With thanks to Arnel for kicking my butt over my grammar and verbs. It is much appreciated.
This story will be completed, but it is going to take some time. Chapters will be published as and when I am able to do so. So, please be patient with me.
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The Forgotten Wizard | ||||||
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Category: Alternate Universe, Post-Hogwarts Characters:Albus Dumbledore, Draco Malfoy, Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, James Potter, Lily Potter, Luna Lovegood, Minerva McGonagall, Neville Longbottom, Nymphadora Tonks, Remus Lupin, Ron Weasley, Severus Snape, Sirius Black Genres: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, General, Romance Warnings: Death Story is Complete Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 53 Summary: On the cusp of the third wizarding war, the truth behind the events of Halloween 1981 and subsequent events finally come to light, when it is revealed that Harry Potter, forgotten and ignored by many, is the Boy Who Lived. Hitcount: Story Total: 30319; Chapter Total: 3004 Awards: View Trophy Room Author's Notes: |
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July 2002… “Can you see it?” Ginny asked as she shoved her left hand in front of Draco’s face. “Exactly what am I meant to be seeing?” Draco asked before shooting an exasperated look at his best friend. Harry chuckled in amusement. “Trust you not to spot the one thing that should be on my fiancée’s hand?” Draco glared at his best friend as he pulled Ginny’s hand to him to try and figure out what his friends were talking about. “Well, the Charm on my ring works,” Ginny declared as Draco’s eyes bulged in realisation at what he was missing. “Good thing, too, as we don’t need anyone spoiling our announcement.” “Good,” Harry replied with a smile. “Now, can we make a move? I am really looking forward to a homecooked meal from your mum!” The trio of friends exited the house and walked up the path until they were outside the wards before Apparating to the Burrow. Seconds after they appeared at their destination, another pop put them on guard; all three turning towards the sound with their wands held in a defensive position. “It’s just me,” the fourth person said, hands held up to show the lack of intent to attack them, “Neville Longbottom. I left our travels after I received an owl informing me my gran had been taken ill.” The trio immediately relaxed and put their wands away. “It’s good to see you, Neville,” Harry said as he held out his hand. The group greeted one another, delighted to see one another for first time since Neville had returned to England to look after his grandmother. “Where’s Luna?” Neville asked as he pulled away from a hug from Ginny. Draco and Harry exchanged a look of amusement at the question, knowing Neville would be surprised to hear this piece of unexpected news. “She met someone,” Ginny answered. “Rolf Scamander, the grandson of Newt Scamander. Not long after you left in fact. They were immediately taken with one another, so it wasn’t a surprise when she told us she was going to stay with Rolf rather than continue travelling with us.” “Good for her,” Neville replied, genuinely delighted for their friend. “Rolf must be special for Luna to make that decision to stay. I take it she is coming back, though, for the next part of the plan?” “She should be back within the next couple of days,” Harry told him, having received a letter from Luna that very morning, confirming she had made the necessary arrangements to travel home. The group began to make their way up the path to the familiar sight of the Weasleys’ home, taking the chance to catch up quickly. “It’s about time you asked her out, Nev,” Draco laughed as Neville informed them of the reason he had decided not to come back and continue travelling. “You and Hannah spent far too much time staring at each other in seventh year!” “Coming from the guy who spent that same year staring at Astoria Greengrass!” Neville cheekily responded. “Hopefully, now you are back, you will finally make a move and tell her how you feel!” Before anyone could reply, the door to the house swung open to reveal Molly Weasley. “Mum!” Ginny cried out in delight, running straight up and into the arms of her mother. “Ginny, oh, Ginny!” Molly said as she wrapped her arms tightly around her only daughter. “It’s been so long!” The two women pulled apart with Molly holding Ginny at arm’s length as she looked over her daughter. “You are glowing,” Molly noted as her eyes quickly sneaked a look at her daughter’s left hand. “It seems Harry has been taking good care of you.” “It’s more like Ginny has been taking good care of us, Mrs Weasley,” Draco responded in amusement. “Well, that doesn’t surprise me,” Molly said as she moved over to hug Draco, Harry and Neville. “She might try to deny it, but Ginny is more like me than she would care to admit.” The three wizards all chuckled in response as Ginny attempted to glare at her mum in