The Duke by sweeet_babe



Summary: Some time ago a prophecy was made, one that said about two powerful and strong souls who would be able to defeat even the strongest of wizards, bringing peace that the Wizarding World has not seen for centuries. But for that to happen, they would have to be entwined through marriage.
Everything was going well, the children were born healthy and were promised to each other, until one of them was kidnapped.
Rating: R starstarstarstarhalf-star
Categories: Alternate Universe
Characters: None
Genres: None
Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Published: 2020.11.17
Updated: 2021.08.26


Index

Chapter 1: Chapter 1
Chapter 2: Chapter 2
Chapter 3: Chapter 3
Chapter 4: Chapter 4
Chapter 5: Chapter 5
Chapter 6: Chapter 6
Chapter 7: Chapter 7
Chapter 8: Chapter 8
Chapter 9: Chapter 9
Chapter 10: Chapter 10
Chapter 11: Chapter 11


Chapter 1: Chapter 1

Author's Notes: as always, thanks to my amazing Beta and the Hinny Discord group that helped me think through all the details
I had to put the prologue and the first chapter together, because of the word count :)
follow me on tumblr @/sweeethinny and sorry for any mistake


The son of James Potter, Duke of Godric's Hollow, was the hope that the people carried in their hearts. The climate of tension in Yeovil was only increasing and citizens began to fear that soon the wizards would rebel and start an overnight war against the city, as they had done years ago.

And that, too, put pressure on James and Lily.

His wife cried every month that her rules came and made their bed dirty, they needed to have an offspring, to continue the bloodline, to have someone to leave their lands and fortunes to, to whom to entrust the people. 

But no request to the Gods was granted.

It was in the month of November the rules of Duchess Lily did not go down, nor in the following month, much less in the next seven that followed. The people celebrated, it was the joy that the kingdom needed, James would be a father and his heir would soon arrive. It had to be a boy, not just because of the throne, but because it needed to be.

It was already rumored that the Duchess would have a belly as thin as silk, letting her offspring slide out; others said that the wedding was nothing but a farce, in the end, Godric's Hollow would end up throwing the moths and care for some distant cousin who understood nothing. There were even creatives, who sold tabloids about all royal pregnancies generating a girl, and that they making sure to give it to any street vendor who passed by.

And then, on July 31st, in the starriest night that England's summer had ever witnessed, the Marquis Harry James Potter of Godric's Hollow was born. A boy with the emerald-colored eyes that Lily carried in her wedding ring, and also in her eyes, dark and rebellious hair like his father; big and showy, healthy as a bull, inheriting a great and glorious duchy. It was the gift that Merlin sent them and finally, they finally were parents.

The city sang the most lively songs for hours, pierced the skies with fireworks, newspapers ran to inform everyone who hadn’t heard, the servants gossiped at full speed about the boy. All the while, the child's cry echoed through the castle room, shuddering the walls and proving that he was there to get attention, claiming everything that was rightfully his, and bringing joy to the couple.

Less than two weeks later, James learned of the birth of the daughter of the Viscount of Ottery St. Catchpole, Ginevra Molly Weasley. Of course, a duke originally was supposed to marry a duchess, however, James had plans and agreements with Arthur, a great friend, so he declared that the two would be destined to marry as soon as they reached the proper age. It needed to be done, there was no doubt.

But, there was a problem that no one could ever have predicted: Harry J. Potter, heir to the Duchy of Godric's Hollow, was kidnapped.

---------------

Ginny didn't like going to dances, and not just because they were boring, because she was sure that if she had friends - besides her brothers and her personal safety -, or suitors to take her out to dance, the party would be cool. But also, because it was there, that she felt more alone than ever.

She was sitting at the back of the room, listening to the beat of the music and watching everyone dance in front of her, rolling around the room and having fun like never before, some looked at her with pity, others with curiosity, but nobody came too close. Not because she was ugly - she at least didn't think that was the problem - or because she was boring - she would need to be talked to, to prove this theory - it just seemed that Ginny wasn't a magnet for anyone. Sometimes it was good, when she could be alone and breathe, but she also wanted someone to at least speak to her.

Annoyed that she had spent more than two hours sitting alone, or talking to people in her family, Ginny stood up, stomping firmly on the polished floor of Prescott Manor, heading for the back door that led directly into the garden.

Ignoring the minefield of couples kissing and being all together nauseating, Ginny went as far as she could, sitting on a bench that faced the lighted and well-kept greenhouses, breathing in the pleasant air and taking the heels off her feet, tired of them squeezing her ankles all time.

"How are you, madam?" The voice sounded thick behind her, almost startling her, but that would only happen if she hadn't heard it for more than two years in a row.

''Everything is fine, Henry.'' She didn't even look back, annoyed that the only man who spoke to her, was one who had been hired for this. ''Just suffocated.''

''Shouldn't you be inside? I didn't see anyone bothering you.'' Henry commented, in that same calm but observant tone as always, never seeming to judge her. Not that he was going to demonstrate that, Ginny thought the man looked like a stone most of the time.

''That's why I left. Nobody was bothering me.'' She took a deep breath, trying to control her irritation. ''How does my mom want me to get married if, apparently, I'm a freak?''

''You are not a freak, madam.'' Ah, Henry and his chivalry, they would never fail. ''They are a bunch of idiots, if I may say so.'' Ginny finally looked at him, finding it amusing that he said that.

Henry was easily the most beautiful man she had ever seen. He had emerald eyes that shone in almost the same way as stone, but possibly, his irises were more beautiful and were always hidden behind classic, round-rimmed glasses. His hair was always cut, even though it looked naturally messy and dark as night. His shoulders were strong, as was his entire body, and broad in a beautiful, harmonic way, which made her feel like running her hand or just laying her head there. (It had happened a few times, and she had loved the experience).

He had been her security since she had been threatened with death, and as much as at first she had hated the idea of having someone 24/7 behind her, nowadays, on the days that Henry needed to be gone and another Auror stood in his place, she hated it.

Henry was her only friend, outside the family, even though he didn't talk much and almost always agreed with her, - he was an accomplished gentleman - it was the greatest interaction with another man she had ever had in her life. Usually, men would run away from her, say that Ginny was very smart, very mean, uneducated ... All the adjectives of a woman who was not content with anything less than she deserved.

''Thank you, Henry.'' The two were silent, the noise of loud music resounded distantly, but you could hear the laughter, and the conversations in the garden. There were so many couples around her that there would be no fingers to count. ''Let's go for a walk.’' She didn't even wait for his answer, of course he would follow her, it was his job. Holding her heels in her hand, Ginny walked across the cold grass, the hem of her black dress brushing her toes.

Her chest seemed on the verge of breaking, even though she wasn't sure why, besides obviously being angry that there was so much happiness around her... No, it wasn't anger, it was envy, Ginny would never admit it to someone, but that was it, she was envious of those girls who knew and lived in a world she just never set foot on.

She hated herself for it.

Envious of other women because she also wanted to feel her legs wobbly with anxiety for seeing someone she likes, or for receiving a compliment. To be praised. To be envious of another person because she was not noticed by anyone, not being widows, who became lonely with the hours of a ball. How crude she was.

It was to be expected that no one would notice her.

''You know, Henry..'' She started, without looking back, marching towards nothing. ''..I don't need you to take care of me.''

''Of course not, ma'am.'' He replied, not far from her, looking everywhere as a good security guard.

''I am able to take care of myself.'' She said.

''I would never doubt that.'' Ginny stopped, turning to him, the fabric of the dress swirling, the golden threads that embroidered the piece, shone in the fairy lights that were there, and she stared at him. Green eyes showing nothing more than necessary, never looking away from her, as if he were always willing to listen to her.

''I think you're the only person who thinks that.'' She took a deep breath, her chest on fire, feeling silly for feeling alone. ''The rest of the people think that I will only be myself when the Duke shows up .. As if I needed a man to finally be somebody.'' Ginny said more to herself, wanting to shut up that empty space in her chest that never seemed to fill, no matter how hard she tried.

To want is different, to need. She thought.

She didn't need anyone by her side to be better, but she wanted to at least experience that.

Urg, she would go crazy at one time or another.

''I think they have never been more wrong than now, if I may say so.'' Henry smiled, a little, but he smiled.

''I always allow you to say things. You know that, other than the widows and my family, you are the only human being who talks to me.'' Ginny admitted, shrugging and turning again, not wanting him to see loneliness wander in her eyes. She was not as good at hiding her emotions as he was. 

''Madam, you are certainly the strongest witch I have ever had the pleasure of seeing duel. You definitely don't need the Duke to be someone... Nor any other man.'' Henry was closer, not dangerously, but now she could just turn her head slightly to see him, in Auror's black clothes, closed and tidy, without a thread out of place.

''And even if I needed the Duke, I would end up languishing.'' Ginny looked at Henry, only to see him looking a little more curious than usual. ''He was kidnapped after I was born, barely two months old.''

''Do you think he's alive?'' He asked.

She stopped again, turning and looking deep into Henry's emerald eyes, wondering if he was a nobleman, in which family he would be born.

''Not. And if he is, I'm sure he should be a long way from here.''

Back to index


Chapter 2: Chapter 2

Author's Notes: Thank you very much for the reviews, it helps me a lot!
I hope you like the chapter


‘‘Mr Figg, you are a coward.’’ Ginny's voice was loud from above the roof where she was sitting, holding the broom in one hand. ‘’You duel even with your eyes closed, but don’t want to fly with me?’’ He smiled, denying and thinking about how crazy that woman was and gave him more trouble than all the Askaban prisoners combined. ‘’What if I get attacked from up here? You won't be able to protect me.’’

‘’Miss, I believe that few wizards will be able to hit someone on a broom.’’ He argued, ignoring the tightness in his stomach he felt at seeing her in the air like a bird.

''There is! That's a lie, because my father has seen a man fall dead from a broom.'' Ginny climbed up on the broom and flew across the sky like a lightning bolt, turning a blur of colors until she bent down and stood at the height of his head, laughing boldly and keeping her chin up in the best Ginny Weasley way he knew. ''You are afraid.''

''Madam, I will have to disagree with you.'' He wanted to laugh, a lot, but three of her brothers were around, and Henry would never let them think he wasn't doing his job right because he was distracting himself with that Greek goddess.

Henry knew very well who he was and where he came from.

''Disagree? Aren't you being too bold?’’ Ginny seemed to shine like gold, her hair on fire flying in the wind, and her freckles looking like constellations on her pink cheeks. ‘’But don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.’’ She whispered, before cutting the air again and climbing higher than everyone else.

It had been almost two years since he had seen her do that, in fact, that he had seen her do almost anything, but he never got used to it.

Whenever she laughed, or when she flew like a bird that was born for it, even when she just walked in silence in the gardens, seeming to work some crazy idea that would make him afraid of losing his job, Henry was touched. It was simply impossible, there was no way not to look at the freckles on the top of her nose that stood out when she got too much sun, or how she had an almost dangerous facility to escape from home.

Henry knew he had never met a woman like her.

Not that he had met many aristocratic women, but in general, Ginny was totally different.

She flew for a long time, laughed with her brothers, performed acrobatics that would leave her mother with her hair standing, and challenged Henry to fly with her, but soon gave up and returned to the heights, seeming to have fun like never before, smiling from ear to ear. Her skin becoming increasingly pink from the Sun.

For his part, Henry stood up, strolling around in order to think about some things that Robards had passed on to him last week, trying to recap each part - again - of the attack of two years ago, and of the letter - that never arrived in Ginny's hands - with horrible misspellings and threatening her with death. The person was very explicit about what he would do if he found her, and for a week, Henry had nightmares that, while sleeping, someone would be able to catch her and kill her. Sometimes it was almost three in the morning and he was walking around the house, looking for a potential killer, going to the garden, to the clearing nearby, and even to the roof. But there was never anyone.

The house was protected, very well protected, but it never hurt to have a look or two.

His mother, Arabella, would be extremely concerned if she knew that he was hunting a murderer with his bare hands, ignoring Robards' commands and doing his own patrol, even reading and rereading the letters and all the investigation, looking for any gap that he pointed out for the culprit.

She would die of worry if she imagined that he had gone to Yeovil alone, curious to the last hair, even if it didn't make much sense.

Later that evening, after her day of enjoying flying and playing with her brothers. Ginny finally landed and got off her broom and followed her mother to socialize, or as her mother called it 'women's time', and then having dinner.

Henry, after already having his dinner - wandered around the property, talking to the elves who worked in the house, and going to the greenhouse to take care of the plants that Ginny might have almost killed. Not that he was the one who was going to tell her that she sucked when it came to herbology, instead, he just took care of the damage and made sure that all the plants survived another day.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

‘’Henry!’’ Ginny called out, her voice very low. ''Where are you?''

‘’I’m here, miss.’’ He whispered too, the wand light off, but ensuring that Ginny wouldn’t trip over anything.

It had started a few months ago, when one of the men Mr Weasley tried to choose to marry his daughter, commented unpretentiously that every night on the 31st, at a specific time, you could see lights in the sky that came directly from the mansion where the Duke and Duchess lived. Ginny had barely endured anxiety trying to wait for the time, and as much as she hadn't told Henry about it, he knew she would try to escape.

That's how he became an accomplice to her escapes, almost every night - because he would never let her escape at night alone.

‘’I don’t understand why you’re taking risks like that.’’ She spoke as soon as they left the house, walking under the effect of protective disillusionment, following the same path as always.

’Miss, I would never let you do this alone.’’ Sometimes he thought she didn’t know him, even though he had been working there for almost two years.

‘’Is there any danger even at 1 am?’’ She spoke, and Henry abstained from answering a question like that. It was obvious that there was danger even at one in the morning, in fact, he thought there was even more.

After leaving the safe perimeter of the Weasleys' home, Henry extended his arm to Ginny, apparating them sideways to the park where they always went, not wanting to pay much attention to the fact that she always held him tightly and that the feeling was simply overwhelming.

‘’How do they do it?’’ She questioned him, sitting on the bench in front of the water channel and looking up at the sky that glowed towards the west.

‘’I have no idea.’’ He admitted, looking at the golden lights that cut across the little starry sky, feeling a little suffocated, even if they were outdoors. This sensation always scratched his lungs, and he thought it was because of his protective sense, which made him anxious about the idea of being up at dawn, taking a Viscount's daughter for a stroll on the sly. He was risking his job on a whim of that red-haired goddess, who he would never be able to say no to.

‘’When I was a little girl, my mother told me this story of two souls who were intertwined together, and who met, no matter what the circumstances were.’’ Henry looked at Ginny, curious about she was talking about Soul-bonding. Ginny continued; ‘‘I think she was hoping that her words would make the Duke’s son return."

‘’But you never believed!?’’ He questioned, knowing the answer. Happy to be able to treat her so personally now that they were alone. Her smile was always so beautiful when she realized he was doing it.

‘’No. Bonded souls? It sounds silly... I think that, apart from the dukes, nobody ever believed that the boy would return.’’ She looked at him, her brown eyes reflecting the golden lights in an inexplicably beautiful way. ‘’I once heard my father saying that Mr Potter had gone crazy since his son disappeared. Father said that he never left the castle, not attending any social gatherings, except for important meetings. And Mrs. Potter is no longer seen at afternoon teas, or even at events. Only the most special ones where she is required.’’. She shrugged. ‘’Myself, I think I’ve seen her less than five times in my entire life.’’

Henry was unable to give his opinion, the only time the Duke was at Ottery St. Catchpole, it was on a day that he was accompanying Ginny on a boring walk through the center, where she and Mrs. Weasley were looking for a new fabric for a dress. So, apart from photos that were here and there in the newspaper, he was never in the presence of the Duke or seen him.

And he would hardly be, to be honest, Henry was exorbitantly lower than the Potter family.

Back to index


Chapter 3: Chapter 3

Author's Notes: thank you very, very much for the comments, I LOVE to see you making theories of what is happening.
I tried to make this chapter a little bigger than the previous ones, and I hope you like it!
thanks to the discord group that helps me not give up on this story
follow me on tumblr: @sweeethinny


| GINNY |

‘’This is a little tight.’’ She complains, running her hand over her neck to try to relieve the pressure that the cape is putting on her. ‘‘I feel like I’m going to be beheaded.’’ Ginny barely recognizes herself looking in the mirror, trying to avoid rubbing the dark blue dress so much, for fear that something will destroy it. It looks so delicate.

‘’This is how it’s done, miss.’’ The seamstress (who doesn't seem happy to work with her) pulls the cloak again, making Ginny feel almost hanged once again.

''It's really tight.'' She tries to pull the collar, trying to get some breathing space, but it causes the fabric to rise, and Mrs. Pansini seems to lose her temper, pulling hard on the cape, and Ginny comes back a few steps back. ‘’OI!’’ She scolds as soon as she stabilizes, and in the next second, Henry is like a guard dog behind the seamstress.

Great, as if just Ginny's mere presence isn't bad enough.

‘‘I think Miss Weasley is not comfortable with the tightness.’’ He speaks, his voice so hard and low that it makes the poor lady pale. Ginny looks at her through the reflection of the mirror, and her eyes are slightly wide, her hands still on the thick fabric of the cover, as if ready to pull again. But she lets go, and takes a deep breath before smiling sweetly.

''Excuse me Miss, it is a heavy fabric that needs to be fully stretched so that we can make the last adjustments, but I will loosen it around your neck.'' So, Mrs. Pansini goes back to work, but first she unbuttons two buttons of the necklace from the cover, and Ginny can breathe again.

She wants to fight Henry because he was such a… watchdog, because it's bad enough that that woman seems to be afraid to touch her, or even look her in the eye, and she definitely doesn't need him to collaborate to make the situation worse.

But then, when she sees it in the reflection, it is as if all that ball of irritation that formed in the pit of her stomach, dissolves and runs between the organs. He's looking at her like that, Ginny never quite knew what it meant. It was a mixture of affection and concern, as if he hated those situations as much as she did, as if he didn't feel the least bit affected by the danger she might bring him.

While Mrs. Pansini finished the adjustments, Henry continued to look at her, even though Ginny tried to convince herself that it was normal - he was there for it - her body seemed to ignore that detail.

No one has ever looked at her that way.

Nobody ever looked at her.

‘‘Done.’’ Ginny woke up from the sweet illusion when Mrs. Pansini ran a hand through the fabric one last time, smoothing out any tiny detail that had escaped her eyes. ''How are you feeling, Miss?'' The woman still didn't look her in the eye, even though she looked at her in the mirror, her clear, wrinkled eyes traveled all over Ginny’s dress, her hair, even her hands, but never close to her eyes. It was as if she was afraid that Ginny might petrify her like a basilisk, or that she would see some demon inside her.

She knew that part of it was her fault, but it has been two years, she had learned to control her magic better, hadn't she? Henry always praised her.

‘’Great.’’ Ginny lied, running her hand over her blue dress, all detailed in silver and white, perfectly stitched, and with a neckline that enhanced her shoulders. However, it still didn't seem right. It didn't seem ... her.

Her hair in a complicated braid didn't look like her either. Like the situation, it didn't seem right for her.

But she knew that this was much more because of where she was going with that outfit, than the outfit itself.

She was going to have a date.

It was to be expected that she was jumping for joy, not least because a man seemed to be interested in her even though she was a little out of ordinary. But she wasn't.

That man was not there because he wanted to, he had not asked her out because he was a gentleman interested in her small fortune, or her. No, he was there because her father said so. Because maybe, just maybe, if she was seen walking with a man other than her bodyguard, men would be interested in her.

But she had no high hopes.

Ginny had already seen men courting women. Once, she saw Ron doing this to Miss Granger; he was much more polite than he was at home, made her laugh, made her blush with something he had said, and then seemed to praise her. They danced a lot more than 2 times together, and every time, Ginny felt a little jealous.

None of the men her father had found, looked at her as Ron looked at Hermione, or as Bill looked at Fleur. No. Those men never seemed to be able to see her, it was as if they were only there to do a favour. Out of pity.

Poor little Miss Weasley, almost 24 years old and so alone ...

Ginny wanted to rip that dress off her body.

Because, as much as Mrs. Pansini did a great job, it would never be enough.

[...]

''Are you going with me?'' She asked, as soon as the seamstress left, and after her mother went there for a private conversation with Ginny about 'being calm, and being open to meeting the gentleman who was going to pick her up. for a ride'. Again, it was just her and Henry.

They were in the living room on the second floor, he as always standing, but she, sitting in her favorite armchair, by the window and getting some sun on her face, while looking at her mother's well-kept garden.

‘‘I think so, miss.’’ Henry spoke, leaning on the bookcase, studying the spines of books that were there.

‘It’ll be fun... won’t it?’’ She looked over her shoulder at him, hoping that Henry could lie and say that the man would be the best of all, that he wouldn’t be there just out of pity. But Henry, as true as he was, did not even seem to believe that lie.

‘'I believe so, miss. The gentleman your father met--’’ But Henry didn’t finish the sentence, the house elf appeared in the hall, quite polite as always;

'’Excuse me, Miss Weasley. Mr Shafiq.’’ The elf introduced the guest, and at the same time, Ginny’s chest burned.

He was handsome, very handsome, tall, with well-cut and brown hair, dark eyes, dark skin, and quite strong for a Viscount. The outfits were the most chic she had ever seen in her life... well, maybe there were more elegant ones, but personally, Ginny had never seen one so well embroidered. Even the buttons were marked with the family's coat of arms and polished silver.

The man smiled at her in a way that made Ginny wonder why he was not married already, and it made her blush slightly.

‘’Miss Weasley.’’ He bowed well, displaying a gold ring on his index finger in his hand.

Ginny repeated the movement, also greeting him, feeling that heat in the pit of her stomach again, something that - precociously - she interpreted as nervousness. Never has such a handsome man come to talk to her.

‘‘Mr Shafiq.’’ She smiled, ignoring the sudden urge to look at Henry and see what he thought of the boy.

Of course, the Viscount ignored both the elf and Henry, but it was understandable, there were few people who spoke to people so below their level.

Not that she agreed with that, ever.

‘’I must say you're very beautiful’’ He approached, slowly, taking her hand to place a delicate kiss there. ‘’Ready for the ride?’’

Ginny felt her magic turning her organs over, and she looked away from the man before anything happened. She knew how she could easily make things explode when she felt that way.

‘‘Sure.’’ She spoke restrained, looking over his shoulder, toward the open door, close to where Henry was.

Later, when Ginny recalls the day, she would remember how dark his eyes were, and how tense Henry was, looking at the window behind Ginny as if he wanted to blow it up.

| HENRY |

Big crap walking in a park, where it's all muddy after the rainy night, with a lady who wears such an expensive and well-made dress.

What a stupid man.

And he didn't even know if he was talking about himself, or that Adam Shafiq.

‘’... It’s a very beautiful flower.’’ The man pointed, to the one he had put in Ginny’s hair, that - after a while - didn’t look bored anymore, already glowing with excitement.

The couple in front of him were talking about some things; The exhibited Viscount told of a trip he made to Wales, and afterwards when he went to America. He even promised to take her one day! It was torture.

At first, when he started to take Ginny out of the room and Henry followed them, Shafiq didn't seem so excited and respectful, in fact, he almost seemed to hate that he followed them. But Ginny, interrupted him from trying to get Henry to stay, saying that he should go along ... It seems that she didn't anticipate that it would make him want to take his own ears off.

He had already been with wealthy and showy men, several of them. As soon as his mother met the dragon tamer who got him a spot in the Auror Department, Henry had already been in contact with these people. These people who showed off and thought it was better than those below, who raised their chin and barely looked to the side.

Adam was one of them.

Henry knew this as he knew the sky was blue.

‘’... I don't understand, Miss Weasley, how we've never run into each other before.’’

Let Merlin save him before he hurled that man away from Ginny.

Ginny, who was spectacular, who left him speechless while the seamstress adjusted the hem of her dress, which made him have to pretend to be interested in reading those boring books that Mr Weasley displayed in the living room so he wouldn't be staring at her, and gave in to the desire to touch her braided hair, undoing every section of them and letting the red hair fall on her back.

The only idiot there was him.

His chest burned with that feeling of defeat, his ribs looking like they were about to explode with every breath he took, trying his best to keep following them, paying attention around them (and not just Shafiq's hand, which was almost entwined with Ginny's), and really taking care of her safety. Not thinking about how unlucky it was not to have the opportunity to even touch her cheek. Or her hair. Even her arm.

Bad time for idiot Potter to disappear. If it weren't for him, Henry would never have known her, and he would have spent his life not knowing what it was like to be struck by Ginny's exorbitant beauty.

‘’...This ring, it was my grandfather who gave it to me.’’ Shafiq said, showing off. Oh no! He thought, annoyed.

Henry stood back a step or two, looking around the park, watching the children play, some women talking, and another couple strolling.

The women to his left did not look at Ginny, in fact, they whispered and looked at him, with some fear in their eyes. It must be the scar, he thought, it usually scares them. But after two years, it was time for those people to get used to it, wasn't it? How long would they fear that Ginny was - for Merlin's sake - a dangerous woman? She was the one who had been threatened!

When Shafiq chose to walk onto the trail, Henry felt it was time to intervene, but fortunately, the redhead was there to show that she could defend herself.

‘’I prefer to stick around.’’ She asked politely. ''I can't be long.'' And for the first time since that rascal had appeared, Ginny looked at Henry. ‘’Mr Figg will be able to take me away if you're busy.’’

‘’Mr. Figg?’’ Shafiq looked him up and down, but that didn’t get him down. He wouldn't be the first or the last to do that.

‘‘Sure, I trust him.’’ Ginny smiled. She continued to talk politely about not wanting to disturb his day, and how she had loved the ride, but Shafiq never took his eyes off Henry, not even for a minute, his eyebrow slightly raised.

For a minute, he wanted to lift his chin like an Aristocrat, puff up his chest and also show off the shit of a silver button. Making him speechless like the rich did when they looked at someone poorer. He even wanted to be richer than that shitty Viscount, just to get a taste of that feeling.

But when reality hit him, Henry just kept his face serious, waiting to take Ginny away, showing nothing of what his magic was doing to him inside. Anxious to be expelled. Maybe blow something up. Or someone. He was not demanding.

Back to index


Chapter 4: Chapter 4

Author's Notes: I took a while to update, I thought about quitting sometimes, I won't lie, but, I started reading fanfics and books about Monarchy and regency era theme, and all my creativity came back.
Thank you as always, @theroomofreq who is very kind to me and helps me beta this story
And to all my friends who need to listen to my crazy ideas

tell me what you think! and follow me on tumblr @sweeethinny


| G.W |

 

It was barely dawn when that newspaper fell on the Weasleys' door and the elf caught it. It was like every other day, well rolled, with the ink still fresh, full of gossip, important news, and political speculation, in addition to that malicious hint that they introduced in the news, to be just mean to some stupid Viscount that was stolen - and deserved it - or a newly decorated Marquis who married a woman who struck him - and who also deserved it.

 

It was just another normal day.

 

Or so it was meant to be.

 

As soon as Ginny came down to breakfast, she felt that something was different in the air, or maybe it was the fact that her brothers and mother were on top of her father to be able to read the newspaper page too.

 

‘’Good morning.’’ She called, but no one paid any attention to her. ‘’What’s so important? Did we find a gold mine?’’ Ginny stood next to Ron, needing to tiptoe to read the main and most eye-catching story on the front page of the newspaper.

 

'’The - yet - Duke and Duchess of Godric’s Hollow, James and Lily Potter, open the doors of their country house, for the first time in 20 years, for the fiftieth Dueling Party.

 

Check out more information, and the guest list so far, on page 13.''

 

‘’Were we invited?’’ Ginny asked, wanting her father to leave that page right away where showed a picture of the couple in front of their huge country house, with the two of them not looking so happy to pose for the camera.

 

‘‘We were,’’ Ron confirmed, still looking at the newspaper. ‘’I think… Did Mr Potter go crazy?’’

 

‘’Ron! Don't say that!’’ Molly slapped his son on the arm, scolding him. ‘’Arthur dear, do you know why… this? Lily's authorizing something like this to happen?’’

 

''James had talked about applying some measures at Godric's Hollow and some changes but ... I didn't imagine he would host the Dueling Party ... I mean, they have a pretty big list of guests,'' Father said, still standing at the same page of the newspaper.

 

‘’I heard they think they know where their son is,’’ Fred said, a little quietly, as if saying something terrible.

 

‘’Lily will die looking for that son.. I don’t blame her, of course, but… It’s been almost 24 years, how does she think she can find the boy? Only Merlin knows who took him, where they took him…’’ Her mother put her hand on her chest, facing Ginny. ‘’We need to find you with a new dress.’’

 

‘‘No mom, please.’’ Ginny denied, looking back at the newspaper. ‘’But what if he’s really alive? How will they find him? Is that why they’re having the party this year?’’

 

‘’James says the boy was born with a brand.’‘ The father clarified. ‘’But I don’t know if that’s why they decided-- ’’

 

‘‘-- I’m sorry.’’ Henry’s voice interrupted Arthur’s, and the man bowed to everyone in the room. ''Mr. Weasley, I think you would like to accompany me.'' The man did not look at Ginny, as if he was afraid to show too much, holding a torn piece of paper tightly and having his left forearm grated and dirty. Had he fallen?

 

'‘Of course, Mr Figg. Excuse me, love.’’ Arthur kissed his wife respectfully and then followed Henry out of the dining room. Ginny almost ran after them, knowing it seemed to have something to do with her, just from the way Henry avoided looking at her.

 

She hated it when they made her look like a damsel in distress who couldn't distinguish fire from ice.

 

''Ginny, we will see this afternoon about your dress, and Ron, we also need to decide on new clothes for you ...'' Her mother continued to talk about the duties they would have for the next few days, but all Ginny could pay attention to was in Henry walking away. His cloak was torn in the back and it looked like he had just arrived - which was strange, because he never left in the morning, always preferring to go out in the afternoon when Ginny was at tea time with her mother, or at night, at dinner time. Henry always said that in the morning, it was the time that crazy people wake up and make a mess.

 

He looked over his shoulder after her dad turned the corner of the hall and disappeared towards the office, but he also followed the path before Ginny was able to have any appropriate reaction.

 

After his intrusion, and the delay for her father to return, Ginny had to be taken care of by another Auror (she was told that Henry needed to go to his office), and nowhere was Thomas as gentle and nice to her as Henry was. 

