Chapter 1: Tragedy in Godric's Hollow
Notes:
Author’s Note: Dudley Dursley has been renamed Darius Dursley in this fic. Also, this story will be entirely Harry Potter based throughout Harry’s childhood and Hogwarts years. The crossovers with The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural, and Teen Wolf will not come into play until Harry has finished Hogwarts and defeated Voldemort. To put things into context, in this chapter which is set in 1981, most of the principal cast of Teen Wolf and the non-vampire characters on The Vampire Diaries haven’t even been born yet. As for Supernatural, Dean Winchester is only twenty-months old and Sam hasn’t been born yet. Needless to say no character can appear in the story until after they've been born.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
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Chapter One:
Tragedy in Godric's Hollow
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2 November 1981…
It was a normal evening on Privet Drive, a quiet street in the Little Whinging suburb of Surrey. Petunia Dursley and her husband, Vernon, were in bed, fast asleep, greatly enjoying the fact that their son, Darius Dursley, was now sleeping through the night. Petunia still kept a baby monitor in his nursery and another on the nightstand next to her bed, just in case, but she was glad that her son hadn’t woken up in the middle of the night for a few months now. Still, even fast asleep, she had trained herself to wake at a moment’s notice if her son needed her.
It was because of this that on this particular evening, when Petunia found herself waking up, she had thrown back her bedsheets, put on her slippers, and was about to stand and put on her robe to go to her son’s room when she realized that there wasn’t a peep to be heard from the monitor. Putting on her robe, she made her way down to the nursery to check and she found her son still fast asleep and quite peaceful, as the colorful mobile over his crib slowly turned.
Stepping out of the room and closing the door behind her, she leaned against the wall for a moment and wondered just what had woken her up. She couldn’t figure it out and was about to return to her bedroom when she glanced down the stairs and saw that it was unusually dark outside as if all of the street lamps were out. She would have put it out of her mind and just thought that the one across the street from her home had burned out when she heard the sound of a motorcycle.
Nobody on Privet Drive owned one, as far as she knew, and even if they did, they wouldn’t disturb the peace by riding it at one-thirty in the bloody morning. Decision made, Petunia made her way down the stairs to investigate, fully intending to find out who was making all that racket and maybe even call the police to report them. Reaching the bottom step, however, she stopped dead in her tracks as she heard voices… right outside her house.
“Are you sure you want to leave him here, Albus?” a voice that Petunia instantly recognized asked. “I’ve been watching the house all day and the husband is the worst sort of muggle you could possibly imagine. I’ll never understand what Petunia saw in him.”
“Calm yourself, Minerva,” a man’s voice said, one that Petunia also easily recognized. “Petunia is the poor boy’s only remaining family. It’s only right that Lily’s sister raises the boy now that she cannot.”
Petunia’s eyes widened at this and paying no mind to the fact that she was in her robe and slippers, she crossed the entryway, unlocked the door and threw it open, as the three people on her front porch jumped at the unexpected movement.
“What’s happened to Lily?” Petunia asked, as she looked at her former Headmaster and Deputy Headmistress, who was standing on her front porch with the groundskeeper, who had a baby-shaped bundle in his arms. Eyes widening she asked, “Is that little Hadrian?”
Albus Dumbledore sighed and nodded. Before answering, he pulled out his wand and cast a Silencing Charm so that they could speak without anyone overhearing. “I’m afraid so, Petunia.” He paused here for a moment, before he added, “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, as there’s never any easy way to deliver it, but I’m afraid that James and Lily are dead.”
Shaking her head, unable to believe what she had just heard, Petunia asked, “Dead? What do you mean dead? How? They were in hiding, they were supposed to be safe... what happened?”
“Their secret keeper betrayed them,” Minerva answered. “You-Know-Who broke into their home and I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what happened next. Suffice it to say that James and Lily are dead.” Moving forward and pulling her former student into a hug, Minerva said, “I’m so very sorry for your loss. The world is worse off without them in it.”
Tears welled up in Petunia’s eyes as she let herself be held for a moment by her former professor. “Oh Lily, no.” After a moment, she stepped back from Minerva and asked, “How did Hadrian survive? Obviously, I’m thrilled that he did, but I can’t imagine that fiend being content with just killing James and Lily when their son was his real target all along.”
“I don’t know how he survived, in truth,” Albus said after a moment. “All I know is that James sent me the alarm warning that we’d arranged. I had just gotten into bed so it took me a few minutes to get dressed, but by the time I got there with Hagrid and Sirius, the front door was blown off its hinges and James was lying dead in the living room with his wand in his hand. We found Lily on the floor in the nursery, next to a pile of ashes. Little Harry was standing up in his crib looking down on his mother and crying.”
“His name is Hadrian, Albus,” Petunia said, almost automatically. She knew from the letters they’d exchanged just how much Lily despised that nickname that Hagrid had given her son because he found his real name too hard to pronounce. At this point, she moved past Minerva and held out her arms to Hagrid as she said, “Speaking of, I’d like my nephew now if you don’t mind.”
“Oh, a… of course,” Hagrid said, as he moved Harry out of the sling he’d placed him in for the ride over to Privet Drive and handed the fifteen-month-old baby over to his aunt, who snuggled him tightly to her chest and closed her eyes for a moment, as she pulled the blanket a little closer to cover his face.
It was at this point that even in the darkness, she spotted the bloody wound on the baby’s forehead. “What is that? And where’s Sirius?” she asked, almost as an afterthought, as she realized that the motorcycle that she’d heard was her brother-in-law’s best friend’s bike.
“I wasn’t there to witness what happened,” Dumbledore began, “but from the tests that I ran on both Har…” at Petunia’s sharp look, he amended, “Hadrian, the room, and on the ashes my hypothesis is that Voldemort tried to kill him. I’m not entirely sure how, but it seems that the curse Voldemort used on your nephew backfired, leaving him with only a scar and reducing the Dark Lord to a pile of ashes.”
“You-Know-Who is dead?” Petunia asked, incredulously.
“Yes, he is,” Minerva answered. “I’m surprised you haven’t heard, Petunia. Our kind has been out in force celebrating almost all day now.”
Vernon’s complaints at dinner about a bunch of strangely dressed people congregating on street corners as he drove to and from Grunnings suddenly came back to her mind at this. She hadn’t really been listening to Vernon, having mostly tuned him out as she concentrated on feeding Darius, but she had still heard snippets of his rant. She had just never equated it with witches and wizards out celebrating the death of the Dark Lord. She couldn’t imagine they’d be that stupid. Yes, if true it was a good thing, but did they care nothing for the Statute of Secrecy?
“It’s true,” Albus confirmed. “The tests I ran on the ashes confirm that it was Voldemort and Severus reports that the Death Eaters are in disarray as they all felt it when he died. Or at least all those who bear his Mark. Speaking of, it’s already starting to fade, as it’s no longer dark black, but more of a medium gray. By this time tomorrow, I doubt they’ll even be visible on the bearer’s arms any longer, as they’ll have faded away completely.”
A moment later, Albus said, “As for Sirius, he said he had something to do and left not long after we found Lily’s body. He left in such a hurry that he left his motorcycle behind. So I told Hagrid to use it to bring Harry here while I went to the Ministry and handled the necessary legal matters that presented themselves due to James’s and Lily’s deaths. You will need to visit the Ministry soon, of course, Petunia to sign a few papers as next of kin and Harry’s guardian.”
Focused on checking over her nephew to make sure that other than the ugly scar on his forehead that he was otherwise healthy, Petunia didn’t correct the headmaster on the use of the nickname. Instead, she simply nodded and said, “Very well. I’ll go tomorrow, assuming that Arabella can watch the boys for me. Now, it’s getting quite chilly out here, so I think I should get Hadrian inside.”
Pulling out her wand, which she’d placed in the pocket of her robe before going to check on Darius, she waved it silently in the direction of Sirius’s motorcycle, shrinking it, before summoning it and putting both it and her wand in her pocket. “Should Sirius contact you, let him know that I’ve got his bike. I’m sure he’ll want it back. Now, good night.”
Without another word, Petunia turned on her heel and walked into the house, closing the door behind her. She lingered in the entryway for a moment, wondering how she’d explain this to her husband in the morning, but he was just going to have to suck it up and deal with it. As there was no way that she was going to not take in her orphaned nephew or give him the home and family life that he deserved.
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Petunia did eventually go back to sleep, although her first stop was the upstairs bathroom where she attempted to heal Harry’s still bloody lightning bolt shaped scar with magic. Much to her disappointment, however, the scar resisted any magical attempt to heal it. Living in a muggle neighborhood and having a muggle husband, she had taken the time to learn muggle first aid techniques, however. So since magic wasn’t working, she instead washed the wound with water, applied a mild astringent, and then bandaged it. It would take longer than magic, but some treatment was better than nothing.
Leaving the bathroom, she crossed the hall to the nursery where she used wizard space to expand the room enough for a second crib to fit in the room. Placing Hadrian—who was by this time sound asleep—in the copy of her son’s crib, Petunia leaned down and placed a kiss on her nephew’s forehead.
“Sleep well, my little angel,” she whispered before she left the room and headed back to the master bedroom so that she could get a few more hours of sleep before she had to get up to make breakfast for Vernon.
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As it usually was every morning, Petunia was up, showered, and dressed before Vernon was even awake. Leaving the room, she went into the nursery and dressed Hadrian and Darius, making a mental note as she did so that after her trip to the Ministry she’d have to do some shopping for Hadrian. For the time being, however, she dressed Hadrian in one of Darius’s outfits, before carrying them both downstairs. Obviously, they noticed one another and were reaching out towards the other, curious about each other.
The boys had actually met a couple of times, but it had been several months ago before James and Lily had gone into hiding under the Fidelius. So, Petunia wasn’t really all that surprised that the boys seemed like they were meeting for the first time, as at only sixteen and fifteen-months old respectively, their memories weren’t really fully developed yet.
Entering the kitchen, Petunia put Darius in his highchair, before pulling out her wand and conjuring a second one for Hadrian. Darius clapped his hands as the second chair appeared.
“Magic!” Darius said happily. It had been his first word, with ‘Mama’ following about a week later. Vernon hadn’t been all that happy about that, especially since it had taken Darius another three months to utter the word ‘Dada’ for the first time.
Putting Hadrian in the second highchair, Petunia smiled at them and said, “Darius, this is Hadrian. Can you say, Hadrian?”
Darius cocked his head to the side, looking at his mom then at his cousin and then back at his mom. A little hesitantly, he asked, “Rian?”
“Well, it’s certainly better than that other name,” Petunia said, not about to say it aloud as she didn’t want either boy to start saying it themselves. Lily had made it very clear in her letters that she had taken to using a Stinging Hex on anyone who said the name Harry around her son, as she did not want him to be known as that.
Turning to her nephew, Petunia smiled and said, “Hadrian, this is Darius.”
“D-D-Dari-us,” Hadrian sounded out in a rather halting tone.
“Oh very good,” Petunia said with a smile. “You’re cousins.”
At this Hadrian looked at Petunia and looked curiously at her, before something obviously clicked in his head and he asked, “Ant Toony?”
Petunia smiled. “Well, we’ll work on that, but I suppose it's close enough. Now, let’s get you two breakfast,” before she crossed over to the cabinet and got two clean bottles out of the cabinet.
Luckily for her, Petunia was aware of Lily’s letters that Hadrian was on the same formula that Darius was, so at least feeding both of them wouldn’t be an issue. Although she’d definitely have to buy more of it now that she had two mouths to feed instead of just one. Filling the bottles, Petunia cast a Warming Charm on each bottle, tested the contents, and then gave them to the boys who began happily sucking on them. That would tide them over for now, as she had to get breakfast cooked for Vernon, who she knew would be down soon as she heard the shower turn on. Then she could get them something a bit more solid.
Turning her attention back to the refrigerator, Petunia took out everything she’d need to prepare Vernon’s breakfast. She still made him a full English breakfast, although she only made enough for a single helping of each item. Vernon, who had frequently partaken of seconds when they were offered—along with thirds and fourths if available— complained quite a bit, but Petunia shut him down. In addition to limiting his caloric intake, she also grilled or baked most of the traditionally fried foods that Vernon preferred.
Throughout their courtship, Vernon had been a very healthy weight and Petunia had no complaints in that department. After they’d married, however, Vernon apparently stopped caring about his appearance now that he had a wife and his weight skyrocketed. Petunia didn’t mind a few extra pounds but drew the line when it began feeling like she had a walrus on top of her in the bedroom.
This is when Petunia put her husband on a very strict diet and exercise regimen. He complained incessantly, of course, but she didn’t care as she had no desire to suffer from cracked ribs due to her husband’s massive girth. Or be left a widow and single mother because her husband was intent on surrounding his heart with so much fat and filling up his arteries with so much plaque that he’d probably have a fatal heart attack before he was thirty.
Several minutes passed, during which Petunia heard the shower turn off. A few minutes later, Petunia was just plating up Vernon’s breakfast and pouring him a cup of tea when he entered the kitchen and made his way over to the dining room table. He didn’t comment on Hadrian at all, but Petunia wasn’t surprised. Despite being able to shower and dress, Vernon was pretty much like a zombie most days until he’d had his morning tea.
Setting her husband’s breakfast and drink down on the table in front of him, Petunia watched him pick up his cup for a second, before leaving the kitchen and crossing over to the front door to grab the morning paper from the front porch. She was back in less than two minutes, but while she was gone, Vernon had apparently drunk enough tea to be firing on more cylinders and noticed the second highchair.
Shaking his head, Vernon closed his eyes, and then touched his forehead when upon opening them he still saw two. “Petunia dear I think I’m going to have to call in sick today and go see the doctor. I’m seeing double.”
Placing the paper on the table next to her husband’s plate, Petunia said, “Don’t waste the doctor’s time, Vernon. There’s nothing wrong with you as you should be seeing two occupied highchairs.”
“I should?” Vernon asked. “Petunia, honey, last time I checked we only had one child.”
“Well, we have two now.”
“Why?” Vernon asked as he looked more closely and saw his son in one highchair and then saw the other child sitting in the other one, who had a bandage on his forehead. “Who is this kid?”
“It’s our nephew, Vernon.”
“Nephew?”
“Yes, as in my sister Lily’s son.”
“What is that freak doing here?”
No sooner had he said this, however, Vernon was gulping as Petunia whipped out her wand and held it so close to Vernon’s face that he’d go cross-eyed if he tried to look at the tip.
“Vernon Charles Dursley,” Petunia said in a sharp tone, “don’t you dare call Hadrian a freak. I know you’re still dealing with the whole magic is real thing, but that is no excuse to insult an innocent child.”
“I won’t have any freakishness in my house,” Vernon said, as he tried to sound tough, although Petunia could easily pick up on the slight quaver in his tone which told her he was about to piss himself from the fright caused by a wand in his face.
“I’m going to say this one more time, Vernon, and only one more time,” Petunia said. “So I suggest you listen and hear me this time because the next time you will not enjoy my reaction. Are you listening?”
Vernon nodded and Petunia said, “Magic is real and natural. There is nothing, I repeat, nothing freaky about it. And even if there was Vernon, Hadrian being here wouldn’t change anything. You’d still have magic in the house because in case you forgot, I am a witch! And as I’ve already told you, Darius has already shown the early signs that prove he is a wizard. So I strongly suggest you get used to it!”
Vernon was quiet for a moment, as Petunia put her wand away. When he spoke, he asked, “Why is the boy here anyway? Isn’t it a little early to be babysitting?”
“I’m not babysitting, Vernon. Hadrian will be living here from now on.”
“You mean your sister and her lazy husband abandoned their kid?”
Both boys began whimpering slightly at the tension in the room, as Petunia said, “They did nothing of the kind, Vernon. And as I’ve already explained, James was not lazy. He was an Auror, a magical police officer. I’d hardly call it lazy when a person who doesn’t need to work chooses to do so anyway. The Potters are so old money that they make most other old money families look nouveau riche by comparison.”
Apparently not noticing that Petunia had been referring to James in the past tense, Vernon said, “But what else would you call it when they leave their child with their sister and leave, never to return? It certainly sounds like abandonment to me.”
Petunia didn’t respond right away, as she took the time to calm down the two whimpering boys, before enclosing them in a one-way Silencing Charm that would still allow her to hear them, but not allow them to hear what was going on outside of the charm’s protective bubble.
With that done, she turned and faced her husband, a distraught look on her face, as she said, “Vernon, it’s not abandonment when they’re dead.”
Vernon’s eyes widened at that and he asked. “Dead?”
“James and Lily died on Halloween,” Petunia answered. “They were murdered.”
To his credit, Vernon quickly got out of his chair and pulled his wife into a hug, as he rubbed her back and said, “Oh God, Petunia, I’m so sorry.” After a few minutes, as the two stepped away from the embrace, however, Vernon asked, “Do we need to worry about the murderer coming here to try and finish the job?”
“No, Vernon, we do not,” Petunia answered. “The murderer is dead.” After a moment’s pause, in which she decided it was easier to lie to her husband than tell him the truth, she added, “He resisted arrest and made sure he wasn’t taken alive.”
“Well, that’s good then,” Vernon said. “That the filthy murderer is dead, that is.”
“Indeed,” Petunia agreed. “Anyway, with James and Lily dead, I’m Hadrian’s next of kin, so I’m stepping up to take care of him.”
“Of course,” Vernon said in a somewhat distracted tone, which Petunia easily picked up on.
“And Vernon, before you start dreaming about buying a Porsche or some other extravagance with my nephew’s money, I’d remind you that I was a witness when James and Lily wrote their wills a few months back. Everything goes to Hadrian, in an ironclad magically binding trust fund that even the Queen herself couldn’t break.”
Before Vernon could say anything, the doorbell rang, surprising both of them, as it was still very early for visitors. Leaving the kitchen, Petunia headed for the door and was surprised to see Mrs. Figg through the peephole. Opening the door, she asked, “Arabella, what are you doing here?”
“I’ve come to watch the boys for you, dear,” Arabella said. “Albus asked me to come, said you needed to get down to the Ministry ASAP. Something about Sirius.”
Before Petunia could respond, a silvery phoenix Patronus soared through the open door of Number Four Privet Drive and said, in Albus’s voice, “Petunia, come to the Ministry. Urgent. I’ll explain when you get here.”
“The boys are in the kitchen with Vernon,” Petunia said, even as she grabbed her coat from the hall closet. “There should be some apple sauce in the fridge that you can feed them.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Arabella said, as she entered the house and closed the door behind her so that none of the neighbors would see it when Petunia Apparated away a moment later.
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Petunia arrived in the Ministry Atrium moments later to find Albus Dumbledore waiting for her. Being met by the sitting Chief Warlock and newly elected Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards meant that Petunia was able to skip going through security, which was a good thing under the circumstances, because there was a queue of over thirty people waiting and it quickly became clear to Petunia as Albus explained the situation on their way to the lifts that time was of the essence.
“How can they possibly think to send him to Azkaban?” Petunia asked. “Without even the semblance of a trial? He’s the heir of a Most Ancient and Noble House!”
“I’m afraid that the legislation that Director Crouch and Minister Bagnold rammed through the Wizengamot for dealing with Death Eaters allows them to do just that,” Albus said sadly.
“That’s just ridiculous,” Petunia said. “Sirius is no more a Death Eater than you or I are.”
“Bartemius and Millicent disagree,” Albus said, as they exited the lift and moved towards the Ministry holding cells, where Sirius was currently being held but only because Dumbledore had been able to tie up the processing of the transfer order... his interference wouldn’t last long, however. “They say that Sirius murdered a dozen muggles and Peter Pettigrew.”
“That’s impossible,” Petunia said. “I understand that the Black family’s reputation is probably not doing him any favors, but Sirius is not like the rest of his family. Anyone with a semi-functioning brain can tell that after spending even five minutes with him.”
“Quite true,” Albus agreed. “I’m afraid, however, that the evidence is quite damaging. The Aurors found Sirius at the scene of the crime, wand drawn, next to the crater caused by the explosion. Surrounded by the still burning bodies of several muggles and Peter’s finger. That’s all of him that they could find.”
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “I don’t believe for a minute that Sirius would cast a spell to cause an explosion in a muggle-populated area. Even if that rat Peter did deserve to die.”
Albus didn’t say anything in response to this, as at that moment they entered the holding area to find a team of Aurors, Minister Bagnold, and Head of Magical Law Enforcement, Bartemius Crouch, Sr.
Upon seeing Albus walking into the room, Minister Bagnold said, “Albus, what is the meaning of this? Why did you slow down the processing of Mr. Black’s transfer order?”
“I believe you mean Heir Black, Minister,” Albus said. “Because in case you forgot, with the deaths of his father and brother, Sirius is the official Heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black. I wouldn’t be doing my job as Chief Warlock if I didn’t point out the fact that you cannot legally send the heir of a noble house to Azkaban without a trial. Are you trying to get thrown out of office, Minister? Because I guarantee you that’s what will happen if the Lords of the Wizengamot find out that you sent an innocent man—one of their own—to Azkaban without trial.”
“Black is not innocent, Albus,” Bartemius said. “He was caught red-handed at the scene of the crime. It’s obvious that Mr. Pettigrew must have confronted him in anger for betraying James and Lily Potter to You-Know-Who.”
“With all due respect, Director Crouch,” Petunia said. “That is not at all obvious since it’s not even remotely true.”
“Who are you?” Millicent Bagnold asked as she looked at Petunia.
“Petunia Dursley, formerly Evans. Lily was my sister and as such I know for a fact that Sirius Black did not betray James and Lily, because he wasn’t their Secret Keeper. Peter was!”
Shaking his head, Bartemius said, “That’s not possible. The Ministry record is very clear. Sirius Black was the Secret Keeper of the Potters.”
“Except that he wasn’t, Director,” a new voice said, as Algernon Longbottom, the Deputy Head of the Unspeakables, walked into the room. “At Albus’s request, I checked the records in the Department of Mysteries vaults. I’m sure you’re aware that we have charmed books going back to the era of Merlin himself which automatically record the details of every single Unbreakable Vow, Fidelius Charm, or similar spells that are cast anywhere within Albion jurisdiction.”
“I’m aware of that,” Bartemius said. “But your Head of Department has already stated under Veritaserum that the book recorded Sirius Black as the Secret Keeper.”
Algernon nodded. “Of that, I am not surprised, Director Crouch, considering that Director Malachi is currently bound and gagged in his office and being held at the wand point of a dozen of my colleagues. Magical testing shows long-term and repeated uses of the Imperius Curse on him, not to mention the fact the residual signatures of both Veritaserum and its antidote were found in his bloodstream. The latter signature being the weaker of the two, meaning he drank the antidote first.”
“What are you saying?” Millicent asked.
Shaking his head, Algernon said, “I’m saying, Minister, that there is clearly an agent working against us here at the Ministry. Somebody who had access to Director Malachi often enough to keep him enthralled under the Imperius. Our department security wards would not allow that spell to be cast inside the department, so it had to be have been done outside of the Ministry, most likely at some point after the Director left work for the day.”
“What makes you think this agent works here at the Ministry?” Bartemius asked. “You just said that the curse wasn’t cast at the Ministry.”
“You’re right, I did,” Algernon confirmed. “However, unlike the other Ministry departments, the Department of Mysteries does not publicize who the Head of the Department is. Only somebody who works at the Ministry and has high-level access to internal Ministry communications would be aware that Throgmorton Malachi was the Head of the Department of Mysteries.”
“Was?” Albus asked.
Nodding, Algernon said, “Yes, I’m afraid there’s no way that Throgmorton will keep his position. Unspeakables are supposed to undergo daily meditations designed to make us immune to mind control, including the Imperius Curse. The fact that Throgmorton was able to be placed under it at all means that he wasn’t performing the meditations, which are mandated by department protocol dating back to before the founding of the Ministry. And since he was under the curse long-term—our best guess is at least the last ten years—there’s no telling how much top secret information might have been compromised or what other actions he might have taken under the curse’s influence.”
“I’m sorry about your internal issues, Deputy Director Longbottom,” Petunia said. “However, can we please get back to the matter at hand? I will not stand here and let my nephew’s godfather be sent to Azkaban for a crime I know he did not commit. I was the one who cast the Fidelius Charm for James and Lily, so I know for a fact that they selected Peter Pettigrew as their Secret Keeper, not Sirius Black.”
“Even if he wasn’t the Secret Keeper,” Millicent said, “Heir Black is still guilty of using magic in the open in a muggle-populated area in flagrant violation of the Statute of Secrecy. Not to mention the deaths of twelve muggles and Peter Pettigrew.” Seeing that Albus and Petunia looked like they were about to object, Millicent held up her hand and added, “Even if Peter was the Secret Keeper, that did not give Heir Black the right to take the law into his own hands and play vigilante.”
“I understand that he shouldn’t have taken the law into his own hands, Millicent,” Albus said. “However, one must take his state of mind into account. His best friend in the world, who was more like a brother to him than his own brother was, had just died along with his wife. I sincerely doubt that Sirius was thinking clearly enough at the time to realize that he should call the Aurors.”
Petunia nodded. “Especially considering that when the idea of James and Lily hiding under the Fidelius first came up, James was adamant that Sirius be their Secret Keeper. The only reason that they went with Peter instead was that Sirius himself convinced James not to use him because he felt that he was much too obvious. Which is also, incidentally, why James and Lily did not choose me.”
Before Millicent or Bartemius could respond, Algernon said, “Pardon me for interrupting, but has Heir Black been interrogated under Veritaserum yet? Was Priori Incantatem used on his wand? Do we know for a fact that he’s the one who cast the Blasting Curse?”
“You’re suggesting that Peter blew himself up?” Bartemius asked. “I find that hard to believe. Especially considering that all we could find of Peter was his finger. There are multiple eyewitness accounts from muggles in the area who before they were Obliviated said they saw Heir Black moving his stick, as they called it, in a threatening manner in Peter’s direction.”
“They also said that Heir Black was shouting at Peter and saying that he should have died,” Millicent added. “Under those circumstances, it was decided that it wasn’t necessary to question Heir Black, as he was clearly the aggressor.”
“And you don’t think Sirius had a right to be shouting at Peter?” Petunia asked, incredulously. “I know Sirius. He would have died to protect James and Lily and would have believed that Peter should also give up his own life to keep their friends safe. So if Sirius was shouting at Peter that he should have died, I can’t say that I’m surprised.”
Petunia paused for only a moment, before adding, “Deputy Director Longbottom brings up some very good points, however. Eyewitness testimony is good, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t question Sirius or check to see what the last spell that his wand cast was.” Taking a deep breath, she added, “Also, you should be aware of the fact that Peter Pettigrew could very easily have been the one to cast the Charm and frame Sirius for the crime.”
“How can you be so sure?” Millicent asked.
“Because I know for a fact that Peter is an unregistered Animagus,” Petunia said. “I’ve seen him transform with my own eyes, so I know that he can take the form of a rat. Faced with the prospect of life in Azkaban with the Dementors or losing a finger, I don’t find it even the slightest bit far-fetched that Peter would prefer to cut off his own finger and escape over being captured and sent to Azkaban.”
“If you knew that he was an unregistered Animagus why didn’t you report it the Ministry?” Bartemius asked.
Before Petunia could answer, however, Albus said, “Let’s not waste time with stupid questions, Bartemius. You know as well as I do that Animagus Registration is completely voluntary and that there are no laws that require anyone who finds out about a given Animagus being unregistered to report it.”
“That’ll be the next legislation that I put before the Wizengamot,” Millicent said.
“That’s assuming they don’t censure and remove you from office first,” Albus said. “Which I guarantee they will do if they find out that you didn’t do the due diligence of questioning Heir Black under Veritaserum and checking his wand to make sure that he actually is guilty of what you’re accusing him of before sending him to Azkaban. And don’t give me the eyewitness line, Millicent. If you honestly believe that the mostly pureblood Lords of the Wizengamot will be willing to take the testimony of muggles into account, especially in a case that would see one of their own going to prison without a trial, you’re not nearly as intelligent as I thought you were.”
“Fine, fine!” Millicent exclaimed as she threw her hands up in resignation. “Director Crouch, check Heir Black’s wand.” Turning to the team of Aurors, she said to them, “One of you fetch a vial of Veritaserum from the Ministry stores.”
“That won’t be necessary, Minister,” Algernon said, as he reached into a pocket of his robe and pulled out a vial of the truth serum. “Something told me that I should come prepared.”
Half-an-hour later, Sirius Black was released from custody, cleared of all charges and apologized to profusely by Millicent Bagnold when a check of his wand clearly showed that the last spell he cast was, in fact, the Lumos Charm, not the Blasting Curse. His questioning under Veritaserum also not only confirmed that he was not the Secret Keeper for James and Lily, but that Peter Pettigrew was the one who cast the Blasting Curse, after cutting off his own finger and casting a Tickling Hex on Sirius that made him start laughing maniacally so that he wouldn’t be able to tell the Aurors what happened when they arrived and would instead look like a crazy man who was gleefully laughing about committing mass murder.
“Thank you for helping get me cleared, Petunia,” Sirius said, as they were walking towards the Atrium together.
“What else would I do, Sirius?” Petunia asked. “When I know for a fact that you’re not responsible for James and Lily’s deaths? I couldn’t live with myself or face Hadrian again if I knew that I allowed his mostly innocent godfather to go to prison for a crime I know he didn’t commit.”
Sirius grinned at that description, before he asked, “How is Hadrian? He’s safe?”
“Last time I saw him?” Petunia asked. “He was safe in my kitchen with Vernon and Arabella Figg, who Albus got to watch him and Darius so that I could come here and save your sorry arse.”
“Sorry arse?!” Sirius exclaimed, his face contorting in a look of mock outrage. “I’ll have you know that there is absolutely nothing sorry about my arse.”
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “The state of your arse, Sirius, is between you and Remus. I don’t need nor want any details, thanks.”
Trusting Albus and Algernon to ensure that Sirius’s questioning was handled properly, Petunia had gone upstairs while it was being done and signed all of the necessary papers she needed to sign to become Hadrian’s legal guardian of record. Now turning to look at Sirius, she added, “You and Remus should come by and see Hadrian soon.”
“Count on it,” Sirius said.
“Oh and in case it should interest you, Number Five is for sale.”
“Number Five?” Sirius asked, a confused look on his face.
“Number Five Privet Drive,” Petunia answered. “It’s been vacant for over a month now, as the current owner got a promotion at work that saw him and his family moving to Edinburgh.” At Sirius’s dawning look of comprehension, Petunia just smiled and said, “Just thought I’d mention it, in case perhaps you and Remus were to decide you wanted to do something with that information.”
Reaching the Apparition Point, Petunia prepared to leave, before she remembered something else. “Oh and Sirius? I have your motorcycle at my house, so I guess you have another reason to visit as if Hadrian wasn’t enough.”
Sirius grinned and nodded, but any response he might have had was not heard as Petunia Apparated away, anxious to return home and check on her boys.
-o-0-o-
By the end of Hadrian’s second week on Privet Drive, there was a moving van parked out front of Number Five Privet Drive. Within seconds of Petunia’s departure from the Ministry, Sirius was Apparating to Gringotts, meeting with his account manager, and arranging for an offer to be made for the house on his behalf. He realized, after the fact, that he maybe should have discussed it with Remus first, but with the offer already made it was too late to worry about that.
Thankfully for Sirius, Remus wasn’t upset with him when he was told about what his partner had done. In fact, he greatly approved of the idea of living next door to Hadrian and being able to not only keep an eye on him but also just see him frequently.
Once they got the news that the offer was accepted and the contracts were signed—expedited with both magic and the goblins’ contacts—they went about furnishing and outfitting their new home. Including using wizard space to enlarge a pair of small cupboards in the basement, which were heavily warded for not only silence but also security. One of them was turned into a fully stocked Potions laboratory and library, while the other would serve as a dueling and practice room. The latter room also had a secured cell built into it, where Remus could be locked up on the full moon.
Meanwhile, at Number Four, Petunia had been busy in the two weeks since taking in Hadrian. The day after going to the Ministry to deal with the Sirius issue, she went shopping and bought more clothes for Hadrian to wear so that he wouldn’t have to share with Darius. She also bought other necessities like more formula and baby food. One thing she didn’t have to buy were nappies, as the one use of magic that even Vernon didn’t complain about was Petunia using magic to vanish the contents of Darius’s and now Hadrian’s nappies. This resulted in substantial savings since they could use reusable cloth nappies over the disposable variety.
Petunia also visited what remained of the Potter Cottage in Godric’s Hollow, to see if anything there could be salvaged. She did manage to salvage a few albums of family pictures and a few other odds and ends. Unfortunately, when Voldemort’s spell backfired there had apparently been a large backlash of magic, as Hadrian’s former nursery looked like a bomb had gone off, with half the outside wall and the roof being blown out in the explosion. It was honestly amazing that Hadrian had escaped with just a scar… which had still not gone away, despite Petunia’s attempts to heal it. It had, at least, sealed now and wasn’t bloody like it was when Hadrian had arrived in her care.
Of course, the far more sad duty that Petunia had as the next of kin was to make arrangements for a memorial service for James and Lily and to see to their internment in the Potter family’s mausoleum on their Welsh estate. Since Darius and Hadrian were too young to understand what was going on anyway, neither one of them was present at the memorial, which was probably a good thing as there had been plenty of people in the days leading up to it that suggested that they were really only coming to meet The-Boy-Who-Lived. Once Petunia put out the word that he wouldn’t be present, however, many of those people chose not to attend.
Another happening was Petunia being called into Gringotts for a meeting with the Potter family’s account manager, Scarclaw, who informed her that as the legal guardian for Hadrian, she would be collecting 800 Galleons a month—or £4,000—from the Potter estate until he turned seventeen in order to pay for his expenses. She would gladly have not accepted the money, just happy to be able to care for her sister’s child, although the money certainly went a long way towards getting Vernon on board with keeping Hadrian.
Vernon’s first instinct had been to agree with his sister Marge, who had given her opinion on the matter via a telephone conversation with her brother. While she did express her condolences to Petunia on her loss, it had been in a somewhat less than heartfelt manner not that that surprised Petunia because she’d long suspected her sister-in-law didn’t have a heart. Marge’s advice had been to wash their hands of Hadrian by dropping him at an orphanage and being done with the matter.
Petunia, of course, had absolutely no intention whatsoever of doing that and had it been necessary, she would have used magic on Vernon to keep him compliant to her will. She didn’t want to, but she would have if it proved necessary. The money from the Potter estate only being collectible so long as Hadrian remained in Petunia’s custody, however, was enough incentive for Vernon to agree to keep the boy. Of course, much to Vernon’s disappointment, Petunia had the money deposited into her Gringotts vault, which not being a wizard, Vernon had no access to. Still, the fact that none of his money would be going to care for a child that wasn’t his had mollified him enough to not complain.
Over tea and biscuits one afternoon while Vernon was still at work and the boys were having their afternoon nap, Remus asked, “I mean no offense, Petunia, but what do you see in that man?”
Petunia could understand why Remus had asked that. “None taken. I understand that Vernon isn’t the most agreeable man at times. Still, despite his faults, I do love him and I wouldn’t have my darling Darius if it wasn’t for him.”
Another reason which Petunia had learned not to mention was the fact that Vernon was her soulmate. There were far too many people in the magical world who refused to believe that muggles were capable of having soulmates or the soul marks that went with them. There were only so many times that she could take being scoffed at and called stupid for believing what she knew to be true before she just stopped mentioning it.
“Correct me if I’m wrong,” Sirius commented, “but didn’t you and Vernon get married just over three years ago now?” Petunia nodded. “How is it that he’s not used to you being a witch yet?”
“Well, I might have neglected to mention it to him,” Petunia said. “Under the Statute of Secrecy, I would have been legally able to tell Vernon about magic once we were married, but I didn’t. So I simply didn’t use magic in his presence and didn’t tell him about it until after Darius had shown his first sign of magic… which wasn’t until just over two months ago.”
“Oh I would have loved to be a fly on the wall for that,” Sirius said with a grin. “I can only imagine Vernon’s reaction.”
“Yes, it was a bit extreme,” Petunia said. “I expected it might be, however, so I took the precaution of warding the house so that he could scream to his heart’s content and the neighbors—and Darius—wouldn’t hear him. The last thing I needed was one of the neighbors calling the police for a wellness check because they thought Vernon was abusing me. Of course, I only let him carry on for about ten minutes before I put my wand in his face and laid down the law.”
“I’ll bet Vernon was rather frosty with you for the next few days,” Remus said, as he took a bite of a chocolate biscuit.
“A bit,” Petunia said. “Although in truth, Vernon is actually very used to the women in his life taking charge. His late mother was a very domineering woman who basically ruled his childhood home with an iron fist. Vernon’s sister Marge is much the same way, so he’s had either his mother or his sister practically ruling him his entire life. One would think he’d want to escape that kind of thing, but I think that even if he never would admit it, he actually likes it.”
“Well, to each their own, I suppose,” Sirius said after taking a sip of his tea. “Personally, I couldn’t deal with someone else running my life for me. It’s part of the reason why I ran away from home because my mother is a very domineering woman herself. Thankfully, she considers me to be a blood traitor and has burned me off the family tapestry, so she hasn’t tried to contact me nor have I attempted to contact her. I’m perfectly happy for it to stay that way.”
“I’ve never spent much time with her,” Remus said. “But from what I’ve heard, I won’t be losing any sleep over not having a relationship with my mother-in-law.”
“Be thankful for that Rem,” Sirius said. “She wouldn’t like you anyway, as just as she views muggles and muggleborns with disdain, she also hates people with your furry little problem. If she had her way, all muggles, muggleborns, and werewolves would be culled.”
“She sounds like a perfectly lovely woman,” Petunia said. “Not.” Shaking her head, she then added, “To his credit, Vernon hasn’t ever said that all witches and wizards should be culled. He doesn’t understand magic, which is understandable since he's only known it was real for two months and is leery about it as a result. But he’s never said that Darius and I should die because of it.”
“I wouldn’t say that because I don’t believe it,” Vernon said, as he walked into the kitchen from the living room.
“Vernon, I didn’t hear you come in,” Petunia said, as she looked at the clock and said, “You’re home earlier than normal.”
Vernon nodded. “Mr. Grunning gave me the rest of the afternoon off as a reward after I landed a particularly large order. Plus a raise and an extra week of vacation time.” Leaning down to kiss Petunia on the cheek, he then said, “I freely admit I’m not fully comfortable with the whole magic thing yet. I do not, however, wish you, Darius, or anyone else dead, Petunia.”
“Well, that’s good to know,” Petunia said, as she motioned towards Sirius and Remus and said, “This is Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. They’re the new owners of Number Five. They both went to school with James and Lily, and Sirius is Hadrian’s godfather.”
Vernon looked at the two men and said, “I take it that means they’re your kind then?”
“If by ‘your kind’ you mean wizards, then yes,” Remus said.
Sirius grinned and said, “Yes, funny how being a witch or wizard is a requirement to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.”
“So you two are housemates?” Vernon asked.
“They’re a married couple, Vernon,” Petunia said. “And yes, before you say it, I understand it’s not legal here in the muggle world. It is, however, legal in the magical world because with the aid of magic, it’s possible for same-sex couples to have children together.”
Vernon’s eyes practically bugged out of his head at this as he looked at Petunia and asked, “Are you trying to say that wizards can… can…”
“Get pregnant?” Remus guessed is what Vernon was trying and failing to ask. This got an affirmative nod from Vernon, prompting Remus to simply say, “Yes, they can.”
Shaking his head, Vernon said, “I’m so glad I’m not a wizard.”
Sirius grinned. “Well, it wouldn’t really matter if you were or not. Just being a wizard isn’t enough, after all. Considering that you’re married to Petunia, I’m guessing you’re straight, at which point you wouldn’t be able to get pregnant anyway. Just like in the muggle world, pregnancy does still require sex. So wizards who don’t want to get pregnant just have to refrain from having sex with another wizard.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” Vernon said, before he quickly changed the subject, asking Petunia how her day was.
Sirius and Remus stayed for a few more minutes, long enough to finish their tea and biscuits, and then excused themselves as they headed back over to their house. Vernon, meanwhile, headed into the living room to see what was on television while he was normally at work, while Petunia did some cleaning and checked on the boys, before getting started on dinner.
-o-0-o-
Two days later, Petunia and Vernon were in the living room watching television while Darius and Hadrian were in the nearby playpen, playing with a pair of wolf plushies that Sirius and Remus gave them. With the exception of some rather raucous celebrations, all had been pretty quiet in the wizarding world since the defeat of Voldemort a few weeks ago, but everyone in the Order worried that it might be the calm before the storm. As Albus and several of the elder members of the Order, including both Mad-Eye Moody and Aberforth Dumbledore, agreed that even without a leader to unite them the remaining uncaptured Death Eaters could still cause problems.
Just as the show they were watching broke for commercial, a silvery fox darted into the room, causing Vernon to jump, as it spoke in a voice that Petunia recognized.
“Need help. Pinned down. Death Eaters are attacking. Fab and I outnumbered.”
Even as Petunia stood, a second, identical fox darted into the room and said in a similar, yet different voice, “You forgot to give our location, Gid. Our house! Come quick!”
Pulling out her wand, Petunia waved it over her muggle housedress, transfiguring it into sleek white battle robes emblazoned with a phoenix. “Watch the boys, Vernon. Stay away from windows and don’t answer the door, no matter who it is, until I get back. I’ve warded the house to the hilt, so you should be safe, so long as you stay inside.”
“What’s going on?” Vernon asked. “Who are Fab and Gid? And who are these Death Eaters?” More to himself, he asked, “How the hell do you eat death? And why would you want to?”
“Death Eaters are followers of James’ and Lily’s murderer,” Petunia said, as she quickly added a few extra protective charms on the doors and windows, in addition to the powerful wards that already existed on the house, including very powerful blood wards that she’d helped Albus Dumbledore setup when he’d discovered that Lily had performed an ancient blood ritual that would give Hadrian extra protection if she died to protect him, so long as he remained with her blood. “It’s like a cult. I’m a member of a group that opposes them and helps their victims, along with Gideon and Fabian Prewett.”
Before Vernon could say anything more, Petunia turned to him and said, “I have to go. Do as I said, Vernon. I’m trusting you to look after Darius and Hadrian, if they have even a scratch on them when I get back, I’m holding you responsible.”
Vernon nodded. He could see that he wasn’t going to convince his wife not to go, so he just said, “I love you, Petunia.”
Petunia smiled. “I love you too,” before she used her connection as the master of the wards around Privet Drive to open a small enough hole that she could Apparate through them, closing it the second she was through.
-o-0-o-
Moments later, Petunia appeared a quarter of a mile away from Gideon and Fabian Prewett’s house in the small wizarding village of Helga’s Grove, about a mile outside of Bristol. Even from this distance and being just past sundown, she could see the thick black smoke in the distance, suggesting that the Death Eaters had set fires. She didn’t charge in, however, as she knew she’d arrived inside the meet-up window and had gone to the closest rendezvous point to the Prewett house. Albus had been very clear with the Order members that even when responding to a distress call that nobody should go in alone with no reinforcements to back them up.
She didn’t have to wait long, as within seconds of her arrival there were several pops as she was joined by Sirius, Remus, Frank and Alice Longbottom, Benjy Fenwick, and Caradoc Dearborn. Only a few seconds later, Albus, Aberforth, and Mad-Eye Moody appeared, as well.
Nodding, at the group, Albus said, “Aberforth and I will stay here for five more minutes, in case any additional reinforcements arrive. The rest of you, you know what to do.”
With nods, they set off in the direction of the Prewett house, all of them having disillusioned themselves so that they’d be able to get closer unseen by the attacking forces, in addition to a spell that would allow them to run the rest of the way much faster and in a fraction of the time.
What they found upon arriving on the main thoroughfare of Helga’s Grove—the whole village consisted of exactly three streets, two residential, one commercial—was nothing short of chaos. Multiple storefronts had their front windows broken out, the glass littering the cobblestones. Flames and smoke poured out of the buildings and the Order members saw more dead bodies then they liked. Several Dark Marks were shining in the sky above the village, as more than one of the Death Eaters had apparently sent them up, casting a sickly, green pallor over everything in sight. The remaining uncaptured Death Eaters definitely seemed determined to make this one of the most brutal attacks of the war.
Taking charge of the situation, Moody said, “Benjy, Caradoc, you’re our medics, start checking the bodies. Help any survivors you can. Frank, Alice, help me get these fires out. Petunia, Sirius, Remus, head for the Prewett house and help Gideon and Fabian.”
“Are you sure dividing up our forces is wise?” Frank asked. “Do we even know how many are attacking the Prewetts?”
“I’ve already scanned the area,” Moody said, his magical eye spinning quickly in every direction. “There’s seven attacking the Prewett house and a few lone stragglers on the other streets. Gideon and Fabian are at their house, with Marlene and Dorcas by the looks of it. I don’t know if they were with the twins when they sent their Patronuses, but considering it’s their boyfriends, I can see them going in ahead of any help.”
“They were probably already there,” Alice commented. “Marlene told me she’s pretty sure that the twins are preparing to pop the question to her and Dorcas.”
“Aye, well, let’s see that they live to do it,” Moody said. “Now go. And remember… Constant Vigilance!”
Petunia, Sirius, and Remus made their way towards the twins’ house without another word. As they got closer they could see Gideon, Fabian, Dorcas, and Marlene valiantly holding their own against seven Death Eaters. Petunia suspected that Alice was wrong about Dorcas and Marlene already being in the house when the attack began, as despite being outnumbered the four of them were doing a good job of defending one another, while Gideon, Fabian, and Marlene each dueled with two Death Eaters at the same time.
Without a word to each other, Sirius, Remus, and Petunia came up behind the group and just as they dropped the Disillusionment Charms, they each sent a silent stunner at the backs of one Death Eater each. As their colleagues went down, it only made the remaining four Death Eaters fight all the harder, however, and not long after the four stunned Death Eaters went down they were revived by their compatriots, as one or two of the stragglers that Moody had mentioned joined the fight.
The next few minutes were intense, as the seven Order members battled against the nine Death Eaters. It was more difficult because of the edict from Albus that they do not use lethal force against the Death Eaters. Dead enemies couldn’t provide any information about deployments or plans. And Albus also loathed the idea of taking any life, always wanting to see the best in everyone and thinking that even the seemingly vilest people can change if only given the chance. Petunia could see the appeal in wanting to believe that, but she couldn’t help but think the Headmaster was being naïve, not that she’d ever say it to his face.
Of course, Petunia also didn’t say anything because she knew that there was another very good reason not to kill the Death Eaters. As they were all wearing masks to hide their identities, none of the Order members knew who was who. And they didn’t want to risk killing their most recently acquired new asset… double agent Severus Snape, who’d decided to turn spy for the Order after Lily died. He’d still have to fight with the Death Eaters, however, if he was going to avoid suspicion and be able to feed information to them from the inside.
About ten minutes after they’d arrived, Albus and Aberforth joined the battle, along with Newt, Tina, and Theseus Scamander, Queenie Kowalski, and Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel. Several people in the Order had voiced concern about trusting Queenie when she first joined the Order near the start of the war… considering that she’d fought alongside Gellert Grindelwald in her youth. Albus was adamant in his trust for her, however, and she had proven herself in the time since.
Unfortunately, the Order wasn’t the only ones with reinforcements inbound, as not long after Albus and the others arrived, the temperature noticeably dropped as a pack of at least fifty Dementors flew in. Soon after, Remus shuddered, as a loud howling noise pierced the night, sounding like it came from about half a mile to the east. The initial howl soon being answered by at least ten more… although that was only a guess as the Order members were far too busy fighting to get an accurate count.
While the Patronuses of the Order members managed to drive off the Dementors, by the time they had, Fenrir Greyback had arrived along with nearly two dozen werewolves, another ten Death Eaters and three vampires.
“Oh bugger me,” Sirius mumbled, just before the ground shook and the Order’s eyes widened in horror as they realized that the Death Eaters had also brought some of their giant allies.
“Fall back!” Albus called out, even as the Order began a strategic retreat to the Prewett house which was one of the few buildings in sight not in flames.
“I don’t think so,” one of the Death Eaters said, as they raised their wand and said, “Avada Kedavra!”
Nicolas Flamel summoned a large stone from a nearby stone fence that one of the giants had broken when they stepped on it and used it to block the spell, as it hit the stone and was redirected harmlessly into the ground. This only made more Death Eaters cast it, knowing that the Order members couldn’t possibly block all of them. Nicolas, Perenelle and Tina did an admirable job of trying, however, even as one Killing Curse shattered a rock put in its path, sending a jagged piece of rock hurtling in Petunia’s direction, where it grazed her left cheek before she could react.
Thankfully, Caradoc, Benjy, Frank, Alice, and Moody chose this moment to arrive, along with two dozen Aurors under the command of Senior Auror Rufus Scrimgeour. The giants were also soon encouraged to disengage from the battle and move away when Hagrid arrived on the scene, along with his mother, the Giant Chieftainess Fridwulfa and her honor guard. Even with the giants taken out of the picture and the new reinforcements, however, the Order was still outnumbered, as more Death Eaters arrived on the scene at the same time.
Several of them had already tried to use their emergency portkeys, but the Death Eaters had apparently erected an Anti-Portkey Jinx, so that combined with the fact that the entire village of Helga’s Grove was under an Anti-Apparition Jinx—which is part of the reason why Petunia and the others had met up a quarter mile outside of the village and ran instead of Apparating—meant a quick withdrawal wasn’t happening.
“Spread out!” Aberforth called out, realizing that if they all remained too close together it would be far too easy for the Death Eaters to surround them and then they’d be toast. Even as he said this, he broke from his brother’s preferred methods of using only stunners and binding charms, as he conjured a ball of fire and sent it flying into the Death Eater ranks, forcing them to jump to the sides to avoid being incinerated.
The Order, the Aurors, and the Death Eaters continued battling for the next several minutes. Things got especially tense a few times due to Director Crouch having cleared the Aurors to use the Unforgivables if they deemed it necessary. Apparently, a few of them deemed it necessary as the green mist of the Killing Curse left a few of the Aurors’ wands and headed for the Death Eaters, who used nearby rocks and other debris to block them the same way the Flamels had.
From his position about thirty feet away from her, where he was fighting back-to-back with his brother, Gideon’s eyes widened in horror, as he shouted, “Marlene, watch out!”
Unfortunately, it was too late, as two such deflected Killing Curses—one cast by an Auror and the other by a Death Eater—slammed into the back of Marlene McKinnon, who had been in the process of standing back up after she’d accidentally tripped on one of the small rocks still littering the ground from the giants’ previous attacks. It had been obscured enough by tall grass that Marlene, unfortunately, hadn’t seen it until her right foot made contact with it.
“NOOO!!” Gideon shouted as he watched helplessly as his girlfriend dropped to the ground. His eyes practically as red as his hair with fury, Gideon sent an arc of lightning out of the tip of his wand at the nearest Death Eater.
The pitched battle continued on, as more Death Eaters fell, some dead, others stunned and imprisoned in transfigured cages. The cages were the work of Albus, who transfigured some of the rocks littering the battlefield into cages to imprison the Death Eaters he stunned before they could be revived. Between Albus disarming them and the fact that he’d used a variant of the spell that would only allow him to unlock or banish the cages, those he imprisoned in such a way were, while still living, very effectively removed from the battle.
The Death Eater that Gideon electrocuted had managed to erect a shield that blocked most of the damage, but now he was clearly angry and cast a spell of his own at Gideon. One which revealed his identity as none other than Antonin Dolohov, as the spell he chose was a well-known signature of his… an extremely dark curse that conjured purple fire. Mere seconds later, Gideon, while doing his best to erect a shield before the spell could hit him, screamed in pain as the spell hit him in the chest, only partially blocked by his shield. As Gideon went down, a second blast hit Fabian in the chest, who’d turned around at his brother’s scream.
“Expelliarmus! Stupefy! Incarcifors!” Albus incanted, ripping Antonin’s wand out of his hand and imprisoning him in a transfigured cage. At the same moment, Sirius ducked a Killing Curse that one of the Death Eaters sent his way… and because he ducked, it found a new target in Dorcas Meadowes.
Only seconds later, a shout of, “Bombarda!” could be heard from one of the Death Eaters, sending a Blasting Curse flying at the feet of Benjy Fenwick who’d been running over to help Gideon and Fabian. Several more explosions followed at various points all over the battlefield.
Sending a wave of healing energy out of the Elder Wand at the incapacitated but still alive Prewett twins, Albus scanned the battlefield and noted that he couldn’t see Caradoc Dearborn or the Longbottoms. As his eyes fell upon the dead bodies of Marlene and Dorcas, a woman’s scream filled his ears, as Petunia screamed as she was hit by the Cruciatus Curse. Something about the pitch of Petunia’s voice, combined with seeing the dead bodies of the two women on the ground made Albus flashback to that fateful day well over fifty years ago when Ariana died.
Out of the corner of his eye, Albus could see that despite their best efforts, the Death Eaters and their allies were close to having them surrounded. Not wanting any more of his allies to suffer, Albus raised the Elder Wand and waved his arm in a wide arc as he turned in place, and incanted, “Protego Diabolica!” Within seconds of the incantation leaving Albus’s lips, a circle of black flames erupted from the ground, surrounding him and his allies, and cutting off the Death Eaters’ advance.
From the Death Eaters’ side of the flames, a surprised voice called out, “The great Albus Dumbledore, the so-called Leader of the Light, using the Dark Arts? I never thought I’d live to see it.”
“You forced my hand,” Albus called out. “And if you’re at all familiar with this spell, then you know that those of you who can still run had better do it fast. I’ll give you ten seconds. Ten… nine...”
There was a laugh at this, “You’re bluffing. You don’t have it in you, Dumbledore!”
“You really want to test that?” Albus asked. “Seven… six…”
It was at this point that Albus could feel the Anti-Apparition Jinx fall, followed by several pops as some of the Death Eaters fled the scene. “Five… four…”
“Cowards!” the Death Eater shouted, as he came up to just outside the ring of flames and removed his mask, revealing his identity as Thorold Mulciber, one of Voldemort’s very first Death Eaters, and one of his most loyal and ardent supporters, second only perhaps to Bellatrix Lestrange.
“Actually, I think they’ve got the right of it, Thorold,” Death Eater Thackeray Nott—whose mask had been shattered by some debris hitting him in the face earlier in the battle—said, as he stepped up next to Thorold. “We should go.”
“Yes, you should,” Albus said. “Three… two…”
At the last possible second, Thorold Apparated away… but not before pushing Thackeray forward into the flames, prompting him to scream as he was reduced to ashes within a matter of seconds. His scream did, however, convince several more Death Eaters to flee the scene and those who didn’t, left very quickly after Albus sent tendrils of flame flying out in their general vicinity. Not quite close enough to touch them, but still enough that they could feel the heat and probably shit their pants.
“They’re all gone now, Albus!” Nicolas shouted a moment later. “We’re safe and we can Apparate. So drop the spell before it destroys Helga’s Grove and Bristol right along with it!”
A second later the flames died down, although even with the Elder Wand it took some doing for Albus, as the spell hadn’t been all that far from breaking out of his control and going wild. While it was a protective spell in that it wouldn’t harm the allies of the caster, it was still classified as dark, because it was an offshoot of Fiendfyre, which was notoriously hard to control.
This version was easier to control, but even the most accomplished of wizards couldn’t control it forever. It got easier the more times one cast it, but since this was only the second time that Albus had ever used it, much longer and Helga’s Grove, Bristol, and their respective occupants would probably have been ashes. Because once the spell wasn’t being controlled by anyone, it would burn everything it touched… including the caster and their allies.
“Gideon and Fabian need medical attention,” Petunia said, as she came over and knelt beside them. They were still breathing, but they were unconscious. Their shirts were burned off and they each had a large, nasty-looking burn mark on their chests.
A second later, Fawkes appeared and landing so that he was standing half on Gideon’s shoulder and half on Fabian’s, he knelt his head down and began crying on the burns, which soon healed as if they’d never been there in the first place.
Fawkes let out a sad trill when they didn’t immediately wake, prompting Perenelle to step forward and swish her wand, as she tested them. “They’ve gone comatose and are dangerously close to death. They’ll need to be taken to St. Mungo’s immediately if they’re going to survive the night.”
“Fawkes?” Dumbledore asked, prompting the phoenix to nod ever so slightly before stretching his wings and disappearing in a flash of fire, taking the twins with him. Dumbledore then sent his Patronus to St. Mungo’s after them, to tell the healers who the patients were and what spell they’d been hit with.
The remaining members of the Order stayed for a while longer to finish putting out the fires, using magic to repair as much of the damage as they could. Meanwhile, the Aurors went around to Albus’s cages and bound all the occupants in tight ropes before Albus banished their cages. A total of twelve Death Eaters were headed for Azkaban that night, including Antonin Dolohov, Walden MacNair, Thornton and Finnegan Rowle, and Igor Karkaroff.
Albus had actually captured thirteen Death Eaters, but one of them was spared Azkaban, as when their mask was removed it turned out to be Severus Snape, who Albus had arranged a full pardon for due to his new position as a spy. A few of the Aurors weren’t happy about having to release a Death Eater, but there was nothing they could do about it, as the new Head of the Department of Mysteries had given Severus a status which while it didn’t make him an Unspeakable, it did protect him from prosecution for any action he undertook with the Death Eaters so long as he remained an undercover spy for the Order of the Phoenix.
Of course, in order to keep up Severus’s cover, he was taken to the Ministry holding cells with the other Death Eaters. With each Death Eater sequestered in separate cells which didn’t allow any of them to see the others that had been captured or hear anything going on outside of their cell, it was safe and easy to open Severus’s cell and release him.
-o-0-o-
The following morning, Molly and Arthur Weasley could be found sitting in a waiting room at St. Mungo’s, along with their two eldest children, Bill and Charlie. The rest of the kids were back home at The Burrow with Arthur’s parents. Also present were Molly’s older brother, Bilius, and their father Amadeus Prewett, whose elder half-brother, Lord Ignatius Prewett, was also in the room, along with his mother, Muriel.
“What in Merlin’s name is taking so long?” Muriel complained. “I swear in my day there was more respect. Healers didn’t leave worried families sitting in a waiting room for hours without any updates.”
“I’d rather they do everything they can to save Gideon and Fabian,” Amadeus said, “then come in here and give us updates every five minutes.”
Before Muriel could say a word, a healer walked into the room and asked, “Are you here for Gideon and Fabian Prewett?”
Standing up, Amadeus nodded, and said, “Yes, I’m their father.”
“Your sons are out of danger,” the healer replied. “We’ve stabilized them and they’re no longer in danger of dying.”
“Can we see them?” Molly asked.
The healer nodded. “You can, but I’m afraid they haven’t woken up yet.” With a sigh, the healer said, “My colleagues believe it would be best if they be moved up to Ward 49 on the fourth floor.”
“Ward 49?” Ignatius asked. “That’s the Janus Thickey Ward, is it not?”
“Yes, it is. With the right spells, potions, and a bit of luck, they may wake up eventually, but I’m afraid our best spell damage specialists agree that it’s not likely to be anytime soon. Moved up to the long-term care ward, we can keep them comfortable and monitor them for any sign of improvement, while also trying to figure out the best course of treatment.”
