Jelena nodded. “I can take one person at a time.”
“Harry first,” Bill said.
Nodding the elf quickly transported the four of them in rapid succession to outside the manor. Bill had his wand out determining the type of wards even as Jelena headed back into the house. The others stood guard while Bill meticulously took down the wards, one by one.
Thirty minutes later, Bill said, “That’s the last one. They didn’t seem to have improved on the wards recently.”
“There are four people in the house,” Harry said concentrating. Looking up at the building, he pointed to a third floor window. “Fleur is up there. The two Lestrange brothers are on the ground floor. There is another witch in that wing. I don’t know who she is.”
“We need to assume she’s hostile,” Molly said firmly. She handed Bill his wife’s wand. “Take Ginny and go get Fleur.”
The two nodded. Unlike the previous year when Ginny had protested being left out of the fight, she nodded without complaint. Her job was to protect Fleur and the baby. Harry and her mother would confront the Lestranges.
Fleur groaned as she felt another labour pain rip through her. There was a rattling at the door before it burst open. Bill and Ginny had come to rescue her. Backing up against the wall she held out her hand, they both stopped.
“Beel, where did we first meet?”
“I first saw you at Hogwarts when I went to see Harry during the Triwizard Tournament. We didn’t meet properly until Swiftclaw introduced us.”
Fleur sagged against the wall and Bill was at her side in an instant. “Are you okay, love?”
“I’m in labour,” Fleur admitted. “I was so worried I would have ze baby without you.”
Bill wrapped his arms around her and held her tight while Ginny watched the corridor. The sound of spell fire from below made them all jump.
“Bill, we need to get out of here!” Ginny called.
Nodding, Bill kept an arm wrapped around Fleur’s waist. As the started across the floor, Fleur suddenly stopped and wrapped her arm around her stomach with a moan.
She wailed suddenly. “My water!”
Bill and Ginny turned towards her in horror. Bill reacted first. He lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bed. “Ginny, barricade the door!”
Nodding, she started casting spells to keep others out. She hoped Harry wouldn’t take long.
Jelena appeared next to the bed with a worried look on her face. “Your baby is coming.”
Fleur nodded, groaning. With a snap of her fingers, the little elf erected a privacy screen while she helped her out of her soiled clothes and into a fresh gown. Bill assessed the spells cast by his sister and nodded approvingly.
“No one can enter the room,” Jelena said firmly. She directed Bill to Fleur’s bedside to hold her hand. Looking at Ginny she said, “I can’t cast spells, but Jelena can teach you.”
Nodding nervously, Ginny learned how to check the baby, how to check if Fleur was ready to push, and how to take care of the baby.
Jelena was able to provide a calming potion used by pregnant witches during labour.
Harry cautiously crept down the corridor with his wand drawn and Molly behind him. Molly headed towards her while Harry went directly for the Lestranges.
Euphemia Rowle started as her pet Augurey began it’s mournful cry. “Now what?! The Dark Lord’s dratted child is dead. How did I let myself be drawn back to this house? I don’t want to care for another baby! I wish I’d never listened to Bellatrix.”
Molly frowned as she listened to the woman. The Dark Lord’s child? Was this why Fleur was kidnaped to replace a baby that had died? Molly shivered at the sound of the Augurey. Logically she knew the bird’s cry only foretold rain, not death as had been believed for so many years, but it was so mournful and sad. Peering into the room, Molly saw a nest of thorn that she assumed held the bird.
The witch was facing away from her and Molly quickly Stunned and bound her. The sound of spell fire sounded from the direction Harry had been heading. She quickly used one of the Portkeys provided by Kingsley to send the woman to a special cell at the Ministry of Magic.
Harry cursed under his breath as he saw the Lestrange brothers were on opposite sides of the room. They wouldn’t be easy to catch off guard. When Rabastian stood and turned his back, Harry took the opportunity to send a Stunning Spell at him. He caught Rabastian, but Rodolphus was on his feet casting spells before his brother even fell.
“Potter!”
Diving into the room, Harry started exchanging spells with the older wizard. A Cutting Curse sliced across his chest, but he hit Rodolphus with a Blasting Spell breaking the wizard’s wand arm. Rodolphus bent over, seemingly in pain, but Harry, remembering Bellatrix, dove out of the way as a knife came flying towards him. Hitting the former Death Eater with another Blasting Curse, Harry caught him on the leg. It slowed the man down enough that Harry was able to Stun him.
“Harry?”
Breathing heavily, Harry turned to see his future mother-in-law with her wand drawn. Taking in his injuries, Molly forced him into a chair while she bound both the Lestranges and sent them to Ministry. She sent a Patronus to Kingsley, which she quickly followed with one to Arthur.