anger for her comment. “Now, we are eating in the garden as there are far too many of us to sit comfortably in the kitchen. Go on round and I will be with you all shortly.” Harry and Draco exchanged a nervous look, neither looking forward to the moment they had been dreading — Ginny’s six older brothers discovering just who she had been travelling with for the past three years. HP&GW Molly was not joking when she had said they were far too many people for them to sit inside comfortably as the group of friends discovered as they turned the corner into the garden. Ginny was pleased to see her entire family, including her brothers’ wives and partners, were there, seated round the table, as she had not seen any of them since she had left the country three years previously. What she was most looking forward to, though, was meeting her three nieces, Victoire, Dominique and Molly. Just seeing Bill and Fleur, Charlie, Percy and Audrey, George and Angelina, Fred and Alicia, Ron and Hermione, her father and even Matt Potter were sat around a huge table in the garden of The Burrow warmed her heart. “WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY DOING HERE?” The question stopped all four of the friends in their track as the eyes took in the sight of Ron standing with his wand pointing at them. Ginny quickly glanced at the rest of her family and was pleased to see her father looking at Ron in disappointment. “Ginny, what are you doing Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy?” Ron questioned, his wand never wavering. Ginny stumbled slightly in shock as she watched Fred, George and Percy also stand up with the wands drawn. Harry, however, was not surprised to see his own twin brother was sat at the table but was shocked to see he had not stood in protest either. He could only hope that the unexpected information his brother had received at the previous Order meeting had begun to sink in. “Put your wands down!” Arthur demanded quietly. “NOW!” The twins and Percy immediately lowered theirs, but Ron stubbornly refused to cooperate. “Ron,” Matt quietly spoke, though everyone could hear him. “It’s fine. Just lower your wand.” Ron allowed his gaze to switch to Matt, shocked he would even suggest such a thing. However, it was the sight of seeing his own father greet not just Ginny warmly, but Harry, Draco and Neville also. His arm dropped in shock as he watched his world turn upside down. “What are you doing, Father?” Percy asked, confused to this turn of events. “This,” Arthur said as he indicated to Harry, Draco and Neville, “is who Ginny has been travelling with for the past three years. You know Ginny is friends with Neville, but she is close friends with Harry and Draco. They are all very much welcome here in this house. They have been for years and will be in the years to come.” Arthur had said this in a tone that made it clear that there would be no arguments about it and that was to be the end of the conversation. Even as Percy and the twins put their wands away and sat back down, it was obvious that Ron was not going to let it go. “NO! I refuse to accept that. I refuse to believe that Ginny would be friends with someone like Malfoy. We all know that his father was the one to slip Voldemort’s diary into Ginny’s cauldron in her first year. And, even though he refuses to admit it, Draco was the one behind all those attacks and the attempt on Dumbledore’s life in our sixth year!” For a moment, no one responded. Then, much to everyone’s confusion, Ginny, Harry, Draco, Neville and Arthur all burst out laughing. “I take it Ron has come to the wrong conclusion?” Molly asked as she approached the table, levitating the last the food from the kitchen. “Ronald, you cannot punish someone for the sins of their father. And, you can certainly not make such accusations against Draco without evidence. Now, apologise!” Ron could only glare in the direction of Draco, refusing to believe everything he knew about the Slytherin could possibly be wrong. “It’s ok, Mrs Weasley,” Draco said, knowing an apology would never be forthcoming. “Ron… well, the majority of those here don’t have the information required to not believe I am guilty of what Ron has accused me of.” “It doesn’t mean he shouldn’t apologise, dear.” “He doesn’t need to,” Draco replied before looking directly at Ron. “However, I should remind you that I had no idea about that diary or that it had been given to Ginny. Nor was I involved in any of the attacks during our sixth year. I will admit that I was one who made it so the Death Eaters and Voldemort could enter Hogwarts that night. Not because I wanted to, but because I had been coerced in to doing so as retribution for the mistakes my own father made. And if you don’t believe me, perhaps this will.” Draco held out left arm and rolled up the sleeve of the shirt he was wearing, revealing a clean and unblemished arm. “I am NOT the person you believe me to be, Ron,” Draco continued. “I am NOT the person I once was. Harry and Ginny helped me, became my friends and