“If you think that’s best,” Amadeus said, as he collapsed into a nearby chair, with a defeated sigh, as Bilius reached over and squeezed his father’s shoulder.
“Will they ever wake up?” Bill asked from where we has standing next to the arm of his father’s chair, one arm wrapped around his brother Charlie’s waist. Gideon and Fabian were only eight years older than Bill and ten years older than Charlie. It was perhaps because of the relative closeness in their ages that Bill and Charlie both considered Gideon and Fabian to be their favorite uncles. They liked Bilius and their dad’s brothers, but Gideon and Fabian were the cool uncles.
“I’m afraid I can’t answer that with any certainty, young man,” the healer said. “We’ll do our best, however.”
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Chapter One of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. As you can see, this story definitely diverges from canon in that Petunia is a witch and determined to give Harry a good childhood. It’s also quite different in that Sirius never went to prison… so that pretty much invalidates the entire Prisoner of Azkaban arc.
The first few chapters of this story will focus on Harry’s childhood, so you’ll get to see him grow up and attend Hogwarts. Although, there will definitely be changes to his school years, not the least of which due to the fact that Dudley or Darius as he’s named in this fic, will be attending Hogwarts with him.
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
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Chapter Two:
Hadrian's Fifth Birthday
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12 June 1982…
Sirius Black rather disliked leaving his happy home on Privet Drive with his husband in order to attend the monthly meetings with his grandfather, Lord Arcturus Black. However, with the deaths of Orion and Regulus Black, Arcturus had had little choice in the end but to name his grandson as his heir, even if some members of the family, namely Sirius’s own mother, strongly opposed it.
Sirius didn’t really have much interest in being the heir, or Lord Black when his grandfather eventually passed away, although as Remus had pointed out to him, there was a silver lining. As it had been Sirius’s status as the heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black that had allowed Dumbledore to slow down the processing of the order transferring Sirius from the Ministry holding cells to Azkaban, long enough to bring his innocence to light. Sirius had to admit that was definitely one reason to be happy about the status.
He’d also be lying if he said that he didn’t enjoy imagining his mother’s continued ire over it. Nor could he deny just how big of a smile doing so put on his face. Not nearly as much of a smile as what Remus or Hadrian could elicit, but a smile nonetheless.
Arriving at Arlington Grange, the Black family ancestral mansion in Northern England, Sirius knew almost immediately after being greeted at the front door by head house-elf Kallix and shown to the drawing room that this wasn’t going to be a normal family business meeting. The first most obvious reason was that all the previous meetings he’d attended since becoming the heir had been in his grandfather’s study, not the main drawing room.
Another big clue was that there was a tea service sitting on a side table, instead of the Firewhisky that Arcturus normally offered during these meetings. The most obvious clue, however, was that his grandmother, Lady Melania Black, was sitting on the couch next to her husband. While Melania did take care of most of the family’s social engagements, she rarely took part in meetings regarding family business. She had very little interest or knowledge in the areas of finance or business, so there really wasn’t much of any substantive value that she could offer on either front.
It was shortly after Sirius had sat down in a chair across from his grandparents and Kallix fixed him a cup of tea, however, that Sirius really knew that something was up, as it was at this point that his other grandparents—his mother’s parents—Pollux and Irma Black turned up. Sirius resisted the urge to sigh, as he took a sip of his tea, instantly knowing that the normal topics of discussion that usually filled these monthly meetings with his grandfather were very likely not on the agenda.
Deciding to state the obvious, Arcturus looked at his grandson and said, “I trust you’ve figured out by now that this isn’t one of our normal monthly chats, Sirius. We will still be having that later, but first, we do have a bit of family business to discuss that isn’t related to money, our various holdings, or politics in general.”
Nodding, Sirius said, “Yes, I figured that. So, even though I’m almost afraid to ask this, what’s up?”
“I know you’ve never been all that keen on being the heir,” Arcturus said. “Despite that, however, you have been doing a very admirable job in fulfilling all of the duties of that role.”
“With one exception,” Pollux said.
‘Oh Merlin, here it comes,’ Sirius thought.
“Giving us great-grandchildren,” Melania and Irma said in almost perfect unison.
“And more importantly, a male Black heir to follow you, Sirius,” Pollux added.
“Yes, that is one area in which you have been woefully underperforming,” Arcturus said. “Which I honestly do not understand because you’re young and you’re married. So I fail to see what the problem is.”
Closing his eyes briefly, as he prayed to all the gods for strength, as he really didn’t want to be discussing his sex life with his grandparents, he nodded and said, “Without going into too much detail, I can assure you that Remus and I have a very healthy relationship and the problem is not in any way physical.”
“Then what precisely is the problem?” Pollux asked. “You have a duty to this family, Sirius. You are the only male Black under the age of fifty who is likely to produce the next generation of male Blacks. All of us,” as he motioned towards himself, his wife, along with his cousin and his wife, “are at an age where the last thing we want is to be bringing another child into this world.”
Irma nodded and said, “And I’m sure I needn’t tell you that since your brother died childless, as did your Uncle Alphard, and the fact that our other son, Cygnus, has only daughters, two of which have married into other noble houses, it’s unlikely that he’s going to provide the much needed Black heir to carry on the family after you.”
“I understand all of this,” Sirius said. “As I said, however, it’s not a physical issue. The problem is that Remus doesn’t want children.”
“In Merlin’s name, why?” Melania said. “You’re both young and very attractive. Your children would be gorgeous.”
“While I appreciate that vote of confidence, grandmother,” Sirius said, “the reason is because of his monthly affliction. He’s afraid that if we have children, they’ll inherit his lycanthropy.”
“Ah, I had wondered if that was the reason,” Arcturus said. “Especially since your harpy of a mother spent an hour yesterday in my Floo shrieking yet again about me making you my heir. Calling you a blood traitor and bemoaning your cursed halfblood mutt of a husband. Once again pleading with me to name Pollux as my heir, with Cygnus to follow.”
“Which wouldn’t work very well,” Pollux added, “since Cygnus is fifty-three and while Druella is technically still in her childbearing years, Narcissa’s birth was very hard on her, which is why she and Cygnus never attempted to have a son. So, it’s unlikely they’ll decide to have another child at this point, especially now that all three of their daughters have made them grandparents.”
“And of our four grandchildren, only two of them are sons,” Irma added. “And both of them will be the confirmed heirs of other noble houses, which eliminates them as viable options.”
With a sigh, Arcturus said, “Perhaps I have only myself to blame for this, as I am the one who caved to your grandmother and granted my permission for you to marry Remus, despite his affliction. But she was adamant that I allow you to marry for love, rather than political expediency.”
Left unsaid, was the fact that Melania was a Macmillan by birth and was thus from a traditionally light-aligned house, which is why she didn’t really have any reservations about Remus being a werewolf. There was certainly a lot of prejudice in the wizarding world about that issue, from all sides of the ideological spectrum, but the Macmillans and Melania were definitely on the more accepting side. Not to mention that after sixty years of marriage, Melania knew all of the right buttons to push to get her husband to agree with her on pretty much everything.
Accepting that what was done was done and knowing that suggesting to Sirius that he divorce Remus in favor of a more suitable spouse—not likely considering that Remus was literally Sirius’s soulmate, which had been another reason beyond Melania’s manipulation of her husband that Lord Black had signed off on the marriage—or barring that even having a discreet affair and passing the child off as legitimate was likely to be a losing battle, Pollux said, “There is no research, to the best of my knowledge, which says that lycanthropy can be passed on through any means other than being bitten.”
Sirius nodded. “True, but then considering the extreme levels of prejudice that werewolves face in our world and the draconian laws which force them into poverty and third-class citizen status, there haven’t exactly been many studies conducted on that topic. Nor do most people ever bother to seek out werewolves and ask that question. Of course, all the laws make it extremely unlikely that most werewolves would be willing to sit down and answer any questions.”
“I take it that Remus doesn’t have any werewolf friends that he could ask?” Melania asked.
Shaking his head, Sirius said, “No, I’m afraid he doesn’t. He does have a group of people which he considers to be his pack, but he’s the only werewolf in it. He was bitten as a child and his parents wanted him to have as normal of a childhood as possible, so they did everything they could to ensure that, which included not seeking out other werewolves his age for him to socialize with. Honestly, about the only werewolf that Remus is definitely aware of is Fenrir Greyback, since he’s the one that turned him, and I don’t see him being receptive to answering any questions.”
“Not that you’d even allow it even if he was,” Arcturus said, as he knew his grandson well enough to know that much. “You’d introduce Fenrir to the business end of your wand with several particularly nasty and potentially lethal curses before you’d ever allow Remus to sit down and have a conversation with him.” Shaking his head, he added, “Not that I blame you in the slightest, because he is not any sane person’s idea of pleasant company.”
“Indeed,” Pollux said with a shudder as he remembered the one social event he’d attended that Fenrir had been invited to. Once was enough for him to pretty much get blacklisted by all of society, as not only was he very rude with not even a semblance of proper manners, but he also very loudly complained about the lack of raw meat on offer. And when the host of the event tried to mollify him by having the house-elves bring him a platter of raw fish and steak, he showed atrocious table manners by tearing into it with his teeth and devouring it like he hadn’t eaten in days.
Irma shuddered as well, as she said, “Yes, he certainly didn’t make a very good impression. I swear at one point I seriously thought he was going to jump up onto the table while eating.”
“I assure you that Remus has far better manners,” Sirius said. “He’s perfectly well-behaved most of the time. And thanks to his marriage to me, he has unlimited access to the Wolfsbane Potion, as I have both the skill to brew it and the money to afford the expensive ingredients. We’ve also outfitted our new house in Surrey with a secure cell in the basement that he can be locked into each month. Although that’s more out of an over-abundance of caution as with the potion, he really is as harmless as the most docile breed of dog you can think of… well, assuming you haven’t done anything to make him mad at you.”
“Over-abundance of caution or not,” Pollux said. “It’s probably for the best since you two decided to move into a muggle neighborhood. Remus would look very out of place to your neighbors if they saw him on the night of the full moon.”
“True,” Sirius conceded. “I don’t imagine that most muggles often see wolves who walk around on two legs, except perhaps in their horror movies.”
After a moment’s pause and a drawn-out sigh, Sirius said, “Look I know it isn’t exactly the same thing, but until I manage to convince Remus to have children, could you consider making due with my godson?”
“Hadrian Potter?” Pollux asked. “That’s why you moved to that muggle neighborhood, isn’t it? To be close to him?”
Sirius nodded, but before he could say anything, Irma asked, “Why aren’t you and Remus raising him by the way? His parents are dead and as you just said, you are his godfather.”
“I am, however, he’s living with Lily’s sister now,” Sirius answered. “In case you weren’t aware of it, Petunia is not only his aunt but also his godmother. Besides, can you honestly say that you think the Ministry would have been willing to place a baby in the care of me and my werewolf husband?”
“Point taken,” Irma said.
After a moment, Sirius said, “Anyway, Hadrian could actually be Lord Black one day. He might not have the name, but he does have the ancestry.”
Shaking his head, Arcturus said, “Sirius, please think, will you? Your godson is Hadrian Potter. Potter. As in the only remaining living member of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter. How, pray tell, do you expect him to ever be a viable Black heir? He may have the ancestry, but he’s the next Grand Duke of Cambria, for Merlin’s sake. He can’t be Lord Black, as that would make him the vassal of the Grand Duke of North Anglia.”
“Oh,” Sirius said, sounding a bit embarrassed. “I hadn’t thought about that.”
“Obviously,” Arcturus muttered.
“Yes, I’ve never really had a head for politics,” Melania said. “But even I know that it wouldn’t work for someone who is a Grand Duke in their own right to be the vassal of another Grand Duke.”
“Well, there is another option,” Sirius said. “You might not realize this, but Hadrian is actually a Black through both of his parents.”
“Both of his parents?” Arcturus asked. “I was under the impression that Lily Potter was a…” he paused for a split second, before finishing, “…muggleborn.”
“Well, she was, technically,” Sirius confirmed. A small part of him wanted to be angry at his grandfather for the hesitation before saying muggleborn, but a larger part realized that he was an old man set in his ways, so for him to actually stop himself mid-sentence and refrain from saying mudblood was a sign of progress. Certainly a step his mother would never take. “Her mother was a muggle and for many years it was believed that her father was a muggle as well since he did not have magic. However, when Petunia was in her fifth year, Professor Flitwick assigned a project to his Charms class for the first time which has now become an annual project for his fifth-year students.”
“The family tree chart,” Arcturus said, having heard about Professor Flitwick assigning that project through his place on the Hogwarts Board of Governors. “Some of the governors aren’t exactly thrilled with that project, considering that it uses blood magic to trace one’s lineage.”
Sirius nodded. “Professor Flitwick only asked the class to trace their lineages back two-hundred years. Of course, some students, many of them Ravenclaws—like Petunia—decided to try for extra credit by going further back. Originally, she’d only planned on going back an additional fifty years, but she was fascinated by the magic and knowing that her father had always been interested in genealogy, she decided to go even further back. In so doing Petunia found a direct connection between her father and a squib son of our family: Asterion Eduardus Black, born 1598, died 1714.”
Smiling at his two grandfathers, Sirius added, “He’s the five-times-great-granduncle of your Grandfather Phineas.”
Everyone in the room was quiet for a moment before Arcturus stood up and left the room. While he didn’t actually say where he was going, it wasn’t much of a leap for anyone to figure out where he’d gone. They all knew that he was going to the family tapestry room. All of the noble houses had a room dedicated to the display of a large tapestry which detailed their family trees.
The main difference between the one at Arlington Grange and the one at Sirius’s mother’s house was that the one at Arlington was the original and charmed to display the entirety of the family tree dating back to the Black family’s earliest roots, over two thousand years ago. The one on the wall at Grimmauld Place, however, was merely a copy of the one at Arlington and only showed the most recent seven generations of the family. So, whenever the first child of a new generation was born, the oldest generation disappeared from Grimmauld’s tapestry to make room for the new one.
Of course, another difference between the two was that Walburga frequently burned people off the Grimmauld tapestry and while she liked to think that meant they were no longer members of the Black family, she didn’t have the authority to actually disown anyone. Only Lord Black could actually disown people and much to his daughter-in-law’s ire, he had never disowned most of the people that Walburga had burned off. So, Pollux’s squib younger brother, Marius, along with Sirius, Andromeda, and their Uncle Alphard were all still prominently displayed on Arlington’s tapestry.
It was nearly half-an-hour before Arcturus reappeared in the drawing room, as it had taken a bit of time to find the line in question. Due to the fact that Arlington’s tapestry covered every single branch of the family dating back more than two thousand years, it was mostly the main line of the family that held the lordship and the closest branches to it that was displayed. Many of the other far more junior branches—such as the branch sired by fifth-born son Asterion Eduardus Black three centuries ago—were magically hidden to save space, but there was a spell to temporarily reveal those lines if one needed to check someone’s claim of relation.
Sitting back down, Arcturus nodded and said, “Sirius was telling the truth. Petunia Dursley and the late Lily Potter are both of Black descent, through their late father. By extension, so are their respective sons, Darius Dursley and Hadrian Potter.”
“I wouldn’t make something like that up, Grandfather,” Sirius said. “But I understand that you had to see for yourself. In looking, however, I assume you noticed that Asterion Eduardus Black’s wife was a squib daughter of House Crabbe and that his grandson married a halfblood daughter of a junior branch of House Macmillan. So Petunia, Hadrian and Darius are distantly related to all four of you.”
“Hmm,” Pollux said. “While Hadrian isn’t a viable Black heir, his cousin Darius is. If he assumes the lordship, he would have to provide at least one son with the surname Black, but he does have the necessary ancestry to be viable.”
Arcturus nodded but remained silent as Melania stood up from her place on the sofa. Seeing the look on his wife’s face, Arcturus said, “I know that look, Melania. You’re up to something.”
Melania just smiled serenely at her husband but remained silent as she walked over to the fireplace and grabbed a pinch of Floo Powder, which she threw into the flames, before calling out, “Walburga Black, Number 12 Grimmauld Place, Londinium, Britannia, Albion.”
Usually, when somebody placed a Floo Call it was the person doing the calling that placed their head in the flames, but Melania decided that for her thorn-in-her-side daughter-in-law, she’d use the privilege due her rank of Lady Black and make Walburga do it.
It took a few minutes, but finally, Walburga’s head appeared in the flames. It took a moment for her to glance up and see Melania towering over her, at which point she said, “Oh, it’s you.”
Arcturus visibly bristled at the blatant disrespect audible in Walburga’s tone, but before he could comment, Pollux said, “Walburga Ursula Black, you will address the Lady Black with more respect in your tone. Do I make myself clear, young lady?”
Walburga’s eyes widened slightly and Sirius couldn’t help but chuckle at the look on his mother’s face when she realized that her father was in the room and had heard the disrespectful tone she’d used when addressing her mother-in-law.
Before Walburga could say a word, Irma said, “Don’t think for a moment that I’ve forgotten how to perform the Stinging Hex in my old age, Walburga, or that I won’t send one through the Floo at you. Now apologize to Lady Black immediately.”
“I apologize for my rudeness, Lady Black,” Walburga said. She was clearly doing her best to hide the disdain in her voice that she’d always harbored for the outlander who dared to call herself Lady Black. Walburga was a Black by blood, unlike Melania, and ever since she’d married Orion, the previous heir, she’d made a point of making sure that Melania never forgot it. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?”
“Oh, Walburga, my dear, dear, daughter-in-law,” Melania said, “on this extremely rare occasion, talking with you is far more pleasurable for me than I can even put into words.”
Not giving Walburga a chance to respond, Melania pressed on. “I understand that you were shrieking at my husband for an hour yesterday about his decision to put your son ahead of your father as heir.”
“My son is dead, as you well know,” Walburga said.
Coming up behind his wife, Arcturus shook his head and said, “We’ve talked about this before, Walburga. Just because you blasted Sirius off your copy of the family tree doesn’t mean that he ceased to exist.”
Not being able to pass up the chance to rile his mother, Sirius grinned and said, “Yes, I’m still quite alive and well,” before he stood and moved to a position in the room where she couldn’t possibly not see him as he gave her a little wave and said, “Hello mummy dearest,” in the most sarcastic tone he could muster.
Melania laughed at that, before she said, “Anyway, Walburga, you’ll be most displeased to hear, I’m sure, that not only does your father not want to be the heir, but even if he did, he’s not the next-in-line anyway.”
“Orion and Regulus are dead,” Walburga said. “So my father…”
“Is not next in line, Walburga,” Pollux interrupted. “As much as you might like to pretend that Sirius never existed, the fact of the matter is, he does. So, with Orion dead, Sirius is the next in line, end of story. But, even if he was dead, was never born, or was somehow ineligible, I still wouldn’t be next.”
“And how precisely do you figure that, Father?” Walburga asked. “Arcturus only has two children and Orion is dead. Lucretia can’t inherit because the title follows male-only primogeniture and she has no sons who can inherit it through her, as her husband Ignatius is sterile so they never had any. And even if he wasn’t, they’d be Prewetts.”
“You’re right, Walburga,” Melania said. “The letters patent for the family titles do specify male-only primogeniture. However, we’ve found a viable option in the family tree should Sirius not have children. The connection to the main Black line is too far back for it to appear in your copy of the family tapestry, but through a junior branch sired by the five-times-great-granduncle of Phineas Nigellus Black, there is a current option in one Darius Dursley.”
“Dursley?” Walburga asked. “That’s not a wizarding name!”
“Yes, you’re right, it isn’t,” Melania said with a smile. “He’s the halfblood son of a muggle father and a witch mother. He also has some very impressive connections, considering that he’s the first cousin of the future His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Hadrian Potter, the Grand Duke of Cambria. Hadrian has a stronger connection to the Black family than Darius, as he’s related on both sides of his family instead of only through his mother, but needs must. Should Sirius not provide a male heir, then Darius Dursley will be the Black heir. So put that in your pipe and smoke it,” before she closed the Floo connection and pressed the button on the mantelpiece that would lock down the Floo to all incoming calls.
Everyone was silent for a moment, as Melania turned towards the others and said, “Oh I enjoyed that.”
“Good job, gran,” Sirius said as he raised his hand, prompting Melania to give him a high-five, as she shared a laugh with her grandson.
“We still expect grandchildren, Sirius,” Pollux said after they’d both calmed down. “However, we’ll agree to not pester you about it for now.”
“Although if you and Remus are still dragging your feet by the time young Darius starts Hogwarts, we will revisit this conversation,” Irma added.
“Don’t make me pull rank and order you to procreate,” Arcturus said. Shaking his head, he said, “Anyway, enough of this topic. Come with me to the study, Sirius. We have other matters to discuss.”
Rolling his eyes, Sirius mumbled, “Oh joy.”
-o-0-o-
Several hours later, Sirius appeared in the front hall of Number 5 with a soft pop. Like it usually was, the meeting with his grandfather was long, tedious, and not for the first time he found himself hoping that old Arcturus would live another fifty years at least so that he wouldn’t have to take over as Lord Black.
‘Of course, that would mean another fifty years of long, tedious and boring as fuck meetings…’ Sirius thought, with a heavy sigh. ‘Oh damn it. I can’t win.’
“When you’re done with your latest ‘just got home from an heir meeting’ pity party,” Remus’s voice reached his ears, “I’ve uncorked a bottle in the living room.”
Sirius smiled as he made his way over to the living room to find Remus curled up on the sofa in front of the electric fireplace. It had been expensive, but neither of them was well-versed enough in the necessary spells to feel confident with the results, so they’d hired a team of Gringotts goblins to come to their new house when they’d moved in and shield everything electrical so that it could function around magic without exploding.
Of course, the goblins had also warded the house at the same time, including adding a fireplace to the basement of their house which was hooked up to the Floo Network. Of course, it wasn’t an open connection, so simply knowing the address wasn’t enough to gain entry. You also had to know a special password, thus allowing Sirius and Remus to control who could and couldn’t access their home via the Floo, using a bit of magic that meant only they could give out the password. The wards on the Floo wouldn’t allow activation if somebody had the right address and password, but hadn’t been told by Sirius or Remus. The goblins had also charmed a window in the conservatory so that it would keep out the elements and look and feel like glass to a muggle, but would still allow an owl to fly through it unharmed.
Sitting down on the sofa next to Remus, Sirius leaned over and kissed him, before asking, “So what are we drinking tonight?”
“Well, you were gone longer than normal, so I figured it must have been a particularly stressful meeting. So I went with the Châteaux Lavoisier 1593.”
“Good choice,” Sirius said. “Mum would have a coronary if she saw us drinking that just the two of us. She’d think it should have been saved for a dinner party.”
“Well, we’ve got several cases of it downstairs, I think we can spare the occasional bottle for a relaxing night in.”
Sirius nodded, as Remus poured two glasses and gave one to Sirius who swirled the contents in the glass for a moment, sniffed it, and then took a sip, closing his eyes as he did so. A moment later, he nodded and said, “That’s good.”
Generally speaking, Sirius was more of a Firewhisky or other spirits drinker, but he had to admit there was definitely an appeal to curling up on the sofa with Remus and just enjoying a bottle of wine after a long day.
After a few minutes of silence, in which they both enjoyed their drink, Remus finally asked, “So, is there a reason you were gone longer than normal? Honestly, I was starting to get a little worried.”
“I’m sorry,” Sirius said as he leaned over and placed a kiss on Remus’s left temple. “As for why, grandfather and I had a late start to the normal meeting.”
“Why?”
“Because he decided to ambush me first, along with Grandmother Melania, Grandfather Pollux, and Grandmother Irma to ask me why I have been neglecting one of my duties as Heir Black.”
“Which one is that?”
“Having kids,” Sirius said, causing Remus to cough slightly and almost spit out the sip of wine he’d took just before his partner spoke.
Sirius reached over and patted Remus’s back for a moment before he began rubbing it in small circles. Setting his wineglass aside, Remus locked eyes with Sirius.
“Did you say, kids?”
Nodding, Sirius answered, “Yes. All four of my grandparents decided to gang up on me and grill me about why you and I haven’t had children yet. They simply couldn’t understand why two healthy young men have been married for just over five years now and haven’t had children yet.”
Remus groaned at this. Not only because of his own fears about parenthood but also because he didn’t want to imagine having that kind of conversation with his grandparents.
‘Thankfully, they’re no longer living,’ Remus thought. It felt very strange to him to be thinking that. It was definitely the first time that particular thought had ever crossed his mind and he almost instantly felt guilty about it. Still, the idea of his grandparents confronting him about his sex life… that was just… he couldn’t even think of the words to describe it.
It took several minutes before Remus found his voice, but when he did, he asked, “What did you tell them?”
“I made it clear as diplomatically and vaguely as I could that there was no physical reason. Of course, they kept pressing, so I’m afraid I did end up throwing you under the bus.”
Remus sighed. “Well, I guess I can’t exactly be angry with you for that. I know that it is more or less my fault that we haven’t had children.” Shaking his head, he added, “I just don’t want to pass on my curse to an innocent child.”
Putting aside his wineglass, Sirius pulled Remus into a hug and said, “I know and I love you for it. For the time being, I did get them to back off by sharing the Black connection that Petunia found in Lily’s and her family tree. They did, however, make sure to let me know that this issue will be revisited in the future if we haven’t had children yet by the time Darius starts Hogwarts.”
Sirius was quiet for a moment, before he said, “Grandfather Arcturus told me point blank not to make him order me to have children. While he didn’t actually say as much, the threat there is obvious to anyone aware of his power as Lord Black.”
Nodding, Remus said, “Yes, he has the authority to annul our marriage and force you to marry someone else if you refuse to comply.”
“I love you and only you, Remus. The thought of being with anyone else makes me physically ill.”
“I appreciate that Siri, but are you sure you’ll still feel that way a few years from now? I know you’ve said that you’re okay with my not wanting kids, but you’re so good with Hadrian and Darius. I’ve seen how your face lights up around them.”
“I do like children, yes, and I’d be lying if I said I haven’t thought about having one of my own. But, if I have to choose between having a child and being with you, the choice is easy. You’ll always win, babe.”
Remus kissed Sirius, but then said, “I don’t want you to have to choose though. I want you to be happy and I’m afraid you’re not going to be without a child of your own. Maybe we shouldn’t have gotten married.”
“Remus John Lupin, don’t say things like that,” Sirius chastised. “You are the only man for me and I don’t want anyone else.”
“Your grandfather is going to have something to say about that.”
“True, but as much as I don’t want to be Lord Black, we don’t even know if Grandfather will still be alive by the time Darius starts at Hogwarts. He is eighty-one, after all, so he’s not exactly a young man.”
“Um, you do remember that eighty-one is just barely past middle aged for a wizard right?”
“You’re determined to counter everything I say, aren’t you?”
“I’m just being realistic.”
Sirius sighed, as he reached over and took his wineglass. Taking a sip, he finally said, “Okay. Well, we have time to think about it, Rem. Darius isn’t even two years old yet, so it’ll be almost a decade until he starts Hogwarts. That’s plenty of time to research what our options are.”
Picking up his own glass, Remus took a sip and then nodded. “Okay, you’re right. Have I told you recently how much I love you?”
“No you haven’t and I’m starting to feel neglected.”
Remus grinned. “Well, we can’t have that,” as he moved so that he was straddling Sirius’s legs and began giving the other man a lap dance. “How about we finish this bottle upstairs?”
“I love the way you think.”
-o-0-o-
31 July 1985…
Hadrian Potter smiled as he opened his eyes and saw the sun streaming through the blinds. Rolling over and reaching across the veritable army of plushies arrayed between them, Hadrian grabbed his cousin’s shoulder and started shaking him.
“Hey Ari, wake up!”
“What do you want?” Darius mumbled in a sleepy tone. “I’m trying to sleep.”
“It’s morning, Ari,” Hadrian said as he began shaking his cousin’s shoulder more persistently. “And it’s my birthday!”
When Darius made no move to respond other than to burrow his head under his pillow and half-heartedly attempt to swat Hadrian’s hand away from his shoulder, Hadrian decided that another tactic was necessary. Letting go of his cousin’s shoulder, Hadrian sat up and crawled over to his cousin’s side of the bed—they shared because they couldn’t agree which one of them would get the top bunk and neither was willing to compromise—before straddling him, prying the pillow up off his face and saying, “Wake up, wake up, wake up!!”
Each repeat of the word was said just a little bit louder and closer to Darius’s left ear, as Hadrian leaned down over his cousin. Not long after this, of course, Hadrian found himself flat on his back, with his wrists pinned above his head, as Darius rolled over on top of him.
“Okay, okay, I’m awake. Now, what do you want?!”
Hadrian just grinned up at his cousin as he said, “Just returning the favor.”
Shaking his head in confusion, Darius asked, “What? What favor?”
“You didn’t let me sleep in on your birthday,” Hadrian explained. “So why should I let you do it on mine?”
Darius was silent for a moment before he nodded and said, “Point,” before he released his cousin’s wrists, although he stayed in the position that rolling over on top of his cousin had placed him in which had him straddling Hadrian’s waist. Grinning at his cousin, Darius said, “Of course you know Rian, I’m going to have to reciprocate here.”
Getting a wide-eyed look on his face, Hadrian shook his head and said, “No!”
Still grinning, Darius twitched his fingers and said, “Time for birthday tickles!” before he began to mercilessly tickle his cousin, just as Hadrian had done to him on the morning of his birthday.
Hadrian was soon laughing so hard that he was almost having trouble breathing, as he struggled to say, “Okay… okay… Ari… please stop.”
Darius tickled his cousin for another half a minute before he stopped and said, “Looking forward to today?”
Hadrian didn’t answer immediately, as it took him a moment to recover from the tickle attack, but then he nodded and said, “Yeah, definitely. Piers, Kevin, and Wayne are coming over. And Carl.”
Grinning, Darius said, “Rian’s got a crush!”
“I do not!”
“The boy doth protest too much, methinks,” Darius said with a grin. Ironically, it was actually due to Carl and Kevin’s elder sister, Annabelle, that he even knew that line. As Carl and Annabelle had joined a youth theatre group over the summer and one day in the park, while he was playing with Kevin, Piers, Wayne, and Hadrian, Darius had heard them running lines together for a production of Hamlet. “Besides, if it’s not a crush, why’d you single Carl out like that?”
“I do not have a crush on Carl Hopkins.”
“Yes, you’re doing so well at convincing me of that the way your voice just got all high and squeaky.”
“Shut up,” Hadrian said, as he crossed his arms and made a petulant face. “It’s my birthday. No teasing allowed.”
“Ruin a guy’s fun why don’t you?” Darius asked. After a moment, he asked, “The grandparents are also coming over, aren’t they?”
In the years since that awkward meeting between Sirius and his grandparents, Arcturus, Melania, Pollux, and Irma had become quite involved in both Hadrian’s and Darius’s lives, pretty much adopting them as their honorary grandchildren. Petunia wasn’t entirely sure how to react to that at first, considering the Black family’s reputation, but as time passed she realized that their dark reputation was mostly a front.
Sirius cautioned that it most definitely was not a front where his mother was concerned and his Aunt Cassiopeia wasn’t much better, but he admitted that his grandparents weren’t so bad. Honestly, a part of him had considered going to live with his grandparents when he ran away from home, but in the end, living with his best friend James and his parents won out.
Petunia did like that Darius and Hadrian got to experience what it was like to have grandparents though, as it wasn’t an experience they’d get otherwise considering that Lily’s and her parents were dead, as were both James’s and Vernon’s. Although in the latter case, while she would never say it aloud, Petunia couldn’t help but think that the boys were better off not knowing Vernon’s parents. Especially his late mother who had basically been just like her daughter Marge… only about ten times worse.
Nodding, Hadrian said, “Yeah, they are.”
“Cool.”
-o-0-o-
“Morning,” Darius said as he walked into the kitchen to find Petunia standing at the counter icing Hadrian’s birthday cake. Vernon was sitting at the table reading the newspaper and drinking his morning tea. As it had taken a while for the boys to shower and get dressed—with more teasing from Darius about wanting to look good for Carl since Hadrian had taken nearly half an hour to pick his outfit, trying on several in the process—Vernon would normally have already left for work by the time they arrived in the kitchen. However, since it was Saturday, he was still home.
“Good morning, Darius,” Vernon said with a smile as he looked up from the morning paper. “And happy birthday, Hadrian.”
“Thanks, Uncle Vernon,” Hadrian said with a smile.
It had taken a while for Vernon to come around on the whole magic thing and raising Hadrian, but in the end, his nephew’s natural charm won him over. There was simply no way that he couldn’t fall in love with the boy, as he just exuded happiness. In fact, in the last four years, Vernon had almost an entirely new outlook on life and was barely on speaking terms with Marge, after repeatedly denying her the chance to come to visit for holidays or a couple of weeks over the summers.
Marge, of course, blamed Petunia for brainwashing her dear brother against her. Petunia just shrugged it off, however, as she knew it wasn’t true. Vernon had come to the change naturally, even if she had provided an occasional prod in the right direction. She was also content to let her sister-in-law think what she wanted. Especially after she’d gotten their phone number changed and used magic to make sure that Marge couldn’t learn their new one.
The address was a bit more problematic, as that wasn’t something that could easily be changed unless they moved and Petunia had no desire to do so, as she liked her home and the neighbors. So, instead, Vernon, Sirius, Remus, and Petunia had developed something of a ritual in which anytime that Marge sent them anything, be it a letter or a holiday card, they’d have a jolly time reading it and laughing at Marge for believing all her bullshit, before burning it and spending a very fun hour or two devising prank ideas should she ever get tired of being ignored and drop in unexpectedly.
“Uh, ah, ah, Hadrian, no!” Petunia said as she swatted her nephew’s hand away from the cake. “No licking the icing. This is for your party and I won’t have your cake covered in finger marks from you running your fingers all over it.”
“But it’s my birthday!” Hadrian whined. “And it’s my cake.”
“You think that argument is going to work any better than it did with me?” Darius asked as he’d tried to pull the same thing back in June.
Looking over Darius, Hadrian grinned and nodded. “Yes, because they love me more.”
Smiling at the boy’s antics, Vernon stood and patted them both on the head, before he said, “Sorry, Hadrian, but that’s not true. We love you both equally.”
“Vernon’s right,” Petunia said. “Now, if you boys sit down and behave while you eat breakfast…” Petunia paused here and smiled before she added, “…I’ll let you both lick the bowl if there’s any left.” Which, of course, there would be as she’d purposely made more icing than she actually needed for the cake.
Unsurprisingly, Darius and Hadrian were quick to sit down at the table and since Petunia was busy with the cake, Vernon took it upon himself to plate their breakfasts and bring the plates to them. Of course, almost as soon as he set the plates down in front of them, Darius said, “Hey! Hadrian’s got more bacon than me.”
“Now, now, Darius, it is his birthday,” Vernon said soothingly. “And you got two extra pieces on yours last month, so you can’t really complain.”
For his part, Hadrian just did the same thing that Darius had done to him, stuck his tongue out before he began eating.
About twenty minutes later, just as the boys had finished their breakfasts and Petunia put the leftover icing in the fridge to chill a bit before she let them eat it so that it wouldn’t be as messy, the basement door opened.
“Grandpa! Grandma! Papa! Nana!” Darius and Hadrian called out happily, as Arcturus, Melania, Pollux, and Irma, respectively, emerged from the basement where with a judicious bit of wizarding space, Petunia had created a large enough fireplace to allow for a Floo connection. Of course, it was a private password-protected Floo that couldn’t be used by just anyone who knew the address, but the grandparents were among the people who’d been trusted to make use of it.
“Good morning, my boys,” Melania said, as she came over and kissed them both on the top of their heads before she smiled at Hadrian and said, “And how is the birthday boy this morning?”
“Fantastic!” Hadrian exclaimed, especially when he noticed the packages that Arcturus and Pollux were trying and failing to hide behind their backs.
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “You can put the presents on the table in the living room with the others.”
Hadrian looked sad at this, as he cried, “But Auntie…”
“No buts, Hadrian,” Petunia said. “You know the rules. No opening of presents until your party.” Left unsaid was the fact that Petunia, with a bit of help from Sirius, had charmed the present table so that if Hadrian—or Darius on his birthday—attempted to sneak a peek at what they’d gotten, they’d sprout donkey ears and a tail while their fingers turned into hooves so that they couldn’t disturb the wrapping paper on any of their presents.
Arcturus and Pollux moved towards the living room to do just that, but before they could, Irma snagged one of the two presents that each of them were carrying and said, “I think he can safely open these now.”
Perhaps it was the look on Irma’s face that convinced her, but Petunia nodded, much to Hadrian’s delight.
Delight which only lasted as long as it took for him to tear into the presents.
And find that one was socks and the other was underpants.
Darius burst out laughing, hard enough that he almost fell off his chair, causing Hadrian to shoot him a petulant glare. Still laughing, Darius said, “I can’t believe you fell for that.”
Smiling, Pollux said to a grinning Vernon and Petunia, “I find that children have very short attention spans, especially when it comes to presents.”
Nodding, Arcturus added, “Indeed, which is why I’m not surprised that Hadrian forgot that Melania did the same thing to Darius on his birthday.”
Crossing his arms and scowling, Hadrian pouted. “I hate you all.”
“No you don’t,” Melania said, as she and Irma leaned down and kissed Hadrian on opposite cheeks and each gave him a quick tickle, which had his scowl melting away so fast that it was almost a blink and you’ll miss it situation.
As soon as the basement door opened, Petunia had put the kettle back on the stove to reheat the water. As the whistle blew, she turned off the burner and smiling at the grandparents, she asked, “Tea?”
“That would be lovely, Petunia,” Irma said. “Thank you.”
-o-0-o-
An hour-and-a-half later, Hadrian, Darius, Kevin, Wayne, and Piers were all having a blast as they took turns splashing each other in the backyard swimming pool that was actually halfway in Number 4’s yard and halfway in Number 5’s, as the wall and hedges between the two had long been taken out. Sirius and Remus were seated nearby, watching them with grins on their faces, as Carl rubbed suntan lotion on Annabelle’s back.
Hadrian had sounded like somebody had kicked the puppy he didn’t have when he found out that Carl and Annabelle were dating… although he rather quickly forgot about it as he found himself the target of splashes of water from both sides from Kevin and Wayne. Any attempt to splash them back, however, was preempted when he had to quickly reach under the water and grab the waistband of his trunks, as Piers attempted to pull them down, before coming up to the surface and briefly pushing Hadrian’s head under the water.
Remus laughed as he watched the boys playing in the pool before he turned to Sirius and said, “I’m so glad we decided to put in the pool.”
“Yes, it’s provided much enjoyment,” Sirius said. Although whether he was speaking of watching the boys and their friends play in it during the day, or the occasional times that Remus and Sirius had decided to make use of it after the boys were all safely in bed for the night—sans clothing—was anyone’s guess.
Coming out of the conservatory where he and Petunia had been seated, chatting with Sirius’s grandparents, Arabella Figg, Annabelle’s and Kevin’s parents, Jonathan and Lauren Entwhistle, and Carl’s and Wayne’s parents, Keith and Victoria Hopkins, Vernon grabbed towels from the pile on the picnic table and said, “Okay boys, time to get out.”
There were some groans at this before Vernon shook his head and said, “Well, if you don’t want cake and ice cream…”
Vernon, Sirius, Remus, Carl, and Annabelle all couldn’t help but laugh at how abruptly the groans stopped and how fast the boys all began climbing out of the pool and grabbing towels from Vernon.
Ten minutes later, everyone was gathered around the dining room table singing Happy Birthday to Hadrian, as he waited patiently to blow out the five candles on his cake, which Petunia had decorated in a combination of dragons and golden snitches. She normally wouldn’t have used such a blatantly magical design since Jonathan and Lauren were muggles, but they already knew about magic since Annabelle, like Carl, were nearly ten years older than their little brothers, and both students at Hogwarts.
“Okay, Hadrian, make a wish,” Petunia said with a smile before Hadrian leaned in and blew as hard as he could. Of course, almost as soon as the candles went out they relit and he had to blow again… and again… prompting him to glare at Sirius as he said, “Sirius!”
“What?” Sirius asked, innocently. “I didn’t have anything to do with it.”
Hadrian didn’t say anything, as he just blew again… only to have the candles relight for the fourth time, which caused Hadrian to groan, before suddenly all five candles popped up out of the cake and into a nearby empty bowl where they were doused with magically summoned water, putting them all out for the final time.
“That was very impressive, Hadrian,” Arcturus said. He knew that it had been Hadrian who’d done it because he could see magical auras and had often commented to the other adults in the room that Hadrian’s aura was unlike anything he’d ever seen in someone his age. Most people’s auras were white, black, or grey and were mostly somewhat dull or merely average, with a few powerful examples of something greater.
Albus Dumbledore was one such example, as his aura was a brilliant white that was almost blinding in its intensity. The one time that Arcturus had met Voldemort before his downfall, it had taken everything in him not to shudder and reveal his gift to the Dark Lord, when he saw just how black the man’s aura was… like the blackest, most soul-sucking darkness one could possibly imagine. Arcturus had needed a combination of Dreamless Sleep and a series of strong meditations and Occlumency exercises he hadn’t had to do for years for a week following that event, as honestly, Voldemort’s aura had made a Dementor’s aura look light by comparison.
Hadrian’s aura, however, was a very interesting mix of gray tinged with silver and gold, colors which Arcturus had never seen before in the years since his gift had manifested along with his magical inheritance at age fifteen.
For his part, Hadrian just smiled at his grandfather and didn’t say anything. He knew better than to try and act innocent, because he knew about the man’s aura-sight and that he could tell when somebody was using magic around him, as whether it was verbal, non-verbal, wandless or not, or even intentional or not, their aura flashed as they drew upon their power reserves to cast.
“Well then, who wants cake and ice cream?” Petunia asked as she picked up the ice cream scoop and Vernon took out a knife and began cutting into the homemade chocolate cake which had cherry pie filling between the layers, combining Hadrian’s two favorite desserts.
Unsurprisingly, she was met with a chorus of enthusiastic ME’s from just about everyone in the room, even the adults who all greatly enjoyed the combination that Petunia had been making for his birthday and Christmas ever since Hadrian had made his preferences known when he was three.
-o-0-o-
Following cake and ice cream it was finally time to open presents, much to Hadrian’s joy, although that was tempered a bit by the fact that the first couple of gifts he opened, one from Petunia and one from Remus, were the obligatory clothing, with a mix of both muggle and magical fashions.
Pollux also gave Hadrian a clothing-related gift in that he gave him a gift certificate for Twillfit and Tattings. Had Hadrian been a bit older, he might have acted a bit more enthused, considering that it was a gift certificate that included a personal fitting with the reclusive master tailor Wolfgang Twillfit. As it was, however, while Hadrian did properly thank all three of them for the gifts, as good manners demanded, it was clear that he wasn’t all that thrilled with them.
The next gift, from Sirius, was better received as he gave Hadrian a new exploding snap deck and five pounds of assorted candy from Honeydukes. Needless to say, there was some groaning when Petunia confiscated most of it and only let Harry pick two pieces to eat now and would be rationing the rest. She did smile and nod, however, when he asked her to let each of his friends pick two pieces as she was proud of him for sharing.
Arcturus got Harry a wizarding chess set, while Melania and Irma got him books, although since they were about dragons, centaurs, and merfolk—three subjects that Hadrian enjoyed—he wasn’t all that upset. Arabella, meanwhile, gave him the recently released children's edition of a bestselling wizarding art history book, along with a couple of blank sketchpads and a set of colored pencils that were charmed to never need sharpening.
The next gift brought forward was from Piers Polkiss, who was both Hadrian and Darius’s first and oldest friend. His mother, Portia, was a single mother as Piers’ father, Pierce, had been killed in action in the Falklands War. As a result, Portia was often working in order to support her son and herself, so Piers was frequently at the Dursleys spending time with Darius and Hadrian and had pretty much become an honorary member of the family. Because he was around often, Arcturus was able to inform them that according to his aura-sight, Piers was a muggleborn.
This did make things much easier in terms of giving Hadrian his gifts, as they didn’t have to hide the magical nature of any of them because as a muggleborn, it wasn’t breaking the Statute of Secrecy for him to see and be told about magic. Of course, the head of the Improper Use of Magic Office, one Dolores Umbridge, did try to make a case about a breach of the Statute by using magic in front of not only Piers, but also Kevin and Wayne, as none of them had yet gotten their Hogwarts letters and were thus not confirmed to be magical.
One visit from the Lord Arcturus Black, however, was all it took for her to cease her attempts to get Petunia, Sirius, and Remus in trouble for using magic in front of the three boys. Aura-sight was a rare gift, but it was well-respected and the Ministry was aware of Arcturus’s gift, so if he said the three boys were magical, then they were magical and not even the ruthless tactics she’d employed to move up the ladder to head of her office could get anyone to listen to her. She knew better than to attempt to go against one of the Lords of Albion, after all.
Thus on a trip to Diagon Alley, while Vernon sat with Darius and Hadrian in the Leaky Cauldron, Petunia took Piers into the alley to buy Hadrian’s birthday present. With a smile, Piers handed over what he’d selected—it was actually a joint gift from Piers, Darius, Wayne, and Kevin who’d all pooled their money, leaving it up to Piers to make the decision what to get—and Hadrian had an idea what it was even before opening the package. When he did, however, he whooped at the sight of a training broom.
“Can I try it out?” Hadrian asked.
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “Not right now, Hadrian. Besides, you know you can’t fly it here. What will the neighbors think if they see you flying around on a broom?”
“It’s a training broom,” Hadrian argued. “It won’t go any higher than five feet and the garden wall and hedges are eight feet, so they wouldn’t see me.”
“Hadrian, you know the rules,” Petunia said in a firm tone.
Hadrian sighed and nodded. “No magic outside where there’s even the smallest chance of a muggle seeing it.”
Seeing the disappointed look on Hadrian’s face, Melania patted him on the shoulder and said, “You can come over to Arlington tomorrow if you like. You’ll be away from muggle eyes and can fly to your heart's content.” With a smile, she added, “And the rest of you can come along.”
All four boys whooped at that before Annabelle handed Hadrian a small box which upon opening it, he grinned as it turned out to be a box full of some of Zonko’s bestselling products. With a smile, she said, “I figured that would be a hit.” Then with a grin, she added, “Try not to let him get into them,” as she hooked her finger in Sirius’s direction.
“I’m shocked, shocked I say,” Sirius said, with a look of innocence on his face. “Whatever are you implying, young lady?”
“That you’re a big kid at heart,” Annabelle answered.
Before Sirius could respond, Remus leaned over and kissed Sirius on the cheek, before he said, “Yes, they’re for Hadrian, not you. He can share them with you if he wants, but no stealing your godson’s birthday presents.”
“I would never!” Sirius exclaimed.
“Says the man that used Hadrian’s first through third birthdays and Darius’s second and third birthdays as excuses to buy out Zonko’s stock of their most popular items,” Petunia said.
After some laughter from everyone in the room, which even Sirius joined in on after a few moments of pouting, Carl handed Hadrian an envelope. “This is from me and my parents.”
Opening it, Hadrian grinned as he pulled out several sheets of parchment from the envelope that was clearly magically expanded to be larger on the inside than it looked on the outside. “Season tickets for the Montrose Magpies!”
With a smile, Victoria Hopkins smiled and said, “My brother is the coach, so it wasn’t too difficult to get them… and they’re for one of the private boxes reserved for family and friends of the players and staff, so you can bring however many you like to the games, up to twenty, which is how many the box seats.”
“Thank you!” Hadrian said as he hugged Keith and Victoria, and then Carl… the hug with the handsome fifteen-year-old going slightly longer than strictly necessary, which just had Darius holding in a snicker.
When he finally returned to his seat, Hadrian smiled and thanked everyone again for his presents, as the table was now empty so he assumed there were no more.
“Actually, there’s one more gift,” Vernon said. “I just couldn’t keep it on the present table.”
With that said, he stood up and left the room for a moment, only to return with a medium sized box that had a large red ribbon around it, but no wrapping paper. It was as it was placed on the floor in front of Hadrian that he noticed the small air holes in the lid. He cast questioning eyes at his uncle.
“Now you’ll have to share him with Darius, of course,” Vernon said.
“Him?” Hadrian asked.
“Open it,” Vernon said with a smile before Hadrian undid the ribbon and lifted the lid from the box.
Hadrian’s eyes widened and he said, “Aww!” as he saw the small black, tan, and white beagle puppy in the box. Reaching one hand into the box, Hadrian let the dog sniff his fingers for a moment before he gently lifted it out of the box and cradled it to his chest, as Darius scooted over to get a closer look.
“I love him!” Hadrian exclaimed happily, as the puppy started licking his face, making him giggle. “Thank you, Uncle Vernon!”
“You’re welcome, Hadrian.”
“What’s his name?” Darius asked.
“He doesn’t have one yet,” Vernon answered. “Now, while I do expect you boys to share, it is still Hadrian’s birthday present, so I think he has dibs on naming rights.”
Hadrian looked thoughtful for a moment, as he tried to think about what he knew about beagles. He didn’t know all that much, as he’d never really expected to have a dog, as Petunia had never had anything good to say about Aunt Marge’s bulldogs. However, after a moment, it occurred to him that if he remembered correctly, beagles were hunting dogs.
He grinned and said, “Chase. I’ll call him Chase.”
Reaching over and letting the dog sniff his fingers, Darius said, “Chase? I like it. Hi Chase.”
The dog cocked his head at this and then let out a small happy bark as if to say I like that name.
-o-0-o-
10 August 1985…
Bill and Charlie Weasley were sitting between their uncle’s beds, each holding one of their hands. They were pretty much the only ones of their siblings who still visited Gideon and Fabian frequently, as, after four years, the others had either lost hope that the twins would ever wake up, or they, like Ron and Ginny, found it harder to care about their uncles because they had no memory of them outside of their comatose state.
“You think they’ll ever come around?” Charlie asked.
“I don’t know. I hope so, but I’ll admit it’s getting harder and harder to hang onto hope.”
Nodding, Charlie said, “Yeah, every time they move, we think this is it and then not.”
Over the last four years, the family had gotten excited on several occasions, as Gideon and Fabian moved. The excitement only lasted until the healer came in and examined them, however, and had to break the news that it had just been involuntary movements and not a sign that they were waking up. There were only so many times that the family could stand to get their hopes up only to have them dashed, which is why at this point, Molly, Bill, and Charlie were the only ones who visited regularly. The others just couldn’t deal with it any longer.
Molly had brought Bill and Charlie to visit today but had left the boys alone while she went up to the visitor’s tearoom on the fifth floor to relax for a few minutes with a nice hot cup of tea. Bill would be fifteen in November and Charlie thirteen in December. Both had always been very well mannered and behaved, so she saw nothing wrong with leaving them alone for a few minutes with her brothers.
She was just glad that they still wanted to come with her, as getting any of the other children to visit was next to impossible. Arthur would usually come without complaint, but since it was Tuesday, he had work and couldn’t come today. So, she’d left the other kids with Arthur’s mother and brought her two eldest with her to St. Mungo’s.
Bill and Charlie fell into a companionable silence, as they both leaned back in their chairs slightly and began to drift off. Before Bill could fall asleep, however, he felt Gideon’s fingers moving, squeezing his hand. It was a very weak grip, but it was enough to get Bill’s attention, as he was instantly more alert and looking closely at his uncle for any sign of further movement.
He was just about to sigh and lean back in his chair, depressed by another false alarm, when it happened again. Only this time, when Bill looked at Gideon’s face, he saw a type of movement he’d never seen before in all the years his uncles had been patients. Gideon’s nose was twitching and as he leaned in to take a closer look, he was almost positive that he could see his eyelids twitching.
Taking a deep breath, Bill said, “Uncle Gid? It’s Bill. Can you hear me? Squeeze my hand if you can hear me.”
It took nearly a minute, which seemed like an eternity to Bill, but Gideon’s fingers tightened around Bill’s hand. After four years of near misses and false alarms, Bill did his best not to get his hopes up, no matter how promising this was looking. But when Gideon’s eyelids cracked open a fraction of an inch and his lips moved, even though no sound came out, Bill quickly began shaking Charlie’s shoulder with his free hand.
“What?” Charlie asked as he became more alert.
“Go get a healer and mum!” Bill said. “Uncle Gideon is waking up.”
“Are you…” Charlie began to ask but stopped mid-sentence when he looked over and saw Gideon’s eyes were wide open and were moving from side to side as he looked around at his surroundings.
Charlie stood up so quickly that his chair tipped over, but he didn’t care as he almost ran from the room.
Gideon was still clearly trying to talk but nothing was coming out. Thinking that maybe his throat was dry, Bill pulled out his wand, summoned an empty glass from the nearby sink and filled it with water. He then tapped his wand against one of the runes engraved on Gideon’s bed, which made the head move up.
Placing one hand on the back of his uncle’s neck to lift it up a little bit more, he used the other to hold the glass against his lips, as he said, “Drink.”
Gideon focused on Bill at this, before he nodded slightly and began taking very small sips of water. After the glass was drained and Bill took it away, Gideon coughed, before he asked—his voice rather raw and weak from disuse—“Where am I?” This was followed only a second later by, “Who are you?”
Bill’s first instinct was to be hurt that his uncle didn’t recognize him, but that feeling quickly dissipated when he realized that it had been four years. He was only ten the last time that Gideon had seen him, so obviously now, at only a little over three months away from turning fifteen, he definitely didn’t look the same.
“It’s me, Uncle Gid, your nephew. Bill. Molly’s son.”
“Bill,” Gideon repeated before he shook his head and said, “No, Bill is a little boy… hasn’t even…” he paused to cough, “…started Hogwarts yet. You’re…” he paused to cough again, “…a teenager.”
Before Bill could figure out how to explain what was going on, Charlie re-entered the room, almost dragging Molly by the hand. Her eyes widened and she gasped when she saw her brother sitting up in bed with his eyes open. Rushing forward, she said, “Oh thank Merlin! Gideon!”
Gideon’s arms were rather weak so he couldn’t lift his arms to return his sister’s hug, but she at least, he recognized, as being an adult, she hadn’t changed that much while he was unconscious. As Molly ended the hug, she took Gideon’s face in her hands and just looked at him for a moment, before she said, “Oh I’ve missed you, baby brother.”
Gideon looked confused at this. “Missed me? You make it sound like we haven’t seen each other in years.”
Healer Miriam Strout entered the room at this point, as she’d been with another patient when the orderly that Charlie had told to find a healer on his way upstairs to get Molly told her she was needed in the long-term care ward. Her eyes widened a bit at seeing Gideon sitting up and hearing him talking, but she smiled and said, “Well, now, Mr. Prewett you’re looking much better.” Pulling out her wand, she said, “Let’s see what your diagnostic results say.”
“Diagnostic results?” Gideon asked, his voice sounding a bit stronger now that he was actually exercising his vocal chords. Seeing that the woman waving a wand over him was dressed as a healer, he asked, “Am I in St. Mungo’s?”
“You are indeed, Mr. Prewett,” Miriam said. “I’m Healer Miriam Strout.”
Gideon grimaced slightly, before he said, “Don’t call me Mr. Prewett. It makes me feel old. It’s just Gideon. Mr. Prewett is my father.”
Bill, Charlie, and Molly shared a look at that. That was going to be a hard conversation.
As Miriam finished her diagnostic spell, she smiled and said, “Well, Gideon, you’re doing quite well. You’ve lost a bit of weight while you’ve been here and you’ll need physical therapy to restore the strength in your limbs, but all in all, you’re doing quite well. Much better than most of my patients.”
“How long have I been here?” Gideon asked. Pointing at Bill, he looked at his sister and said, “Molly, he says that he’s Bill, but that’s impossible. Isn’t it?”
Shaking her head, Molly said, “He really is my son Bill.” Laying a hand on Charlie’s shoulder, she added, “And this is Charlie.”
Gideon looked confused. “How?” Turning to look at Miriam, he asked, “How long?”
“Three years, nine months, three weeks, and two days, Mr. Prewett,” Miriam answered, as Gideon’s eyes widened. “You’re in the Janus Thickey Ward at St. Mungo’s, where you’ve been in a coma.”
“Three years?” Gideon asked, clearly shocked. “What happened? Last thing I remember is fighting Death Eaters in my front yard.” He paused for a moment, before he asked, “Where’s Fabian? And Marlene and Dorcas?”
Bill, Charlie, and Molly were standing between Gideon’s bed and Fabian’s, so they moved out of the way, as Charlie, pointing at his other uncle’s bed, said, “Uncle Fab is right here, Uncle Gid. He hasn’t woken up yet.”
Looking over at his twin, Gideon said, “Fab? Can you hear me?” When there was no response, Gideon shook his head and asked, “What about Marlene and Dorcas? Where are they?”
Molly, Bill, and Charlie looked at each other again, only this time Gideon caught the look. He’d been too busy watching Miriam wave her wand over him to notice it the first time. “What’s with the look? What aren’t you telling me?”
“Please, calm down, Mr. Prewett,” Miriam said.
“Gideon! It’s Gideon!” he said, starting to get annoyed. “I already told you, Mr. Prewett is my father.”
Moving over and sitting down on the edge of her brother’s bed, Molly took his hand in hers and rubbed it, as she said, “Gideon, you just woke up…”
Shaking his head, he said, “Molly, stop bloody stalling and tell me!”
She glanced quickly over at Miriam, before she said, “Marlene and Dorcas,” Molly got choked up here, as tears appeared in the corners of her eyes, “and father are… no longer with us.”
It took a moment for Gideon to comprehend what he was hearing, but then he shook his head and asked, “What? What do you mean no longer with us? That sounds like… no!”
Molly nodded. “Yes, brother, I’m afraid it’s true. Marlene, Dorcas, and father are dead.”
“How? When?” Gideon asked, as he struggled to make sense of what he was hearing.
“Marlene and Dorcas died the same night you were hurt,” Bill said, as he saw that his mother was too far gone reliving the pain of losing Grandpa Prewett right now to speak. “They were both hit by the Killing Curse.”
Tears appeared in the corners of Gideon’s eyes at this, as he said, “No, Marlene…” as he dealt with the pain of hearing that the woman he loved was dead. “So, my girlfriend is dead, my twin is in a coma, and his girlfriend is dead?” Bill nodded. “What about father?”
It was Charlie who answered. “He died two months ago, Uncle Gid. He was here visiting you and Uncle Fab, and suffered a massive heart attack in the lobby, just as he was leaving.” Shaking his head, he said, “The receptionist immediately called for a healer, but he was gone before they arrived.”
“Oh Merlin, no! No!” Gideon exclaimed, as Molly leaned over and hugged her brother again. Gideon let out a groan of frustration when he tried and failed to put his arm around his big sister. He knew what he wanted to do, but his arms weren’t cooperating. Looking at Bill, he asked, “Bill, can you?”