 

All morning, Ginny felt like she was being followed by a ghost, in silence for all the hours that passed, a little disconcerted that Thomas didn't like talking to her like Henry did - even though sometimes it was just yes and no - and when she had to leave the house to keep her mother company on the way to the center, Ginny was excited to at least hear different voices.

 

''Does Mrs. Potter know that I need to bring Mr. Figg?'' Ginny asked, looking at the windows they passed, daydreaming about those colorful and well-sewn dresses.

 

Even though her father was a Viscount, Arthur had been decorated one after the other 10 in front of him died, so there was not much inheritance for them to benefit from. They weren't really poor, Ginny could still choose a dress sewn by a top dressmaker on special occasions, but she knew that the family had far more limitations than other families who had a wardrobe all made just for them.

 

‘’I wouldn’t like you to bring him,’’ The mother started, raising her gloved hand as if she already knew that Ginny was going to interrupt her. "It's always quite threatening when he stays behind you wherever you go, and maybe that's what limits gentlemen to ask you out." The younger redhead bit her cheek, swallowing the urge to say what prevented men from getting close to her was that she was seen as crazy. ‘‘But your father would never let us leave the property without him following, so… Yes, Mrs. Potter already knows that Mr. Figg will be with you.’’

 

‘‘I thought they didn’t throw parties anymore.’’ She commented quietly, smiling at a lady who was looking at her a little terrified, pulling her little daughter aside when Ginny passed.

 

Ah, London hospitality, always so pleasant.

 

‘’We all thought so.’’ Molly spread the fan in her hands, fanning herself because of the heat that seemed to be almost deadly. ‘‘But it looks like Mrs. Potter is tired of leaving the doors closed.’’

 

‘’I don’t remember visiting their house.’’

 

‘’You first came right when you were born, we introduced you to them. We have a picture of you and little Harry in the crib.'' Her mother sighed, stopping in front of the shop for hats, gloves and other accessories (not as chic as the one on the top street where jewelry was sold) and smiled at Ginny. ‘’Let's go in, I want to see if we can find some hats for you. Maybe there is a suitor who captures your heart during the Dueling Party.’’

 

[...]

 

‘'The Dueling Party …’’ Ginny repeated, rereading the news for the tenth time. ‘’Do you know what they say about this party?’’ She asked, looking over her shoulder at Thomas, standing behind her, while she was dining alone.

 

He denied. Ginny snorted, annoyed by the silence.

 

‘’Do you know where Mr. Figg is?’’ It was a lot more fun to have dinner with his company.

 

‘’No, Miss.’’

 

‘’Do you know when he comes back?’’

 

‘‘No, Miss.’’ Ginny turned to the untouched plate in front of her. Her father had spent the day outside, just like Henry, Ron had gone out with Fred somewhere, and her mother had already gone to bed, saying she was having a headache from the heat. She sighed, alone.

 

Thomas was married, not that he told her, she had seen the ring in his hand, and Ginny hoped he would be more talkative outside of work, or she would send her condolences to the poor woman who was married to a ghost.

 

The day had been quite boring, even after going out with her mother - which resulted in her buying a new hat - her father had sent a Patron with strict orders not to leave the house. Not even to fly. So Ginny spent the afternoon reading, knitting, and even pruning some flowers. All without saying much, since Thomas seemed to hate any human interaction.

 

At first, Henry was like that, too, quietly, until he seemed to feel sorry for Ginny's loneliness (and his own, since he was 24/7 by her side), and they started talking and she was even able to convince him to sit at the table with her when no one was attending dinner.

 

But today, even after Thomas has been with her a few times, he still seemed to completely ignore the warmth and preferred to remain silent, leaving Ginny talking to herself.

 

When she thought about starting dinner - even though the chicken looked pale and the potatoes didn't look so appetizing - she heard footsteps toward the dining room, and before she could understand who was coming in, his voice boomed through the quiet room; ‘’Mr. Thomas, you can go to your home. Thank you very much.’’ Henry bowed to her a little. ‘’Good night, Miss Weasley, forgive me for being late.’’

 

‘’Good night, Mr. Figg.’’ ’Ginny had to bite her cheek to avoid the smile that wanted to break her face. The other Auror bowed to her and left the room, looking even relieved of an unknown tension that weighed on his shoulders. ‘’He doesn’t seem to like me very much.’’ She continued to look at the door through which the man had disappeared.

 

‘’If you want to know a secret,’’ Henry spoke softly, and approached her a little. ‘‘I don’t think he even likes himself.’’ Ginny laughed, her chest seeming to burn with that feeling of comfort that the man gave to her. It was always so simple to be around him, even when they were around several people and Henry was not allowed to give his real opinions (he would never give them, anyway, but Ginny knew that when it was just the two of them, he could be one little less judicious)

 

‘’May I know where you and my father have been?’’ She gave up on dinner, turning entirely to Henry and putting her arms on the back of the chair, resting her head there and staring at him curiously. ‘’It was a very boring day.’’

 

‘’Sorry to leave you, Miss.’’ Like a great gentleman he was, he nodded politely. ‘’But unfortunately, I can’t tell you where we went. You’ll have to ask your father.’’

 

‘’And will he tell me?’’ She tried hopefully.

 

''I do not think so. Sorry.''

 

‘‘It’s not your fault.’’ She shrugged, only then really looking at him. Henry was still as he was yesterday; his slightly old and crooked glasses made his green eyes even bigger, Auror's clothes were so tightly buttoned and without any wrinkles that Ginny was embarrassed about her dress, which had a slightly worn hem. But unlike yesterday, she realized that his left hand was bandaged. ''What happened?''

 

‘’Ah… problems.’’ Henry shrugged. ‘’Another time we can discuss this, but I don’t think it is an issue for a lady who… still needs dinner.’’ He looked over her shoulder at her untouched plate - which now seemed to have gained color and life.

 

‘’Have you eaten yet?’’ Ginny turned around, slicing the chicken and smiling eagerly for him to sit with her.

 

''Already, Miss. Sorry.’’ Ginny could even hear his sad smile.

 

"But sit still, you know I hate to eat alone." She helped herself to the wine, having to bite her cheek again to keep from smiling and bursting into words she swallowed all day, when he sat in front of her. ‘’Can I ask you just one thing?’’

 

‘’For sure, Miss.’’ Henry seemed to want to disagree when Ginny spilled wine in his glass, but said nothing.

 

''Your bruised hand, the disappearance for the whole day, and the bloody story... has to do with me?'' She said, filling her mouth with a good forkful of chicken, peas and puree, staring at Henry with a pink color on his cheeks and he looked away from hers for a second.

 

‘’Yes, Miss.’’ He sighed, looking tense. ‘’But I’m not allowed to say more than that.’’ And then Henry pointed his finger at the walls around them, silent, and then at his own ear.

 

The walls have ears.

 

Ginny could not contain the reaction of bulging her eyes and looking at the large window beside them, which showed the entire backyard of the dark and lost yard in the darkness of the night, the trees making a lot of noise, as well as the wind whistling in the small openings of the glass and some old wood.

 

Henry was still staring at her, his green eyes almost seemed to enter her mind.

 

‘’What was I doing when I got the scar on my leg?’’ Ginny was alarmed, placing her hand on the wand at her waist, and the other holding the knife even stronger.

 

‘’You went up on the roof to save a cat, and when I thought was safe and tried to go up too, you slipped and cut your leg on a loose tile.’’ She blew out the air she seemed to be holding. ‘’I’m glad you remember to ask this, but it would have been too late,’’ Henry said, without taking his eyes off her. ‘’You have to do this when I arrive, not after inviting me to sit.’’ He warned her, his eyebrow dark and cut in half by the scar, rising and arching.

 

‘’I would know if you were an impostor.’’ For some reason she couldn’t take her eyes off him, feeling her chest burn and her hands tremble. And unlike any other time this happened, it was as if her magic was more controlled rather than totally insane inside Ginny.

 

‘’Miss didn’t seem so sure of that.’’ Henry didn’t seem bothered to look her in the eye either.

 

‘’I just doubted it. But I would know.’’ She didn’t know how, but something inside her said she would know.

 

‘’I’m happy that no imposter would take my place.’’ Henry smirked. ‘’I would also know how to differentiate you from an impostor.’’ And then he looked away at the window, and Ginny’s chest seemed to almost break without the pressure that was building there.

 

She even managed to fill her lungs with air.

 

| H. F |

 

‘’If you allow me to ask..’’ Ginny started, as they walked to the place where they were training duels. A place that Mr. Weasley had built after the clearing, where no one would get hurt or end up drawing much attention. It was not respectful for girls born in good families to know the art of dueling.

 

It was another day, nearly seven in the morning when Henry had to wake Ginny up so they could train the duel. After yesterday's threat, it would be necessary for her to be more than prepared if he could not defend her alone - but he was training even more so that it would not happen.

 

‘’Where do your scars come from? The one you have on your forehead. I mean.'' She pointed with her gloved hand at his forehead, almost touching where the lightning-like scar was marked on his skin.

 

‘’It’s too bloody a story for seven in the morning. And for a lady like you.’’ He kept up his education, already seeing the hut they haven’t visited in a few months, trying to ignore the feeling of failure due to having to make a woman like her, needing to learn the art of dueling. Dueling with an auror, to top it off, and not with figures he would transfigure, as he did for the boys who had been a tutor a few years ago.

 

No Auror learned to duel as Ginny Weasley needed to learn.

 

Women usually - if they learned to duel - did it with transfigured birds, wooden figures, and sometimes, if it was very necessary, the teacher would participate or call another woman who also trained, so that they would duel.

 

Ginny was dueling with an Auror who could do this even with his eyes closed, and who had already killed so many men that he almost needed a third hand to count how many.

 

''Well, if I'm asking for the story of your scar, I'm wise enough to know that I'm going to hear a bloody story.'' Henry opened the wooden hut door for her to enter first, and the smell of damp wood and dust entered their noses. Sunlight passed through broken planks and windows, and the lack of furniture (or what was left over and already broken) caused their voices to echo.

 

‘’They tried to kill me when I was a kid.’’ He didn’t have to look at her to see her eyes bulge, instead he walked to his usual place and started getting ready for them to start dueling.

 

‘’Who would do that ?! This is ... This is horrible!’’

 

‘’I know, Miss.’’ Henry never doubted that. ''But you would be astonished at how many crazy people there are.'' He saw her getting ready across the room, taking off the cloak, gloves and hat that her mother insisted she really wear, even inside the property.

 

‘’How did you get out alive?’’ Her brown eyes looked a little horrified and a little angry, as if she wanted to protect him. Henry wanted to laugh at the concern of a Viscount's daughter, at a poor man like him. In no dream or hallucination would a woman so above him look at him and speak as she did, always so friendly, seeming not even to notice how foolish she left him.

 

Henry was only above the bourgeois and, obviously, the miserable and squib (a class that his mother, unfortunately, belonged to), and by very little yet. If it weren't for sheer luck and being in the right place at the right time, Henry would never know what it was like to step inside the Auror Department.

 

‘‘My mom saved me.’’ He said, simply, but Ginny was still staring at him absurdly. ‘’In fact, she’s not my birth mother… My birth mother died at the hands of the Death Eaters. But she has looked after me since one of the Death Eaters tried to kill me, and here I am, safe and sound.’’

 

''I've never seen a spell that left a scar.'' She approached, eyes fixed on Henry's forehead, and her bare hand touched his skin, making him shiver and make him walk away in fright, as if her touch burned his face. ‘‘Sorry.’’ Ginny blushed furiously, still looking more scared, withdrawing her hand.

 

'’It's okay, Miss.’’ Henry swallowed, the wand in his hand shaking slightly, as if the magic wanted to explode out of it at all costs. ‘’And, I don’t know how I came out with just a scar. Maybe my magic saved me.’’

 

‘’Yeah… maybe it is.’’ Ginny now looked into his eyes, looking a little too serious, the brown eyes that Henry thought were so beautiful, seemed to carry a mountain of feelings that she would never let out. At least, not for him. ‘’Come on… let’s train.’’ And then she turned her back on him, the purple robes making her look like a witch from a Muggle fairy tale. Her hair tied tightly in the braid made her look a little more challenging than she usually was.

 

Henry knew he would never find a woman more beautiful than she was, and he cursed himself for thinking of her that way.

 

‘’We’re going to start.’’ He had to breathe deeply, before getting back in line and starting.

 

They bowed to each other in a sign of respect - if there was any respect in a duel - and then raised their wands.

 

Ginny and Henry had already dueled a few times, much more than a lady should, and he knew that she was really good and that if they accepted women at the Auror Academy, she would be even better than most the men who worked there. But whenever they dueled, Henry felt that electricity running in his wand, making it difficult to keep the spells for a long time, as if his wands refused to duel.

 

The magic was out of control - that's why Mr. Weasley had a hut built away from everyone and empty - and he could see the intensity of her magic almost greater than his. There always seemed to be something missing to make his strengths equal, and Henry thought that maybe it was the fact that he always feared for hurting her, while Ginny was instructed to use all her strength.

 

‘’Expelliarmus.’’ He whispered to himself

 

‘‘Estupor.’’ Ginny also spoke in an almost lower tone than Henry, and then the spells dueled, and the electricity almost looked like it was about to kill him. His arm was shaking, and the strength of the spells facing each other made the boards tremble and the rest of the entire furniture began to want to dismantle.

 

But for some reason Ginny lost her focus, and then Henry's magic won and her wand flew into his hands, just as her body stumbled over the furniture behind her.

 

He also lost his balance, and had it not been for the table well placed behind him, he would have been shamefully thrown back.

 

‘’I heard a noise.’’ She said, startled. ''I saw someone passing by, behind the house.'' And as if all the strength was suddenly recovered, Henry stood up and looked behind him, through the gaps in the wood where all you could see was the forest.

 

‘’Are you sure?’’ He asked, already casting a protective spell around them and throwing her wand at her, walking towards her and keeping her behind him - even though she insisted on going to his side.

 

''Yes. I saw someone. It wasn't a deer or anything. It was a person.’’ Henry’s magic trembled again, and just for safety, he cast three more protective spells around them, and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the house. ''Don't let me stay behind, someone can hit me from behind and you won't even see.'' She complained when he once again put his body in front of hers, stamping her feet next to Henry, who was looking at the forest silent around them.

 

‘’Miss, you will stay in the circle of protection, while I will see if there is anyone, understood?’’ He stared at her, the taste of blood dominating the palate with the idea of yet another crazy men trying to kill her.

 

''But I--''

 

‘’--Don’t make me petrify you. And I will. ’’ Henry didn’t even give her time to complain, throwing more protections around her, stepping out of the circle and preparing to grab another idiot who tried to get close to Ginny.

 

Yesterday morning Henry had found a miserable boy, doing the dirty work for wealthy people, bringing with him a cursed Ginny doll and a letter detailing exactly what they would do when they caught her. Henry didn't even like to remember the fury that surrounded him when he read what they intended to do. Not even over his corpse, would anyone touch her.

 

They were starting to be more creative now. It was the second cursed item they tried to get to Ginny.

 

Making sure she was still safe - and she looked furious in the circle Henry had created - he started walking around, looking at the sides of the house and a little way through the trees, but never losing sight of Ginny, who was so well protected that he could barely hear her voice.

 

But maybe Henry should have paid attention to what she was screaming, or trying to scream, because when a spell tried to hit him and ricocheted away, he knew it was she who was protecting him, and that they were with visitors. But he saw no one.

 

Turning to her, even more furious, Henry felt protected once again, seeing that Ginny was also surrounding him with protective spells, and he made the sign that she needed to leave. He told her to Apparate, but Ginny stayed there, denying it while Henry felt his protective sense scream inside him.

 

Better him than her.

 

He hid behind a tree, still feeling protected, and concentrating on the image of Ginny and her mesmerizing eyes, Henry struggled to enter her mind, as they had trained exhaustively. But it always seemed easier with her.

 

''Apparate out of here.. Now.''

 

He ordered, even though that part of the Forest was strangely quiet. Had they given up?

 

‘’Not without you.’’ She snapped in his mind, and Henry wished he could shake her shoulders.

 

‘’You are more important than me. Get out. They won’t see you, you’re protected.’’

 

''Not. Without. You.''

 

Henry took a deep breath and looked behind the tree, looking for whoever it was, wondering what he would do with that stubborn woman. There was no more noise, no spell shining, everything was silent. Which was even more dangerous.

 

They wouldn't come and just shoot Henry and leave without even fighting. But he was not staying to see.

 

And if he could bet, he knew it was more dangerous for them to stay there, waiting for them to come back. They had done this once, killed a deer as a threat, so Henry knew there must be a dead animal somewhere nearby.

 

He would send a patronus to Robards.

 

'’Apparate to our safe place. I will meet you there.’’ He spoke to her, still in mind.

 

‘’Do you promise to go?’’

 

‘’I’m right behind you, Miss.’’



Back to index


Chapter 5: Chapter 5

Author's Notes: thank you very much for the reviews! really.
writing this fanfic has been quite a challenge, but I just love writing a drama, and maybe it sometimes has a questionable quality, but I have fun.
thanks for letting me know that you guys are having fun too!
and thanks to my favorite beta @theroomofreq, and @deadwoodpecker for listen my crazy ideas
follow me on tumblr @sweeethinny


| H. F |

 

‘‘The Dueling party?’’ His mother’s sweet but still loud voice rang out in Henry’s room, and her face contorted with joy and, it seemed, fear. '’This is something very big, don't you think? I mean… it's the dukes .’’ Arabella whispered the last part as if someone could hear them and take Henry off the guest list.

 

‘’I know.’’ He nodded, fidgeting with his hair nervously. ‘’But I need to go with Miss Weasley.’’ Her mother’s face contorted again, and even through the flames of the fireplace, he knew she was thinking that wasn’t a good idea. ''What's the problem?''

 

‘’There are none… really, I’m happy that one of us can at least step inside that castle.’’

 

''But…?''

 

‘’Henry, dear… It’s not our place. Who guarantees that Your Graces will treat you well? Especially when you're not going to be an employee of them, which they can send or dismiss, but you're an employee of Mr. Weasley. Entering through the front door.’’

 

‘’No need to worry, I’m always camouflaged among these people. I am at a safe distance from everyone, but I can still follow Miss. Weasley.’’ His mother sighed, and Henry wished he could hug her, try to calm her down.

 

‘’Well, Miss. Weasley could get married and get you out of this job, right? It’s so dangerous, son… You got hurt yesterday, and today you tell me that you were attacked.’’

 

‘‘We haven’t been attacked, Mom.’’ Henry looked at the small window beside him, night already falling like a gloom under the whole yard. ‘’I’m fine, she protected me.’’

 

''Poor girl ... How is she?'' He tried not to smile as he remembered how she yelled at him when he Apparated to their safe place, and how she made his heart ache when he realized that she was almost crying with only the idea of him being attacked in front of her.

 

''Good. We're close to finding a suspect.'' He shrugged, not to say that he had followed Mr. Weasley across borders and that the two had visited Yeovil a third time (fourth time, if he considered the time that went alone).

 

The city was still an endless war field, cold as if the winter were endless, with horrible cloudy weather, and so charged with the magic of darkness that it drained all your happiness out, being very difficult even to be able to smile. They had struggled to enter without causing confusion - as they did the first time - and Henry could still taste the blood in his mouth when he had to kill a Death Eater.

 

The boy should not have even reached the age of 20.

 

‘’I hope they’ll arrest the person soon. I miss you, and I’m so worried that you die or get hurt.’’ Arabella tried to smile, but Henry can see there were tears in her eyes.

 

''I will be fine. I promise.’’ He smiled at her, wishing he could hug her again. He hadn't seen his mother in almost a year. It was too risky to visit her and be in danger of being followed. There were some people who had reason to want to get back at him.

 

''Send me news. Now, tell me what you’ll wear at the Dueling Party. ’’

 

‘’Work clothes, mom. My black robes, and at most, the Auror coat of arms. It’s the best way to camouflage myself.’’

 

‘’Why don’t you try something new? Maybe you might meet a woman ..’’

 

''Miss Arabella, it is a party of the high aristocracy, there are no women for me there.'' Henry laughed, not wanting to delve into the thought that the only woman he wanted, he could never take out for a dance. Even though he always saw her at the back of the room, alone, looking at all the other couples while she just looked madly melancholy.

 

Henry would never understand why no one asked her to dance, when he was ecstatic at the thought of having her in his arms for a few minutes.

 

‘’If you say so,’’ The woman shrugged, then yawned. ‘’I’ll let you rest… please take care. I’m thinking you are too thin.’’

 

‘’I’m still the same.’’ He laughed, waving at her. ''Bye. Love You.''

 

‘’I love you, too.’’ And then she was gone, the flames turning red again, making him hear the sound of the loneliness that night provided. The elves' feet walking down the hall, the wind whipping the trees rough, some crickets and frogs, and a few creaking branches.

 

Henry sighed, lying on his bed and looking at the ceiling, trying to forget that morning...

 

As soon as Henry apparated inside their security location - a house where only Ginny was Secret-Keeper - he was greeted by Ginny's scream echoing through the empty house;

 

‘’You could have died!’’ She threw herself at him, hitting his chest with closed fists. ‘’Died! In front of me and I couldn't have done a thing!’’ Henry grabbed her fists, making her stop. Feeling a little shocked by the reception, even a little dizzy from her explosion.

 

‘’But I didn’t die.’’ He reminded her as if to say that tomorrow day would still dawn. ‘’And it was the best thing to do.’’

 

''The best? How is it best to leave me behind while I can see you being murdered in front of me?!’’

 

Better me, than you.’’ Henry remained calm, even though her skin seemed to burn his with proximity. The brown eyes staring at him as if they were going to read his mind - and Henry thought she would.

 

‘’Don’t say that.’’ Her voice came out with a tone of hurt that he had never heard before, not even when he met her on a bad day. ''Never. I am not worth more than you. And I'm not saying that to you to say that 'bla-bla-bla of course it is, because you're here to take care of me'... You are my best friend Henry, and I don't know what would happen if that spell had hit you and I saw you die in front of me.''

 

Best friend... She, a daughter of a Viscount, who had been promised to a son of Duke, who was one of the most powerful witches he had ever met, considered him her best friend.

 

He, a poor man, son of a harlot who died for her Death Eater lover, abandoned in a dirty gutter, condemned to die... Best friend of a daughter of a Viscount.

 

Of course, if it were up to him, they would be much more than best friends. Henry would do much more than take a peek at Ginny's sweeping curves, and he would never let her sit at the back of a ball, alone and bored. No, Henry would dance with her, spin that red-haired woman, so alive that reminded him of fire, all over the hall, as he had seen some men doing with their wives.

 

Henry might even dare to ask for her hand in marriage ...

 

But that was only if he was someone else. Henry Figg, Ginny Weasley's bodyguard, needed to settle for Best Friend.

 

| G. W |

 

‘‘You don’t look good,’’ George said, moving the chess piece and waiting for Ron to counterattack.

 

‘’Shouldn’t Henry protect you? Why did you almost die?’’ Ron asked, without even looking at his sister, paying attention to the board as if it were the most important thing of the moment.

 

‘’What are you two doing here still? I thought that now that you had houses, and responsibilities, you would spend less time here.’’ She complained, irritated to the last hair. She overheard when her father argued with Henry about putting her in danger, even though he couldn't have predicted it. Besides, the image of him dying in front of her continued to haunt her like an endless nightmare. ''Wants to know? Don't answer me. I'm going to lie down.’’ Ginny turned her back on the brothers, stamping her feet against the floor and running up the stairs.

 

It had been so terrifying to see the green light almost hit Henry, and she hadn't even raised her wand before the spell came out and protected him, almost making her believe that she could do magic with her bare hands.

 

All day, after the attackin the morning, she was locked up at home, like a prisoner. She overheard Ron talking to his father about Miss Granger (and then with George), she continued to read the news in the paper about the Dueling Party - that her parents were seriously considering not taking her. Ginny almost cried when she tried to fly and was stopped by Henry, who seemed almost sadder than she was doing that.

 

Ginny didn't cry, however, but she was silent all day.

 

It was so disconcerting to read about what each lady was wearing at the last party, or who they had been dancing with, while she could barely fly out in her own backyard. It was almost torture when Fred arrived at their parents' house showing the new broom he had bought, and when she saw, as a prisoner, through the bedroom window the brothers taking turns to test the new broom.

 

She could have fought and tried to convince Henry to fly with her, or that she wouldn't go more than two meters, but Ginny was so tired of living like that - or, not living - that she just nodded and sat in the living room, reading another stupid romance book that would only serve to make her realize how… empty, her life was.

 

Ginny, before the attack, had the opportunity to have, what she likes to call, a near life; she managed to make some ‘’friends’’, and it seemed that little by little people forgot that she had been promised to the Dukes' son and all the drama. Until, someone threatened her in the middle of the park, and her first reaction was to blow up the greenhouse where her mother was.

 

She didn't remember that day very well, the only thing she could remember was that she felt someone enter her mind and make her feel a lot of pain, and then the next moment was when she woke up on the floor, surrounded by dead plants, glass, and dirt, being watched by so many wizards that it looked like a festival.

 

Everyone looked at her as if she were a monster, who had almost killed her mother and injured 10 other people who were around (including a child, who almost died).

 

''Doesn't she know how to control her magic?'' ''I heard she was possessed by You-Know-Who.'' ''She did it so she could finally make headlines.'' ''I heard it was a way that her father found, for them to call attention to her.'' ''That is the dark arts, I'm sure.'' ''I always knew she was crazy...''

 

Everyone suddenly had a history and had witnessed some crazy Ginny. Everyone was pointing a finger at her. Everyone never let her forget when she lost control over her magic as a child.

 

But a child does not do as much damage as she did.

 

And if it was only once... There was that other day, after all the confusion, when her mother took her to a party to try to make everyone forget, and a Marquis tried to kiss her in a dark library when they accidentally met.. She tossed him away, startled when she was grabbed by the arms and tried to be kissed by force.

 

Apparently, it was a lot of fun trying to make her lose control of her magic and take on that strength that seemed to rip through her chest.

 

He was badly hurt, but no more than Ginny, who was so embarrassed and scared that she didn't leave the house for weeks. She could barely get to the newspaper without shaking for fear that there would be more lies about her.

 

''She wants to draw attention.'' ''I'm sure she was the one who provoked him.'' ''I don't even know what he saw in her.'' ''Her father must have paid for them to meet… a man like that would never want to see himself next to a madwoman like her.''

 

Ginny had never had much freedom, but after the attack, it was as if she could never do anything that involved getting out of the grounds of their home. She couldn't even fly alone, a brother always needed to be together. Until Henry arrived.

 

Henry was the closest person she would call a friend. They talked, he never seemed to doubt that she would be able, and even in the moments when he needed to deny her requests - like flying alone - he seemed upset about doing it. It was as if he felt the pain with her, somehow.

 

If she had seen her one and only best friend die in front of her, because of her, Ginny didn't know what she would do.

 

‘‘It’s okay, Dootie, I can do it myself.’’ She waved to the Elf who was waiting in the room, ready to undo Ginny’s hair (even though she had just done a simple braid), and helped her put on her pajamas.

 

‘’Are you sure, Miss Weasley?’’ The little creature asked, head down.

 

‘‘Yes, thank you.’’ And then, after closing the door, Ginny observed her daily arrest.

 

The window was ajar, magically made to always seem closed when someone looked outside, and the wind blew into the room and caused the curtains to swing. Ginny wondered what Henry was doing, and maybe, if it wasn't so late and so inappropriate, she could go up to his room for them to talk. She always felt more alone at night.

 

He had been very kind to her - as always - during the day, even when he needed to leave to speak to the boss by Flu, he had promised her that it was not her fault.

 

Which was a lie, because it was obviously her fault. She, and damn fate, who decided that it was not enough to be promised to someone at birth, but the man needed to be kidnapped, leaving her the burden of carrying a hope that would not be fulfilled, alone.

 

She felt guilty when she thought of the boy's parents, who had lost a child, at the same time that she was irritated since no one thought she could do anything about it, and that as much as Godric's Hollow had hoped that the Dukes would give the city an heir and keep it under control and away from any dark activity, Ginny had little to do.

 

But still, people liked to talk about her, as if she had been the cause of the kidnapping.

 

Tired of a day that seemed endless, Ginny lay down on the bed, fiddling with her wand to make the room a little colder than it already was, and hiding under the covers, where it seemed to be the only safe place in the world. 

 

For a few moments, she let herself think about how handsome Henry was, and how she imagined that maybe, just maybe, he could look at her differently, and even forget about the social rules and just kiss her.

 

Unlike the Marquis, Ginny wanted Henry to kiss her.

 

Maybe he would undo her braid himself and compliment her hair... maybe Henry would compliment her like no one ever did. Ginny couldn't even think of what that would be like...

 

Ginny heard a noise in the corridor of her room, something like footsteps, and if it weren't for the fact that her parents slept upstairs, and that no more siblings lived there, that floor shouldn't make any noise except when she was the one walking. And she was lying down.

 

She grabbed her wand, her heart pounding against her chest, rising as quietly as she could, trying to assume who might be there so late.

 

The footsteps stopped just in front of her room, and when Ginny prepared to put into practice the many dueling lessons she had with Henry, the person knocked on the door;

 

‘’Ginny?’’ Her body froze behind the door, hearing the low voice seemed to echo down the empty hall.

 

‘’Henry?’’ Ginny didn’t let her guard down, knowing that everything could be a big trap. ‘’Where did we fly together for the first time?’’

 

‘’We never flew together.’’ She sighed, it was him. Opening the door slowly, afraid that the wood would creak and her mother would get up, Ginny just stuck her head out, a little ashamed that she was wearing pajamas so old and ugly.

 

The man also wore pajamas, but instead of being a faded pink nightgown, it was black sweatpants and a white tank top. A tank top that let Ginny see his arms precisely, tanned by the sun and so well defined that it made her squeeze her thighs and swallow. She knew that Henry was strong, but not that strong.

 

‘’Did something happen?’’ She asked, trying not to let him notice the lack of a bra or how transparent that fabric could be. Ginny was not the woman with the most striking curves, she knew that, the Marquis had made it a point to point out that she needed a lot of effort if she wanted to be as beautiful as the other women.

 

"I… I just came here to thank you for protecting me." He ran a hand through his messy hair, looking a little bewildered, without glasses, and his green eyes seemed to shine even in the little light that came through the hall window and the fireplace that Ginny kept burning.

 

‘It was instinct, I think.’’ She shrugged. ''Are you alright?''