Turning her attention back to Harry, she quickly staunched his bleeding and healed the wound. “Are you okay?”
He nodded. She shook her head. “You will need a Blood Replenishing Potion when we return to the hotel.”
Ginny looked up in relief when her mother hurried into the room. The older witch sized up the situation in a quick glance. She hurried over to Fleur’s side. Ginny gratefully relinquished her place and went to Harry.
“Ginny, why don’t you and Harry look around the study? I want to know why they chose Fleur. That woman said something about the Dark Lord’s baby dying.”
Glad for the excuse to leave the room, the young couple headed downstairs. Bill was thrilled to see his mother. “Can we contact her Healer? Or should we take her back to the hotel?”
Molly shook her head. “She is fully dilated which means she could give birth at any time. It isn’t safe to move her at this point. We will get through this.”
May 2, 1999
Ginny blinked back tears as she looked at her beautiful niece in her mother’s arms. Fleur had given birth at almost the exact moment the wizarding war had ended one year before. They had name her Victoire in honour of the battle fought the year before.
Taking a deep breath, Ginny reached into her pocket and pulled out a velvet bag. She looked over at her mother who nodded. Bill sat down on the bed behind his wife and held both of them in his arms. “Go ahead, Ginny.”
She looked over at Harry who was watching her proudly. Taking the crown out of the bag, she carried it over to the bed and gently placed it on her niece’s head. A golden light shot out of the crown and bathed the baby in its radiance.
Fleur gasped. “That is so beautiful.”
After several minutes, the light retreated back to the crown. Fleur looked around. “It is done?”
With tears in her eyes, Molly nodded. “It is.”
Bill removed the crown from his daughter’s head and kissed her. “It worked.”
Molly hugged first her son and then her daughter. “It did. I am so proud of all of you.”
Hermione looked at Molly in astonishment. “So all of you are descendants of King Edward IV?”
“Not me, obviously, but Arthur and the children are,” Molly confirmed.
“That’s why you were reading about Richard III,” Hermione said to Ginny. “I can’t believe how wrong the accepted history is.” Looking around she said, “We will be able to clear Richard III’s name, won’t we?”
Molly smiled gently. “No, dear. What would we say? That Edward IV was bewitched to marry a Dark witch. Who would believe that? That was actually said at the time and it was dismissed.”
“But history is wrong,” Hermione said in a scandalized voice. “People need to know the truth.”
“Hermione, the wizarding world and Muggle world often have different versions of the same events. This is no different,” Bill said. “I do wish we could clear Richard III’s name. He was trying to help his nephews and he’s accused of killing them.”
“It would make a great novel,” Ginny said.
Ron looked expectantly at Hermione who shook her head. “Don’t look at me. I enjoy writing, but I’m not good at fiction.”
“I’d like to give it a shot,” Ginny said, a bit affronted that Ron had automatically turned to Hermione.
“I can’t wait to read what you write,” Harry said as he wrapped his arms around her. “After all you are related to them, you can exonerate
your great-great-great uncle.”
Ginny kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, love.”
Ignoring the byplay of the two youngest couples, Percy looked at his father. “What was Kingsley able to share?”
Arthur looked at Harry. “Do you want to tell them?”
Harry shuddered. “It still sickens me, but Voldemort and Bellatrix had a baby.”
“Eww!” Ron and George both yelled.
Harry nodded. “I know. That woman at the manor, Euphemia Rowle, was supposed to watch the baby, but somehow the baby died after her parents did. Kingsley thinks the amount of Dark Magic the baby was exposed to before she was born was what killed her.
“Somehow the Death Eaters knew about the child growing up without love destroying Great Britain. Like Mrs Weasley, they originally thought it might be Voldemort as well. When he was defeated, they thought it must be his daughter.”
“But then she died too,” Percy said. “That is why they wanted Fleur?”
Harry nodded. “They wanted revenge on Mrs Weasley and they thought it would be funny to create a Dark Lord from a Light family.”
“I’m just glad they didn’t succeed,” Mr Weasley said as he looked around. “I am so proud of each and every one of you.”
He stepped forward and took both of Molly’s hands in his. “I am exceptionally proud of my amazing wife. Molly, you fulfilled your family duty and brought honour to both the Prewetts and the Weasleys.”
Molly blushed as all of her children cheered and hugged her. Later she would slip out and share with her brothers how she’d managed to honour Josiah Prewett’s promise to watch out for the progeny of young Richard and Anne. It had been an honour and privilege to be a part of such a history.
A/N: Obviously this deviates a bit from canon. Delphini had to die in this story, but obviously she didn't in canon so no 'Cursed Child' in this future.