Nodding, Bill moved over to the side of the bed and picked up his uncle’s right arm, since Molly was still cradling his left hand in her lap, and moved it onto his mother’s back.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Chapter Two of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. So, Gideon Prewett at least has woken up now. Too bad he had to get such bad news upon doing so. He did actually see Marlene get hit with the Killing Curse, but I figure some memory loss after nearly four years in a coma isn’t that hard to believe.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? I love hearing from my readers, so feel free to contact me in a review, by email (Gmail: jaycolin25), my LiveJournal (JayColin), my group (groups (dot) io (slash) g (slash) storiesbyjayson), or on Twitter @JVascardi. Alternatively, you can also try to contact me via Skype (text messaging only) at jayson (dot) vascardi.
Chapter 3: Birthright
Notes:
Author’s Note: Just to make this clear, this chapter begins eight days before the last scene of chapter two when Gideon Prewett woke up. So, when this chapter starts, he’s still comatose.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Three:
Birthright
-o-0-o-
2 August 1985…
Today was an important day in young Hadrian’s life and it was one that Petunia had completely neglected to talk to him about. Of course, the reason for that was because she had wanted him to have a childhood, free from any cares, for as long as he possibly could. For the most part, he’d still have that moving forward from today, but from today onward he would have more information about his future. Information which Petunia knew would force her nephew to grow up faster than she or his parents would have ever wished.
Not for the first time, she found herself thinking, ‘Oh if only James and Lily were still alive…’
Sitting Hadrian down across from her in the living room, alongside Darius simply because he was present in the smallest upstairs bedroom which served as their playroom when Petunia had gone to collect Hadrian. She couldn’t think of a reason why he shouldn’t be privy to the conversation that was to follow, as he was sure to find out about it before the day was over anyway. So he may as well hear it firsthand from her, rather than from Hadrian later.
Fidgeting, Hadrian asked, “Did I do something wrong, Aunt Petunia?”
Smiling, Petunia said, “No, Hadrian, my dear boy, you did not. However, the time has come for us to have a serious talk. One which many would say that I’ve put off for far too long as it is.”
“What is it?” Hadrian asked, curious. Much to Petunia’s pleasure, both boys had developed into naturally curious boys, who always wanted to know more. From the moment she began teaching them how to read just over a year ago, they’d become avid readers who read everything they could get their hands on, even if they often didn’t understand what they were reading or struggled with some of the larger words. She was almost positive that at least one of them would end up in her old house once they started Hogwarts.
“The truth about your family, your birthright, and your future position in the magical world,” Petunia said. “If I had my way, I’d save this conversation until you were older, but needs must and I have little choice but to tell you now because that birthright requires you to participate in a magical ritual at the rising of the first full moon following your fifth birthday.”
“That’s tonight,” Darius commented. He and Hadrian both knew the lunar calendar practically by heart, having learned it not long after they turned four and were told of Remus’s ‘furry little problem’.
Petunia nodded. “Yes, it is.” Pausing to take a deep breath, Petunia continued. “Hadrian, you’re aware of the fact that your Grandfather Arcturus is Lord Black, and what that means, correct?”
“Yes, he’s the head of the Black family,” Hadrian answered. “It means that all the other Blacks have to do what he says.”
“Well, that is one aspect of it I suppose,” Petunia confirmed, “but there’s more to it than that. You see your grandfather is nobility… the Duke of Charlton to be precise.”
Both boys nodded in understanding before Petunia continued. “Anyway, Hadrian, your family, the Potters, are like the Blacks, an ancient magical noble family. However, your family is much older than the Blacks and far more prestigious.”
“How so?” Hadrian asked.
“Arcturus is, as I said, the Duke of Charlton,” Petunia answered. “Which is a magical duchy located in Northern England… or North Anglia as it’s called in the magical world. The Potters, however, hold a title which has never been granted in the muggle UK’s peerage, but was granted a total of seven times to seven magical families in Albion and Iwernia.” After a pause, she added, “The Potter title is Grand Duke of Cambria… which comprises all of Wales, plus Cornwall, Devon, and the Channel Islands.”
“So my family is nobility?” Hadrian asked.
Petunia took a deep breath. “More akin to royalty actually. While your family is known as the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, the styles and titles granted to everyone born into the family who is within two degrees of relation—that is child or grandchild—of the current or a former Lord Potter are decidedly royal, not noble.”
“Does that mean I’m related to the Queen?” Hadrian asked as he cocked his head to one side. He’d seen the Queen on television before. She seemed nice.
“No, Hadrian, you are not, at least as far as I know,” Petunia said. “As I said, the Potters are ancient… so ancient that I’m almost positive that your family predates the origins of the Queen’s family by multiple centuries.”
“Centuries?” Darius asked, tripping over the world a little. “That’s a hundred years right?”
Nodding, Petunia said, “Yes, Darius, one century is a hundred years, so multiple centuries is at least two hundred years.” Shaking her head, she said, “For comparison sake, your Grandfather Arcturus’s full style and title as Lord Black is His Grace the Lord Arcturus, Head of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, and the Duke of Charlton. The Lord Potter, however, is styled as His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector, their first name, Head of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, and the Grand Duke of Cambria.”
“Okay, and who is the current Lord Potter?”
Petunia sighed. “There isn’t one, Hadrian. Most recently, your father and his father before him held that title, but as they’re both dead, the title has gone into abeyance. That means it’s temporarily not in use by anyone.”
“But it will be?” Darius asked.
“Yes, it will,” Petunia confirmed. “If James was still alive, then Harry would still be going through a ritual today, as today is what’s known among the nobility as his Confirmation Day. Essentially you’ll be confirming your status as the Heir of the Potter family.”
“Heir? Like Sirius?” Hadrian asked.
“Yes,” Petunia answered. “Sirius is the Black Heir and thus he had to undergo the Ritual of Confirmation too. The only difference is that he didn’t undergo it until his father passed away in 1979, because until that point his father Orion was the Black heir. However, in your case, your father’s father died a few months after you were born, so your father moved up from being the Potter Heir to being the Potter Lord. So as his firstborn son, your Ritual of Confirmation happens earlier, today, on the first full moon following your fifth birthday. Sirius’s was on the first full moon following his father’s death, which made him nineteen years old at the time since his birthday hadn’t fallen yet.”
“Since Hadrian’s father is dead does that mean he’s going to be Lord Potter now?” Darius asked.
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “No that title will continue to be in abeyance until the first full moon following Hadrian’s eleventh birthday, which is when he’ll have to do a Ritual of Claiming that will see him officially claiming the title and the birthright that goes with it. That ritual cannot be done until he’s at least that old, as it wouldn’t work otherwise.”
Both boys were silent for a moment, as they digested the information they were being told. Petunia was thankful that they were both as bright as they were, as it made it much easier to explain things to them when she didn’t have to repeat herself several times over or end up going on tangents to explain related topics that they needed to understand in order to fully grasp what she was telling them.
That was another reason why she’d waited until now to tell Hadrian, as she wanted to give him as much time as possible to grow and develop his mind so that he could understand with as little difficulty as possible.
“So what will my title be?” Hadrian asked. “As the Potter Heir?”
Petunia smiled. “His Royal Highness Electoral Prince Hadrian, Heir of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, and Duke of Granston.”
“Duke of Granston?”
Nodding at her son, Petunia said, “Yes, almost every noble in Albion and Iwernia, with the exception of the eight Barons and the eight Baronets, possess a secondary title in addition to their primary title. They’re all one level below the primary, so for Lord Potter, the Grand Duke of Cambria, the title is the Duke of Granston. Whereas your Grandfather Arcturus’s secondary title is the Marquess of Alnwick. Lords only use their highest title, however, so the secondary title is not used by them, although their heir is allowed to use it as a courtesy title, but without the ‘the’ in front of it.”
“So, Grandfather is the Marquess of Alnwick,” Hadrian said, “but Sirius is just Marquess of Alnwick.”
“Yes. Omitting the ‘the’ in front of Marquess denotes that it’s a courtesy title,” Petunia explained. “And that the person using it does not hold that title in their own right. It’s the same with the Potter title. The Lord Potter is the Duke of Granston, while the heir is just Duke of Granston.”
“What’s the elec.. elect… oral… electoral part?” Darius asked, stumbling a little over the unfamiliar word that he’d never heard or seen before today.
“The heirs of all seven Grand Dukes are dubbed Electoral Princes,” Petunia replied. “While the Grand Dukes themselves are dubbed Prince-Electors. The reason for that is because it’s the seven Grand Dukes who elect the King of Albion and Iwernia.”
“What about the Queen?” Hadrian asked.
“Queen Elizabeth II is the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,” Petunia answered. “She’s a muggle, however, and as such, she is not now, nor has she ever been the monarch of the magical Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia. Albion’s monarchy has been elective for over a thousand years now, with the seven Grand Dukes nominating and then electing a junior member of their houses—so an uncle, brother, cousin, or younger son who isn’t their heir—as the King, who then serves in that capacity for life or fifty years, whichever comes first. The current one is His Majesty King Logan III, Head of the Foremost Ancient and Royal House of Pendragon, and King of Albion and Iwernia.”
“Pendragon?” Darius asked. “Like King Arthur?”
Petunia smiled and nodded. “Yes, exactly like King Arthur. He was a real person who served as King of Albion and Iwernia in the early to mid 500s. Before he died, he elevated the ancestors of the seven Grand Dukes to their statuses as Grand Dukes and granted them each a large territory to govern as they saw fit. He also charged them with electing the King, although it’s the Grand Dukes who hold the true power, as the King is mostly a figurehead with very little domestic authority outside of the lands that he personally governs, which are known as the Archduchy of Britannia.”
“So, Pendragon is one of these Grand Duke families?” Hadrian asked.
Shaking her head, Petunia answered, “No, the House of Pendragon has never been a Grand Ducal family, they’ve always been the Royal family. However, King Arthur had no children or other relatives to pass the throne on to when he died. So, he set up the elective monarchy and created the Grand Dukes as the ones who would elect the monarch. Upon their coronation, the monarch leaves the house they were born into and becomes the Head of House Pendragon. This is so that they cannot be magically influenced or ordered to do anything by the Lord of the family they were born into.”
Sirius entered the room at this point, having heard what Petunia was saying as he came in through the back door of the house. Vernon and Petunia had entrusted Sirius and Remus with spare keys to their house, just as Sirius and Remus had entrusted them with spares to theirs. They both had a fireplace connected to the Floo Network in their basement, but unless it was the dead of winter and thus too cold or it was pouring rain, Sirius and Remus preferred to simply walk next door, rather than Flooing.
“The King’s spouse is also a member of House Pendragon,” Sirius added. “However, any children they have together remain as members of the family their father was born into. Which is always one of the seven Grand Ducal families: Cornfoot, Longbottom, MacDougal, Ollivander, Potter, Scamander, and Thomas.”
“King Logan was a member of House MacDougal before becoming King,” Petunia revealed. “He’s Lord Aindreas MacDougal’s nephew.”
Sirius smiled and said, “King Logan has only been on the throne for the last nine years. Before that, the monarch was King Nathaniel II… son of Charlus and Dorea Black Potter.” Hadrian’s and Darius’s eyes widened at this, as Sirius nodded and said, “Yes, he was related to us. Charlus was Hadrian’s dad’s uncle, while Dorea was my aunt… your Papa Pollux’s younger sister.”
-o-0-o-
Two hours before the moon was due to rise, Hadrian, Darius, and Petunia arrived in the Floo Room of a large and richly decorated home. Sirius had wanted to come and witness Hadrian’s Ritual of Confirmation, however, it was agreed by all involved that his place was with Remus on the night of the full moon. Vernon had also remained behind at Privet Drive, not only because the home that his wife, son, and nephew were now standing in was a magical residence, but also because someone had to stay home to make sure that the energetic puppy known as Chase didn’t get into too much trouble.
As Petunia was putting away her wand after casting a few quick Cleaning Charms on herself, Hadrian, and Darius to clean off the soot from the Floo, a rather regal looking older woman in a dark emerald green dress stepped forward and said, “Welcome to Lakeview Castle.”
Petunia curtseyed as Darius and Hadrian bowed as they’d been instructed, before Petunia said, “Thank you for allowing us into your home, Lady Longbottom. I appreciate your willingness to allow us to share your Ritual Chamber this evening.”
“Think nothing of it, Petunia,” Augusta said. “We’re honored to have you. Besides, the chamber is already prepared for young Neville’s Ritual of Confirmation, so it wasn’t an inordinate amount of work to double the preparations so that Hadrian could have his at the same time.”
Petunia smiled before she motioned towards the older woman and said, “Hadrian, Darius, this is Her Most Royal Highness the Princess-Dowager Augusta, the Dowager Grand Duchess of North Anglia.” After a moment’s pause, Petunia motioned towards Darius and said, “Your Highness, may I present my son, Darius Dursley, and my nephew, the soon-to-be-confirmed Electoral Prince Hadrian of House Potter.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet both of you,” Augusta said before she called out, “Tula!”
There was a small pop before a small pointy-eared, hook-nosed creature that Darius and Hadrian recognized from a children’s picture book edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them as a house-elf.
They knew that house-elves were bound to the families they served and would not harm a guest in the master’s home unless directed to by their master. And considering that Lady Longbottom had welcomed them, they didn’t think she was going to ask Tula to attack them.
Unlike the description in the book, however, this elf wasn’t wearing anything like what either boy would describe as a tea cozy. Instead, it was wearing a knee-length black dress trimmed in white lace, with a small white apron over it. Black stockings, tiny black high-heeled shoes, and a lacy white headpiece completed her clothes. Because of this and the fact that Augusta had called her Tula, both boys were assuming the elf was female. This was confirmed a moment later when the elf spoke in a clearly feminine voice.
“What can Tula do for Lady Augusta?”
Augusta smiled. “Please show young Hadrian,” she pointed him out, “upstairs to the guest bedroom where he can get ready for his Confirmation this evening. When you’re finished, please bring some tea and snacks to the drawing-room.”
Tula nodded before she held out her hand to Hadrian and said, “This way, please, young Master.”
Hadrian looked at Petunia, who nodded, before he took the elf’s hand and let her lead him out of the room, shouldering the small overnight bag that he was carrying. He wasn’t spending the night, but he had packed a bag because there was a ceremonial outfit he had to wear during the Ritual of Confirmation, plus a few other supplies specific to House Potter that he’d needed to bring with him that the Longbottoms couldn’t provide.
“If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to the drawing-room,” Augusta said, as Petunia and Darius nodded and followed her out of the room.
-o-0-o-
Entering the drawing-room, Augusta motioned to the adults seated in the room. “Petunia, allow me to introduce Princess-Dowager Callidora,” as she motioned towards a grey-haired woman dressed in red. After they’d shook hands, Augusta said, “I believe you’ve already met her son, my late husband’s cousin, Algernon.”
“Indeed, it’s a pleasure to see you again, Prince Algernon,” Petunia said.
Algernon smiled. “Oh, there’s no need for the titles this evening, Petunia. The Longbottoms and Potters have been friends for centuries. I know you’re not a Potter, but you are raising one, so that’s close enough.” Motioning to a blond-haired woman in her mid-fifties, he said, “Allow me to introduce my wife, Cordelia,” before motioning towards a blond-haired man who looked to be in his early thirties, “and our son, Warrick.”
Petunia shook hands with Cordelia and Warrick, before Augusta said, “And this is Callidora’s daughter, Enid, and her husband, Aindreas.”
Left unsaid was that Aindreas was Lord MacDougal.
As Petunia took a seat and Tula appeared with a tea service, Augusta smiled at Darius and pointed towards the open doors onto the terrace, as she said, “If you’d like to go outside and enjoy the night air, you may, Darius. I’m sure you’d rather not sit in here with us boring adults.”
Warrick smiled. “Yes, my twin boys are out there, with their four cousins, all closer to your age, so you’ll probably enjoy their company more.”
Darius nodded politely, before he walked outside onto the terrace and saw six people that were indeed much closer to him in age, gathered around a rectangular glass-topped table. There was one girl with blond hair that he was pretty sure was the same age as him, two sets of twin boys, one set with blond hair, the other with black hair and conjoined, and another blond-haired boy who Darius immediately noticed wasn’t sitting on a bench as the others were… but was instead sitting in an old, nineteenth-century antique wheelchair.
The girl smiled when she saw Darius and said, “Hello, I’m Morag MacDougal. Who are you?”
“Darius Dursley. Hadrian Potter’s cousin.”
“Ah, yes, great-gran said he’d be joining Nev for his ritual tonight,” one of the blond-haired twins said, as he motioned towards an empty spot on the bench to his left and to the right of the wheelchair-bound boy. “Have a seat. I’m Jasper Longbottom, by the way.”
As Darius sat down, Jasper’s twin introduced himself as Jesse, before the black-haired conjoined twins introduced themselves as Neall and Niall MacDougal, Morag’s elder brothers. Neall was Lord Aindreas’s son and heir. The only one who remained silent was the boy in the wheelchair.
Morag smiled and said, “You’ll have to forgive my brother,” as she motioned towards the wheelchair-bound boy. “Kieran is very shy around new people. With magical healing, wheelchairs aren’t exactly a common sight in the wizarding world, so he’s often uncomfortable with people he doesn’t know very well.”
Kieran glared at his sister for a moment, before he said, “Kieran can speak for himself, sis.”
“I know,” Morag said as she put up her hands in a placating gesture. “But you were being rude and not introducing yourself, so I did it for you.”
Kieran, who if Darius had to guess, was about four years old, growled slightly at his sister before he stuck out his hand in Darius’s direction and said, “Hi, I’m Kieran.” As Darius took the boy’s hand, he added, “Call me a freak and I’ll run you over with my chair.”
Darius looked genuinely confused as he asked, “And why would I call you that?”
“You wouldn’t be the first,” Kieran said.
The boy’s speech and mannerisms made him seem older than he was, but maybe that was just Darius’s imagination. Or perhaps being in a wheelchair meant that he spent a lot more time with adults than the average kid. Darius was pretty sure that Kieran wasn’t likely to be getting out and playing sports much… Quidditch, winged horse racing, and flying chariot racing being the three most popular sports in the wizarding world. None of which were ideal for somebody in a wheelchair.
“As Morag said,” Niall began, “with magical healing, wheelchairs aren’t common in the magical world. So I’m afraid many people like to stare at Kieran and call him names because they’re not used to seeing handicapped people.”
Kieran nodded. “Freak. Ugly. Cripple. Dumby. Stupid. I’ve been called all of them. The last two make no sense as being in a wheelchair has no effect on my brain.”
“That’s just mean to call you names,” Darius said. “I’m assuming you didn’t choose to be in a wheelchair, so people shouldn’t make fun of you for that. Of course, they shouldn’t even if you did choose it.”
“Well, maybe you’re not so bad,” Kieran said with a smile. “And I didn’t choose it.” Motioning towards his elder brothers, he said, “Explain it. I can’t pronounce it.”
It was Neall who said, “Kieran was born with a very rare magical variant of osteogenesis imperfecta, also known as Vrolik’s disease or brittle bone disease. Unlike for muggles, the magical variant can be localized to only part of the body. For Kieran, it’s just his legs and feet, but the bones in them are basically hollow, so they break very easily.”
Jasper picked up the explanation at this, adding, “The magical variant also affects the muscles and tendons in his legs so that they’re pretty much in a nearly constant state of atrophy, which is very hard to reverse because almost every leg exercise that could strengthen them requires more pressure than Kieran’s bones can sustain without breaking. So as it is now his legs and feet can’t support the weight of his upper body.”
“If I tried to stand up and walk,” Kieran said, “my muscles would give out, I’d fall on my face or my arse and most likely break every bone in my legs multiple times.” Shaking his head, he added, “And that’s not even the worst of it.”
Neall sighed, as he said, “According to his healer, the muscle atrophy is unique to the magical variant, along with a rather nasty skin condition. It leaves the skin on his legs and feet withered and wrinkled to the point that they look like they belong to someone who’s over a hundred years old.”
“Needless to say, Kieran doesn’t wear shorts in the summer,” Niall said. “Or ever.”
Nodding, Kieran said, “I get enough people staring at me because of the chair. I don’t need them to be further repulsed by my legs.” He paused for a moment. “Not that anyone could be more repulsed by them than I am.”
“And there’s nothing that magical healing can do?” Darius asked. “Not even Skelegrow?”
“People with my disease are allergic to Skelegrow,” Kieran said. “Lethally allergic.”
Jasper shook his head. “Like the muggle version, the magical variant is incurable. There is a treatment for the skin condition that clears it up in ninety percent of cases, but it isn’t without side effects.”
“Like what?” Darius asked.
“Nausea, fatigue, migraines, and possible liver failure,” Kieran listed off, having memorized what his healer had told him. Kieran had an eidetic memory, so it wasn’t hard for him to remember things. Honestly, it was forgetting that was hard.
His memory was also the reason that he could speak as well as he could, as he’d basically been picking up vocabulary from the adults in his life from almost the second that he’d exited his mother’s womb. Of course, he was still only four-years-old and as such he did have some problems with pronunciation, especially on words that he didn’t hear on a daily basis.
Jesse nodded grimly, as he added, “Of course, his healer says that last one is so rare that it’s highly unlikely to be an issue. It’s only recorded to happen in like 0.5% of cases.” He blushed at this point before adding, “The real reason I think his parents won’t sign off on the treatment is the last possible side effect: infertility.”
Kieran shook his head. “That’s hardly an issue. Not like I’ll be able to find anyone who can stand the sight of my naked lower body… Merlin knows I can’t.”
“Oh come on, Key, your legs don’t look that bad,” Morag said.
“Of course you’d say that,” Kieran said. “You’re my sister. Your biased and want to make me feel better.” Shaking his head, he added, “Besides even if I could find someone when I grow up who wasn’t instantly turned off by the wheelchair and my withered skin, there’s still the problem of my bones that would probably break a hundred times over during sex.”
Everyone at the table, all of them under ten, blushed at this. Some might be surprised that a four-year-old even knew what sex was, but in the wizarding world, especially among the wizarding nobility, parents tended to have the talk with their children at a very young age.
In most cases, it was between four and five and anyone who hadn’t had it with their child by the time they were seven was considered to be committing a low-level form of child abuse by not sharing vital information with them.
Of course, that was probably a throwback to a time when many of the magical nobility was considered to be of marriage age as soon as puberty struck… which could sometimes happen earlier in witches and wizards than in muggles.
After this, the six boys and one girl fell into a companionable conversation over a game of exploding snap until their parents came to tell them it was time to head down to the Ritual Chamber.
-o-0-o-
Ten minutes later, everyone gathered in Lakeview Castle’s Ritual Chamber, which despite the fact that being called a chamber might lead one to think that it was a room inside the castle, it wasn’t. Of course, on their way down, Augusta explained, mostly for Darius, Hadrian, and Petunia’s sake since the Longbottoms and MacDougals already knew, that the Ritual Chamber was at one time indoors. However, it was located in the very oldest section of the castle which dated back to King Arthur’s day and the roof over the chamber had long since collapsed. It was never fixed simply because almost every ritual in existence was believed to be stronger by moonlight, so why put a roof between the ritual and the moon?
Preparing for the ritual had involved both Hadrian and Neville taking a bath in rose water, drinking a goblet full of a surprisingly good tasting potion, and then dressing in their ceremonial robes. With the exception of the colors—light red for Hadrian, dark red for Neville, both with gold accents—they were exactly the same, consisting of a small pair of silk shorts that were more like underwear than shorts, satin slippers, and a floor-length robe with billowing sleeves that glistened in the moonlight… it was also so sheer that it was almost completely see-through.
While Darius was on the terrace with the younger kids, two more people arrived at the castle, one of whom Hadrian and Darius had met on several occasions since it was their Grandfather Arcturus. He wasn’t actually there for Hadrian, however, but in his official capacity as Lord Black, who as the highest-ranked of the vassal lords in the Longbottom’s Grand Duchy of North Anglia, had served, since time immemorial, as the Steward of House Longbottom. His position required him to attend Longbottom family rituals unless they conflicted with rituals being held by his own house. Which was rarely a problem, since if there was a conflict, the Blacks were usually invited to share Lakeview’s Ritual Chamber, just as they were doing for the Potters this evening.
The other person to arrive was introduced to Hadrian as Lord Nicolas Flamel, the Duke of Pleinmont, who was the highest-ranked of the Potter vassal lords and as such served as the Potter Steward.
As the full moon crested the horizon, Hadrian and Neville stepped up to the stone altar in the middle of the chamber and each poured water from a pair of silver pitchers—one engraved with the Longbottom crest and the other the Potter crest—into a pair of silver basins on the altar. The basins were covered in runes which began to glow faintly as the water filled them.
After replacing the pitchers, the boys spoke in almost perfect unison. They both had to rehearse and memorize what they had to say, although Neville was at a bit of an advantage as he had more than half a day to do so. Luckily for Hadrian, he was sharp and tended to pick things up quickly.
“I, Neville Preston Longbottom, firstborn son of Their Most Royal Highnesses Prince-Elector Franklin, born of the Most Noble House Longbottom, and Princess-Elector-Consort Alice, born of the Common House Barnes, come here tonight in the light of the eighth full moon of the one-thousand nine-hundred and eighty-fifth-year common era to offer my blood as sacrifice to the great goddess, Hecate, and humbly ask that she bless and confirm me as the rightful heir of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Longbottom and to the Grand Duchy of North Anglia.”
Hadrian’s speech was exactly the same as Neville’s, except for the names, houses, and titles being replaced where necessary. In the end, however, there was an additional bit for Hadrian to say after Neville fell silent since unlike Neville’s parents, Hadrian’s were dead.
“Furthermore, I humbly ask the great god, Hades, to allow my parents, who are his subjects in the Underworld, to bear witness to this most solemn of occasions.”
There was silence for a moment before a slight rustle of wind blew through Hadrian’s hair and the surface of the water in his basin shimmered slightly before the image of a fancy ancient Greek helmet appeared in the water. This was followed shortly after by Hadrian feeling a sudden warmth and what felt like a pair of hands resting on his shoulders, one with a light more feminine touch and one with a more firm masculine touch. Despite desperately wanting to react to the touch, he stayed still, as Petunia had been very clear that he shouldn’t react or the ritual could be spoiled and he’d have to do it again.
As the image of the helmet disappeared from Hadrian’s basin, both he and Neville picked up their family athames in their right hands and holding their left hands out over the basins, they carefully pricked their middle fingers, allowing seven drops of blood to fall into the water. The droplets swirled in the water for a few moments, before the water turned red. The runes on the basins were now glowing brightly and after a moment, the wind picked up, upsetting both Hadrian’s and Neville’s hair.
Not long after this, the blood-red water in both basins began bubbling, slowly at first, but progressively faster as it began threatening to boil over. Just as the water was about to spill out of the basins, however, a cloud of smoke rose up from both of them and formed into two pairs of torches, one pair floating over each basin. There was also a faint noise just barely audible over the wind that sounded like some kind of animal. Hadrian guessed it was a polecat since Petunia had told him that it was one of Hecate’s holy symbols.
After hanging in the air above the basins for half a minute, the smoke, still in the shape of paired torches, abruptly flew towards Hadrian’s and Neville’s faces, but rather than coughing, they could only smile at the feeling of rightness and pleasure that filled every inch of their bodies. To those standing around the ritual circle, the two boys were surrounded in a nimbus of bright silver light as moonlight seemed to pour down from the heavens over their bodies.
The light was gone almost as quickly as it appeared, but just before it disappeared completely, two soft dog barks could be heard on the night air, along with what sounded like the jangling of several keys. With everyone focused on Neville and Hadrian, nobody noticed the barely noticeable smile on Petunia’s face or the faint golden glow in her eyes that had appeared the moment the ritual had begun and disappeared as it ended.
-o-0-o-
The day after Hadrian’s Ritual of Confirmation, after Vernon had left for work and Sirius and Remus agreed to keep an eye on Chase, as they’d both be home as Remus spent most of the day in bed recovering from the full moon, Petunia decided to take Darius and Hadrian to the library.
Vernon had been doing very well at work, having recently been promoted to head up the entire Grunnings sales division, so the Dursleys were one of the rare families in the neighborhood who actually owned two cars. However, Petunia saw no reason to use her car to take the boys to the library, since it was on Magnolia Road, a street which connected to and ran perpendicular to Privet Drive. It was a beautiful summer day and it was only a ten-minute walk.
On the way to the library, they passed by the playground on the corner of Privet and Magnolia, so since it was such a nice day, Petunia allowed Darius and Hadrian to each go down the slide a couple of times and swing on the swings as they waited for Piers. Petunia had agreed, as she often did, to watch him while Portia picked up a few extra shifts at work. As the alley connecting Wisteria Walk—where the Polkisses and Arabella lived—to Privet Drive came out very close to the park, it was quite normal for Hadrian and Darius to meet up with Piers there.
Once Piers joined up with them, the four of them continued on their walk, passing by the Hopkins residence on their way to the library since it was between the park and their destination. Kevin had already been at Wayne’s house, as Kevin had tagged along with his sister when she headed over to visit her boyfriend.
Annabelle and Carl were more than happy to see Kevin and Wayne opting to join Petunia and the others at the library. Part of Petunia was slightly worried about leaving Annabelle and Carl home alone, but then they were both fifteen and old enough to take care of themselves. Honestly, the main reason for Petunia’s hesitance was because she knew they were dating and a small part of her worried about what they might get up to if nobody was home to supervise them. Ultimately, however, she knew she wasn’t their mother, so it wasn’t her place to try to mother them.
As Petunia and the five boys reached the library parking lot a couple of minutes later, it was just in time to see a white sedan pulling into a parking spot. A moment later, a woman about the same height as Petunia got out of the car, prompting Hadrian to ask, “Isn’t that Ms. Granger?”
Petunia looked and nodded. It was indeed Helena Granger, who had been Hadrian’s and Darius’s dentist for the last two years, ever since the dentist that the Dursleys had been taking the boys to—Vernon’s dentist since childhood—retired and sold his practice to Helena and her husband Robert.
As Helena had parked in a spot that was close to the walkway leading up to the library, Petunia and the boys had to walk fairly close to her vehicle in order to reach the door to get inside, as the boys knew better than to try to walk on the grass or in the library’s flower beds with Petunia around. Just as Petunia was about to say hello to Helena, she leaned down and said, “Hermione, we’re here. Can you stop reading your book long enough to get out of the car and go inside?”
The passenger side door of the car opened at this point, although before it was even open half-a-foot, there was a ringing noise, as Helena sighed and reached into the car to grab the car phone.
“Hello, who is this?” Helena asked.
“Honey, it’s Rob. I just got a call from the hospital,” Helena’s husband said over the phone, prompting Helena to sigh.
Today was Helena’s day off, as she and her husband alternated their workdays so that somebody was always home with Hermione. Robert, however, did lend his services part-time to the local hospital, should they need a dental surgeon, which sometimes required Helena to come in on her days off to cover his appointments in the case of a dental emergency.
“How bad is it?” Helena asked.
“You may have to cover my appointments for the rest of the day,” Robert said. “A boy was just brought into the hospital after being hit in the face with a ninety mile-per-hour cricket ball.”
“Ouch,” Helena said before she said. “Okay, I’ll head over there now. Hermione and I just arrived at the library, but you caught me before we went inside.”
Hanging up the phone, Helena said, “Hermione, change of plans. Your Dad has a work emergency and I have to go cover his appointments, so you’ll have to sit quietly and read in my office at work.”
“But Mum…” Hermione began because she only had twenty pages left of the book she was currently reading and she’d already read every book at her parents’ dental practice twice. She’d be bored out of her mind if she had to go sit in her mother’s office for the rest of the day.
“I’m sorry, Hermione, but it’s an emergency,” Helena said, as she sat back down in the driver’s seat.
“Excuse me, Ms. Granger?” Petunia asked before Helena could close the car door or get her right leg into the car.
Looking up she smiled and said, “Oh, hello, Mrs. Dursley. I’m sorry I don’t have time to talk right now.”
“I heard,” Petunia said. “If you’d like, I’d be willing to watch your daughter for you.”
“I don’t want to impose,” Helena said.
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “Oh don’t worry, it’s no imposition. I’ve already got Hadrian, Darius, and three of their friends with me, one more won’t be that hard. Plus, if your daughter is anything like these five, once we get inside and get their noses in books, I won’t have much to do.” Holding up the tote bag she was carrying, she added, “It’s why I brought my knitting.”
“Well, if you’re sure it won’t be an imposition?” Helena asked.
“I’m sure,” Petunia said with a smile.
“Okay, thank you,” before turning her head to her daughter and said, “Hermione, this is Mrs. Dursley. Her son and her nephew are my patients, so if you want to stay here with them, you may.”
“Thanks, Mum,” Hermione said, as she quickly reopened the car door and got out of the car.
“I love you,” Helena called out before she got the rest of the way into the car and closed her door. Petunia knocked on the car window, prompting Helena to roll it down.
“I don’t know how long your appointments will take,” Petunia said, “but if we’re not here when you finish work, we’ll either be at the park on the corner of Magnolia Road and Privet Drive or at my home. It’s Number Four Privet. It’s only a ten-minute walk from here, so it’s not far.”
“Okay, thank you again, so much, Mrs. Dursley,” Helena said before she backed out of the parking spot and left.
Walking up to the frizzy-haired girl, Hadrian held out his hand and said, “Hi. I’m Hadrian.”
“Hi. I’m Hermione,” she said as she shook Hadrian’s hand briefly, before Darius, Kevin, Wayne, and Piers all took a moment to introduce themselves, before following Petunia inside.
-o-0-o-
An hour later, Petunia was seated in a chair on the edge of the children’s section of the library working on her knitting, although she looked up every few minutes to check that her charges were okay. After reading several of the books in the muggle section of the library, however, the five boys were starting to feel a bit restless, as they’d hoped to visit the magical section of the library.
All the boys had been shocked when Petunia told them two months ago that the local library had a secret magical section that was only accessible by those who had magic. Of course, as Petunia explained, almost every library in the UK had one, as a wealthy anonymous wizard—or witch, nobody was actually sure—at the turn of the century had donated a large sum of money to the Ministry and earmarked it specifically for the addition of magical wings to every public library in the UK, so that muggleborns and muggle-raised would have equal access to magical knowledge.
Hadrian, Darius, and their friends had visited it a few times since and had been hoping to do so again today. However, Hermione didn’t have magic, so the rules that had been drilled into all their heads were clear. No using magic, no talking about magic, no doing anything that could in any way risk a breach of any kind to the Statute of Secrecy.
The boys, however, really wanted to visit the magical section, so silently through a series of looks and subtle gestures, they all agreed to get up and head towards the stacks, making it look like they were returning some of the books they’d already read and getting new ones. Of course, one by one, they’d snuck through the rows to the empty brick wall between two shelves.
None of the muggles paid it any mind, as there were Notice-Me-Not Charms and other magical security spells cast over the whole area which ensured that nobody who wasn’t magical would be able to see anyone passing through the wall into the magical section.
Hadrian, Darius, Wayne, and Kevin had all made it through the wall and Piers was just about to do so when one of the other parents who’d brought their children to the library coughed. Piers didn’t pay it any mind and proceeded to walk through the wall. The only problem was that Piers didn’t have eyes in the back of his head, so he never saw the shocked expression appear on Hermione’s face as she looked up from her book at the cough only to see Piers’s back, as he walked through a solid brick wall and disappeared.
Hermione shook her head, as she thought, ‘Where’d he go? One second he was there and the next he was just gone…’
Setting her book aside, Hermione stood up and headed for the stacks. She rationalized that she had to be hallucinating because it was impossible for her to have seen what she thought she saw. People didn’t just walk through walls. Although as she finished looking up and down every row of shelves in the children’s section and couldn’t find Piers, or Hadrian, or Darius, or Kevin, or Wayne, she wondered if maybe she had cracked.
Her father had once warned her to not forget to live her life and experience things in the real world rather than just reading about them. He said that while reading was great, it wasn’t healthy to spend the majority of every single day reading to the exclusion of almost everything else.
Casting confused eyes over the last row of books, Hermione found herself in the one part of the children’s section that she usually didn’t go into because she didn’t really think of comic books as being all that interesting. Although as her eyes landed on a Casper the Friendly Ghost comic, she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe Piers was a ghost and that’s how he’d walked through a wall.
Shaking her head, Hermione thought, ‘Oh come on, get a grip. Ghosts aren’t real. Besides Piers wasn’t see-through so he can’t be a ghost.’
Deciding there was nothing else she could do she left the stacks and walked over to where Petunia was seated. Clearing her throat she softly asked, “Um, Mrs. Dursley?”
Looking up, Petunia smiled at Hermione and said, “Yes, Hermione?”
“I can’t find the boys,” Hermione whispered. She debated saying it out loud because she was sure she’d sound crazy, but after a moment, she said, “I thought I saw Piers walk through a wall.”
Petunia looked past Hermione and saw that the boys had indeed disappeared. It didn’t take long for her to figure out what had happened. However, if Hermione had in fact seen Piers walk through the wall into the magical section…
Quickly packing up her knitting, Petunia stood and motioned for Hermione to follow her. As they reached the wall, Petunia smiled and whispered, “Place your hand against the wall and tell me what you feel.”
Hermione looked confused but as she’d been taught to do what adults told her to do—at least the ones that she knew her parents trusted—she raised her right hand and laid it against the wall. She expected to find just a solid brick wall, but she let out a soft yelp of surprise when the fingers of her hand passed through the wall.
Petunia smiled as she watched this, realizing that Hermione was clearly magical. Still, they were in the muggle library and while the spells around the entrance to the magical section prevented muggles from seeing what was going on near the wall, it didn’t prevent them from hearing anything that was said near it. So, placing her hand on Hermione’s shoulder, Petunia gently guided the girl through the wall to the other side, where they could speak safely.
Looking down at the stunned girl who was looking around at this whole new world she found herself in, Petunia knelt down to Hermione's level and said, “Welcome to the magic wing, Hermione.”
“The magic wing?”
“I’m a witch, Hermione,” Petunia answered. “Darius, Hadrian, and their friends are wizards.” With a reassuring smile, she then added, “And the fact that you’re standing here in this part of the library means that you’re a witch too.”
“Petunia, I was wondering where you were,” the librarian said, as he walked over to her. “I saw Darius, Hadrian, and their friends come in, but I got worried when I didn’t see you.”
Jackson Sterndale was a muggleborn wizard and one of Petunia’s house and year mates at Hogwarts. He had also been her first kiss, back when then they were both fourteen and thought that maybe they could try being a couple. Of course, that was before Jackson realized that he preferred men, so ultimately it didn’t work out. Not that Petunia was upset, because if she and Jackson had worked out, she wouldn’t have married Vernon and she probably wouldn’t have Darius.
“Yes, they snuck in here while I was knitting,” Petunia said. “I’m babysitting for Hermione here and I thought she was a muggle… until she told me she saw Piers walk through a wall.”
Jackson smiled. “Well, Hermione, I’m sure you must have a ton of questions. What do you say we go over to my desk and I’ll grab you some books to answer them, while Petunia tracks down the boys?”
While Jackson was the youngest librarian she’d ever seen, Hermione had little trouble figuring out that’s what he was. He’d been sitting behind what was clearly the librarian’s desk when she entered and he was wearing a nametag that identified him as the librarian.
“You can trust Jackson, Hermione,” Petunia said. “We went to school together and I consider him a friend.”
Hermione nodded and followed Jackson over to his desk, as Petunia began searching for her wayward son, nephew, and their friends. They had a scolding waiting for them.
-o-0-o-
Hadrian and Darius and their friends were all looking somewhat dejected as they followed Petunia and Hermione to Magnolia Park, after two hours in the library. While Petunia didn’t have any authority over the punishment meted out by Kevin’s, Wayne’s, and Piers’ parents once they got home, while they were in her care, she could punish them at least a little.
Jackson offered to watch Hermione and answer her questions about magic until Petunia decided that their outing was over, so Petunia opted to take the boys out to the muggle section of the library. She then proceeded to give them each a list of thirty words which she told them to look them up in the dictionary and write down their definitions. Of course, to make sure they couldn’t copy off of each other, none of their lists contained the same words.
Arriving at the Park, Petunia said, “You have half-an-hour to play. All but Hermione, I suggest you enjoy it while you can. Darius, Hadrian as soon as we get home, you’re grounded for a week. Kevin, Wayne, Piers, you’re forbidden to see, play, or communicate with them in any way during that time. I will be calling each of your parents.”
All five boys groaned at this, but one look from Petunia and they shuffled off towards the swings to enjoy their last half-hour of playtime before they were all grounded. Because while Petunia couldn’t ground Kevin, Wayne, or Piers, none of them had any doubt that their respective parents would ground them when they found out that they’d disobeyed Petunia, snuck away from her, and potentially risked breaking international law.
Sitting down at a picnic table with Hermione, Petunia wordlessly cast a Silencing Charm around the table, her wand hidden from view under the table.
“Now, did Jackson tell you that you can’t tell anyone about magic?” Petunia asked.
Nodding, Hermione said. “He did, yes. Does that include my parents?”
“Yes, it does. Now I understand that you probably don’t like keeping secrets from them. But it won’t be for long, I promise you. As soon as I get home I’ll contact Professor Dumbledore. He’s the Headmaster at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, as well as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. He’ll make sure that someone comes to your home soon to officially introduce you and your parents to the magical world.”
Hermione nodded, at which point Petunia told her that if she had any other questions that Jackson hadn’t already answered for her, she could try to answer them. This opened the floodgates, so to speak, as Hermione spent the next half hour asking about as much as she possibly could. As she was taking everyone home, Petunia couldn’t help but think, ‘Such a smart girl. If she’s not a Ravenclaw, I’ll eat my garters.’
-o-0-o-
11 August 1985…
After nearly four years in a coma, all Gideon wanted to do was get up and get out of the bed that he’d been in for most of that time. Unfortunately for him, his body wasn’t being very cooperative. The healers and nurses at St. Mungo’s had done what they could to keep him in good physical condition, but nobody can simply stop moving for two months shy of four years and not have any problem with resuming a normal, active lifestyle.
He’d insisted on trying to go to the bathroom himself, without any help when he’d had to go and Miriam had offered to call some orderlies. While he’d managed to throw back the blanket and swing his legs off the bed without too much difficulty, the real problem had come when he’d tried to stand up. Almost immediately he realized what a bad idea it had been when his knees buckled and he almost fell face first against his still comatose brother’s bed.
Thankfully, his now teenage nephews—and he was still having trouble wrapping his head around that—Bill, who was on the Gryffindor Quidditch team at Hogwarts, and Charlie, who would no doubt be trying out for the team now that he’d be starting his second year in less than a month, had quick enough reflexes that they managed to catch him before his legs crumpled beneath him and he hit his head on his brother’s bed.
As Bill and Charlie got him back onto the bed and then helped him get his legs back up onto it, because no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t do it, he was almost cursing himself for asking that the feeding tube and catheter be removed. He was awake and showing no signs that he was about to drop back into a coma, so he’d wanted it all gone. He wanted to return to some normalcy, which is why he’d insisted on wanting to eat real food instead of the nutrient potions he’d been subsisting on for the last several years. That, of course, had led to needing to go to the bathroom.
Settling himself back against the pillows further propping up his back than the raised head of the bed did, Gideon shook his head and said, “This sucks. I feel weaker than a baby right now.”
Charlie sat on the edge of his uncle’s bed and laid a comforting hand on his knee. Their father had dropped them at the hospital this morning on his way to work, as the Potter Heir going through his Claiming a few days ago had meant an uptick in work for all the vassal lords who held positions in Cambria’s Grand Ducal Household.
As the barrister to House Potter, Lord Arthur Weasley, the Viscount Ravenstone, didn’t have quite as much work to do as say the family solicitor—Lord Padraig Fontaine, the Baron Mathry—and certainly not as much as steward Nicolas Flamel, but his presence was still required more often now than it had been in the interim between James’s passing and Hadrian’s Claim. There were certain things that needed either the Lord or the Heir to sign off on that couldn’t be done when there were neither.
Molly hadn’t arrived yet, although Bill and Charlie weren’t surprised, as she had to wrangle Percy, Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny out of bed—an often particularly hard task for the latter two—and make breakfast for them all, and wait for Arthur’s mother to arrive to watch them, before she could come to the hospital. Percy and the twins wanted to come see Gideon, but Molly didn’t want to overwhelm him with too many people all at once. She was afraid that he’d already been overwhelmed by the information he’d insisted on getting as soon as he woke.
Bill was about to open his mouth and say something to comfort his uncle, but before he could a dry, scratchy voice said, “So what else is new?”
Almost as one, Bill’s, Charlie’s and Gideon’s eyes widened as they turned towards the other bed and saw Fabian moving his head, as he blinked his eyes open and closed at a rapid pace. Without a word, Charlie got up and headed over to the other side of the ward where Miriam was doing her rounds to let her know that his other uncle was coming out of it.
As Bill pressed his wand against the rune that would raise Fabian’s head and provided him with some much-needed water, Gideon smiled brightly for the first time since coming out of his coma and said, “It’s about bloody time you woke up, you sleepyhead.”
After drinking the water and coughing a few times, Fabian said, “I haven’t been sleeping that long, Gid, so stop making it sound like I’ve been sleeping the whole day.”
With a raised eyebrow, Gideon smirked at his little brother—yes, they were twins, but Gideon was older by three-and-a-half minutes—and said, “Yes, Fab, not that long… just three years, nine months, three weeks, and three days.”
“That’s a pathetic attempt at a joke, Gid.”
“Not a joke, Fab. Look around you. We’re in St. Mungo’s and the redhead that just gave you water isn’t an orderly. It’s Bill. As in Molly’s Bill… our nephew.”
It was almost funny how fast Fabian’s head turned back to look at Bill as he did a double-take. “Bill? No… it can’t be.”
“It is, Uncle Fab,” Bill said. “I know this is going to come as a shock, but it’s the 11th of August… 1985.”
Fabian blinked and swallowed a few times, before he asked, “1985? How? Where the bloody hell did the rest of 1981 go? Or 1982, 83, or 84 for that matter?”
“We slept through them, Fab,” Gideon answered. “I repeat we’re in St. Mungo’s. In the Janus Thickey Ward where we’ve both been comatose for almost four years.”
Looking over at his brother, Fabian said, “You don’t look comatose.”
“Well, that’s because I woke up, you dolt.”
“When?”
Gideon grinned. “Yesterday… so not the first time I’ve beaten you and it won’t be the last.”
Fabian groaned. “Nearly four years in a coma and he still won’t let me forget that he was born three bloody minutes before me.”
“Three-and-a-half minutes,” Gideon corrected, stressing the ‘a-half’ part.
Shaking his head, Fabian said, “Well you’re just as insufferable as you’ve always been.” He then turned to Bill and looked at him for a moment, before he said, “Billy? That’s really you?”
“Yeah, Uncle Fab, it’s me,” Bill said with a smile. Nobody had called him Billy since his twin uncles had been hurt.
“So, if I’ve been out for nearly four years that would make you…” Fabian scrunched up his face for a moment. Maths had never been his strong suit and his brain was still a bit foggy after so many years asleep.
“14, almost 15,” Bill answered. “It’s the 11th of August, so my birthday is in a little over three months.”
“So that means you’re at Hogwarts now,” Fabian said.
Bill nodded. “Yup, about to start my fourth year. I’m in Gryffindor.”
“Good man,” Fabian said, as he gave his nephew a high five. “So, wait, that means Charlie is at Hogwarts too, right?”
“Yup, about to start my second year,” Charlie said as he came back over. Miriam said she’d just finish up with the patient she was checking the vitals on and then she’d be right over. “Also in Gryffindor.”
Looking around and not seeing anyone else, Fabian asked, “How are you two even here? Did something change while I was out and they lowered the age to get an Apparition license?”
Bill shook his head. “No, it’s still 17. Dad dropped us off on his way to work. He’s had a lot more to do ever since Prince Hadrian claimed his heirship a few days ago.”
“Mum will be here eventually,” Charlie added. “But she’s gotta get Percy, the twins, Ron, and Ginny up and fed. And wait from Grandma Cedrella to arrive to watch them.”
“I’m told getting Ron and Ginny up is particularly hard,” Gideon said. “At five and four, they’re very stubborn when they want to do something… like staying in bed.”
“Ginny is four? Last time I saw her she was only a couple of months old!” Fabian exclaimed before he made his nephews grin by adding, “Oh sweet Merlin’s hairy ballsac.”
“Fabian Wolfgang Prewett! Language!” Molly said in a stern voice as she heard what her brother had said as she entered the ward. She was one of the few people who could not only tell Gideon and Fabian apart in looks but also their voices, which most people couldn’t. Before he could respond, however, he had a crying Molly Weasley pulling him into a hug as she whispered in his ear, “Oh I’m so glad to have you back, baby brother.”
-o-0-o-
After the happy reunion, Miriam came over and ran a complete diagnostic on Fabian, giving him a clean bill of health. With a smile, she said she’d go add Fabian’s name to the physical therapy department’s schedule and send one of the male nurses in to remove his feeding tube and catheter. The happy family of five spent several minutes catching up before everyone sobered when Fabian asked where Marlene and Dorcas were.
Needless to say, Fabian was just as devastated as Gideon had been upon learning that Marlene and Dorcas were dead. With a quick spell from Molly to enlarge it and some help from Bill and Charlie, Gideon crawled into bed with his twin and held him. It was only once Fabian was wrapped in Gideon’s arms that Molly broke the bad news that their father was also dead.
It was several long minutes before either of them felt like they could speak a word. Before they could, however, two new people entered the ward. A young boy and a woman whose very distinctive hat—not many people wore hats with stuffed vultures on them—made them instantly recognizable. They both paused when they saw Molly, Bill, and Charlie, sitting on the edge of an enlarged hospital bed that contained a very much awake Gideon and Fabian Prewett.
With a smile, Augusta ushered her grandson over and said, “Gideon, Fabian, you’re awake.” Smiling at Molly, she added, “You must be so thrilled.”
While it was true that Molly was a Viscountess due to her marriage to Arthur and the niece of a Marquess, propriety still demanded that she acknowledge the Lady Longbottom’s superior status, as both the daughter and widow of a Grand Duke.
“I am, Your Highness,” Molly said, as she stood and curtseyed, while Bill and Charlie stood and bowed. Gideon and Fabian, of course, as hospital patients were exempt from doing so.
“We all are,” Charlie said with a grin to his uncles.
Gideon and Fabian returned the grin, as they said in perfect unison, “None more so than us.”
Augusta chuckled at that, as she nodded. “Yes, I’m sure that’s very true.”
Looking at the boy standing next to Augusta, Gideon asked, “Is that Neville?”
Realizing that Gideon and Fabian hadn’t seen her grandson since November of 1981—and he’d obviously grown since then—Augusta nodded and said, “Yes, it is.”
“I know I shouldn’t be surprised,” Fabian said. “Children have a tendency to grow up, but it’s still jarring to see the changes in people we’d met before we went into our comas.”
“Yes, I didn’t even recognize Bill and Charlie at first,” Gideon said. “Percy, Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny haven’t been to visit since we woke up but I’m sure it would be much the same for them.”
“I’m surprised you haven’t brought them all over yet,” Augusta said to Molly. “How long have they been awake?”
“Gideon woke up yesterday,” Molly answered. “And Fabian only about an hour ago now. I was tempted to bring the others with me this morning, but I thought that might be a bit too much for them, all at once. Now I’ve got double the reason to bring them due to Fabian waking up too.” She sighed at this, before adding, “Although I’m not sure that’ll mean much for some of them.”
At the confused looks, Bill elaborated. “Ron and Ginny were both very young when Uncle Gideon and Uncle Fabian slipped into their comas. Ron was only a few months past being a year old and Ginny was only a few months old. So they have no memories of them.”
“We’ve tried to build connections for them through stories and pictures,” Charlie added, “but being so young, it’s hard for them to care about people they’ve never really met. Or at least, can’t remember meeting.”
Molly nodded. “They know that Gideon and Fabian are important to me, but they don’t have any real connection to them.”
Augusta nodded. “I suppose that makes sense. I fear Neville is in much the same boat. The family and I have done our best to combat it, but the fact remains that he doesn’t remember Frank and Alice in anything but their current state.”
Gideon and Fabian both perked up at this, as Fabian asked, “What’s wrong with Frank and Alice?”
With a sigh, Neville walked over to the bed to the left of Fabian’s and pulled back the curtain which had been shut the entire time that the Prewett twins had been awake. Once it was pulled back, however, the twins were met with the sight of Frank and Alice Longbottom, lying together in a magically expanded bed. Both clearly awake, but simply staring off into space. With the curtain pulled back, the charms that prevented any sounds they made from disturbing Gideon and Fabian were also lowered, so they were able to hear it when Frank and Alice would occasionally mutter complete gibberish.
Augusta closed her eyes for a moment, before she said, “They were captured by the Death Eaters the same night that you two went into your comas. Barty Crouch, Jr. along with Rodolphus Lestrange, his brother Rabastan, and his wife, Bellatrix, to be precise.”
Molly frowned and said, “They were both held under the Cruciatus Curse long enough to break their minds beyond repair.”
Augusta nodded. “I keep hoping for a miracle, but so far it doesn’t seem to be in the offing.”
“Oh gods, I’m so sorry,” Gideon said. “Frank and Alice were good people who didn’t deserve that. Honestly, I wouldn’t wish that fate upon my worst enemy.”
Fabian nodded, before he remembered something and asked, “Wait, Lestrange? Aren’t they one of your vassal houses?”
“Yes, they are,” Augusta confirmed. “Rodolphus’s and Rabastan’s uncle, Lord Constantin Lestrange, disowned them and together with Lord Arcturus Black, annulled Rodolphus and Bellatrix’s marriage. That technically de-legitimized their son and daughter, but Constantin and his wife blood-adopted them as their own in order re-legitimize them since they were only three and one at the time and can’t be held accountable for the actions of their parents.”
“All four of them were sentenced to life in Azkaban without the possibility of parole,” Molly added. “Which is getting off rather lightly in truth, as attacking the sitting Grand Duke and his wife to whom their family owes fealty is technically an act of high treason, so the death penalty would have been an option. It was only their noble blood in the case of the Lestranges and the fact that his father was the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement in the case of Barty Jr. that saved them from execution.”
“Well, that and the fact that the imposition of the death penalty requires a unanimous vote of all seven Grand Dukes and the King,” Augusta said. “Which simply wasn’t possible at the time, considering that House Longbottom and House Potter were both without sitting Grand Dukes. Of course, Lords Cornfoot and Thomas have always been vehemently opposed to the death penalty, so there’s a strong possibility that even if the Lord’s Council could have voted, that it wouldn’t have passed.”
“Anyone else die or get attacked that night?” Fabian asked.
“Lord Thackeray Nott died,” Molly answered. “The Death Eaters had overwhelmed the Order and had them cornered, forcing Albus to use Protego Diabolica to protect them. Thorald Mulciber pushed Lord Nott into the flames and was sent to Azkaban for it when he was caught a year later.”
“That’s interesting,” Fabian said. “But I did mean on our side, not the Death Eaters.”
“Caradoc Dearborn is missing and presumed dead,” Augusta revealed. “His body was never found, however, so he won’t officially be declared dead for another three years, as he’d need to be missing for seven years.”
Molly sighed. “Benjy Fenwick also died. It would appear that he was,” she hesitated for a moment, before finishing, “blown apart by a Bombarda, as they only ever found pieces.”
“Bloody hell,” Gideon said. “As sad as I am that Marlene and Dorcas are gone, I’m grateful at least that if they had to go that it was by the Killing Curse. At least they didn’t suffer.”
Fabian nodded. “Yes, being blown to bits would definitely be more painful.”
“Albus and many others in the Order like to believe that Benjy died instantly,” Augusta said. “We’ll never know for sure, of course, as we can’t even be sure if the Blasting Curse is what ultimately killed him. There wasn’t enough left of him to determine if that was all he was hit with.”
“Eeek,” Gideon said. “No point dwelling on it, I suppose. There’s nothing we can do to change it. All we can do is pray that he found peace in the Underworld.”
“Indeed,” Molly said, before Neville and Augusta went over to Frank’s and Alice’s bed, as Augusta pulled the curtain shut so that she and Neville could visit with them privately, while Molly, Bill, and Charlie did the same with the twins.
-o-0-o-
To be continued.
Notes:
And there you have Ch3 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. So, Hadrian will be a powerful Lord someday and we learned a bit more about the government in Albion and Iwernia in this story. Figured I wanted to do something a bit different from my other stories. And now Fabian is awake, as well.
Those of you reading this on Archive of Our Own are probably already aware of the future main pairing for this story, as it’s listed in the tags. But for those of you reading this on FFNet, the main pairing will be Hadrian in a harem pairing with two original characters and one canon character from each fandom that this story crosses over with: Cedric Diggory (Harry Potter), Kol Mikaelson (The Vampire Diaries), Adam Milligan (Supernatural), and Jordan Parrish (Teen Wolf). There will be additional members of Hadrian’s harem (as suggested by the cover image on FFNet) but I choose not to reveal those names at this time.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? I love hearing from my readers, so feel free to contact me in a review, by email (Gmail: jaycolin25), my LiveJournal (JayColin), my group (groups (dot) io (slash) g (slash) storiesbyjayson), or on Twitter @JVascardi. Alternatively, you can also try to contact me via Skype (text messaging only) at jayson (dot) vascardi.
Chapter 4: Paying Respects
Notes:
Author’s Note: This chapter contains more time jumps. While I do want to show Hadrian’s childhood and how it differed from canon, I imagine most people reading this would prefer to get to more interesting sections of the story sooner. Like attending Hogwarts and old enough to be dating. Not to mention getting to the crossovers for the fans of those fandoms. So, to that end, over the course of this chapter, along with chapters five and six, a few events for each year of Hadrian’s childhood will be shown, between the ages of six and ten.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Four:
Paying Respects
-o-0-o-
31 October 1986…
On the morning of the five-year anniversary of the deaths of James and Lily Potter, Hadrian was, naturally, a bit quiet and reserved. Halloween had never been his favorite holiday, although his family and friends did their best to make sure that the day wasn’t horrible for him, which he appreciated. This particular morning, however, was different from the others, as Petunia had decided that it was time that Hadrian go and pay his respects to his parents.
As they were finishing breakfast, Hadrian asked, “I thought you’d said that Seacliff Castle is locked up tight until I claim the lordship at eleven?”
Petunia nodded. “It is, but only the main castle is under ward lockdown. The grounds of the estate, along with some of the outbuildings and the family mausoleum remain accessible in case they’re needed or so that people with permission can go and pay their respects to those entombed there.”
Hadrian nodded in understanding as Darius asked, “Who is entombed there, besides Aunt Lily and Uncle James?”
“James’s parents, Julian and Katherine Burke Potter,” Petunia answered. “King Nathaniel III, his wife, and his parents, Charlus and Dorea Black Potter. And every other member of the Potter family dating back more than two-thousand years.”
“More than two thousand years?” Hadrian asked, surprised. “That’s a long time.”
Sirius grinned. “Well, your family isn’t called an Uttermost Ancient house for no reason.”
“Indeed,” Remus agreed. “That’s why your family is considered so old money that they’d make most other old-money families seem nouveau riche by comparison. Of course, the whole Grand Duke and Prince-Elector thing definitely play a role, since the Potter family is one of only eight families in Albion and Iwernia that collects tax income from all the magicals that live on their lands.”