 

‘’Yes.. yes.’’ Henry took a step forward, entering her room for the first time in 2 years. He had never passed the door. ‘’I came here just to thank you, and... and do this.’’ Then he kissed her.

 

It was completely different from the Marquis' kiss, and Ginny would never be able to explain why. But before she could understand why, her chest seemed to burn and tear, taking all the air out of her lungs, like squeezing a fruit until there is no more left liquid. Ginny thought she might be dying.

 

She opened her eyes and looked at the white ceiling above her, alone and lying on the bed, sweating as if she had run a marathon. When she tried to reach for the wand to make the room even colder, the wand seemed to spit out magic and snowflakes began to fall everywhere. She was getting out of control.

 

Desperate, Ginny applied all the tactics she knew to calm down, fearing that her room would be buried in the snow. The same tactics that Henry applied to himself in the room a few floors below, also feeling his chest burn and sweating, frightened by the dream and the snowflakes falling under his room.



Back to index


Chapter 6: Chapter 6

Author's Notes: I know it took me a while to update, really, sorry, but it was because it was difficult to organize this chapter as I wanted.
thank you so much for the comments, as always, is what motivates me to write
I promise to take less this time

I hope you like it


| G.W |

 

‘‘I don’t think I’ve ever been this anxious.’’ Ginny comments, watching Henry move his wand and stack her suitcase with the others who are concentrated by the fireplace. ‘’I’ve never gone this far. You know, when I was little, I climbed the trees and dreamed of the day that I could go as far as I wanted.’’ She smiles from ear to ear, anxiously walking around the room, her dark green dress still a little wrinkled. She didn't even want help getting ready, she tied her hair with magic and tied the bodice as she could.

 

‘’I’m glad you managed to convince them, Miss.’’ Henry smiles at her, wearing the black uniform and maintaining the most serious tone he can, even though he also looks excited. ‘’I’ve never gone this far, either.’’

 

‘’We still have hours, hours , until we go.’’ Ginny watched the auror, a smile on her lips taking over her freckled face. ‘’We could fly! If my father agreed to take me to the Dueling Ball, then I can fly!’’ She comments as if she were a ten year old child asking for the cookie that is in the jar on top of the cupboard.

 

‘‘Sorry, Miss, but the shed is still locked.’’ Henry smiled awkwardly, shrugging. ‘’But we can go to the greenhouse, we haven’t been there in a while.’’

 

‘‘I don’t want to go to the greenhouse.’’ Ginny sat down on the mustard-yellow armchair that her mother insisted on keeping in the living room, even though it didn't match the rest of the decor. ‘’Can we do something else? Can we go to the city?’’ She didn’t even like going to the city, but if it meant leaving home, she would be accepting. Ginny just wanted time to pass as quickly as possible. ‘’Can we do anything? I just don’t want to sit.’’

 

‘’Your mom asked you to train the dance.‘’

 

‘’Nooo,’’ She stood up, approaching Henry and looking him deep in the emerald green eyes, she could almost see the reflection of herself in his round glasses. ''Let's do something fun ... You can take me somewhere fun, can't you?'' Henry sighed, looking quickly at the bags on the floor, then at the clock where he pointed out that everyone - apart from Ginny - was out of the house, and finally for her.

 

‘’We have to go back before everyone else,’’ Her eyes widened as she jumped in place and smiled like she hasn't smiled in days, locked up inside the house. ''And you must promise me that you will obey me.'' Ginny laughed, throwing her arms around Henry as if it were the most natural thing, hugging him tightly and feeling his chest tighten with intimate contact. He had never even touched her shoulders.

 

‘‘I promise.’’ Ginny stood on tiptoe, fearless enough to kiss him on the cheek flushed with shame. ‘’I’m going to get my hat!’’ And then she leapt out of the room, running up the stairs like a child who had won the cookie, almost screaming with joy.

 

It has been a difficult few days, locked up at home and barely able to go to the garden itself, without being escorted by Henry or one of her brothers. Her name had returned to the tabloids, but now, they said it was all a lie on the part of her family, to create fame. They went so far as to accuse her of being psychotic mad, and that respectable ladies should stay away from her. Some women even removed her mother's name from their guest lists for afternoon tea.

 

Ginny still didn't know how the family was still invited to the Dueling Party, but something told her that Mrs. Potter understood what it was like to have her name in the tabloids with several lies made up about her.

 

She also didn't know why she was so excited. Something inside her made her think that the party could be good after all, living a week in a completely different house and with new places to explore. If no one danced with her, at least she would have new gardens and new libraries to visit.

 

Putting on her hat and gloves, not even bothering to look in the mirror to check her clothes or put on more perfume, just running down the stairs again, almost tripping over her dress, but being held tightly by Henry, who was waiting patiently for her.

 

‘’Calm, Miss.’’ He smiled, and something inside Ginny burned and trembled, like that night when she dreamed that he kissed her. ‘’If you get hurt, you won’t be able to travel or go out to the city. ’’

 

‘‘I’m sorry, I’m looking forward to it.’’ She running her hand over her dress and waiting for him to give the orders to know where they would go. ‘’Should I get my cape?’’

 

‘’Of course, we don’t want anyone to recognize you, and there are always eyes everywhere.’’ Ginny didn’t think his over-care was stupid, not after the attack and having spent days locked up Ginny would even put on a wig if that meant leaving the house and seeing daylight, smelling new smells and seeing people besides her family.

 

[...]

 

‘’This is incredible.’’ She smiled, almost standing up so she could see even more of that man sitting on the stage below, concentrating on playing the piano, while ten women wearing white and black clothes, danced perfectly and synchronously around. They stood on tiptoe, rolled, jumped, and never seemed to lose their balance, always in the rhythm of the music.

 

That was their first stop, at least that's what Henry said. They Apparated into the middle of Muggle London, which Ginny had seen less than twice in her life, and then rode in a carriage to that huge building from which very loud classical music came, and some people entered. There were several columns, a huge staircase - the biggest one Ginny had ever seen - and several pictures that didn't move, scattered all over the place.

 

No one looked at her, except for the man in the suit at the door, no one even seemed to pay attention to her, which was a divine sensation, to say the least.

 

Henry managed to get them up to the top floor, entering a mezzanine that had the walls covered in a wine red velvet that reminded her a lot of the color of the dress that Fleur wore at one of the balls she went to, and that the wizarding world spent weeks talking about every little detail of the piece and how the woman was one of the most beautiful in the night. There were chairs, too, and a parapet that kept them from falling over to where the dancers and the man playing the piano were.

 

‘’What’s the name of that?’’ She whispered, unable to take her eyes off how the skirts of those women were static and round, and how they tiptoed with frightening ease.

 

''Ballet. It's just a rehearsal, the presentation is always done at night... They are rehearsing Romeo and Juliet.'' Ginny almost couldn't resist the temptation to look away from the women when she felt his hand next to hers on the arms of the chair, but maybe not even Henry noticed how their fingers were almost touching, and how close they were now too, given the fact that they needed to whisper to each other.

 

His scent flooded Ginny inside, something that reminded her of fresh herbs and male soap. Her chest heated up, her hands tingling as if something was out of control inside her, which Ginny believed was her lack of human interaction in recent years, and it suddenly became difficult to breathe with Henry so close, so hot it seemed to burn her shoulder where they touched, and so overwhelming that it seemed that every key on the piano that was played on stage resonated inside her head as if all her demons decided to dance to the beat of a racing heart.

 

‘’It’s a beautiful piece, too bad it’s a tragic story.’’ He kept talking, the women down there dancing at an even faster pace, which made Ginny more euphoric. ‘’I don’t know if there’s a version in the wizarding world for this, but if you want,’’ And this time, Henry actually put his big palm over her hand, squeezing it lightly and smiling gently at Ginny. ‘’I can lend you. I have the book stored in my stuff. I brought it as a reminder of my mother.’’

 

The woman did not understand how they went from almost never touching, to that stage. She didn't understand what it was that shone in his green eyes, let alone her fast beats, disagreeing with the now calm music.

 

She had already read several books to know that if it were described in a love story, it would be the prelude that the romance between the couple was emerging; racing heart, inappropriate thoughts that invaded her mind - did Henry kiss as well as he kissed her in the dreams that tormented her the last few nights? - and a feeling of numbness that made her almost unable to think. If that were a love story, Ginny was smiling like an idiot for the book and would feel as flustered as the protagonist.

 

But Ginny Weasley had no chance of having her own love story. Not when her entire reputation was destroyed by people who tried to kill her, and men who never accepted that her, a madwoman without a hopeful future, says no. There were no love stories for a woman like her, who, unlike Fleur, Hermione, and all the other women who had a line of men waiting for her, was abandoned at the back of the room like a long-forgotten widow.

 

She allowed herself to feel just one more second of that feeling that burned in her stomach, before blinking and turning her eyes to the dancers, pulling her hand back to her own lap and trying not to pay attention to the pain that seemed to plague her chest now more still.

 

‘’Thank you, it would be amazing, I’m sure we don’t have it in our library.’’ She sighed, steadying her hands so that the magic that seemed to burn her fingertips would cease.

 

The rehearsal continued and she and Henry remained silent for the rest of the time, just admiring the dancers and the pianist, from time to time she would glance at him just to catch him looking at her fingers, covered by the white gloves, resting in her lap. It was kind of silly that they still tingled, but Ginny made a point of ignoring it, for her own good.

 

When everything went quiet a few minutes later and people on stage started to talk, they got up to leave, still in silence and avoiding contact as if the two had some contagious disease.

 

Before they could walk out into that hall full of photos and trophies, a tall, dark-haired man appeared in front of them, wearing all-black robes like the ones she saw some men wearing at dances, with a snake badge that Ginny did not recognize for being from no family. But Henry seemed to recognize it, mainly because he put his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him in a few seconds.

 

''Put your head down and don't say anything.'' Henry's voice sounded in her mind, and Ginny followed the orders without thinking twice, feeling the tingling again at her fingertips, but now, it wasn't something that seemed happiness. In fact, it was the same feeling she had felt before being attacked in the park.

 

Something burned inside her and an acidic taste took over her mouth, while her survival instinct made her magic swirl inside her chest and seem close to exploding. But never really getting to do it.

 

‘’Good afternoon, Sir.’’ Henry speaks, but his voice is louder and thicker than usual. Ginny just pretends to fix the wrinkles in her dress, avoiding as much as possible to look at the coat with the snake again, trying to remember where she had already seen one like that.

 

‘’Good afternoon,’’ the male voice responds, taking a step to the side and letting them pass, even though she feels that for the first time in the hour they’ve been out of the house, they were being watched. ''Beautiful wife.'' Only then does she notice the delicate ring on her left finger, and Ginny knows it's just an illusion, but can't help but be surprised for a few seconds, before returning to normal and continuing to keep her eyes down. 

 

''Thank you,'' but Henry doesn't move, and before she can understand what's going on, a cold shiver runs up and down her body, even causing her eyes to close to the weird sensation, before finally being pulled away by Henry.

 

‘’What was that?’’ Ginny whispers, feeling the air return to her lungs as soon as they step on the street in front of the theater, the afternoon light flooding them, as well as the sounds of a London that never seems to stop.

 

‘’I don’t know, but that man was a wizard.’’ Henry hasn’t released her yet, walking with her as fast as he can down the street, towards something Ginny has no idea what it is. ‘’And not a good one.’’

 

''What do you mean?'' They walk into an old library, a lady smiles at them as if she's never seen anything like it, and Henry directs them to one of the most hidden sections, then lets go of Ginny, and the shiver runs through her again, but this time, it's like she fell into a volcano. Was it that hot?

 

‘’He was a Death Eater.’’ Henry speaks in alarm, his hands running through his messy hair naturally, pulling on the strands as he leans on the shelf behind him, closing his eyes and sighing.

 

‘’Sorry.’’ Ginny asks, embarrassed and still a little moved by the latest events. A death eater! She had only known two in her life, and her father always said that she shouldn't want to be in the presence of another a third time. ‘’I put us at risk again.’’

 

‘’Don’t say that,’’ The man seems to allow himself to roll his eyes, taking his glasses off his face so he can wipe the lenses, as if he wants to buy time to process the ideas. ‘’You liked the rehearsal, and it’s a pity that you can’t see the whole performance, but at least we left the house.’’ He shrugged, then suggested. ‘’We have less than an hour yet, if you want to… do something.’’

 

''Aren't you going to demand that we go back to my house?'' Ginny's eyes flashed, the thought of being able to spend more time outside, lit her up like a hundred thousand lit wands towards her.

 

‘’Well, we’re already here, right? We can venture a little further. That wizard didn't recognize you, or me.’’

 

‘’How are you sure about this?’’ Henry shrugged.

 

‘’Something tells me that no. The ring was pretty convincing as well.’’ His cheeks burned, but his green eyes held steady on those of Ginny, who also felt her cheeks warm up. ‘‘Forgive me for that, Miss, but it was necessary.’’

 

‘’Oh, don’t worry,’’ Ginny meant he could have kissed her to convince the man, and even then, she wouldn’t care. ''You were fast.''

 

‘’A quality that I acquired working for you, Miss. You never know when I'm going to have to do a non-verbal spell and protect us,'' Henry whispered, moving a little closer to her and making her feel that whirlwind of emotion again, before turning away and resting his back on the bookshelf. ‘’But we’ll have to be careful if we stay here. We can go to more reserved places, that no wizard would visit. ’’

 

‘’How you know so much about the Muggle world, if I may ask?’’

 

‘’I worked for a few years with the Muggles, Miss.’’ He smiled simply, lifting his shoulders. ''Shall we go?'' Henry took her arm, as he sometimes did - in rare exceptions - and Ginny nodded, ignoring her belly being mistreated by the thousand bats that flapped their wings inside, and followed him for a walk through London Muggle, as if it were very natural for everyday life, to walk arm in arm with a handsome man as they strolled.

 

She knew that she needed to enjoy that moment with all her heart, as she probably wouldn't have many more, and for the next few hours, Ginny would pretend that she was not a ruined woman and without a very hopeful future.

 

| ? |

 

‘‘She isn’t a normal witch.’’ The man sitting at the end of the table looked up at the woman on his right, looking a little desperate at the blood dripping from the body hanging on the table. ‘’I’ve seen her up close, her magic… it’s scary.’’

 

‘’Scary? Is a 23 year old girl scary?’’ He rolled his eyes, looking again at the photo of the redhead in front of him, dressed in a long blue dress and looking bored, sitting on one of the chairs at the party. ''Who is he?''

 

‘’Her bodyguard. One of Robards best aurors, I heard.’’ Another man, this time on the left, replied, not even seeming to care when the blood of that filthy woman dripped near his hand.

 

''A scary witch and one of the best aurors... What a great pair '' His humorless laugh echoed through the dining room, his finger running over the photo of the redhead and then that of the man who was dressed in the black uniform, proudly displaying the coat of arms of the Ministry and Aurors. ‘’Kill them. Don't waste any more time and hit him first.'’ He smiled, looking at the woman’s lifeless body, hanging from ropes that went from the ceiling to a few meters above the table, her dying hand falling near the frightened woman’s plate. ‘’They’re going to the Dukes ’party,’ Looking down, he watched all his followers there, ready to do anything he assigned them. ‘’Kill them too.’’

 

| H.F |

 

‘’Why are we going to go in a carriage?’’ Ginny asked as they waited in the living room, she perched on the window like a child, watching the three magic carriages posing in the gardens, the thestrals waiting patiently to fly back into the sky.

 

‘’It’s safer, and it would be too tumultuous to use the Flu or Apparate, we would end up overloading the flow and maybe some people would end up stopping at different places. Furthermore, the exact location of the Dukes' country house is unknown for security reasons.’’ Henry replied, standing near the door so he could escort the family when he was called, ready for the most important job of his life.

 

Robards had warned him to escort the whole family as safely as possible, even sending two other Aurors to travel together in the other two carriages, to avoid any surprises, since the protection around the house had been removed so that the Thestral could enter and leave with ease.

 

He would obviously stay with Ginny, escorting her at all hours, especially now, still a little affected by the presence of the Death Eater they encountered.

 

If he were alone, Henry would probably have followed the man and tried to find out some new information about the possible attack that Voldemort was planning, but with Ginny at his side, all he had to do was move on, but always with his eyes open to any stranger to follow or look at them.

 

The bewitched ring had already disappeared from her finger, but Henry thanked himself for having remembered the spell in time, happy that he managed to protect her. Of course, they shouldn't have even gone to the theater in the first place, but Henry thought the sparkle in her eyes and the smile on her face for all the hours they spent together had been worth it.

 

Ginny deserved a few hours of a 'normal' life, without a thousand eyes judging her and commenting on her every step.

 

‘’Do you know where it is? You told me the road is long.’’ She looked over her shoulder, her hair tightly tied in a complicated hairstyle that unfortunately left the red hair hidden in a bun. Ginny had also changed the dress, wore a much more elegant one and that Henry knew had cost a very high price, as well as some others that she would wear during the week ahead. The purple color looked great on her - like all the others, Henry suspected - and the white and silver details made her shine.

 

"I was allowed to know only as a security measure, in case we need to escape in a hurry, but I had to swear with my own life that I wouldn't tell anyone." He clasped his hands behind his body almost automatically, vaguely remembering the light pain he had felt. Ginny's brown eyes bulged, and she jumped off the couch, hurriedly walking over to him, holding out her gloved hand as if asking to see the mark.

 

‘’You… why?’’ Henry reached out, feeling warm and electrified when her delicate fingers touched his palm, his chest feeling like it wanted to explode with the gesture.

 

It was almost distressing that he felt so… sick when she touched him. It always seemed like something inside him was stirring, and Henry was ready to die.

 

‘’For your safety, of course.’’ He would do anything to guarantee that she would be okay, he thought.

 

‘’This is eternal.’’ Ginny looked at him, brown irises shining toward him like the caramel candies that the elves make every Thursday afternoon, and Henry always eats.

 

‘‘I will hardly have another opportunity to go to the Dukes’ house, Miss, so it won’t bother me, I promise.’’ Henry smiled, politely pulling his hand away from hers, his palm feeling like it was on fire. ‘’Now, let’s see… I’ll have to go talk to your father, but another Auror will be taking care of your safety until we need to go, okay?’’

 

‘’Why can I never go with you? You will talk about me.’’ With her chin up and her eyes defiantly staring at him, Ginny raised her eyebrows, looking a lot like when he met her.

 

‘‘I don’t think your dad approves, Miss.’’ He wanted to laugh, but he kept his face straight and his hands were behind him, as the label said. ‘’We’re just going to go over the protocol, it’s pretty boring and you won’t miss anything very fun, I promise.’’ As if in sync, he hears a knock on the door, and Thomas, the other Auror, bowed to Ginny. ‘‘Please forgive me for having to leave you,’’ Henry did the same, despite not remembering the last time he bowed to her - not being in public. ‘’But you will be in good hands.’’

 

‘’I don’t believe that much,’’ she whispered, making a face. ''But that's what I have.'' With that, Henry withdrew from the room, waving to Thomas, who kept an unfriendly scowl, and making his way to the office on the third floor of the house, where Arthur was waiting for him.

 

Henry wanted to think that when he got there, he wouldn't have to listen to the same conversation that Robards had passed on to him and the other Aurors, but it was almost possible that Arthur would repeat the speech about taking care of Ginny and, as much as the Duke and Duchess were good people, keep an eye out for any strangers. Deep down, Henry knew that it was only Arthur  father's concern that made the man say something Henry had already heard from the boss, but he couldn't even imagine what it must be like to know that his daughter is being threatened with death.

 

''Excuse me,'' He opened the door, entering after confirmation from Arthur, who was sitting in the usual chair, shuffling some papers, which Henry suspected was the letter the Duke had sent him a few days ago, reassuring the man about security. ‘’Did you call me, Sir?’’

 

''Of course, of course, sit down, my man.'' Unlike Mrs Weasley, Arthur was much more affectionate with Henry, respecting the limits of the hierarchy, of course, but still not taking some rules very seriously. His wife treated him very well, but Henry felt that the woman harbored a little dislike for him, but it may not be something directed at who he was, but the work he did in Ginny's life. Again, Henry would never be able to imagine the pain of needing his youngest daughter to be escorted, for fear that someone will kill her. ‘’I call you here to talk about something…’’

 

‘‘Say sir.’’ The man sighed, running a hand over his red hair that seemed to fall more each day.

 

‘’I found a good husband for my daughter.’’ Henry swallowed, happy that he managed to keep his face serious, but feeling out of breath in his lungs. ‘’He’ll be at the party, and I need you to watch him for me. If he’s respectable, he will marry her as soon as we get back.’’

 

Henry's tongue seemed to burn with unspoken words, like; will you marry your daughter to someone she doesn't even know? Your daughter is not an animal to be sold. Does she even know that? Will I have to leave her? But the man took a deep breath, clasped his hands on his knees, and continued to stare at the boss in front of him.

 

‘’I’ve already had him track down and everything is clean, but I need you to see the way he’s going to behave next to Ginny. My daughter does not deserve a man of arguable morals at her side.’’ Henry nodded, still a little dizzy. ‘’Furthermore, Mr Potter also knows him and has guaranteed that his family will more than approve the bond, as they need allies if they want to fight against You-Know-Who.’’

 

''I'm sure yes.’’

"And Ginny is an excellent witch, you know that yourself, the last two years she has perfected her art of dueling and the control of magic perfectly, so it will make a lot of difference for the family." Ginny hadn't improved her magic and control, to marry a weakling who needs a woman to defend himself. She needed someone to keep her safe enough, so she no longer had to worry about staying alive. The woman was barely 24 years old, and seemed to duel and defend herself as an Auror with over 30 years of service.

 

She definitely shouldn't marry someone who couldn't provide her with the least amount of security, so that her biggest concern would be that tomorrow the weather would be good enough to fly.

 

‘‘Sir, excuse the question, but does she know him?’’

 

‘’Oh, no, no, she’ll meet him at the ball.’’ Arthur assured him, pouring some Firewhiskey into two glasses that were already there on the table, but Henry denied it when the glass slid towards him.

 

‘’Thank you, sir, but I think I need to be sober for the trip.’’

 

‘’You’re a good man, Mr. Figg, an Auror of respect.’’ Arthur smiled at him, bringing the drink to his lips and then closing his eyes, as if he had headaches. ‘’This situation,’’ The cheeks almost automatically turn red with the liquid ingested. ‘’It has driven me almost crazy... Mr Potter organizing this party again called attention to the things that happened between our families.’’

 

‘’The kidnapping of the Potter boy?’’ Arthur nodded.

 

‘’But not only that, Mr Figg, actually, I wish it were just that… But the king has been pushing me too.’’

 

‘’The king?’’ If Henry had never even met the Dukes, the King was the last person he dreamed of seeing.

 

‘’Yes, Dumbledore has.. has been reminding me and James of something that connected our families for a long time.’’ Arthur drank some more, seeming to gain liquid courage to continue. ‘’A prophecy that made all this happen… ’’ Henry waited for him to continue, barely knowing what to say in the face of it. "It said that.. That two kids would be born 10 days, 10 hours and 10 minutes apart, and that they would be the only ones, with the wedding bond, to kill You-Know-Who." The man sighed, and Henry noticed that he was looking at the picture of Ginny on the wall, dressed in a light pink dress, and with a mouth dirty with blackberries. ‘’Are you aware of what it is like to look at your little girl, so small, and think that she is destined to kill one of the greatest wizards that ever existed? That if she doesn't do that... ’’

 

‘’If she doesn’t?’’ Henry insisted, thinking he was never under so much stress as he was at that time.

 

‘’She will die.’’ Then Arthur was silent, watching little Ginny laugh and hide her dirty hands behind her back, looking away, as if he wanted to get into the photo. ‘’Die like Harry Potter died.’’

 

‘‘I’m sorry, sir, but I thought the Dukes had said it was just a lie.’’

 

‘’No, James just doesn’t want to accept the idea, but Dumbledore believes that the boy will not have survived until now. The prophet who predicted this, was clear in saying that the farther the soul mates got, the weaker they would be, and the more likely they would end up being taken by You-Know-Who. After Harry disappeared, she was consulted by the king, who thought it pertinent to warn us now that she made it clear that if the boy had indeed survived, he would have died at the age of 20 or 21, and would not have passed that age. ’’

 

''Why that?''

 

‘’Because he would have spent a long time away from the protections that the soul mate and prophecy govern him. It was at that same age that Ginny was attacked. On her 21st birthday.’’ The man denied, closing his eyes again. ‘’Dumbledore insisted that I marry her once and for all, so that she is safe about marriage protections. It’s not much, but it’s much more than we can offer.’’

 

‘‘Do you believe in this prophecy?’’ Arthur laughed humorlessly, opening his blue eyes towards Henry.

 

‘’Harry Potter was never found, was he?’’

 

[...]

 

''Miss, I beg you to wait for me, then go inside the carriage,'' Henry asked, feeling an irritating headache, redoing the security spell around the carriage that Ginny would travel in, just as Thomas and Joe did with the other two.

 

The Weasleys were all talking behind the Aurors, eagerly waiting to board. Ginny was the happiest of all, barely stopping in place as she chatted excitedly with Ron about what she imagined they would do during the week they would be away from home, looking much happier than Henry remembered seeing her.

 

But at the same time that he was happy that she was happy, Henry remembered her conversation with Mr Weasley, and how desperate he looked. Ginny was getting married. Ginny could die.

 

Damn Harry Potter, who arrested her in that fate.

 

‘’All done, come on in, Miss.’’ Henry signaled to her, interrupting the conversation between the brothers, and smiling apologetically at them.

 

‘’Thank you, Mr Figg.’’ She jumped into the vehicle, followed by Ron, the twins, and lastly, Henry. As soon as he closed the door, and touched the magic coin that was the point of communication with Thomas and Joe, the carriage began to move and leave the floor. ''This is so exciting!'' Ginny opened the window curtains, and Henry even thought about asking her to close, as it was safer and prevented anyone from seeing her inside, but there were so many charms around them, that he thought it was okay to let her have fun for just a few minutes.

 

There were two benches, facing each other, the twins and Ron were in front of him and Ginny, and everyone seemed to marvel at the view of the property from above, much higher than they normally went with the brooms.

 

‘’How long to wait, Mr Figg?’’ Ron asked, still looking out the window, before he got tired and closed the curtain.

 

‘‘I think two or, at most, three hours. Thestrals are fast animals, they tend not to linger.’’

 

‘’Do you see them?’’ It was Fred who asked this time, and Henry nodded.

 

‘’He has seen death several times.’’ Ginny spoke before Henry was able, as if to say the obvious. ‘’Almost all Aurors have seen someone die, and if they haven’t, they’re not doing their job in the right field, because in the midst of wars, it’s impossible not to witness it.’’

 

‘’You shouldn’t know about that.’’ Ron pointed out.

 

‘’But I know, because I ask him. What else would we talk about? One hour this matter would come up, Mr Figg has been with me since I was 21.’’

 

‘’Miss Weasley doesn’t know any macabre details, only that I’ve seen death.’’ He lied, thinking that her brothers shouldn’t know that Henry once described how a man’s eyes were pulled out of his face. ‘’I would never give that kind of detail.’’

 

‘’Besides, Ron, I think I’m better able to hear about it than you are, because although I remember, when you first saw blood, you passed out.’’

 

Henry did not listen very much to the conversation between the siblings, looking at the small window beside him, and watching the clouds.

 

If Ginny married, he would be forced to walk away from her and never work with her again, even if her husband asked for a security guard, Henry would no longer be assigned to work. His contract, of course, said that when she signed her name on the wedding paper, he would automatically be disqualified as her personal security guard, and for some reason, it saddened him.

 

Henry had spent so much of his life alone, without many friends besides his mother and the boy who took piano lessons with her, without much vision for a profitable future. As soon as he was able to join the aurors, he imagined that he would prosper and be more social, but soon it proved much more difficult than expected. When you worked with arresting, killing and looking for murderers, there was not much time and energy left to make friends and date, and most guys didn't want to be friends with the same guy who helped him carry the body of a dead child in a confrontation.

 

It turned out that he just stayed at home, reading some book or the record of someone wanted, making theories and trying to think of a plan for the next day. Always trying to stay alive, even though it seemed to get more difficult with each passing day.

 

He had been so sorry for Robards when he told him about Ginny. The girl had lost control of her magic and now in addition to being threatened with death, she suffered public retaliation. Henry understood, at least in part, the pain she was suffering, as he felt the same thing when he saw someone dying in front of him for the first time - a colleague - and also lost control of the magic.

 

It had been traumatic, and Henry almost took his own life when memories of Cedric's icy white body fell in front of him. That had been the closest to a friend he’d had in years, and even though they had only known each other for a few months, the man tried to stop the Death Eater who raised his wand for Henry.

 

He understood what it was like not to be able to control even the wand in his hand, feeling his body tremble and his chest warm with magic, even looking like the spells would come out of his fingertips. He was desperate to say the least, and Henry sympathized with Ginny before he even met her.

 

A woman shouldn't feel as out of control as he had, a few weeks before he met her.

 

And now, he was going to see his best friend - and the woman who moved his poor heart - marry a guy who wouldn't even bring her so much security, and all Henry could do is nod, bow, and leave.

 

Henry sighed, closing the curtain and realizing that the argument between the brothers had stopped. ‘’Do you think the transfiguration festival will take place?’’ George asked - Henry knew how to differentiate them, no matter how difficult it was.

 

‘’Sure, it’s a tradition,’’ Ron said, running a hand through the red hair so characteristic of the family. ‘’I trained all week, I want to show that I’m good.’’

 

‘’Hmmm, is it because of Miss Granger ?’’ Ginny winked at her brother in front of her, a smirk on her lips. ''Oh, Mr Weasley, you are so good at transfiguration spells, please marry me.'' She spoke of what should be an imitation of the Miss in question, the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically, and the other, stretched out towards Ron, who had red cheeks like curtains.

 

‘’She doesn't talk like that, you idiot.’’

 

''Hey. Women don't like men who treat their sister badly,’’ Fred warned him, punching Ron in the arm. ‘’And neither are the brothers!’’

 

‘’Women like polite men, who take her for a walk and treat her politely.’’ Ginny raised an eyebrow, arms crossed under her chest as if she could duel with her brother right there. Ron rolled his eyes.