made me a better person. Your own parents were there to support me in my seventh year and have done since we left Hogwarts and I could not be more grateful to them.” No one spoke as they processed what they had just heard. Molly and Arthur looked on proudly, knowing it had taken time for Draco to move on and accept the friendship he had been offered by Harry and Ginny. “No more talk of this,” Molly stated, breaking the silence. “We are here to have a nice family dinner and welcome home Ginny and her friends.” Molly ushered the small group of friends towards the table before moving to her own seat, between Percy’s wife, Audrey and Arthur. The last four seats available were between Arthur and Harry’s own brother. Draco automatically took the seat next to Arthur, someone he had come to greatly respect and admire. Neville took the seat next to Matt as Harry and Ginny took the two seats in between their two friends. HP&GW Arthur looked around the table, pleased to see all his children, their partners and friends, and his grandchildren altogether for the first time since Ginny had left to go travelling around the world. It saddened him, however, that this could potentially be one of the last times that they were here altogether with yet another war looming over them. He knew it would take a miracle for everyone here to survive, but he also recognised that every one of them who wanted to would be present at the final battle. Yet, somehow he knew that Ginny and Harry would be in the centre of it all and if anyone deserved a long and happy future, it was those two. Looking over at Victoire, Dominique and baby Molly, he could only hope that this new war was brief and over before too many people were killed. He didn’t like the idea of his grandchildren growing up in a world full of darkness. It was bad enough so many of those who were sat at the table had been touched by it and there had been nothing he could have done, even as their father, to protect them from it. For now, though, he could enjoy this time with them, swapping stories of the past three years with his only daughter and her friends. HP&GW By the time Molly, with help from Fleur and Audrey, had cleared the table and brought out pudding, the family and friends were considerably more relaxed. Amusing stories from the group’s travels had helped to eased much of the tension, along with some teasing about Neville’s new relationship and Draco’s reluctance to admit his own feelings about Astoria Greengrass. It wasn’t a surprise to Harry and Ginny when Percy suddenly asked the question they had been waiting for since they had first arrived. “Why now?” Everyone fell silent as they turned to look at Percy, who was looking directly at the group of friends. “Why, after three years, have you decided to return home now?” Harry and Ginny exchanged a quick glance, knowing was the time to reveal part of the reason they had come home. While they were excited to be sharing the news of their engagement, they were still wary of how the family would react as no one at the table, bar Molly, Arthur, Neville and Draco, had been aware of their relationship before they left the country. “We came home for two reasons, one of which you will be informed about in the next few days. The other reason,” Ginny finally replied as she felt Harry take her left hand and silently remove the charm from her ring, “was Harry and I have some news we wanted to share with you, something we wanted to do in person.” Ginny paused for a moment, exchanging a smile with Harry, before turning back to her family. “Harry asked me to marry him and I said yes!” The reaction was not the one they had been expecting. It seemed the whole family was shocked at the announcement. The couple could tell, however, that Ginny’s siblings seemed to be waiting for a reaction from their mum first as way to see how to react to the news. “Oh, my little girl is getting married!” Molly shrieked in delight as she stood, pushing her chair back and rushing round to hug the couple. Her reaction sliced through the tension and everyone appeared to cheer in celebration at hearing that the youngest Weasley was now engaged. As Molly, Fleur, Audrey, Angelina and Alicia admired the beautiful ring Harry had given Ginny, the rest of the Weasley men, bar Ron, congratulated Harry and welcomed him to the family. However, three people were reluctant to congratulate the couple on the impending nuptials. Ron was staring at everyone in shock, wondering how his baby sister was getting married to a man he hadn’t even been aware of her dating. Hermione was pleased for the couple, but hadn’t moved, fearful of the reactions from her boyfriend and her best friend. Matt couldn’t deny he was heartbroken at hearing the news as he had long had a crush on Ginny Weasley. While he hadn’t been expecting to hear this specific announcement, he had a feeling his brother and Ginny were a couple from the moment they had arrived. He had never seen his brother look so relaxed before, well, at least not since they started