Darius looked confused, as he asked, “I thought there were only seven Grand Ducal families?”
“There are,” Petunia replied. “There’s eight families, however, because each of the seven Grand Dukes collect income from their Grand Duchies, while the elected King collects taxes from the Archduchy of Britannia, which comprises the magical counterparts to the muggle counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Middlesex, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, and Hampshire, in addition to the Isle of Mann and the county of Dublin in Ireland.”
“So we’re in this Archduchy of Britannia?” Vernon asked.
Shaking his head, Remus said, “No, we’re in Surrey in the muggle United Kingdom. The magical counterpart of Surrey in Albion is completely separate.” At Vernon’s confused look, he added, “Powerful ancient magic that dates back to the days of King Arthur, more than five hundred years before the Norman Conquest created what is essentially a magical copy of England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Ireland. The vast majority of non-muggleborn witches and wizards actually live there, along with the majority of magical creatures.”
“It’s pretty much the same worldwide,” Sirius revealed. “Almost every single country on the face of the Earth has a separate magical domain, although they all have portals that connect the muggle world to the magical so that the muggleborns can access the magical world.”
“Which is why we’ve been able to keep the magical world a secret for so long,” Petunia added. “Because the magical counterparts are technically not in the same dimension as the muggle world, so no muggle technology yet exists that can see into other dimensions. Especially magically created ones, as without the proper spells to ward them, electronics and magic do not mix. In fact, electronics tend to explode around high concentrations of magic.”
“The best way that I can explain it is that magic is like supercharged bolts of pure lightning,” Remus said. “While the muggles may have some circuitry that could handle the charge, most consumer electronics are not anywhere near strong enough, so their circuitry fries or explodes.”
Sirius nodded, and added, “The Ministry of Magic’s Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, in cooperation with the Department of Mysteries makes sure that any muggle tech in public areas that are going to come into regular contact with large concentrations of magic are properly shielded. They also Obliviate any muggles who might have been present if something does explode due to magical overload.”
“And Gringotts offers shielding services for witches and wizards who opt to live in the muggle world,” Petunia said. “Which like most services offered by the goblins is prohibitively expensive. That’s also part of the reason why students at Hogwarts aren’t allowed to do magic outside of school… a regulation that’s widely ignored by the students who grow up in wizarding households in the magical world. Because there it’s not really necessary to be as careful about upholding the Statute of Secrecy or not using enough magic to make electronics explode.”
“Yes there are no muggles or non-shielded electronics in the magical world,” Remus said. “So no need to enforce the Statute as stringently there.”
“Why aren’t there any muggles in the magical world?” Hadrian asked.
“Well, first off, because they have their own world to live in,” Petunia said. “Secondly, while there are spells which allow them to visit and see the magical world—for example, the muggle parents of muggleborns accompanying their children school shopping—it’s not ideal long-term. The spells necessary, if cast upon them repeatedly on a long-term basis so that they could actually see and interact with the magical world would essentially weaken their immune systems and make them much more likely to die an early death.”
“Muggle’s bodies can handle some exposure to magic without any problems,” Sirius added. “But not at the level that it exists in the magical world for an extended period of time. There the concentration is so high that it would make them physically ill if exposed for more than a few hours.”
“Is Dad okay being around our magic?” Darius asked, concerned as he looked at his father.
Remus nodded. “Your dad is perfectly fine, Darius. The level of magic that he’s routinely around is nowhere near enough to affect his health. It’s just in the magical world, where there’s magic emanating from pretty much every person, plant, building, surface, animal, or object that he would come into contact with and at much higher concentrations, where it would pose a risk. So, living here in the muggle world, he isn’t in any danger, but he could never live in the magical world on a long-term basis.”
Seeing that everyone was done with their breakfasts, Petunia said, “Okay, if you need to use the bathroom, please do so. Then we’re heading for Seacliff.” Turning to her husband, she asked, “Are you joining us, Vernon?”
Shaking his head, he said, “No, I was never particularly close or kind to James and Lily, much to my regret now. So I don’t think they’d appreciate me visiting their final resting places. Besides, somebody has to stay and keep an eye on Chase. Make sure we don’t come home to puddles all over the house and other things.”
Nobody had to ask what he meant by that, as they all knew. Thankfully, Chase was house-trained now and there was a flap in the backdoor that was magically charmed so that only he could get in and out through it, but they all remembered that time before he was house-trained where they’d left him alone for a couple of hours and came home to a huge mess.
“Chase is a good dog, aren’t you boy?” Hadrian asked as he got down on his knees in front of the beagle.
“Woof!” Chase barked as if to say yes, as everyone grinned.
-o-0-o-
Since Seacliff Castle itself was locked down, Petunia, Hadrian, Darius, Sirius, and Remus went downstairs to the basement fireplace at Number Four and Flooed to Stagwoods House, which was a smaller house on the grounds of the Seacliff Castle Estate that traditionally served as the dower house for the widow of the previous Lord Potter. After they’d all cleaned the soot from their clothes, they exited the house and began the walk through the extensive gardens towards the family mausoleum.
It was as they crested the top of a hill that Hadrian and Darius got their first-ever look at Seacliff Castle in the distance. Darius’s eyes widened and Hadrian’s jaw dropped, as he asked, stunned, “I own that?”
“Well, technically it’s owned by the Potter family,” Sirius said, as he knelt next to Hadrian and put his arm around him, as they just took in the sight of the large, ancient castle that was perched on a cliff overlooking the Great Sea of Meredor… also known as the Irish or the Celtic Sea in the muggle world. “So it’s held in a special kind of trust known as an entail. Basically, that means that ownership of it always follows the lordship, so if a Lord Potter were to die with no sons to succeed him, even if he had a daughter, she wouldn’t get the castle, as it would go to the next Lord Potter, whoever that might be.”
“Of course, you’re the last living male Potter,” Remus said. “So, you’re the only one who can inherit it at the moment. Still, it technically remains owned by the family and the Lord Potter is only the steward of it for his lifetime.”
“You’ve previously said that Hadrian is the last living member of House Potter,” Darius noticed. “And now you specified last living male as if to suggest that there are other Potters.”
Hadrian looked at his guardians at this, a questioning look in his eyes.
“Both are technically true,” Petunia said. “There are two living people other than Hadrian who were born into House Potter, however, they both married into other noble families, so they’re technically not Potters anymore. They’re your father’s older first cousins, Electoral Princess-Consort Helena Scamander née Potter, and Princess-Dowager Henrika Thomas née Potter.”
“Helena is the wife of Perseus Scamander,” Remus explained. “The son and heir of Lord Theseus Scamander, the Grand Duke of South Anglia. Helena’s identical twin sister, Henrika, meanwhile, is the Dowager Grand Duchess of Southern Hibernia, the mother of Lord Langston Thomas and his twin brother, King-Consort Cliffton Pendragon… King Logan’s husband.”
Darius shook his head. “All these titles can get confusing for someone my age.”
Hadrian nodded in agreement, as Sirius laughed and said, “Trust me, being older doesn’t necessarily make it any easier.”
Not long after this, the group continued on their way towards the family mausoleum which was situated behind a large hedge maze in a garden about a mile behind the castle. Thankfully, Stagwoods House was only a quarter of a mile away from their destination, so Hadrian and Darius didn’t have to walk over a mile, which at only six years old they weren’t likely to want to do.
The group stopped for a moment outside the mausoleum, as Hadrian and Darius took in the ancient stone edifice. Built from Welsh bluestone that was older than Wales itself, considering it was sourced from the same quarries that supplied much of the stone for Stonehenge, the building—at least from the outside—looked smaller than they’d expected. It didn’t look anywhere near large enough to hold every member of the family for more than one generation, maybe two at the most, let alone every generation of the family dating back more than two thousand years. However, both boys were aware of the fact that with magic, buildings could be larger on the inside than they appeared on the outside.
The name Potter was engraved in a fancy calligraphic script above the double doors which looked to be made of solid gold. In a slightly smaller font, below Potter, three words were written.
“Familia. Amore. Honoris?” Hadrian asked, stumbling a bit over the unfamiliar words.
“It’s Latin,” Sirius revealed. “You’ll start learning the language when you start at Hecate Institute next year. It translates to ‘Family, Love, Honor,’ which is the Potter family motto.”
Hadrian, Darius, and many of their magical friends were currently all students at the Athena Academy of Basic Studies, which was a magical primary school for young witches and wizards between the ages of five and seven. At seven and continuing through eleven when they started Hogwarts, they’d start at the Hecate Preparatory Institute which shared a campus with Athena Academy in the wizarding village of Rowena’s Glen in the Grand Duchy of South Alba, or southern Scotland, in the muggle world.
“Ah, okay,” Hadrian said before he looked at his guardians and asked, “Shall we go in?”
“As the Potter heir, we can’t go in ahead of you,” Petunia said. “You have to lead us.”
“Oh,” Hadrian said, making his lips form an ‘O’ shape as he did, before he nodded, took a deep breath, and walked towards the large double doors, the others following two steps behind him. Having a feeling he wasn’t meant to push the doors open with his hands—a feat he wasn’t even sure he had the strength to do—he closed his eyes for a moment and pushed outward with his magic making the doors open smoothly into the large room beyond… definitely larger inside than it appeared.
As he crossed the threshold a disembodied voice said, “Welcome Hadrian James Potter, Confirmed Heir and Lord-Apparent of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter. Enter this sacred place in peace with those who’ve arrived before you.”
“Who or what was that?” Hadrian asked once everyone had entered the mausoleum. They were standing in what Hadrian thought was called an antechamber, with life-size statues of who he assumed to be distant relatives standing proudly in niches all around the room. An archway with red silk draperies embroidered with the Potter family crest was straight ahead of them, flanked on either side by a torch which was burning with a magical blue light.
“According to James,” Sirius said, “that was the voice of Edric Potter, the younger brother of the very first Lord Potter, who shortly after celebrating his eightieth birthday contracted a rare magical wasting sickness. In order to avoid what would have been a very slow and agonizingly painful death, he had his consciousness and magical core embedded into the wards on the mausoleum, to act as a guardian over those entombed here.”
“Only those of Potter blood or who have permission from one of Potter blood can enter this place,” Remus added. “Those who don’t meet those requirements would be turned away by Edric… forcibly, if necessary.”
Hadrian nodded but otherwise remained silent as he moved forward, the closed draperies parting as he approached to reveal a large stone staircase leading down into the depths. Torches with the same magical blue light lit as he approached, providing a warm blue glow that nicely combated the otherwise impenetrable darkness the stairs had been cast in previously.
“Those who died first are interred closest to the stairs,” Petunia said, “so those who arrived before us have no doubt moved far enough away from the stairs that the torches went out, as they light on an as-needed basis.”
“Ah, I’d wondered,” Hadrian admitted. “Edric said there were others here and yet the stairs were dark.”
Petunia smiled at her nephew but otherwise remained silent, as the group descended the stairs into the depths of the mausoleum. At the bottom of the stairs, was a statue of a rather short man—well, short by modern standards, but probably on the tall side for the time period he’d lived in—standing on a granite pedestal in front of a large golden and jeweled sarcophagus. A nameplate proclaimed him to be Lord Eamon Potter, 1st Duke of Granston, born 2892 BCE and died 2653 BCE, aged 239 years.
“The nameplates are magically self-updating,” Remus said, having visited the Potter family mausoleum previously when James’ grandparents died… he’d already been in hiding under the Fidelius when his own parents died. “Which is why it says BCE or Before Common Era for the dates, which wouldn’t have been used when Eamon actually died.”
“And why does it say Duke of Granston, instead of Grand Duke of Cambria?” Darius asked.
“Because Eamon never was the Grand Duke of Cambria,” Petunia explained. “That title didn’t exist until King Arthur created it in 556 Common Era, two months before he died.”
Nothing else was said as they moved further into the ancient mausoleum, noting that only the sarcophagi of the lords of the house were golden and jeweled. Consorts had silver and jeweled, while the rest of the family members had bluestone with a few marble accents.
It took quite a while to walk from the stairs further in to the massive mausoleum complex, although it greatly helped that only the lords and their spouses were entombed on either side of the main walkway. Their children, siblings, and other relatives were all further in, allowing for a pretty clear separation of generations.
Hadrian and Darius, with some help from Remus, counted a total of a hundred and forty-nine different Lord Potters between Lord Eamon Potter and the sarcophagus of one Prince-Elector Percival Potter, 1st Grand Duke of Cambria, born 493 CE and died 699 CE, aged 206 years. One thing that immediately caught Hadrian’s eye, however, was the name on the consort sarcophagus for Percival Potter… Prince-Elector-Consort Myrddin Potter née Emrys, Grand Duke Consort of Cambria, born 451 CE and died 710 CE, aged 259 years.
“Myrddin?” Hadrian asked. “Isn’t that the Welsh version of Merlin?”
Sirius grinned. “Yes, it is. And before you ask, yes, this Myrddin Potter is the famed Prince of Enchanters. Despite the claims from Slytherin House that the famous Merlin was sorted into Slytherin, it wasn’t actually the famous one. Just a distant however-many-times great-grandnephew that was named after the famous one.”
“The biggest hole in Slytherin’s claim that their Merlin was the famed one,” Remus said, “is that Hogwarts wasn’t founded until the year 990 CE. The famed Merlin Emrys worked alongside King Arthur to build the Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia as it exists to this day. The Slytherins, however, in saying that Merlin was one of theirs never explained how Merlin entered Slytherin House as an eleven-year-old boy in 992 CE… 436 years after the death of King Arthur and all the achievements during Arthur’s lifetime that had made Merlin famous.”
“Most of the muggle legends about King Arthur always depict Merlin as a very old man at the beginning of Arthur’s reign,” Petunia added. “So, I have heard some Slytherins claiming that Merlin was living his life in reverse and was thus getting younger with the passage of time, so it really was the famous Merlin in their house. That it just took him until 992 to reach 11 years old.”
“Which makes no logical sense,” Remus said. “First off, because it’s impossible to be born an old man and then age in reverse. There isn’t a woman on the face of the Earth who could survive carrying a full-grown adult man in her womb for nine months. Secondly, if he was truly living his life in reverse, then he would have only been four years old when he finished Hogwarts in 999 CE, not the 18 that all the school records from that period say.”
“The final nail in that argument’s coffin,” Sirius said, “is that there’s tapestries and wizarding portraits of King Arthur with the famed Knights of the Round Table where his Court Sorcerer Merlin Emrys is also depicted. And there isn’t a single one of them, at least in the wizarding world, where he’s depicted as an old man when Arthur was young. In truth, Merlin was only two years older than Arthur, so hardly old in comparison.”
“So I’m related to Merlin?” Hadrian asked.
Petunia smiled. “Yes, you’re a direct descendant. The Emrys line went dormant not long after the death of Eleanor of Aquitaine and has never been revived. Of course, whether you have the strongest claim to do so or not, I don’t know. Like the Potters, the Emrys family were an ancient line. The only reason that King Arthur didn’t make them one of the Elector families is that with the exception of Merlin himself, the rest of the Emrys family had supported Morgana Le Fey in her repeated rebellions and attempts to take Arthur’s crown.”
“All of them failed, of course, and pretty much decimated the lines,” Remus said. “By the time Hogwarts opened, the Le Fey line was extinct and the Emrys line was down to only two people, Lord Emrys, and his son Merlin, who was the one sorted into Slytherin. 153 years after Merlin finished Hogwarts, the last male of the line that bore the Emrys name died and nobody stepped forward to claim their estate.”
“Not that there was much of an estate to claim,” Sirius added. “Considering that King Arthur, with the famed Merlin’s blessing, issued a writ of attainder against the Emrys family for their repeated treason against the crown in supporting Morgana. So the vast majority of their holdings and wealth were stripped from the family and they never really recovered. Only ever able to accumulate whatever each generation was able to raise by themselves during their lifetimes since the attainder prevented inheritance. By the time the line went dormant, all they had was a very small half-acre farm and a three-room farmhouse.”
“It was almost a miracle that they managed to afford to pay the tuition for the Merlin that was sorted into Slytherin,” Petunia added. “It was lower when the school first opened than it is now, of course, but it was still an expense that not everyone could afford back then. The founders are all on record saying that they wished they didn’t have to charge tuition and could teach everyone who needed to be taught, but opening a school and employing teachers and staff isn’t something they could do for free.”
Hadrian nodded but remained silent as they moved on. Twenty minutes later, they could begin to make out the faint glow of torches that were burning further down the main walkway and another ten minutes of walking allowed them to hear the voices of those that Edric had said arrived before them.
What they heard were clearly prayers being offered up for not only James and Lily Evans Potter, but also for a Fleamont and Euphemia Fontaine Potter. This realization made Hadrian and his group slow their approach, as it would be in bad form to interrupt somebody’s prayers.
The group of mourners consisted of two older women and five men that Hadrian guessed were the sons of the two elder women. As Hadrian and his group approached, they were all knelt before the bluestone and marble sarcophagus of Fleamont Potter. With their backs turned to Hadrian and the sarcophagus of Lord Julian Potter, 48th Grand Duke of Cambria also partially blocking their view, the group didn’t notice Hadrian’s approach until they finished their prayer and stood up.
It was one of the women, identical twins both with short gray hair, who first noticed Hadrian and his group. Hadrian assumed, correctly, that these were the twin sisters that he’d been told of earlier in the day. The woman who noticed Hadrian, even though she technically held a higher rank than him until he claimed his lordship at eleven, curtseyed when she saw him, out of respect for the future lord of her birth house.
Stepping up to Hadrian’s left side, Sirius put a hand on his godson’s shoulder and said, “Hadrian, may I present Her Most Royal Highness Princess-Dowager Henrika Thomas, Dowager Grand Duchess of Southern Hibernia.” Motioning to the younger brown-haired man, who looked to be in his mid-to-late twenties, standing behind and to the right of her, he said, “And her son, His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Langston Thomas, the Grand Duke of Southern Hibernia.”
“It’s a pleasure,” Hadrian said, as he put to use what he’d been learning in the etiquette and decorum classes that he’d been taking ever since being confirmed as the Potter heir and took Henrika’s hand and kissed it, before shaking hands with Langston.
Motioning towards Henrika’s sister, Sirius said, “May I present Her Royal Highness Electoral Princess-Consort Helena Scamander, Duchess of Hawkeridge, and her son, His Grand Ducal Highness Prince Vittorio Scamander, and his husband, His Grand Ducal Highness Prince-Consort Wilhelm Scamander.”
Again, Hadrian kissed Helena’s hand and shook hands with Vittorio and Wilhelm, before Sirius continued, as he motioned towards the last two men who hadn’t yet been introduced, one of whom was clearly the twin brother of Langston, as he said, “Hadrian, it’s my honor to present to you, His Majesty King Logan III Pendragon, and his husband, His Majesty King-Consort Cliffton Pendragon.”
Hadrian might have wondered why the King was introduced last, as usually, the monarch of a country had higher precedence than everyone else. Since his confirmation, however, in addition to taking etiquette and decorum classes with his Grandma Melania and Nana Irma, he was also taking some basic politics and economics classes with his Grandpa Arcturus and Papa Pollux, with the Potter family steward, Lord Nicolas Flamel, being a frequent guest teacher. Nicolas’s wife Perenelle also often joined Melania and Irma for their subjects.
It was because of those classes that Hadrian knew that in almost all matters domestic, it was the Grand Dukes that took precedence. The only time the King had any priority in precedence over them was during official state events, like the State Opening of the Wizengamot, and when foreign monarchs and/or nobility were present.
The King also had precedence if he was hosting an event at any of the royal palaces. The largest and most famous of these was perhaps Dragon’s Court Palace, which was located on the River Temesis, about thirteen miles southwest of the City of Londinium. It was originally located on the border between Cambria and South Anglia but was painstakingly disassembled and moved stone block by block to its present location about a hundred years after King Arthur’s death.
While the palace was faithfully rebuilt according to its original specifications, two extensive new wings were added as the original building was considered to be too small. Once construction was finished, the complex was renamed Dragon’s Court Palace. It’s original name, however, was Castle Camelot, and thus it would always hold a special place among the royal palaces as the seat of King Arthur himself.
Like when the King was hosting events at the palaces, the Grand Dukes also had priority over everyone else, including the King on the grounds of their own family estates. So, even if the King was attending an event at Seacliff Castle, the Lord Potter—or Lord-Apparent in Hadrian’s case—always had priority over everyone else. After Hadrian, any others of Potter blood or those who’d married into the family would take precedence, followed by the other Grand Ducal families, and then and only then, the King.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesties,” Hadrian said as he shook their hands. Despite his lessons, he had to admit that it did feel a little strange to him to not bow before the King since, until his confirmation, everything he’d ever learned about royal protocol from television said pretty much the opposite in terms of what was proper when meeting with Queen Elizabeth. However, he could see the logic in what his grandparents had told him that it didn’t make much sense for the aristocracy of Albion and Iwernia to base their protocol on the protocol of a muggle kingdom that was several hundred years junior to it in terms of existence.
At this point, Hadrian took a moment to introduce the members of his own party, although most of them were already aware of who Sirius and Remus were, considering Sirius’s role as the confirmed heir of House Black.
“I know that its five years late, but you have my deepest condolences on the loss of your parents, Hadrian,” Henrika said. “They were fine people and the world is worse off without them.”
Helena nodded and said, “Yes, they stood up to Voldemort when very few were willing to do so and directly defied him not once, but three times. They were true heroes.”
Darius noticed that Helena and Henrika didn’t flinch at the name of the former dark lord who’d killed his aunt and uncle the way most other people did, which in this case included almost everyone in the room other than Helena, Henrika, and his own mother. A fact which he raised as a question.
“My sister and I were born in 1917, lad,” Helena revealed. “So we lived through Grindelwald’s reign of terror and to be blunt, while Voldemort was in some ways more sadistic, he still doesn’t hold a candle to Gellert Grindelwald. I was also teaching at Hogwarts as one of the junior professors under Defense Against the Dark Arts Department Head Galatea Merrythought throughout Voldemort’s—or Tom Riddle as he was then known—entire time as a student. As such, I simply cannot bring myself to be afraid of him. Not when I can think back to the first day of school in 1938 and clearly remember the wide-eyed eleven-and-a-half-year-old boy who soiled himself the first time he saw the Bloody Baron.”
Despite the fact that they were all standing in a mausoleum, they all laughed at that, but then they didn’t think that any of the people entombed there would mind. In fact, Sirius was sure that James would have wholeheartedly approved… as he would have been the first to start laughing. Remus grinned and said that James would probably have been resisting the urge to fall to the ground and start rolling on the floor laughing at that description of the Dark Lord.
Hadrian and Darius grinned. They could both tell from the slight glint in Remus’s eyes that he was perhaps exaggerating just a little bit, but they didn’t mind. As they both, Hadrian especially, liked to think of James Potter as the fun and mischief loving Mr. Prongs that featured in Sirius’s and Remus’s stories of the Marauders.
Nodding, Henrika added, “Besides which, as I’ve tried—and apparently failed—to impress upon Langston and Cliffton since not long after they got out of their nappies,” both of them were visibly embarrassed by this comment, “fearing a name is the height of stupidity. It only serves to increase the fear of the person, which only gives them more power. Something which nobody should do with any Dark Lord.”
Petunia smiled. “That’s precisely the reason I don’t flinch.” Although in her head, she added, ‘Or at least the only reason I’m going to give at the present time.’
“I would expect nothing less from a fellow Ravenclaw,” Henrika said with a smile to Petunia, as Helena added, “Yes, shame on those Ravenclaws who throw all logic and knowledge out with the bathwater when they fall into the trap like the rest of the under-educated masses.”
“I’m never going to hear the end of this,” Vittorio muttered, since he, like his mother, was a former Ravenclaw, who did flinch at the mention of Voldemort’s name.
“No son, you’re not,” Helena confirmed.
Wanting to change the subject, Logan said, “Anyway, we were just finishing up, so if you’d like to be alone to pay your respects in private, Hadrian, we can leave you to it.”
“Thank you,” Hadrian said. Not long afterward, his father’s first cousins and their relatives were gone, leaving Hadrian alone with Darius and his guardians, as they began paying their respects to James and Lily.
-o-0-o-
Later that evening, Petunia, Sirius, Remus, Hadrian, and Darius arrived at Number 10 Magnolia Road, the home of the Hopkins family, for the Halloween costume party that Keith and Victoria Hopkins were hosting. They’d opted to blend magical and muggle traditions and decorations, so only those they knew had magical ability or knowledge were invited in order to keep a lid on any potential Statute of Secrecy breaches.
Since the guest list had been expanded to include some of the children of the magical nobility that Hadrian and Darius had met and befriended during their time at Athena Academy, however, there was rather extensive use of Wizard Space to increase the interior space of the rather modestly sized Hopkins home. Because of this, Algernon Longbottom had been alerted so that he and the other Unspeakables in cooperation with the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes could keep an eye on the party and try to limit any damage done by any accidental magic that was always a possibility when you had a large concentration of adolescent and younger witches and wizards gathered together in one place.
Heading upstairs to the bathroom with Darius to change into their costume, Hadrian asked, “How did I let you convince me of this again?”
“By me agreeing to do all of your chores for a month,” Darius answered.
“Ah, right,” Hadrian said. “And why did you want this particular costume again?”
“To make sure you don’t try to sneak out of the party,” Darius replied. “I know this isn’t a good day for you, but I’m pretty sure Aunt Lily and Uncle James would prefer you to be having fun with your friends over sulking alone.”
Hadrian sighed. “Fine, let’s get dressed then,” before he and Darius stripped down to their underwear. Standing in front of the mirror, they carefully applied the makeup that would make their skin look paler and added a bit of red around their lips, before putting in the fake fangs in their mouths. With that done, they began putting on the rest of their costume, which consisted of one of Neall and Niall MacDougal’s old sets of formal robes that didn’t fit anymore and was just going to be donated to charity.
When they were all done, Hadrian looked at himself and his cousin in the mirror and said, “Well, I guess we look pretty cool. The vampire part does make it more costume-like than just wearing Neall and Niall’s old clothes. Though only having the use of one arm is going to be a little weird.”
“Yes, but I think we’ll be okay,” Darius said. “At least we practiced three-legged walking so we won’t make complete fools of ourselves.”
Every day for the last two weeks, almost as soon as they got home from school—Athena Academy was a day school so they returned home every afternoon—until it was time for bed, Hadrian and Darius had fastened themselves together with one of Vernon’s old belts that were now too large for him as he’d lost several pounds over the years. They’d also used some rags to tie their legs together and put their arms that would be inside of the twins’ clothing over each other’s shoulders, before they began practicing walking, and doing other tasks with only one arm and hand each.
“Or fall flat on our faces,” Hadrian said. “Or worse, fall down the stairs.”
Darius nodded. “Yes, that would be bad. Shall we go join the party?”
Hadrian raised an eyebrow at Darius in the mirror and said, “Well, I didn’t get into this getup with you so that we could spend the entire party in the bathroom.”
Darius rolled his eyes but said nothing as they left the room.
It was at the punch bowl about ten minutes later that Neall and Niall approached, and Niall said, “Wow, I’m impressed,” as Neall nodded and said, “Yeah, you guys almost wear those clothes better than we did.”
“Thanks, guys,” Darius said, as he cocked his head to one side and asked, “King Arthur and Merlin?”
Niall nodded. “Yeah. Obviously, the real ones weren’t as close as Neall and I, but some concessions had to be made.”
“Masquerade balls are also quite common in the wizarding world,” Neall said. “And we decided we wanted to do something a little bit different this time than wearing perfectly matched identical clothes and masks like we usually do.”
“Well, I think you did a good job, guys,” Hadrian said, as he took in what the twins were wearing.
Neall was dressed as King Arthur in the very Romanesque looking armor that was popular in Albion and Iwernia for centuries following Rome pulling out of Britannia. There were a few embellishments that wouldn’t have been found on a Roman Legionnaire’s suit of armor, of course, such as the golden dragon about to take flight that served as the main symbol of House Pendragon. Both of Neall’s legs—as Niall technically only had one— were bare beneath the red tunic that stopped just above his knees, although just to the left of Neall’s left leg, the tunic and armor stopped in the kind of perfect blending of materials that were only possible with magic, as Niall was wearing a much fancier ancient wizard’s robe that reached all the way to the floor.
Neall had also replaced the traditional Roman gladius with his training wand which he’d gotten upon his ninth birthday two months earlier. Instead of a Legionnaire’s helmet, Neall was wearing a replica of the rather simple golden and jeweled circlet that King Arthur was depicted as wearing in the majority of his portraits. His mother had also performed Hair-Lengthening and Dying Charms to make his normally short, black hair, shoulder-length blond.
Niall, meanwhile, was wearing the flowing red ancient wizarding robes that Merlin was often depicted in as the Court Sorcerer, with a tall, pointed wizard’s hat on his head, his hair also lengthened to shoulder length but kept its natural black. He too had his training wand in a holster on his belt, and a wooden mage’s staff strapped to his back. Feldspar, his Eagle Owl, was perched on his shoulder, in place of Merlin’s owl familiar, Archimedes. The owl was pretty chill, just calmly looking around at everyone in the room and giving the occasional hoot but otherwise making no move to get off his friend’s shoulder.
Kevin and Piers approached at this point, no introductions being necessary because despite Neall and Niall being pureblood noble students at Hecate and Kevin and Piers being muggleborn commoners at Athena, they all knew each other through Hadrian and Darius. The twins did look a little confused about Kevin’s and Piers’ costumes, however.
Hadrian picked up on the reason for their confusion and said, “They’re dressed as muggle superheroes.” Motioning towards Kevin, he added, “Batman,” and then at Piers, “and Robin.”
“Oh, cool,” Neall said with a smile, as Niall nodded. Getting themselves a glass of punch each, they then said their goodbyes as they walked over to their cousins, Jasper and Jesse Longbottom who had decided to get creative and dress as a centaur that had two torsos connected to a single horse’s body, albeit one that had three front legs. This was mainly because neither one of them wanted to be the rear end nor had they been able to get more than one person to do so, so they decided to share.
The unlucky soul who ended up stuck in the rear end of their costume being Declan MacDougal, the seven-year-old son of Neall and Niall’s older first cousin, Laine, and his wife Lillian. Twenty-seven-year-old Laine MacDougal was King Logan’s twin brother.
There were likely many muggles who’d wonder about the large number of twins born to the Albion and Iwernia nobility over the last few decades. It was partially due to twins being more common in the magical world than in the muggle. The larger reason, however, was that several families, after being reduced to dangerously low numbers during the war with Grindelwald and then again during the war with Voldemort, began making use of fertility potions to not only guarantee pregnancies, but also raise the chances of multiples, in order to build their numbers back up so their lines weren’t in danger of extinction.
Shaking her head, Morag, who was dressed as a fairy princess, grinned as she came over and said, “Jasper and Jesse had better find a good hiding place when Declan manages to get out of that costume.”
“Why?” Piers asked.
Morag leaned in closer and whispered, “Because Jazz and Jess thought it would be a good idea to each eat a large bowl of beans just before Declan arrived to get into the costume with them.”
“Wow,” Hadrian said, giggling slightly along with the others as they realized exactly what that meant. “I’m so glad I’m not Declan.”
Kevin nodded. “Also glad I’m not Jazz and Jess when Declan gets out.”
“Why did I ever agree to this?” a male voice asked a couple of minutes later that drew the attention of Hadrian and his friends. Turning his head, Hadrian discreetly put his glass of punch on the table so that he wouldn’t spill it as he realized the person who spoke was Carl Hopkins… dressed as Peter Pan, complete with a green sleeveless shirt that left his arms on full display, green shorts that ended several inches above his knees and a pair of green tights that hugged his muscular legs like a second skin.
“Because you love me,” Wayne Hopkins said, as he twirled the umbrella in his hands. Those familiar with the muggle world had no trouble recognizing that Wayne was dressed as John Darling, in bedroom slippers, a pair of fake glasses, a floor-length pajama shirt and a top hat.
“Not that much, bro,” Carl said, as they joined Hadrian, Darius, Kevin, Piers, and Morag. “Especially not much right now.”
Wayne rolled his eyes, as he lowered his voice so that only his friends would hear as he said, “Fine. You did it because I blackmailed you.”
Morag grinned. “Do I even want to know what a six-year-old could possibly blackmail his sixteen-year-old brother with?”
“No, you don’t,” Carl said as he gave his little brother a look which clearly said, ‘Tell them, and I will so kick your arse.’
“What are you going to do? Kick my arse?” Wayne asked, in a mocking tone. “You know if you do, I’ll just cry, Mom and Dad will ask what’s wrong, I’ll tell them you kicked me, and then they’ll demand you tell them why. Since you’re standing here in tights, I feel safe in saying you’ll do anything to avoid that.”
Carl groaned and hung his head. “I hate you, just so you know.”
“I can live with that,” Wayne said. “Besides I know it won’t last long. It never does. My charm and my puppy dog eyes always win in the end.”
“Enjoy it while it lasts, kiddo,” Carl said. “You won’t have that ability forever.”
“Oh trust me, I will,” Wayne said.
“So what are you holding over his head?” Darius asked. “Inquiring minds want to know.”
“You do realize, Wayne, that if you tell them, I’m going upstairs to bed and you lose your Peter Pan, right?” Carl asked.
“No, I don’t,” Wayne said. “Because you see when I blackmailed you, I never said I wouldn’t tell my friends. I said I wouldn’t tell Mum and Dad. There is a difference. Namely that my friends can’t ground you for the rest of your life.”
“Oh fine, tell them if you must,” Carl said. “The way you’re building this up, I know they’ll find out sooner or later anyway.”
Wayne grinned, as he said, “You can put up a Silencing Charm if you want, you know, so nobody outside the seven of us hears.”
Carl pulled out his wand and did just that, before Wayne said, “Back in August, before Hogwarts started, Mum and Dad went on an overnight trip to London, to celebrate their anniversary. They trusted Carl to stay home and babysit me, but as soon as I fell asleep, he left. Mum and Dad took Mum’s car to get the train into London, but that left Dad’s car still in the garage.”
He grinned at his brother and continued, “I woke up at around two in the morning, just in time to catch Carl coming back with Dad’s car, which he’d stolen as he definitely did not have permission to drive it. I walked into the garage just as he was trying to magically fix the dents and scratched paint from where he crashed it into a tree. He also hadn’t cleaned out the backseat yet, which held all the evidence of his date with Annabelle… including a used condom which he’d forgotten to vanish.”
Kevin groaned. “Gross… I so don’t need to hear about my sister’s… eww.”
“Sorry mate,” Wayne said before he grinned at Carl and said, “Anyway, I‘ve been milking it ever since, threatening to tell Mum and Dad unless he does everything I tell him to do. Which he’s been doing since he knows that he’ll never see Annabelle or the outside of this house ever again if they find out because he’ll be grounded until he’s old and grey.”
The only reason Carl was even at the party was because Halloween fell on a Friday this year, so his mother—a member of the Right Ancient and Noble House of Fawley, as Lord Gawain Fawley, the Marquess of Mercia was her first cousin—had gotten Dumbledore’s permission to let her son come home from Hogwarts for the weekend.
Wayne certainly wasn’t complaining as he was enjoying milking his brother’s misdeeds for all they were worth. Some might call it being mean, but he called it just desserts for all the times that Carl had blown him off to hang with his friends. He didn’t ask for much, just that his older brother spend a couple of hours a week with him when he was home. Was that too much to ask?
-o-0-o-
5 November 1986…
Hadrian and Darius were both excited as the day had finally come. Exactly one year ago they had caught Petunia layering Silencing Charms primarily in their bedroom, but also in pretty much every other room of the house, along with charming all the windows to show something other than the actual view out the window. Pressing her on why she was doing it, she finally told them and promised them that they could participate the following year.
As it turned out, there was a celebration for Guy Fawkes’s Night, also known as Bonfire Night, that was held annually in Magnolia Park—and other places throughout the United Kingdom—that was an annual event that the muggles celebrated to commemorate the anniversary of the night that the Gunpowder Plot had been foiled… which had been an attempt by a man named Guy Fawkes and others to blow up the Houses of Parliament in London in 1605, and thus kill the members of parliament and King James VI and I.
“Why exactly did they want to kill them all?” Darius had asked at the time, as Hadrian nodded and said, “Yeah, that’s not very nice.”
Deciding that her son and nephew were a little too young to understand all of the reasons, especially the main one being related to the muggle religions and the fight between Catholicism and Protestantism, she simply said, “Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators didn’t particularly like the King… so they hoped to be able to get somebody more suitable to their interests crowned in his place.”
“Thankfully, Guy Fawkes was caught and the plot foiled before it could be carried out,” Vernon had added. “So, ever since then the anniversary is celebrated by burning effigies of Guy Fawkes on bonfires throughout the UK. In more recent years, fireworks are also shot up, which make a lot of noise which is why Petunia was applying Silencing Charms so that they wouldn’t wake you up.”
“What are fireworks?” Hadrian had asked.
Petunia and Vernon looked at each other for a moment, before Petunia had said, “If you boys promise to stop asking questions now and that you’ll agree to take an afternoon nap with no complaints this time next year, we’ll let you stay up past your bedtimes and actually participate in Guy Fawkes’s Night next year.”
When it looked like the boys were about to complain, Vernon shook his head and had said, “No complaining or you won’t only not be allowed to participate next year, but we’ll ground you for a week and Chase will have to sleep downstairs instead of in your room. So what will it be?”
Both boys immediately nodded and had said, “No complaining.”
“Good,” Petunia had said and that was the end of it, at least until about two months ago, when Hadrian and Darius brought it up again to remind Vernon and Petunia that they remembered the promise from the year before and wanted to make sure that they did.
At a few minutes after noon on the fifth, just as the boys were finishing their lunch, Petunia said, “Okay, go wash up and then go to your room and take a nap. I’ll be up in a few minutes to check that you’re asleep.”
Of course, she wasn’t actually worried, as Sirius had brewed a mild sleeping potion for her and she’d put a drop each in the milk they’d drank with lunch. Simply because she knew her son and nephew well enough to know that they wouldn’t take naps if they could avoid it. They’d try to fake being asleep when Petunia came in to check that they were asleep and then “wake up” as soon as she left the room.
When they woke up about two-and-a-half hours later, Petunia sat them and said, “Okay, now, I know you’ve found out what fireworks are in the time between last year and now. I should warn you, however, that magical fireworks are different from muggle fireworks, which is what will be used in Magnolia Park. Muggle fireworks are just explosions of color, mostly in round or oval shapes and the occasional spiral or fountain. So, they won’t be exploding into far more complicated patterns like animated dragons and other creatures.”
“Yes, as much as the muggles would love a magical fireworks show,” Remus said, “they’d be a clear breach of the Statute of Secrecy. As would talking about the differences between the two in earshot of people who don’t know about magic. So no expressing disappointment that they’re not dragons, centaurs, phoenixes, or other creatures.”
The boys nodded, and Petunia said, “Now, Vernon and Sirius are in the backyard setting up our own bonfire, so you’ll be able to see that aspect of it. There will be a much larger bonfire down at Magnolia Park, but it will be very crowded and I’d be more comfortable doing it here in the backyard, at least until you’re older and not as easy to lose sight of in the crowds.”
Hadrian and Darius nodded again and didn’t complain. They didn’t much like getting lost either as it had happened once when Petunia had taken them shopping in a large store in London. They got separated from her and then gotten lost in the store for nearly half-an-hour. When the frantic Petunia had found them, they were tired and scared and never wanted to experience anything like that ever again.
“We’ll also be shooting off a few muggle fireworks in the backyard,” Remus said, “just as many of the muggle neighbors will be. When the time comes, you’ll also be able to see the fireworks at Magnolia Park from the backyard, so we don’t have to actually go there and deal with the crowds. Much nicer to just sit back and relax in one of the lounge chairs out back and enjoy it, than to be jostled by a bunch of strangers.”
It was at this point that the doorbell rang, and Petunia said, “Now, why don’t you go answer that, as I’m going to guess it’s your friends. We turned on the pool heater, so the water should be warm enough that you can have a pool party with them while you wait for the sun to go down.”
Not long after the pool was put in, the pool heater was also installed, so that the pool could be used almost year-round. The heater itself was an entirely muggle design and to any muggle that inspected it, they wouldn’t find anything unusual about it as it still looked like it was connected to the muggle utilities… even though it was powered completely by magic, and thus heating the pool in November wasn’t expensive because no gas or electricity was being used.
Hadrian and Darius practically ran to the front door at this and opened it to find Piers, Kevin, Wayne, and Hermione waiting on the doorstep, with their respective parents, many of whom had a dish that they’d brought for dinner later that evening.
These little get-togethers, whether they were at Number 4, Number 5, Kevin’s house, Wayne’s house, or Hermione’s house were frequent enough that the parents involved agreed to help shoulder the costs of the food and drinks for them, as it would be an unnecessary burden on any one of them to supply food and drink for everyone else.
Petunia could have dipped into the money she was getting for acting as Hadrian’s guardian which was hers to do with whatever she pleased and was completely separate from the money deposited monthly into his trust vault for his care and upkeep, but she saw no reason to do that if the other parents were willing to help out.
Not long after they came in, some of their wizarding friends from Athena Academy and Hecate Institute began arriving via the basement fireplace. Some of their parents had been a bit leery about letting their kids take part in the celebration of an entirely muggle holiday—as Guy Fawkes’s Night had never caught on in the wizarding world—but none of them were about to turn down an invitation to the current home of the future Grand Duke of Cambria.
Four patio heaters—also powered by magic—had been set up in the backyard of Number Four, two on opposite corners of the patio outside the conservatory and another two by the swimming pool, positioned so that the pool ladder was between them. Thus providing a warm place for the adults to sit while they watched the kids in the pool, as well as a place for the kids to get in and out of the pool and not be too cold. Of course, as it happened, they’d gotten pretty lucky with the temperature, with the day’s high being on the high end for November.
Darius, Kevin, Wayne, and Piers were all on one side of the pool, along with Neall, Niall, Jasper, Jesse, Neville, and Declan, as they took turns splashing and trying to dunk each other. Hermione and Morag were seated on the patio with the adults, both with books in their laps, while Hadrian was wading calmly on the opposite end of the pool with a few new faces that he’d only just met that day. He wanted to spend some time getting to know them, however, since he was related to them through his father’s cousins, Henrika and Helena.
One was Helena’s grandson Jakob, the only living child of her son Vittorio and his husband Wilhelm. They’d had two others, bad sadly, the eldest, a daughter, had been born with a rare heart defect that even magic couldn’t fix and had died at only eight months old, while the middle child, a son, had succumbed to the same outbreak of Dragon Pox that had taken Hadrian’s grandparents, Julian, and Katherine Burke Potter. This left only Jakob Scamander, the handsome blond eighteen-year-old former Hufflepuff.
The rest of the new faces, ten of them in all, were Henrika’s grandchildren, three being the sons of Lord Langston Thomas with his wife, and the other seven being the sons and daughters of his brother Cliffton with King Logan. Langston’s sons were a set of nine-year-old identical triplets: Grantley, Grantham, and Graham, while Cliffton’s were five-year-old triplets, Tara, Zara, and Carrick, seven-year-old Alanna, nine-year-old Ryan, and eleven-year-old Micheil and Finlay.
Hadrian had been a bit taken aback upon meeting the King’s eldest sons, as while having previously met Neall and Niall had sort of prepared him on the conjoined twin front, Micheil and Finlay were connected in a much more extreme fashion. Where Neall and Niall were two relatively separate people, each with their own body, albeit, with only two arms and three legs between them, Micheil and Finlay shared everything from their necks down. This resulted in them being a bit broader shouldered than most kids their age in order to fit two necks and heads on their shared body.
“So, if you’re eleven why aren’t you at Hogwarts?” Hadrian asked them, upon learning their age.
“Late birthday,” Micheil answered. “You have to be eleven on or before 1 September to start Hogwarts, but we were born on 25 October.”
“Which means we have to wait until next year to start,” Finlay added. “A year behind many of our friends.”
“Well, that kind of sucks,” Hadrian said, as several of the others nodded in agreement.
Micheil nodded and said, “Yeah, but it’s fine.”
Ryan smiled, “That admission rule dates back to the founders. So, our Dad might be the King and our uncle a Grand Duke, but I don’t see that rule getting changed anytime soon. So, Mic and Fin have pretty much no choice but to deal with it.”
“I suppose the Board of Governors could change it,” Alanna said, “although if they haven’t done it yet, after over a thousand years, it’s unlikely they’ll opt to do so now, especially when there are other far more important matters for them to be dealing with.”
“Who are the governors anyway?” Hadrian asked.
“House Ollivander, currently led by Lord Garrick Ollivander, has a permanent position on the board,” Finlay said. “Due to Hogwarts being in the Ollivanders’ Grand Duchy of North Alba and their traditional role on the King’s Privy Council as the Master of Education.”
“There are twelve seats in total,” Carrick said. “Two more which are held by Grand Dukes, although they alternate every seventy-five years.”
“Currently, it’s our Granduncle Aindreas and Lord Quentin Cornfoot,” Tara added.
Nodding, Graham said, “Five seats are held by the lesser nobility, so one baron, one viscount, one earl, one marquess, and one duke.”
“The nobles at each level vote by secret ballot whenever a spot opens,” Grantley revealed.
Grantham finished, “The other four are commoners that Uncle Logan appoints to twenty-five-year terms on the advice of the Privy Council.”
“The Privy Council are, of course, the Grand Dukes,” Micheil added. “Plus the current King’s Consort and the Lord-Mayor of Londinium.”
Finlay nodded. “Technically, the Minister for Magic and the last two elected monarchs, assuming they’re still alive, are also Privy Councilors, but they’re very rarely if ever summoned to take part in meetings or decisions, as their positions are more or less honorary.”
“And the seven Grand Dukes are enough to form a quorum,” Ryan added. “So between the Grand Dukes and the King-Consort, there’s not much the others can do.”
“Nope, there isn’t,” Grantham answered. “Of course, King Logan’s brother Laine is the current Lord-Mayor of Londinium, which is another position which is appointed by the King on the advice of the Council.”
Not long after this, King Logan’s daughters and the Thomas triplets decided to join the others on Darius’s side of the pool, leaving Hadrian chatting with just Micheil, Finlay, Ryan, and Carrick. They talked about Quidditch and a few other topics, before Carrick asked, “So, this holiday we’re celebrating… what exactly is it for?”
“It’s too celebrate the foiling of the Gunpowder Plot,” Hadrian answered.
“What’s that?” Ryan asked before he got a confused look on his face and asked, “And what’s gunpowder?”
Sirius and Remus had warned Hadrian and Darius before the party that Guy Fawkes’s Day had never really caught on in the wizarding world, despite the attempts of some muggleborns to import it. So, they’d discussed a few related topics which would allow Hadrian and Darius to explain it if they were asked questions.
“Gunpowder is an explosive compound,” Hadrian said. “It’s like a black colored powder, which is why it was sometimes simply called black powder. When lit on fire it explodes, so almost like a Blasting Curse, only without magic.”
“Ah, okay,” Micheil said. “So what was this plot?”
“A group of people, including a man named Guy Fawkes,” Hadrian answered, “were unhappy with Parliament—the muggle version of the Wizengamot—and the then muggle King—James VI and I—and wanted them dead. So, they rented out a bunch of warehouse space which just so happened to be in the basements under where Parliament met and filled it with barrels of gunpowder.”
“Ah, so they were going to ignite it and blow them all up?” Finlay asked, realizing where this was likely going.
Nodding, Hadrian said, “Yup. Guy Fawkes was the one who was supposed to light the powder, but somebody in the group got cold feet and leaked the plot to the royal guards, who foiled it before it could be carried out. Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators were all charged with treason and ever since the anniversary of the failed attempt is celebrated. This all happened three-hundred-and-eighty years ago today.”
“Cool,” Ryan said. “So, what’s the giant pile of wood for?”
“It’s for a bonfire once the sun goes down,” Hadrian answered. “Part of the celebrations include burning an effigy of Guy Fawkes on a bonfire.”
“Hmm, I can see why this particular holiday has never really caught on in the wizarding world,” Micheil said. “There are still quite a few ill feelings over the witch trials, so most witches and wizards wouldn’t want to celebrate anything that reminds them of that.”
“Understandable,” Hadrian said. “Sirius told me that if any of you felt uncomfortable about the imagery to remind you that none of the conspirators were magical. They were all muggles, so, think of the effigy of Guy as the person leading the witch trials being thrown on the fire instead.”
Almost as if Hadrian mentioning his name had summoned him, Sirius came over at this point and sat down on the edge of the pool. He’d taken off his shoes and socks and rolled up his trouser legs so that he could dangle his feet in the water.
“Part of the reason for the plot was a religious one,” Sirius added. “The conspirators were all Catholics who wanted a Catholic on the throne, instead of the Protestant King James VI and I. It was mostly those of the Catholic faith that was behind the Inquisition and witch burnings, as well, so it’s really not that hard to imagine the effigy of Guy Fawkes as one of the leaders of the witch trials being thrown on the fire in the place of some innocent witch or wizard.”
Finlay nodded, before he asked, “Why does this King James have two regnal numbers?”
“Because he reigned before the formation of the current United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,” Sirius answered. “Back then, the kingdoms were separate with different monarchs. So when Queen Elizabeth I of England died in 1603 without an heir, her closest relative, King James VI of Scotland, became King of England. Until that point there had never been a King James in England, so, he became King James VI and I, as he was the sixth James in Scotland and the first in England.”
“It wasn’t until the year 1707 that England and Scotland became Great Britain,” Hadrian said. “After that, the dual regnal numbers were dropped from future monarchs, as they were reigning over a single kingdom instead of two separate kingdoms.”
Nodding, Sirius added, “There is a minority of people who insist on keeping the dual numbers or using different ones. Such as a group in Scotland who refer to Queen Elizabeth II as Queen Elizabeth I, because they don’t recognize Queen Elizabeth I of England as having ever been their monarch, so Queen Elizabeth II to them, is the first monarch named Elizabeth.”
“Interesting,” Ryan said. “So, I take it women can actually take the throne in their own right in the muggle world?”
“Yeah, the muggles use male-preference primogeniture,” Hadrian replied. “So, all the sons go first in the succession, but if there are no sons, then daughters can inherit. Of course, it’s only the crown that follows that as almost all of the noble titles are still male-only primogeniture, like they’ve always been here in the wizarding world.”
“They also don’t have the elective monarchy system that we have,” Sirius added, “and there’s never been a grand duke in the muggle peerage. At least not in Britain. There have been grand dukes in other countries. Russia before their monarchy was abolished in the 1910s is one example.”
“Huh, interesting how things are so different between the muggle and magical worlds,” Micheil said. “Considering that Imperial Russia still exists in the magical world.”
Smiling, Sirius said, “Yes, there’s a lot of differences between the two. Several kingdoms and empires that still exist in the magical world haven’t existed for decades or even centuries in the muggle world. Imperial Russia, the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and the Persian Empire, just to name a few.”
Having finished her book and deciding to take a dip in the pool, as her father insisted, Hermione came over at this and having overheard what Sirius said, she asked, “Those empires still exist in the magical world?”
“Yup,” Hadrian said. “The Roman Empire split into the Western and Eastern Empires just as they did in muggle history, with the Eastern Empire becoming known as the Byzantine Empire. Of course, the magical world’s version of the Western Roman Empire, known simply as the Roman Empire, is nowhere near as large as it’s muggle counterpart was.”
“Italy is it’s largest territory,” Sirius said. “Although they also control the Mediterranean coasts of France, Spain, and North Africa south and west of Italy. Everything to the east of Italy, including Egypt, is ruled by the Byzantine Empire. So between the two of them, they control the entire Mediterranean and over half of the Black Sea.”
“The two empires are both ruled by the Imperial House of Caesar, however,” Finlay added. “So, whenever one branch is in danger of dying out, someone from the other branch of the family is named the heir, although they remain separate empires, because even with magic, ruling over both sections as a single empire would be a logistical nightmare simply because there’s a much larger population now than centuries ago when it was a single empire.”
“Before the split, however, the magical Roman Empire controlled a very extensive territory,” Ryan said. “Including here in Albion, which is why we use the old Roman names for several of our cities, rivers, and other things, such as the City of Londinium and the River Temesis.”
“In place of the City of London and the River Thames,” Hadrian added.
-o-0-o-
After everyone had had their fill of swimming, they got out of the pool, dried off, dressed, and headed into the house where many of the wizarding-raised people who’d never visited Privet Drive before today got their first tastes of many things muggle. Including television, computers, and several of the battery-powered toys in Darius and Hadrian’s playroom.
Ryan, Micheil, and Finlay were especially interested in the computer and began working out between them how they might lobby their parents to get a magically shielded computer for the palace… preferably at least two so that they’d both have one since Micheil and Finlay had no choice but to share. Carrick and the Thomas triplets were more interested in the television, while Tara and Zara took a liking to Darius and Hadrian’s collection of Legos.
After a few hours in the playroom, they were all called downstairs for dinner, after which they headed back out to the backyard, as it was now dark enough that it was time to light the bonfire. A few of the wizarding raised children were still a bit leery about the whole thing, although those who’d chatted with Hadrian earlier found it a bit easier to deal with, as they did what had been suggested and imagined the Guy Fawkes effigy as the person responsible for the witch trials.
Not long after the effigy had disappeared in the flames, a lone firework exploded in the air over Number 3 Privet Drive, as the neighbor shot off their own fireworks. This led everyone to take seats in the lounge chairs that had been set up as Sirius and Remus began shooting off the fireworks they’d bought.
Of course, the wall and hedge were tall enough that they felt safe enough to light the fuses on the various fireworks with magic from a safe distance rather than having to light them and then run to safety before they went off.
Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the fireworks, even the wizarding raised, because while they weren’t as animated as magical fireworks, it’s hard not to enjoy the sights and sounds of a good firework show, which they also got in the form of the much larger display from Magnolia Park, which they watched with rapt attention.
When it was all over and it was time to go, Neville smiled at Hadrian and said, “I had fun tonight. Thanks for inviting me.”
“No problem,” Hadrian said with a smile, as he shook the Longbottom heir’s hand. “I’m glad you had fun.”
“It was definitely an experience I’ll never forget,” Micheil said, as he came up to Hadrian, as Neville moved over to shake hands with Darius.
“It was more fun than I thought it would be,” Finlay said, as he grinned as Hadrian crossed his arms over the other so that he could take both Micheil and Finlay’s hands and shake them both at the same time.
-o-0-o-
25 December 1987…
“Wake up! Wake up!” Hadrian cried out as he and Darius came running into Vernon and Petunia’s bedroom, grabbed the footboard of their bed and began shaking it, as Darius cried out, “It’s Christmas!”
Barking accompanied the boy’s happy cries, as Chase danced around their feet and barked, and at one point stood up on his hind legs, his front paws against Petunia’s side of the bed as he started barking.
“Okay, okay! We’re up.” Vernon said after a minute as he and Petunia sat up and the boys finally stopped shaking their bed.
No sooner had the two adults gotten out of bed, they found themselves being dragged over to the door, with barely enough time to even grab their bathrobes.
“Boys, stop dragging us, we’re coming,” Petunia said in a voice edged with just enough sternness to get them to stop, although she was smiling the entire time, as she thought back to her own childhood and the times that she and Lily had done exactly the same thing to their own parents on Christmas morning. From the smile on Vernon’s face, she assumed he was thinking the same thing.
Just as they reached the bottom of the stairs, the basement door opened and Sirius’s voice echoed through the house, as he said, “Happy Christmas!”
“Happy Christmas, Sirius,” Hadrian and Darius said with a smile, as Sirius and Remus turned the corner to reveal that they were both still dressed in their pajamas and robes. Ah, the joys of being able to Floo next door and avoid having to bundle up for the trek through the backyard.
“We brought treats,” Remus said with a smile, as he held up a tray that had two large thermoses on it, along with a few covered plates of scones, teacakes, sweet rolls, and a bowl of fresh fruit. “I made the baked goods… I don’t trust Sirius around an oven.”
“Hahaha,” Sirius said. “You’re so funny. Not. Anyway, I cut up the fruit and we have tea for the adults and hot chocolate for the boys.”
“Bless you,” Vernon said. He had gone through many changes over the years. Physically the most obvious change was that he’d dropped nearly a hundred and fifty pounds and was doing a good job keeping it off. Beyond that, however, he was no longer distrusting or uncomfortable around magic and he’d become a far kinder person, both to this family, and those in other aspects of his life, including his job. One thing that hadn’t changed, however, was his inability to function well until he’d had his morning tea.
Heading into the living room, Remus poured everyone a hot drink, as Sirius handed out a few treats. Of course, Hadrian and Darius had eyes only for the large number of presents sitting under the Christmas tree.
“Hadrian, Darius, the presents aren’t going anywhere,” Petunia said. “Drink your cocoa while it’s still hot and have a bite to eat.”
“Yes, Mum,” Darius said, even as Hadrian said, “Yes, Aunt Petunia.”
A few minutes later, after each of them had drunk their cocoa and eaten some of Remus’s baked goods and the fruit, Vernon, now prepping his second cup of tea, smiled and said, “Okay, boys, it’s present time.”
“YAY!!” Both boys practically screamed, along with Sirius, as Chase danced around yipping happily.
With a grin, Remus looked over at Petunia and said, “If only his grandparents saw him on a daily basis. They’d understand part of why I’m not in any rush to have children.”
Petunia grinned back and asked, “Because you already have one in your husband?”
Nodding, Remus said, “Exactly. He’s like a big kid most of the time.”
“Funny, that’s not what you were saying last night,” Sirius whispered under his breath, knowing that even though he was sitting on the floor with Hadrian and Darius over five feet away that Remus—thanks to his enhanced werewolf senses—would have no trouble hearing him.
Remus did hear it and quickly turned red as he remembered the previous night. It was definitely true that the previous night had been one of those times that Sirius was definitely not acting like an overgrown child. Of course, Remus knew that his husband could be serious when he needed to be, it’s just that he chose not to be whenever possible.
Nothing further was said as Sirius helped Hadrian and Darius start handing out presents, as each person in the room began to get a good-size pile of gifts. Even Chase got presents, although not quite as many as the humans in the room, as there were only so many things that would be a good gift for a dog.
Once all the gifts were handed out, Petunia smiled and said, “Okay, who’s going to start?”
“Well, last year, we started with the oldest,” Vernon said. “Which is me.”
Nodding, Petunia said, “I suppose we should switch things up then and go with the youngest this time then.”
Hadrian let out a whoop of joy and was about to grab a present from his pile, before Petunia asked, “And just what do you think you’re doing, Hadrian?”
“Opening a present because I’m the youngest.”
Remus shook his head and said, his tone amused, “Are you?”
“Yes!” Hadrian exclaimed.
“So two is greater than seven now?” Petunia asked. “Come now, Hadrian you’re far too smart to make that mistake.”
“Two?” Hadrian asked, confused before he got suddenly realized. “Really? You’re going to have Chase open a gift before me?”
“He is the youngest member of the family,” Sirius answered with a grin.
“Fine,” Hadrian said, as he crawled over to Chase’s pile of gifts and patted his lap, making the dog come over and sit in his lap. “Okay, Chase, let’s open one of your gifts.” Scanning the small pile, Hadrian said, “How about this one?”