 

‘’I treat her with respect... And what would you know about it? As far as I know, Mom didn't tell me about anyone taking you for walks.'' Ron looked sorry for saying that the next moment, but before he could apologize, or whatever, Ginny seemed to bristle like a wildcat.

 

''Because I'm a woman, you imbecile, and unlike the three of you, my head doesn't work just to think about when I'm going to sleep with someone.'' The three in front of her opened their eyes wide, and Henry almost laughed, but he thought they were too far from the ground to risk being thrown from the carriage. ''What's it? Now, after all, will you think I don't know about that? Oh, please, that's why the three of you are single, you very much doubt a woman's intelligence.’’

 

[...]

 

As soon as they landed on the floor, Henry felt the headache bothering him again, especially the scar on his forehead, the one that was always covered by his hair. After making sure it was safe, he got out of the carriage and undid the necessary protections for Ginny, Fred, George and Ron to get off too, and as much as he closed his fists around his wand, relaxed his shoulders, and took a deep breath, he still felt that tightness in his chest and burning on his forehead, which had bothered him since they started approaching the village where the house was.

 

It was much more than he ever thought he would have the honor of entering; it was a bigger mansion than any he had ever seen. There were more windows than he could count, large columns surrounded by rose vines, the stone-clad house was much better cared for than any he had ever known. The garden was very well maintained, with trees well over 100 years old, and flowers perfectly pruned. There were even statues, like the ones he had seen in a Marquis' house, but unlike that of the man, it was not just one, but several scattered around the garden in a way that looked beautiful and made sense. Some waved at them, and others just continued in their poses, were very well made and almost made him think that they looked like humans covered in plaster.

 

It was like going to an enchanted place, which brought an immense sense of peace and something even familiar, as if Henry had already been there before. What was silly, he knew.

 

As soon as they were ready, the Aurors followed the family to the front door, the path was long and well defined, separated from the rest of the garden, with bushes decorating the sides of the small road, and as far as he could see, the Dukes were waiting for them, wearing neutral and elegant clothes.

 

Henry hadn't been prepared to meet the Dukes in person, and he guessed it was nervousness that made him feel a strange urge to cry or run, as if something stopped him from breathing fully and made his knees look weak. He never imagined performing for such important people.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were the first to greet, bowing first and then giving hugs and smiles, then the children, who just bowed one by one as the rule dictated and spoke a few words, and finally, the Aurors.

 

The Duke and Duchess looked at Henry as if they recognized him - perhaps Arthur had shown them his identification as Auror, where there was a photo. The Duchess had red hair that was darker and shorter than the Weasleys', and green eyes that looked like big, shiny emeralds in her thin and pale face. The Duke was almost the opposite of her, tall, with skin that was darker and tanned than his wife's, black hair and cropped but still a little messy, and dark eyes.

 

The clothes looked of great quality, much more than he could buy in his life. The thick fabrics covered them without any wrinkles, and the Potter Family crest, carved in gold, was proudly displayed.

 

Something inside Henry burned even harder, and as if his memory tried to remember where he had seen them - probably, in a newspaper in the past few weeks, which had several pictures of the two - his head hurt a lot. He wouldn't show weakness in front of them, so he just closed his eyes and bowed completely, swallowing the desire that had arisen.

 

‘’Mr, Mrs Potter, it is a pleasure to meet you.’’ Henry said as soon as his turn came, much closer to the two, who didn’t seem very comfortable with the situation. Perhaps it was the fact that it was the first party they had been throwing in years, and after what Henry had heard from Arthur, he couldn't imagine that the Dukes were happy knowing that their son was probably really dead. ‘’My name is Henry Figg.’’



Back to index


Chapter 7: Chapter 7

Author's Notes: I feel that I need to apologize for the delay ahahahahahah
some things - depression - have happened in my life in the last few months, along with the horrible results of my exams that made me fall into a limbo of feeling like a failure - it's no use telling me that I'm not a grade, I know that, but it still hurts
And all of that was a block for me to be able to write anything I needed to think too much, and in the few days that depression left me alone, anxiety came to do her job and I couldn't control myself enough
Anyway, something happened on Saturday and I wrote the last 5k of words that were missing and here's the chapter

thank you very much to everyone who comments on your theories and your ideas about what can happen, fill me with love and desire to keep writing this


| J. P | 

 

James still remembered the lullaby whispered against his son's sweaty, childlike curls as he cradled the boy in his arms, feeling like the happiest man in the world, with a life in his arms.

 

He still remembered how beautiful Lily looked, lying on their bed, sleeping soundly after breastfeeding Harry, her white nightdress wrinkled and her messy red hair against the pillow, resonating just like Harry did, hugging his father.

 

He still remembered putting him to sleep, kissing his forehead where a birth scar made him unique, making James think of how magical it was to have that life there, so close to him.

 

It was Harry's first day trying to sleep in a room separate from his parents.

 

James still remembered Lily's scream, how he couldn't move when looking at the empty crib, the broken window, how he wanted to vomit when the curse breaker said there were Dark Arts there.

 

James still remembered running through the streets of Godric's Hollow, wearing only a red robe, as he rummaged through the garbage, entered the alleys, and looked desperately for his son.

 

James still remembered shouting at the healers when they brought a dead child, the same size and appearance as Harry, hit by an Avada Kedavra, 'It's not Harry!'

 

He still remembered the photos, the stories, the chase over them, how Lily got sick with each passing hour, and how he needed to take charge of everything, even if all he wanted to do was cry and scream.

 

How did someone catch a child? A newborn?!

 

When Lily asked him to put an end to it, when she asked him to just find a way to get all those people out of the castle door, stop the reports and let them cry in peace, he said. He went on the balcony of the main hall, the one on the third floor and facing the main street in the village.

 

James, feeling sick to see all those people, feeling that he had been overcome by pressure from the press, from the population, from the King, raised the black flag and left, not waiting to see the reaction of the people when he confirmed that Harry was dead.

 

But he knew he wasn't, he knew Lily knew it too, they were just tired of looking like two nuts, when they still had to deal with the pain of having a kidnapped child.

 

James still remembers the taste of blood, when he fought with Death Eaters, when during one of the missions, he left for Yeovil and was caught. He still remembered the torture, the blood splattering on his face as they beheaded a child identical to Harry. He knew it was the Imperius Curse, he knew it was all a lie, but it still hurt and haunted him more than all the deaths he had seen in person.



He thought he was going to go crazy.

 

James remembered all of that, he still remembered when Dumbledore told him about the whole prophecy, about the expiration date that their son had.

 

'You are crazy!' James screamed, breaking everything he saw ahead, feeling so angry that he thought he might explode. 'My son is not dead.' He assured him, snarling at Dumbledore, the fucking King, teeth clenched and faces close together, as if James dared him to deny it.

 

There were so many things that James remembered; from when Lily talked about hosting the Dueling Party because a fortune teller had told her that Harry was closer than they thought; from when he spoke to Arthur and heard the man say that his daughter was going to get married, the same girl who was supposed to marry Harry, the same girl that Dumbledore said she had a power that could be even harmful to her.

 

James remembered all of that.

 

But he didn't remember where he met that man.

 

'Henry Figg..' He murmured, watching the Auror follow Miss. Weasley through the garden, discreetly and very attentively, while the girl spoke non-stop, which James thought it should be with the man.

 

'It's a pretty common name,' Lily replied, smiling at the elf who poured tea into her cup. The two were sitting on the balcony of their room, watching from a distance all the guests to settle down and have time to discover the garden, the rooms, before the opening dinner. 'Figg is a Muggle surname.'

 

'But he is not a squib.' James scorned, and as if to prove it, the Auror levitated a gnome who tried to pull the hem of Miss. Weasley, who didn't even seem to notice, still talking and interacting with the statues.

 

'No, but he may be a Muggleborn.' Lily shrugged, legs crossed, and a magazine propped there, even though he knew she wasn't reading, but was also following the guests with her eyes. She was less brazen than James, wearing a hat that cast enough shadow over her eyes so that no one would notice that she was staring at them. He had already been caught in the act by a Marquise and a Count, both of whom seemed very close for someone who has met a few minutes before.

 

'Do you think they would have sent him? Aurors tend to be prejudiced, you know. ' James said, sipping his own tea.

 

'Oh, of course I know.' Lily laughed humorlessly, flipping through the magazine when a Lady watched them. It was as if they were two jesters on top of the ring. 'That girl, doesn't she seem very interested in Mr. Longbottom?'

 

'Who? The one wearing a yellow dress? For sure... Do you think they have an affair?'

 

'Of course not, Frank is a good man-'

 

'-I'm talking about Mr Figg and Miss. Weasley.' James interrupted, noticing when she sat at the water fountain, Henry standing.

 

'Why do you think that? She's a decent girl.' Lily seemed convinced enough to drop the magazine and actually look at the girl, watching them both in silence, at the same time that Henry seemed to smile and so did Ginny.

 

It was as if they were talking telepathically.

 

'I don't know, I just thought he was too careful with her, as if at any time he could jump in front of an Avada Kedavra to save her.' James said, shrugging.

 

'He's being paid well to do just that.' Lily reminded him, dropping the teacup next to his, then intertwining her fingers with James'. 'We need to get down.'

 

'Unfortunately.' James winced. 'I feel that nothing we talk about is taken seriously, it is as if we are forced to wear black for the rest of our lives.'

 

'It's only a week,' Lily whispered, making him stop looking at Henry and look at her, those green eyes that made him fall in love. 'I promise it will be worth it, you will see.'

 

'I always believe in you,' The two got up, walking together into their room, so clean it was as if no one slept there. James had spent so many years just with Lily at home, that he didn't even remember having such an immaculate environment and people around. It was a little scary. 'But this time I admit that I'm a little reluctant.'

 

'You are stubborn by nature,' she said, leaving the room as she straightened the pink scarf around her neck. 'I remember you complained about my desire to have this party.'

 

'But I still don't understand the reasons.' James whispered, now that they were in the corridors, even though it was the fourth floor on the west side and there was no room being occupied over there.

 

The walls have ears . He remembered his father always saying.

 

'What if she is wrong?'

 

'What if she isn't?' Lily looked at him, eyes steady on him. 'What if our son is here?' She spoke hopefully, almost in an inaudible whisper, it was horrible when other people got into their hopes for Harry.

 

'I haven't seen him anywhere.' James argued, a little irritated, following his wife into the room where there was a crowd of people.



'And how would we know if it's him? We haven't seen him for more than 20 years.' Lily shrugged, stopping them before finally entering through the big white double door, wide open and making them listen to the side conversations. 'We have an ace up our sleeve, and if it doesn't work...' She seemed unable to continue the sentence, but James thought nonetheless, we will accept that he is dead.

 

'Oh, duchess!' A short, plump lady howled from across the room, near the door to the garden, the egg yellow color in no way favoring the pale skin. 'We were waiting for you to have tea.' James couldn't help thinking about all the teas that Lily hadn't been invited to until that last month, having to force himself to smile at that woman who was staring at them curiously.

 

'Thank you, Mrs Brown, but I think it will be more pertinent to start the party, it will be quite a week, and we will have so much to do!' Lily smiled happier than usual, also seeming to force herself on it.

 

They continued to socialize and chat with everyone there, hoping to give the right time they had planned to serve the main banquet, smiling and laughing at the bad jokes.

 

'I have never seen people more false than these.' Sirius whispered, reaching for James for the first time, serving him with firewhiskey.

 

'Thank you very much,' he thanked, the drink burning the inside of his throat. 'I don't remember receiving so many invitations to drink since I was 18 and the four of us were single.'

 

'Half of these people already speak ill of us, the other half will after tonight.' Sirius barked, a blonde woman looked at them as if she was afraid. 'Not unlike before, but now they feel they need to lie and pretend it isn't true.'

 

'Don't say that next to Lily, she's trying hard.' James scolded, watching when Miss. Weasley came into the room, her cheeks flushed with the sun and her hair a little disheveled, nothing much, she looked a little sweaty, as if she had run around the garden like a child. Mr. Figg was right behind her, camouflaging himself in the sea of people, barely seeming to be seen by others as he walked over to an empty window.

 

The Auror kept watching everyone in the room, stopping for a few seconds to observe some people in specials, but then rolling his eyes around the room again, always ending at Miss. Weasley sitting on the couch, talking to her brother.

 

When he once again scanned the room, he looked at James. The boy suddenly looked scared, as if he had been caught - and he was, in a way - but soon he rearranged his posture and nodded to James, as if asking for forgiveness for not making himself so invisible.

 

James knew him from somewhere, he knew it, he just didn't remember it.

 

He didn't go to the Ministry much to end up colliding with an auror, and he hadn't visited the Weasleys' house in a long time to have seen him there. The few times he will travel and speak to Arthur, he was careful to only have them at home.

 

Where did that boy come from, then?

 

James was about a second away from going to him and bombarding the man with questions, but he was stopped when Lily took him by the arm and drew everyone's attention so she could start the Duel Party.

 

As if to prove that he was a good Auror, Mr. Figg was not in James' view for the rest of the day. Which showed that he was efficient at work, but that did not make James forget the restlessness that rumbled in his chest, his mind working hard to remember.

 

James wouldn't rest until he remembered.



| G. W |

 

Ginny never thought that being alone would be so much fun.

 

Okay, maybe she wasn't alone, because Henry was still watching her like a shadow, and there were still all eyes on her like they were just waiting for her to explode and destroy everything around her.

 

But still, Ginny felt a strange freedom as she walked through the garden at night, shortly after dinner, thanking everyone for not paying too much attention to social rules and that Ginny was a single woman. Maybe it was because no one else really had any hopes that she would end up getting married so she didn't need a lady company beside her.

 

And Henry was always there, it was hard to ignore that. At least for her.

 

'Do you think we can manage to reach the stream that Mrs Potter told us about? She said it looks beautiful at night.’ Ginny asked, but Henry - who was particularly awkward since they got there - said nothing, just nodded.

 

This upset the woman.

 

Not having other people talking to her, or not having men praising her as they did tirelessly with the Patil sisters, or Miss. Brown, it was something Ginny no longer cared about - she didn't care so much, because there were still days when she was sad and cried with that loneliness. But not having Henry talking to her, it looked like a much sharper knife that cut through it in a much deeper way.

 

'Do you think they will let me take part in the Duel tomorrow?' She looked over her shoulder again, hands folded in front of her as she walked down the stone road, surrounded by flowers, bushes, fairy lights and sculptures that waved once or twice other.

 

'I don't think so, Miss, I'm sorry.' Henry kept his hands back, three steps away from her, still not looking directly into her eyes.

 

Ginny could still see him, even though the fairies didn't seem to make much of a point of illuminating him, as they did when following her, however, she still realized that Henry's green eyes were always a spot above her head, as if suddenly he was afraid that if he looked at her something bad would happen.

 

Henry's coldness hurt more than the others, Ginny didn't know why. Maybe she was used to being alone, but she could always run back to Henry and be heard.Maybe she was just used to his friendship.

 

'A pity, then.' She started walking again, blinking away the tears that had gathered in the corners of her eyes. How silly to cry about that!

 

One of the fairies that flew around her, landed on her shoulder, didn't bite her or anything, just sat there, as if comforting her. Ginny continued on the stone path, completely silent.

 

She never imagined visiting such an elegant house, but even so, Ginny felt that if the walls spoke they would contradict themselves with the various colors that painted them and the cheerful style that perpetuated in each room, and would make you cry.

 

It was easy to see how dejected Mrs. Potter always looked, looking for someone in the crowd and never seeming to find. Her green eyes had a gray shade that Ginny thought was sadness, and her cheeks were so pale that it was as if her skin hadn't been exposed to the sun for weeks, if not months. She also noticed how thinner Lily was than the photos that appeared in the history books or in the newspapers that she stole from her father; Lily was taller than she, with long arms and legs, but even smaller than Mr. Potter. The fabric of her dress was very elegant, but it looked too loose even with all the ribbons tied around her back.

 

Ginny wondered if Lily was sick, if the sadness had consumed her, or if she had always been that way.

 

She did not fail to notice when the Duchess smiled at her over dinner, everyone was talking to everyone and Ginny was silent - except when her mother or Ron asked her something - and Lily was sitting next to the husband, across the table and to the right, but the woman maintained eye contact with Ginny as if she knew what she felt, smiling at what seemed for the first time that day to be a real smile.

 

Lily should have known very well what it was like to be lonely and have to get used to it. Not that Ginny understood the pain of losing a child, she hoped she would never know, but she could still imagine.

 

Before leaving for the gardens, Lily asked her if she would like to have tea with her and the other women. Nobody had ever invited Ginny before, she was nervous with the idea of sitting in a room with all those women who didn't seem to like her very much, so she denied and thanked her, saying that she preferred to know a little more about the garden.

 

'It's a good choice,' the Duchess said, smiling and with her hand on Ginny's shoulder, not looking away even for a second. 'The stream is wonderful at night, with the stars and the moon illuminating... Very romantic.' Lily blinked, then straightened her back and turned to the other women who were talking near the bookcase, calling them to join her in a tea.

 

Ginny did not expect - at least, she would like to think she did not expect - the romantic mood that Lily referred to to influence Henry's attitude towards her, but she continued to allow herself into the silence of her mind to imagine if the Moon at the top of the sky and the stars reflecting in the water, they would make Henry attracted to the corset she had squeezed in, and the red lipstick that the elf stained her fingers to paint on Ginny's lips.

 

Perhaps because of the perfume Bill had given her last Christmas, which smelled of flowers and something French that reminded her a little of Fleur, but not so sweet.

 

However, when they finally arrived at the stream, where the idea of a great place for dating really passed, Henry continued to stand three steps away from her, standing by a tree, watching as Ginny stretched the rug she had taken for both of them and sat facing the water.

 

Something inside broke when reality invaded expectation, her hand smoothing the fabric of the dress as if it were the most interesting thing. The fairy was still sitting on her shoulder, her wings were not flapping and the light was getting a little weaker, as if she were feeling Ginny's pain and trying to make Henry realize her intention of going to that part.

 

'Don't you think it's a very hot night for tea?' Ginny asked, trying one last time.

 

'It depends on the tea,' Henry replied, looking thoughtful. 'Perhaps a tea with fresh herbs will become a little refreshing, or with orange peel.'

 

'Who would have tea with orange peel?' Ginny looked over her shoulder, just for a few seconds, and Henry's eyes locked with hers.

 

'I know some Aurors who drink them during missions, when they need something that will calm them down and remind them of home, but that will keep them awake,' he said calmly, hands still behind his body, eyes looking away to watch the sky and then the various trees that were around them.

 

'Did you notice how that guy... Mr. Rosier, looked a little uncomfortable when dinner started?' Ginny remembered what she wanted to say as soon as she left the table, but she ended up forgetting, and also needing to change the subject and make him look at her again, feeling a little pathetic about almost begging for attention.

 

Henry looked at her. 'No, I didn't notice. Why do you think that? He seemed very excited when talking to Mr. Black.’

 

'Maybe it was nervousness, there were two pretty girls sitting next to him, and they seemed to want to get his attention. But I realized, just that, he looked a little out of place.' She shrugged, looking back at the water when Henry looked away again.

 

Ginny cursed herself for thinking that Henry might want something with her, she should already know that things were not as easy for her as for other women.

 

'Not that it is very difficult to feel out of place here,' she said, watching her reflection in the water.

 

'Did you find it?'

 

'Well, we are at a Duke's house, I don't think I will be able to not feel out of place… Mr. Potter has already met the King.' Ginny whispered the last part, as if it were a secret between them that she wanted to keep, remembering how furious her father looked when he learned that the man had come to the King to ask questions that, of course, no one wanted to tell her about.

 

'I don't know, there is something about them that makes me feel almost familiar.' Henry approached, she could say, because of the noise of the branches breaking and the leaves crushing under the boot he wore. But Ginny continued to look at the water.

 

Something moved deep inside, something she couldn't see what it was.

 

‘Familiar? Yes, they are very polite and seem to want to get close to people and make them feel at home.’ Ginny put her hand in the water, curious as a child looking for Christmas presents around the house.

 

'Didn't you feel like you already knew the two of them for a long time?' Henry asked, standing a few steps behind her, she saw him in the reflection of the water, now cloudy because she was trying to catch whatever moved below.

 

It could just be a fish, of course, but Ginny was skeptical of that. She heard Mr. Potter talking about how the only lake that had fish was one much further away, close to the quarries.

 

‘No, but it’s also like they’re not complete strangers.’

 

‘I don’t know, the last time I felt like this, was when…’ But Ginny didn’t pay attention, she finally got to whatever it was, it was icy and slippery like moss, but it had scales that scraped her skin. Something small and thin clung to her wrist and she screamed at the sensation, agonized by the sensation of small hands sinking into her skin.

 

Ginny pulled her arm up as fast as she could, screaming even more when she saw an animal stuck in her arm, big eyes and pale skin, the head bigger than the rest of the body, sinking the small nails further into her arm, and what should have been the animal's hair, burned like fire against her skin when it touched her. The mermaid's tail bounced off Ginny's arm, causing pain that seemed unreal when compared to the animal's size.

 

'Run.' The mermaid said, neither seeming to blink or paying attention to the fact that she was out of the water. ‘Now.’ Before she could say anything, a spell made the animal drop from Ginny's arm now red and looking irritated, falling into the water like a piece of stone.

 

'Come on.' Henry grabbed her, forcing her to get up.

 

Ginny was paralyzed, fear freezing her veins and making her barely able to breathe properly, still seeming to feel the slimy, cold sensation of the animal against her, huge dark eyes locked on hers, how the voice sounded thin and made her feel dizzy as if she had been attacked by a spell.

 

She didn't even realize that it was Henry who was pulling her all the way until she tripped over a rock, seeming to be enough for her to wake up from the panic trance she was in. 'What was that?'

 

'A mermaid.' Henry continued to hold her arm, wand drawn and Ginny's body close to him, as if he were ready to hide her behind him and take down anyone who appeared there.

 

'You can't think she was serious... can you?' She asked a little hopefully, feeling her arm burn and sting as if it had been cut and now it had been dipped in alcohol.

 

'Do you want to stay there to see if it's true or not?' Henry looked at her, his green eyes dark with what seemed to be concern, his teeth clenched. 'These animals do not lie, let alone speak to humans on a regular basis. That was not right. ’

 

‘Why did my arm look like this?’ The two didn’t follow the path they came from, but Henry took them for what seemed to be where the elfs walked, behind the house, in a part that had almost no fairies lighting up or statues. It looked almost abandoned when they got closer.

 

'It can be many things, I will have to look closely.' He knelt on the floor and opened a secret passage as if he had been doing that for years, lighting up the stairs for Ginny. 'Come down. We don’t want anyone to see your arm like that. ’

 

'Where are we?' She did as he was told, even though her right arm seemed to hurt to the bone, taking care not to fall off balance and fall backwards in what appeared to be an underground path. It was cold and dark, with few candles lighting up the front, and it smelled of mold.

 

'Under the kitchen.' Henry closed the passage, finally seeming to calm down from the latest events, pulling Ginny's arm close, lighting it with his wand. 'It hurts?'

 

'A lot.' She felt dinner coming back when he touched the wound, the pain almost leaving her on her knees.

 

'It is probably a poisonous mermaid, we will have to clean this up and... Cut it out.' Ginny warned herself then, her eyes bulging towards Henry, who even in that gloom seemed to apologize for having to hurt her. ‘It’s a small cut, just to extract the poison they contain and that’s probably why you’re feeling so much pain.’

 

'Great, it's the first day we're here and a mermaid attacks me,' she said, her head thrown back and a snort coming out of her lips. 'My mom will be ...' Henry interrupts her, his hand on her mouth in a silent request for her to be quiet once in her life, while they can hear footsteps above them, footsteps that don't seem to come from the kitchen, but from the garden.

 

Ginny hears when the person runs and stops over where they entered, Henry is quick to camouflage them with a spell and pull them close to one of the walls, as if he just waits for the person to open the door and go look for them there

 

But the person seemed to give up, saying something to someone that they cannot identify who it is or what is said, but they both seem quite irritated. Ginny almost loses her eyes when she realizes that the second person didn't seem to have come from anywhere, and that he was probably already around, just waiting for them. Again, fear freezes her, but this time it is a little different, she looks at Henry, who is also looking at her in fright, and it is almost as if they are communicating by mind again, because Ginny knows what he's thinking when the drags into the tunnel, at a much faster pace and without lowering the wand once.

 

The mermaid was right, and they weren't as safe as they thought. Someone there was planning, at best, to kill Ginny that night.

 

Ginny didn't even wait for Henry to pull her to run any further when they thought they heard the noise of the passage being opened, she didn't even remember the pain, or she cared about the noise of rats and other animals that got scared when they passed, moving on, not quite sure where the tunnel ended.

 

It was common for older houses to have these tunnels, especially if the family was wealthy, her father had said that the tunnels served as an escape route for when things got bad with the advance of the First Wizarding War, and then they became useful for wealthy families to hide their wealth or, families allied with Voldemort, to keep their prisoners.

 

Fortunately, the Potter didn't seem to want to keep any prisoners there, all through the tunnel there were only other paths that they would probably lead to either in the main rooms or in the office, as they had at home. Ginny and Henry passed a wine cellar too, where two elves were, but luckily, none of them heard them, or if they did, they pretended not to.

 

Henry helped Ginny open the wooden door that, by his calculations, would come out on the floor where Ginny was, near the winter Garden that served as the divider of the west and east wing. There was no one around, thanks to Merlin, all the doors were closed and few were the rooms that had the light on. She wondered if people had already started sneaking out to date, or did they wait at least one day.

 

Ginny heard many stories of couples who were married eight months after a Duel Party, and the woman had a child who was born ‘’early.’’

 

'My mom must have realized that I didn't come back.' She whispered, pulling Henry into her room, the two of them walking on tiptoe. They were still invisible to anyone, but she doubted that they could put a silencing spell on them without anyone noticing, even the pictures could scream for it. She herself had seen the great-grandfather's picture yell at George when he did it once.

 

'If she talks to me, I will say that I brought you safely but you wanted to go to sleep early.' He calmed her, looking embarrassed when Ginny put him into the room. ‘Miss, I don’t know if it’s very-’

 

'Henry, no one cares about my honor anymore, and my arm is turning purple.' She showed it, almost vomiting when she realized how swollen and purple the arm was getting, as if blood was not flowing from the elbow down. 'Get it over with,' Ginny pleaded, feeling the pain again now that the adrenaline had gone, sitting on the bed and turning her face to the window.

 

'This is going to hurt,' Henry predicted, after silencing the room and taking her hand gently, stretching her arm and causing Ginny an absurd pain, which felt as if the bones wanted to rip her skin.

 

‘Ah!’ She screamed, biting her lip hard as soon as Henry tied something separating the injured part from the other. 

 

'I need to ensure that the poison does not rise further,' he explained.

 

'Just get it over with.'

 

'Miss, I'm going to need you to stay here...' Ginny went to the desk, stretching her arm over the wood, thinking how she hadn't wanted Henry to touch her for the first time under those circumstances. She wanted him to take her hand, to caress her skin, but not when her arm looked like it would explode in pus. 'I'll start.'

 

'OK. I trust you.' Ginny took a deep breath.

 

'Thank you, Miss.' Henry said, before finally touching his wand on her arm and murmuring words that Ginny didn't understand, not when the pain left her deaf and blind, making her stomp like a madwoman, struggling when the heat took part of her right arm, going up her shoulders, throat, and making her look like she was going to explode in seconds.

 

It burned like pure fire, and she made the mistake of looking at the outstretched arm and seeing the open skin and spilling yellowish green goo mixed with blood, Henry squeezed her flesh as if it were nothing, and Ginny thought she would die because of a damn mermaid.

 

The scream burned her throat and echoed throughout the room, she hoped Henry had protected them well, because she could have woken up the entire mansion now. The taste of blood and iron filled her mouth, probably her lip had hurt when she clenched her teeth to stop the scream, but it was impossible, it hurt like it never hurt, it was almost torture.

 

Fingers on her right hand didn't move, or if they did, Ginny couldn't feel it. This time she didn't look at Henry when he swore, touching his wand again to her feverish skin and saying more charms, also seeming to mumble an apology.

 

Ginny continued to scream and struggle for what seemed like eternity, until everything went cloudy and she heard Henry say it was over, casting healing spells that stopped the heat from rising in her arm, just as the pain subsided, but Ginny still felt she was shaking and would probably fall if she tried to get up or move her arm now. Henry untied the tape and placed his hands on her skin as if to calm whatever was going on there, she was unable to observe.

 

'It's over, it's over,' he murmured, conjuring ice and placing it under her skin. 'There was more poison than I imagined, but I promise that there is nothing more, I took everything away... Tomorrow you will be better again, I promise.'

 

'Thank you, Henry,' Ginny said weakly, not even feeling the tears that were streaming down her face, the sobs being the only thing she heard now.

 

She looked at the arm again, this time closed, returning to the original color, a little less swollen, and with only small reddish parts, where she believed Henry had made the cut. Henry continued to run the ice over her injured skin, his other hand holding hers as if he said he was there, and everything was fine.

 

'I'm going to need help getting to bed.' She had also been thinking about one day having his help to go to bed - and it wasn't for sleeping - but today she really needed help, and Ginny doubted that a house elf would help her more than Henry was doing. ‘Sorry about that, but I don’t think I can take my dress off by myself.’



| H. F | 

 

Henry gasped.

 

It seemed more frightening to have to help Ginny get into her pajamas, than to tear off what looked like a kilo of Mermaid venom, watching her skin open spewing goo, blood, and listening to her scream.

 

He almost fell off his chair when she asked him to.

 

But he was her security guard, the guy who should cherish her life, and Ginny had already suffered too much in one night, he wouldn’t make her sleep in those tight clothes just because he felt he could get hard just by looking at her back.

 

'Of course, Miss.' Henry stood up. He had already washed many aurors, people would be shocked at how weepy men are when they get hurt, and how they beg for help when they see their own blood dripping on the floor, even if it is for a small injury.

 

Joe once nearly passed out when he realized that his shoulder was dislocated and his arm looked almost like gelatin. Henry had to help him shower that night.

 

But Joe and everyone else were guys that Henry wasn't attracted to, they stank of blood, sweat and dirt, Ginny didn't. The woman's arm had almost been eaten alive by the mermaid's poison, and she still smelled of flowers and looked like the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. It would never be the same.