Hogwarts and their relationship began to fall apart. The only other person he had seen Harry like that with was Sirius. Therefore, despite feeling like his heart had been crushed, he couldn’t help but feel happy for the couple. “How is that even possible?” The question cut through the joy of the announcement harshly with a tense silence suddenly appearing as every head turned to look at the person who had spoken. It didn’t seem to shock anyone that the question had come from the person who had questioned the presence of Harry and Draco when Ginny had arrived at The Burrow with them. “How can you possibly be engaged to him?” Ron asked, a defiant look on his face. “You may have been travelling with them for the past three years, but you cannot have been dating all that long for it to be serious enough to decide to get married. It will probably fall apart now you are home with more options available to you.” “EXCUSE ME?” Ron flinched as the volume of his sister’s voice and the flash of anger that had crossed her eyes. “Exactly what do you mean by more options, Ron?” Ginny asked when it appeared Ron was not going to explain his thoughtless words. Ron searched the faces of everyone present, looking for someone to back him up, but he found no one. He had not been surprised by the reactions of Harry, Draco and Neville, but he had at least expected someone from his own family, preferably one of his brothers, to agree with him on the subject. Neither of his own friends seemed to want to back him up and he suspected he was going to get a long lecture from either Hermione or his mum as a result of his bad choice of words. “What I am trying to say,” he eventually responded, “is that you have only been around those three for the last couple of years, with no chance to date anyone who could possibly be a good match for you. Matt has been waiting to ask you out for years, even though you refused him for our last two years at Hogwarts.” “That would be because I was already dating Harry!” Ginny admitted as she felt Harry take her hand in support. “We began dating at the beginning of my fifth and Harry’s sixth year.” “That would explain why you constantly turn me down,” Matt quietly stated before Ron could say anything foolish in response. Harry and Ginny exchanged a quick look before turning to look at the one person they feared they had hurt with this news. “Matt, I am sorry if my rejection or the engagement has caused you hurt in any way,” Ginny gently said. “That was never my intention. It’s just…” Ginny paused, unsure how to explain her relationship with Harry without hurting Matt even more than she already had. “I won’t deny that Ginny and I were aware of your feelings for her,” Harry continued, recognising his fiancée’s struggle to explain. “We didn’t know, though, until after we started dating. Perhaps it would have been better had we been honest from the moment we started dating, but we made the decision, together, to keep our relationship quiet due to the war with Voldemort.” “Why would you keep it quiet when you were being kept at a distance from everything that was going on?” Percy asked, unaware he was asking on behalf of everything one who had yet to be told the truth about the Boy Who Lived’s true identity. “I can’t tell you that yet, Percy,” Harry answered honestly. “I promise that you, and everyone else here who has yet to be informed, will be told everything soon. I just need you to trust me and Ginny for the moment. Even so, Matt knows why and should therefore understand our reasons for why we chose to keep our relationship quiet, even after it appeared Voldemort disappeared again.” Looking to his twin brother for confirmation, Harry was relieved when Matt gave him a small smile and nod of his head. He then looked to Percy and the others present who were unaware of the truth. It seemed they had all accepted his answer, some with more reluctance than others. “I won’t deny that I feel like my heart has been crushed,” Matt admitted as he made direct eye contact with his brother, “but, I can’t deny that I have never seen you as happy or as relaxed as you have been today.” Matt finally stood, walked over to Harry and Ginny and held out his hand. “I am happy for the pair of you,” he said as Harry took his hand and shook it. “Congratulations!” Any tension there had been finally dissipated as the family retook their seats to enjoy pudding. Conversations quickly sprung up like nothing awkward had just happened, with Molly already discussing possible ideas for the wedding with Ginny. “Harry?” Harry looked up to see his brother looking directly at him. It appeared Matt was struggling with his decision to say something to him as both Hermione and Ron whispered furiously to him to just ask. “I know our relationship fell apart during school, that I pushed you away, shut you out and ignored you,” Matt finally said with a shaky voice, “but how did you managed to keep your relationship and your friendships secret from everyone?” |
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