Chase barked and wagged his tail as Hadrian picked up a package which he was pretty sure he knew what was hiding under the wrapping paper. He had a feeling that Chase suspected what it was too because he’d been sniffing at it ever since it had been placed in his pile and it was the same size as the box that his favorite bones came in.
Gently taking Chase’s left paw in his hand, Hadrian dragged it across the wrapping paper, using the dog’s claws to tear it and reveal just what Hadrian had suspected. Chase barked happily at seeing the familiar box and then proceeded to whine and give Hadrian the sad puppy face. This prompted Hadrian to shake his head, before he opened the box, took one of the bones out and gave it to the dog.
With Chase now happily chewing on his bone, Hadrian asked, “Now can I open one of mine?”
“You may,” Petunia said. “Then Darius, then Remus, Sirius, me, and your Uncle Vernon.”
Left unsaid was that they’d continue in that order until everyone had opened all of their presents.
As Hadrian reached for one of the boxes, Sirius shook his head and said, “No, not that one. Open the one with the red bow first.”
“It’s got clothes in it, doesn’t it?” Hadrian accused. “You, Remus, Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, and the grandparents always make sure that I open the gifts containing clothing first.”
“I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about, young man,” Remus said, with a shake of his head, as he lifted his teacup to his lips to hide his grin.
“Right,” Darius said since they did the exact same thing to him. “I believe that. Not.”
For once, it turned out that the gift that Sirius had picked did not, in fact, contain clothes. Instead, upon opening it, he found a pair of matching books. Opening the topmost one, he quickly realized that they were blank.
“Journals?” Hadrian asked.
“Yes, but these are very special journals,” Remus answered.
“What’s so special about them?” Darius asked.
“They’re a charmed pair,” Remus explained. “What you write in one will appear in the other and vice versa.”
“Um… okay. Why?” Hadrian asked, not grasping why he’d want a journal that acted to strangely.
With a smile, Petunia said, “I put my head together with Remus and we came up with this because you’re still a little too young for the responsibility of your own owl, Hadrian, and I’d also like Chase to get a little older and more settled, before we introduce any new animals to the house.”
“And we’re both getting tired of taking your letters to the owl post,” Remus said. “You know which ones I mean, I believe.”
Hadrian nodded as he understood now, as he’d really hit it off with Micheil and Finlay. They hadn’t seen each other in person since they met over a month ago, but they’d begun exchanging letters almost daily. None of them were exactly sure why, but they just felt a connection with one another and a need to stay in contact, even if only through letters.
“So, now that you have those,” Petunia said, “I’ll take one more package to the owl post office for you, Hadrian. So that you can send Micheil and Finlay one of the journals. After that, you can just write in your copy and they’ll be able to read what you write and respond to you by writing in their copy.”
“Cool,” Hadrian said.
Darius went next and found that he also had a pair of journals, even though he wasn’t exchanging anywhere near as many letters with anyone as Hadrian was. Vernon said that they thought Darius might be jealous though if they gave Hadrian the charmed journals and didn’t give him a set, even if he wasn’t sure who to give the other one to yet.
Both boys weren’t shocked when the second gifts they each opened were clothes. Interspersed with them, however, were a few toys and some new games for both the computer and their Nintendo NES.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
Well, there you have it, Ch4 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. I’ll be covering some more of 1987 in the next chapter, along with 1988 and possibly some of 1989.
Unlike most of my works, this chapter is not entirely beta-read, so any mistakes are entirely my fault. My longtime friend, beta, and sounding board, Nigel, has been dealing with a serious health issue as of late and without going into too much detail, has been losing his eyesight. There is a surgery that I guess may correct it, but he hasn’t had it yet, so until then, I guess I’ll just have to make do without him. Although, he has become an invaluable part of my writing process, as he’s not only my beta, but also helps me to formulate ideas, flesh out the plots, and plan my works.
Anyway, I do have a poll regarding this story up on both my Yahoo Group and my FFNet profile. They’re the same poll, so pick a place and vote, if you’d like. The poll gives a list of twenty-five characters from The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural, and Teen Wolf and asks which of the listed characters you’d like to see have magic in this universe. You can ignore the 3-5 in the question though, as, in the days since posting the poll, I’ve decided instead to pick a total of six of the twenty-five characters. So, I’ll pick the top two vote-getters from each fandom (unless there’s a tie, at which point there might be an extra).
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? I love hearing from my readers, so feel free to contact me in a review, by email (Gmail: jaycolin25), my LiveJournal (JayColin), my group (groups (dot) io (slash) g (slash) storiesbyjayson), or on Twitter @JVascardi. Alternatively, you can also try to contact me via Skype (text messaging only) at jayson (dot) vascardi.
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Five:
Family Vacation
-o-0-o-
25 December 1987…
After presents, Vernon went upstairs as Sirius and Remus headed down to the basement to Floo back to their house. A blizzard had hit Southern England over the last few days, and it was as they were opening the last of the presents that they could hear some of the neighbors outside shoveling out. It wasn’t long before the three of them were bundled up and joining the neighbors in the task.
About an hour later, Petunia had just finished wrapping one of the charmed journals for Hadrian, intending to take it to the owl post office tomorrow so that it could be sent to Micheil and Finlay, when she looked up as a rather regal looking eagle owl flew into the room through the charmed glass pane in the conservatory and dropped a golden gilt-edged envelope onto the table in front of her.
“What is it, Mum?” Darius asked as he and Hadrian had been sitting at the table having some Christmas cookies and milk as the owl flew in. They’d both seen some of the color draining from Petunia’s face as she picked up the envelope and saw the seal pressed into the wax.
“It’s from the King,” Petunia said after a moment, as she looked at the seal of the Foremost Ancient and Royal House of Pendragon for a minute longer, before breaking the seal and pulling out the letter inside.
Dear Petunia Dursley,
You and your family are cordially invited to join His Majesty King Logan III and his family for the celebration of Christmas at Dragon’s Court Palace on the afternoon and evening of 25 December. The dress code is informal smart casual. Please RSVP by owl no later than 21 December.
Yours sincerely,
Lord Demetrius Crouch III
The Duke of Amalveor and Steward of House Pendragon
“What’s it say?” Hadrian asked after a few minutes of silence.
“It’s an invitation,” Petunia said. “Inviting us to join King Logan and his family at Dragon’s Court Palace for Christmas.”
“Cool!” Hadrian and Darius said in unison.
“I don’t think we can go, however,” Petunia said.
“Why not?!” Hadrian asked.
“The owl post was obviously backlogged by the blizzard,” Petunia said. “We were supposed to RSVP on whether we’d be coming by no later than four days ago.”
Not wanting to pass up the chance to see Dragon’s Court Palace and the ability to give Micheil and Finlay the charmed journal in person, Hadrian asked, his tone hopeful, “Can’t we try Floo-calling them? Surely they’d understand why we’re late in responding. It’s not our fault there was a blizzard and owl post was suspended.”
“Well, I suppose I can try,” Petunia said, as she got up from the table and headed towards the basement door. Hadrian and Darius following behind her. Lighting the fireplace, Petunia cast a pinch of Floo-Powder into the fireplace and called out, “Lord Demetrius Crouch, Edgeriver Hall, Duchy of Amalveor, Archduchy of Britannia,” before kneeling down and placing her head in the flames.
A moment later, Petunia was looking out of the fireplace of what she assumed to be Lord Crouch’s study. She could hear the bell ringing which she knew many wizarding residences had which signaled an incoming Floo-Call, so all she could do was wait for someone to come in and answer it. Hopefully, somebody was home, although being Christmas Day, it was probably more likely than if it wasn’t a holiday.
It took a few minutes, but after a moment a tall and handsome young man, still in his late teens walked into the room and asked, “Yes?”
“Lord Crouch?”
“Yes, and you are?”
“Petunia Dursley. I was just calling about the invitation you sent me for Christmas at Dragon’s Court Palace. The blizzard must have caused quite the backlog as I only just received it today.”
Demetrius nodded, as he took a seat in one of the chairs in front of the fireplace. “Yes, it did. There were several days there where it just wasn’t safe for the owls to try and deliver mail. This being one of the busiest mail seasons there is, I’m not really surprised that there was a delay.”
“Is it too late for my family to accept the gracious invitation of His Majesty?”
Shaking his head, Demetrius said, “No, of course not. You had no control over the weather and your nephew is part of His Majesty’s extended family, so he very much wants you there.”
Before Petunia could respond, the sound of two cheering voices could be heard, making Demetrius grin, as Petunia smiled and said, “My son and my nephew are behind me listening in.”
“I figured,” Demetrius said. “Well, thanks for contacting me and I’ll contact the King and let him know that you and your family are coming.” After a moment, he said, “Oh and His Majesty didn’t mention this to me until after I’d already sent the invitation, but the invitation is for your entire family, including your husband and your dog, Chase, is it? Apparently, the dog was a hit with His Majesty’s children and they’d all like to see him again.”
“Okay then, I’ll make sure to cast the appropriate spells so that Vernon and Chase can enter the magical world,” Petunia said. “What time should we arrive?”
“Two in the afternoon,” Demetrius answered. “Dinner will be served at six, with dessert at eight. The weather-wizards are suggesting that there might be another snowstorm here in the magical dimension later this evening, so you might want to pack overnight bags just in case you have to spend the night. His Majesty has ordered guest rooms prepared in case. Also, Dragon’s Court Palace is warded to make it less of a strain for muggles to spend time in it, as there are occasions when the King has to meet with muggle dignitaries, so there should be no problem with your husband spending the night if it becomes necessary.”
“Very well, thank you, Lord Crouch. Happy Christmas.”
“To you as well, Ms. Dursley.”
-o-0-o-
About half-an-hour after the Floo-Call ended, Vernon came back inside from shoveling off the pavement and the driveway. The task was made easier, despite the wet, heavy snow that had been dropped by the blizzard by the fact that Sirius had charmed the snow shovels that he, Remus, and Vernon were using making it easier to lift a shovel full of snow than it normally would be.
“Ah, good, Vernon, I was just about to come out and get you,” Petunia said. “Change of plans… we’re not staying in for the holiday.”
Petunia was thankful that the invitation had come before she’d really started to cook Christmas dinner in earnest. She’d already bought everything she’d need and had cooked a few things ahead of time, but most of the dinner she’d planned still needed to be made. While she would never turn down an invitation to the palace, she would have been perturbed if it had come after she’d started cooking.
Vernon looked momentarily confused before he nodded. “Okay. I wouldn’t suggest driving very far, as the roads are quite treacherous and the council is certainly not going to get them cleared today of all days.”
“That won’t be an issue,” Petunia said. “We will be driving, or more accurately riding, but the snow won’t matter for the conveyance that we’ll be taking.” Vernon raised his eyebrow, prompting Petunia to add, “The Knight Bus can handle the snow.”
“The Knight Bus?” Vernon asked. “Isn’t that the queer triple-decker purple bus you mentioned? The one that witches and wizards use for emergency transport?”
There were some magical people who might have an issue with Vernon’s word choice regarding the Knight Bus, but Petunia did not. Living in the muggle world, she understood that the very idea of a triple-decker bus was strange to muggles. A double-decker, yes, but a triple-decker bus with armchairs or beds instead of seats depending on time of day and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling? Not to mention the fact that it traveled all over the UK, Ireland, Albion, and Iwernia in alphabetical order. Queer was definitely an apt description as far as muggles were concerned.
“Yes, that’s the one,” Petunia confirmed. “Not my preferred method of travel, but it is the only means of magical transport that will work for you and Chase.”
“Okay,” Vernon said. “And where are we going?”
“Dragon’s Court Palace,” Petunia answered, enjoying the widening of Vernon’s eyes. “The blizzard delayed the owl post so the invitation was late, but since Hadrian is His Majesty King-Consort Cliffton’s second cousin, we’ve all been invited to spend the day with the royal family.”
Vernon whistled. “That’s quite an atypical way to spend Christmas Day, even for the nobility.”
“Yes, I suppose it is. However, I trust you’ll agree that when one gets an invitation to the palace, one simply doesn’t say no.”
“Of course, one would have to be a fool to do so.”
After a moment’s pause, Petunia said, “Anyway, it’s informal smart casual, so your tan trousers—the ones I got you for your last birthday—should work, along with your brown shoes and a polo shirt. I’ve been warned that the weather-wizards are saying that another blizzard might hit in the magical dimension later this evening, so we may have to spend the night at the palace. So, you’ll need to pack an overnight bag. Hadrian and Darius are already upstairs doing just that.”
Vernon nodded, before he asked, “Wait, spend the night at the palace? Is that safe? For me, I mean, as a muggle?”
“Perfectly safe,” Petunia answered. “It would only affect your health if you were staying for a week or more. Plus, the palace apparently has wards to lessen the effect of ambient magic on muggles due to the King occasionally having to meet with and entertain muggle dignitaries.”
“Ah. Well, if you’re sure.”
Leaning over and kissing her husband, Petunia said, “Of course, I’m sure, honey. Do you honestly think I’d let you go if I thought it would be hazardous to your health? I do happen to love you and you are my soulmate, so I’m not about to risk your health unnecessarily.”
-o-0-o-
At about five minutes to two in the afternoon, the otherwise peaceful quiet was broken when there was a loud bang as the Knight Bus appeared out of thin air and came to a stop in the gravel driveway in front of Dragon’s Court Palace. Within seconds of its arrival, the massive oaken doors of the palace opened and Cliffton Pendragon came outside to investigate the noise, accompanied by Micheil and Finlay.
As Petunia Dursley stepped off the bus, all three of the royals smiled and walked down the front steps to greet them.
“Happy Christmas,” Cliffton said when he was in range. “I was quite happy when Demetrius contacted us to let you know you were coming.”
“We’re honored by the invitation, Your Majesty,” Petunia said, as Vernon stepped off the bus. “This is my husband, Vernon Dursley. Vernon, this is His Majesty King-Consort Cliffton Pendragon, and you’ve already met his sons, Princes Micheil and Finlay.”
Vernon nodded as he shook hands with Cliffton, as he definitely remembered Micheil and Finlay coming to the house for the Guy Fawkes celebration last month. Since he hadn’t attended Hadrian’s Ritual of Confirmation or the Halloween party at the Hopkins house, Guy Fawkes Day was the first time he’d met a pair of conjoined twins. It was definitely something which stood out in his mind. Especially considering that he met two sets of them within minutes of each other since he’d met Neall and Niall, followed by Micheil and Finlay not long afterward.
He had asked Petunia privately later that night after everyone had gone home why Neall and Niall MacDougal had never been separated. He understood perfectly well why Micheil and Finlay hadn’t been, since sharing everything from their necks down made it impossible. But he hadn’t really understood why Neall and Niall, who were joined side-by-side with two arms and three legs between them hadn’t been.
Once Petunia told him that wizarding conjoined twins were never separated, even if the operation would be possible in the muggle world, due to an overwhelming chance of losing their magic, he understood it. There was a time when he would have thought a witch or wizard losing their magic would be a good thing, back when he’d believed it to be freakish and didn’t think that they should exist at all. He’d evolved since then, however, and could understand why somebody who had magic wouldn’t want to lose it.
After a moment, he let go of Cliffton’s hand and took both Micheil and Finlay’s hands, since they held out both of them to him, and shook, as he said, “It’s good to you see you both again.”
“You too, Mr. Dursley,” Micheil said.
“Please just call me Vernon,” he said, as he couldn’t help but think about how strange the difference in protocol was between the muggle and wizarding worlds. In the muggle world, he wouldn’t have been allowed to speak until prompted to by the princes. But in the wizarding world, as the uncle, even by marriage, of the confirmed Heir Potter and future Grand Duke of Cambria, who outranked Micheil and Finlay, no such protocol existed.
Speaking of Hadrian, it was at this point that he got off the bus with Darius, carrying a pet carrier in one hand as they’d had to put Chase in his carrier for the ride on the bus.
Having dropped off all of its passengers for this stop, the Knight Bus disappeared as Hadrian and Darius greeted Cliffton and the twins. With that out of the way, Cliffton said, “Well, why don’t we head inside then? Ancient stone castle or not, it’s much warmer inside then it is out here.”
“How old is this castle anyway?” Vernon asked.
“This section is part of the two new wings that were added not long after it was moved here on the centennial of the death of King Arthur,” Cliffton answered as they walked up the steps to the front doors. “So 1,331 years. The rest of the castle is even older, dating back roughly another two-thousand years.”
Vernon whistled as he said, “Wow that makes Windsor Castle and Westminster Abbey seem new by comparison.”
“Yes, it does indeed,” Finlay agreed. He’d never visited either location, as he and Micheil didn’t venture out into the muggle world very often simply because they didn’t like being stared at. In the wizarding world, with the exception of the occasional muggleborn, nobody paid their closeness any mind. But in the muggle world, they knew that almost everyone they met would be staring at them, so as much as they wanted to see some of the landmarks—they both greatly enjoyed architecture in all its forms—they decided to be content with just looking at pictures.
Once they were inside, Petunia and Vernon followed Cliffton to the drawing room where the other adults were gathered, while Hadrian and Darius followed Micheil and Finlay to the solarium where the rest of their siblings, as well as their MacDougal and Thomas cousins, had gathered. Arriving in the room, Chase was let out of his carrier and he quickly began exploring his new surroundings and sniffing a few of the people he hadn’t met previously.
“So, I forgot to ask on Guy Fawkes Day,” Darius said after they were all seated. “How did you go about getting revenge on Jazz and Jess, Declan?”
Declan grinned. Jasper and Jesse weren’t present, as they were spending the day at Lakeview Castle with their own family. “Hit them both with two Stinging Hexes to their arses, followed by the Rainbow Arse Charm.”
“Rainbow Arse Charm?” Hadrian asked.
Ryan grinned. “It’s a charm which covers your arse in red, orange, yellow, blue, green, and purple stripes. It lasts for about twenty-four hours and can’t be dispelled.”
After the laughter died down, Declan added, “I may have also recruited Neville to put a few dung bombs in their beds and their underwear drawers. I figured, given the reason why I was seeking revenge on them, it was fitting.”
“Oh yes, definitely,” Carrick agreed. “I’m sure you’ve learned your lesson though, Deck. If someone comes to you and asks you to be the rear end of their centaur costume…”
“Refuse,” Declan said. “Well, unless they make it worth my while. Say, fifty galleons an hour, guaranteed minimum of eight hours paid upfront before I even get into the costume.”
“How did you ever get through that night?” Hadrian asked. “You must have been in that costume for a few hours.”
“Three,” Declan said. “And luckily for me, I managed to cast the Bubblehead Charm, or else I probably would have passed out from the fumes… and then ended up with Jazz and Jess on top of me after I fainted.”
“That’s pretty impressive,” Neall said. “That you managed to cast that charm at your age.”
Niall nodded. “Yes and wandless at that since you’re not old enough to have gotten a training wand yet.”
“What can I say?” Declan said, puffing out his chest a bit. “I’m just that good.”
Declan’s little sister, Adara, rolled her eyes and said, “Or it could be because your wizarding heritage test showed that you’re naturally gifted with wandless magic.”
“Heritage test?” Darius asked.
“It’s a test that the goblins can do at Gringotts,” Micheil explained. “It shows the person taking the test a list of any and all magical abilities that they’ve inherited, such as whether they’re a metamorphmagus or naturally gifted with wandless magic, among other things. It also shows a list of any school subjects that you might be a prodigy in.”
“Cool,” Hadrian said, as he looked at Darius and said, “We should definitely get that test done.”
Darius nodded, as Finlay smiled and said, “You have to be at least eight years old. And be able to pay the two hundred and fifty galleon fee.”
“Well, wild guess here, but I somehow doubt the fee will be a problem for Hadrian,” Carrick said.
“That’s pretty much a given,” Morag said. “The only other thing to keep in mind is that some of the abilities that could show up on your heritage test won’t activate until your magical inheritance at fifteen.”
Hadrian nodded. “Like Grandfather Arcturus’s mage-sight.”
Micheil nodded. “Yes, that is one example. An exceptionally rare example.”
“Mage-sight is an ability that only manifests a handful of times per generation,” Finlay added. “It’s a useful ability, especially for wandmakers, although it’s certainly helpful in other situations, as well.”
“Dueling would be another example,” Ryan said. “Definitely useful if you can actually see your opponent’s aura during a duel. It allows you to ascertain how much reserves they still have and how much power they might be able to put into the spells they throw your way.”
Declan nodded. “I’ve heard that people with mage-sight also have a few seconds advance notice of the spell that their opponent starts to cast, even if they’re doing it non-verbally, as they’ll be able to see the spell a few seconds before it would otherwise become visible to the naked eye, as the power for it is drawn from the caster’s core.”
“Is there a way to hide one’s aura?” Darius asked.
“Yes,” Micheil said. “Although it has a side effect of dampening your magical ability, as you’re turning your magic inward to hide your aura, which means you have less reserves to cast spells with.”
“Most people don’t do it for that very reason,” Finlay added. “Although it ultimately depends on your power level. The more powerful you are, the larger your reserves, and thus the less hiding your aura would affect you.”
“It’s still tiring to do so, however,” Ryan cautioned. “As doing it is like casting a spell that draws a fraction of the power from your core to keep it active, which could lead to magical exhaustion and even death if you’re not careful.”
-o-0-o-
27 January 1988…
Just over a month after spending Christmas Day at Dragon’s Court Palace, Hadrian was sitting in the conservatory of Number Four Privet Drive watching the latest snowfall. Everyone had enjoyed their day at the palace. While the adults enjoyed conversation and a few hands of poker over glasses of Firewhisky, the kids, after their conversation in the solarium, scattered about the palace to play hide and seek.
Dinner was a much fancier and more decadent affair than anything Petunia might have made at Privet Drive. The most obvious difference was that Petunia would have cooked all the dishes she intended to serve at the same time and they’d all have been on the table for everyone to serve themselves from as they wished. This was, of course, because she actually wanted to enjoy the meal with her family, rather than being stuck in the kitchen cooking while the others ate.
At the palace, however, they had house-elves doing the cooking which allowed it to be served course by course. One thing that did take some getting used to for everyone, as it was still one thing that was the same in the wizarding world as it was in the muggle world, was that each course was cleared the moment the King finished, regardless of whether or not everyone else had finished that course.
Thankfully, however, Logan was a somewhat slow eater, as he enjoyed conversing with those closest to him at the table. This included Hadrian, who as the Lord-Apparent of House Potter found himself chatting quite extensively not only with Logan and Cliffton, but also Grand Dukes Aindreas MacDougal and Langston Thomas, their respective wives, the King’s brother Laine and his wife, and Cliffton and Langston’s mother, Dowager Grand Duchess Henrika.
Most kids Hadrian’s age would no doubt feel quite out of their depth when talking to the elder lords and ladies and the King, but Hadrian had really thrown himself into his politics and economics studies with his Grandfather Arcturus, Papa Pollux, and Steward Nicolas. He was, after all, seven years old, which meant that in about three and a half years he would be undergoing his Ritual of Claiming and become the official Grand Duke of Cambria.
While it was true that Nicolas would continue to handle most of the Grand Duchy’s affairs, with help from Chancellor Ignatius Prewett, Constable Malcolm Flint, Barrister Arthur Weasley, and Solicitor Padraig Fontaine until Hadrian finished his education, he still felt it was important for him to understand the inner workings of his future role and everything that went with it.
The last thing he wanted to do was disappoint his ancestors by screwing something up that had run smoothly and well for several thousand years because he didn’t understand something. He shared that concern with Sirius and Petunia once, but they both assured him that they had complete faith in him.
Balancing the charmed journal in his lap, the twin of which he’d given to Micheil and Finlay privately after dinner on Christmas Day, Hadrian tapped his chin with his ballpoint for a moment, before he began writing.
So, I had another politics and economics lesson today… it was interesting, to say the least.
What was the topic? – M
Well, I knew that your dad and the GDs collect tax revenue, but I was curious where the other nobles get their money from, so I asked.
I’m sure that had some interesting reactions, especially from Kevin, Piers, and Hermione. – F
Originally, only Hadrian had been included in the lessons with Arcturus, Pollux, and Nicolas, but eventually, Darius joined in and that soon expanded to include all of their local friends who they hung out with the most, consisting of Wayne, Kevin, Piers, and Hermione.
While only Hadrian was high nobility, the three elder men saw no reason why the others couldn’t join in on the class, especially since there were topics that often came up in the classes which might actually be useful for the others to know, but would be difficult for them to learn. This was because some of the topics were considered to be at a level of common knowledge that was so common that nobody bothered to write it down. So, Kevin, Piers, and Hermione, especially, as muggleborns, would have found it especially hard to learn about some of the topics.
Oh yeah, that’s probably the understatement of the century.
Hadrian settled in, as he began recounting what had happened in the class.
-o-0-o-
“So, I know that the Grand Dukes and the King collect tax revenue,” Hadrian said, as Arcturus nodded. “But where do the other nobles get their money from?”
“Rents and leases,” Pollux said, who as the Chancellor for House Black was the one who dealt most often with financial matters. Arcturus and Nicolas both dealt with them as well, but to a lesser extent.
“As we covered in our last lesson,” Nicolas said, “each Grand Duchy is made up of two Duchies, two Marquessates, two Earldoms, two Viscounties, and two Baronies. One of the two Duchies is held by the Grand Duke as their subsidiary title, while the rest are held by their five vassal lords with the Viscounts, Earls, Marquesses, and Dukes each holding two. For example, I’m the Duke of Pleinmont and the Marquess of Braye.”
“The Barons only hold their Barony, as they have no subsidiary title,” Arcturus added. “The only person in the kingdom who holds more than one subsidiary title is King Logan, as King of Albion and Iwernia is his primary title, while Archduke of Britannia and Duke of Penderleath are his subsidiary titles.”
“So do the Grand Dukes pay taxes?” Kevin asked.
“Yes, they do,” Nicolas answered. “While the Grand Dukes do collect taxes from their Grand Duchies, they also pay taxes to the Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia. However, that money goes into the kingdom’s coffers, which are completely separate from King Logan’s personal coffers, which is where the tax income from the Archduchy and the rents and leases from the Duchy go.”
“So where do these rents and leases actually come from?” Piers asked.
“The nobility owns all of the land and all of the buildings on said land, throughout the entirety of the kingdom,” Arcturus said. “So the commoners pay to rent or lease their homes and the land they sit upon from the nobility. It’s the same for all of the storekeepers and other business owners throughout the kingdom, who rent or lease the buildings and warehouses that their businesses operate from.”
“You mean that nobody who isn’t nobility is a property owner?” Kevin asked.
“At least in terms of real estate, yes,” Nicolas confirmed. “You’d be hard-pressed to find people who don’t own any other forms of property, however. Whether that be clothing, furniture, or other miscellany belongings.”
“That seems rather backward,” Hermione said. “Feudalism fell out of fashion in the muggle world centuries ago and serfdom hasn’t been seen since the early 1910s in Russia, before the Revolution which accompanied World War I.”
“As I’ve told you before, Hermione,” Arcturus said, “you would do well to remember that the magical world and the muggle world are two different places and you will not make many friends if you are constantly trying to impose your muggle views upon the magical world.”
“Indeed, that’s why many of the purebloods hate muggleborns so much,” Pollux said. “As they have a tendency to come into our world and try to tell us that we need to modernize and abandon all of our long-held traditions, in favor of doing things in a more civilized way, the way that the muggles do. An argument which, for obvious reasons, does not sit well with witches and wizards.”
“I would argue that in truth, the magical world is far more civilized than the muggle world,” Nicolas said. “I’m not saying that we don’t have our problems, as we certainly do. But barring occasional reigns of terror from various Dark Lords, we don’t fight wars. In fact, it’s been over seven centuries now since the Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia has been at war with another country. How many muggle countries can say that?”
Hermione sighed. “I can’t think of any.”
“Anyway, while it’s true that we do practice what might be termed as feudalism,” Pollux said, “we do not practice serfdom. Serfdom suggests a form of debt bondage or indentured servitude. And like slaves, serfs can be bought and sold, usually along with the land that they work. That is not the case here, however, as the buying and selling of human beings has been illegal throughout the magical world for hundreds of years now.”
“While it’s certainly true that we do have a rather rigid class system,” Arcturus said, “you won’t find masses of homeless or starving people here in Albion and Iwernia. Most people who aren’t shopkeepers, scholars, or other paid professions operate farms of various sizes, which provide all the food they need for themselves and their families, usually with enough left over that they can earn an income.”
“Like the muggle United Kingdom, Albion and Iwernia also has free healthcare for everybody,” Nicolas added. “And while education does cost money, there are assistance funds set aside by the Grand Dukes to assist those who can’t afford Athena, Hecate, Hogwarts, tutors, or one of the many trade schools that exist.”
“How old are those assistance funds?” Darius asked. “Because I remember when Remus and Sirius were telling Hadrian and me about the Emrys family they seemed to imply that it was a miracle that they even managed to send the Merlin who was in Slytherin to Hogwarts.”
“The assistance funds did exist at that time,” Pollux said, “however not everyone qualifies for them. The Emrys family being one that didn’t qualify for any assistance due to the writ of attainder against the family. You have to be a citizen in good standing in order to apply for and get financial assistance and being a member of a house of attainted traitors who frequently joined rebellions and other attempts to overthrow the government does not leave one in good standing.”
-o-0-o-
It took a few minutes after Hadrian finished writing, but then the twins responded.
Well, that wasn’t as bad as I was expecting, to be honest. – F
Yes, it could have been worse. At least Hermione didn’t accuse witches and wizards of being ungodly heathens or barbarians, as some muggleborns have in the past. – M
Well, she did have a few choice words about polytheism after reading about it in a book, but Sirius and Remus set her straight. Honestly, I think she is learning. She’s not as confrontational as she used to be. Still has her moments, but they’re becoming fewer and farther between as time goes on.
That’s good. There’s nothing wrong with having opinions or even with challenging the way things are done. But you’ll get better results if you aren’t insulting while doing so. – F
Yes, most people don’t react well to insults, so if you want to change something, it’s best not to raise people’s hackles by insulting them as then they’ll be angry and more likely to tune you out, rather than listen to your arguments. – M
True. So what’s going on with you two?
Not much at the moment, although that won’t be the case this time next week. – M
What’s happening next week?
A state dinner and ball for the Roman Emperor. Thankfully, there’s not much Mic and I need to do in preparation other than put on our best and show up on the day of. – F
Well, and try not to offend any of the diplomats or the imperial family. International incidents are best avoided. – M
Am I going to have to attend this sort of thing in the future?
No, you won’t. For the Grand Dukes attending such events is entirely optional. That’s why they elect the King, so he can deal with international affairs and leave them to handle domestic affairs. – M
Yes, the only reason that Mic and I and our siblings have to attend is that we’re the King’s children. Even though none of us are likely to ever sit on the throne ourselves since it’s highly unlikely that the GDs will elect another MacDougal again in our lifetime after our father’s reign ends. They tend to rotate between the families, making sure that each one has a turn. – F
Well, good luck then. When do you think we’ll see each other again in person?
Thanks, Hadrian. As for seeing each other in person, I’m not sure. – F
After the state dinner next week, we’ll be staying in the palace in Iwernia for about a week, before going off to the continent for several weeks. We’ve got state dinners scheduled in France, Spain, Austria, Byzantium, and Persia. – M
Looking forward to starting Hogwarts in September, as that’ll give us an excuse not to attend all of the state functions for nine months out of the year. – F
Are there many state functions then?
Yeah, there’s several. How do you think Albion and Iwernia has avoided war with other countries for over seven centuries? – F
The various heads of state have frequent balls, dinners, and state visits to keep dialogues open and lessen tensions between them. Honestly, it’s rare for us to go a month without either having a foreign head of state coming here or us going somewhere else. – M
Plus, there’s also domestic state functions. Of course, we don’t usually have to attend those. Like when Dad does the State Opening of the Wizengamot, we’re not expected to attend. – F
I’m guessing that’s a relief.
Definitely. – F
Yes, most state functions are, quite frankly, mind-numbingly boring. – M
We’d much rather be playing Quidditch than attending balls and listening to speeches. – F
I can’t say that I blame you. Haven’t had the chance to play myself, but it does look fun. Do you play frequently?
Not as often as we’d like, but we do get the chance sometimes. – M
It’s definitely one advantage of having five younger siblings. We have almost a full team. With seven of us, we would have a full team, but for obvious reasons, Mic and I can’t play more than one position at a time. – F
Which position do you play?
Keeper, mostly. Although we do swap and play the other positions as well. Seeker is fun, although many would say that we have an unfair advantage over other Seekers since we’ve got two pairs of eyes looking for the Snitch. – M
“Hadrian? Dinner is ready,” Petunia’s voice called out from the kitchen.
Gotta go, just got called to dinner.
Okay, enjoy. – M
Goodbye for now. – F
-o-0-o-
28 March 1988…
At around noon, Sirius and Remus were walking down Privet Drive with Darius and Hadrian headed for Magnolia Park. The weather had begun turning relatively nice and they decided to get out of the house. Vernon was at work and Petunia had a dentist’s appointment and a few errands to run in London, so Sirius and Remus agreed to watch the boys, deciding to go have a picnic at the park.
“Hello Arabella,” Sirius said with a smile, as the four of them arrived at the park to find Arabella sitting at one of the picnic tables, her back to the table as she watched Piers on the swing set. Piers’ mother had picked up a few extra shifts, so Arabella agreed to watch him since Petunia was busy.
“Care to join us for lunch?” Remus asked as he held up the picnic basket he brought. “I’ve got plenty.”
“I suppose I can stay for a few more minutes,” Arabella said as she looked at her watch. “Two of my cats are due to have their litters today, but they’re both half-Kneazle, so they really don’t need my help with that.”
Nodding, Remus said, “Yes, Kneazles are very intelligent and independent, so they’d probably just see you as being in the way if you decided to hover.”
“Precisely,” Arabella agreed, as Piers got off the swing and came over to greet Darius and Hadrian as Remus began setting up their picnic.
It was just as everyone was taking their seats at the picnic table that Robert Granger showed up along with Hermione, Kevin, and Wayne. His wife was manning their practice for the day, so he was home with Hermione and had picked up the boys on the way to the park to meet the others.
Robert was also carrying a picnic basket of his own—which both Victoria Hopkins and Lauren Entwhistle had added to when Robert picked up their sons—so, between it and the one Remus had brought, the group had plenty of food.
As they enjoyed their lunch, Darius noticed that Wayne was looking a bit down, so he asked, “Wayne? Is something wrong?”
“You do look rather sad, mate,” Piers said, as he looked at his friend.
“Well, Carl is home for spring break,” Wayne said. “Almost as soon as he got home, he decided to drop a bomb on me and our parents.”
“What is it?” Hadrian asked.
“He’s moving out,” Wayne answered. “Apparently, he’s been in touch with a real estate agent and he’s found a flat on Diagon Alley. He’s home right now packing the stuff he didn’t take with him to Hogwarts because when he finishes school in July, he’s not coming back home. At least, not to stay. He’ll be living in his new flat.”
“With my sister,” Kevin added. “They’re engaged.”
“And she’s pregnant,” Wayne added.
Sirius couldn’t help but look at Hadrian at this, as he knew that Carl was his first crush. Hadrian seemed to be doing okay, but Sirius knew his godson well enough to know that he wasn’t all that happy about the idea of Carl getting married or becoming a father.
Not that Hadrian had ever stood much of a chance with the older boy. They were ten years apart and honestly, if he’d ever shown an interest in Hadrian, Sirius would have hexed him nine ways to Sunday. Luckily for Carl’s bits, however, the elder Hopkins son only had eyes for Annabelle Entwhistle, who it would seem would soon be Annabelle Hopkins.
“Gonna miss your brother, huh?” Darius asked.
Wayne nodded. “Yeah, he’s always been my hero. According to Mum and Dad, Carl was my first word, even before Mama and Dada. So, I don’t really want him to go, but unfortunately, I don’t get a vote.”
“Well, look on the bright side, Wayne,” Kevin said. “At least you’re getting his room.”
“Yeah, there is that,” Wayne agreed, as once the shock had worn off and the congratulations were handled, Keith and Victoria Hopkins had put their heads together and decided that Wayne could have Carl’s room once he moved out. It was larger than Wayne’s current bedroom, which would be turned into Victoria’s sewing room, allowing her to move her sewing machine and other related supplies out of the guest room.
“So when’s the wedding?” Hermione asked.
“In two days,” Kevin answered. “Annabelle and Carl decided that they don’t want a big wedding, so they’re going to go to London and have a small civil ceremony.”
“Mainly because they don’t really have time to plan a big, fancy wedding,” Wayne added. “Since Annabelle is already almost five months pregnant, so by the first week of July when Hogwarts lets out, her due date will be practically around the corner.”
“Wow, that’ll certainly make revising for her NEWTs much harder,” Hermione said, to the surprise of nobody.
“Let alone actually taking them,” Kevin added before he sighed. “I’m happy for her and I guess I’m looking forward to being an uncle, but… well, even though Anna is ten years older than me, I guess I never expected that she’d make me one before I’d even started Hogwarts.”
Robert grinned. “Yes, that is a bit of an unusual role for a seven-year-old.”
“I’ll be eight before the baby is born,” Kevin said. “My birthday is in May.”
“I stand corrected,” Robert said.
-o-0-o-
Later that day, Vernon, Petunia, Hadrian, and Darius were gathered around the dining room table at Number Five along with Sirius and Remus, having just finished dinner.
Standing up, Remus said, “Well, I suppose I’ll get the leftovers put away and the dishes loaded into the dishwasher.”
“Do you need any help?” Petunia asked and Remus nodded. Normally, he would have politely declined the offer, not really needing the help, but today, he decided to accept. Mainly because it would give him the chance to talk to Petunia about something while the others moved into the living room to watch TV.
Sirius gave Remus a discreet nod masked by leaning in for a quick kiss as they’d talked before the others had arrived for dinner. So, he already knew what Remus was going to talk to Petunia about.
About twenty minutes later, Remus and Petunia had finished up in the kitchen and came into the living room just as Disney’s The Fox and the Hound was going into a commercial break on the television set.
Clearing her throat as she sat down, Petunia said, “Boys, I have something to tell you.”
“Not more bad news?” Hadrian asked, before silently cursing himself for referring to Carl’s impending nuptials and fatherhood as bad news. It was fine to think it in his head, but saying it aloud was probably not really appropriate, as most people didn’t consider somebody getting married and having a baby to be bad news.
“No, no, it’s not bad, I promise,” Petunia said with a smile, as Sirius had filled her in on what had happened earlier at the park shortly after she’d arrived. “We were going to wait until a little closer to your birthdays to tell you, but I suppose now is as good a time as any.”
Seeing that she had everyone’s attention, Petunia added, “One of my errands in London today was to visit a travel agent to book a vacation trip for August.”
“Mallorca again?” Darius asked, since the Dursleys plus Hadrian had vacationed in Mallorca the last two summers in a row.
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “No, Vernon and I decided that it was time for something a bit more exotic.”
Vernon grinned. “If you want to call Florida exotic.”
“Florida?” Hadrian asked, as both he and Darius instantly perked up.
Petunia smiled. “I booked a two-week holiday at Disney World.”
Both Darius and Hadrian were on their feet doing a happy dance within moments of hearing this news, as they’d both wanted to go to the Magic Kingdom for a few years now, but they never expected that Vernon and Petunia would actually take them. It was a long trip, after all, and the elder Dursleys seemed to prefer going to Mallorca since they’d honeymooned there.
With a grin, Sirius added, “Remus and I are joining you this year.”
It had been something of a challenge to get the Ministry to agree to issue Remus a passport, as they weren’t all that keen about allowing a werewolf to travel outside of the country… at least, not on a vacation. If he’d been seeking to get a passport because he was going to leave and never come back—thus becoming somebody else’s problem—it probably would have been easier.
In the end, Arcturus enlisted the help of the Dowager Lady Longbottom to help apply just the right amount of pressure to get the Ministry bureaucrats to agree. Even the most uptight and prejudiced of the bureaucrats weren’t fool enough to say no not only to the Lord Black, but also the Dowager Grand Duchess of North Anglia.
“COOL!!” Darius and Hadrian exclaimed in unison, as they renewed their happy dance, completely ignoring the movie they’d been watching which had now come out of the break.
-o-0-o-
2 August 1988…
At 11:15 AM, Petunia, Vernon, Hadrian, Darius, Sirius, and Remus were all buckled up in their seats as their British Airways flight to Orlando was taxied to the runway at Gatwick Airport for takeoff. Sirius brewed a batch of Stomach Soothers and Anti-Nausea Potions for all but Vernon to drink prior to the flight, as both Hadrian and Darius had gotten airsick on their first trip to Mallorca in 1986. So, better to be safe than sorry, especially since this was the first time any of them would be crossing the Atlantic.
Once they were in the air, Hadrian put down the partition between his seat and Petunia’s and asked, “So, this is a nine-hour flight, but we’re arriving in Orlando only four hours after we left?”
Petunia smiled. “Yes, I know it’s a little confusing but that’s because Orlando is five hours behind London. So when it’s six o’clock at night in London, it’s only one in the afternoon in Orlando.”
“Weird,” Hadrian said, although he fell silent at this point as he got out his Walkman and put his headphones on, before taking out a box of colored pencils and a sketchpad. A part of Hadrian would have preferred to be reading, but then he preferred magical texts which he couldn’t read on a muggle airplane.
Besides that, his reading level was more advanced than most kids his age, so it was agreed that sketching was safer than reading a book that most people wouldn’t think anyone would read until the later years of secondary school.
Smiling as she saw that Hadrian was set, for the time being, Petunia pulled a novel out of her bag and started reading.
Several hours later, after the captain announced they would soon be making their final approach into Orlando International, Hadrian packed up his sketch pad and pencils and put away his Walkman. He hadn’t spent the entire flight sketching, as he’d also taken a nap at Petunia’s suggestion and watched a movie.
Not to mention the several course restaurant-quality meal that was served. Vernon, Petunia, Sirius, and Remus all had some drinks, but as Vernon would be driving, he'd limited his alcoholic intake and stopped drinking halfway across the Atlantic.
Hadrian’s and Sirius’s status as nobility did grant them several perks, however, as while their titles were in the peerage of the Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia, an agreement centuries ago had led to their titles also being recognized as part of the United Kingdom’s peerage. Although, only the titles Baron through Duke were recognized, so even after Hadrian turned eleven and became Grand Duke of Cambria, he’d still be only the Duke of Granston, as far as the muggle world was concerned. Sirius, of course, was traveling under his courtesy title of Marquess of Alnwick.
The other concession made in the agreement between the two governments was that the Grand Duke’s status as royalty was not recognized, simply because it would have been too confusing to explain what they were royalty of, unless they were passed off as members of the British royal family which, was next to impossible.
As they deplaned, the crew got an opportunity to practice their protocol, making sure that Hadrian was situated before anyone else in his traveling party or the other people who had booked the remaining first-class seats, as, among them, Hadrian was the only Duke on the flight. Sirius as a Marquess was a close second in terms of protocol, with everyone else on the plane, as commoners were dealt with after them… meaning that everyone who wasn't a part of Hadrian’s and Sirius’s group was the last of the first-class passengers off the plane.
A limousine was waiting for the group to shuttle them to the VIP terminal, where they collected their luggage and then proceeded to go through customs… which for all but Vernon would be a longer process, as they had to go through both muggle and magical customs. Still, being in the VIP terminal did help expedite things a bit, as there weren’t as many people.
After Vernon finished up in customs, he took care of renting a car in order to get them to their hotel, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, which had only opened a month ago. Meanwhile, Hadrian and the others passed through a magically hidden door into the magical section of the VIP terminal in order to go through magical customs.
“Welcome to the United States, Your Royal Highness,” the woman behind the desk said, after looking at Hadrian’s passport, which gave his full title as His Royal Highness Electoral Prince Hadrian of the Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia, Confirmed Heir and Lord-Apparent of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, and the Duke of Granston.
“Thank you,” Hadrian said, as he got squared away, followed by Sirius, and then Remus, since in the wizarding world, he was legally married to Sirius, making him the recognized Marquess-Consort of Alnwick. That was one other concession that had been made in the agreement between the two governments in that, since it wasn’t legal in the muggle world, that Remus was considered to be an unrelated commoner, instead of Sirius’s husband.
“I apologize, sir, but I will need you to sign a few extra documents and submit to a few extra security measures, beyond checking your luggage and wand,” the woman at the desk said, as she noted Remus’s werewolf status on his passport.
Sirius’s first instinct was to be upset by that, but a calming hand on the shoulder from Remus had him deflating. Remus was used to it and he expected it, as he could understand MACUSA’s caution when a potentially dangerous magical creature like himself was coming through customs.
“That’s not a problem,” Remus said, as he handed the customs witch his wand for testing, before signing a few extra documents. All of it was pretty routine, honestly, as he knew he’d had to jump through a few extra hoops in order to even get his passport back home. Although it was fewer after Arcturus and Augusta had stepped in to help expedite things for him.
Their influence in the United States, however, was nil. Like its muggle counterpart, MACUSA didn’t recognize titles of nobility. They did give them VIP treatment and referred to them by the proper standards dictated by their titles, but it was more out of courtesy than anything else.
Once everyone had made it through customs, they met up with Vernon who had rented a Land Rover in order to make sure there was enough room for the six of them, plus their luggage. Once everything was loaded and they were inside, Vernon shook his head and said, “Driving on this side of the car does feel odd.”
Petunia smiled. “Yes, probably about as odd as driving on the wrong side of the road.”
Vernon nodded. “Indeed, why can’t these Americans be civilized and drive on the correct side? Oh well.”
-o-0-o-
2 August 1988…
Arriving at the Grand Floridian Beach Resort, Vernon parked the car, before everyone got out and grabbed their respective luggage. Entering the resort, Remus and Vernon stayed back with Hadrian and Darius, while Sirius and Petunia headed up to the check-in desk.
As one of the check-in agents became available, Sirius allowed Petunia to go first, opting to wait for the next available agent. With a smile, a middle-aged female employee, whose nametag read Julie, said, “Hello, welcome to the Grand Floridian.”
“Thank you,” Petunia said. “My reservation should be under the name of Dursley-Potter.”
Julie nodded, before typing something on the keyboard and looking at the screen for a moment, she nodded and said, “Yes, here we are. You’re in the Grand Suite for two weeks, today through the night of the fifteenth of August.”
“Yes, we’ll be leaving on the morning of the sixteenth,” Petunia said.
“It’s four people in the room according to this?” Julie asked.
Nodding, Petunia said, “Yes, Vernon and Petunia Dursley, our son Darius Dursley, and our nephew, Hadrian Potter, the Duke of Granston.”
She wasn’t really sure why she’d given Hadrian’s title, but even if it wasn’t officially recognized, it did seem to impress people and garner better treatment. As if the fact that they were booked in the largest of the resort’s exclusive signature suites that cost several thousand a night and were bigger than some people’s houses wasn’t impressive enough.
Meanwhile, about five feet away, Sirius was handling the check-in process for him and Remus, as the agent, a young man named Chic, commented, “According to this, you’re booked for the Victorian Suite, but that can’t be right. I’m sorry for the inconvenience, sir, but I guess somebody goofed up entering your reservation. I can comp you to the Walt Disney Suite at no extra charge if you’d prefer. It’s only available for the first week of your stay, but the comparable Roy O. Disney Suite will then be available for the remainder.”
Sirius shook his head and said, “No, that won’t be necessary, as that is the suite I booked.” He preferred to stay in the same hotel room for the whole trip, rather than have to pack up and move to a different room halfway through and he knew Remus would agree with him.
“Are you sure, sir?” Chic asked, looking slightly perplexed. “The Victorian Suite is one bedroom with only one bed, while the Disney Suites both have two bedrooms.”
Sirius suddenly realized the reason the offer had been made, as the clerk no doubt found it a bit odd that two men would check into a hotel room together that only had one bed. The hotel was in the muggle world, after all, and the prevailing opinion on homosexuality wasn’t always positive.
Of course, it wasn’t just a difference of opinion as there were still places in the muggle world where it was illegal. Sirius knew it had been decriminalized in the muggle UK (1967 for England and Wales, 1980 in Scotland, and 1982 in Northern Ireland), however, he only just now recalled that the same could not be said for parts of the United States, including Florida, which still had anti-sodomy laws on the books.
Before Sirius could say anything, however, Petunia finished up checking in and as she walked over to join the others, she had to pass behind Sirius. As she did so, she momentarily glanced at Chic, her eyes glowing gold for a split second before they returned to normal. She smiled as she heard Chic proceed to check Sirius into the room that he and Remus had booked without any further word on the matter.
By the time Sirius was finished up, all of the luggage had been loaded onto a pair of luggage carts, ready to be taken up to the rooms by two bellhops. Remus just shook his head and rolled his eyes as he spied his husband seemingly purposely walking slowly so that he could see the bellhops’ butts. They were both attractive young men, after all.
Some might be jealous, but Remus wasn’t because he knew that Sirius was a natural flirt and enjoyed looking. As long as that’s all he did—and he wasn’t fool enough to cheat on his werewolf husband—then all was good.
Once everyone was settled into their suites for the night, they ordered light dinners from room service and kicked back. After the long flight, they certainly weren’t going anywhere else today, except perhaps to relax in the bath and then to bed.
-o-0-o-
The following morning, Hadrian and Darius woke at around seven-thirty in the morning. Thankfully, Petunia had placed a charm on their beds which would let them get a good night’s sleep and not have to deal with any of the potentially negative side effects of the time difference.
Of course, the spell also made sure that they stayed asleep until a respectable time, as she didn’t need either of them waking up at seven-thirty UK time and bouncing off the walls in anticipation of going to the Magic Kingdom. Considering that would be two-thirty in the morning Orlando time, they’d be waiting a long time for the park to even open.
Darius’s bed was the closest to the bathroom, so he got to it first. It took him about half-an-hour to finish up since he took his time in the shower, but thankfully there was a half-bath in the suite, so Hadrian wasn’t left in dire need of a toilet while waiting for Darius to finish.
By the time both boys were showered and dressed, Vernon and Petunia were seated at the dining table, along with Sirius and Remus who’d come over from their own suite to have breakfast with the family. Room service had arrived just as Hadrian was getting out of the shower so the food was on the table as he sat down.
Obviously, it was a bit different than what they normally ate at home, since they usually had the full English breakfast at home. But, everyone had gotten used to not having it while on the trips to Mallorca, and enjoyed sampling things that weren’t as readily available in the UK. Hadrian and Darius especially seemed to enjoy the waffles shaped like Mickey Mouse’s head.
As everyone was finishing their breakfasts, Petunia said, “Boys, I need you to understand something before we go to the park, okay?”
“What is it, Mum?”
Petunia sighed. “I don’t want to ruin the park for you, but I also don’t want you to go in with unrealistic expectations. Despite being called the Magic Kingdom, you need to understand that it is a muggle theme park.”
“We know,” Hadrian said, and Darius nodded.
“You do?” Vernon asked.
Darius nodded. “Yeah, we’ve known that for years. Kevin and his parents came here on vacation two years ago. While we were in Mallorca.”
“We know the so-called Disney magic isn’t our kind of magic,” Hadrian said. “But, from what Kevin told us about his trip it still sounds fun. So I see no reason we can’t go and enjoy ourselves.”
Petunia breathed a sigh of relief. She’d been worried that the boys were expecting a park full of real magic, like what was practiced in the wizarding world. And that they were going to be let down when they realized that it was a completely muggle park with all of the so-called magic just being creative uses of muggle technology. It seems she’d worried for nothing, however.
Looking at his watch, Remus smiled and said, “Well, I guess we should head to the park then.”
“Yay!” Hadrian and Darius said in unison, still seeming just as excited as they had since they were first told about the trip.
-o-0-o-
After eating lunch, Vernon and Petunia took Hadrian and Darius to ride the Haunted Mansion for the second time that day. Sirius and Remus told them to go on ahead and they’d catch up with them later, as they decided to go ride the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage ride.
Remus and Sirius were all smiles as they exited the ride. It had definitely brought back some good memories for them, as one of their first dates after they’d finished Hogwarts was going out to the muggle world for dinner and a movie. And the movie just so happened to be a screening of Disney’s adaptation of the classic Jules Verne novel.
Making their way over to an empty bench, they pulled out a park map to decide what they were going to do next. They weren’t due to meet back up with Vernon, Petunia, and the boys until about half-an-hour before their dinner reservation at King Stefan’s Banquet Hall in Cinderella’s Castle.
Perusing their map, they didn’t really notice any of the other guests around them, although eventually Remus looked up because his enhanced senses were telling him of a possible threat. Looking in the direction that he was sensing he saw two women, a man, and a female toddler. Remus wasn’t getting any impression of possible danger from one of the women, but the other three… he could almost instantly tell that they were werewolves.
“Remy?” Sirius asked, looking away from the map, after realizing that Remus had stiffened up slightly.
Remus ignored his husband for a moment, as he briefly made eye contact with one of the women, a beautiful woman with long brown hair. She almost immediately pulled out her wallet and handed some money to the man with her, who knelt down and picked up the toddler.
Focusing his hearing, Remus heard the woman say, “Peter, take Laura and get some ice cream, please.”
The other woman nodded and added, “And then, if you could, take her to ride Dumbo and It’s a Small World.”
The man, Peter, looked like he wanted to object especially after talk of It’s a Small World, but after a hard look from the other woman who due to the resemblance, Remus thought might be his sister, he sighed and nodded, before walking away with the little girl in his arms towards the ice cream stand.
Once Peter and the little girl were out of sight, the brown-haired woman and the other woman who had long black hair shared a glance before they began moving in Remus and Sirius’s direction.
“Remy?” Sirius said again, before he glanced over and noticed the two women, just as they came to a stop in front of them. Putting on a smile, Sirius said, “Hello.”
“Hi,” the brown-haired woman said. “My name is Talia Hale and this is my wife, Ellen.”
Remus was still quiet, as he looked at the two women, his eyes lingering more on Talia than on Ellen.
“Sirius Black and this is my husband, Remus.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Ellen said, before she looked at Remus and whispered so softly that Sirius couldn’t hear what she was saying, but Remus could. “You needn’t worry, Remus. Talia and I don’t mean you any harm.”
Talia nodded as she looked over at Remus at this and said, “We would like to talk to you, however.” And then looking around, she added, “Perhaps, somewhere a little more private where we can speak freely without whispering?”
Remus nodded before he stood up, prompting Sirius to stand as well. “Our hotel room, perhaps?” Remus whispered. “We’re just across the bay at the Grand Floridian.”
The two women nodded acceptance to that plan. Sirius looked a little confused since he hadn’t heard the whispered conversation, but he trusted Remus, so he quietly followed along as they headed for the docks where they could take a boat across the bay to the hotel.
-o-0-o-
Awhile later, Remus, Sirius, Talia, and Ellen entered the Victorian Suite at the Grand Floridian. Once they all sat down in the living room area, Talia said, aloud so Sirius could hear, as she also allowed her eyes to flash red for a moment, “I’m an alpha werewolf. I think Remus and I sensed each other at about the same time, back in the park.”
“Ah, okay,” Sirius said, beginning to understand now.
Ellen smiled. “I’m not a werewolf, but I am a witch.”
“Sirius and I are both wizards,” Remus said. “And I’m a werewolf, but then I think you both already knew that.”
Talia and Ellen nodded.
After a moment of silence, Talia gave Remus a concerned look and asked, “Why are you drinking that poison?”
“Poison?” Sirius asked, his eyes widening.
“The Wolfsbane Potion,” Talia said. “I can smell the residue in your scent.”
Remus looked confused, as he said, “It helps me keep control during the full moons, makes the transformation less painful.”
“It’s also killing you,” Talia said. “Aconite, monkshood, wolfsbane, no matter what you call it, for werewolves, its poison.”
“Contrary to popular belief in Europe,” Ellen said, “mixing it up as a potion does not negate the plant’s poisonous effect on werewolves. But then, that was the whole point. Damocles Belby has been very careful to hide his true motivations for creating the potion, but if one knows where to look, it can be uncovered.”
“I don’t understand,” Sirius said.
“He’s a member of a secret society that hates werewolves,” Talia revealed. “His mother, sister, and two of his cousins were bitten in the mid-1950s. Unfortunately, his cousins didn’t survive the bite, and his mother and sister were put down by a group of hunters.”
“Obviously, they don’t market it this way,” Ellen said, “but the true purpose of the Wolfsbane Potion is to poison werewolves so that they’re weaker during the full moons and easier to kill. And in the event that they’re not killed, repeated use of the potion will slowly poison them, speeding up their aging process until it kills them.”
“The society’s ultimate goal is to exterminate werewolves,” Talia said. “They’re willing to play the long game to achieve that goal, however. Its why many of the society’s members are often among the chief supporters of legislation in countries all over the world which would setup special government-backed funds to supply the potion to werewolves who couldn’t otherwise afford it.”
Sirius and Remus were quiet for a few moments, before Remus said, “So, I should just allow myself to become a crazed, murderous beast once a month?”
“No, that is not what I’m suggesting,” Talia said. “What you need to do is find an anchor to help you remain connected to your humanity.”
“An anchor can be just about anything,” Ellen revealed. “A person, a relationship with a person, an emotion, an object, a mantra, or even just a given werewolf’s own sense of self. The important thing is that you learn to focus on it during the full moon. It usually takes two or three full moons to master, although it can take longer for a werewolf who has anger issues.”
“In the long run, however,” Talia added, “an anchor is far preferable because it allows you to retain your humanity during the full moon, doesn’t require you to be locked up, and also doesn’t involve ingesting poison that will slowly kill you.”
Not long after this, Talia took Remus into the bedroom to begin training him on how to properly use an anchor to retain his humanity during the full moon. This left Sirius and Ellen in the living room.
“Remus and I don’t get many opportunities to speak to other werewolves,” Sirius said. “Back home, he does have several witches and wizards, all close friends or family, that he considers to be his pack, but he’s the only werewolf in the group.”
Ellen nodded. “Yes, I’ve heard that omegas are far more common in Europe, due to most werewolves not wanting to draw attention to the fact that they’re werewolves due to the anti-werewolf legislation that so many of the European countries have passed.”
Sirius nodded. “I was wondering, do you happen to know if lycanthropy is passed on to one’s children? Back home, I’m the heir to a magical noble family and the current lord, my grandfather, wants me to sire children to ensure our family’s continued existence. Problem is, Remus is terrified of passing on his lycanthropy.”
Before Ellen could respond, Sirius added, “He’s also my first husband and soulmate, so I can’t take another spouse to sire children with, unless I divorce him which is not something I want to do.”
“Yes, lycanthropy can be passed on to one’s children,” Ellen answered. “In a case like Talia’s and mine, where I’m a witch and Talia is a No-Maj werewolf, the werewolf gene is dominant. Our daughter Laura is a born werewolf, but she is not a witch, as it seems that in order to be born as a werewolf/wizard or witch hybrid one needs to inherit magic from both parents. Otherwise the werewolf gene will take precedence and the magic genes remain dormant.”
Sirius nodded. Many witches and wizards would have absolutely no idea what Ellen was talking about when she started talking about genes. Sirius, however, had the advantage of being married to Remus and having been friends with the late Lily Evans Potter. “Well, that’s not going to make Remus happy.”