 

Henry went to the wooden barrel that was in the corner of the room, separated by a wooden divider, taking the towel placed there and stretching the rug in front so that Ginny would step on when he left - he didn't want to think too much at that moment - and moved the wand to fill the barrel with hot water. He spilled some salts and soap, before making sure it was warm and good for her to get in. Henry didn't know if she would prefer to use the stairs or not, but he left it there anyway. If she wanted, just push it with her foot and use it.

 

'You don't have to look that worried,' Ginny said, looking even weaker, but at least she wasn't crying anymore. 'I already said, nobody cares about my honor, besides, nobody will ever know.' She shrugged. ‘It’s not like it means anything, you’re just helping me.’

 

His chest hurt a little, the idea of another man helping her into the bath - but with ulterior motives - making him a little more discouraged. Just as he had been since they arrived, failing to forget that she was likely to return to her house, married.

 

Yes, it meant nothing. For her. Henry was just a personal security guard, not a man she would like to show off in the bath.

 

The wet skin, red from the heat, the foam hitting the breasts...Henry denied, trying to clear his mind of those thoughts.

 

'Sure, Miss.' Was all he said, walking over to her and helping her to her feet, holding her for a few more seconds with the excuse that she looked like she might fall at any moment.

 

The two went as far as the bath awaited her, Henry remained behind her when Ginny stopped in front of the barrel, hands shaking like a teenager when he undid the first button on her dress. Her skin was much more fragrant there, and it looked much softer and paler, he could even see some freckles disappearing under the back of her neck. Henry salivated with the urge to kiss that part.

 

He undid another button. Two are gone, only ten more to go, he thought.

 

Ginny said nothing, a firm hand on the wooden partition, waiting patiently as Henry discovered how much more beautiful she was under the dress. There were other clothes underneath, of course, but Henry could feel the warmth of Ginny's skin much more eagerly now.

 

When the top of the dress fell to her waist, arms free from the sleeves, Henry found himself with the job of untying the corset. The piece made Ginny look so delicate and fragile that he thought she could break it when he undid a knot and loosened the piece. He had never taken off any woman's corset. In fact, he had never taken off any woman's clothes, and it seemed such an intimate moment that he thought sex was too overrated compared to undoing every button, tie and knot that women used.

 

As soon as the corset fell, Ginny seemed to be taking a deep breath, and Henry almost laughed softly at what seemed to be the best time of her day. And then, all he needed was the chemise so that he could see the top of her naked.



But Henry thought it would be more polite to wait, so he began to undo the lace on the dress, and loosen the fabric so that it fell completely to the floor, and again, he heard Ginny sigh for what seemed like relief.

 

Henry looked at her delicate calves, and found himself a fool for wanting to run his hands and mouth over that region, slowly climbing up every little part of her beautiful legs. Of course, he had never seen her legs, only when she wore pants to fly, but Henry liked to imagine that they were as beautiful as everything else.

 

'Excuse me, Miss.' He asked, politely before pulling the white petticoat down, his chest swelling and throbbing madly as he watched the fabric tease the floor and was aware of how long her legs were even though she was short , and how beautiful her ass was. Henry felt his own cheeks warm, noting the few freckles lost on the back of her thighs, and a few on her ass.

 

The monster roared in Henry's chest at the thought of another man having knowledge of these freckles. It seemed so intimate now that he saw her that way, and Henry thanked him for never giving in when co-workers asked him to go to Fantasy House , where he would probably see various types of naked bodies. He liked to be surprised at how soft a woman's skin - Ginny’s - looked beneath all those layers, and how much more beautiful it was than his colleagues' descriptions.

 

He never had much time to court anyone, and even when he did, there weren't many women who wanted him. They generally preferred the richest, tallest, and strongest, or those who at least knew how to speak to them without stuttering, Henry thought. He didn't expect the special woman either, he just always seemed very… empty. None drew him enough attention that he wanted to see her naked, of course some were beautiful and made him feel hot, but they almost never wanted to chat with him, so there was no opportunity either.

 

'Excuse me,' Henry asked again, now reaching for the hem of the thin white chemise that Ginny wore, hoping she would nod so he could properly see her naked, or at least, her back.

 

'Okay.' Ginny nodded, her voice a little hoarse, raising her arms up - the right not so much, and he believed it was still hurting.

 

Henry almost ran out of breath and fell back when the fabric went up and showed him the wealth of freckles on her back, her pale, delicate skin looked even softer than her legs, her shoulders smeared with a little sun, and shoulder blades filled with freckles of all sizes and shades. Henry noticed that there were orange, others more brown, some a little reddish and few that were almost black. He wanted so much to run his hand over her skin.

 

Her scent invaded Henry's mind in a way that he thought would go crazy, and he probably would, never being able to see another naked woman and not compare her to Ginny and her perfection.

 

Again he wondered why she had never been asked to marry. He almost fell to his knees right there.

 

'So, Miss.' He managed to say, his voice hoarse than usual. 'Do you want help getting into the bath?'

 

'I can do it, Henry, thank you very much.' Ginny didn't turn to see him, and Henry thought it would be better, maybe if he saw a tiny part of her breast, he would be cursed for the rest of his life for not being able to touch her.

 

'I'll be waiting for you, there's a towel over there, and if the water is not as you like, you can call me.' Henry turned on his back, thinking that seeing her walking naked was also not the best way to try to survive the burning desire in the chest.

 

But listening seemed even worse, because his imagination didn't stop, the noise of the water and her moan of satisfaction made him have to thank the witch fashion and the fact that his robes protected him from being discovered.

 

The next few minutes would be slow and painful torture, he knew it, smelling the sweet soap, listening to the water fall to the floor whenever Ginny moved in the bathtub, her little murmurs of satisfaction, filling Henry's imagination with the most perverted images.

 

He felt ashamed to think that this woman would subject herself to things as dirty as the ones he was thinking about in his fantasies.

 

'I'm done.' Ginny woke him up from what appeared to be the fifth fantasy that Henry created in his mind. The water fell again, and worse than before, now he imagined her body smooth and warm, reddish and sensitive, smelling like the fragrance that would lead him to death.

 

Henry waited for her to call on him to help her go to the dresser where all her clothes were, not wanting to pay much attention to the strands of hair that stuck to the back of her neck.

 

'The bath really helped me,' Ginny said, walking back into the partition. 'I can manage to put on my pajamas, it's button-down, I won't have to make so much effort.' She smiled at him, flushed like a pepper, disappearing behind the wood and making him wait again. 'Do you really think that whoever it was was after me?' She asked, still dressing.

 

'I think.' Henry was blunt. 'But I did not understand why the other person, who clearly saw where we entered, said nothing. We don’t hear footsteps, which means he was there.’

 

'Should we tell someone?' Ginny appeared, wearing a light pink nightdress with dark pink buttons, delicate flowers embroidered on the hem. She accepted Henry's help to walk to the bed, she was not so pale anymore, and her arm looked much better, but he still realized that she was holding firmly on the furniture to stand.

 

'Let me take care of that, Miss, it's my job,' Henry said, covering her up as if Ginny were a helpless child who needed help. He sat next to her on the bed, enjoying that moment that would probably be unique, forgetting that she had been tagged with a boy who was probably dead, or if not, very far from her, and that Arthur had already found a replacement for the position of husband.

 

And it wasn't Henry.

 

He sighed, feeling strangely at peace when she shook his hand. 'Thank you for taking care of me.'

 

'I would never do the opposite.' He smiled, unable to take his eyes off her. 'How's the arm?'

 

'Sore, but I can feel my hand again.' To prove it, Ginny wiggled her fingers for him to see, laughing softly at that.

 

'Tomorrow will be better, I put good healing charms on you. It won't even be scarred.' He knew that women could care about that, he even cared about the one he carried on his forehead, always keeping it hidden behind his hair.

 

Ginny didn't say anything for a moment, just stared at him, luscious brown eyes that reminded Henry of a home feeling, flushed cheeks from hot water or a combination of that and the sun, and adorable freckles that he would like to spend hours counting each one, foolishly trying to memorize them for when he was forced to leave, not wanting, and not thinking he would be able, to ever forget her.

 

Henry thought how much easier life would be if he could just woo Ginny the right way, that seeing her naked would mean much more than just a helping hand, and that he probably wouldn't see just her back.

 

He thought about the life he would have had if he had been lucky enough to be born in a mansion like that. Not that he didn't love her mother, far from it, he was very grateful for everything she did. But things could be simpler if he were the son of the Duke and Duchess and had the opportunity to marry Ginny.

 

But life was not that easy. And, not for the first time, Henry cursed Harry Potter for disappearing and putting him in such a difficult position, of having Ginny so close and yet so far.

 

'Good night, Miss,' Henry murmured, and just because he felt brave, he leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. 'Sleep well.'



Back to index


Chapter 8: Chapter 8

Author's Notes: A.N: well, it took a long time to happen, i know, but things have been happening and i stayed away from the document for weeks, because nothing felt good
I hope you like it, I loved writing this chapter, and was looking forward to posting


| G.W |

'Daddy...' Ginny cried, running after her dad through the room he shared with Molly, watching him take the comb to fix his hair back, as he always did. ‘I’m great at duels.’

'I know dear, and I'm sure you would win against all those men easily,' he said, but Ginny already knew that a 'but' was coming next. 'But you are a woman, and as much as it pains me to say that, it is not respectable that a lady like you, duels men twenty years older.' Arthur kept the comb together with his other items, in the first drawer of the dresser. ‘Furthermore, this night will be the first party and I know that all women will spend the day getting dressed, taking care of their hair and choosing their dress, and I don’t want you to stay with the men in the quarry while you could be with your mum.’

'They hate me,' Ginny replied, exasperated, going after him when Arthur walked to the bedroom bathroom to get his cologne. 'They would be more than happy without me there. Please, let me just watch the duels, please, Henry will be with me, nothing can happen.’ She put her hands together, trying to make the best face to convince her dad, who seemed to believe nothing.

'Ginny, my dear, is not an appropriate place for women, not even with Henry by your side… And he will stay with me there.' That was the last straw for the despair that Ginny felt, and as if foreseeing this, her dad turned, placing his hands on her shoulders. 'You need to socialize with women, make friends, and Henry shouldn't be watching you when you're curling your hair... Be understanding, Ginny.’

'Comprehensive? Dad, none of them can look me in the eye, I- ’

'Enough,' said Arthur, as firm as ever, making her feel like a child. 'Now go, I want to see you beautiful tonight, I heard that there are some men wanting to take you out to dance.' Oh, of course, Ginny thought hurt, turning around and leaving the room her parents were in, furiously going to the living room, where she could hear other voices, looking for one of her brothers, wanting them to find a way to take her to the quarry, so that Ginny could see the duel.

She had never seen any, and Henry had trained her so well, she knew she was better than those men, but still, even if she couldn't duel, it would be fun to see them fight. Fascinating to say the least.

They were also not very kind to her, of course, they saw her as inferior and all those other things, and Ginny doubted that there were men, in the plural, wanting to dance with her. She had spoken to everyone, at least to introduce herself, and none of them took her hand as they did with the other girls, some of them seemed more frightened than the women, when they saw her approach.

Mr. Rosier greeted her, looking her in the eye at least, but something inside Ginny made her feel strange.

'Bill.' She intercepted her brother, if there was anyone who could take her to see the duels, it was Bill. ‘I’ve been thinking and-’

‘No.’ He denied it, looking sad to have to do this. 'I know what you're going to ask me, but I'm sorry, Gin, Dad was clear to all of us not to allow you to go to the quarry. And he is right. It is not a place for you.’

'Isn't it a place for me? I have been training for duels for two years. With a real auror. If anyone is supposed to duel it is me, don't you see that?' Ginny felt close to pleading, thinking that if Bill wouldn't do this then no one else would, he was the one who always pretended not to see her when Ginny ran to outside the protection of their house, just to pick the strawberries that were behind the lake. 'At least let me see the duel.'

'Stay with Fleur, she will entertain you, yes she will, Mom will be here too... Maybe some mum will see you and think that you are perfect for her son, who knows. Give them a chance.' Ginny denied, going after Bill when he started walking when being called by another Viscount's son.

'Bill, please,' she asked, just one more time, hoping he would realize that she was desperate. ‘Daddy will even take Henry, and I’ll be alone-’

'Which is even better.' He turned, sighing and running his hand through her hair as if she were a child. 'You will soon get married and Mr Figg will have to leave, it is about time you started to get used to it.' And with that, Bill was gone.

Ginny felt desperate, for the first time since she heard that they had been invited to The Duel Party. She looked around the room that was starting to get crowded, everyone talking and looking excited about the day's schedule, and Ginny felt suffocated. All those men and women seemed to have someone to have by their side, and she was there, standing in the center of the room, alone.

'Gin, honey, is everything okay?' Mrs. Potter's voice woke her up, preventing Ginny from panicking.

It was not just the fact that Ginny was not allowed to go to see the duel - women could watch, but only on the last day of the duel, when the finalists face off - but because the idea of having to remain stuck in a place where no one liked of her, with no means of escape, suffocated her. Henry wouldn't be around if her magic got out of hand and she ended up destroying a mirror when all she wanted to do was make sure the flower in her hair didn't wilt.

'Oh, good morning, my Lady,' Ginny gave a brief salute, fingers trembling as she held the skirt. 'Everything is great, just ... just looking for my mum.' The woman didn't seem to have swallowed the lie, her hard green eyes analyzing Ginny like an eagle, and she wondered where else she had seen that expression.

‘I haven’t seen her yet, I think maybe she’s in the gardens.’ She still didn’t look convinced, watching Ginny closely, as if she knew something was wrong. 'Are you looking forward to the ball tonight?' Lily smiled kindly, as if she suddenly realized that it seemed that everyone in the room was evaluating the two of them, having to think about what the two were talking about, and how one day, Lily imagined it would be the mother-in-law of the girl in front of her.

'Yes, I'm sure it will be an amazing night,' Ginny lied, with a skill she didn't even know she had, smiling and hiding the nervousness she felt every time she noticed someone turning their head towards her.

'That’s great,' she smiled. 'I know you wanted to go and watch the duel, but I'm sure our women's day will be a lot of fun too,' But Lily didn't seem to believe that, Ginny would realize later, when she remembered the shadow that persisted in her green eyes, as seem to understand the anguish that Ginny felt.

'I do too, my Lady.' Ginny was never more grateful for someone calling her name, even if it was Fleur, and she said goodbye to Lily to go after her sister-in-law, who seemed more excited than ever.

'Come on, let's go, your mum wants to talk to you, and I already tell you it's about men.' Fleur smiled from ear to ear, taking Ginny's hand and pulling her out into the garden, not even seeming to notice the male heads turning to face accompanying her. 'Bill told me about the duel, I'm sorry, and if it helps you a little, I would also love to see the duel. Don't tell your mom, but some of those women seem to hate us. ’

'It's because they do hate us,' she said, noticing when a woman who was supposed to be Molly's age, made a face at Ginny, turning her face and pinching her nose. ‘Actually, it’s more me than you guys.’

'Don't say ‘zat, it's too cruel,' Fleur's French accent was more apparent whenever she was happy, and this time was no different. 'They don't like us because... well, because they are all idiots, don't be moved by that, your mum and I will be with you and it will be better than being among those men. Do you really prefer to stay with muddy feet, close to those ogres who never seem to have seen a woman?' Fleur grimaced, tossing her long blond hair behind her shoulders, and Ginny really laughed at how affected she looked at it, Ginny didn't even if she bothered with it and thought that well, they didn't look at Ginny the way they looked at Fleur. 'Besides, if you want to get a good husband, my dear, let them think that you are a damsel in distress and that you need them to survive,' Her sister-in-law stopped, Molly seemed focused on the conversation with another woman to notice the two there.

'But I'm not a damsel in distress,' Ginny sayed, thinking of how many asses she could kick in that duel, without even pushing.

'Of course not, none of us are. But have you ever seen me having to do anything that might make me sweat? No, because men seem desperate to do it for me, and I just let it.' Ginny laughed, not even caring about the people looking. 'Let them, the guys and the women, say whatever they want about you, paint you like crazy or like a damsel in distress. Only you know that you are not that, and you are the only person who needs to know. ’

'Don't women look you in the eye, too?' Ginny asked, watching Fleur arrange the light pink scarf around her neck.

'Of course, they think that I am the reason why their marriage does not work, and that I am to blame for their husbands cheating on them. Do I need to go there and say that this is not true and that I am very well and happy with my man? No, I just ignore it, and let them speak. Do not give more reasons for these people to have your name on their lips, Gin, who really deserves you, is close to you without you having to deny what they invent out there.' Fleur started walking again, with the confident steps of someone who knew she could crush anyone in a few seconds, and Ginny smiled as she followed, trying to imitate her.

She couldn't help thinking about Henry while she heard Fleur speak, he never doubted her strength, and he didn't even seem to believe the lies that came out in the newspapers. Without thinking, she put her hand on her injured forearm, it didn't hurt anymore, but her skin was still a little red, and Ginny had to bite her cheeks to keep from smiling when the memory of him taking off her clothes came back to mind.

His calloused but soft hands on her skin, the touch like a feather, igniting each part touched, and making her need a lot of strength to not turn and kiss him.

In her dreams that night, they did much more than kiss, at least.

'Oh, Ginny dear, how good of you to come, I was even starting to worry about your delay.' Molly greeted her, and the woman beside her tried to get up, looking offended, and Fleur, who didn't even seem to mind, sat in the empty seat. 'Did your dad put a little bit of judgment on your head?'

'He tried.' Ginny shrugged. 'But I would still prefer to go to the Quarry.' Molly denied, seeming to find it almost blasphemous, and Ginny laughed with a disapproving grimace. 'Well, but that's what I have left. May I know who is the mysterious man who seems to want to go out with me today? It seems like everyone knows but me, and just maybe, I don't know, I should be the first to know. '

‘I didn’t want you to be anxious,’ Molly said, and Ginny thought there was no way she was going to be nervous about news like that, but she didn’t want to spoil her mother’s mood with her usual pessimism. 'It's Mr. Rosier, he and your dad had talked before and your dad and I think he will be a great company for you, and if the other men see you dancing with such an exquisite man, they will take you to dance too. '

'When you talk like that it makes me feel like a goat on display,' she said, and her mum's eyes widened, while Fleur laughed and seemed to agree.

'Don't say that, of course you are not a goat on display, it's just a way to get attention dear, you know how balls like this work.' Yes, she had watched enough parties to know how things worked, and how a girl's first dance was important to tell what the rest of the dance would be like for her.

Unfortunately for Ginny, there was rarely the first dance.

‘Mr. Rosier?' She had spoken to the man only a few times, only when they were introduced, and he seemed a little socially out of place, as if he had never attended a party like that, and had never dealt with mums desperate to get their daughters married with the first rich man to appear.

He was handsome, tall, muscular, with gray eyes and well-combed brown hair, Ginny had seen one or another girl sighing as he passed, and he seemed to be well mannered, since even her mother had liked him. Molly was also a reason for men to stay away from Ginny, she could be quite scary and demanding at times.

'Yes, yes, a great man,' Molly continued to speak, listing all the man's qualities and a few more things that Ginny didn't pay attention to, watching from afar one of Mr. Potter's friends, talking to another man she didn't recognize from afar, the shadow of the trees making the person stay hidden. She did not know why that interaction attracted her attention, since she did not remember the name of that man, she only knew that he was a great friend of the Duke.

As if warned, the man looked at her over his shoulder, and even from a distance, Ginny knew that whatever was going on there was not something she should be looking at, and it made her turn her face quickly, not wanting to get in trouble.

‘Where’s Henry?’ They haven’t seen each other yet, which was weird, because usually he was always by her side since the time Ginny got up. And Henry might be good at hiding among the others, but she always knew where he was.

'He said that he would need to resolve some issues before he came, something involving his mum. And it's Mr. Figg, Ginny, please.' Molly corrected her, but she didn't care much, thinking that she would never be able to call him Mr. Figg. They had already passed the formality phase, at least while she was with the family.

Henry saw her naked last night, by Merlin's beard, they had already crossed that line!

When they came in for breakfast, Ginny didn't see Henry anywhere, just like after breakfast, when Mr Potter announced what the day would be like today. At least Ron had the decency to look upset when the man said that the duel would be seen only by men, looking at his sister as if he were very sorry that she had been born with something different between her legs.

Ginny did not express any reaction, not even when she heard a young woman look scared to know that she would be together with everyone else.

'We'll have to keep the mirrors away from this one,' she said, laughing with her friend, who seemed to be amused by the memory of when Ginny lost control of her magic in the bathroom of a party, one of the first she had gone to, and one of the first times she felt ridiculously alone.

She was nervous, trying to fix her hair, her dress, her lipstick, trying to find whatever was wrong with her, thinking that maybe the idea of having her hair tied up with real flowers hadn't been smart, since the stuffy place made them wilted and embarrassed. There were other women in the bathroom, which made her even more anxious, and when she tried to cast a spell on one of the sunflowers, her wand exploded in magic, hitting the mirror and bouncing off one of the pictures, which kept screaming for help and calling more attention from whoever was out there.

'Yes, or we will cut their throat,' Fleur whispered in her ear, tossing her hair back, and looking at Bill as if she expected him to defend Ginny.

It was a losing fight, Ginny would admit to her later, it was better that they all pretended not to listen than to risk being excluded from even more events. Her brothers did not need to lose their friends, and no longer be called to the pubs, because they defended her.

She can defend herself, and sometimes Ginny would rather be silent than fight.

'It will be a great day.' Molly clapped her hands, smiling at Ginny and Fleur, as the men dissipated across the room, chatting animatedly about what they expected from this first phase of the duel and anything else men said. Ginny noticed that Mrs. Potter took her husband by the arm, whispering something to him that he nodded and gave her a kiss on the forehead, then whispered something back.

Ginny felt a little embarrassed to have seen that display of affection that seemed so intimate.

‘I promise I’ll tell you everything later,’ Ron startled her, appearing in front of her and preventing her from seeing if it was Henry who had entered the room. 'These men are all weak, you would humiliate everyone, which is why dad forbade you to go.'

‘You know that it’s not true, but thanks for lying.’ She smiled. ‘I’ll tell you everything too, and don’t worry, I’ll be sure to do a good advertisement about you, for Miss. Granger.' Ron flushed like a tomato, his ears looking like they were on fire, while he laughed awkwardly and denied it.

'Don't be an idiot,' he said, before ruffling her hair and following the trail of men who headed out of the house through the doors leading to the garden, leaving her behind.

Looking around the room one last time, she saw him, standing in the corner, watching like an eagle, someone Ginny had not identified, since all the men were together and could be literally anyone. He grimaced and took a deep breath, looking at other people until he found her.

Henry nodded, slightly and almost imperceptibly.

He was beautiful, as always, Auror's clothes were well ironed and aligned as always, his hair continued to be the usual mess, and his green eyes looked even more vibrant now that the sunlight was coming in through the windows, the beam of light making her perceive some copper-colored wires in the middle of the black ones.

Something inside her stirred, that restlessness of now seemed to multiply in a thousand, remembering how his hand felt on her skin, how careful he was and how that whole care made her feel loved in such a new way and almost suffocating.

Not that she was complaining, she would give anything to feel that way again, but she wanted Henry to touch her beyond her back and arm, and she wanted to be able to touch him back.

Before she could do anything, walk up to him, call him, try to concentrate enough for them to exchange a few words for legilimency, Henry turned and followed the flow of men, reminding her that today, she would be alone.

He was the last man to leave the room, and Ginny hoped that sometime he would look back just for her to wave, and maybe he realized that she didn't want to stay there, that her hand was shaking with the panic she felt at just thinking about everything that could go wrong, anything.

But Henry didn't look back, the glass door closing behind him magically.

| H. F |

Henry stayed behind everyone, as he used to be, watching men talk about things they would probably never say near their wives and daughters, and he wanted to roll his eyes at that, imagining that many there would kill the first man who did or said those things about their own daughter.

He watched from afar as Mr Potter talked privately to one of his friends, Mr Black, if he was not mistaken, who shared the same worried countenance as the other, always looking sideways and backwards, but never seeming to find the person he wanted. Henry realized that unlike yesterday, the other two men who were always around were missing.

'How do you feel knowing that I'm going to kick your ass?' He heard a son of a Viscount say, his nose up, the scarf tied tightly around his neck, and that snobbish way of being. The other seemed to enjoy the threat, taller and stronger than his friend.

'You won't even know what hit you.' The other said, the wand in his hand, but Henry doubted that it was going to happen.

He had seen many men duel, for several reasons; women, money, training and being rivals, and he could tell very well when someone was just showing off, and those two, were that kind of guy.

When he joined the Aurors, Robards did not take it easy on him, much less when he knew that he had never attended a wizard school or something, and the man made Henry learn, one way or another, to identify several small details that could make you stay alive during a duel.

All the men he dueled with, other than his gym mates, ended up dead. And almost everyone looked very much like that man in front of him. Too pompous to know what it's really like to fight for something other than male pride.

When he turned his attention away from the two brats, Henry realized that Mr. Rosier was looking at him, as if he recognized him from somewhere, his gray eyes fixed on him, his wand in hand.

Henry nodded, ignoring the restlessness in his chest, trying not to think too much of where he recognized this man. Mr. Weasley had told him about Rosier, a good man, from a wealthy family - but who was starting to face some problems after the war - and who could provide Ginny with a safe place to stay.

Of course, he didn't think those were good requirements for you to find a husband for your only daughter, but Henry couldn't wait for Arthur to find a man for Ginny to love.

This is not how weddings work for people like them.

Love is for those like Henry, who have nothing more to offer.

When they finally reached the quarries, he thought Ginny would love to go there, and maybe he could try to sneak her out here, there would probably be some spare time when they could sneak out and Henry would bring her here.

There was a large, well-kept lawn, a few trees ahead, but what really drew attention was what was aside. A clear and calm river, with huge cliffs around it, where they would duel was where the vegetation of the land ended, as now all around was water. He felt tiny amidst all the fallen rocks nearby, the cliff, and the blue-green immensity that stretched to the infinity of his vision.

‘Who's going to want to start?’ Mr Potter asked, looking at all the men standing there, all looking a little shocked at the sight. Yes, it was a shame that women couldn't see that too.

‘I will,’ One of the men said. He was too chatty, looking too proud that everyone was looking at him.

‘One more.’ Mr. Potter continued to stare into each of their faces, until he stopped at Henry, a slightly mischievous smile playing on his lips. ‘Mr Figg? Do you want to show us if duel training is good in the academy?’

‘Hm…’ Henry mused, a little embarrassed at having to speak in the midst of all those men. Of course the academy training is good, he wouldn't survive a day as an Auror if it didn't. 'Sure..'

Henry was seldom in the center of a circle, he thought he was not born to receive all the attention for himself, an embarrassed boy who learned early on that being silent was always the best option when it came to large crowds.

Now, unlike when Robards pushed him to the center of the dueling wheel, Henry was anxious and felt his hands trembling. Of course, as someone who had trained for years, he knew very well how to disguise it, but still, his magic trembled inside his chest, in that anxiety he had felt sometimes during his life. The eyes of all those men on him didn't help at all.

It wouldn't be the first time he'd dueled in front of an audience, but there was a difference between dueling other Aurors at the Academy, and dueling with a rich man who hoped Henry would lose so his ego wouldn't be hurt.

‘Greet each other.’ James seemed to love that bread and circus, all the while looking curious about Henry's movements.

He bowed to the man as usual, trying to ignore the comments some made. It wasn't hard to see that he wasn't part of any wealthy family, and that wearing the Aurors badge was the highest rank Henry would ever achieve.

Unlike probably 70% of those men, going to the academy was his only chance, not just a formality.

‘We won't have godparents, as our goal is not to kill the other,’ Henry noticed that the man in front of him didn't seem satisfied with the rule. Perhaps he felt affronted for dueling him instead of a Marquis. ‘If one of the two falls and doesn't get up within three seconds, or loses his wand, he loses. Do we agree?' The two nodded, and Henry pressed his wand against his hand, feeling more and more challenged every time he heard a man laugh and/or make a joke about him.

He and the man, Henry no longer even remembered his name, faced each other, raised their wands, and Henry thought his chest would explode when his opponent smiled and looked at his friend, who was also laughing. They seemed to disbelieve that Henry would be able to win, or at least know what he was doing, and it seemed to disturb him far more than the other times he had been through it.

When the signal was given, before he even thought, Henry flung the man away like a sack of potatoes, his wand flying into his hand while his own trembled slightly. All chatting and giggles ceased immediately.

‘Your grace didn't say anything about nonverbal spells,’ Henry muttered to James, realizing he hadn't even said the Expelliarmus.

‘It's within the rules,’ he replied, also in a low tone, before looking at the man lying near one of the rocks, who looked stunned, his white skin now red. ‘My dear Finneas, you lost the first duel.’ Henry walked over to him, handing back his wand.

‘It was a good duel,’ Henry said, as he always said at the end of duels, even though his pride was screaming inside him.

‘Sure.’ Finneas took the wand from Henry's hands, marching back to his friend, his chest puffed out as if to give him back some self-love.

'Congratulations, Mr Figg.' Mr Potter smiled, that same curious look from before, as if Henry had suddenly become an interesting figure for a Duke to pay attention to.

Something inside him warmed and again, his wand trembled in his hand, as it used to do when he was a teenager who had no idea how to handle the magic in his chest that always seemed close to exploding. It had been a while since he'd felt this way the last time.

‘The rules are simple, as you've all seen, we'll have no godparents, nonverbal spells are allowed, and the first one who loses his wand loses.’ He was now looking at other faces, which still diverted their attention to Henry. 'Everyone will duel against everyone, as we are in twenty men, obviously the ten winners of today, will move on to the next round which will be two days from now, as we know we have some who are too old and need to recover,' Mr Weasley, who was beside Henry now, laughed and nodded, seeming to be amused by the idea of dueling as a joke.

‘Hope you go easy on me when we face off,’ he said, watching Henry, who chuckled sheepishly and nodded.

'Of course sir, I will let you hit me first.' Arthur winked at him, looking back at Mr Potter, who continued to speak the basic rules.

Henry wondered if Arthur would rather trade places with Ginny, and spend a few hours sitting around doing nothing and talking about trivialities. He had already seen the man duel, and no, he didn't need Henry to take it easy, he probably needed to be on the alert even more than the others, since the two had already witnessed how the other fought in a real duel.

Arthur didn't seem to need help when he killed that Death Eater with just one spell, anger burning in his eyes.