“I assume Remus is a bitten werewolf?”
“Yes, he was bitten as a child, a couple months before his fifth birthday.”
“That’s horrible that any alpha world target someone so young,” Ellen said. Shaking her head, she added, “Something which might allay his fears, however, is the knowledge that born werewolves do not shift until they reach puberty at around thirteen. They might experience mood swings and an increased desire for meat prior to that, but they will not experience their first shift before then.”
“Yes, I think that might help. I think his main concern was that he didn’t want to have to watch a child as young as he was when he was bitten having to deal with the monthly transformations.”
“Something else that will help lessen the pain of the monthly transformation,” Ellen began, “and that Talia and I have found is almost unknown knowledge among European werewolves that we’ve met, is that it is possible to shift at will, at any time, without the full moon.”
Sirius cocked his head. “I had heard rumors about that. In fact, there’s a rumor that the alpha who turned Remus all those years ago has the ability to shift at will, without the full moon. But we were never sure if that was actually true.”
“It is true, as all werewolves can do it. In No-Maj—I believe you call them muggles—werewolves, they can experience involuntary shifts if they get angry. However, magic seems to temper their emotions so that it doesn’t happen. So, due to the anti-werewolf legislation that many magical countries have passed, most wizard/witch werewolf hybrids never even learn about their ability to shift at will because they are always trying to hide the fact that they’re a werewolf.”
“So these voluntary at will shifts make the involuntary shift on the full moon easier to deal with?”
Nodding, Ellen answered. “Yes, if one frequently shifts at will, it allows the body to adapt and get used to the shift. That’s the main reason for the pain, as the body isn’t used to it and has a hard time getting used to it if one only does it once a month. The more one shifts, however, the easier and less painful it becomes, until the pain almost completely disappears.”
Before Sirius could say anything, Ellen added, “Of course, born werewolves experience far less pain while shifting than bitten werewolves, because a born werewolf’s body develops from the moment of conception to take the shifting into account.
“Obviously, for a bitten werewolf, that’s not the case and thus, their pain level during shifts can be more severe due to their body not being built to accommodate shifting. The body can adapt and get used to it with time, but if one limits their shifting to only once a month, barring the occasional twice a month due to a blue moon, then it takes a lot longer.”
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To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Chapter Five of ‘The Seventh Olympian.’ I hope you enjoyed it. In the next chapter, they’ll probably be back in the UK and there’ll be another time jump to bring Hadrian, Darius, and their friends closer to Hogwarts age.
I know some of you might have been expecting there to be a magical version of Walt Disney World, but the main purpose of their vacation to Florida was to allow Sirius and Remus to meet up with a vacationing Talia Hale. Fans of Teen Wolf will recognize Talia, Laura, and Peter Hale, who were all mentioned in this chapter, while Ellen Hale is an original character.
As for the poll that I’d had running for this story when the last chapter was posted, asking which of twenty-five characters from the crossovers should be magical, the poll is now closed and the results are as follows:
Teen Wolf: Stiles Stilinski: 24, Isaac Lahey: 15, Danny Māhealani: 15, Scott McCall: 13, Jackson Whittemore: 13, Liam Dunbar: 11, Mason Hewitt: 3, Aidan Steiner: 1, Ethan Steiner: 1, Allison Argent: 1
The Vampire Diaries: Jeremy Gilbert: 18, Tyler Lockwood: 15, Matt Donovan: 8, Damon Salvatore: 8, Stefan Salvatore: 6, Alaric Saltzman: 1, Elena Gilbert: 1, Caroline Forbes: 0
Supernatural: Dean Winchester: 21, Sam Winchester: 18, Mary Winchester: 13, Missouri Moseley: 7, Jessica Moore: 2, Ellen Harvelle: 2, Jo Harvelle: 2
So yeah, those characters listed above who received more than 10 votes are the lucky winners and will be witches/wizards in the story.
I’m now accepting submissions on my group for background characters from the other magical schools around the world for the Triwizard Tournament. You can find more info on my group, the address is below.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? I love hearing from my readers, so feel free to contact me in a review, by email (Gmail: jaycolin25), my LiveJournal (JayColin), my group (groups (dot) io (slash) g (slash) storiesbyjayson), or on Twitter @JVascardi. Alternatively, you can also try to contact me via Skype (text messaging only) at jayson (dot) vascardi. Also, don’t forget to check out my Wiki: stories-by-jayson (dot) fandom (dot) com.
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
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Chapter Six:
Malfoy Family Shakeup
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29 August 1989…
“Snivellus? You invited Snivellus?”
Remus rolled his eyes, as he continued preparing the salad course for dinner. Knowing that Sirius expected an answer, he said simply, “Yes.”
“Why?” Sirius whined. “I don’t want him in my house!”
Shaking his head, Remus turned to look over his shoulder at his whining, pregnant husband and asked, “So what did you expect me to do? Invite Fabian to dinner and tell him that he can’t bring his husband?”
“Sounds good to me,” Sirius said, earning a glare from Remus before he groaned. “I’ll never understand what he sees in him.”
Turning his attention back to the salad, Remus asked, “Just a guess, but maybe the father of his son?”
Fabian and Severus had started dating in 1986 after he and his twin had finished their physical therapy and had fully recovered from their comas. After nearly two years of dating, Fabian happily announced his engagement to Severus at the same time that he announced that Severus was carrying his child.
The happy couple were wed in a double wedding ceremony along with Gideon and his girlfriend of two years, Emmeline Vance, in July of 1988. In December, only a week before Christmas, Emmeline gave Gideon a daughter, Laura, while Fabian’s and Severus’s son, Cameron, was born only four days later, three days before Christmas.
“Not saying that I condone this because I don’t,” Remus said, “but if it makes you feel better, you can always make fun of Severus’s weight. He is pregnant again, four months farther along than you are, and likely to give birth any day now, so he’s a lot heavier than normal.”
That brought a smile to Sirius’s face, although it was rather short-lived as he said, “Snivellus better keep that kid in while he’s in our house. I so don’t need him going into labor during dessert… or at any other time while he’s here.”
“I’m inclined to agree,” Remus said, even though it was for entirely different reasons than Sirius’s.
Before either of them could say anything more, the Floo bell rang to let them know that someone who’d been granted Floo access to Number 5’s basement fireplace had arrived. As he continued prepping the salad, Remus asked, “Could you go downstairs and greet our guests? I’m busy with dinner.”
Sirius nodded before he made his way over to the basement door and carefully made his way down the stairs to find Albus, Poppy, and the Flamels, Nicolas and Perenelle, dusting themselves off.
“Welcome everyone,” Sirius said with a smile, as he accepted a bottle of wine from each of them.
Despite Voldemort’s defeat in 1981, the Order of the Phoenix still gathered for regular dinners, alternating who was hosting, and it was the accepted rule that each guest would bring a bottle of wine as a hostess gift. The wine would not be served during the party, but would instead replace the wine that the host was serving. All of the people on the hosting rotation had a wine cellar, so it was a nice gesture for each guest to help replenish what would be drunk during the dinner party.
“Remus is upstairs,” Sirius said, as he gestured for the stairs, figuring that he’d stay down here now until all the guests arrived, rather than going up and down the stairs several times.
Sirius had just placed the three bottles of wine that Poppy, Albus, and the Flamels had brought when the Floo bell rang again. Exiting the wine cellar, he found Alastor Moody, Dedalus Diggle, Elphias Doge, Sturgis Podmore, and his wife, and Arabella Figg waiting.
Greeting them all, Sirius took their bottles just as the bell rang again, as Gideon, Emmeline, Fabian, Severus, Petunia, and Aberforth stepped through the Floo.
Vernon stayed home with Hadrian and Darius, as these dinners were only for the adults, so no children allowed. Thus, Remus and Sirius’s firstborn sons, Regulus Orion and Rigel Arcturus Black, born in May, were spending the evening with their great-grandmother Melania and great-grandfather Arcturus.
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Speaking of Hadrian and Darius, the latter was currently in his and Hadrian’s bedroom on the computer, while Vernon was watching the nightly news in the living room. Petunia had prepared dinner for them before she left and put it under Warming and Preservation Charms, so they could eat whenever they got hungry.
Hadrian, meanwhile, had curled up in his favorite spot in the conservatory. Opening his journal, he started writing.
Hey guys. You there?
There wasn’t an immediate response, prompting Hadrian to set the journal aside, still open to the page he’d written on, and looked out the window. Although he couldn’t really see much, considering the fog that was almost thicker than pea soup and the heavy rain that was currently falling, causing waves of water to flow down the glass roof and walls of the conservatory.
The rain was why Petunia decided to Floo next door to Number 5 for the Order dinner, rather than just walk over as she usually would have this time of year.
Glancing down at the journal, Hadrian saw writing appearing so he picked it up.
Hey Rian. – F
We’re here. I hope you weren’t waiting too long for a response. We just got back to our room after playing Quidditch all afternoon with the sibs and some friends. – M
Oh, cool. No, I wasn’t waiting too long. Maybe two minutes.
You mind waiting a few more? Just so we can change out of our Quidditch gear and grab a shower? – F
Sure, playing all afternoon I suppose you’re probably sweaty, so I don’t blame you for wanting a shower and change of clothes.
Thanks, we’ll be as quick as possible. – M
Take your time, there’s no rush.
A part of Hadrian was jealous that Micheil and Finlay had spent all afternoon playing Quidditch. From what he’d seen it looked super fun and he really wanted to play, but Aunt Petunia said he was too young. Uncle Vernon, not having magic and wanting to keep up a united front, sided with his wife.
Hadrian had, of course, hoped that some of the other adults in his life would side with him, but unfortunately, Sirius, Remus, and the grandparents all agreed that nine was too young. While a small part of him wanted to resent being told he was too young to do something, he also knew that the adults in his life not only wanted him to be happy but also safe and healthy.
Micheil had also told him via the journal a couple of months ago that their parents hadn’t allowed them to play Quidditch until they were twelve. Finlay then added that it was also why Hogwarts didn’t allow first-year students to join the house Quidditch teams.
As he awaited Micheil and Finlay to get back, Harry indulged in some aimless thoughts and daydreams about Quidditch and flying, which had quickly become one of his favorite pastimes since getting his first training broom. After a few minutes of woolgathering, he shook his head and saw writing appearing in the journal.
And we’re back. – M
So what’s up with you tonight? – F
Grabbing his pen and adjusting the journal in his lap so that he could write comfortably, he began writing back.
Just a quiet evening at home. Uncle is watching TV, Darius is playing computer games, and I’m sitting here in the conservatory.
Your favorite writing spot. – F
What about your aunt? – M
She’s next door at Sirius and Remus’s house. The Order is having another of their dinners.
Ah. It’s pretty quiet here too. – F
How’s Darius doing, by the way? He was sick recently wasn’t he? – M
Yeah, he had the measles. Piers and Kevin had it too. They’re all on the mend now though.
Well, you should know that there’s been several confirmed cases of Dragon Pox recently. Dad will be making an announcement in the morning, but he gave us permission to tell you before then if we were in contact with you. – M
Having already been sick recently, Darius, Piers, and Kevin could be at greater risk of contracting it, if they come into contact with a carrier of it. – F
I’ll be sure to let my Aunt and Uncle know about it.
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5 September 1989…
Lucius Malfoy was pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace at Peacock Hill, the traditional home of the Malfoy heir in the Earldom of Bratton. Of course, much to his dismay, he wasn’t living at the house because he was the heir. He was living there because his son was the heir.
Following Voldemort’s defeat in 1981, Lucius was able to avoid Azkaban by claiming he’d been under the influence of the Imperius Curse. The fact that the Dark Mark had faded from his arm after Voldemort’s death also helped, but there were too many known Death Eaters who had named him as a fellow Death Eater that visible mark or not, he’d needed the Imperius excuse.
After some pressure from Grand Duke Theseus Scamander, the liege-lord of House Malfoy, his father, Lord Abraxas Malfoy, disinherited him for behavior unbecoming of the Right Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. Thus, on the night of 2 July 1985—the first full moon following his fifth birthday—Draco Malfoy underwent the Ritual of Confirmation to be confirmed as the Malfoy heir.
Lucius didn’t like it, but he was willing to deal with it while his father remained in good health. He also began a concentrated effort to ingratiate himself to his father so that he could hopefully convince him to restore him as the heir. He’d finally succeeded in doing so only recently.
There was one problem, however.
Before Abraxas could sign the necessary papers or perform the required magical ritual, he fell ill with Dragon Pox and was currently quarantined at Malfoy Manor. Last he’d heard, the pox had left him so weak that he couldn’t even feed himself, let alone sign documents or perform the magic necessary to reverse Lucius’s disownment and restore him as the heir.
Taking a sip of his cognac, Lucius muttered, “You’d better pull through this, Father.”
“You’re not going to get your wish, Lucius,” a male voice said, prompting Lucius to look up and see his great-granduncle Marcel Malfoy standing in the doorway.
“What do you mean?”
Marcel sighed, as he walked over to the liquor cart and poured himself a glass of cognac. Taking a fortifying sip of his drink, Marcel, who had served as the steward of House Malfoy since before his grandnephew Abraxas was even born, turned to Lucius and said, “He’s gone.”
“What?”
“Your father is dead, Lucius,” Marcel said. “And before you ask, no, he didn’t sign the papers before he died. So you are still disinherited and Draco will be the next Lord Malfoy.”
Lucius didn’t say a word as he downed the rest of his drink before he turned and threw his now-empty tumbler into the fireplace, where it shattered on impact.
“Reparo!” Marcel said, pointing his wand at the fireplace and making the broken tumbler reassemble itself. “There’s no need to destroy family heirlooms that are older than both of us combined, young man.”
“Don’t tell me what to do in my own house,” Lucius muttered.
A moment later, he jumped and suppressed the urge to yelp as he felt a particularly strong Stinging Hex hit his bum.
“Respect your elders, young man. And unless you’ve forgotten, this isn’t your house. You may live in it, but you don’t own it. Draco does.”
“He’s just a kid,” Lucius argued. “He’s only nine bloody years old for Merlin’s sake.”
Marcel raised an eyebrow. “Be that as it may, with your father’s death, Draco is now the Confirmed Heir Apparent and will be the next Lord Malfoy as soon as he’s old enough to do the Ritual of Claiming.”
“There must be something that can be done to restore me as the heir.”
“Don’t play dumb, Lucius, it doesn’t become you. You know as well as I do that only the Lord Malfoy can alter who their heir is and since the Lord Malfoy is now dead, Draco is locked in as the heir and that cannot be changed. As I said, he will be the next Lord Malfoy and there is nothing that you or anyone else can do about it.”
Finishing his drink, Marcel put his empty tumbler on the sideboard next to Lucius’s repaired empty tumbler. As he neared the doors, he said over his shoulder, “And I should really hope that I don’t have to say this, Lucius, but even if Draco didn’t survive until his eleventh birthday for some reason, you’re still disinherited and only the Lord Malfoy can reverse that, so even if you were to somehow become the last living male member of the family, you still wouldn’t become Lord Malfoy so long as you’re legally and magically disinherited.”
Lucius didn’t say anything, prompting his great-granduncle to leave the room without another word. Marcel had been correct, however, in stating that he didn’t have to say it. While Lucius was angry that his son would be the next Lord Malfoy, he would never even entertain the idea of killing him.
Not only because that would make Marcel the new Lord Malfoy, followed by his grandson Henri, but despite his anger with the situation, Lucius did still love his son too much to kill him. Even if he didn’t, he wouldn’t do it for the simple fact that Narcissa would make his life a living hell if he did.
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7 September 1989…
Hey guys. Sorry I haven’t written in a few days. It’s been very busy.
It's okay, we understand. Sirius still raging? – M
And how’s Darius? – F
Hadrian couldn’t help but laugh at Micheil’s question, although Finlay’s made him a little soberer.
Darius is okay. The healers say he should be okay to come home in a day or two. He had a very minor case of Dragon Pox, so no lifelong pockmarks or green tinge.
I’m sure he’s very thankful. – F
Definitely. As for Sirius, well, do snitches fly?
We’re both laughing. So, I guess that’s a yes. – M
Yup. Sirius is not the least bit pleased that Severus went into labor just as Remus was bringing out dessert. The fact that it’s been over a week has done nothing to quell his ire.
I can imagine. What does he call him again? – F
Snivellus.
Huh. I don’t really know him that well, as we haven’t had him as a professor yet since he only teaches the NEWT students. But from what we’ve heard, he’s probably the least liked professor at Hogwarts. – M
Which is strange because his husband and brother-in-law are really cool. Starting this year, we have them for Charms and Transfiguration through the end of fifth year and have no complaints. – F
Granted it’s only the first week of school, but I haven’t seen anything that makes me think either Professor Prewett is going to suddenly turn into a horrible professor. – M
Hadrian and the twins chatted for a few more minutes, before the twins said their goodbyes, as they had to head down to the Great Hall for dinner, after which they were meeting some friends in the library for a study session for a while before curfew.
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31 July 1990…
After dinner and presents, Hadrian found himself sitting on a pillow at the feet of his Grandpa Arcturus. Darius was seated next to him, with Chase sleeping peacefully between them, his head resting on Darius’s thigh. Resting on Hadrian’s thigh, was Chase’s tail, which was now slightly shorter than it had been, because as he neared his fifth birthday, his tail had begun to fork at the end, much to everyone’s surprise.
They’d thought he was a purebred beagle, but apparently, he had a little bit of Crup blood in his system, as the forked tail suggested. Taking him to a wizarding veterinarian, they found out that Chase was actually one-eighth Crup. According to the vet, his majority beagle ancestry is why the forked tail didn’t appear at birth, as apparently at a quarter and below, a muggle breed crossbred with a Crup tends to look only like the muggle breed.
Rarely, when owned by a magical family and thus exposed to magic on a regular enough basis, some of the Crup characteristics can come out as they mature, although this is usually limited to increased loyalty to wizards and a small forking of the tail, which wizarding law still required be removed if the dog was going to be living in the muggle world. Thankfully, due to the small amount of Crup blood, Chase didn’t inherit the hostility towards muggles that Crups are known for, as that would have been difficult to deal with, what with Vernon in the house.
“So, grandfather, we were wondering if you could tell us more about not only your mage-sight and what you see when looking at other people, but also some of the other things that are possible to inherit when we turn fifteen.”
Nodding at Hadrian, Arcturus said, “I can do that. Although first of all, I’d point out that fifteen is not the first inheritance you’ll receive in your lives.”
Hadrian nodded and said, “There’s one at eleven and another at thirteen, right?”
With a smile, Pollux, who was seated on the nearby loveseat with his wife, nodded and said, “Indeed. Starting at eleven and then every two years until your seventeenth birthday, you’ll have an inheritance.”
“The first two only raise your power level and magical reserves,” Irma added.
There actually was another aspect that usually occurred along with the inheritance of the thirteenth year, but knowing what Darius and Hadrian were planning on talking to their grandparents about, Petunia asked that they refrain from mentioning it. She believed, and Melania and Irma agreed, that the boys were still a little too young for that particular conversation.
Especially since there was no guarantee about the aspect in question even affecting them. It affected a majority, but not all, so Petunia figured it was best to wait until they were older.
Taking a sip of his tea, which both he and Pollux had laced with a splash of Firewhisky when their wives weren’t looking, Arcturus said, “At fifteen and seventeen, you’ll get larger increases to your power reserves. However, fifteen also marks the age at when any special abilities that you might have been born with will usually activate.”
“There are some exceptions to that rule, of course,” Irma said, as she almost imperceptibly rolled her eyes at her husband for thinking she didn’t know about the addition to his tea. “One is for those rare individuals who are born what’s called a metamorphmagus. Do either of you know what that is?”
Hadrian and Darius looked contemplative, as they thought about it. After a moment, Darius asked, “That’s the ability to change your appearance without a potion or spell, right?”
“Correct,” Irma answered. “Metamorphmagi can often change their coloring long before their fifteenth birthday. Even when they’re still a baby. Although they’re not doing it consciously, as when it happens that young, generally it’s connected to their emotions.”
“Hair color is usually the first thing they can change,” Arcturus added. “Then eye color, then skin color, and finally, and this is usually only after their fifteenth birthday, change the shape of their facial features. Depending on how magically powerful a metamorphmagi is will also determine how far they can take those changes.”
Pollux nodded. “Exceptionally powerful ones may be able to both shorten and lengthen their hair at will and even change their height, build, and weight. Although with that last one that’s no excuse to eat like a pig and not exercise, because as any metamorphmagi will tell you, the changes they make to their body are only temporary. Even the most powerful ones can’t keep the changes intact for more than a few hours at a time.”
“Indeed,” Irma said, “and using their ability gets harder and more magically strenuous the more changes they’re trying to make at once.”
“Of course, another example, as we’ve now learned,” Arcturus said, “is Rigel and Regulus, as while they are born werewolves, their ability to shift won’t activate until their thirteenth birthday.”
Hadrian and Darius nodded but remained silent.
Arcturus continued, “So on the topic of mage-sight, as I’ve told you before, it allows me to see auras. That is I can actually see the magic emanating from every witch or wizard and from that I can judge their pool of reserves, how much magic they’re likely to be able to put into their spells, and even when they’re casting silently and wandless, I have some advance warning of what they’re going to cast.”
“That’s so cool,” Darius said.
“It does have its advantages,” Arcturus agreed. “Anyway, most people’s auras are a mix of three different colors: white, grey, and black. Some have far more of one than the other two, although it’s rare that anyone would have all of one and none of the other two.”
Melania nodded, as having been married to Arcturus for over fifty years, she was almost as much an expert on mage-sight as he was from their numerous conversations about it over the years. “The colors are associated with the type of spells one casts. White is light, gray is neutral, and black is dark. That’s why almost nobody has all of one and none of the other two, because well over half of the spells that exist are neither light nor dark.”
“Notice that Melania did not say good or evil,” Pollux said. “It’s important that you understand that no spell is inherently good or evil. It all depends on how the spell is used… so the intent of the caster.”
“Even the Unforgivables?” Darius asked.
“Yes, even the Unforgivables,” Pollux answered. “The Killing Curse, for example, was invented by a wizard who wanted to put an end to his wife’s suffering. She had an incurable magical wasting sickness which would slowly kill her but left her in excruciating pain. They both wanted a quick and painless way to end her suffering.”
“So, what color are our auras?” Hadrian asked.
“Well, for Darius, it’s a mix of white and grey,” Arcturus said. “Which isn’t all that surprising, since almost every spell that could add any black is well beyond the level that either of you would be to cast without a wand.”
Taking a sip of her tea, Melania said, “If you’ve ever seen a tree stump after a tree is cut down, you’ll see the rings on the stump, which is an indicator of how old the tree was when it was cut down.”
Darius and Hadrian nodded, before she added, “Something very similar is true for one’s magical aura, as it manifests with a series of visible rings which can be used by one with mage-sight to determine how powerful that witch or wizard is, which is a measure of how big their reserves of power are.”
“So how big are my reserves?” Darius asked.
Arcturus smiled. “Well, Darius you are, in fact, one of the most powerful young men your age that I’ve ever seen. One’s magical ability is ranked on a scale from 1 to 48, with 1 being a muggle having no magical power, 7 being a wizard and the minimum required to attend any of the world’s magical schools, and 48 being what’s called an archmagister, which from everything we know about magical theory, is the highest possible rating that a mortal can achieve without divine intervention.”
“So where do I fall?” Darius asked a slight note of impatience in his tone.
Arcturus ignored it, however, as he said, “As you might have guessed from my referring to 48 as an archmagister, each number has a name associated with it. You’re what’s called a sage, Darius, which is a 21 on the scale. Out of all your current friends that I’ve met, only Hadrian, Princes Micheil, and Finlay, and Neall and Niall MacDougal are stronger than you.”
“Well, they’re all older and have had some of their inheritances, so I guess that makes sense,” Hadrian commented.
“It’s more than that, Hadrian,” Pollux said. “Micheil and Finlay, and Neall and Niall are conjoined twins. Living here in the muggle world, you’ve probably noticed that conjoined twins are extremely rare and when they are born, they’re frequently surgically separated, even if it may mean the death of one or both twins. They’re seen among muggles as an abnormal aberration, the result of a birth defect that needs to be fixed.”
“In the magical world, however, conjoined twins are far more common,” Irma said. “And rather than seeing them as an aberration, any wizarding family that grew up in a magical household instead sees them as a gift from the embodiment of Magic itself, whether that be Lady Hecate, or whichever deity governs magic in the pantheon that they worship.”
“The reasoning behind that is very simple,” Melania said. “Conjoined twins are still two people, so they, just like every other witch or wizard who isn’t conjoined, has their own magical core, which is the invisible font of magical power deep within their very being from which their magical aura emanates. For conjoined twins, however, their cores are interconnected in such a way that from birth they can both draw on the power of not only their own core but their sibling’s core as well.”
“That effectively doubles their magical power and reserves,” Arcturus said. “And because how much magic a given witch or wizard possesses depends partly on how magically powerful their parents were, conjoined twins, are extremely highly prized because they can almost single-handedly bring strong magic back into a waning line.”
Irma grinned and said, “The muggle expression of having to beat suitors off with a stick definitely applies in this case, as magical conjoined twins will never have any problems finding mates in the magical world.”
Hadrian and Darius nodded in understanding, both happy for their friends that they wouldn’t have any problems finding mates in the future.
“So, Darius is a sage, what am I?” Hadrian asked. “And what does my aura look like?”
“As I said, you’re stronger than Darius, Hadrian,” Arcturus answered. “I’ve very rarely seen someone your age who isn’t a conjoined twin have this amount of power before their first inheritance. The same can be said for Darius. You’re a twenty-four on the scale, Hadrian, or a Master Sage. If you’re curious, that’s two levels higher than Neall and Niall and equal to Micheil and Finlay.”
Hadrian grinned as he said, “Cool,” as he looked over at Darius and said in a sing-song voice, “I’m more powerful than you.”
Irma shook her head, “Don’t mock your cousin, Hadrian. Not only is it not polite, but it’s also incorrect. While you might have greater reserves of power, that doesn’t necessarily make you more powerful than him. It just means that you’ve got more inherent magic to draw upon, but with the right amount of training and practice, he could still beat you in a duel.”
“Greater reserves, if used to one’s advantage, can give a dueler a greater chance of outlasting an opponent with fewer reserves,” Pollux added. “However, as my wife said, depending on your training and repertoire of spells, you can still beat someone who’s technically more powerful.”
“Indeed,” Melania agreed. “Ultimately, one’s power reserves are as useless as a heavy winter cloak on a hot summer’s day if you don’t know how to use them properly. Or if you’re weak on defense against an opponent that’s strong on offense.”
Hadrian nodded. “Okay, that makes sense. So what color is my aura?”
“Your aura, Hadrian, is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before,” Arcturus said. “You’ll remember that I said auras manifest in white, grey, and black?”
Hadrian and Darius nodded attentively.
“Hadrian’s aura, and don’t ask me to explain because I can’t,” Arcturus said, “is mostly white and gray, but there’s also swirls and lines of brilliant gold, that I’ve never seen before in anyone else. And nothing I’ve ever read on the subject has mentioned it, so I honestly don’t know what it means.”
“Cake time!” Petunia’s voice carried into the room from the dining room, as the adults simply grinned as they watched Hadrian and Darius get up so fast you’d think the pillows they were seated on had burned their bums.
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To be continued…
Notes:
And there’s Ch6 of ‘The Seventh Olympian.’ Next chapter, there’ll be another time jump and Hadrian and Darius will start Hogwarts. I’m not currently sure how many chapters each school year will take to cover, but I’m going to try to keep it limited to 3 to 5 between time jumps and only covering major events.
I also still have to work out exactly what to do for third-year since Sirius never went to Azkaban in this story. Considering the main plot of third-year in canon was Sirius’s escape from Azkaban, that does pose something of an issue.
Anyway, I’m still accepting submissions for students from the world’s other magical schools on my group who will be part of the delegations for the Triwizard Tournament, which will include every magical school in the world, as all 8 of the canon schools that JKR has given details about, plus 4 of my own creation, will be bringing delegations for the Tournament.
As of the time of this writing (April 24, 2020), 9 spots are remaining for the Durmstrang delegation, 7 spots for Beauxbatons, 1 spot for Ilvermorny, 9 spots for Castelobruxo, 11 spots for Koldovstoretz, 10 spots for Mahoutokoro, 11 spots of Uagadou, 7 spots for Maliton, 10 spots for Esliderra, 10 spots of Machapuchare, and 11 spots for Takonia (the last four being the schools I created).
You can get more details on my group, including where each school is located, what areas of the globe they serve, and the information I need for character submissions. In addition to viewing the submissions that have already been submitted.
https://groups.io/g/storiesbyjayson
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Seven:
Letters from School
-o-0-o-
1 July 1990…
Eleven-year-old Dean Winchester was lounging on the bed he shared with his little brother, seven-year-old Sam, in a rather seedy and rundown motel on the outskirts of some podunk town that was basically in the middle of nowheresville. Or at least as far as Dean was concerned. He knew they were somewhere in Wyoming, but other than that he honestly hadn’t paid much attention nor did he really care.
They were in town because his father, John, was off on another hunt. There’d been reports of a restless spirit haunting the local church. Or was it a school? Dean couldn’t remember, because honestly, he was annoyed that his father didn’t take him along and instead just made him stay in the motel room with Sam. While he went out and had all the fun.
Dean loved his brother, although sometimes he really wanted to get away from him because he didn’t think it was normal for a four-year-old to basically raise a baby. This is pretty much what Dean had been doing since Sam was six-months-old and their mother was killed by the Yellow-Eyed Demon. Dean was pretty sure that he’d changed more of Sam’s diapers and handled more 3 AM feedings in his young life than John ever had.
‘I potty-trained the little runt and taught him how to walk and talk,’ Dean thought. ‘How is that my job? I’m his brother, not his father.’
Dean was very careful when teaching Sam how to talk to not teach him the words father or dad. As far as Dean was concerned, if John wanted him to know those words, he could teach him. But he wasn’t going to risk Sammy calling him dad.
Speaking of, Sam was currently lying on his stomach on John’s bed, his feet up in the air and his chin on one hand, as he read a book. Yeah, that was another thing that Dean had to teach him. Well, Sam’s kindergarten teacher did most of the work, but Dean had made sure his little brother could at least read and write his own name before starting school.
Dean sighed. There was no point in dwelling on his dad’s actions or lack of them in certain regards. And Dean did understand what drove John. He wanted to find and kill the son of a bitch demon that had killed Mary and burned down their house in Lawrence, Kansas. He could support that. If getting revenge on old Yellow-Eyes meant that he had to raise Sam then so be it. It was a small price to pay to see the mother that Sam didn’t even remember avenged.
Tuning out his thoughts, Dean instead decided to focus on the music that was currently being piped into his ears through his Walkman’s headphones. Totally losing himself in Metallica, he didn’t notice when there was a tapping noise on the window of the motel room or when it caused Sam to look up from his book.
Seeing that Dean was preoccupied, Sam got up and moved over to the window. Pushing the curtain aside, he practically fell over in shock when he saw an owl seated on the windowsill, tapping its beak against the glass. If that wasn’t enough of a shock for young Sam, however, then the fact that the owl had an envelope tied to its leg certainly was.
Squinting down at the envelope, Sam was able to make out the writing after a moment.
Mr. D. Winchester
Left Bed of Room 12
North Star Motel
Bedford, Wyoming 83127
“Dean? There’s an owl outside the window,” Sam said. “With a letter addressed to you.” Turning his head to look at his brother, Sam asked, “Dean?”
Dean wasn’t listening though. Not that Sam was surprised. Even from his place by the window about ten feet away from where Dean was on the bed, he could hear Metallica blasting through his brother’s headphones loud enough that he could hear the lyrics of the song even though he wasn’t the one wearing the headphones.
Sighing, Sam clambered over to the bed he shared with his brother and positioned himself just to the right of Dean’s body, before putting his face right over his brothers as he said, “Dean!” as he shook his brother’s shoulder.
“What now, Sammy?” Dean asked, as he paused his music and took off his headphones. He was seriously tempted sometimes to call his brother a bitch, but he restrained himself since Sam was only seven. “If you’re hungry there’s leftover pizza in the mini-fridge.”
Sam wrinkled his nose. “It’s got jalapenos on it. Besides, I’m not hungry. I was trying to tell you that there’s an owl outside the window and it has a letter addressed to you.”
Dean was silent for a moment before he sat up and grabbed Sam’s head as he began examining it for any sign of head injury. Finding none, he said, “Well, I don’t see any lumps or bumps, so you don’t appear to be hurt.”
“Duh,” Sam said. “Just look out the window if you don’t believe me.”
Deciding to humor his little brother so that he’d go back to reading and let him get back to his music, Dean got up from the bed and moved over to the window, now hearing the tapping noise on the glass. Pushing back the curtain, Dean’s eyes widened as he saw that Sam was, in fact, not crazy.
An owl was sitting on the windowsill, tapping its beak on the windowsill, and looking closer, he noted that just as Sam said, it had a letter addressed to him tied to its leg.
“See, I told you,” Sam said as he reached over to the window latch.
Dean caught his hand midway there, however, and said, “Whoa, Sam, what do you think you’re doing. If you or the owl breaks that salt line, Dad will kill you. Besides, how do we know that’s actually an owl? It could be some sort of shapeshifter trying to trick us.”
Before Sam could respond, the motel room’s phone started ringing, making both boys jump. Not trusting Sam to not open the window while he went to answer the phone, Dean put his little brother in a headlock and dragged him over to the nightstand with him, where he grabbed the phone.
“Yes?” Dean asked into the phone.
“Dean, it’s Dad,” John’s voice said. “Just finished with work and I’m heading back. Should be there in twenty minutes. You guys want me to stop for McDonald’s or something?”
“Sounds good, Dad,” Dean said before he reminded his Dad of his and Sam’s preferred orders. “Oh, um, Dad, before I let you go…”
“Yeah, Dean?” John asked.
“Not sure what it means,” Dean said. “But an owl is sitting on the windowsill outside of our room, tapping its beak on the glass. It has a letter addressed to me tied to its leg.”
John was silent for a long minute, before he said, “Right. Leave it where it is for now. We’ll deal with it when I get back.”
“Okay, Dad, see you soon then,” Dean said before he hung up.
Letting Sam go, Dean said, “Dad says to leave the owl where it is for now. He’ll be back in about twenty minutes, he’s just gonna get us McDonald’s.”
Sam rolled his eyes. “Funny enough I figured that out when you told him to get me a happy meal.”
Patting Sam on the head as if he was a dog, Dean said, “Just sit down and read your book, squirt. We’ll wait for Dad.”
Sam shoved Dean’s hand away and grumbled slightly, but did as he was told. The insistent tapping on the glass was kind of distracting, but he did his best to put it out of his mind, as Dean put his headphones back on.
Although this time, Sam noted that Dean only put the left one over his ear, leaving the right one behind it so that he presumably would be able to hear the Impala when it pulled into the parking spot outside their room. Metallica was soon blasting through the headphones once again.
About twenty-five minutes later, Dean turned his music off and both boys moved over to the window as they heard the unmistakable sounds of the Impala. Looking out the window, they watched as John got out of the car, leaving the bag of food and a drink holder with three drinks on the hood.
Approaching the owl from behind, the owl just kept tapping its beak against the glass. Pulling a small glass vial from inside his vest, John opened it and dumped the contents—which Dean and Sam knew was holy water—over the owl’s head. It turned its head to look at John and gave a somewhat disgruntled sounding hoot before it shook out its feathers to dry.
Since the owl passed the holy water test, John figured it must be safe, so he went back to the car, got the food and drinks, and then went to the door of the motel room and opened it. Seeing its chance to make its delivery, the owl spread its wings and flew through the now open door, landing on the small table under the window where the two boys were.
Dean and Sam stood there frozen, not sure what to do, as John walked into the room, careful not to disturb the arc of salt that was placed in front of the door in such a way that opening it wouldn’t disturb it. Stepping over the salt line and closing the door, John said, “It’s safe, Dean. Take your letter.”
Both boys were confused when their father looked directly at the owl and said, “You can wait for a reply, I assume?”
Dean and Sam were even more confused when the owl seemed to understand what John said and nodded its head up and down as if to say yes to John’s question.
Seeing Dean’s hesitance, John said, “Go ahead, Dean. As I said it’s safe and honestly I was rather expecting you to get such a letter this summer.”
Raising an eyebrow, Dean looked first at John, then at Sam, and the shrugged, as he untied the letter from the owl’s leg and looked at it for a moment. He raised his eyes when his dad held out a small silver knife. Taking it, Dean slit the envelope open and handed back the knife, before taking two sheets of paper out of it.
“What’s it say? Who’s it from?” Sam asked. “Who the hell uses owls to deliver mail?”
“Might as well read it aloud, Dean,” John said. “It’ll probably help answer Sammy’s questions.”
Dean nodded as he unfolded the two sheets of paper and looked down at the top sheet. His eyebrows furrowed when he saw the first line and looked up at his father, who just nodded his head.
Looking back down, Dean read aloud.
ILVERMORNY SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Headmistress: Seraphina Picquery
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Archsorceress, Former President, MACUSA, Delegate, International Confed. of Wizards)Dear Mr. Winchester,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment, as well as contact information should you require a guide to where you can buy said books and equipment, or if you require financial assistance to purchase your supplies and/or pay your tuition.
Your first term begins on September 1, 1990. We await your reply owl by no later than July 31, 1990.
Cordially yours,
Percival Graves
Deputy Headmaster
“Witchcraft and Wizardry?” Dean asked. “What?”
“Calm down, Dean,” John said. “This type of magic is not evil. I know we’ve hunted witches before, but those were witches who had gotten their power from demons. Ilvermorny does not teach those people. They only teach people who are born with magic.”
After a moment of silence, John said, “People like your mother and you, it would seem.”
“Mom was a witch?” Sam asked, eyes wide.
“Yes,” John said. “The entire Campbell family was, in fact. They’re not one of America’s twelve original magical families, but pretty close to it. For those who are born with magic, only women are called witches. Men are called wizards, or sometimes warlocks. You can see the difference I’m sure, as everyone who gets magic from a demon deal, regardless of their gender, is called a witch.”
Dean and Sam nodded, before Dean said, “So you’re saying that I’m a wizard and that I was born with magic?”
John nodded. “Yes, Dean. You wouldn’t be invited to attend Ilvermorny if you didn’t have magic. Don’t worry, I’m not upset. I’ve known for years now, ever since your mother and I got married, that she was a witch and that our children were likely to have magic as well. So, I’ve had over a decade to digest and accept it.”
“How can I have magic and not know about it?” Dean asked, obviously confused.
John smiled. “Before age eleven, magic tends to be more wild and uncontrolled. It needs time to settle, which is why all the magical schools in the world wait until students have turned eleven to invite them to attend.”
“All of the magical schools in the world?” Sam asked, eye wide. “There’s more than one?”
“Yes, Sam there’s twelve of them in all,” John answered. “They all serve different parts of the world. There’s two that serve the North American continent. Ilvermorny in Mt. Greylock, Massachusetts and Maliton in Vancouver, Canada.”
“How is it decided who goes where?” Sam asked.
“From what Mary told me,” John answered, “all students born east of the Mississippi River go to Ilvermorny, while students born to the west of the Rio Grande attend Maliton. As for the area between that, the two schools work it out somehow with magic. I don't fully understand it myself. Though your grandfather Samuel told me once that both schools do legacy admissions. So, if a student born in the area east of the Rio Grande and west of the Mississippi has parents that attended Ilvermorny, they get signed up for Ilvermorny.”
“I take it Mom went to Ilvermorny?” Dean asked as he imagined a map of the United States in his head. Geography was one school subject he’d always excelled at if only because of the frequent road trips all across the country that he'd been taking with his Dad and Sam since he was four. He knew that Kansas was in the area between the two mentioned rivers.
“Yes, the Campbells have been attending Ilvermorny since back before the Revolutionary War,” John said. “Your mother was a Pukwudgie.”
“A puck-what?” Dean asked.
“Pukwudgie,” John said, with a smile, as he’d said exactly the same thing to Mary years ago when she’d first told him. “It’s a magical creature that appears in some North American native folklore, particularly among the Wampanoag people. It’s a small human-shaped creature, about two to three feet tall, but with a larger nose, ears, and fingers. It apparently also has smooth, gray skin that sometimes glows.”
“I’ve seen pictures of Mom and that doesn’t sound anything like her,” Sam said.
John laughed. “True, Sammy,” as he began handing out their food so that they could eat it while it was still hot. “Ilvermorny is a boarding school, which means you live there during the school year. So, they have four dormitories called houses, which are named after magical creatures: Pukwudgie, Horned Serpent, Wampus, and Thunderbird.”
Nobody said anything for a moment, as Dean nodded somewhat absentmindedly as he lifted a French fry to his mouth. Before he could eat it, however, the owl flew over and grabbed it out of his hand.
“Hey! That’s mine!” Dean protested.
“You can have a couple of mine, Dean,” John said. “If that owl flew all the way here from Massachusetts, it’s probably a bit tired and hungry, so you can’t really blame it for wanting something to eat or drink.”
As he said this, he tore off the top of the box that his Big Mac came in and put a couple more fries in it and set it on the table, before going into the bathroom and took the wrapped bar of hand soap out of the small bowl next to the sink and filled it with water for the owl. It hooted in appreciation as John returned and set it on the table.
Nothing else was said for a few minutes, as the three Winchesters and the owl ate their food. When he was finished, Sam saw that the owl had emptied the small bowl, so he took it back to the bathroom and refilled it. Since the owl immediately started drinking again, Sam assumed that it was appreciated.
“Anyway, Dean, to expand a little on your earlier question,” John said, “has anything strange ever happened to or around you that you couldn’t explain? I’m not talking about anything related to the things we hunt or your mom’s death. I mean other things, like when I’m not around and you’re alone with Sam.”
Dean cocked his head to one side, as he said, “Well, now that you mention it, there were a few times when Sam was much younger that I wished the smell coming from the bag of his dirty diapers would go away and it did.”
“Dean,” Sam whined, not liking that particular subject to be discussed.
John smiled. “You were probably unknowingly responsible, Dean. You likely used accidental magic to vanish Sam’s dirty diapers and thus the smell.”
“Come to think of it, I seem to remember sometimes finding the bag empty,” Dean said, after a moment. “I thought I must have emptied it and forgot.”
“Can we please talk about something else?” Sam asked. “Really anything else? Just not that!”
John laughed, as he reached over and messed up Sam’s hair before he opened the bedside drawer and grabbed a pen with the motel’s name on it, and some of the complimentary stationery and envelopes inside it.
Looking over at Dean, he asked, “I assume you want to go?”
Seeing this as his chance to get away from babysitting Sam for a while, Dean nodded. “Yes.”
John nodded, as he penned a quick note.
Dear Mr. Graves,
My son, Dean Winchester, accepts his invitation to attend Ilvermorny. As you can see from the stationary, we’re currently in Wyoming, but will be heading back to the east coast in the morning. My late wife told me of a magical shopping district in New York City that I assume has everything he’ll need so we’ll head there. Driving from Wyoming, we should be there in a few days.
As a No-Maj myself, a guide to take Dean shopping would be much appreciated. Financial assistance isn’t required, however, as my wife’s late parents setup trust vaults for both my sons to use for their magical educations, as they assumed they’d both turn out to be wizards.
Sincerely,
John Winchester
Folding up the letter, John put it in an envelope which he addressed as:
Dep. Head Graves
Ilvermorny School
Mt. Greylock, MA
Sealing the envelope, he turned to look at the owl and asked, “Are you ready for the return trip or would you like some more time to rest?”
The owl answered John’s question by picking up the string in its beak that had tied Dean’s acceptance letter to its leg and flying over to John, holding out its leg.
“I take it that means you’re ready to fly?”
The owl bobbed its head up and down, so John secured the letter to the owl’s leg and then walked over and opened the door, closing it after the owl flew out.
-o-0-o-
The Winchesters arrived in New York City a little over a week later. If he’d driven straight through, John knew that he could probably have arrived sooner, but with two young kids with him, he figured a bit more leisurely pace was in order and thus stopping to take in the sights along the way.
One of those stops saw them spending a day in Gurnee, Illinois, where John took them to Six Flags Great America, as he figured the boys would like that. Which they did and Sam was now carrying around a stuffed Bugs Bunny plush that John won for him playing Skee-Ball.
Through a couple of owl exchanges, a meeting was set up for the thirtieth of June, with Percival saying that he’d send one of the professors and a newly graduated student to meet them in Central Park to take them shopping on Pegasus Street, which was the main magical shopping district in New York City. The entrance was about a block and a half away from Central Park, so it was a convenient place to use as a recognizable landmark meeting place.
Finding the place in the park that they were told to wait, John, Dean, and Sam didn’t have to wait long before an African-American woman in her early-to-mid forties and a white, black-haired teenage boy approached them. Knowing that John was a hunter, Percival had sent a picture of the people he was sending and said they’d happily drink a vial of holy water if it would set his mind at ease.
“John, Dean, and Sam Winchester?” the woman asked. “Professor Graves sent us. I’m Professor Sheila Bennett and this is Rafael McCall.”
John nodded but didn’t respond verbally, just reaching into his pocket and pulling out two small glass vials which he held out to the pair. Having been warned ahead of time, they just took a vial each and downed them.
When they didn’t burst into flames or show any distress from drinking the blessed water, John said, “I’m John Winchester and these are my sons, Dean and Sam.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Sheila said, as Rafael nodded. “Shall we get going? Our destination is about a block and a half away. So not far.”
John nodded before he and his sons followed the pair, who led them into a more thickly wooded area of the park where there were very few people around. Pulling out a wand from her left sleeve, Sheila said, “I’ll need to cast a spell on you, Mr. Winchester. Both Dean and Sam are wizards, but since you’re a No-Maj, you won’t be able to see our destination unless I cast a spell on you that overrides the protections that hides it from No-Maj view.”
“Very well,” John said, as he’d also been warned of this in the letter from Percival.
As Sheila cast the spell on John, Sam, in an awed tone, asked, “I’m a wizard too?”
Rafael, who had graduated from Ilvermorny towards the end of the first week of June, knelt down to Sam’s level and nodded. “Yeah, Sam, you are. You see there’s a book at Ilvermorny which records the names of all magical children born in the section of the US that we serve, or legacies who had at least one parent attend. It’s automatic, so as soon as you were born your name went down in the book as a future student. Professor Graves checked it and your name is down for the incoming class of 1994.”
“Cool,” Sam said.
“Yeah, it is quite cool,” Rafael agreed, as he stood back up, as Sheila put her wand away.
They were soon making their way out of the park and traveling the block and a half away to their destination, which turned out to be an old building nestled between a pair of brownstones that really stood out in modern-day New York City, as it looked like it was built in the 1600s.
“The Laughing Unicorn Inn?” Dean asked.
“Yes, we can talk more freely once we’re inside,” Sheila said before they made their way across the street and through the door of the ancient-looking establishment, which was completely hidden from the view of anyone who didn’t have magic.
Of course, being that this was America, where such things happened way more than they did in Europe, there were also charms to prevent those with fake magic—that is the so-called magic granted by demons—from seeing it.
Walking inside, all three Winchesters felt like they’d stepped backward in time, although to be fair, the interior of the establishment didn’t look as old as the exterior. There was a more 1920s art deco vibe than the seventeenth-century exterior would have suggested.
Motioning towards a corner table, the group sat down, as the arrangements that John had made with Percival called for them to eat lunch before going shopping. With the guides being able to answer any questions the Winchesters had while eating.
One of the servers came over with a tray of glasses with ice water, which he passed out, before giving them menus to peruse. He returned five minutes later to take their drink and food orders, along with the menus.
As they were waiting for their food, Dean reached into the inner pocket of the denim jacket he was wearing and removed the supply list from within.
ILVERMORNY SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
- 3 pairs of light brown cotton trousers (khaki or similar).
- 3 plain long-sleeved button-down shirts w/ collars (white).
- 3 black waistcoats (i.e. vests).
- 3 pairs of plain work robes (blue w/ cranberry red trim).
- 2 pairs of plain, black shoes for day wear (leather or similar).
- 1 plain pointed hat (blue w/ cranberry red trim) for day wear.
- 1 pair of protective shoes (dragon hide or similar).
- 1 pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar).
- 2 pairs of blue pants or shorts (sweats or similar) for gym wear.
- 2 plain white t-shirts for gym wear.
- 1 pair of sneakers (in white or black) for gym wear.
- 1 winter cloak (blue w/ cranberry red trim and silver Gordian Knot fastenings)
Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
- Chadwick’s Charms (Volume 1) by Chadwick Boot
- Introduction to Magical History by Isolt Sayre
- Basics of Magical Theory by Margaret Campbell
- The Basics of Transfiguration by Herbert Fischer
- Essential Guide to Magical Plants and Fungi by Caroline Roche
- Potions: An Introduction by Sheila Bennett
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
- Basics of Dark Arts Defense by Gondolphus Graves
- Intro to Wizarding Society & Culture by Thomas Wilkinson
- Guidebook to Wizarding Careers by Rosanna Grimsditch
OTHER EQUIPMENT
- 1 wand
- 1 wand holster (student’s choice of spring-loaded wand arm or manual off-arm)
- 1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
- 1 basic potions kit (cutting knife, mortar/pestle, etc.)
- 1 first-year’s standardized potions ingredients kit
- 1 apron for Potions/Herbology
- 1 set glass or crystal vials
- 1 telescope
- 1 set brass scales
- 1 Everfull fountain pen w/ anti-loss and theft protection charms
- 14 standard notebooks (2 for each class)
- 1 package of 500 sheets loose-leaf paper
- 1 over-the-shoulder bag (messenger bag or similar) for carrying books and supplies between classes
- 1 standard student’s trunk for supply transport/storage
Students may also bring if they desire, a pet, limited to one of the following: an owl, a cat, a toad, a small dog (weighing under 22lbs/less than 16 inches tall), small non-venomous snake, or other small to a medium-sized bird (finch, canary, parakeet, etc.).
All owls will be kept in the school Owlery. All other pets must have a cage or carrier where they can be kept during class time.
Parents are reminded that no first-year student is allowed their own broomstick.
Yours Sincerely,
Agilbert Fontaine
Chief Attendant of Wizarding Provisions
“So I can get all of this stuff on this Pegasus Street?” Dean asked as he looked up from the supply list.
Nodding, Rafael said, “Yup, as long as you’ve got the coin, the shopkeepers will be more than willing to assist you.”
Dean nodded. “Dad said my grandparents set up education trust vaults for me and Sam, so I guess we’ll have to visit the bank first.”
“Gringotts’ Wizarding Bank will be more than happy to assist you on that,” Sheila said. “Of course, I should warn you, the bank is staffed by goblins. No sentient race is better at managing, making, or protecting money, but they very much dislike having their time wasted. So, be direct, say exactly why you’re there and what you want and do not under any circumstances try to engage them in small talk.”
“Time is money is an adage that definitely applies to goblins,” Rafael added. “Waste their time and they’ll make their displeasure known by making sure you do not get good returns on your investments or by charging you higher transaction fees.”
Looking down at the supply list in Dean’s hands, Sam asked, “Are you the author of Potions: An Introduction?”
Sheila smiled and nodded. “Yes, Sam, I am. Also, if you weren’t aware, Margaret Campbell, the author of Basics of Magical Theory, was your late mother’s paternal grandmother.”
Sam grinned and said, “Cool!”
John and Dean were a bit more subdued in their enthusiasm, but one could still see that they were impressed by the fact that Mary’s grandmother had written one of the textbooks used by the school.
The waiter arrived with their food and drinks at the point, so everyone tucked in to eat. Questions about the wizarding world and magic, in general, were exchanged over lunch before they headed out to the back door of the establishment to an alley which opened up onto a large art deco styled shopping district with all kinds of interesting looking stores lining both sides of the wide tree-lined street.
-o-0-o-
1 July 1991…
Hadrian and Darius were all smiles as they looked down at the letters in their hands. They’d finally come. Their Hogwarts letters. They were finally going to magic school. Which meant they’d finally be allowed to go to Diagon Alley and buy real wands. They were both ecstatic beyond words.
Sirius grinned. “Well are you just going to stare at them are you going to open them?”
Hadrian and Darius grinned, before they flipped the envelopes over, broke the seals, and removed the sheaves of parchment within.
Looking down at his letter, Hadrian read:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)Dear HRH Electoral Prince Hadrian:
We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment, in addition to a letter from the Headmaster in regards to your status in Albion and Iwernia.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Looking over at Darius’s letter, Hadrian immediately noticed that his was addressed simply as Dear Mr. Dursley, and didn’t include the line about a letter from the Headmaster.
Setting aside the letter from Professor McGonagall, Hadrian soon found that the next sheaf of parchment was the aforementioned letter from the Headmaster, which was on the same school letterhead that McGonagall’s letter had been on.
Dear HRH Electoral Prince Hadrian:
Greetings and I do hope this letter finds you in excellent health. I’m writing to you because you will be the sitting Grand Duke of Cambria before the school term begins and I wanted to make you aware of both the provisions which have been made for you due to that status, as well as what the Hogwarts bylaws say on the subject of sitting lords.
First of all, as you will be considered to be a legal adult upon the completion of your Ritual of Claiming, you will be allowed to join the third-year and older students on all scheduled Hogsmeade trips throughout the school year. You will also be exempt from the normal rule which forbids first-years to possess their own broomstick, so you may ignore that line on the supply list, as it does not apply to you.
Furthermore, while you will have a bed in the first-year boy’s dormitory of whichever school house the Sorting Hat places you in, please be aware that you will be provided with a private study that has been equipped with the very latest in secrecy and privacy charms and a secure Floo connection so that you can conduct any family or state business which is required of you during your time at Hogwarts.
You alone will be able to control who has access to your study, although, for safety purposes, your Head of House and the Matron of Hogwarts will be able to override that control in the event of any medical or school emergency which requires that they have access.
Now on the matter of the Hogwarts bylaws, laid down by the Founders of Hogwarts themselves, please be aware that while you are a student at Hogwarts, every effort will be made to accommodate your role in the governance of both Cambria and Albion and Iwernia as a whole. Please note, however, that while inside the classroom, during school hours, and during any school-sponsored event you are still a student.
What this means is that your position does not give you the right to override directives from your professors in regards to your education at Hogwarts. Nor does it exempt you from any point deductions, detentions, or other punishments which they believe your performance and/or behavior warrant.
While he did not live to see the founding of Hogwarts, the sainted King Arthur I Pendragon did foresee the founding of our great school. Thus the bylaws pertaining to sitting lords, while written by the Founders, are based entirely upon the words of Albion and Iwernia’s last non-elected, hereditary absolute monarch and are still magically and legally in force to this day.
I very much look forward to your attendance.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
Headmaster of Hogwarts
“So much for using your position to get out of trouble,” Darius said, as he read the letter from the Headmaster over Hadrian’s shoulder.
“Not that you were thinking of doing that, Darius,” Petunia said, with a warning edge to her voice. “Were you?”
“No, Mum, of course not!” Darius quickly said.
Petunia shook her head, not entirely sure she believed him, but didn’t see a point in arguing the point any further. She knew the rules quite well and she trusted that Hadrian and Darius would follow them.
“Well, go ahead and peruse your supply lists so that we know what to buy when we go to Diagon Alley,” Vernon said, prompting both boys to look at their supply lists, which was the second page for Darius and third for Hadrian.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
- Student’s choice of three pairs of cotton or linen trousers (black) or three kilts (red and black tartan). Or any combination thereof, as long as you have three minimum.
i. Note: If you opt for a kilt, you must wear underwear. Points will be taken and detention given for any boy caught displaying their genitals by not wearing anything under their kilt.- Three plain long-sleeved dress shirts (white).
- Three plain waistcoats (grey).
- Three plain blazers (black).
- Three pairs of plain work robes (black).
- One plain pointed hat (black).
- Two pairs of plain shoes (leather or similar, black).
- One pair of protective shoes or boots (dragon hide or similar).
- One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar).
- One protective apron (dragon hide or similar).
- Two pairs of pants or shorts (sweats or similar, black) for gym wear.
- Two pairs of plain t-shirts (white) for gym wear.
- One pair of trainers (white or black) for gym wear.
- One winter cloak (black w/ silver fastenings).
Please note that all pupil’s clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
- The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk
- A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
- Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
- A Beginner’s Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
- One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore
- Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
- The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble
- Curses and Counter-Curses by Vindictus Viridian
- Essential English Grammar by Beatrice Carter
- Garner’s Guide to Geography by Edgar Garner
- Fundamentals of Latin Grammar by Emily Burgess
- A Lexicon of Latin Vocabulary by Sophia Harrison
- Maths: A Primer by Malcolm Wellard
- A Comprehensive Guide to Mundane British History by Eliza Covington
- Daily Life in the Muggle World by Walter Spray
- Earth Science: A Study by Hope Howell-Lupin
OTHER EQUIPMENT
- One wand
- One wand holster (student’s choice of spring-loaded wand arm or manual off-arm)
- One cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
- One basic potions kit (cutting knife, mortar/pestle, etc.)
- One first-year’s standardized potions ingredients kit
- One ruler
- One abacus
- One set glass or crystal phials
- One telescope
- One set brass scales
- One Everfull feather quill pen w/ anti-loss and theft protection charms
- Twenty-six standard notebooks (2 for each class, minus Flying and Physical Education)
- One package of 500 sheaves of parchment paper
- One package of 250 sheets of scrap paper (for Maths)
- One over-the-shoulder bag (messenger bag or similar) for carrying books and supplies between classes
- One standard student’s trunk for supply transport/storage
Students may also bring if they desire, a pet, limited to one of the following: an owl, a cat, a toad, a small dog (weighing under 22lbs/less than 16 inches tall), a rat, or other small to a medium-sized bird (finch, canary, parakeet, etc.).
All owls will be kept in the school Owlery. All other pets must have a cage or carrier where they can be kept during class time.
Parents are reminded that no first-year student is allowed their own broomstick.
Yours Sincerely,
Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus
Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions
“Daily Life in the Muggle World?” Darius asked.
“That’s the textbook for first-year Muggle Studies,” Remus said. “It’s been a required class for all wizarding-raised first and second-year students at Hogwarts since Dumbledore became headmaster in 1965. Conversely, the muggle-raised are required to take two years of Wizard Studies.”
“Both classes cease to be compulsory after second-year,” Sirius said. “Although you still have the option of continuing them as an elective.”
“Do Darius and I really need it though?” Hadrian asked. “I mean, yes, we were wizard-raised, but we were raised by wizards and a muggle in the muggle world.”
“Hmm, yes, that’s true,” Petunia said. “I believe there is an option for students to test out of the class. When we send your reply owls accepting your places at the school, we’ll just have to ask that you be allowed to take the test.”
“Hermione, Piers, Kevin, and Wayne could probably test out too,” Darius said. “Hermione, Piers, and Kevin are muggleborns, but they’ve been taking wizarding classes with Hadrian and me for years now. So has Wayne for that matter, plus he’s a halfblood son of a witch mother and muggle father.”
“Yes, you’re probably right,” Sirius said. “The compulsory versions of Muggle and Wizard Studies are basically introductory primers to the muggle world or the wizarding world. I doubt there’s much the class could teach any of you that you don’t already know.”
Remus nodded. “Indeed. Whether it be from living in the muggle world or having wizarding friends and classes, taught by no less than the Dukes and Duchesses of Pleinmont and Charlton themselves, there probably isn’t much that the basics class could teach any of you.”
“Can we call them and let them know?” Darius said. “So that they know it’s an option before they send their reply letters?”
Petunia nodded. “Yes, go ahead, although I’d call Hermione, Piers, and Kevin first, as Wayne may well already know of the option through his mother.”
Standing up, Remus said, “You can come next door and use our phone, Hadrian. That way you and Darius can speed things up a bit by being able to make two calls at once.”
Hadrian nodded as he said he’d call Hermione and Kevin, before he and Remus headed out the kitchen door and cut through the backyard to Number 5, even as Darius picked up the phone and started dialing Piers, saving Wayne for last.
-o-0-o-
Two weeks later, Hadrian, Darius, and Wayne were seated around the large table in the Leaky Cauldron’s banquet room as Professor Kenneth Warren—the professor for the compulsory version of Muggle Studies for first and second-year students—proctored the exam to see if they knew enough to be released from the requirement to take the class.
Also present was Professor Martha Mills, who taught the compulsory version of Wizard Studies, as she proctored the test for her class to Hermione, Piers, and Kevin.
All six of them finished their respective tests about twenty minutes ahead of the scheduled time. Hermione spent another ten minutes double-checking her answers, but she finally turned her test paper over, confident that she’d passed.
The two professors told them to go do their school shopping on Diagon Alley and by the time they finished and came back, they’d have their tests graded.
-o-0-o-
The following morning, Hadrian, who’d been too tired after the trip to Diagon Alley to do much of anything, including writing to Micheil and Finlay, moved on his bed so that he was lying on his stomach, his feet up in the air, and his chin resting on the palm of his offhand as he opened his journal with his right hand.
A combination of Darius’s bought with first measles and then Dragon Pox—although he’d been at the pediatric ward at St. Mungo’s for the latter—and Hadrian’s status as a prince had led his aunt and uncle to decide that Hadrian should have his own bedroom. This had led to him moving into what been intended to be the guest bedroom that Vernon’s sister Marge would have used.
Of course, since Vernon had pretty much cut Marge out of his life at this point, she never visited, so the room was pretty much always empty, as the Dursleys didn’t have overnight guests very often. Or at least not with enough regularity that it made sense to have a dedicated guest bedroom.
Opening the journal to a clean page, Hadrian began writing.
Hey guys. So I went to Diagon Alley yesterday. I was just way too tired after all the shopping to write last night. Got all my school supplies now though. Oh and I’ve successfully managed to test out of having to take Muggle Studies. So that’s cool, that I’ll have a bit more free time.
It took a few minutes for a response to come, but when it did, it read:
That’s cool. Mic and Fin will be with you in a couple minutes, they just had to go to the bathroom. – Kaid
That was another development that had happened over the last year, which Hadrian was both happy about and yet at the same time, he found himself feeling a bit jealous. Micheil and Finlay, who’d be turning sixteen in October, had started dating.
Kaid was Kaidan Shacklebolt and he was Finlay’s boyfriend. Micheil, meanwhile, was dating Karter Shacklebolt. Hadrian hadn’t met them in person, although they’d been occasionally writing in the journal, especially if Hadrian asked Micheil and Finlay a question that they didn’t know the answer to but Kaidan or Karter did.
Since they hadn’t met, the only things that Hadrian really knew about Kaidan and Karter were that they were currently fourteen—but would be turning fifteen on the last day of August this year—that they were Gryffindors at Hogwarts, and that they were conjoined twins who were joined in the same way as Micheil and Finlay.
Well, and that they were Shacklebolts. They were the sons of Lord Aurelius Shacklebolt’s son and heir, Kingsley. Which technically made them Hadrian’s vassals, since Aurelius was a baronet and the hereditary Lord-Mayor of Ottery St. Catchpole, which was the oldest settlement in Cambria.
Cool. So how are you two this morning?
Despite any lingering feelings of jealousy, he did want Micheil and Finlay to be happy and Kaidan and Karter definitely seemed to make them happy, so Hadrian was making an effort to be a good friend and be supportive of the relationships. Which included being civil to Kaidan and Karter until they gave him a reason not to be. Although considering who Hadrian was to their family, it was not likely that they would ever do so.
We’re good. – Kaid
Spent the night at DCP with Mic and Fin. – Kart
We were helping them celebrate last night and it got late, so their parents let us spend the night. – Kaid
What were you celebrating?
We’ll let them tell you. They just got out of the bathroom and are coming back over to the bed. – Kart
Morning Hadrian – F
Suppose you want our news? – M
Yes!
We made prefect. Well, technically Finlay did, as there’s usually only one boy and one girl from each year between five and seven. – M
There was a note from Flitwick congratulating us, though, and said that because of our closeness, that the rules were bent slightly, and that Micheil should consider himself a prefect too since he doesn’t really have much of a choice but to do all the prefect duties with me. – F
Yeah, I suppose that much is true. It would be pretty hard for you to do your prefect duties, Fin, if Mic was lounging in Ravenclaw Tower.
Definitely. Anyway, it’s cool that you don’t have to take MS. Not that I’m surprised since you live in the muggle world and your aunt’s husband is a muggle. – F
So did you get your dress robes? – M
Mr. Twillfit is making them. I got all my school clothes yesterday, but the dress robes are a bit more complicated to make. I’ll have to go back for a final fitting, but he said they’ll be in plenty of time for the 25th.
Hadrian would be celebrating his eleventh birthday this year, which was a milestone since it would mean that he’d be doing the Ritual of Claiming and officially becoming Lord Potter and Grand Duke of Cambria. Of course, like the Ritual of Confirmation, tradition held that it be done on the first full moon after his birthday.
Since the full moon in July was on the twenty-sixth, before Hadrian’s birthday, his Claiming was officially scheduled for 25 August 1991.
You excited? – F
It depends on the day of the week it seems. It changes. One day I’m excited, the next I’m nervous… there are even some days that I’m terrified if I’m being honest.
That’s probably to be expected. I mean it’s not every day that somebody does a magical ritual that makes them one of the seven most powerful people in the country. – M
And more powerful than the king of said country. – Kaid
Very true. I mean, while I hope you wouldn’t do it, you and the other Grand Dukes do actually have the right and ability to remove our Dad from the throne before his tenure is up. – F
You don’t have to worry about that. Your Dad has been nothing but kind to me and he’s certainly never given me any reason to even consider voting to remove him from the throne. I mean I can’t tell the future, but my past experience with him would make me think it highly unlikely for him to do anything that warranted it.
Thanks, Hadrian. – M
Yeah, thanks, you rock. – F
Hadrian giggled at that before he resumed writing.
You guys always know how to cheer me up. Anyway, despite my nerves, I am looking forward to my Claiming, if only because it’ll be at DCP and I’ll finally be able to meet Kaidan and Karter.
Hadrian had learned about a month ago that his Ritual of Claiming would actually be taking place in the ritual chamber at Dragon’s Court Palace. Of course, as it turned out, the venue wasn’t because Seacliff Castle was on ward lockdown, which had been the reason why Hadrian’s Ritual of Confirmation had been held at the Longbottom’s Lakeview Castle.
It was actually a tradition going back to the very first Grand Dukes after King Arthur’s death, that each Grand Duke would have their Ritual of Claiming at Dragon’s Court Palace, followed by a grand Claiming Ball. It was for that reason that Hadrian was having dress robes made because much like his Confirmation, he didn’t need dress robes for the Claiming itself.
We’re looking forward to meeting you too. – Kart
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
So here’s Ch7 of ‘The Seventh Olympian.’ I had originally planned to have this chapter end with Hadrian at Hogwarts, but I had the idea of having the appearance by the Winchesters (and Sheila and Rafael) and then I just didn’t think that everything I still wanted to cover with Hadrian in the run-up to first-year would fit while keeping the chapter at a reasonable length.
I know some of my other stories I have written chapters that are more than twenty-five thousand words, and I think one that was even a bit over thirty-thousand, but I’m trying to avoid that these days, as it just seems a little too long. Anyway, the next chapter should end with Hadrian at Hogwarts. There’ll be surprises coming for him both before and after he starts school, so stay tuned.
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Eight:
Grand Ducal Claiming Ball
-o-0-o-
12 August 1991…
Eleven-year-old Neville Longbottom wanted to scream. His grandmother Augusta was insistent that his parents, Frank and Alice, were going to wake up any day now, despite all evidence to the contrary. Walking across the grounds of the Lakeview Castle Estate from where he’d had one of the house-elves take him, Neville found himself approaching one of the estates outbuildings.
In addition to the main castle, there were five other houses on the ten-thousand-acre estate. The two oldest were Undergrove House and Aldersey Hall.
The former was the dower house where Augusta had been in the process of moving to when Frank and Alice were attacked. Augusta’s husband, Harold Longbottom, had died two months earlier and she continued to live in the main castle while some repairs and redecorating were done at Undergrove. With Frank and Alice in St. Mungo’s, Augusta stayed on at the castle to raise Neville, leaving Undergrove empty.
Aldersey Hall was also empty, as it was reserved for the adult heir to the Grand Duchy. If Frank had never been attacked, its where Neville would have moved to upon reaching his majority so that he’d have his own household to raise his family in.
The other three houses on the estate where Whitland House, Northfork Manor, and Lakeside Abbey. Neville’s great-grandaunt Callidora lived at Whitland, while Algernon and Cordelia called Northfork home. Their son Warrick and his sons, Jasper and Jesse, lived at Lakeside.
It was Lakeside that Neville was approaching, as he’d wanted to get as far away from his grandmother as he could and thus had the house-elf take him to the farthest shore of the lake that both Lakeview Castle and Lakeside Abbey were named for.
Once the house-elf left him, Neville looked around and not seeing anyone else around, he gave in to his frustration and screamed.
“Everything okay, Nev?” Jasper asked as he and Jesse stood up from where they’d been sitting behind a nearby tree, which had blocked Neville’s view of them.
Turning to look at his third cousins, Neville raised an eyebrow and asked, “Why are you dressed like that?”
Jesse groaned. “We lost a bet with the Weasley twins.”
Jasper nodded. “So, Neall and Niall let us borrow some clothes and we have to dress like this until school starts.”
Seeing that Neville was about to ask something, Jesse added, “And yes, Fred and George used a monitoring spell, so they’ll know if we don’t and the punishment is even worse.”
“Knowing the twins, I don’t even want to know,” Neville said. He hadn’t really had many interactions with the Weasley twins, but he knew them by reputation and through various noble balls and gatherings.
“So what’s up, Nev?” Jasper asked, as he and Jesse made their way over to where Neville was standing and wrapped their cousin in a comforting hug, as he definitely looked like he needed one.
Neville sighed. “I had a fight with grandmother. She’s just so… obstinate.”
“Ah, I see,” Jesse said. “Let me guess, you finally had enough and confronted her about her delusions where your parents are concerned.”
“Yeah, I did,” Neville said. “She accused me of not caring about them, which is totally untrue. I love them, I really do, but that’s precisely why I think we need to let them go. It’ll be nine years and eight months in less than a week since they were tortured, and there hasn’t been any improvement.”
“And yet if you listen to Augusta,” Jasper said, as the three of them sat down, “they’re going to wake up any day now. Something she’s been saying more and more frequently ever since the Prewett twins woke up.”
“Yes, which makes no sense whatsoever,” Neville said. “I mean Gideon and Fabian at least had several instances where they appeared to be coming out of it before they actually did. Mum and Dad have never given the appearance of getting better even once.”
Shaking his head and letting out a frustrated sigh, Neville said, “All the healers have made it clear that Mum and Dad are not going to recover from their injuries, but does Grandmother listen? No, she insists despite all evidence to the contrary that they’re going to wake up any day now. And yet, despite that, she’s insisting that I use Dad’s wand instead of getting my own.”
“Yeah, that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense,” Jesse agreed. “I mean if what she believes is true—and we’ve all accepted that it isn’t—then surely cousin Frank would need his wand when he wakes up, which would be rather hard if you’re using it.”
Nodding Jasper said, “I’m amazed, honestly, that Augusta would think that you should use Frank’s wand instead of getting one of your own. I mean, she’s Garrick Ollivander’s sister.”
“Yes,” Jesse agreed. “You’d think coming from one of the pre-eminent wandmaking families that she’d know that many wands bond to their first owners and don’t work anywhere near as well for a second owner, especially when the first owner is still breathing.”
Neville sighed. “She couldn’t understand why I’ve given up. Kept saying that Gideon and Fabian recovered and so will my parents. She absolutely refuses to let them go, no matter what anyone says. I suppose there’s not much I can do.”
“You can do more than you think,” a new voice said, as Neville looked up and saw Jasper and Jesse’s father Warrick standing there. “Come, Neville, I think it’s time we had a talk.”
-o-0-o-
25 August 1991…
“I wish you could come, Aunt Petunia.”
Petunia smiled. “So do I, Hadrian. Normally, I wouldn’t miss your Claiming for anything,” she sighed, “but my healer was very clear when she put me on strict bed rest.”
Hadrian nodded, even as Vernon smiled and said, “At least Sirius and Remus will be able to be there this time.”
That much was true, as, after the meeting with Talia and Ellen Hale back in 1988, Remus had stopped taking the Wolfsbane Potions and learned how to use an anchor: his love for his family. Of course, back in 1988 that pretty much only included Sirius and Hadrian. Darius, Petunia, Vernon, Sirius’s grandparents were all friends but Remus didn’t see them as family in quite the same way.
His family had expanded since 1988, however, as he and Sirius now had four sons: Regulus, Rigel, Alphard, and Asterion Black. Needless to say, Arcturus and Pollux were very pleased about the new generation of Black males who could carry on both the family name and its legacy. For Remus himself, his connection to his humanity had gotten ever stronger.
He’d also mastered the ability to shift at will and in so doing gained a level of control over just how much of the wolf came out when he did shift. Previously, the transformation had been a full-body ordeal where he looked more wolf than man, albeit with the ability to walk on his hind legs.
Now, however, Remus could control his transformation. He could still take the form of the bipedal wolf that he had previously, but most of his transformations were now limited to longer sideburns, his fingernails growing into sharp claws, and more beast-like features which still looked more human than wolf.
He was also in full control of his mind and body during these transformations and thus had no desire to go on a killing spree, making it perfectly safe for him to be around humans during this time.
Of course, despite his newfound control over his transformations, one thing that he had no control over was the fact that the full moon still forced him to transform as long as the moon was out. Although, the benefit of being in full control of his mental faculties and being a werewolf-wizard hybrid was that he could use magic, specifically Glamour Charms, to hide his beast-like features and appear to be completely human even during the full moon.
Looking over at the clock on the bedside table, Petunia smiled at Darius and Hadrian. “You two had better get going. The portkey to Dragon’s Court will be going off in five minutes. I’ll be fine, don’t worry. Vernon will be here if I need anything.”
“Yes, go enjoy yourselves,” Vernon said. “Petunia will be fine.”
Hadrian and Darius nodded before they left the master bedroom at Number Four and made their way downstairs to the living room, where Sirius and Remus were waiting for them.
-o-0-o-
The portkey took them to the solarium at Dragon’s Court, where they found Prince Ryan awaiting their arrival. Standing up, Ryan smiled and said, “Welcome.”
“Hey Ryan,” Hadrian said, as he returned the smile. “I almost didn’t recognize you.”
“Well it has been a few years,” Ryan said.
Despite Hadrian and Darius spending a fair amount of time at Dragon’s Court since their first visit back in 1987, they’d spend most of that time with Micheil and Finlay, Alanna, and Carrick, with the Thomas triplets joining them from time to time. This was actually the first time since 1987 that either of them had seen Ryan in person.
Darius nodded. “You were ten when we last saw each other, right?”
Nodding, Ryan answered, “Yup, and I’m fourteen now, so I suppose I have changed a bit in the last four years.”
“Puberty tends to have that effect,” Sirius said.
“Yes, your voice is deeper than it was last time we met,” Hadrian said, as he compared the memory of Ryan at ten to what he saw now. “You’re taller and have definitely put on some muscle.”
“You will too, soon,” Ryan said.
“So I’ve been told,” Hadrian said.
Petunia, Sirius, Remus, and the grandparents had been a bit vague when they’d told Hadrian previously that sometimes witches and wizards could enter puberty earlier than muggles did. In the lead up to his Claiming, however, they finally told him in more detail what they’d meant.
Apparently, there were some magical rituals, the Ritual of Claiming being one of them, that could trigger early onset of the non-sexual aspects of puberty, such as changes in height, voice, and hair growth. According to his guardians and mentors, Hadrian could expect to have a significant growth spurt during his Claiming which would put him in the ninety-fifth percentile for his age, where he was likely to stay throughout his teen years.
Micheil and Finlay walked into the solarium at this point, although because Hadrian was standing with his back to the door to the room, he didn’t see them. Putting a finger to their lips to signal everyone else to be quiet, they snuck up behind Hadrian and threw their arms around him.
Hadrian jumped and momentarily tensed but quickly relaxed when he realized who was holding him, as he could feel a head on either side of his own.
“Hey Mic, Fin,” Harry said.
The twins let go of Hadrian, before shaking hands with Darius, Sirius, and Remus, before they moved over to the two opposing sofas and sat down. Darius, Sirius, and Remus on one, and Hadrian, Micheil, Finlay, and Ryan on the other. After a moment, Micheil wrapped his arms around Hadrian’s shoulders, as Finlay did the same to Ryan.
“So where’s Kaidan and Karter?” Hadrian asked.
Finlay sighed. “They won’t be here tonight.”
“What?” Hadrian asked a note of disappointment in his tone. “Why not?”
“They wanted to be here,” Micheil said. “But they’re currently at home in bed. They haven’t been feeling well for the last day or so.”
Nodding, Finlay said, “They’ve got a cold and are allergic to one of the ingredients of Pepper Up Potion, so they have to get over it the old fashioned way: rest and plenty of fluids.”
“Given that they obviously chose to stay home tonight,” Ryan added. “Not only to avoid getting anyone else sick but also because they want to get over their cold before school starts in a few days.”
“Understandable,” Remus said, as the others nodded in agreement.
-o-0-o-
Heading upstairs to get ready, Hadrian stripped out of his clothes in the bathroom and climbed into the rose water bath, just as he had before his Ritual of Confirmation six years ago. When he was finished, he dried off and made his way into the bedroom, pulling on a pair of light red silken briefs and the nearly see-through robe.
Being a bit older now than he was at his Confirmation, Hadrian had to admit that dressing this way was a bit embarrassing. When he was five, he hadn’t really cared too much, but then again, even though he’d had his Confirmation at the same time as Neville, there were also fewer people present.
This time, however, due to the Claiming Ball, there would be far more people present. And because it was a Grand Ducal Claiming Ball held at Dragon’s Court Palace, pretty much every single lord and their spouse would be present.
With wizards and witches capable of living well into their two or even three-hundredth year, Grand Ducal Claiming Balls were not something that came about often. None of the noble families would want to pass up on the chance to network with the most powerful people in the country.
Of course, such events weren’t just limited to the nobility either, as there would no doubt be several Ministry officials present who wanted to curry favor with the nobility to hopefully advance their careers or gain support for whatever pet project they were pursuing.
In fact, they came about so rarely that even though the King was the one responsible for all international relations, some of the foreign royal families and Ministry officials from around the world also tended to send representatives. Not only for networking and currying favor with the current monarch but also with the Grand Dukes, who as the Prince-Electors chose the monarch—and had the power to remove them.
Thus, everyone, both domestically and internationally, knew that it was the Grand Dukes who were the true power behind the throne. So, it paid to not only be well acquainted with them but to also be on their good sides.
Once he was finished preparing, Hadrian made his way out of the bedroom he’d been given to prepare and across the hall to the sitting room where he’d been told to wait until it was time to head down to the Ritual Chamber.
Hadrian had just poured himself a cup of tea when Neville Longbottom entered the room, dressed the same way that Hadrian was.
“I didn’t know you were doing your ritual tonight too.”
“If my grandmother had had her way, I wouldn’t be,” Neville said before he sighed and elaborated upon seeing Hadrian’s raised eyebrow. “As you may know, my parents have been residents at St. Mungo’s for nearly ten years now.”
Hadrian nodded. “They’re comatose right?”
Shaking his head, Neville said, “No, actually. They were tortured under the Cruciatus Curse until their minds broke beyond repair. They’ve been on life support ever since and my grandmother refused to take them off of it.”
“I take it she was hoping they’d wake up as Gideon and Fabian Prewett did?”
“Exactly. Of course, the difference is that the healers are in unanimous agreement that my parents were never going to wake up. At least with the Prewett twins, they’d shown signs of coming out of their comas over the years. Even if they fell back into them a few times before ultimately waking, they showed positive signs. My parents never did.”
“Past tense?” Hadrian asked.
Nodding, Neville said, “They died this afternoon.”
“Oh Gods, I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks,” Neville said. “Of course, my grandmother isn’t going to be here tonight because she’s not happy with me.”
“Why?”
“She’s been clinging to false hope for years now, against all medical and familial advice. Ignoring what’s best for our family and the Grand Duchy by putting her irrational belief that they’d recover, despite all evidence to the contrary, ahead of everything else.”
Neville sighed heavily as he sat down. “I did what I saw as my duty to not only my family but also the people of North Anglia and petitioned King Logan and the five sitting Grand Dukes to strip my grandmother of her authority to make decisions where my parents were concerned. They took some time to deliberate and conferred with the healers before they acted.”
“I take it they sided against your grandmother?”
“Yes,” Neville replied. “My parents’ life support was terminated two days ago. After nearly ten years there was enough of the life support potion in their systems that they lingered until this afternoon, but there were never any signs of improvement in that time. What little brain activity was still present ceased and their organs all began failing until they died this afternoon.”
Pulling Neville into a hug, Hadrian said, “That couldn’t have been an easy decision to make.”
“No, it was probably the hardest decision I’ve ever made. But, I knew from talking to my grandmother that she was perfectly willing to keep them like that for the next fifty or more years if need be. She didn’t care how many times the healers or the family told her it was hopeless, she dug her heels in and wasn’t going to budge.”
“I suppose the lack of a Grand Duke probably wasn’t doing North Anglia any favors.”
Shaking his head, Neville said as he took a cup of tea that Hadrian poured for him, “No it wasn’t. Our vassal lords were doing their best to keep things running and my grandmother as the Dowager Grand Duchess had some limited authority to make decisions, but nowhere near the level necessary for the Grand Duchy to thrive.”
Pausing to take a sip of his tea, Neville continued, “Without a Grand Duke, the family and the Grand Duchy itself were locked in a state of perpetual stagnation that my grandmother was willing to keep them in for however long it took for my parents to wake up. So, basically, until she died, because they weren’t going to wake up.”
“Well, I’m sorry for your loss,” Hadrian said. “Although in a way, I’m kind of glad that I won’t be doing this ritual alone. If only because it’ll take some of the attention off of me tonight.”
“True, but we’re still going to be the center of attention. Barring premature death due to injury or illness, new Grand Dukes come around so infrequently that this is a very big deal. Once the ball, starts we can both expect to have multiple people wanting to shake our hands and dance.”
Hadrian groaned. “Yeah, so I’m told. Oh well, I guess we’ll just have to deal with it.”
“At least you’ll have your entire family here to support you.”
“Well, not quite. My aunt and uncle aren’t here tonight. Uncle Vernon is a muggle, so with the potency of the magic involved in the ritual, it wouldn’t have been safe for him to be here.”
“Why’s your aunt not going?”
“She’s pregnant with twins,” Hadrian answered. “A boy and a girl. Her pregnancy is high risk enough that her healer put her on strict bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy or at least until she’s passed the necessary viability threshold.”
In the muggle world, the earliest a baby could be considered viable was about twenty-four weeks or roughly five-and-a-half months. In the wizarding world, however, it was different since healers didn’t just take a baby’s physical and mental development into account.
They also looked at magical development, the vast majority of which didn’t happen until after the twenty-four-week mark and stretching on to about thirty-five weeks. The reason for this was that a baby had to be physically viable before they could begin to develop their magic.
Thus healers tended to do everything they possibly could to keep pregnant witches and wizards pregnant until thirty-five weeks, or roughly eight months. The full term was still preferred, of course, but sometimes that wasn’t possible.
“Well, at least your aunt’s reason for not being here tonight is a happy one,” Neville said. “I’m not sure my grandmother will ever forgive me. She’s already moved out of Lakeview and into the dower house, as she didn’t even want to be under the same roof as me. Great-grandaunt Callidora has moved in since even with this ritual technically making me an adult, I’m still only eleven, so she figured I shouldn’t be living in the castle with nobody but the house-elves.”
Setting his cup aside, Hadrian pulled Neville into another hug, which they maintained until it was time for them to start the ritual.
-o-0-o-
Arriving in Dragon Court Palace’s ritual chamber, there were some murmurs of surprise among those gathered. The only ones who didn’t react were the members of the royal family and the five Grand Dukes, who were all aware that Neville was doing his ritual tonight.
For everyone else, they’d been unaware of it as the news of the deaths of Grand Duke Franklin Longbottom and Grand Duchess Alice Longbottom had not yet been announced to the public, due to it happening only a few hours earlier.
Clearing his throat, Logan said, “It is with a heavy heart that I must announce that Lord Franklin Longbottom, the Grand Duke of North Anglia, and his wife, Lady Alice Longbottom, passed away this afternoon in the long-term care ward at St. Mungo’s Hospital. Thus, their son and the confirmed heir of House Longbottom will be joining Heir Potter in performing the Ritual of Claiming.”
Due to the solemnness of the occasion, nobody else said a word as Hadrian and Neville stepped up to the altar and prepared to begin the ritual. With a pop, the Longbottom family’s silver pitcher and basin appeared on the altar next to the Potter’s family’s. Picking up the pitchers, Hadrian and Neville poured the water from within them into the rune-engraved basins.
Unlike at the Ritual of Confirmation that they’d also done together, this time they didn’t speak in unison. Since Neville was a last-minute addition, Hadrian went first.
“I, Hadrian James Potter, firstborn son of Their Most Royal Highnesses Prince-Elector James, born of the Most Noble House Potter, and Princess-Elector-Consort Lily, born of the Common House Evans, come here tonight in the light of the eighth full moon of the one-thousand nine-hundred and ninety-first-year common era to offer my blood in sacrifice to the great god, Zeus, and the great goddess, Hecate, and humbly ask for their blessings as I claim my birthright as Lord and Head of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter and Grand Duke of Cambria.
“Furthermore, I humbly ask the great god, Hades, to allow my parents, who are his subjects in the Underworld, to bear witness to this most solemn of occasions.”
There was a slight rustle of wind as Hadrian finished speaking, and just as it had at his Confirmation, the water in Hadrian’s basin shimmered as the visage of a fancy Greek helmet—Hades’ Helm of Darkness—appeared in the water. A warm breeze blew through the chamber as Hadrian once again felt his parents’ hands on his shoulders.
Hadrian paused here, as Neville spoke the same lines that Hadrian had, only changing the names, houses, and titles where necessary. Out of the corner of his eye, Hadrian could see the smile that appeared on Neville’s face following the warm breeze after which he could no doubt feel his own parents’ hands resting on his shoulders.
Now in unison, Hadrian and Neville both picked up their family athames in their right hands and holding their left hands palm up over the basins, they cut a line down their palms before flipping them over and allowing seven drops of blood to fall into the water.
Once they had, the closed their palms and head them to their hearts, as the droplets swirled in the water turning it blood red. The runes on the basins were now glowing brightly and after a moment, the wind picked up, upsetting their hair, before several loud rumbles of thunder broke the silence, as streaks of lightning flashed through the sky.
The water in both basins began boiling at this point and just before boiling over a thick cloud of smoke rose from each of them. Inside the smoke were a pair of torches with a lightning bolt between them. Barely audible over the wind came the cry of a polecat and the screech of an eagle as the smoky paired torches and lightning bolts flew towards Hadrian’s and Neville’s faces.
Both of them were bathed in bright white light for a few seconds, as a barking dog and the jangling of keys was drowned out by crashes of thunder, as even more lightning streaked across the heavens.
With the magical part the ritual complete, Hadrian and Neville rounded the altar and knelt before the throne on which King Logan was seated. This was the one and only time in their lives that they’d be required to kneel before the King.
Standing up, Logan smiled, and said, “You’ve been blessed and consecrated by the Great Lord Zeus and the Great Lady Hecate.”
Unsheathing the ancient blade of House Pendragon, Excalibur, Logan tapped Hadrian on the shoulders and then Neville.
“Arise, Prince-Elector Hadrian, Lord and Head of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, The Grand Duke of Cambria and The Duke of Granston.
“Arise, Prince-Elector Neville, Lord and Head of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Longbottom, The Grand Duke of North Anglia and The Duke of Aldersey.”
-o-0-o-
Upon leaving the ritual chamber, Hadrian and Neville made their way back upstairs to the bedrooms that they’d gotten ready in to change out of their ritual attire and into their formal robes for the Claiming Ball.
For Hadrian, this consisted of a long, sleeveless tunic in black and gold brocade with golden buttons that was worn over a shimmering light red Acromantula silk shirt with billowing sleeves. A pair of light red satin breeches, white Acromantula silk stockings, and a pair of black basilisk hide shoes with ruby-studded golden buckles covered his legs and feet.
On his hands, Hadrian wore a pair of light red linen gloves and had a black basilisk hide belt with a golden buckle in the shape of the Potter family coat of arms around his waist.
A floor-length black Acromantula silk cape embroidered with intricate gold embroidery and trimmed in light red was positioned over his left shoulder so that it went diagonally across his back and under his right armpit. The cape was held on by a golden tasseled cord held together with a large gold and ruby brooch that was pinned to Hadrian’s tunic about four inches to the right of his neck.
And finally upon his head, was a solid twenty-four-carat gold twelve-inch tall crown with four fleurs-de-lis alternating with four crosses pattée, supporting a single golden arch mounted with a monde and cross pattée. Three-hundred pearls and two-hundred and fifty rubies of varying sizes were studded throughout the crown, with its cap made of royal purple velvet trimmed in ermine.
A simplified version of the crown appeared above the Potter family coat of arms and those of the other six Grand Ducal Houses, marking their wearers as the ruling royalty that they were. Hadrian was just happy that the crown had a Featherweight Charm on it, or else he was sure there’d be no way he’d be able to hold his head up, considering that the crown weighed just under five pounds.
There were also additional spells on the crown which made it impossible for it to be summoned off his head or for anybody but him to remove it. Another rather cool charm kept it sitting straight upon his head, even if he bent over at the waist, the crown would remain on his head until he actually took it off with his own hands.
Neville’s outfit was the same only the light red elements were replaced with a darker red. The rubies in his ensemble were also more blood-red in color, while the rubies on Hadrian’s were a shade or two darker than pink.
“Well, this is it, I suppose,” Harry said as he took a deep breath after meeting up with Neville.
“Yeah,” Neville agreed. “Is it just me or do you feel strange wearing such a large crown on your head?”
“It’s definitely not just you,” Hadrian answered. “This isn’t going to be a normal thing is it?”
“Don’t worry, Hadrian,” Micheil said as he and Finlay arrived, along with eleven-year-old Hannah Abbott and thirteen-year-old Cedric Diggory. “The Grand Dukes only wear their crowns for the most formal of occasions.”
Nodding, Finlay added, “That tends to be limited only to Claiming Balls, their own wedding, their heir’s wedding, the King’s coronation, or certain funerals. For the latter that tends to be limited only to the funerals of a Grand Duke or the King, whether current or former.”
“Cool,” Hadrian said.
Motioning Hannah and Cedric forward, Micheil and Finlay smiled as they said, “Hadrian, Neville, meet Miss Hannah Abbott and Heir Cedric Diggory. Your escorts for the evening.”
Hannah curtsied as Cedric bowed to Neville and Hadrian, as they said in unison, “Your Highnesses.”
“Miss Abbott,” Neville said, blushing slightly, as he took Hannah’s hand and leaning down, kissed the back it, even as Hadrian shook Cedric’s hand and said, “Heir Diggory.”
Being a ball, they both had to escort somebody who would be their primary date for the evening. Of course, at only eleven years old, neither of them had started dating yet. Thus, age and height appropriate escorts were chosen for them.
Hannah Abbott, the daughter of Sir Vincent Abbott, the Lord-Mayor of Eastminster, which the village that Dragon’s Court Palace was located near for Neville. And for Hadrian, Heir Cedric Diggory, the firstborn son, and heir of Lord Amos Diggory, whose Duchy of Taleford, while in the Grand Duchy of South Anglia—making Amos a vassal of Grand Duke Theseus Scamander—shared a land and sea border with the Grand Duchy of Cambria. The Diggory seat, Willowglen Manor, was also less than a mile from those shared borders.
As they’d been told to expect, both Hadrian and Neville had experienced growth spurts from their Claiming which placed them in or very near the ninety-fifth percentile for their age. Hadrian now stood a little over the halfway point between being five foot and five foot one, while Neville was about half an inch shorter. Hannah, meanwhile, was four foot eight, and Cedric was five foot one, making them both acceptable escorts for Neville and Hadrian.
“Well, you should get downstairs,” Micheil said. “You’ll be making a formal entrance with our Dad and the Grand Dukes.”
Hadrian and Neville nodded, as they both took a deep breath and prayed that their palms weren’t sweating before they each linked arms with their respective dates and made their way downstairs to the antechamber outside the doors they’d be making their entrance from into Dragon Court’s Grand Ballroom.
-o-0-o-
Arriving downstairs, Hadrian and Neville made their way into the antechamber, where they found King Logan and King-Consort Cliffton, along with the other five Grand Dukes and their spouses already gathered.
“Ah, if it isn’t our two newest members,” the man that Hadrian immediately recognized as Garrick Ollivander said. “Welcome.”
After a pause, he added, “Neville, I do hope that now that you’re a Grand Duke, you’ll consider coming to my shop before school and getting an appropriate wand. I know my sister wants you to use your father’s wand—thirteen inches, spruce, and dragon heartstring—but it’s highly unlikely to work well for you. Spruce wands are extremely loyal to their masters and since the wand didn’t choose you, it’s likely still loyal to your late father.”
Neville nodded. “What with arrangements for my parents’ funeral and my new role, I’ll be very busy the next few days. But, I’ll definitely try to get there before school starts, even if I have to come down to London a couple of hours early on the first.”
Garrick smiled. “That’s fine. You are my nephew, after all, so I’ll be happy to help you find the correct wand even outside of the store’s normal operating hours. Just let me know when you can make it and I’ll make sure I’m there.”
Neville nodded but said nothing as the guards on either side of the doorway into the ballroom grabbed the handles as a drumroll sounded beyond.
“That’s our cue,” Lord Theseus Scamander said, as he smiled at Hadrian and Neville and said, “We enter one by one before Logan and Cliffton, in order of age. When you enter, stand on the dais for about two minutes, then move off to the side.”
Garrick nodded. “I believe you’re first Hadrian, so you and Cedric should move to the left side of the dais. Then Neville and Hannah will come in and move to the right side. We’ll keep entering thusly until all of the Grand Dukes are in the ballroom. Then we move off the dais as a group before Logan and Cliffton enter last.”
Hadrian and Neville nodded in understanding, as they moved into position. As the drumroll ended, Hadrian nodded at the guards, who opened the doors into the ballroom as the trumpeters started playing a fanfare and the court majordomo struck the floor three times with his staff.
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Hadrian, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter and the Grand Duke of Cambria, accompanied by The Most Honorable Cedric Diggory, Confirmed Heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Diggory and Marquess of Charwell.”
Hadrian and Cedric stepped into the room and stood there for two minutes, surveying the gathered crowd, before moving off to the left as the majordomo struck the floor again.
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Neville, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Longbottom and the Grand Duke of North Anglia, accompanied by The Honorable Hannah Abbott, daughter of the Honorable House of Abbott.”
Neville and Hannah stepped into the room and as Hadrian and Cedric did before them, surveyed the crowd for two minutes, before moving off to the right.
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Langston, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Thomas and the Grand Duke of Southern Hibernia, accompanied by Her Most Royal Highness Princess-Consort Anora, Grand Duchess of Southern Hibernia, and daughter of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Cornfoot.”
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Quentin, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Cornfoot and the Grand Duke of Northern Hibernia, accompanied by Her Most Royal Highness Princess-Consort Olivia, Grand Duchess of Northern Hibernia, and daughter of the Right Ancient and Noble House of Cameron.”
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Aindreas, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of MacDougal and the Grand Duke of South Alba, accompanied by Her Most Royal Highness Princess-Consort Enid, Grand Duchess of South Alba, and daughter of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Longbottom.”
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Garrick, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Ollivander and the Grand Duke of North Alba, accompanied by Her Most Royal Highness Princess-Consort Josephina, Grand Duchess of North Alba, and daughter of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Crouch.”
“Presenting His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Theseus, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Scamander and the Grand Duke of South Anglia, accompanied by Her Most Royal Highness Princess-Consort Giovanna, Grand Duchess of South Anglia, and daughter of the Grand Ducal House of Gallo of the Roman Empire.”
The seven Grand Dukes and their escorts stood on the dais for another two minutes, before they moved off as a group as a second drumroll sounded before the trumpeters played another fanfare.
Striking his staff against the floor once again, the court majordomo made the last announcement he’d be making for the evening.
“Presenting His Majesty King Logan, Lord of the Foremost Ancient and Royal House of Pendragon, King of Albion and Iwernia, and son of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of MacDougal, accompanied by His Majesty King-Consort Cliffton, King-Consort of Albion and Iwernia, and son of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Thomas.”
-o-0-o-
“So,” Hadrian began, as he had his first dance with Cedric. “What house are you in?”
“Hufflepuff. Which one do you think you’ll be in?”
“Not sure. Between my own thoughts and talking with Micheil and Finlay, I’m not sure. Might end up being a hat stall.”
After a moment, Hadrian grinned and added, “Although my cousin Darius said he overheard his mum talking with Grandma Melania and apparently she said that she’d eat her garters if one of us doesn’t end up in Ravenclaw.”
Cedric laughed at that. “Well, Ravenclaw is good. As long as you don’t go overboard anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“The professors often assign essays for their classes. They’ll usually say one-foot minimum, but they then have to set an upper limit because if they didn’t, there’s plenty of Ravenclaws who would turn in over a hundred feet of parchment every time.”
“I can see how that would be a problem,” Hadrian agreed. “I can’t imagine the professors have enough time to be reading essays that long from a single student, let alone a whole house full of them, plus the other three.”
“Mmmhmm,” Cedric said. “So, usually the professors will set a one-foot minimum, and two-and-a-half feet maximum. Of course, then they also had to set a minimum size for handwriting.”
Hadrian rolled his eyes. “Let me guess: some of the ‘claws decided to try and circumvent the length limit be writing really small?”
Nodding, Cedric said, “Yup. Needless to say, the professors take issue with a student’s handwriting when it’s so small they need a magnifying glass to see it.”
“Well, if I do end up in Ravenclaw, I won’t be one of those students. I do enjoy reading and learning, but I see no need to make my professors’ jobs harder than they already are.”
With a sigh, Hadrian added, “At least I’ve got household officers that I can delegate to. The professors don’t.”
“True. With few exceptions, there are two or three professors in each department and while there is a department head, generally speaking, they don’t delegate their work to the other professors in their department. Each of them has different years they’re responsible for, so they probably don’t have time to be doing their own work plus somebody else’s.”
As the music came ended so too did Hadrian’s dance with Cedric. While the Hufflepuff was his primary date for the evening, as a newly installed Grand Duke, he was expected to dance with a few other people.
It wasn’t long before he found himself dancing first with Declan MacDougal, before moving on to some of the younger children of his vassals. First among these was Julius Flint, the secondborn son of his constable, Lord Malcolm Flint, the Earl of Axton.
Julius was the same age as Cedric and only about an inch taller, so dancing with him wasn’t awkward the way dancing with his elder brother Marcus would be. Marcus was the same age as Micheil and Finlay, even though he was actually a year ahead of them at Hogwarts since he was born before 1 September and didn’t start school late as a result. Marcus was a couple of inches shy of being a foot taller than Hadrian.
Hadrian was glad he didn’t have to dance with him if only because he didn’t really want to have to dance with anyone that he’d have to either spend the entire dance looking at their chest or tilting his head back so that he could see their face.
After Julius, Hadrian next found himself sharing four successive dances with sons of House Weasley. First off were the twins, Fred and George Weasley, the sons of his barrister, Lord Arthur Weasley, the Viscount Ravenstone. Next up was Arthur’s nephew Storm, the son of Arthur’s younger brother Decimus and his wife Maxima.
Hadrian’s last dance before he managed to get off the dance floor to take a break was with another of Arthur’s nephews, this time being Ryence Weasley, the son of Arthur’s youngest brother, Claudius and his wife Rafaella.
“Having fun?” Micheil asked with a grin as he and Finlay plopped down in a chair next to Hadrian, as he sipped a glass of punch.
“Not really, but then I wasn’t under the impression that I was supposed to be.”
“True these affairs are rarely very exciting,” Finlay said. “Carrick says that watching grass grow is more fun.”
“Cedric seemed nice,” Hadrian said, as he spied the Hufflepuff who was currently sharing a dance with Neall and Niall MacDougal. “Are they dating?”
Following Hadrian’s gaze, Micheil shook his head. “No, they’re just good friends. Neall and Niall are in Cedric’s year and fellow Hufflepuffs, so they share a dorm room.”
“To the best of my knowledge, Cedric is single,” Finlay added. “Besides Neall and Niall are dating Grantham and Grantley, respectively."
“Lord Thomas’s sons right?” Hadrian asked. “Two of the triplets?”
“Yup,” Micheil confirmed. “Grantley is the Thomas heir and is Niall’s boyfriend, while his brother Grantham, the middle-born of the triplets, is dating Neall.”
Hadrian nodded but otherwise remained silent. He briefly recalled one of his lessons with Arcturus, Pollux, and Nicolas in which they’d been studying the nobility, and Hermione had expressed surprise that so many of the lords or their heirs had husbands, instead of wives.
This led to the explanation that witches and wizards had a long history of not caring about gender when it came to picking their partners. Considering that with magic, any pairing of any gender could have biological children there simply had never been any stigma attached to homosexuality.
In fact, in some families, it actually seemed to be preferred. Hadrian, Darius, Hermione, and their friends were very surprised to learn that the lords and heirs of Houses Crouch, Cameron, Nott, Prince, and Weiss had been marrying wizards exclusively for over a thousand years. That preference was now so ingrained in the collective psyche of the nobility that none of the other families ever even suggested one of their daughters as a potential match for those families’ lords or heirs.
“So just out of curiosity,” Hadrian asked, “is the youngest triplet dating anyone?”
“Yes,” Finlay answered. “Graham is courting the heir of House Cameron, Colton.”
Hadrian grinned. “Ah, one of the five families.”
Micheil grinned. “Indeed.”
Hadrian talked with the twins for a few more minutes before he finished his drink and with a deep breath, made his way back out to the dance floor to knock a few more people off his dance card, starting with Raphaël Flamel, the thirteen-year-old eight-times-great-grandson of his steward.
He did manage to share two more dances with Cedric, interspersed with someone from each of his vassal’s houses. His solicitor Lord Padraig Fontaine’s twelve-year-old son Fionn and Kaidan and Karter's younger brother Dax, who was only seven years old.
Much to Dax’s clear annoyance, as their dance was ending his eighteen-year-old sister Davetta Shacklebolt and her wife Joanna came to collect him by quipping that since he was only one year old, it was way past his bedtime.
This, of course, required some explanation as Hadrian was obviously confused. With a much put upon sigh, Dax explained that he was born on 29 February and thus technically he’d only celebrated his birthday on his actual birthday one time in his life. Of course, what made it worse was that Dax’s fraternal twin Dex was born on 28 February and Dax had missed being born on the same day as his twin by only a minute.
Hadrian retired for the evening not long afterward, able to use the excuse that he was only eleven and thus couldn’t stay up as late as some of the other guests could. Neville very happily used the same excuse, because honestly calling the ball boring would have been an understatement.
It was only after he’d retired for the evening that Hadrian realized that he hadn’t actually danced with a member of his Chancellor Ignatius Prewett’s house. But he knew they didn’t have any members near his age or height currently, so he figured it couldn’t be helped. Plus, he had danced with both Fred and George Weasley, and their mother was a Prewett, so that was good enough in his opinion.
-o-0-o-
While they’d all been tired, Hadrian, Darius, and Neville all returned to their respective homes following the ball the previous night. Darius was still sound asleep when Vernon entered Hadrian’s bedroom at half-past eleven and shook his shoulder.
“Hadrian, wake up. I know you were up late last night, which is why we let you sleep in, but its time to get up.”
“Five more minutes.”
Shaking his head, Vernon said, “We’re not starting that. I give you five more minutes and you’ll ask for five more five minutes from now. And on and on it will go every five minutes for the next hour.”
“No, I won’t,” Hadrian slurred sleepily.
Knowing that his nephew would do exactly that because he’d done it before, Vernon said, “Hadrian, wake up now or I will pour cold water over your head.”
Even though she was in the master bedroom on the other side of the house from Hadrian’s room, Petunia heard her husband and shouted, “Hadrian James Potter listen to your uncle! Don’t make me come in there.”
Hadrian groaned as he sat up and said, “Alright, alright, I’m up, I’m up!”
“I’m sorry Hadrian, I’d let you sleep all day, but you do need to get up,” Vernon said apologetically. “It’s half-past eleven now, so you’ve got to get up, shower, get dressed, eat lunch, and then do some of your new lord duties.”
At Hadrian’s groan, Petunia called out, “Not the least of which is that you finally get to unlock Seacliff Castle.”
Hadrian threw back the covers and got out of bed so fast you’d think that his bedsheets had bitten him. Vernon could only laugh as Hadrian practically ran into his ensuite as if somebody was chasing him. But then he wasn’t really surprised and he knew that Hadrian had been looking forward to unlocking his family castle ever since he first saw it upon his first visit to the Potter family mausoleum.
Half-an-hour later, Hadrian was showered, dressed, and sitting in the kitchen eating lunch with Nicolas, who as the Potter family steward, agreed to accompany him today since he couldn’t Apparate yet.
As his young lord drank the last of his milk, Nicolas smiled and asked, “All finished?”
Hadrian nodded, prompting the Flamel patriarch to stand up and offer his arm to Hadrian.
“Well then, let’s get going shall we?”
Hadrian’s enthusiasm was clear as he grabbed his steward’s arm and they disappeared from Privet Drive with a pop.
-o-0-o-
Arriving at Stagwoods House, Hadrian found Nicolas’s wife Perenelle waiting for them in the Apparition Chamber. With a curtsy to Hadrian and a quick peck on the cheek for her husband, she said, “The others are waiting for you in the drawing room, my lord.”
Hadrian was tempted to say that she didn’t have to call him that, but he kept his mouth shut. He knew that a lot of people were going to be calling him that from now on and more than likely it would be more trouble than it was worth to try and convince them otherwise. So, he resolved to just get used to it.
“Others?” he asked instead.
“Your household officers, their spouses, and their heirs,” Perenelle answered. “Her Most Royal Highness the Dowager Grand Duchess of Southern Hibernia and her sister Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Hawkeridge and her husband the Duke is here as well.”
Hadrian nodded before motioning towards the doors in a silent indication that they should leave the chamber. Walking across the entry hall to the drawing room, Hadrian found the people that Perenelle had mentioned waiting.
They all stood upon Hadrian entering the room, with the sole exception of Henrika Thomas who remained sitting. Not only because as a Dowager Grand Duchess she was the same rank as Hadrian, but she also had a visible walking cast on her right foot, which she currently had elevated on two pillows atop a footstool.
Crossing the room, Hadrian asked, “Whatever happened to you?”
Henrika smiled. “Oh, nothing too serious. I was overseeing my grandsons’ dueling practice last week and I got hit with a stray curse that broke my foot. I’ll make a full recovery but the nature of the curse in question made magical healing inadvisable, so I simply have to wait it out the muggle way.”
“Well, I hope you get better soon, cousin,” Hadrian said, before he turned to the others and said, “So, I’m officially the lord now. I know I have to unlock Seacliff, are there any other immediate concerns?”
“You have to accept vows of fealty,” Helena said. “That’s why all your officers, their spouses, and heirs are here.”
“Ah, I see,” Hadrian said. “Can that be done here or should I unlock the castle and we can do it there?”
“It can be done anywhere,” answered Perseus Scamander, Helena’s husband. “Although I know that tradition within House Scamander has always been to do it in the throne room of our Cedarvale Castle.”
“The tradition is the same within House Potter,” said Ignatius Prewett, the Marquess of Strathington.
“Okay, well traditions should be observed,” Hadrian said, leaving off what he was thinking and that was that only when they made sense. He didn’t want to upset anyone’s sensibilities on his very first full day as Grand Duke. “So, where do we have to go to unlock the castle wards?”
“The mausoleum, Your Highness,” Nicolas replied. “Between the guardian spirit of Edric Potter and the fact that only the blood of a Lord Potter who has gone through both their Confirmation and Claiming can open the secret passage into the ward chamber, it’s one of the most secure places on the estate, baring the castle itself.”
“And it obviously wouldn’t work very well to have the ward chamber in the castle,” said Sir Aurelius Shacklebolt, the Lord-Mayor of Ottery St. Catchpole and grandfather of Kaidan and Karter. “As it would be impossible to unlock the wards if the ward chamber was inside the lockdown zone.”
Nodding, Hadrian said, “Yes, that makes sense. Well, I guess I’ll go unlock the wards then. Nicolas if you could accompany me to the mausoleum?”
Nicolas nodded as Hadrian said, “The rest of you, I guess, wait ten minutes or so and then start heading towards the castle. Hopefully, by the time you arrive, I’ll have unlocked the wards.”
-o-0-o-
“Welcome, Hadrian James Potter, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter. Enter this sacred place in peace,” the disembodied voice of Edric Potter said as Hadrian and Nicolas crossed the threshold of the family mausoleum.
Walking over to one of the life-size statues, Hadrian grasped the hand of the statue of Lord Eamon Potter and shook it. If it wasn’t for the fact that the arm of this particular statue was designed to be able to, Hadrian would have felt ridiculous shaking hands with a statue.
After a moment, large slabs of Welsh bluestone slid out of the wall next to that statue in a staggered formation that formed a short staircase that would allow Hadrian access to the statue’s mouth. Carefully climbing up, he took out the Potter family athame, slit his index finger, and then pressed it to the lips of the statue.
The statue glowed as it tasted Hadrian’s blood, before the disembodied voice of Edric said, “My brother finds your blood acceptable, Hadrian James Potter, and grants you access to the Ward Chamber of the Seacliff Castle Estate. Go in peace.”
As Edric finished speaking, the entire statue of Eamon Potter moved backward in its niche, as a pair of torches behind where the statue was a moment ago lit themselves with magical blue flames.
Climbing down the stone slabs back to the ground, Hadrian walked down the newly revealed hallway and into the large chamber beyond. What he saw nearly took his breath away.
The floor of the room was primarily black marble, but in the center of it was a large seven-point star made of white marble trimmed in gold. In the center of the star and at each of the seven points was a gold-accented black marble plinth atop which rested eight different gemstones.
Hadrian hesitated to call them stones, however, as from his own reading he knew that in geology, the definition of a boulder was a rock that was larger than ten-point-one inches in diameter. If he had to guess, each of the rough-cut gemstones resting atop the plinths was a minimum of a foot in diameter.
His guardians had been somewhat vague on why exactly they’d had him learning about gemstones and their meanings for the months leading up to his birthday, but now he understood.
To his immediate left, the first stone was an agate. It was a protective stone believed to attract strength and offer protection from bad dreams, stress, and the draining of energy.
Continuing left, he saw a garnet that increased vitality and stamina, granted good luck in business ventures, and engendered passionate devotion to family and friends. Next to that was a moonstone, which helped in the fulfillment of one’s destiny and encouraged communication by promoting clear thinking, inspiration, and receptivity.
The fourth gem was onyx, which was thought to enhance determination and perseverance, repel negativity, and protect from the hostility of others. This was followed by a ruby, seen as a symbol of vitality and royalty that opens the heart to promote love, and protects from misfortune and bad health.
The sixth gem was a sapphire, associated with peace and happiness, and helped with communication, insight, intuition, inspiration, and divining the future. Coming around full circle to the seventh gem that was to his immediate right he found a tourmaline. It was said to strengthen body and spirit, calm nerves, soothe grief, promote balance and understanding, build self-confidence, and aid inspiration and concentration.
Finally, on the center plinth, was a diamond larger than all the other stones. Protection from poison, it was also thought to absorb and amplify the magical strengths of the other stones surrounding it.
“You’ll have to cut the palm of your wand hand and bleed on each stone, starting with the diamond in the center,” Nicolas said from the doorway of the room. He hadn’t come inside, as he was magically blocked from coming any further into the room than the doorway until he swore fealty to Hadrian as his new liege lord. “Beyond the diamond, the order you bleed on them doesn’t matter, but you have to bleed on each of them.”
“How much?” Hadrian asked.
“Hard to say,” Nicolas answered. “The wards have been in lockdown for ten years now, so they may need more blood and magic than if the wards were passing directly from lord to heir. The stones will let you know how much they need, however, as your palm will be magically affixed to each stone until they’ve each taken what they need.”
Hadrian turned and looked at Nicolas at this, prompting the venerable old alchemist—even though he didn’t look a day over thirty—to smile and say, “I’ve got Blood Replenishers and Magical Restoratives with me, so don’t worry.”
Hadrian nodded before he took a deep breath, took out the Potter family athame and holding it in his left hand, slashed the palm of his wand hand, before placing his hand on the diamond in the center of the chamber. Almost immediately, Hadrian could feel the stone heating up and it seemed to drink in both his blood and his magic. Just as Nicolas had said, he found that he couldn’t remove his hand from the stone.
After what seemed like hours but was really only two or three minutes, Hadrian could finally move his hand, so moving around the circle to each stone beginning with the agate, he allowed each to taste of his blood and magic.
Each stone began to glow brightly as he removed his hand. Moving around the circle with his back to the previous stone he didn’t immediately notice the arc of magical energy that was shooting out of each stone into the diamond in the center.
He did, finally, notice however as he finally reached the tourmaline and despite feeling tired and sluggish from the loss of blood and drain on his magic, he couldn’t help but be awed by the sight. After each stone was powered and sending magical currents into the diamond it began not only glowing the brightest of all but seemed to be pulsating.
A moment later a jet of pure white magical energy shot up out of the diamond into a second smaller diamond that Hadrian only just now noticed was mounted on the ceiling.
“It’s done,” Nicolas said, as Hadrian lethargically moved back to the alchemist. “The wards are powered and unlocked, so you’ll now have full access to not only Seacliff Castle, but the entire estate, including all of the gardens and other outbuildings.”
“Cool,” Hadrian slurred, as he nearly collapsed into Nicolas’s arms. “Potions, please.”
“Yes, my lord,” Nicolas said.
-o-0-o-
Half-an-hour later, Hadrian sat upon his throne in Seacliff Castle. He was wearing a crown, but it wasn’t the formal one from last night. Instead, it was a far more simple golden and ruby circlet that had the Potter family coat of arms engraved in the middle between the two largest rubies. Of the two, he definitely preferred this one.
“Well, let’s get this done,” Hadrian said, as he motioned for the Flamels to come forward first, as they were the senior-most peers in Cambria.
Present were Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel and their son Florian and his wife Sabine. Perenelle, Florian, and Sabine knelt on the ground before the throne, their heads bowed, as Nicolas climbed the steps to the throne and knelt down in front of Hadrian, he placed his hands between Hadrian’s.
“I, Nicolas, Lord of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Flamel, Duke of Pleinmont, do hereby pledge myself unto you as your faithful and true vassal lord of life and limb, and vow before the Gods and these witnesses that I will forevermore bear faithful and true council unto you, Hadrian, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, Grand Duke of Cambria. I further vow to do everything within my power and that of my House to defend, honor, and keep you, as well as your heirs and successors under the law safe from any harm that might befall them, either now or in the future. These vows I make, on my magic, my honor, and my very life, so mote it be.”
Upon finishing, there was a flash of magical energy, before Nicolas kissed Hadrian’s right hand and stood touching one hand to the circlet upon his head, before walking back down the steps from the throne, bowing once more, before he and his family moved off to one side.
“I, Ignatius, Lord of the Right Ancient and Noble House of Prewett, Marquess of Strathington,” began Ignatius a few minutes later, before repeating the same oath given by Nicolas. His wife, Lucretia, and his nephew and heir, Bilius Prewett, kneeling behind him as he did so.
“I, Malcolm, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Flint, Earl of Axton,” began Malcolm when it was his turn. His wife, Elizabeth, and son and heir, Marcus, kneeling behind him.
“I, Arthur, Lord of the Noble House of Weasley, Viscount Ravenstone,” Arthur began his vows, his wife Molly and eldest son and heir, William, kneeling behind him.
“I, Padraig, Lord of the Right Honorable House of Fontaine, Baron Mathry,” Padraig offered his own vows, his wife Eileen, son and heir, Crevan, and his husband Tobin, kneeling behind him.
One thing that Hadrian couldn’t help but notice, however, is that Crevan’s conjoined twin brother, Finian, did not have his head bowed nor did he silently mouth the words of the oath along with his father, as the rest of his family did.
The reason for this became clear, as Padraig stepped away and Crevan and Finian moved forward, kneeling on the steps where his father had knelt moments earlier.
“I, Finian, husband of Torin Graves, the Confirmed Heir of the Right Honorable House of Graves, a sworn vassal of Neville, Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Longbottom, Grand Duke of North Anglia, do hereby pledge, before the Gods and these witnesses, that I will honor the vows made by my brother Crevan as far as is necessary due to our being bound together in flesh and magic, but only when they don’t conflict with the vows I have already given to my husband’s liege lord. This vow I make, on my magic, my honor, and my very life, so mote it be.”
“I trust you made a similar amended vow to Neville?” Hadrian asked Crevan as he and Finian stood up.
“Yes, my lord,” Crevan answered.
“Very well,” Hadrian said. “I promise to do everything within my power to ensure that you aren’t put in a position that requires you to act in a way that puts you in conflict with either Finian or Prince Neville.”
“Thank you, my lord,” Crevan and Finian said in unison, as they backed away.
The last of Hadrian’s vassals approached the throne at this point, as Lady Cornelia Shacklebolt knelt alongside her son Kingsley and his wife Miranda. Taking his place at the front, Cornelia’s husband Aurelius, said, “I, Aurelius, Knighted Head of the Honorable House of Shacklebolt, Lord-Mayor of the Village of Ottery St. Catchpole,” before repeating the same vow given by Nicolas, Ignatius, Malcolm, Arthur, and Padraig before him.