‘Miss. Weasley would enjoy watching all of these duels. 'Henry whispered, watching the Duke split the pairs.

‘Yes,’ Arthur looked at him, before he looked away and his smile died, and Henry watched as the man looked at Mr. Rosier, who kept looking at them, trying futilely to disguise it. 'But this is not a place for her.'

Henry wondered if Mr. Rosier was aware of Ginny's entire trajectory, and of her strength, or if Arthur had preferred to keep these details from him so that he could find a husband. He knew some men didn't like it when a woman looked stronger than they were.

Perhaps that was why he forbade her to come to the duel, because then a man could see her as that damsel in distress who needed to be saved they were so fond of. He didn't think she would like this if she knew.

Henry didn't understand why men didn't look at her, he'd been attracted to her since the first time he'd seen her, and since then that silly attraction had grown into a much bigger and dangerous monster that he felt he had no control over. Knowing that she wouldn't come to the duel, almost made him break some social rules, and if he had stayed in the room a few more minutes, or looked back, he would have picked her up and bewitched her so that no one would see her.

He felt he could do anything for her, and even then, it wouldn't be enough.

How did other men not feel like him? How they weren't lining up to kiss her hand, when she was wearing that cream dress, her braided hair, and that hat that made her look like one of those porcelain dolls that rich girls had.

Ginny was everything he could have ever dreamed of, and more, how could those men not see what he saw?

‘Mr. Figg, you will duel Mr. Rosier.’ He was awakened from his reverie, looking at the man who now had reason to watch him, gray eyes measuring him up and down, a pompous smile on his face. ‘And so, it will be the first round, I think we all understand?’ James said.

‘It will be an interesting duel, Mr. Figg.’ Rosier stepped closer, hands in his pockets. 'We were never introduced properly.' He held out his hand, and Henry noticed a large scar that came out of his palm and went up into his arm, hidden by clothes. 'Louis.'

‘Henry.’ He squeezed the man's hand, even though his gray eyes didn't look so trustworthy and something inside him looked uncomfortable.

The other men had already started to disperse, so that the duels could really start, Henry walked up to a tree with Rosier, thinking that a silly jealousy would not hinder his performance in that fight.

‘Greetings,’ Mr. Potter said, in the center, and he and Mr. Black seemed willing to make sure everyone followed the imposed rules. Henry bent over, thinking of a million spells he could start. 'You all can start.'

| L. P |

Lily took a deep breath as the third woman looked at her pityingly, thinking that the idea of asking about Mrs. Brown's pregnancy had been stupid. She should have known better that no one would ever let her forget about losing her child, as if forever, talking about children was a sad subject.

It was, but Lily wasn't a broken vase that had been mended with tape, and every time they tried to fill it with water, it broke again. She knew how to hide her emotions and her joy towards that young mother, it wasn't even close to envy or jealousy, she really was happy for her.

She could still be happy, even if she had lost her child over twenty years ago.

"Isn't it tiring?" Ginny asked quietly, hands steady in her lap, not even daring to touch the cup of tea in front of her. Her red hair, much more vivid and orange than Lily's, was being magically curled, like that of most of the other women there, all sitting together in the tea room.

"What, dear?" Lily asked, glad the girl had opened her mouth at least once.

“All those looks whenever someone talks about babies.” Her cheeks flushed, as if she suddenly realized this wasn't something to ask a Duchess.

Lily smiled. ‘Yes, but I’ve gotten used to it.’

"Oh, I'm so glad it didn't rain today, it's a beautiful day, don't you think?" Lady Jillian spoke, her voice loud and excited as always, but looking curiously at the interaction between Lily and Ginny. 'You have an amazing garden, it's understandable why you spend so much time here, Duchess.'

"Yes, flowers are just one more reason, but the calm here is priceless, I'm too old for turbulent London." She continued to smile as it sent the etiquette, her cheeks starting to ache. If she expressed any emotion other than pure happiness, it would get out in the papers that she was in a terrible depression and that maybe James was cheating on her with a younger, happier girl.

"Oh, of course you're not old!" Molly shook her head, sipping her tea and shrugging as if that was bullshit, before turning to the woman beside her. “How was the trip to Scotland, Lady Finnegan?” The side conversations took place again, the younger ones talking to each other, laughing and whispering to each other, the mothers talking about travel, high society gossip, the dances, the husbands, and the widows liked to tease the youngest, seeming to enjoy watching the girls blush when they spoke the name of some man who was handsome.

Lily watched everything, sipping her tea and thanking no one talking to her, letting her have a moment where she didn't have to smile and answer the same old questions; Yes, it's a great time to buy herbs. No, unfortunately I didn't go to that ball. Oh yes I heard she got married. No, we weren't in town when this happened.

Ginny, who was standing next to her, also seemed to be watching everything, but unlike her, she didn't seem comfortable with her own silence.

She was a beautiful woman, and it was hard to think that she was no longer that little girl that Lily heard Molly talk about. No more climbing trees, climbing on roofs, running from her parents to hide, now she could attend dances, afternoon tea, and drink wine. Time had passed too quickly.

Lily couldn't help but wonder how the girls, a year or two younger than her, didn't include her in the conversation. Nor how men didn't seem to want to include her in the moments when they talked to ladies and courted them either. She was always alone. And Lily wished the two of them didn't share the same knowledge of what it was like to feel that way.

Unlike her, Ginny wasn't excluded or treated with pity for having lost a baby, but somehow, the loss of Lily had affected her too, which was unfair.

'Drink your tea dear, it will get cold and I don't think it will taste good' She said, not only because she didn't want the girl to feel lonely, but because Lily wanted Ginny to know she wasn't alone, and that she understood what she was going through.

'Oh, thank you, my Lady, but I'm not thirsty.' Ginny smiled, and Lily realized that she pressed her fingers against her palm, as if she wanted to avoid something.

'Do you want me to order something for you? A cookie?'

"No need to worry, thanks."

"I insist, I'm starving." Lily called to Fye, ordering, and the elf nodded before apparating to the kitchen. ‘We have delicious chocolate chip cookies, great for calming your nerves. I always eat them when I feel like I need something to bring me back to earth, you know? When I want to feel hugged.

'Do you want to feel that way now?' Ginny seemed to stretch her shoulders, a slight smile on her face. A real smile.

"Isn't that what we all want?" Lily arched an eyebrow, watching her nod. "A tight hug from those who look like they're going to break our ribs."

"I don't know when I last got one of these." She didn't look sad though. "But I think chocolate is a great way to feel that way."

'Course is. And I also think, none of these women are going to want to hug us right now, so chocolate is our best choice.”

"Oh no no, some of them would prefer death to that." Ginny laughed, and so did Lily, glad to have someone other than James to play the pranks without getting a pitying look.

"Thank you Fye, you can rest now." Lily thanked the elf, who nodded and left, unnoticed by the other women. ‘Take one, dear… Yes, you will see, chocolate is able to cure any sadness or anxiety, it is better than any potion I have ever invented.'

"So it's true, you invent potions?" Ginny was looking at her curiously now. "I've heard some people say, but you know, you can't trust everything that's said."

"No, definitely not." Lily took a sip of tea. ‘I don’t invent, I study the ones that already exist, and I do tests with some changes on top of those studies, trying to find a new result. Some work, and some just explode or boil over and melt everything around.” The two laughed, like they were old friends.

'Have you done this for a long time?'

'Since when I learned how to make a colic potion that didn't make me want to throw up all my lunch. It's been a few years... Then, over time, I've been taking more and more tests and studying more, and when you spend a lot of time alone, you start discovering skills you never thought you'd have.'

"Do you intend to come up with any specific potions?" She looked even more curious now, one hand tucked under her chin, supporting her face as she was slightly crooked in her chair to get a look at Lily, the other holding a cookie.

"I do." Lily thought of that old Slughorn note, that it promised a potion she could test if these people shared the same DNA. Until now, the tests had been flawed. "But I still haven't got the results I want."

The two continued to talk for a long time, discussing Lily's trip to India, then Ginny's trainings, and even boys - she said Mr. Rosier would dance with her, but Ginny didn't even look by far excited about it, and when Lily asked her what she thought of it, she said it was weird that she was the last to know and that the man had talked to her father first before her.

It was nice to have someone to talk to, especially a younger girl, it made Lily feel less old, as much as James continued to insist that Lily was not old, she knew she was. The forty-five years had arrived in her life and made her think about the years that passed.

When all the women had their hair done and ready for lunch, Remus walked into the room, not even bothering not to attract attention.

"I need you to join me, my Lady," he asked, bending over in front of her as if they hadn't been friends since she was ten, and that triggered a sixth sense in Lily.

“Excuse me, my dears.” She got up, smiling at the women who watched her looking curious enough to be able to follow her wherever Remus took her. "I'll be back in a minute, you can go to lunch without me, I won't be long."

Lily followed Remus without losing her poise, shoulders back, chin up, not wanting to show that she was distressed by the interruption. Where was James? Did something happen to him? Why wasn't Remus at the quarry with all the other men? What was wrong? Has Voldemort found them?

'What happened, Moony, you're scaring me.' Lily allowed herself to look nervous, far enough away from the house that no one could see her through the windows. Remus was leading her into the woods, a worried look on her face, looking anxious.

"I decided to call you after I show you what I found."

‘Why aren't you with James? Is he okay?” Lily looked at him.

'James is fine, Sirius is with him, I was… Well, we thought there was something wrong last night, and I stayed behind to investigate, and that's when I found it.' Remus and she stopped in the middle of the forest, and on the floor in front of her, protected by a spell, lay Harry's blanket that Lily kept with all the care in the world, one of the few things that still contained small traces of his DNA that she would use in the potion to try to find out. It had been a few years, but it still contained enough for one potion.

She floated the cover, her hands shaking.

No one had access to the dungeons where Harry's box of things was kept, protected from the weather, the dust and everything she and James could protect, trying to keep what was left of their son as immaculate as possible.

"Remus," Lily said, startled.

"Whoever took this knew how important it was to you," he whispered, and neither of them needed to say any more. Her heart broke.

‘Do you think… it's someone we know?' She asked, startled, carefully sending the cover back to the dungeons, making sure it was as discreet as possible.

'I've been thinking about it, and-' He was interrupted, a noise coming from the direction of the clearing that was nearby, the voice of someone cursing under his breath. Lily and Remus started walking, wands drawn, a bad feeling taking over her chest.

Each time they went deeper into the forest, it got darker, the tops of the trees covering the sky and preventing the light from entering, the ground a little damp due to this lack of sun soiled the hem of her dress and her sneakers, the wind icy very different from the heat she had been feeling before. She had never been so far into the Forest, James came here on full moon nights with Remus, but Lily kept her distance at all times, the feeling of claustrophobia that the place caused made her dizzy.

The noise kept coming from the highest part of the Forest, where James said it was the worst part, even darker, wetter and colder, in the opposite direction of the clearing she had told Ginny to visit last night.

Several crows flew over there, some stared at her from the branches of the trees, and Lily noticed that not far away there was some dead chick being devoured by vultures.

As they got closer to the noise, almost to the rock that bordered the end of where you could advance into the woods, they found a man, his back to them, his sleeves rolled up and looking annoyed at something. There were things in front of him on the floor, things that Lily didn't identify at first, but it didn't look good.

"Stopped." Remus clutched his wand in his hand, touching the back of his head with the tip, ready to react. Whatever that man was doing, it wasn't a good thing.

He froze in place, and when Remus was ready to cast some spell on him, something from his hand fell, and everything spun around her.

On his forearm was the Death Eater mark, Lily had seen several over the years, but that wasn't what shocked her, it wasn't what made her take a step back, it was the fact that that forearm belonged to Peter.

Peter, James' best friend, that boy Lily met at age 13 when they bumped into each other in the middle of a boring event. Peter, whom James treated as a brother, who took refuge with them the several times he saw death coming, during the Order's missions. Peter who was the first of the Marauders to arrive to see Harry, and who at his christening blessed him with several years to live.

This Peter had his arm marked by those who wanted her life, James, Remus, her son.

"Lily, it's not what you're thinking." He sobbed, dropping his wand to the ground and turning away. 'I can explain.'

‘What will you explain? What were you doing with my son's things?’ She wanted to scream when she realized what it was all about on the floor; Harry's things, things that Lily had ensured were kept without anyone touching a finger, were now strewn on that dirt floor and the remains of dead animals. "Peter, what the fuck is this?"

"He made me do, Lily, I swear." Peter looked increasingly desperate, keeping his face down as if he couldn't even look at her. "I did everything, Lily, I did everything for him to stay alive."

'He? He who, Peter?' Remus said, now assuming the position of Lily's defender and keeping his wand pointed at his friend- Peter. "What did you do, Peter?"

"Moony, you know me, Moony, you know I would never do this because I wanted to." He proceeded to plead with Remus, turning to him and clasping his hands together in prayer, leaving his scarred arm even more in evidence. Lily wanted to vomit. "He forced me, he told me that if I didn't, the boy would become a Lord of Death."

'The boy?' Lily seemed to have been awake, and in the next instant she was holding Peter by the collar of his suit, looking very, very close to killing him with her bare hands. ‘The boy, Peter? The boy was my son!” She pushed him with all her strength to the dirt floor, anger burning in her blood. "He was…Peter, he was a baby."

‘Lily you don't understand-’

"I don't understand?!" The crows nearby flew away at her scream, startled by her disturbance of her peace, as well as the noise of other running animals were heard as well. But Lily had blood pumping in her ears, blind with rage. 'What did you do with my son, Peter? I'll give you a chance to talk to me before I kill you.'

‘I needed to do this, he told me he would kill me if I didn't, so I… I did. Lily, forgive me, I tried to convince he not to, but-’

"I'm sure you tried," she said, the taste of blood in her mouth. 'What did you do? Tell me! Did you kill him as soon as you got him? Did you even bury him?” Lily didn't know if she really wanted to know that, but something inside her begged for answers, for an end. If she knew what had happened to Harry, she could finally say goodbye.

Lily didn't think she could take a few more years anyway, there was a very big hole inside her and having to face Peter, knowing that he who had made that hole in her made her relive that terrible pain and memories of days that seemed endless and tortuous, days when James needed to stay close to her at all hours so she just didn't end her own life.

That was a pain that no mother or father should ever experience, a pain that Lily wished she had never known about, because now, looking at the clothes, the teddy bears, Harry's pillow lying on the floor, she thought it was all useless. Useless and unfair.

All the memories she created to keep herself sane were now littered with dirt and the remains of dead animals. Lily figured Peter was probably about to set the whole thing on fire.

It would be too sad to have to tell James, and Lily was afraid her husband couldn't take it anymore.

A son killed by his own friend. What a tragedy. Newspapers would be supplied for more than a month with that story.

‘Lily I tried. I made sure he was fine, I made sure that the woman who found him was good, that she took care of him, Arabella believed in me as an idiot, so I knew she would be a good mom to him, I ... I swear.’ Peter stammered, eyes wide, looking like a scared rat. “Harry is alive, Lily, I didn't kill him. And he is here.’

Back to index


Chapter 9: Chapter 9

Author's Notes: OK, let's go
Thank you very much to the comments, really, I know it takes time, but I'm glad you're here always waiting for a new chapter
for your understanding: everything in *ITALIC* is flashback, it's a chapter basically made up of that, it explains some things

it was the chapter i waited the longest to arrive, i liked it in the end, i hope you did too


It was a cold night, it had rained that afternoon and the sky was cloudy, it looked like it would rain later in the morning, but Arabella was happy about that, as the damp, muggy weather made her sneeze every minute and her asthma was actually getting worse. She should visit a doctor soon.

She continued to walk down the empty street, the hem of her dress was getting more and more muddy, no matter how much she pulled her skirt up a little, every time she stepped into a puddle the mud splashed and it was no use effort in trying to get that dress clean. She should have picked an older one to go out with, since she knew the streets would be dreadful after all that rain, not the brand new one she'd bought after working so hard.

Was it just a piece of sewn fabric, why was it so expensive? There weren't even enough details or buttons to justify it.

But if Isabel was telling the truth, the fabric had come from India, and that in itself had already increased the price twice as much, and Arabella knew that the woman would not lie to her… She hoped at least.

As she walked the streets of Godric's Hollow, she thought about how another lonely night would be, and that maybe tomorrow she would send a letter to her great-aunt asking if she could stay a few days at her farm, just to have the company of other people besides the two her cats; Silk and Melindra.

“Help!” The scream echoed behind her, and Arabella turned, startled, to see if anyone was hurt or what might have triggered that scream. It was a female scream, and it made her think that maybe a woman could be chased by some maniac, and even though she wasn't very strong, two women fought better than just one, so she ran towards the scream, not caring more about the mud splashing on her dress.

Near Ms. Bright’s shop, there was a woman lying down and bleeding, her clothes torn and a baby in her lap. She looked scared, dumped near a ditch that had been made a few days ago to start building a fashion studio around the corner, the scant dress that still covered her was smeared with what looked like blood and mud, and Arabella thought she saw blood running down her legs. Whether it was an injury or something more disturbing, she couldn't tell. The woman held the baby tightly to her chest, wrapped in an old blanket as dirty as she was, and the poor child spared no effort in crying, looking more than scared.

“I'm here, what happened?” Arabella ran to her, helping the poor girl to her seat, noticing that the poor baby was also smeared with blood, but she couldn't tell whose blood it was. ‘Come, come to my house, I can help you-’

"No," she cried, brown eyes startled and wide, as if they'd seen death a few feet away. “Someone is following me, I — I'm going to be killed, I know I will, my husband is after me and — you need to get the boy.” She lifted the baby towards Arabella. 'He's trying to kill us, he thinks the child isn't his, he thinks I cheated on him, and he's coming, I-' The woman stopped, as if she'd heard something, but then thunder made the Earth shudder. ‘Please save the boy, I beg you, he already tried to kill the boy but I was always on time, but now I feel like I won't be able to save him.’

“You must come with me.” Arabella pleaded once more, kneeling in front of the woman, trying to get her to rise. When she reached for her forearm, however, her hand was wet with blood, and the tear in the side of her dress let her see a hideous cut in her ribs, the blood running like water in a waterfall, dripping onto the floor and other parts of her dress.

"I told you," she muttered, sobbing. 'I'm going to die, I'm not going to make it, I can't stand walking any longer, I managed to run away from him but I can't stand it much longer… Take the boy.' The woman lifted the boy again, who now seemed to cry even more, waking a few neighborhood dogs, as the sky glowed brighter, the earth trembling a few seconds later. "Take him away, don't let him die."

'How-how am I going to leave you here, I can't-' Another thunder shook the earth, and this time, the storm began to fall stronger than the afternoon, the winds suddenly getting strong, which seemed to scare the boy even more.

‘He will get sick! Get him, take care of him!” As if on instinct, Arabella scooped him up in her arms, wrapping him in her scarf so he was a little warmer. Footsteps were heard nearby, and the woman seemed to despair even more. 'Go! Get Harry and go!’

“What's his name?” Arabella yelled over the noise of the rain, trying to understand what she had said.

‘Henry! His name is Henry!’


“Poor Duchess,” someone says, but all Arabella can see is the white flag atop the castle, an immense sadness shattering her chest into a million pieces.

"Who could do something that horrible?" Another says, all paying attention to the newspaper that reports how Harry Potter, the Duke's eldest son, was found dead near a creek not far away. Probably killed by Death Eaters.

“They're all nasty human beings!” A man said, looking horrified by the media descriptions, then looking up at the castle again.

It's not that far away, it faces the mountains that end Godric's Hollow, separating them from another village, and it's positioned in a way that's seen from anywhere, no matter where you are, you'll see the castle and the huge towers, next to the flags that stand proudly on the masts. One with the English flag, the other with the Potter family crest. But today, both give way to white flags.

The boy is dead.

Arabella wipes the tears from her eyes and watches little Henry sleep in her arms, oblivious to the commotion.

She sympathizes with the Duchess's pain as she looks at that little baby who nearly died along with her mother - Arabella knew that the woman's body was found lifeless the next morning - and remembers the time she too felt the pain of losing a child, of losing the one she loved most to Death Eaters. She kisses the boy's forehead, the pale scar of lightning makes him unique, and Arabella lets herself cry, thinking of the Duchess herself, and how they took away her right to fondle her own son.


Arabella did not remember seeing the Duke in public since the incident two years ago.

He smiles and nods, but she notices - because she's been there once too - that he's sick, that the gold-and-red scarf around his neck seems to have a lot of fabric left over, as well as his pants. She notices the dark circles under his eyes, and the sunken cheeks, but the man still smiles and waves at people.

Henry was on her lap, yesterday he turned two, and Arabella doesn't know very well when he was born, but her neighbor, who is a doctor, said he wasn't much older than four or five months, so she decided that his birthday would be the day before they met, because she thought it was too tragic to celebrate the day she found him in his mother's lap half dead, but she didn't want to stray too far from the date.

The Duke smiles and nods to a little girl on his father's shoulders, he is walking through the village as he usually does, something that brings him closer to the people who live there and keeps him in power. He's a good man, after his father, the best they've ever had for sure.

He stops when he gets close to Arabella, and she smiles because she used to paint the portraits of the royal family until she had a problem with her fist and was forced to quit her profession, but the man never seems to forget the time she drew him on his 17th birthday.

"I'm still waiting for you to draw me and my wife." He says, as he always has since she informed him that she had unfortunately been forced to stop. The man isn't charging her though, he smiles, and watches Henry in her lap, almost sleeping on her shoulder. “It's a beautiful boy.” She thought she saw a shadow in his eyes, but it was so fast she thought it was just her imagination. 'How old is he?'

"Two years," she says, and now she's sure the man looks sick, because for a second he stops and stares at Henry, as if wondering what his two-year-old son would be like. Arabella knows because she used to do this. "My condolences, my Lord."

"It's okay, I’m fine," the man says, and he winks at Henry, who hides in his mother's neck, before going off to talk to another woman.


“Why are we different?” Henry asks, sitting on the table as Arabella tends to his scraped knee. 'We don't have the same eye color, and my hair doesn't match yours.' She knows he doesn't mean to be mean, he's just a curious and very intelligent child, that he's noticed the dissimilarities between them.

She smiles, applying ointment to the wound. ‘Because you are my son at heart, and children at heart are sometimes not like their mothers at heart.’

'What is a child at heart?' He agrees to be picked up by her, and Arabella leads them into their small living room, sitting on the sofa with Henry on her lap, looking at her with big green eyes gleaming with curiosity, black strands falling over his eyelashes. She needs to cut his hair soon.

“It means that you were born from another belly, not mine.” She places a hand over her stomach. “But that's just what separates us, because my love for you surpasses any barrier.” Arabella smiles, kissing his cheek, and Henry seems satisfied with the explanation.

'I love you so much too, this size here!' He opens his arms as much as he can, and the demonstration warms her heart as always, making her smile and hug her son as tightly as she assures him that she loves him even more.

| J. P |

James was concentrating on the duels when Remus arrived. He was marveling at how well Mr. Figg dueled, neither shivering nor losing time when Mr. Rosier hit back one of his spells, and the man didn't even look tired.

He had always found dueling an incredibly boring and dull part of parties when he was younger, accompanied by his father and seeing the men fall in a few minutes, James preferred the parties and the after, when the house was silent and dark and he could go out to meet some woman.

It was at one of these parties that he met Lily, during a nighttime getaway he saw her jumping out the window. First he followed her thinking that she was also going to meet someone, and James being a curious young man that he was, he wondered what kind of man that woman liked to sneak with. Maybe he had a chance. But later, when he saw her come out of the house and run towards the lake nearby, James didn't understand.

She didn't like him following her, of course, it had been a dumb idea and nowadays he was ashamed of his younger self's actions, but that's what got them talking for the first time. She smiled in embarrassment as he praised her ability to climb a vine.

"James!" Remus called after him, cheeks flushed and blue eyes pained toward him. The first thing that came to his mind was that Lily was hurt, and that made him lose all interest in watching the Duel and made him turn to his friend in alarm.

“What happened?” He tried to be as discreet as possible, trying to keep other men from noticing his splurge. Sirius did a good job of distracting two young men.

"Lily needs you…and she asked me to take Mr. Figg too." Remus muttered the last part, making James frown and look at the boy on his left, who had finally won the duel. Rosier looked tired. 'Is it urgent.'

"Is she hurt?" It was a valid concern, James feared his wife would get sicker now that she was surrounded by people, and maybe someone had said something to her and Lily had one of her fits again. ‘And why does she want the boy? Should I tell Arthur?

‘No, don't say anything to anyone, just come… We're in the dungeons.’


Henry did not know how to control his magic, and that distressed Arabella.

If he was a Muggle it would be so much easier, she knew that, because when Henry made that poor boy float, and then made a flower vase explode, she knew she would have to explain a lot to him: Why couldn't he go to a proper college and why she didn't do magic like he did.

Arabella no longer felt ashamed of being a Squib, she had accepted the condition and lived normally, or at least as she managed to, avoiding whenever anyone asked about it just to avoid people's prejudice. Some thought she was a Muggle who had married a wizard, and that's why she knew so much about it. Others thought that she just hadn't had a chance to go to school, and that's why she didn't know how to properly control magic.

"They made fun of me!" Henry said, annoyed, his eyes red from crying. “They said things–horrible things to me!” He sobbed, which made Arabella even sadder and more worried. His green eyes glistened with tears, staring at her for answers. "They told me I-I'll never be good at-at anything." He sobbed louder and louder, the scraped knee now forgotten, as if the internal pain was much bigger.

She was about to cry with him.

“Henry, honey, listen to me.” She took a deep breath, thinking that conversation had come earlier than she'd planned. ‘What they said is a lie. They don't know how to control their magic either, they probably won't for a good few years, and you're already good at a lot of things, of course you are, Henry. You're much better at putting together puzzles, and you're much faster too, I mean, you always win at the races.' Arabella smiled sweetly, smoothing his messy hair, thinking how unfair it was that such a sweet little boy already got to know this side of life.

She wished she could just show the good side of life, and leave the thorns and stones for when he understood things better.

Arabella wondered how her mother managed to do this so masterfully, because right now, she wanted to be able to hex the parents of those boys and force them to teach their children more respect for others. She wished it had been her who had been pushed and thrown out of the game, not her child.

Her heart broke even more, feeling helpless.

‘Don't listen to what they say, ok? You're amazing, a very smart kid, and your future will be bright.” She promised, because it was true. Arabella would do anything for her son.


Henry ran as fast as he could, passing through the trees and not even bothering with the branches that scratched his skin, he just needed to get out of there.

He knew he shouldn't have pissed off those boys, but they were scaring another younger boy, and just because they'd now gone to that stupid school of stupid people, they thought they were even better than the rest of the people there.

Henry wished he could go to Hogwarts, but his mother had told him that you needed to receive a letter, and that they were only sent for a few families - maybe if you're lucky you get the letter, she said smiling, even though the smile didn't reach her eyes. Arabella had never said this, but Henry knew he would probably never get the letter; he wasn't rich and he didn't have a father, and for some reason, that seemed to be enough to keep him away from others.

He ran even faster when he heard loud laughter, he wasn't afraid of those kids anymore, Henry had grown up while they were in school, more than they were, but they had one advantage: magic.

Arabella couldn't buy a wand, so he didn't have one, and even if he did, he wouldn't know how to use it.

“You're a wimpy coward if your only way to fight is with magic…don't you know how to punch?” Henry had said to Jilian, the biggest idiot of them all.

Henry wasn't very good at punching, but he was very fast, while when Greg tried to cast a spell on him, he ran off into the forest, barely noticing when his own magic created a dome around him, preventing any spells from hitting him. .


“Why are we so different?” Henry asked, taking a seat beside Arabella as she kneaded the bread on the table. She looked at him, noticing that the boy was all sweaty and looking a little smudged with dirt.

“How many times have I told you not to go into the woods?” She returned her gaze to the dough, continuing to knead.

"It's quieter there." He shrugged, pulling his sweaty hair off his forehead, letting his scar show for a few seconds before hiding it again.

“And more dangerous too, and you know it.” Arabella raised her eyebrows, scolding him. She'd heard horrible stories of people meeting a werewolf deep in the woods, and as much as she didn't know whether or not it was true, she didn't want Henry to take any chances like that. He was only 13 years old, he should have been playing with the other kids on the street and not running into the trees.

"Okay, I won't do it anymore." He sighed, but she knew he would break that promise the next time he had the opportunity. ‘But then? Why aren't we alike?’

"Henry, because you were born from another belly. I already said that" She placed the buns in the oven, washing her hands afterwards and looking up at him with a gentle smile on her face. "I met you when you were very young, you know this story."

"But why can I make things float and you can't?" His green eyes stared at her with an expression much harder and more serious than she was used to, as if he would know if she lied.

‘Because not all of us are born doing magic. Some of us are good at something other than magic… It's something you need to be born knowing how to do, you can't develop it, just improve it.” Arabella swallowed, trying not to show so much the scars that had left on her. People weren't kind when they found out you were a Squib.

He was quiet for a few minutes, looking at his hands as if he wanted to find the right words. The sun streaming through the kitchen windows illuminated his black hair, a few strands reflecting an almost red copper color that Arabella thought was beautiful.

'Can you never do magic?' He looked at her, and all the worry she'd ever felt, scared that maybe Henry would feel sorry for her or ashamed of her, drained and slipped out as his green eyes stared at her, full of affection and sadness. Not the same sadness that always came with grief, but as if he felt bad that he did magic and she didn't, as if he understood now why some people offended her and treated her differently.

"No." She gave a half smile. "But I'm not sad about it anymore, I like who I am." And it was true.

Henry nodded, still being silent for a while, seeming to absorb the information, then he got up from the wooden bench, walking over to her and hugging her. He was no longer her little boy–as much as he always would be her baby–Henry now almost reached her chest, and it wouldn't be long before he was taller than her. She hugged him back, enjoying this show of affection, imagining that a few years from now he wouldn't like hugs so much.

"I love you," he said.

‘I love you very much too. Forever and ever.” Arabella kissed the top of his head, tightening her hold even more, as if she was afraid someone would suddenly take him away from her.


It had been a long time since James had been in the dungeons, he didn't like going there, it was cold, wet, lonely, and it made him think too much.

It made him think his son's things were there, in boxes organized as if they were just another mess and not everything he and Lily had ever dreamed of. It made him think of the pain that resided in his chest, the emptiness that nothing in the world had ever been able to fill.

James hated the dungeons.

Lily, unlike him, loved being there, she said it was the best place for her to think, and the calmest of all - 'It's where I feel that no one will look at me with pity, where I can think of my son in peace, you know what I'm talking about," she said when James questioned her about the surroundings. He knew, he understood her, James had changed into Prongs many more times than necessary, he did it every time the pain got too much to take.

He walked down the stairs, trying to ignore the shiver that ran down his spine, couldn't anyone make this place something less scary?

After Remus left, James warned Sirius, who tried to pretend as best he could and further entertain the men who now looked curious to death, while he went to talk to Mr. Figg.

"I need you to accompany me, but I need you to do this cautiously and discreetly," James asked, looking into those green eyes closely, trying to remember where he knew that expression. "I'll go ahead, meet me in five minutes at the entrance to the stone path, do you know where it is?" The man nodded, tucking his wand into the waistband of his pants and straightening his robes. 'I'll let Arthur know I'll take you, just so he won't be worried, but I think you understand that you shouldn't say anything to anyone, right?'

"Yes, my Lord." The man made a brief, discreet bow, and James grimaced, not understanding why that made him uncomfortable.

Now James heard footsteps behind him as he walked through the dungeon, neither of them saying anything.

Why had Lily asked Mr. Figg to come along? Had she found out something about the boy? Something bad? James glanced quickly over his shoulder, noticing that the man looked warmed too, his hands behind him and his back straight. Has something happened to Miss Weasley? Well, if so, Arthur would be called too, right?

James broke off as soon as he reached the last room, the one he avoided the most, and the only one with lighted candles.

The first thing he saw when he entered were the boxes, stacked against a wall, then he realized there were some of Harry's things on the floor, smeared with dirt and sticks, and James' heart missed a beat when he saw the Snitch Pajamas The gold one he'd bought when he found out Lily was pregnant was now all filthy and torn.

Had they been attacked? Was that why Lily sent for him?

Then he saw Remus, opening Lily's herb cabinet and looking for something inside, he looked worried. In the back, near the only window there, was Peter, all smeared with mud too, sitting on the floor with his hands behind his back, his red cheeks making him look like a child caught doing something wrong, and his rumpled clothes hinting that he had fought someone. Finally, sitting on the bench was Lily.

Her dress was dirty too, but that wasn't what James first noticed, it was her red face, her pink cheeks like when she drank wine, her hands shaking as she poured something into the cauldron, looking more nervous than ever.

"What's going on?" James glanced at the three of them, feeling even more anxious. "Lily, what the fuck is going on?"

"Did you bring Henry?" James frowned at her calling the man by his first name, but nodded anyway, Peter sighed in the corner, looking almost terrified, not making eye contact with James for a moment. ‘Great, send him in.’


Henry knew he shouldn't be there, his mother had forbidden him, but he had nowhere else to go.

Jilian had come back from his stupid school and he seemed more than happy to train some spells on Henry, and even though he had honed his punching technique, he couldn't compete with magic. So he ran into the forest.

It was cold there, it had rained last night and the earth had turned to mud, and because of the tall trees the sun's rays didn't penetrate as much, and the whole environment ended up getting wetter than usual. Henry shivered as the wind made him wonder why he hadn't grabbed a jacket.

He was sitting on the usual rock, it was close to the river that separated them from the Muggles, and it gave him a good view across the village. There were houses like the ones on this side, but they always looked a lot less colorful than the ones he was used to, and there weren't as many flowers and trees either, as if the Muggles were willing to clear every bit of land they found, leaving everything gray and monotonous.

Henry had asked his mother if they could go to that side of the village, but Arabella had been stern to say he was forbidden to even think about going to the Muggles. He chuckled softly, thinking that if it hadn't been for the river that separated them, he probably would have managed to at least get there, curious as always.

A noise startled him, making him jump and hide behind the rock, praying it wasn't one of Jilian's friends, as he would be at such a disadvantage. There wasn't much to run now, Henry had almost reached the end of the forest, and unless he took a chance and ran towards the darkest and scariest part, the other option was to jump into the river.

And he wasn't doing any of those things.

But when he didn't hear voices or anything to indicate they were people, he stood up, watching a deer walking around, distracted by everything, as if nothing else mattered. Henry had never seen one this close, and he was a little fascinated by the animal, he understood why there are two deer on the Potter family crest. It really was a beautiful animal, and if he could choose, he would also want them emblazoned on his chest.

Henry stepped out from behind the rock, careful not to startle the animal, trying to get as close as he could. “Hey,” he called, even though it didn't make much sense. The animal turned, eyes huge now in his direction.

It had been a bad idea, he cursed himself mentally, imagining that that animal was too big and would probably kill him without a second thought… Did deer eat human flesh? Henry didn't know, but they probably hurt anyone who scared them and made them feel in danger.

The animal approached, slowly, and each step made the boy's stomach turn and his heart race. Deer were fast, much faster than Henry was. He was dead.

But when the animal's black eyes got much closer than Henry had ever thought he saw, the animal bowed, as if saying hello to him. Without thinking twice, he did the same, maintaining eye contact with the deer.

Heavens, couldn't he be less weird? Bending over to deer, blowing things up without meaning to...

Henry stood up after a while, being careful to do this as slowly as possible, still afraid the deer would decide to kill him then and there. But the animal seemed to have other plans, because he lay down in front of the boy, as if he were an adorable little dog. Henry sat beside him too, having no choice; he didn't have many friends, and he had nothing else to do, so why not? His ass got a little wet from the dirt, but nothing too uncomfortable.

The deer shifted and brought its head closer to Henry's crossed leg, as if asking for affection, and the boy didn't wait for another move to do so, leaning his back against the stone and reaching out to stroke the slightly coarse fur of the animal

For some strange reason, Henry felt comfortable doing it, as if he had done it before, it was something familiar that burned in his chest. But he didn't think about it much, just fell silent and watched the forest in front of him.


"Lily, what's going on?" James asked, feeling uneasy as he watched the tension surround the room, Remus looked nervous and Peter avoided looking up, as if he was suddenly afraid to face one of them. Lily turned to James, her green eyes seemed to glow with hatred, her nostrils swollen, an expression he'd seen a few times over the years, but one that always scared him.

"What... What happened?" Her shaky voice made him look at Remus again, the worry growing by the second. "Oh James." She shook her head, as if suddenly too much pain hit her, and he ran to her protection, opening his arms to hold her and protect her from anything that had happened while he was gone.

"Guys, anyone…?" He glanced at his friends, but again, Peter didn't look at him.

"Tell him, Peter!" Lily yelled, breaking out of James' embrace and turning to the man sitting on the floor, pointing her wand in his direction.

‘Lily, what the hell!?’

"No, James," She held up a hand, silencing him. "Tell Peter, tell him what you did to our son."

His world stopped, his eyes threatening to pop out of their sockets as James stared at his friend, begging for all that was most sacred that he hadn't quite understood. Peter was his brother, his best friend, they met when they went to Hogwarts together, he was there when James needed it most, when they decided to become Animagus… Peter wouldn't do that, he couldn't!

James doubted that one day the pain of losing a child would be replaced by another, that hellish emptiness that tore at him more and more inside, that made him not sleep well on rainy nights, that still made him walk into the boy's immaculate room and sit on the floor wondering what he should have done differently. He would do anything to get his son back, his boy. But the pain that hit him when Peter shook his head and lowered his head, making him realize his hands were tied behind his body, came very close.

His best friend… betrayed him?

"Peter?" James pleaded, begged, for it to be a lie, for Lily to be mad. It was a lie! It had to be.

"I had to, James... I... he made me."


The weather was not so good, Peter realized when he Apparated, the sky was dark and windy like never before. He should have worn another cloak, this one was too thin and made him cold.

And other gloves too, because now these were bloody and torn. Who knew a woman could be so strong?

Peter dragged the woman's passed out body with him, feeling a little sickened by that when he realized her wound was getting worse with each passing minute, he needed to be quick.

Leaving the body where no one could find it, he pulled a strand of her hair into the potion and then took it, the horrible taste of iron made him want to spit it out on the floor, but now there was no turning back, he would have to swallow and continue with the plan.

Lord Voldemort had promised him a great reward in exchange for the boy's life, and for the first time in a long time, Peter felt important and wanted. It wasn't that Black boy who was chosen, or even Snape, no no, he was the one Voldemort thought capable of completing the mission, he thought he was strong enough.

How long has it been since? He only stayed inside the Order because James kept him there, no one really wanted him there, not even Dumbledore, Peter didn't need him to say it to know, it was visible to everyone. For the old man, any other man could do the job better than he… Probably if Lily were there too, she would be chosen before Peter.

Potter this, Black that, Peter was tired.

Why didn't anyone realize he was also strong and smart?

Well, now that was over, Voldemort had seen his potential and chosen him to do this mission, and Peter wasn't going to fail now.

When he was fully transformed into that whore, he apparated into the castle, glad the potion didn't stop him from doing so. Stupid James should have put in better security than a simple spell.

Peter had seen James that afternoon, he said that today was Harry's first night trying to sleep alone and that he and Lily were excited to see how he would react to the change, so the plan would be even easier to execute. As excited as Peter was at the idea of being useful to someone, he knew he couldn't kill James, he had to really want to do it with all his heart.

When he reached the boy's room, Peter looked around, noting the choice of bright, cheerful colors, the many teddy bears scattered around, the photos on the walls and in the frames above the dresser.

Little Harry slept peacefully in his bed, wrapped in the pale blue blanket, looking peaceful, cuddled up with his deer teddy bear. He was a lot like James, Peter thought, watching the boy move his short legs like he was kicking something in the dream.

He hadn't really thought about that part of the plan, he figured he'd have the guts to just take the boy and end his life right there, or in some alley farther along, but when Peter picked him up, being careful not to waking him up, that lavender scent invaded his nostrils and he watched the baby more closely.

The boy looked helpless in his arms, like he wasn't even real, and if he wasn't watching the boy's belly rise and fall, Peter would think he was a doll.

Voldemort would never know if he had killed the boy or not, and pausing to analyze the situation now, Peter also didn't know if he could kill the boy.

He wanted to show that he was strong and useful, but a baby? Harry looked so…small.

When he stirred, startling Peter, and seemed to be looking for something - maybe his mother's scent - he realized it was time to act, there was no turning back, it had to be now.

And when lightning flashed in the sky, he cast a spell to prevent Harry from listening when he broke the glass to fake an escape, Peter waited for thunder to do so and then Apparated out of the castle, knowing that this was the best thing to do.

There were two paths now, and he needed to think quickly which was better, kill Harry and throw him in some hole, or give the boy to someone else. Of course he would risk this person recognizing the baby, but he would have to bet his luck on finding another baby like this for Lily and James to bury, or maybe even run to the Muggle village and find some woman there. It had to be fast, Harry would wake up any second and Peter didn't have much time after that.

As soon as he spotted a woman a few blocks away and Harry opened his eyes in his arms, Peter acted without thinking, taking the knife from his pants pocket and opening a wound in his ribs, before starting to scream for help.


James clapped his hand over his mouth, denying it over and over, not believing what he was hearing. No no no no.

This had to be a lie, this had to be a lie. Peter would never do that, Peter was his brother, he would never… No, this could only be a joke.

He could barely handle the pain right now, thinking he'd rather die than have to deal with it. It hurt so much that James thought he might start bleeding at any moment, his chest lacerated after hearing about it.

He couldn't even feel angry.

His boy, his little boy, whom he'd loved so much ever since Lily told him she was pregnant, that it made him want to scream from the top of the roof in so much joy…

“I could kill you right now,” he said, after what seemed like an eternity, barely able to face the traitor. "But…" James shook his head, closing his eyes to try to make it hurt a little less, his father's voice resonating through his mind; "You must be careful with Peter," he said before he died. "Men like him are easily attracted to the side that shines the most."

James had thought his father was delusional when he said that, thought it was the fever, but no, the bastard really was a weakling and a coward. Letting himself be attracted to those he once hated.

If he really hated it.

"I can't even look at you." James turned to Lily, who looked distraught to death at having to hear that story. He wanted to kill Peter even more for making her suffer like that.

The traitor had been there the next day, helping with the searches, he had hugged Lily when she cried, told her everything would be fine.

"James, give me your hand," asked Lily, her own trembling, reaching out towards him.

'Why?'

"Lils…he could be lying–" She shook her head, telling Remus to shut up.

"Give me your hand James." Now her voice was stronger, more determined, and her green eyes sparkled even more. He did so, letting her grab his palm and run the tip of the knife, causing the blood to drip and smear her workbench and floor, before finally dripping into the cauldron.

“Lily, what are you doing?” But she didn't answer him, cutting her own palm and spilling her blood along with his, then looking over her husband's shoulder. She looked more nervous than ever, and her severed hand shook even more as she held it out to the man behind James.

"Give me your hand, Henry." Her green eyes sparkled with tears, and James didn't know if the man did as she asked just because she was a Duchess, or because she was crying.

"Yes, ma'am." He walked over and let her do the same thing with his palm, passing the tip of the knife and then letting the blood spill into the cauldron.

The potion began to bubble fiercely, as did James' chest when he realized what Lily was up to. He had seen her make this potion a few times, and if his thinking was correct, then maybe he could vomit right there, his stomach churning and making him feel weak.

James didn't want to get his hopes up, it only served to hurt when unrequited, but he was unable to hold back the urge and looked at the man behind him, and then at Peter, who now looked even more guilty, if that was possible.

If this was another one of his jobs with Voldemort, James knew he would kill him right there, with his bare hands. Forget magic and wands, he would tear that mouse apart like a hungry lion.

James turned to the cauldron again when Lily sobbed and he smelled the lavender scent all over the room, and the once gray potion was now a pinkish hue, the three drops of blood seemed to dance in the middle of the liquid, before of finally meeting at the end, getting connected.

"Harry." Lily turned to the man, but James remained frozen, watching the cauldron in front of him. They had never reached this result, usually the potion would explode or nothing happened, and the smell was never that sweet aroma that seemed to fill all the hollows in his chest, as if he suddenly felt no more pain.

As he turned back, as Lily advanced towards the boy, James thought that maybe nothing would ever compare to this.

"Harry," Lily repeated, but this time she touched him, and as if the boy felt it too, he lowered his green eyes to her.

James remembered then where he knew that look… It was Lily's eyes.

Her trembling hand went to his forehead, lifting the hair lying there, just to let them see the lightning scar marked into his skin. It was too much to handle, James didn't know how he was still standing, but suddenly he started to feel tears rolling down his cheeks and as if this was the last drop of water to overflow the bucket, he sobbed.

He inched closer to Lily, wanting to take a closer look at his son, as if he was afraid this was a dream and soon he would no longer have the chance to memorize every detail of it. His boy…

"You-" Harry trailed off, as if he was feeling like James and Lily, his chest filling up and all that emptiness seeming to finally heal. "My parents?" He looked at James, and it was as if time had never passed.

He still had the same expression as that little baby James used to cuddle up to sleep on.

"I knew I knew you from somewhere," James managed to say, his throat seeming to scratch with the effort it took. "I would never be able to forget…" He didn't mind the tears rolling down his face, but he tried to wipe the ones down Harry's face. "I would never be able to forget my son."

Back to index


Chapter 10: Chapter 10

Author's Notes: first of all i ask you to forgive me for the delay
who follows me on tumblr (@sweeethinny) or is in some discord chat that I am in, knows that I am in college and that there is no time for me to do anything else
besides, I was very nervous about writing this chapter, because I know a lot of people were waiting to know what was going to happen, and I was - and am - scared of your reactions
but, I've also heard a lot - thank you Mah mainly - that this story only I can tell, and I know exactly what I'm doing, so just trust me because I've been waiting for this moment as much as you guys.

I made a playlist for The Duke, which you can find here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4VVsskcfcap9LU84tW1iXs
please let me know what you think, and thank you so much for still being here with my delay



| G. W |

The tight dress made her almost unable to breathe properly, her back erect and her breasts almost bursting out of her neckline due to the bodice that was very well embroidered. The fabric fell neatly over the faithgale, which made Ginny appear to have more hips and a slimmer waist, and the lavender color seemed to do something for her, seeming not to contrast horribly with her hair and not make her look too pale. It was a perfect balance.

Ginny felt like a princess, noticing how everything about that dress makes sense and made her look so much prettier than usual, which seemed to be her mother's purpose, who had her eyes gleaming at her daughter's reflection in the mirror.

"You look beautiful." Molly smiled, walking over to Ginny and arranging her wildflower-adorned braid. "Don't you think?"

"Yes." And it was true, Ginny was finding herself beautiful. Her lips were painted red just like her cheeks, and there was a glow at the top of her cheekbones and the tip of her nose that made her skin look much healthier than normal. Plus the earring Charlie had given her last Christmas that went well with the pearls embroidered on her dress neckline.

"You're going to get a lot of attention tonight."

"I don't think that's true, Mom, but thanks for the support." Ginny chuckled softly, running her hand down her skirt even though there wasn't any crease out of place.

She wondered what Henry would think of her if he saw her in that dress.

He'd been away all day, ever since he left to duel, and when all the men came back - and Ginny was excited for him to come and tell her everything that had happened - Henry didn't show up. Her father said he had been called by the Duke, and she remembered that Lily had also been called, so she was hoping he wasn't in trouble.

There was no reason for that, she hadn't gotten into any trouble for Henry to need to talk to the Dukes, and as far as she knew, he hadn't done anything either. Her father didn't say anything about Henry doing something wrong in the duel, Ron kept talking about how he was great at dueling and how he made Mr. Rosier need to give up and accept defeat.

She would have liked to see it. It was thrilling to see him dueling, his arm flexed, the serious expression on his face, the green eyes shining with concentration and the will to win. And every time he disarmed someone, Henry had that little smile that wasn't quite disrespectful to the loser, but it showed he was proud of his work. Of course not everyone noticed this, but Ginny had spent too much time admiring him to know about his little quirks.

Like when he bit his lip as he read the paper, focused on the news and always seeming willing to talk about what he didn't agree with, shaking his head and mumbling things like 'bunch of idiots', hoping no one would listen. Ginny listened, of course, but she let Henry think that no one was paying attention to him. He got really blush whenever he noticed that Ginny was watching him.

She probably shouldn't spend so much time thinking and looking at him.

"Henry hasn't arrived?" She stepped away from the mirror, walking towards the window and watching some men talking in the garden, wishing she wasn't looking for someone in particular.

''Mr. Figg, Ginny, and no. But stop worrying about him, today all you need to think about is being gracious and surprising Mr. Rosier, which won't be hard with that dress.'' Molly turned to the jewelry box she'd brought for the journey, placed on top of the dresser, seeming to be looking for something inside. "It will be a great and important dance, and all I want you to worry about is smiling and being beautiful."

''Fred and George also have that duty? Or are they freed from impressing women?'' Ginny turned around, looking at her mother.

"Ginny… it's the rules, stop it." Molly sighed, holding up a small vial and looking at the clear liquid inside, not paying attention when Ginny rolled her eyes. She wanted the rules not to force her to be so perfect while her brothers could still be themselves. ''Come here.''

''What is it?''

"Something that will help you tonight." Molly opened the vial, and a strong scent of flowers filled the room, almost becoming overpowering. "It's a perfume my mom put on me when I went to my first ball."

''Is it like a love potion? Are you going to charm men into marrying me?" Ginny grimaced as the scent grew stronger as Molly spun the glass in her hand, spilling some into her palm and rubbing against her daughter's neck. The liquid seemed to burn her skin, but soon the smell seemed bearable, as did the sensation against her neck.

''No, I would never do something that low. It's a common perfume, but it attracts the right men to you, the ones who will really love you. It's an old potion from my family, my mother did this to me the night I met your father… It won't let men who don't deserve you be attracted to you.''

"Mom, I really don't think there's a need to do this." Ginny didn't think there was any man that night she would be willing to attract… There was only one, but she knew he wasn't available.

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing, and I'm sure you'll thank me later."

| ? |

"Do you think you can make it today?" he asked, looking at the man standing in front of him wearing a pompous, elegant outfit. "He'll be mad if you don't make it, and I don't feel like dying before I'm thirty."

"You won't, stop being an idiot." He turned back to the mirror, smiling at his own reflection and arranging the flower on his chest, then running his hand through his hair again. "You can't risk it, you need to act fast."

"She won't notice anything."

''Who guarantees us? We can't risk it. Peter's gone, and we don't want the Lord to have to come down here to clean up our mess, do we?" He watched his friend, who was watching him intently, looking startled at the idea of what might happen if something went wrong.

''No.''

"Ok then…now," He made sure not a hair was out of place, then turned to his friend and smiled as if that conversation had never happened before. "Let me go there, I need to meet my future wife."

| G. W |

"Hey, where have you been?" Ginny smiled as she found him, throwing Molly off so she could talk to Henry quickly before the ball started and she was prevented from even saying hello to him. ''I missed you today.''

"Me too, miss." But Henry didn't look too happy, he didn't look her in the eye as he always did, and there was a shadow in his green eyes that made Ginny dread what he'd seen or gone through in the hours they'd been away.

"Did something happen?" She didn't have much time before her family realized she'd run away, but Ginny was willing to take a chance just to make sure Henry was okay. Something inside her didn't feel right, making her think that maybe she'd done something so Henry needed to be taken away from his job.

Had anyone found out he had gone to her room that night? Did anyone know he saw her naked in a certain way? Was that why he was away all day?

"I…" Henry finally looked at her, but unlike all the times he'd looked at her, there was no warmth or familiarity in his green eyes. It was as if Ginny didn't know him anymore, as if he had suddenly become someone else. ''The Duke needed to talk to me, but it was just something about the service, I'm fine. It's all right.''

''Are you sure? You don't look too happy… Did they say anything about us?" Ginny whispered the last part, even though there was no one around since everyone was in the ballroom. ''If it's something about that, I'm sure I can explain-''

''About us? What would they have to say about us?" Ginny took a step back, as if she'd been hit by a very strong spell and all her balance had been ripped from her. She wanted to run away as fast as she could, feeling ashamed to the last strand of hair that she'd thought that moment would have mattered to him as much as it mattered to her.

''It's true, they wouldn't have anything to say, I just thought… I just thought that someone might have thought something was going on between us and took it to the Duke, but I'm glad it's nothing.'' Ginny bowed, like it hadn't done for a long time. ''I must go back to the room, Mr Figg. But I'm glad you're alright.'' There was something wrong with him, Ginny knew, he didn't look like the Henry she'd known for almost three years now, but she didn't know what was that.

He didn't look hurt, or bewitched, and…

"Do you smell that?" Ginny wanted to know, remembering what her mother had said about the perfume. She didn't want to dream like a little girl, but Ginny was unable to stop her mind from imagining that Henry was acting weird because he had been affected by the smell. Maybe…maybe he was the right man for her, and that ignited a spark of hope in her chest.

"No, miss." Henry didn't seem to lie, even sniffling once more to make sure. "Nothing different." Ginny nodded, feeling completely empty now, and thinking herself an idiot for thinking this would work.

"Right…See you later, Mr. Figg." He bent down and let her go, which made Ginny feel even stranger, an emptiness filling her chest like what she used to feel before she met him.

It was strange how she thought he didn't look like the man from before, even though she knew he was the same. Ginny wondered what had changed in a few hours, and if whatever it was, it was going to affect how he treated her.

"There you are." Charlie smiled, walking over to Ginny and putting his arm through hers, leading her back into the room again. "Mom was worried, but I assured you that you were probably just left behind."

"I thought I forgot something," she said, simply and without much emotion, uncomfortable with the emptiness that remained in her chest. ''But-''

''Ok, but don't worry, I know you must be nervous and I don't want anxiety to spoil your night. Mom was saying Rosier is going to dance with you? He's a good man." Charlie smiled, seeming not to notice that Ginny wasn't happy at all. "He could be an amazing husband."

"Yeah…I guess so." She gave in, thinking it was just easier to accept and agree, avoiding having to explain things no one wanted to know, like the fact that she thought she was in love with Henry.

Of course, she had never been in love before, and Ginny didn't have any friends to talk to about it to compare her experience and see if it wasn't just a stupid dream that had been born in her mind after the past few days, but she thought it felt too much with what the novels she read described.

Which made it even worse.

She knew they couldn't be together, for various reasons; society, her family, but Ginny was willing to fight everyone over Henry, but she thought maybe he didn't want that, and this was a fight she couldn't possibly win. He probably saw her as a younger sister, hoping she would give him a break so he could go after a real woman.

''The Duke and Duchess will start the ball, and I hear her dress has more than three different types of gold and silver threads embroidered,'' Fleur whispered beside Bill, looking excited about it, wearing a beautiful light blue dress, with a very tight corsage and all embroidered with real flowers kept in a spell not to wither. Her pearl necklace gleamed against her pale skin, and her blond hair was neatly pinned into a refined coiffure, with silver barrettes holding the strands in place. All the men nearby seemed enchanted by her beauty, but as always, she seemed oblivious to it.

They were seated at a table not far back, with a very good view of the dance floor, which Ginny thought was her mother's way of trying to get her to be seen.

"Miss Granger is looking very pretty tonight." George nudged Ron, who turned his head like a crow to the girl's table, who was looking around with gleaming eyes. Her yellow dress matched her black skin perfectly, her corsage wasn't as tight as Fleur's but it was beautiful too, and her neckline wasn't straight like Ginny's, but rounded and made her neck and shoulders gain more prominence. Her curly hair was loose and held only at the top by a ribbon the same color as her dress, the golden curls making her look like an angel, falling down her back. Ron seemed to take a punch at the sight of her, his cheeks turning pink.

"Yeah, yellow looks really nice on her." Was all he said, soon turning his attention to the middle of the room, where a few people were walking and talking, pacing back and forth while the dance didn't start.

Ginny took a deep breath, looking back down at her own dress, not sure anymore if she looked that pretty.

There were several other women looking prettier than her, parading around in dresses of all colors, with all kinds of embroidery, fabrics, bows, and corsages. There were those who preferred the tighter ones with a V-cut at the bottom, the more traditional ones who still wore the more common one, the ones who preferred it to be in a different fabric than the rest of the dress, or to go in the inside part. All the women looked a lot more confident than Ginny, who shrank back more in her chair, not thinking she was ready for that event.

And then the candles were all extinguished, leaving only the ones that lit the stairs and the middle of the hall alight, making everyone sit and wait anxiously for the Duke's dance with his wife.

Fairies began to fly into the hall, whirling through the air and making everything seem even more magical, the piano began to resonate louder and louder and everyone could see as the Duke came through the door on the right, beautifully dressed in his suit made of the most expensive fabric, a small sash across his chest in Gryffindor colors and a gold brooch bearing the Potter family crest. He looked so much more alive and happier than Ginny had seen him these past few days, as if a light radiated from inside him, and all that shadow had been erased.

On the other side, in the doorway on the left, the Duchess appeared, and if James seemed to radiate light, then Lily seemed to be an explosion of all of them. She was the only one there with the dress fully embroidered, a red brocade velvet cape that fell from the end of her red corsage, and opened a slit in the front letting everyone see her gold dress, also embroidered. The cape skirt was traditionally longer, trailing along the floor as she walked, but nothing too much or that seemed to get in the way of her walk, on the contrary, it made her look even more elegant.

Her corsage was V-cut at the bottom and with a rounded neckline, the entire piece embroidered with ruby and silver stones, making her shine even more. Her copper hair was tied back in a delicate coiffure, leaving only two strands to fall in front of her face, making her look younger than when she brushed it all back and hid the strands in a hat. Ginny thought she had never seen someone so handsome and elegant in her entire life.

The woman smiled at her husband, bending towards him when he did the same, and now the fairies began to fly around the two of them, making all eyes remain on the couple. They got closer and the music finally picked up a new rhythm, Mr Potter gently placed his hand on her waist, Lily laced her fingers through his and rested her other hand on his shoulder, and together in perfect sync they began to waltz.

The combination of the music, the fairies, and the joy that seemed to explode from within them seemed to make everything even more beautiful, and Ginny realized that she hadn't been the only one to notice it. Molly had her eyes shining towards the couple, occasionally reaching for her handkerchief to wipe away the tears that welled up there, Fleur also looked thrilled, her eyes never failing to follow their dance, occasionally whispering something to Bill. Even Percy looked amazed.

Mr. Potter once lowered his hands to her waist and lifted her off the ground without seeming to make any effort, grinning from ear to ear as he lowered her even closer to him, re-interlacing his fingers with hers and spinning around the salon.

Ginny noticed that there was a joy in their faces that she hadn't seen before, a sparkle in their eyes and an exchange of smiles that made her curious as to what had managed to get them out of the haze of melancholy that seemed to haunt them, and bring them to the brighter side of life. Whatever it was, she was glad they were looking, for the first time, truly happy.

As soon as the song was over, the fairies once more flew around them, then dissipating around the room and causing everyone to look up to see them flying and lighting up the room, then each passing over a candle and lighting it back. Mr. Potter respectfully kissed his wife's forehead, muttering something as everyone clapped, then turned and bowed in thanks.

"They were so cute," Molly muttered, once again bringing the handkerchief to her eyes. Ginny nodded, watching her siblings nod as well.

Looking around the room Ginny found herself looking for Henry, curious to know what he thought of the opening of the ball, but she couldn't find him anywhere, not even on the mezzanine floor, which was odd. Henry would never be so far away that Ginny couldn't see him.

"It's a great honor to be here tonight," Mr. Potter began, regaining the attention of Ginny, who thought Henry was just too well hidden in that dark environment. He was a good Auror, hiding was what he did best. ''And I'm immensely grateful and happy to have you all here with us, having fun and being a part of such a unique and special moment in our lives.'' He smiled, looking at Lily who was also smiling, and Ginny thought she saw tears in her eyes. "Thank you so much, and may we continue to have such incredible times." Everyone applauded again, the men raised their respective glasses in a silent toast, and the couple withdrew from the middle of the room, and the waltz was played again.

It would be the first dance, Ginny knew it was the most important of all for a woman, but she wasn't that excited about it, and for the first time she wanted men to pretend she didn't actually exist. But of course when she asked the Gods for this, they didn't answer, because Mr. Rosier appeared at her table as Bill got up, holding out his hand to Fleur.

"Excuse me, gentlemen," the man said, respectful as ever, following the social rules of first greeting the lady's father and older brother. Bill, who had previously seemed excited at the idea of finally getting rid of the problem that Ginny was, looked up and down at the gentleman, red eyebrows arched.

''Hello, Mr. Rosier.'' Arthur smiled, standing up to greet the man who was a few inches shorter than him, flashing a proud smile as did Molly, both looking more than thrilled that the man had kept his word and gone to Ginny. She sighed, looking down at her hands.

"He's cute," Fleur whispered, an almost nonexistent smile on her face, using Bill's moment of distraction to talk to Ginny. "It's going to be fun, try to ignore whatever's bothering you right now, because a ball like this doesn't happen every year, right?" She blinked her clear eyes at her, causing Ginny to chuckle softly and nod. She was right, as much as she didn't want to dance with a man she barely knew, it wouldn't do any harm at least trying.

She wasn't going to marry Mr. Rosier, it was just a dance, Ginny could handle it.

"Then you'll let me know if he's any good or if he's going to step on your toes, okay?" Fleur blinked, not giving Ginny time to respond, soon returning to Bill's side who was now pulling her into a dance, muttering something to her.

"Well, I hope you'll allow me to take your beautiful daughter out dancing?" Finally the man looked at Ginny, his gray eyes looking eerily clearer and brighter, as if he'd seen the most expensive prize in bingo. But in the blink of an eye, his sweet, loving expression was back on, so it could just be the shadows of the candles, Ginny thought.

''Gin?'' Ginny didn't want to get up, as handsome as the man was and as much as she had asked for it several times now, she was feeling a little insecure. It wasn't fear, but Ginny felt anxious to have a man so close to her and her parents watching them. But she got up anyway, ignoring when a girl at the next table looked shocked and whispered to the man sitting next to her, who also looked.

Ginny smiled and bowed to Rosier, seeing him do the same before giving her an arm for her to reach. The music for the dance was about to start, and Molly seemed impatient at the delay of Ginny just letting herself be carried away, but she risked looking once more as far as she could go, looking for Henry in some dark alley but finding nothing but shadows. Where was he?

Giving up on looking for him, she accepted Rosier's arm, walking with him to the middle of the floor as the music began to play.

Of course her mother had made her and her brothers learn to dance without even having music in the background, but that didn't stop Ginny from gulping and feeling her legs go limp when she noticed that there were several people watching her.

"Pretend it's just the two of us," Rosier muttered to her, a shy smile on his face, his shaved beard showing he had a dimple in his chin. He placed his hand on her waist and brought her closer. And for a quick moment Ginny felt a burning in her chest and an insane, irrational urge to run away, but perhaps the man sensed that she had tried to pull away from her because he tightened his grip on her lower back even more. "Don't worry Miss Weasley, you can trust me."

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Chapter 11: Chapter 11

Author's Notes: the song that Ginny dances to in the beginning is: Once Upon A December!

Thank you very much, comment what you think please, and I hope you like it :)
playlist on spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4VVsskcfcap9LU84tW1iXs


| G. W |

When the music started, Ginny didn't know if she could still breathe, she was so nervous.

Her lung felt trapped inside a cage as a thousand people stabbed it through the bars, and nothing in the world seemed to be able to lessen that fear and palpitation that burned in her chest.

But she would never make it visible, so she smiled and started dancing.

As a child and not yet aware of how much tragedy and loneliness lay ahead, Ginny used to play with her rag dolls and rehearse the waltz with them, thinking that one day it would be her and her prince charming. Molly always said that a man conquered a woman during a dance, the way he spun her around, held her hand, looked at her, determined how well he would treat her when they got married.

Older now, Ginny thought this was not true, not only because the men all looked the same when they danced - stiff, too focused on not stepping on the girl's dress and bored - but also because it seemed silly to marry someone just because that person smiled and was polite to you during a silly dance.

That shouldn't be the big difference in knowing if that man was good or not, it was just the least he could do.

Ginny was getting more and more irritated by those stupid rules the more time passed.

First, she couldn't go watch the duels, then, she needed to fall in love with a man who didn't even make the effort to get to know her, just smiled and touched her waist. What came next? She couldn't wait to get out of Rosier's arms, which now felt more like a chain around her, and back to her table.

"You look beautiful tonight." Rosier smiled, taking the first step with her, at the same pace as all the other couples. Ginny smiled back, not quite sure how to respond to him.

"Thank you," was all her mind could think of, and taking advantage of her back to her parents, Ginny tried once more to look for Henry in the crowd. Why wasn't he there?

''Looking for someone? I hope not a jealous lover.''

"No one." Ginny stared at him, noticing that his right eye looked bruised, as if his pupil had lost its color in a small, barely perceptible band.

"A curse hit me," he said in a low tone, as if it were a secret. ''I regained my sight, but I got the scar.''

''Shouldn't you stay out of harm's way? Being an aristocratic man, I mean." Ginny knew that many of them never even learned a simple protection spell, always surrounded by men who only worked to save them if they got into a fight in the tavern. That's what Henry told her.

"Yes, but you know how things are." He spun her around, then pinned her again close to his body. "I love an adrenaline rush." She nodded once more, looking over Rosier's shoulder. ''Are you sure you are not looking for anyone?''

''I'm just admiring the salon. I've never been in one this elegant." It was nonetheless true, the whole atmosphere exuded a greed that Ginny had never witnessed before.

"The Potter family has always been very fond of showing off their fortune," Rosier's tone sounded a little acidic, but perhaps she had misunderstood. "But still many say it's been the best years for the Gryffindor kingdom since they came to power."

''From what I see in the papers, our kingdom is fine compared to Slytherin, not wanting to offend you, sir,, of course.'' Rosier carried the snake coat on his chest like a diamond stone, the green band stitched together in the collar of his cape it seemed to glow among so many reds.

''I'm not offended, we're going through some rough spots but we'll come back soon, I'm sure.'' He smiled, his gray eyes seeming to get as skittish as a cat about to attack someone, and once again, Ginny's chest burned and her fingertips tingle with the irrational urge to push him away. But he kept her there, close. ''And you read newspapers? What a distinguished lady.''

''Only sometimes,'' She lied, spinning around once more when he pulled her away enough for it, holding her hand as if afraid Ginny would run away. ''I usually only read regular books.''

"A lady who reads and knows how to duel... What danger do you most pose to society, Miss Weasley? Do you also know how to bewitch a man by the mind to make him do what you wants?'' Rosier seemed to find that amusing, eyes gleaming as he laughed, head tilted back slightly.

The dance is almost over, Ginny reminded herself, trying to calm down.

"You are a rare jewel, my dear. Almost a collector's item.''

"I don't know if I can be that, as I'm not an object for you to collect." She gave a cordial shrug, sweeping her eyes around the room as Rosier closed them to laugh again.

"You are really unique." He looked at her, what Ginny thought might be the look he used to seduce young women. ''It's a shame that the dance is ending, however, I wish we had more time." Rosier took his hand from her waist, touching Ginny's cheek to brush away some hair that had fallen there. The touch made her freeze in place. "But soon we'll have all the time in the world, won't we?"

Ginny didn't know what he was talking about, but she hoped for all that was more sacred, that her father hadn't allowed Rosier to be her husband. Just the thought of it made her desperate, like she'd fallen to the bottom of the oceans and the fall would never end, just everything getting darker and harder to breathe.

When she opened her mouth to say they wouldn't have it, the loudest chord on the piano echoed through the room, at the same time that Ginny felt a sharp pain rip through her chest.

It was immeasurable pain, it seemed to burn every vein and artery in her, the bones seeming to break into a million pieces with each passing second, and the pain making her vision blur. In a desperate move, Ginny placed her hand over her heart as if she wanted to keep it together, even losing her voice as the air seemed to fail her lungs, Rosier becoming a puny blur in front of her.

And before Ginny was taken by the darkness, already feeling that her legs were so weak that felt like paper, she looked as far as she could, looking for Henry. But he wasn't there, and the last thing she thought about before falling to the floor, feeling the life drain from her veins, was his green eyes and his cute smile that showed whenever she called him a coward for not flying with her.

| H. P |

Early in that day

Henry, or Harry he didn't know yet, had never thought about his birth parents. Arabella was his mother, and period, he was happy about it, she was happy, they were a family.

She worked until after two in the morning to make sure she could afford a good tutor for him, and he helped her when there were too many deliveries. Arabella worked making bread and cakes, and every now and then Henry walked around the village making deliveries and sometimes earned a coin for it.

Arabella had not liked the idea of Henry going to work as an Auror, no matter how good the salary was. They didn't accept any wizards there, and Henry had to be in the right place and with the right person to be accepted into the academy - it was Mrs McGonagall who managed to convince Robards that he was good enough for the man to turn a blind eye to the fact that Henry is not from any known family.

And Henry barely had the money to buy the uniform, but his mother managed to get an old acquaintance to sell her the fabric to sew herself.

For a lifetime, it had been just the two of them, fighting all those who so doubted Henry could be anything, ensuring that all those mean boys who hexed Henry after returning from Hogwarts on vacation, and who looked askance at him when Arabella arrived, swallow every word.

And then, less than an hour ago, everything turned upside down.

Henry never cared about his birth parents, but when the Duchess, his Mother, looked at him and touched his face, Henry thought he could feel something filling him with a feeling he couldn't even describe. It was as if inside him there was a lack that had been there for so long that he had already forgotten it, but that has now been remedied.

"Can I…can I hug you?" She asked, her voice tearful, her green eyes – just like his – shimmering with tears. He wanted to cry too.

Henry nodded, unable to say anything, because suddenly that lack he had never noticed before seemed too devastating, making him feel bereft. It was like he had been in a black and white world for years already, forgetting what the colors looked like, but now, they were slowly coming back.

Lily took a step and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him.

She was smaller than him, but even bigger than Ginny. Her head rested carefully, as if she was afraid it was all a lie, close to his heart, and Henry hugged her back, thinking he'd never felt anything like it. He felt her tears wet his shirt, but he didn't care, mostly because he was crying too.

James didn't take long to join the hug, they were the same height, had the same hair - even though James already had a few gray strands - but he looked much more noble than Henry. He wore the family crest, a red sash at the collar of his shirt, and his steps were much better thought out than Henry's.

He would have learned to be like that had he lived in the castle, he thought, closing his eyes when the pain threatened to be too much for him to bear.

If he had grown up there, he would have gone to Hogwarts, he would never have had trouble joining the Aurors, he wouldn't know what it would be like to be jealous of boys showing off in the street with their wands, nor what it was like to be hungry in some nights when money had been tight for food because Arabella had had to pay the tutor. He would have had another life. He would be a nobleman.

''I missed you so much. I never stopped looking for you, even though… even if I didn't know how you looked anymore, if you looked more like me or James, if you had my hair… I never stopped thinking about you.'' Lily held his face again, and Henry remembered hearing Mrs. Wesley said that the woman looked ill with each passing day.

It was true, Henry could see how haunted her eyes looked. And, it was like looking into a mirror.

"This is your room," Lily said, her voice low as if she was afraid someone would suddenly hear them.

Mr. Potter, his father, had stayed in the dungeons with the two other men to decide the end of the traitor, but he doubted the man would kill him. Henry had seen too many men close to killing someone to know that James was not a murderer. He would probably lock him up in one of the cells and leave him there until everyone was gone.

''Did you always keep it tidy like this?'' It was strange to be on the third floor of that house, because while Henry had never been there, it felt so familiar and comfortable to look at the walls decorated with paintings, the flowered wallpaper, the decor is delicate and elegant.

It was all so different from where he had grown up.

''I always hoped you would come back one day. And please don't call me ma'am, call me…" Mum, Henry completed in his mind, averting his eyes from hers, looking back to the room. "Lily."

"It's a very nice room," Henry said, stepping onto the manicured carpet for fear of getting it dirty. He should have taken off his boots.

"I changed the decor a few years ago, when I thought you wouldn't want a room with teddy bears and toys anymore." She stood beside him, a sad smile on her face. ''I don't know what you like yet, but you can change if you want… If you want to live here, of course, if you don't want to… I'll understand.''

The walls were painted a cream color much like Ginny's room, but unlike hers, his had more windows, a bigger bed, some paintings on the walls, his basin was much bigger than any of them he's had it before, of much sturdier wood, and the towels hanging in the wooden partition were a cotton so soft Henry thought they must cost a lot more than his entire salary. As he approached the dresser, Henry noticed that the drawers were still empty, not for one that held several Gryffindor handkerchiefs like the ones James used.

There were those that had a golden thread embroidered on the family crest, those that had sewn it in the original colors, those of linen, cotton, even satin, which were supposed to be for summer.

"It comes in all sizes, you can try it on if you like," Lily said, watching as Henry touched each of the tissues. ''We live here, but sometimes we need to go to our house in Godric's Hollow, and there you have a room too. I know life here is kind of quiet and there's not much to do, and of course, when you get married that will be your home-''

"My house?" He looked at her. ''Get married?''

''Yes, I believe you know that you and Mrs. Weasley have been betrothed to be married since babies? And whenever the eldest son gets married, he inherits the main house of the family, and the parents can still live with them of course, but they can also live in any other house they have... James and I already live here, so everything is perfect. Lily shrugged, gently, like a duchess would.

"Yes, she is betrothed to marry the Duke's son." Henry said as if trying to explain to her that the sky was blue.

"Which is you." Lily looked amused at his confusion, because she smiled and chuckled softly, raising her eyebrows. "You are Harry James Potter, son of Duke James Potter, and the Duchess, Lily Evans Potter, who is me." She smiled, bowing as if to introduce herself to him. ''I believe you know about your connection to her? But if you want, I can tell you what I've learned about this in recent years...''

| G. W |

Ginny didn't know if she was dead, but it was possible that she was.

Suddenly the ballroom turned into a white room, too bright for her to be able to look ahead without having to close her eyes, confused as to where she was and what the hell had happened there.

The pain was gone, there was no more discomfort or that growing despair, but also… she couldn't feel anything. It was like not even her heart beat, which was bizarre.

"Hello?" she yelled, hoping someone would answer her, or that she would wake up from that dream room first. People must have been looking at her and thinking she was crazy, which Ginny was sure was far worse than dying.

The white light was waning little by little, the walls that used to be white were turning into walls painted a creamy white that had long since taken on a horrible old yellowish hue, small flowers that lost the vibrancy of their colors were painted there too, and Ginny could see that there were small cracks in the wallpaper, probably because of how long it had been there.

Furniture began to fill the room as that fog seemed to dissipate, there was a baby blue shag rug that didn't match the mustard yellow sofa, bookcases in the corner, windows open and embroidered curtains fluttered in the wind that came in there.

She was at her house. In the living room.

But that couldn't be true, couldn't be, she was hours away from home, and Molly had changed that wallpaper last summer.

''Hello?! Mum?'' She screamed once more now that she knew she was home. Has she gone back in time? "Dad!" But no one answered her, which heightened her fear.

There had to be a way out of there, Ginny needed to get out, so she walked to the window hoping she could jump out of there towards the tree, as she had done several times as a child and wanted to escape punishment, but when she tried to get her body through the window, she was stopped.

As if she had a greater force pushing her back, Ginny fell to the floor beside the armchair. She felt like she might start crying right then and there, desperate to get back. She didn't want to die.

''Somebody help me!" Ginny screamed louder this time, someone should have to listen to her, it wasn't possible. ''Help!" But nothing happened again. After trying to escape down the stairs and through the door - none of them worked - Ginny realized there was no way out of there, she was really trapped, it must be some protective spell her father put on before they left, it must be - ''Henry! ''It was strange how suddenly his image seemed almost forgotten in her mind, as if that was the first time she had called him. "Henry, help me, please." Ginny cried, but again, the mental image she had of him seemed almost completely erased.

It was as if she didn't know him anymore.

When she started to feel ready to cry, she heard footsteps. Great, finally he had listened to her, or maybe it was her father going to disarm those spells so that Ginny could get out of there, she would tell her everything that happened and-

It was... herself.

| H. P |

Harry, now he was feeling a little more used to saying that name, was sitting on his own bed, feeling anxious.

He was wearing his work uniform, combing his hair – or trying to – like he always did, putting his wand where he always left it… but it didn't feel right. His reflection looked strange. Harry felt strange. It was like he was a fake.

He was supposed to go downstairs and go to work as if nothing had happened, but how was that possible? How was he going to face Ginny when… he was going to marry her? It was what he had once wanted, or at least thought it would be great if it happened, but it wasn't like that in his dreams. He wasn't the son of a duke, and he wasn't inheriting more money than he could spend in his entire life. No, he was the son of a squib who worked too hard to pay for his education, and if he died tomorrow, Harry, no, Henry would have to give up all his savings to be able to give her a decent wake.

He wished it weren't so hard.

And yet he couldn't even tell Ginny the truth, Mr. Potter instructed him that it was better that no one knew yet, because Peter probably didn't work alone and wasn't here without allies on his side, and it was too dangerous if anyone else knew.

Harry would have to lie to her, and he rarely did.

Once when she asked him if her hat was pretty, and it wasn't. Another time when she got a death threat and he told her it was a letter to him from his mother and so she couldn't read it. And another when she asked if he had ever gone to Yeovil, and Harry said that only once.

He never lied to her that he was someone else, and Harry would rather not have to do that now.

Of course he's omitted a few things over the three years, like when she wears that orange dress that makes her look like full flame and her skin seems to turn yellow, but he still says she looks pretty. But that wasn't even close to having to omit that he was actually Harry Potter.

Harry sighed, rubbing a hand over his face and working up the courage to leave the room and go to work. Harry wished he could hide there forever, but he knew he wasn't a coward on that level.

"Come on," he muttered to himself, standing up and grabbing his cloak and his badge, which looked so small and drab now that he'd seen the badge he'd wear when he wore the noble clothes.

Lily urged him to try on one of the handkerchiefs, and Harry would probably never be able to use an ordinary handkerchief again without thinking about the softness and delicacy of the one waiting for him in the drawer.

Little differences he would never have known if everything had been different.

Opening the door carefully and looking both ways before leaving, Harry walked down the service stairs, just so in case he saw someone around he could tell he was working. An Auror, not being one of the highest level, would never walk the main staircase.

The elves worked in the kitchen in their usual haste, not even looking at Harry as he passed by, picking up a cookie left over from the afternoon tea, and smiling at the younger elf who was kneading more dough.

"Have a good job," he said, waving at her and walking out the door that was at the back of the main staircase, next to the entrance room. There was no one around, as he thought, so he decided to enter the other side of the room, where there were fewer people and Harry wouldn't have that much trouble in disguise.

He hadn't seen Ginny yet, but Mrs. Weasley had probably already carried her daughter into the hall to avoid any possible mishap.

Harry walked through the garden until he reached the other door, finding James there, talking to Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin, in low, barely audible whispers. He greeted them as he would, a curt nod so as not to draw attention, and not taking too long to continue his way into the hall, which was already as crowded as he imagined.

Hidden in one of the shadows, Harry searched the Weasleys' table, not having much trouble finding them, as Mrs. Weasley clearly didn't want them to be hidden. They were close to the dance floor, and anyone looking there would see them talking, a sea of bright red heads.

"I found you." A female voice startled him, but Ginny didn't seem to feel guilty about it. ''Where were you?''

"Hm…" Harry bowed to her like he did when they were in public, trying to think quickly of a lie. ''Resolving a few things, but nothing you should worry about. I'm back at work now." Ginny looked strange, but maybe it was her nervousness.

Her dress was lavender and Harry thought that no color had ever matched her so well.

"I was worried." She smiled.

"You should go back to your table, there's no need to worry anymore," Harry assured her, because no matter who he was, he would protect her.

''You'll have to go with me to get something from my room, Mom is furious that I forgot my handkerchief... You know, my lucky one.'' Harry looked back at the Weasleys' table, finding it strange that Mrs. Weasley was going to care about that now, especially since the dance was about to start. "She wants everything to be perfect, and Merlin to protect me if I can't get Mr. Rosier to like me."

"Did your father tell you about him?" And wasn't she mad? "Of course we can go, it's no problem." Harry let her go ahead, noting that James and the other men were no longer there, probably already on their way to get ready for the start of the dance.

"Thanks, and yes, he told me, hm... earlier." She smiled sheepishly, which wasn't very much like her, but Harry didn't know if it wasn't just nervousness. ''How are you? How was the duel?''

''Very well, it's a shame you can't go… What's your lucky handkerchief?"

"That red one embroidered with white thread that Bill gave me." Ginny looked over her shoulder, a mischievous smile on her lips. ''Do you suspect it's not me, Mr. Figg? I don't think it's very polite of you."

"Never, miss, just following protocol." They entered the now empty house, Harry following her upstairs as he had last night, but always keeping a safe distance in case anyone saw them. ''Are you excited?''

''Yes, can you believe it? I've never been to a ball like this." Ginny let Harry open the door and check the room before she walked in, as they usually did. ''Have you ever been?''

"No, it's my first time too."

''It's cool, but of course, I'd love to be able to participate in the duels… Do you think they'll let me participate in the transfiguration tournament?'' She said, walking across the room and opening the dresser drawer, even though that was her towel drawer.

"Your tissues are in the bottom drawer," Harry reminded her, putting a hand on her hip to feel if his wand was there.

''Oh, my head is in the clouds! Mom has been making me nervous about all this happening." She smiled, opening the right drawer this time and then reaching for her handkerchief. Ginny turned away from him, looking at her reflection in the mirror to put on her scarf. "You won't believe what—" Harry stopped behind her, his wand in the middle of her spine.

"What was the first thing you asked me when we met?" He whispered, blood running hot through his veins, fearing the real Ginny was in danger.

"I greeted you." She, or whoever that person was, said. Harry smiled but there was not a shred of humor in him.

''Wrong answer.''

"Do you really think you're capable of protecting me?" The real Ginny's voice rang in his mind, a happy memory he held dear. Of course Mrs Weasley hated that she had said that before she even knew his name.

"You're making a mistake, Mr. Figg," she whispered, dropping her handkerchief to the floor as she raised her hands in redemption. "A terrible mistake."

''I think you're wrong here… What are your last words?'' Ginny's body transformed into that of a woman taller than she, her black hair was messy and dirty looking, and from the reflection in the mirror, Harry thought she was about to go mad, her dark eyes huge in her face and her eyebrows arched.

''Peter did a terrible job trying to kill you, little duke, but unlike him, I have no mercy for people like you.'' Harry didn't get a chance to cast a spell, even though the name of one was already being said in his mind, another hit him in the back making him double over in pain. "Robards didn't teach you never to leave the door closed?" He heard the woman whisper as his chest seemed to break into a million pieces.

It was as if everything inside him was being destroyed, and Harry thought that maybe if he put a hand to his heart he would feel it shatter, even though he knew it wasn't possible.

The pain swept through him, his legs going limp and his blood feeling cold in his veins, and the only thing he could care more about was where Ginny was, because if there was a fake one walking around, that meant the real one could have suffered something for that to be possible. Was she okay? Alive? Harry hoped so, because he would never forgive himself if something happened to her.

And before darkness overtook him, as he had seen with so many men before they died, he thought of her brown eyes, her fiery hair, and how much he loved her.

| G. W |

It was the weirdest thing that had ever happened to her, forget about her exploding magic, that was so much worse.

Percy once told her that you should never be seen by your past self if you didn't want your timeline to be messed up, which is why she hid behind a chair like a scared child.

What was happening?!

"Ginny," Her mom appeared, and Molly looked younger somehow, her hair was still long and she still wore that old gold-cut M barrette that had been her mom's. ''Don't make things harder than they already are.''

"I'm not doing this, I just think it's completely unnecessary," Ginny from the past said, rolling her eyes when Molly wasn't looking, running her hands anxiously over the brown dress she was wearing.

It wasn't elegant at all and was already a little tight around her arms and waist, but she remembered that it had been the first dress they'd ever bought her entirely new, and Ginny kept it very fondly

"I don't leave the house anymore and everything is fine, I don't need a bodyguard!" Oh… Ginny remembered that day, when she met Henry. ''What else will I need? Keep my wand in a box because I don't know how to use it?!''

"Ginny, don't make such a fuss." Molly sighed, and as Ginny had expected, she went to the window to snoop if her father had already arrived with him.

And they were coming

"They're coming." Ginny choked back a laugh, amused that she knew exactly where this was going.

"Oh, I don't believe this…" She complained, flopping onto the couch and closing her eyes. Ginny knew that all she wanted to do was cry and hide in her room, hating that she didn't know how to control her own magic.

''Be polite to him, Robards says he's the best for this job, and we don't want him to think anything bad about us, do we?'' Molly looked excited and nervous, and Ginny felt like hugging her mother because she knew it wasn't easy for her either. ''I never thought I would have an Auror at home, not being one of my sons…''

"I never thought I'd have another bodyguard other than one of my brothers." She grumbled, standing up and straightening the creases on her dress, standing beside her mother with her back to present/future Ginny. The noise of footsteps made her anxious just as it had that day, and she thought she might appreciate Henry better now that she already knew him.

He was handsome that day, with his beard trimmed, his hair combed - or trying at least - still wearing the gray clothes of the Aurors. Ginny felt her stomach flutter as she heard the door to the living room open, peering over the armchair her first encounter with him.

But instead of seeing Henry, Ginny didn't see anything, which was weird because she knew he was there. Now only her father was there, smiling discreetly at her in an attempt to calm her down, as Ginny remembered him doing.

"Ginny, this is Mr-" Arthur's voice cut off, as if he was suddenly speechless but his mouth continued to move. What was happening?

The conversation continued but still without sound, and gradually the Ginny of the past, Molly and Arthur were disappearing, as if they were ashes in the middle of the wind, leaving her alone in that room again. "What the fuck?" She grumbled, stepping out from behind the armchair and walking to where she was from the past, looking around the room for some answer.

Was it a dream? She had died and this was the moment she was destined to remember for the rest of her life?

Where was Henry?!

"Henry!" Ginny yelled once more, no longer caring about nothing. "Is anyone here?!" But other than the noise in her voice, nothing was heard.

She was starting to get scared now. Was that some kind of magic? Had someone poisoned her and imprisoned her in the past?

Ginny tried to step forward where Henry should have been, but her body was stopped by something, knocking her back again as if she'd just hit her head against the wall, even though nothing was there. Merlin, she's really freaked out.

"Ginny?" Henry's voice rang through the empty room, low and tense.

''Henry! Where are you? Please tell me I didn't die." She yelled back.

"Ginny… are you okay?" His voice was quieter now, as if he was far away from her, but even though she looked around, she couldn't see him. "Has someone hurt you?"

''No. I was at the dance, and then I went dancing with Rosier and all of a sudden I felt horrible pain and fell to the ground… Do you think someone poisoned me? Do you think this is because of the mermaid that attacked me?"

"Where did you feel pain?" What a dumb question to ask, there were so many more important ones.

''In the chest.''

"Close to the heart?" His voice was getting lower.

''Yes, something like that. Can you speak louder? Or show up? This is all very confusing.''

"Ginny, I… Ginny, can you see me?"

''Of course not! If not I wouldn't ask to see you, seriously Henry, you're gone for a day and- By the way, why did you treat me like that before the ball started?'' She still felt sad about it, but could someone blame her? The guy she liked had talked to her like she was nothing, it hurt.

''I didn't see you. It was not me.''

"What- How do I know it's you now, then?" She took a step back, hating that her wand wasn't there with her. "What did I tell you right here when we first met?"

''You said Do you really think you can protect me?, and your mother was furious about it, but she kept reassuring me that you were a very sweet and polite girl, you were just having a hard time.'' They were silent. ''Am I right?''

''Yeah… Henry this is crazy, can you get us out of here? Mom must think I'm dead, and only Merlin knows how many people will be watching me when I wake up."

''I think I know how, but first I need to tell you something. Something I just discovered today. And I think that's why you can't see me." His voice sounded more strained than before, which worried her even more. "But you need to trust me."

''You are scaring me.''

''Promise you will trust.''

'Henry-'

"Promise." His voice sounded even farther away, which made her think he was pulling away for some reason. Ginny pulled away too, just in case.

"Okay, I promise I'll trust you."

''Today, when the duke and duchess called me to talk… you know they called me, right?''

"Yes." Where would he go with that? Had Henry been fired?

"I…I discovered something." He trailed off, seeming to think before continuing. ''Do you know how your bond with their son works? You are protected by each other, as if… you can't live without the other, you understand? At least not before you were married, because then you would have sealed the bond between the two of you and even if one died, the other would always be protected. But in case you didn't get married until you were twenty-one… Do you remember what happened on your twenty-first birthday?"

''Why do you want to know that? And yes, I remember, I almost died.''

"Me too, Ginny…" He was quiet.

''What do you mean by that? Okay, it's a coincidence, where are you taking this conversation? Why talk about him? He's dead.''

''Ginny, I can see you now... I know you're near the chair, with your hand on it, and that you're looking around confusedly looking for me. I can also hear you perfectly. But I think this is only possible because I know who I am.''

''Who are you? Have you lost your mind too?" Ginny laughed, trying to hide the nervousness that seemed to burn in her chest.

''You felt the same pain as me, and we are here because it's when we first met, but… You can't see me because it's not me here. I mean, it's me, but not… in the right way. Want proof? Close your eyes.''

''OK.''

"You still have them open, and you promised you'd trust me." She rolled her eyes, annoyed that this was happening. The poison that hit them was really strong.

Closing her eyes as he asked, Ginny let Henry do who knows what he wanted, feeling her body being pulled somewhere as if she had Apparated to somewhere far away from her house. "You can look now."

She didn't know it there, the decor was cozy and childish, but nothing she'd ever seen. From a distance she could see that the Potters were there too in the room, much younger and happier, Lily even seemed to glow… Like today when she went dancing with James. There was a crib beside them, and even though Ginny couldn't see the baby inside, she knew who it was.

"We've also met here, but I doubt either of us will remember." A child's cry was heard, and Molly's calm voice made Ginny feel almost hugged.

''He's beautiful…Hi Harry, how are you? This is Ginny…" As soon as the voice came out, it faded, and so did the comfort, making her feel empty again.

''What do you mean by that? Why are we here?" Ginny wanted to get away from there, even though something inside her still wanted her to stay still, preventing her from walking. ''Henry!''

''Ginny… The night my mom found me? I wasn't the son of a harlot, I was him…" She looked to where the baby had been. ''I am the kidnapped son, I am-''

"Harry?" She whispered, feeling strangely good, as if the emptiness she never even realized existed had finally been filled, gradually it was as if new colors were appearing around her, colors that Ginny had never noticed before.. And where there had been no one before, now there was Henry. Or rather, Harry.

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