“That takes care of the fealty oaths,” Hadrian said with a smile. “So, if there’s nothing else, I think I’d like to explore…”
Hadrian stopped speaking, as the doors to the throne room opened. Henrika and Helena’s eyes practically bulged out of their heads when they saw the reason why.
“Uncle Charlus? Aunt Dorea?” They asked in unison, the shock clear in their voices. “You’re alive?!”
Charlus and Dorea could only smile, as Charlus said, “I’m pleased to say that rumors of our deaths have been greatly exaggerated.”
“How?” Nicolas asked, shocked to see them.
“The lockdown,” Dorea asked. “When James died, we were in our home at Seaview Hall here on the estate and got trapped inside.”
Before anyone else could say anything, Charlus took his wife by the arm and led her over to wear Hadrian still sat upon the throne. Kneeling and bowing their heads to Hadrian, Charlus said, “My lord, I’m Charlus Potter, your father’s uncle, and this is my wife Dorea Black Potter.”
“That means you’re my granduncle, right?” Hadrian asked.
He was happy to have more family that he didn’t know about, but the thought that they’d spent the last not quite ten years trapped inside their home was disconcerting, to say the least.
“Yes, it does indeed,” Charlus said as he and Dorea rose to their feet. “I was the youngest of three siblings. Your late grandfather Julian was the eldest, and Henrika and Helena’s father, the late Fleamont, was the middle son.”
“So it was just the two of you alone at Seaview all these years?” Ignatius asked.
Charlus and Dorea smiled but said nothing, as a new voice said, “Not quite.”
This drew everyone’s attention away from Charlus and Dorea and back to the doors of the throne room where six more people could be seen. Four men and two women of varying ages.
“Glenora!” Molly practically screeched as she dropped her husband’s hand and practically ran across the room where she pulled her baby sister, Glenora Prewett Potter, into a hug. “You’re alive!”
“Yes and I’ve so very happy to see you, Molly,” Glenora said.
The two women hugged for a moment longer, before she motioned to the man standing next to her and said, “You remember my husband, I trust?”
“Of course, Jacob it’s so good to see you,” Molly said before she noticed the two young men standing nearby and asked, “Nathan? Bastian?”
“Hello Aunt Molly,” the two of them said in unison. “Long time no see.”
“Oh my word, you’ve grown,” Molly said as she pulled her nephews into a single hug. After a moment she said, “Wait if the two of you have been inside Seaview since James died…”
The younger of the two, Bastian, nodded, and said, “Neither of us ever went to Hogwarts.”
“We’ve done our best to homeschool them,” said Nathaniel Potter, who was the son of Charlus and Dorea, father of Jacob, and grandfather of Nathan and Bastian. “It would have been easier, of course, if they’d bought wands before the lockdown.”
“Yes, I’m afraid neither of them ever did shop for their first years,” said Nathaniel’s wife, Elspeth Ogden Potter. “Bastian was only nine when James died. As for Nathan, due to his birthday being 16 September, he wasn’t due to start Hogwarts until 1 September 1982, by which time we’d been trapped inside Seaview for almost a year.”
“After spending over nine years trapped inside of it,” Bastian said, “I’m not exactly looking forward to continuing living there.”
Nathan nodded, as he added, “Honestly if I never see the inside of that place again it’ll be too soon.”
“You’re more than welcome to take rooms here at Seacliff,” Hadrian said. “I’ll be going off to Hogwarts in less than a week, besides which I’m probably not going to be living here full time even when school isn’t in session. My Aunt Petunia and her muggle husband Vernon are my legal guardians, so he wouldn’t be able to live here full time.”
“Your Claiming did make you a legal adult, my lord,” Padraig said.
Hadrian nodded. “Perhaps, but I dare you to tell my Aunt Petunia that I’m an adult at only eleven years old. I can practically guarantee that a Stinging Hex you’d still be feeling hours later would be the least of your worries.”
Shaking his head, Hadrian added, “So regardless of what the law might say, I’m perfectly content with going on living with my aunt and uncle until I’m at least seventeen. Most of my duties as Grand Duke will be delegated anyway while I’m still in school, so I’m going to try to have as normal of a childhood as I can while I’m still a child.”
“That sounds like a perfectly reasonable idea to me,” Lucretia Black Prewett said, as several of the other women in the room nodded in agreement.
-o-0-o-
Ultimately, Charlus and Dorea opted to remain at Seaview because they’d been living there for their entire married life and after fifty-two years, it held far more good memories for them than bad. Nathaniel and Elspeth opted to move off the Seacliff Estate, and take up residence in the empty Potter family townhouse located at Number 6 Diagon Heights in the City of Londinium.
Jacob, Glenora, and their sons, meanwhile, decided to take Harry up on the offer of moving into Seacliff itself and had been provided with two suites in the family wing. The house-elves were more than happy to move all of their belongings for them, so Nathan and Bastian got their wish of not having to set foot inside Seaview again.
It’s not that they hated it, as they did have some good memories of visiting their great-grandparents there before James died. However, after being forced to spend the last years of the childhoods, all—or almost all in Bastian’s case—of their teen years, and the entire time they should have been at Hogwarts there, they didn’t think it was unreasonable to want some distance.
Speaking of Hogwarts, it was agreed that unfortunately, Nathan and Bastian would never be able to attend. Nathan was twenty years old, due to be twenty-one in less than a month and Bastian was only two days away from turning nineteen. Thus, Professor Dumbledore and the Heads of House agreed that they were much too old to be starting their first years.
Professor Dumbledore did invite them to come to his office and be sorted at least. All of the professors had agreed to test them for their OWLs and NEWTs, to see if their homeschooling with borrowed wands had been enough to pass. Of course, visiting Diagon Alley, not only to buy their own wands but new clothes—they’d been forced to wear their father’s, grandfather’s, and great-grandfather’s hand-me-downs as they grew—was definitely among their immediate priorities.
Despite the relative chaos of the lead up to Hadrian’s first year and short notice, he did throw the house-elves into a frenzy planning a grand ball at Seacliff to welcome back the eight members of the Potter family that were previously thought to be dead.
Hadrian was overjoyed to have a family. He’d already had it in Sirius, Remus, Darius, Petunia, Vernon, and Chase. And, of course, Henrika, Helena, and their children and grandchildren. But having several Potters was a thrill. Especially since it took some of the pressure off of Hadrian to repopulate the family. He knew as Grand Duke he’d be expected to sire heirs at some point, but it was less of an immediate concern now that he wasn’t the only member of the family who could do so.
-o-0-o-
September First finally dawned and Hadrian along with Darius, Wayne, Kevin, Piers, Hermione, Neville, Hannah, and Morag found themselves sharing a compartment aboard the Hogwarts Express. They were all excited to start school and couldn’t stop talking about their hopes and expectations for the coming school year.
Before they knew it, they were changing into the uniforms and a while later, the train was coming to a stop at Hogsmeade Station. Corralled onto the boats for a ride across the lake by Hagrid, the half-giant Keeper of Keys and Grounds, they soon found themselves standing in front of the stern-looking Deputy Headmistress McGonagall as she explained about the houses of Hogwarts.
About ten minutes later, they were walking down the center aisle of the Great Hall, many of them looking around in awe, barely even noticing the faces of the older students watching them. The Sorting Hat sang a song and then McGonagall pulled out a large scroll.
“Abbott, Hannah,” she called first.
About a minute later, the Sorting Hat called out, “HUFFLEPUFF,” as the Hufflepuffs cheered and Hannah made her way down to join her new housemates.
“Bones, Susan.”
“HUFFLEPUFF.”
This was followed by Terry Boot and Mandy Brocklehurst going to Ravenclaw, Lavender Brown to Gryffindor, Millicent Bulstrode to Slytherin, Leanne Carmichael to Hufflepuff, and Michael Corner to Ravenclaw.
“Cornfoot, Stephen,” McGonagall called out which made Hadrian perk up slightly since he knew that Grand Duke Quentin Cornfoot’s son and heir was named Stephen.
The Sorting Hat took a few moments longer than it had for the students before him, but finally, it called out, “RAVENCLAW.”
Vincent Crabbe and Tracey Davis went to Slytherin and Faye Dunbar to Gryffindor.
“Dursley, Darius,” McGonagall called out, as Darius made his way up to the stood and put the Sorting Hat on his head.
“Well, well, what have we here?” The Sorting Hat asked in Darius’s head. “Interesting, very interesting. You’re one of the most powerful students I’ve sorted tonight. Loyal to your friends and family, not a bad mind either… but I don’t think those will do, no, better be… SLYTHERIN!”
“Entwhistle, Kevin,” McGonagall called out as Darius made his way to the Slytherin table. Hadrian and Darius both watched with curiosity which house Kevin would end up in.
“RAVENCLAW!”
Justin Finch-Fletchley went to Hufflepuff, Seamus Finnegan to Gryffindor, Anthony Goldstein to Ravenclaw, and Gregory Goyle to Slytherin.
“Granger, Hermione.”
“Hmm, well, you are an interesting one,” the Sorting Hat said. “Smart, brave, loyal, and an ambition to learn and prove yourself. You could fit in any of the houses, but I think it’s clear that you belong in… RAVENCLAW!”
Next up was Daphne Greengrass who went to Slytherin.
“Hopkins, Wayne.”
Wayne was standing next to Hadrian and he gave his friend a comforting pat on the back as he took a deep breath and made his way up to the front and put on the Sorting Hat. The hat had barely touched his head when it called out, “HUFFLEPUFF!”
Megan Jones and Abigail Kowalski soon joined Wayne in Hufflepuff, before Zachary Kowalski went to Gryffindor, and Su Li to Ravenclaw.
“Longbottom, Neville.”
The entire hall quieted down as Neville made his way up to the front and put on the Sorting Hat. Needless to say, they all wanted him as it had been a century at least since a sitting Grand Duke was attending Hogwarts. Whichever house he was placed in would enjoy the honor of calling him theirs.
The Sorting Hat was quiet for several minutes, and from the scrunching of Neville’s brow, Hadrian had the suspicion that he was arguing with the Hat over its choice. The Hat even seemed to move on Neville’s head as if shaking its head no to something he said before it apparently had enough arguing and called out, “GRYFFINDOR!”
Hadrian knew from talking to Neville on the train that he was hoping for Hufflepuff, but apparently, the Hat disagreed.
“MacDougal, Morag.”
As Morag made her way up to the front, the hall fell silent again, wondering where the Hat would place the only living daughter of Grand Duke Aindreas MacDougal.
His current wife, Enid, was actually his second. His first wife and their five children—three sons and two daughters—had, unfortunately, all been victims of the wars with Grindelwald or Voldemort. Mostly Voldemort, although Aindreas and his first wife had lost their eldest son, who wasn’t even out of diapers yet, to followers of Grindelwald two months before his defeat in 1945.
“RAVENCLAW.”
As Morag made her way to the Ravenclaw table, Ernie Macmillan went to Hufflepuff, Draco Malfoy to Slytherin, Roger Malone to Hufflepuff, Theodore Nott to Slytherin, Joseph Ogden to Hufflepuff, and Pansy Parkinson to Slytherin.
Padma Patil soon went to Ravenclaw, while her twin sister Parvati went to Gryffindor. Sally Anne Perks went to Ravenclaw, followed by Hadrian and Darius’s friend Piers going to Gryffindor.
“Potter, Hadrian.”
Taking a deep breath, Hadrian made his way up to the front of the room, noting as he put on the Hat that like it had been for Neville, the hall was so quiet that you could probably hear a pin drop. Everyone was leaning forward slightly in their seats to see who would get The-Boy-Who-Lived… and also happened to be the new class’s other sitting Grand Duke.
“My, my, my,” the Sorting Hat said in Hadrian’s head. “You are quite the quandary, Mr. Potter. Easily the strongest, most magically gifted student I’ve seen tonight… and something is blocking my senses, but I can tell that there’s something very different about you. I detected something similar in your cousin Darius, but to a much lesser degree.”
“Does this have anything to do with my aura?” Hadrian asked in his head. “My Grandfather Arcturus has mage-sight and he said he saw gold in my aura and that he’d never seen that in anyone else’s.”
“I believe that might be part of what I’m seeing, yes,” the Sorting Hat said. “However, there’s also something about your scar… I can’t tell and whatever it is doesn’t like me probing it. Well, I suppose I should figure out where you belong. Hmm, I’m sensing bravery, loyalty, cunning, and definitely not a bad mind either. In fact, your memory is eidetic if I’m not mistaken.”
“I do find it very easy to retain information,” Hadrian commented. “I wasn’t sure if my memory was eidetic or not though.”
“You can rest assured that it is, Lord Potter,” the Hat said. “Well, we’ve been up here talking for nearly seven-and-a-half minutes now, so I suppose I’d better make my decision… You’d do well in any of the houses, I think, but hmm, yes, I think it better be… RAVENCLAW!”
Taking the hat off his head and moving towards the Ravenclaw table, he saw Darius giving him a thumbs up. They’d had a feeling they wouldn’t end up in the same house, no matter how much they would have liked to.
Hadrian couldn’t help but grin as he had a feeling that Darius was no doubt thinking the same thing that he was. At least Aunt Petunia wouldn’t have to eat her garters, as one of them had, in fact, ended up in Ravenclaw.
Oliver Rivers soon joined the Ravenclaw table, and Sophie Roper the Slytherins, before Hufflepuff got three more students in Rolf Scamander, Sally Smith, and Zacharias Smith.
Hadrian did wonder if the latter two were related, although looking at them he didn’t see a family resemblance. Plus, Sally was black and Zacharias was white. Of course, Smith was a very common surname, so it was likely that everyone who had it wasn’t actually related.
Only four students were left waiting to be sorted at this point. Dean Thomas went to Gryffindor and Hadrian couldn’t help but wonder if he was any relation to Grand Duke Langston Thomas. He had light brown skin, suggesting mixed ancestry, and although Hadrian only got a brief look at his face, he thought maybe he saw a resemblance to the triplets.
Of course, he could just be imagining it. Time would tell.
Lisa Turpin went to Ravenclaw, Ron Weasley to Gryffindor, and finally, the last of the new students, Blaise Zabini went to Slytherin.
Clapping his hands together as McGonagall took the Sorting Hat and stool away, Dumbledore smiled out at everyone and said, “Before we tuck in for what is undoubtedly a delicious meal, I would like to share a few words with you all and here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!”
Everyone in the hall was looking at Professor Dumbledore strangely, as he just smiled and said, “Thank you, now dig in.”
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have it, Ch8 of ‘The Seventh Olympian.’ The longest chapter to date and Hadrian and friends are finally at Hogwarts. So, as you saw, there were a few additions to the canon class, though most of them ended up in their canon houses… with the exceptions of Hermione and Hadrian. Did you see that coming? And any thoughts on the Sorting Hat’s thoughts about Hadrian?
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Nine:
Hadrian Learns about Soulmates
-o-0-o-
1 September 1991…
After the standard start-of-term announcements, which included that the Forbidden Forest was, in fact, forbidden and that anyone not wishing to die a most painful death should avoid the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side, Professor Dumbledore told the prefects to start leading their houses to their dormitories.
Of course, it was only the first years who actually needed to be shown to the dormitories as the older years could find them without help. Thus, only one prefect from each year actually did this duty, while the others headed to the Prefect’s Lounge—located across the hall from the Prefect’s Bathroom—for relaxation and a continuation of the meeting with Head Boy Plato Meadowes and Head Girl Bianca Zabini that started aboard the Hogwarts Express.
The prefects who were given the duty of escorting the first years this year were Percy Weasley for Gryffindor, Storm Weasley for Hufflepuff, Ursula Welch for Slytherin, and Micheil and Finlay MacDougal for Ravenclaw. Many incoming first-years had never even met their prefect escort, but the same could not be said for the first-year Ravenclaws.
Obviously, Morag MacDougal had met Micheil and Finlay, since her father was their granduncle. But, Stephen Cornfoot, as the heir of Grand Duke Quentin Cornfoot, had also met the eldest sons of the King, as had Kevin and Hermione through their friendship with Hadrian.
The latter of whom knew the twins potentially better than even Morag since they’d been communicating via charmed journal nearly every day for the last four years. Hadrian was glad that if he had to be in a different house than Darius, at least he already had friends there. He was also rather looking forward to being able to physically talk to the twins, instead of just writing back and forth.
At least all the years of doing so had ensured that Hadrian’s handwriting was very neat and clear. Something which his professors would no doubt appreciate.
The prefects from each house held the first years back in the Great Hall until all of the older students made their way out, to ensure that they didn’t lose track of any of their young charges among the throng of older and taller students.
Of course, some were easier to spot than others, as Micheil and Finlay definitely had no trouble finding Hadrian, while the same could be said for Percy being able to find Neville. Their Claimings putting them in the ninety-fifth percentile for their age meant that they were both easily spottable among their peers.
“Okay, now, first things first,” Finlay said. “For those of you who don’t already know me, I’m Finlay MacDougal,” and pointing at Micheil, he added, “And this my brother Micheil.”
A black boy raised his hand and at Finlay’s nod, he said, “I’m Oliver Rivers. Why do you have two heads?”
“You’re muggleborn or muggle-raised, I assume?” Micheil asked, and Oliver nodded. “Finlay and I are conjoined twins.”
Nodding, Finlay added, “You will notice that in the magical world, they’re far more common and you’re much more likely to see them. We’re not the only set attending Hogwarts at the moment, so you’re likely to see others.”
“The way they’re connected may be different,” Micheil said, “but you will see them. I know in the muggle world, most such twins are separated. Now, obviously, for Finlay and me, that has never been in the cards, because with only one body between us it would be impossible for either of us to survive the attempt.”
Oliver nodded in agreement. “Okay, but what about other sets that aren’t as closely connected?”
“You’ll find that it’s considered taboo to even think about separating conjoined twins, let alone actually doing it.”
Grinning, Finlay said, “Yes, we’re far too valuable.”
“Why?” asked a black girl with long black hair.
“Sally-Anne Perks, if I’m remembering correctly?” asked Micheil, who had paid close attention during the Sorting so that he’d at least know the names of all the new first-year Ravenclaws. The girl nodded and smiled, indicating that was indeed her name.
“Well, Sally-Anne, you see, it’s like this,” Micheil said, and then went on to explain why with some interjections by Finlay.
Because of this explanation, they were the last group in the Great Hall. Something which was commented upon when the diminutive Professor Flitwick came over and asked, “Is everything all right, Messrs. MacDougal?”
“Yes, professor,” Micheil said. “Finlay and I just took a moment to explain about conjoined twins in the wizarding world for the muggleborns or muggle-raised, as we figured they were probably curious for obvious reasons.”
“Ah, of course,” Flitwick said with a smile. “Yes, you’re the only conjoined prefects in your year and probably the first set some of them have ever seen. In that event, five points each to Ravenclaw, for an excellent bit of teaching.”
“Thank you, Professor,” Finlay said before he motioned to the man and said, “First years, since he’s here, allow me to introduce Professor Filius Flitwick. He’s the Head of the Charms Department and thus you won’t have him as a professor until your sixth and seventh years.”
“However, he’s also Head of Ravenclaw House,” Micheil added, “So, you’ll be seeing far more of him than most of the other first years.”
Smiling at the first years, Flitwick said, “I look forward to getting to know each of you better and teaching you when you’re older.” Turning to Micheil and Finlay, he added, “Now, you should probably escort them upstairs before Miss Clearwater and the older Ravenclaw prefects send out a search party.”
-o-0-o-
Arriving at the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower, Micheil and Finlay turned and smiled at their fourteen charges—seven boys and seven girls—before Micheil said, “As you can see there’s no doorknob and no keyhole on this door.”
Several of the first years nodded, as Finlay said, “To enter our common room, you have to knock using the door knocker. Its enchanted and will ask a riddle, which you must answer correctly for the door to open.”
“And if you don’t answer it correctly?” Terry Boot asked.
“Well, then you have to wait here until someone else comes along and answers correctly,” Micheil said before he and Finlay turned to the side so that Micheil could raise his hand and grasp the enchanted knocker.
The eyes of the eagle-shaped knocker glowed for a moment, before a feminine voice asked, “While some months have 30, others have 31. How many have 28?”
“Well, that’s easy,” Sally-Anne Perks said. “The answer is one.”
“Incorrect, Miss Perks,” the voice said.
“What? How is that not correct?” Hermione asked. “February has 28 days, so that’s one month.”
“Incorrect, Miss Granger,” the voice said.
Micheil and Finlay laughed, even as Hermione’s brow furrowed in frustration, before Finlay said, “I can see many of you are thinking the knocker is broken, but I assure you it isn’t.”
Nodding, Micheil added, “Yes, you both went with the obvious answer. And in so doing, you’ve failed to give the question enough thought. If you had, you’d realize that it’s a trick question.”
With dawning realization, Hadrian said, “12, the answer is 12.”
“Correct, Mr. Potter,” the voice said, before the sound of a latch opening could be heard, a second before the door swung open.
“How is that rig…?” Kevin asked, but stopped mid-word as he realized what Hadrian had already realized. “Oh,” as he slapped his forehead. “Duh, it’s a trick question because whether they have 30 or 31, all 12 months have 28 days.”
“I should have known that,” Hermione muttered, obviously disappointed with herself.
Giving his friend a comforting pat on the back, Hadrian said, “You can’t get them all right, Hermione. Anyway, look at the bright side, you can learn from this, and maybe not make the same mistake next time.”
Hermione smiled and thanked Hadrian, as Micheil and Finlay ushered the first years through the door and into the Ravenclaw Common Room.
Inside the room, they found a massive round room with a high domed ceiling that was painted blue with stars, a motif that was repeated in the midnight-blue carpet. Eight large and graceful arched windows stretching from floor to ceiling were spread out along the far wall, which was decorated with bronze-trimmed silks in various shades of blue.
To the right, about half-way between the door and the first of the windows was a large light blue marble fireplace, the mantelpiece held up by the outstretched wings of a pair of bronze eagles sitting atop two short dark blue marble Corinthian columns on either side of the hearth.
To the left of the door, an identical pair of eagles resting atop the columns held a large corkboard for the posting of house notices. A multitude of chairs, couches, and low tables was scattered about the room, forming several comfortable seating areas.
Directly across from the door on the other side of the room was a large alcove that held what appeared to be a private library. There was also a large white marble statue sitting in the middle of the alcove.
Pointing at it, Micheil said, “The statue is of Rowena Ravenclaw,” even as Finlay pointed at the large portrait above the fireplace and added, “So is the painting above the fire. The rest of the paintings around the room are of famous ‘claws throughout history.”
A few of the students nodded their heads, but before they could comment, the door into the room opened and a blond-haired girl walked in.
“Mic, Fin, there you are,” she said. “I’ve got your patrol assignments for the week.”
Accepting the sheet of parchment, Micheil said, “Thanks. Penelope, meet the new firsties. Everyone, this is Penelope Clearwater, the other year five prefect.”
Penelope smiled. “It’s a pleasure to meet all of you.”
After a few pleasantries were exchanged, Finlay said, “Since you’re here, Penny, could you take the girls up to their dorm? We’d do it ourselves, but having absolutely zero interest in girls doesn’t except Mic and I from setting off the alarms.”
“No problem,” Penelope said with a smile.
As the group was separating into two groups, Michael Corner asked, “Alarms?”
“Boys are not allowed in the girl’s dormitories,” Penelope explained. “So, whatever you do, don’t go up that staircase.”
As she said this she pointed at a stone staircase that was almost completely hidden behind several tall bookshelves near the announcement board. Only the stone newel post at the bottom of the stairs, the first step, and about a third of the second was visible.
“That leads up to the girl’s dorms,” Micheil said. “However, boys can’t go up there. The stairs will let you get about halfway before an alarm will go off and the stairs will turn into a slide.”
“Said slide is magically charmed to be slippery,” Finlay said. “So it’s pretty much a guarantee you’ll end up arse over tip at the bottom of the stairs, with everyone laughing at you. Well, at least those that can restrain themselves from wringing your neck for setting off the alarm, that is.”
“Yes, it is quite loud,” Penelope said. “According to some of the muggleborns, if any of you live in or around Crowthorne in Berkshire, England then apparently the alarm sounds like the Broadmoor escape sirens, only louder and indoors.”
Sally-Anne and Oliver both winced, as Terry Boot, a pureblood whose knowledge of the muggle world was quite limited, asked, “What’s Broadmoor? And why does it have escape sirens?”
“It’s a muggle psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane,” Hadrian answered. “The siren network is tested every Monday at 10 in the morning to make sure it’s working.”
Nodding, Hermione said, “I have a cousin who lives nearby. She said that the residents are pretty much used to it by now. There haven’t been many escapes in recent years, but everyone who lives in the area will definitely sit up and take notice if the sirens go off anytime other than 10 am on Mondays.”
“Probably a good idea,” Kevin said. “When dealing with the possible escape of a dangerous and mentally unstable criminal.”
“Indeed,” Finlay agreed, before the group split up, with Penelope leading the girls up the stairs to their dorms, while Micheil and Finlay lead the boys across the common room to the library niche, where they opened a door that was disguised to look like a bookcase that opened into a small hallway with stairs going up and down.
“The common room is on the fifth floor,” Micheil explained. “And the boys’ dorm rooms are on floors six through thirteen.”
“What about the girls’ dorms where are they?” Michael Corner asked. “I know we can’t go there, but there doesn’t seem to be room under the common room for the girls’ dorms and since they have a separate staircase, I’m assuming this one,” pointing to the one going down, “doesn’t lead to the girl’s dorms.”
“You’re right, it doesn’t,” Finlay said. “Those stairs access two additional floors below the common room. A suite of rooms meant for the head boy if they’re in Ravenclaw on the fourth floor and Professor Flitwick’s office and quarters on the third.”
“As for the girl’s dorms, they’re not in the same tower as the common room,” Micheil explained. “With the domed ceiling, the common room is actually two stories high, but the stairs to the girls' dorm only goes up halfway to a mezzanine level where a corridor leads to a nearby tower that’s pretty much an exact copy of this one, only it’s about two stories shorter, due to not having a two-story common room.”
-o-0-o-
Twenty minutes later, Micheil and Finlay bid the first years goodbye and left after giving them a quick tour. Immediately upon entering the room, with your back still facing the door, to the left was another door leading into a large ensuite bathroom. In it were seven toilet stalls and seven sinks, as well as a door to the seven-man communal shower room.
Opposite the bathroom were a pair of large arched floor-to-ceiling windows with a door between them. Through the door was a private covered balcony that had a bunch of wicker furniture, some plants, and an outdoor chess table. The balcony didn’t project out but was rather just a hollowed-out outdoor section of the tower.
Micheil and Finlay noted that there was a special screen spell cast along the outside edge that would keep bugs and birds out. The same spell would also regulate the temperature making it cool on hot days and warm on cold days, thus making it usable no matter the time of year it was.
On a diagonal wall near the door to the bathroom was a large fireplace that was open on three sides. There were three comfortable-looking couches arranged in front of it with a coffee table in front of the middle one. There were also two additional chess tables set up on opposite sides of the room.
Two four-foot-high by five-foot wide bookcases were next to a large table with seven chairs which Micheil and Finlay said could be used either as a group study table or also as a gaming table if say they wanted to play Exploding Snap or any other game that wasn’t chess.
While most students took their meals in the Great Hall, no rules stated that they had to be eaten there. So, Micheil and Finlay also told the boys that the house-elves, if called, were more than willing to bring food up.
The twins said that on more than one occasion since starting school, the boys in his year had ordered breakfast up to their room rather than making the trek down to the Great Hall. There were also times where if the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower was between their last morning class and their first-afternoon class, that they’d also opt to take lunch in their room rather than walk all the way down to the Great Hall.
There were some limits, of course, such as the house-elves not being able to provide alcohol, even to those students who were of legal age to drink it. This was mainly because the staff didn’t want anyone overindulging and getting hungover or being raced to the Hospital Wing with alcohol poisoning.
The house-elves were also not allowed to serve food to the house dormitories on days where attendance at a certain meal, usually dinner, in the Great Hall was mandatory. Although those were usually limited to certain holiday feasts and breakfast the morning after arrival. The latter due to it being the time when the students would get their class schedules.
Set into large niches along one wall were seven separate alcoves, all containing a single four-poster bed, a desk and chair, a nightstand, and a wardrobe. There were two shelves cut into the stone wall above the head of the bed and above the desk and four more cut into the wall next to the wardrobe, providing places for the students to store books, or other personal touches such as plants or family photographs.
Each alcove had a window, as well as a curtain along the side that opened into the rest of the room which could be closed for privacy. There was also a place for their trunks at the foot of the bed, which had all already been brought up by the house-elves. It was through this way that each boy knew which alcove was theirs, as their trunk had been placed in it.
Micheil and Finlay had said that if they really wanted to, they could switch, but if they did, they’d have to be sure to let the house-elves know so that their laundry got put in the right place. All students clothes did have name-tags, but the house-elves were usually pretty busy on laundry days, so unless they were made aware of a change, they’d still deliver the freshly laundered clothes to the wardrobe of the alcove that each student’s trunk had been placed in at the beginning of the school year.
Of course, as all of the alcoves were exactly the same right down to the bedding on the beds—midnight blue cotton sheets and pillowcases with a plaid duvet in various shades of blue with bronze accents—none of them really saw a need to switch.
About the only thing that would be different was the view outside the windows, though being dark outside, one couldn’t see very far right now. Micheil and Finlay, however, had said that Ravenclaw Tower had the best views out of all the houses in the school. They’d mentioned being able to see the Black Lake, Forbidden Forest, Quidditch pitch, Herbology greenhouses, and the surrounding mountains from most of the windows.
Tired from their train ride, all seven boys agreed to turn in for the night and save getting to know each other better for breakfast the next morning. It’s not like there was any great rush. After all, they’d be rooming together for the next seven years, it was pretty much a guarantee that they’d get to know each other very well, especially since they’d be showering together.
-o-0-o-
2 September 1991…
At twenty minutes to five the next morning, Hadrian woke up and throwing off his covers, swung his legs off his bed, put his feet in his slippers, and headed out of his alcove to the bathroom. Once he’d taken care of his bladder’s pressing needs, he made his way back to his alcove, closed the curtain, and opened his wardrobe.
For the last six months, Hadrian had gotten into the habit of going for a morning run for about an hour every morning before eating breakfast. At home, it was always him and Darius, along with Sirius and Remus. Vernon joined them about two times a week.
Their other friends who lived in the neighborhood—Piers, Kevin, and Wayne—also frequently joined them, just not every morning. They averaged about three to four days a week, rather than all seven without fail. Although they'd each said they’d like to increase the number of days per week they did it.
After pulling on a pair of light cotton workout shorts and a t-shirt, Hadrian sat down on his bed to put on his socks and running shoes. Finished, he opened his curtain and found Kevin exiting his alcove, also dressed and ready to go running.
“Joining me this morning?” Hadrian asked.
“Yup,” Kevin said. “I heard you get up and I didn’t really feel tired anymore, so, I figured might as well.”
“What are you guys doing up so early?” came the sleepy voice of Stephen Cornfoot, as he sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.
“Going for a morning run,” Hadrian said. “I do it every morning and Kevin usually joins me three to four days a week.”
“You know each other outside of Hogwarts?” Anthony Goldstein asked as he exited the bathroom.
“Yup, we live on adjacent streets in the same neighborhood,” Kevin answered. “So, we’ve been friends for years now.”
“Cool,” Anthony said, before, after a moment of thought, he asked, “Mind if I join you?”
“Sure, the more the merrier,” Hadrian said. “If you don’t mind the fact that at least one Slytherin will likely be joining us since my cousin Darius runs with me every morning.”
“That’s fine,” Anthony said, as he headed for his alcove. “Just give me a couple minutes to get dressed.”
“Are you even allowed to go out this early?” Stephen asked.
Nodding, Hadrian answered, “Yes, I checked with Micheil and Finlay and they said it’s fine. In fact, they’re planning on joining us too, so we’ll be with a prefect.”
“Isn’t it prefects?” Stephen asked.
“Technically, only Finlay was made a prefect,” Kevin said, as Hadrian had already told his friends this. “But, since he shares everything from the neck down with his brother, the teachers made an exception and granted Micheil equal status.”
“Yeah, Fin can’t really do his prefect duties without Mic’s help,” Hadrian added.
“Fin? Mic?” Stephen asked. “You’re friends with them too, I take it?”
“Yup,” Hadrian confirmed, as Stephen nodded and got out of bed. “Well, I can’t sleep anyway, so give me a few minutes to go to the bathroom and change, and I’ll join you.”
“You guys do whatever you want,” came the sleepy and annoyed sounding voice of Michael Corner. “Just do it quietly. Some people are still trying to sleep.”
-o-0-o-
About five minutes later, Hadrian, Kevin, Stephen, and Anthony left the first-year boy’s dormitory and headed down to the common room. Upon arriving, they could see that Micheil and Finlay weren’t down yet, so the others took seats in front of the fireplace while Hadrian went back to the stairs and climbed up to the tenth floor of the tower where the fifth-year boy’s dorm was located.
Unsurprisingly, the door was closed when he arrived, but Micheil and Finlay had told him to just come in, so he did. Entering the room, Hadrian saw that the tower was laid out identically to his own dorm room, except that only four of the seven alcoves had curtains on them since only four of them were actually being used.
Without the curtains hanging on the rod that went across the entrance to the alcoves, Hadrian could see the wardrobe, desk and chair, nightstand, and bed of each. However, the difference here was that the bed was stripped down to the mattress, rather than having any bedding on it. There were also no trunks resting at the foot of the beds.
Of the four alcoves that were in use, three of them had their curtains closed, leaving only the one open. Going over, Hadrian immediately knew it had to be Micheil and Finlay’s alcove because he could see their initials MFM and FMM engraved on the trunk on either side of the MacDougal coat of arms.
Micheil and Finlay shared a trunk because they honestly didn’t see the point in getting two trunks when one would hold all of their belongings just fine. It’s not like they could open and go through two different trunks at the same time anyway.
The house-elves had not been in to clean yet, so the bed was unmade and had clearly been slept in. Guessing they must be in the bathroom, Hadrian made his way over to the bathroom door and went in. It didn’t take long for him to realize that none of the bathroom stalls were in use, which left only one place in the tower that they could be.
Hadrian hesitated outside the door to the shower area of the bathroom, as a part of him couldn’t help but think that it would be wrong of him to just walk in while they were in the shower. Another, part of him, however, had always been curious about what they looked like without them as he’d never actually seen them without their clothes.
Even when they’d had pool parties on Privet Drive, Micheil and Finlay had always worn a t-shirt with their swim trunks, so he’d never even seen them without a shirt on before. His curiosity was purely innocent, of course, as while his Claiming had triggered certain parts of puberty, the sexual aspects of it had not been triggered and wouldn’t be until he turned thirteen.
Making up his mind, Hadrian opened the door and walked into the shower room. He was pretty sure he blushed upon catching sight of Micheil and Finlay, who were standing there completely naked. They were leaning forward slightly, their back turned to him, and Micheil had his hand against the tiles, as Finlay moved his…
‘Oh gods,’ Hadrian thought to himself, blushing crimson as he realized that he’d caught his friends jerking off in the shower.
He knew he should leave, preferably before they knew he was there, but for some unfathomable reason, he found that his feet no longer seemed to work. It’s as if he’d stepped in a puddle of spilled glue because his feet wouldn’t move. As much as he wanted to look away, he couldn’t, and instead, he found his eyes drifting ever lower as he looked at every inch of what he could see of the twin’s naked body.
It wasn’t long before he noticed that they each had two magical creatures tattooed on their skin. Studying them for a moment, Hadrian tried to remember what they were from looking at pictures in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, both the textbook version he now had and the children’s picture book version he’d had for several years.
Calling up the images in his mind and what the books said about the creatures, he realized that Micheil had a Hungarian Horntail dragon on his shoulder blade and a thestral on the back of his thigh. Finlay, meanwhile, had a Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon on his shoulder blade and a thunderbird on the back of his neck, just below the hairline.
Hadrian’s Ravenclaw mind immediately started recalling everything he could remember about the four creatures, even as he started wondering just why Micheil and Finlay had gotten tattoos and if their parents knew or if they’d snuck out and gotten them behind their backs.
One other thing he noticed was that Micheil’s thestral was just a faint gray outline, while the horntail, along with Finlay’s ironbelly and thunderbird were vibrant full-color depictions. He couldn’t help but wonder why Micheil’s thestral was so incomplete looking in comparison to the others.
Micheil and Finlay moaned loudly, as Hadrian heard Micheil moan a name half a second before Finlay followed suit. Hadrian’s blush deepened as he realized that the names they’d said were Kaidan and Karter.
Hadrian’s eyes widened and he could feel his blush getting even worse, as Micheil and Finlay made indecipherable moaning sounds, seconds before several streams of a stringy white substance that Hadrian realized was cum became visible between their legs, hitting the tiles of the wall and floor, the water washing it down the drain.
‘I’d better get out of here,’ Hadrian said, as he knew from the sex talk that cum meant they were almost done and if he didn’t want to get caught watching, he had to move now. Much to his relief, he found his feet were working now… except in his haste to get away before he was caught he turned around a little too fast and overbalanced himself in the process.
‘Oh shit,’ Hadrian thought, as he found himself falling face-first onto the floor.
The noise obviously drew Micheil and Finlay’s attention, as they turned their upper body enough so that Finlay could turn his head and look behind them. “Hadrian?” he asked, as he saw his friend sprawled out on the floor in the doorway.
Micheil turned off the shower and grabbed a towel from the nearby towel rod, which he and Finlay wrapped around their waist before they turned around and came closer, at which point they noticed that Hadrian was lying on the floor, and there was a small stream of blood trickling away from his head.
Quickly coming over and inspecting their friend, they found him dazed and clearly embarrassed… he wasn’t the only one… but otherwise okay, except for a small cut on his forehead about two inches to the left of his famous scar.
Helping Hadrian to his feet, Micheil and Finlay led him out of the bathroom and over to their alcove, pleased to note that none of their dorm mates were awake yet as their curtains were all still closed. Of course, they were all late risers in the twins’ experience, usually not getting up until about half-an-hour before breakfast was due to start.
Sitting Hadrian down on their bed, Micheil reached over to the shelf above the bed and grabbed his wand. Waving it in front of Hadrian’s face, Micheil quickly cast two spells in rapid succession, one to heal the small cut and the other to clean up the blood.
Finlay, meanwhile, pulled the curtain shut and used his own wand to put up a Silencing Charm. He then proceeded to cast a series of Drying Charms, since he and Micheil hadn’t taken the time to towel off after their shower, as they’d been more concerned with Hadrian at the time.
Spells cast and Hadrian’s forehead healed, Micheil sighed, “Not exactly the way I saw our shower ending, but, oh well.”
“I’m sorry,” Hadrian mumbled.
“It’s okay, Rian,” Finlay said. “We’re not mad. It’s not like we have anything that you don’t have and you’re certainly not the first person to see us naked.”
Micheil nodded before he and Finlay moved over to their wardrobe and opened it, using the door to give themselves a modicum of privacy as they grabbed a pair of underwear and dropped their towel before putting them on.
Since their roommates never got up as early as they did, Micheil and Finlay had gotten into the habit of jerking off during the first of their morning showers.
They took two because they’d been going for a morning run for the last two years, but they’d always been unable to function in the mornings without a shower. Just like Vernon needed his cup of morning tea to cease looking like a zombie, the twins needed a shower.
Thus, they ended up showering a second time after they got back from their run, by which point their dorm mates were all awake. Since none of them were early risers, however, and they were jerking off, they usually locked the door to the shower room during their first shower of the morning.
“So, you saw us showering,” Micheil began, as he turned his head towards Finlay, even as they pulled on a pair of workout shorts, and said, “Since somebody forgot to lock the door.”
“Why is it my fault?” Finlay asked. “You could have locked it.”
“Because I asked you to and you said you would,” Micheil pointed out. “And in case you forgot, my hand was full, as I was carrying our new bottle of shampoo.”
“Fine, I screwed up,” Finlay said. “Happy?”
“Not particularly but there’s nothing I can do about it now,” Micheil said.
As the twins fell silent for a moment, as they looked through their shirts to see which one they wanted to wear this morning, Hadrian, having gotten over his embarrassment, said, “You’re wrong, by the way.”
“About?” Finlay asked, as he tilted his head past the wardrobe door and looked at Hadrian.
“About not having anything that I don’t have.”
Micheil chuckled and said, “Well, I guess that’s true enough, as you don’t have two heads unless you count the one between your legs.”
Rolling his eyes, Hadrian said, “I meant your tattoos, you jackarse.”
“Hadrian, language,” Finlay chastised in his best prefect voice, before he asked, “Tattoos? What are you talking about?”
“The thunderbird, dragons, and thestral.”
T-shirt in hand and dressed enough to be presentable, the twins closed the wardrobe door and moved to sit next to Hadrian on the bed.
“Those aren’t tattoos,” Micheil said as they pulled their shirt on over their heads. “They’re soulmarks.”
“Soulmarks?” Hadrian asked, having never heard of them before.
“I suppose your aunt, Sirius, and Remus were probably going to tell you closer to your thirteenth birthday,” Finlay answered. “That’s when a witch or wizard’s soulmark generally appears. They can appear later in life, but the vast majority of the magical populace get them within about ten to fifteen minutes of the thirteenth anniversary of their birth.”
“Some people don’t have one,” Micheil added. “They’re referred to as being markless, although that’s believed to be pretty rare. Anyway, a soulmark is a mark that denotes that the person who has it has a soulmate. The more romantic people of this world would tell you that your soulmate is the one great love of your life that you're destined by the Fates themselves to be with and that you should save yourself for them.”
“There’s a very big problem with that idea, however,” Finlay said. “In that many people never find their soulmates, as its entirely possible that they don’t even live in the same country. They could live on the other side of the world in a country that you’re highly unlikely to ever visit.”
“There’s no spell to locate them?” Hadrian asked.
Shaking his head from side to side, as he put his leg on his brother’s knee so that they could put on one of their socks and shoes, Micheil said. “No, there isn’t. The only way to find one’s soulmate is to physically touch them and even then it has to be skin on skin contact.”
“It also doesn’t work unless both members of the soul pair are at least thirteen years old and have their soulmarks,” Finlay added. “The marks have to match completely. Not only the animal or creature and location on the body, but they also have to be in the exact same pose.”
“So, if you met somebody who had a thestral in the same place as Micheil,” Hadrian said, “but the heads were facing in different directions, that means you’re not soulmates?”
“Correct,” Micheil said, as he put his foot down and Finlay copied his previous action so that they could put on their other sock and shoe.
“I take it there’s some sort of significance with the coloring? I couldn’t help but notice that the two dragons and the thunderbird were vibrant full-color, while the thestral was just a faint gray outline.”
“Yes, they’re faint gray outlines when you first get them,” Finlay explained. “And they stay that way until you meet and touch your soulmate, at which point they’ll darken to more distinct black outlines… or white if your skin is dark enough that a black outline would be hard to see against it.”
“Full-color means that you’ve not only found your soulmate,” Micheil said, “but bonded with them.” Blushing slightly, he coughed and said, “Which requires you to be in love and have sex with them.”
“Ah, I see,” Hadrian said. “Kaidan and Karter?”
Nodding, Finlay said, “Yes. Kaidan has a horntail that perfectly matches Micheil’s and a thunderbird that matches mine. And Karter has the twin of my ironbelly.”
“So, Kaidan is a soulmate to both of you,” Hadrian said. “Karter is Finlay’s soulmate, and Micheil still has a soulmate out there somewhere that you haven’t met.”
“Yup,” Micheil said. “So does Karter, actually. Anyway, we should get going on our run. Anyone else joining us?”
“I’m sure Darius will be waiting for us in the entry hall,” Hadrian said. “And Kevin, Stephen, and Anthony are waiting for us in the common room.”
“Cool, well, let’s not keep them waiting,” Finlay said, as he held out his arm so that Micheil could attach the holster holding his wand to Finlay’s arm before Finlay attached his to Micheil’s.
Some people opted for a spring-loaded holster that could eject their wand into their hand, but Micheil and Finlay preferred holsters that kept their wands on their off-arms, which in their case happened to be each other’s arms.
“If you have any other questions about soulmates,” Micheil said, “you can ask us later via the journal.”
Hadrian nodded before Micheil waved his wand and ended the Silencing Charm before Finlay pushed open the curtain, and they left the dormitory.
-o-0-o-
Collecting the others, the Ravenclaw group made their way down to the ground floor, arriving in the entrance hall only seconds before Darius came up the steps from the dungeons, accompanied by Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini. Not long afterward, Wayne came up the stairs that led down to the kitchens and the Hufflepuff dorms, accompanied by Ernie Macmillan and Cedric Diggory.
After a few quick introductions were made for those who didn’t have an eidetic memory like Hadrian and couldn’t remember everyone’s name and face from the Sorting Feast the previous night, the group decided they might as well take advantage of the deserted entrance hall and do some stretches while they waited for the Gryffindor group to arrive.
It was about five minutes later that Hadrian caught movement out of the corner of his eye, but it turned out to not be the Gryffindors, but the caretaker, Argus Filch, and his cat, Mrs. Norris.
“Well, well, what have we here,” Filch said, as he rubbed his hands together in a rather menacing looking way. “Students out of bed.”
“With all due respect, Mr. Filch,” Finlay said, “there’s nothing wrong with that.” Holding up his hand when it looked like Filch was going to argue, he said, “A, they’re with a prefect,” as he motioned to the golden prefect’s badge pinned to his and Micheil’s shirt.
“And B,” Micheil added, as he motioned towards the clock on the wall, “if you didn’t notice, it’s after five in the morning, so curfew ended fifteen minutes ago.”
“And C,” Hadrian said, “it’s outside of school hours and they’re all in the company of a Grand Duke.”
Filch’s eyes widened slightly, as he saw Hadrian. Bowing he said, “My apologies, I didn’t see you, Your Most Royal Highness.” Despite his words, he did grumble slightly, before asking, “May I ask why you’re loitering in the entry hall at this hour?”
“We’re going out for a morning run,” Micheil said. “Some of the Gryffindors are joining us, so we figured we’d do some stretching until they got here.”
“And here they are,” Finlay said as he looked up the stairs behind Filch and saw Piers Polkiss coming down the stairs, along with Neville Longbottom, Percy, Fred, and George Weasley, and Kaidan and Karter.
Mrs. Norris had already lost interest before the Gryffindors appeared and had slinked off down a nearby corridor. Filch just sighed and followed her as the Gryffindor group stepped down from the stairs.
“Morning all,” Percy said with a smile. He may be the serious and bookish type, confounding more than a few as to why he wasn’t placed in Ravenclaw, but he still exercised. He alternated between joining Fred and George for their morning run and going to the weight room in the gym. This morning he decided to go for a run.
“Morning, Perce,” Micheil said, as he and Finlay moved past him and the other Gryffindors to Kaidan and Karter and pulled them into a kiss.
Normally, Percy might have taken issue to such a public display of affection, as it was technically against the rules, but he chose to look the other way when it came to his dorm mates since he knew that Micheil and Finlay were their bonded soulmates.
It was after Micheil ended his kiss with Kaidan and Finlay with Karter—and they’d moved slightly so that Finlay could kiss Kaidan too—that the two sets of twins moved where the others could see them. They’d been at the back of the group of lions and thus Hadrian and the first years from the other houses hadn’t gotten a good look at them.
Now, however, they did and most of their jaws were on the floor.
“You’re not identical,” Wayne said, as he blinked his eyes in disbelief as he looked at Kaidan and Karter, who were conjoined the same way that Micheil and Finlay were, sharing everything from their necks down.
“And you have different skin colors,” Kevin said, as he tried to wrap his mind around what he was seeing. At this point, having met Micheil and Finlay previously, and Neall and Niall, he was used to conjoined twins. But they’d all been identical, unlike Kaidan and Karter.
“I know, it must be a bit jarring for somebody who’s never seen our kind before,” the white twin said. “I’m Kaidan Shacklebolt.”
“And I’m Karter Shacklebolt,” the black twin said. “And yes, we’re mixed-race fraternal conjoined twins.”
Kaidan had brown hair and blue eyes, while Karter had black hair and brown eyes. Still, it was Kaidan’s white skin and Karter’s black skin that had caused the biggest amount of shock in those among the group who had never seen them before.
Theodore, Blaise, Ernie, and Anthony were all purebloods from noble families, so they knew, intellectually, that fraternal conjoined twins could exist in the magical world, but they’d never met any before now. So, it was jarring, especially when the first set they met was so obviously not identical.
“How?” Hadrian asked. “I was under the impression that conjoined twins were always identical, having resulted in a single fertilized egg that failed to split completely in two.”
“That is the normal process, yes,” Kaidan said. “However, in magical twins, it’s also possible for fraternal twins to be born conjoined if one of them was in danger of being stillborn.”
“Essentially, the magic of one twin,” Karter added, “locks onto the magic of the other twin while they’re still in the womb and they get fused together to save the life of the twin that would have otherwise been dead at birth.”
“The joining is so complete,” Percy said, “that it’s impossible to tell which is which. So Kaidan and Karter have no idea which one of them was in danger of being stillborn, just that one of them was.”
“Not knowing is a good thing, when you think about it,” Finlay said. “In this way, neither of them can hold literally saving the life of their twin over the other’s head.”
Nodding, Kaidan said, “Yes, to be honest, even if there was a way to find out, I wouldn’t want to know.”
“Neither would I, honestly,” Karter agreed. “Anyway, as for our different skin colors, our fathers, Kingsley and Shawn Shacklebolt, are a mixed-race couple. Kaidan more strongly resembles Shawn, while I take after Kingsley.”
“Fraternal twins with different skin colors are a possible result of a mixed-race couple having children together,” Micheil explained. “It’s just very rare, even in the magical world, for that possibility to be combined with fraternal conjoined twins.”
“Even with conjoined twins being more common in the magical world compared to the muggle world,” Percy said, “most sets are identical. Less than five percent are fraternal.”
Grinning, Karter said, “I guess that makes us special.”
“You’ll get no arguments from us,” Finlay said, as Micheil nodded.
Everybody laughed before some more introductions were done and the Gryffindors did some stretching along with the others before they opened the front doors and headed out on their run, choosing to circle the lake since Theo told them that even though it was only the first day of classes, the Slytherin team had already booked the pitch for an early morning Quidditch practice.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Ch9 of “The Seventh Olympian”. So, Hadrian has finally met Kaidan and Karter and they’re rather unique, to say the least. We also learned about soulmates and soulmate-identifying marks. And got our first look inside Hadrian’s new home for the next seven years.
I’ll probably be switching focus to one of my other stories now that I’ve posted three chapters of this in a row. Not sure which one right now, but I guess we’ll see.
Also, I would just like to say that while I truly do appreciate each and every one of my loyal readers and reviewers, I would ask that you please do not leave reviews on any of my works that have absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with the story that you’re reviewing.
I’ve gotten several reviews in the last couple of months which expressed disappointment that I’d updated one story over one of my others that the reviewer apparently likes more. And even a few where they asked me to update a specific story in a review on a different one and didn’t say anything at all about the story they were actually reviewing. Maybe I’m crazy, but I find that annoying and annoyance doesn’t breed creativity or inspiration, both of which are needed if you want any updates at all.
Chapter 10: First Day of Classes
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Ten:
First Day of Classes
-o-0-o-
2 September 1991…
Following their morning run, Hadrian and his housemates returned to Ravenclaw Tower and showered. There was much blushing in the shower room this morning, as all seven of the first-year boys ended up showering at the same time. Even though they were all steadfastly trying to keep their eyes to themselves, they were still embarrassed.
Finally, having enough, Hadrian cleared his throat and while he didn’t look at any of his housemates, he said, “This is kind of ridiculous, you know. We’re all boys here so it’s not like any of us has anything that all of us haven’t seen before.”
With a nod, Kevin added, “True, and seeing as how we’re likely going to be doing this every morning for the next seven years, we should get used to it.”
“You’re probably right,” Terry allowed. “I think this being the first time though, it was to be expected.”
“Give it a few days, maybe a week, though,” Michael added, “and I should think it’ll get better.”
“I sure hope so,” Hadrian said. “As I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’d rather not be blushing in embarrassment every day for the next seven years.”
“Neither would I,” Stephen said, chuckling a bit. “But, I think it’ll be fine. Eventually, it’ll become second nature and we won’t even care.”
-o-0-o-
By 7 AM, all seven boys in Ravenclaw House’s first-year class, along with the seven girls, all took their seats at the Ravenclaw table in the Great Hall. Micheil, Finlay, and Penelope had accompanied them downstairs, answering questions as they walked.
As such, they knew that breakfast was served for thirty minutes, starting at 7:05. On this particular morning, they’d be given about fifteen minutes to eat before the Heads and Deputy Heads of House began handing out the timetables which would tell them when all their classes would be.
“Well, at least I already know that I’ll have two free periods,” Hadrian said. “Since I tested out of Wizard Studies.”
Hermione, who was seated across from Hadrian nodded. “I still can’t help but wonder if that was a mistake.”
“Oh come on, Hermione,” Kevin said. “How could it be a mistake? You got a perfect score on the test, meaning you already knew everything the class could teach.”
Nodding, Hadrian said, “Yes, don’t you think it would be a waste of time to attend a class that can’t teach you anything because you already know the material?”
From his place sitting to Hadrian’s right, Finlay said, “I’m sure you can find better things to do with that time, Hermione. Even if it’s just to do some of your assignments for your other classes.”
Hermione finally nodded, as she said, “Yes, I suppose you’re right.”
“What do you mean that you tested out of Wizard Studies?” Stephen asked.
“I lived in the muggle world with my witch aunt and muggle uncle,” Hadrian said. “And I’ve been getting private lessons on pretty much everything that Wizard Studies would teach for a few years now.”
“Same here,” Kevin said. “Hadrian got Hermione and I, and a couple of our other friends, into his private lessons with Lord and Lady Black, Lord and Lady Flamel, and Pollux and Irma Black. Hermione and I are muggleborn, so we certainly didn’t need Muggle Studies and we already knew everything that the compulsory version of Wizard Studies could teach us.”
“So they tested out of the class,” Micheil said. “Which basically means having the professor gives them an exam to test their knowledge. They all passed with flying colors.”
“Wow, I didn’t even know that was possible,” Stephen said. “Of course, I know I’ll be in Muggle Studies.”
“Well, if you have any questions or need help with any of the assignments, I’ll be happy to help,” Hadrian said, as Hermione and Kevin nodded in agreement.
“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind,” Stephen said, with a smile.
Any further conversation was halted as the serving platters and bowls all along the table magically filled with a wide variety of breakfast items and everyone began filling their plates.
Fifteen minutes later, the Heads and Deputy Heads of House stood up, each levitating a large stack of parchment behind them. The Heads started at the end of the table closest to the head table, while their deputies began at the side closest to the Entrance Hall.
For Ravenclaw House, this put Professor Flitwick at the end of the table that Hadrian and his friends were seated at, while the head of the Dueling department, Professor Galatea Merrythought, moved over to the opposite end of the table.
“Just how old is Professor Merrythought anyway?” Anthony asked as he watched her walk past.
“I’m not sure of her exact age,” Micheil said. “But I do know that she’s over a hundred. She taught Defense Against the Dark Arts for nearly fifty years until she retired in 1945.”
Nodding, Finlay added, “She came out of retirement in 1967 when the Dueling department was formed and has been teaching ever since. She’s been Deputy Head of Ravenclaw House since 1982.”
“Is it common in the wizarding world for people to still be working at that age?” Sally-Anne asked.
“Yes, it is,” Penelope answered. “Professor Dumbledore is also over a hundred years old. Witches and wizards are longer-lived than muggles. One’s health and magical reserves can determine how long a person can live, but it’s not at all uncommon for witches and wizards to see the age of 150.”
“Most witches and wizards aren’t even considered middle-aged until they’ve reached their seventies or eighties,” Hadrian said, as he knew that from his classes with his grandparents and steward.
What he didn’t say, because he didn’t feel like explaining to the muggleborns that both witches and wizards could get pregnant, was the child-bearing age was also longer. Where it was generally accepted that roughly age forty to forty-five was the limit for muggle women to get pregnant, in the wizarding world, it was much higher.
Eighty to eighty-five was generally considered to be the upper limit for most, although some could safely carry children even older, depending on their health and magical reserves.
Stephen nodded in agreement. “Grand Duke Theseus Scamander turns 103 this year and while he is the current eldest of the Grand Dukes, he’s not the oldest sitting lord.”
“Who is?” Oliver Rivers asked.
“Well, I can say that for House Goldstein,” Anthony said, “My great-great-great-grandfather is the current lord and head. He celebrated his 186th birthday in March.”
“Wow,” Sally-Anne said, clearly surprised.
“Although, believe it or not, he’s not the oldest sitting lord,” Finlay said with a grin.
“He’s not?” Oliver asked, clearly surprised.
Shaking his head, Hadrian said, “Nope. That honor actually goes to my senior vassal and steward, Lord Nicolas Flamel, the Duke of Pleinmont. You wouldn’t know it to look at him, because he doesn’t look a day over 27, but he turned 664 in June.”
“664?!” Sally-Anne, Oliver, Mandy Brocklehurst, Su Li, and Lisa Turpin, all muggleborns or muggle-raised halfbloods, asked in unison, their shock clear in both their tones and faces.
“Is he a vampire or something?” Oliver asked.
“No, he’s not a vampire,” Hadrian said. “His life has been extended through magical means, but I’m not at liberty to say how.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be like royalty or something?” Oliver asked.
With a nod, Hadrian said, “Yes, I’m a Grand Duke and a Prince-Elector, but the means through which Lord Flamel’s life has been magically extended is a Flamel family secret. As his liege lord, I know that secret, but I respect Nicolas enough to not reveal the truth or confirm any of the many rumors.”
“And yet you confirmed that he’s not a vampire?” Lisa asked.
“Yeah, he doesn’t particularly care for that rumor,” Hadrian answered. “So, he told me that I could dispel it if I heard it.”
Hadrian was saved from any further questions by the arrival of Professor Flitwick with their schedules.
“Mr. Potter, here’s your schedule,” Filius said, as he handed Hadrian a sheaf of parchment, before handing more out to all the nearby students.
“Thank you, Professor,” Hadrian said as he took the parchment and began perusing it.
He’d already known that Hogwarts observed a system of A and B weeks, in that the order of his classes would change from week to week. Being the first week of school, it was currently an A week. All classes were fifty minutes long, with five minutes between classes to get from one class to another.
Today was a Monday, so moving his finger across his schedule, Hadrian saw that he had three classes—History of Magic, Dueling, and Charms—before the fifteen-minute morning break at 10:25 AM. He then had Defense Arts—which used to be called Defense Against the Dark Arts until the class was renamed in 1967—and Transfiguration, before Lunch, which was from 12:35 to 1:05.
After Lunch, he had Double Potions, which was 105 minutes, as it was two class periods, plus the five-minute break between them. This was followed up by the fifteen-minute afternoon break at 3:00, and he had the last period of the day, 3:20 PM to 4:10 PM free due to testing out of Wizarding Studies.
For Tuesday, the first three classes of the day were the same, but after morning break he had Earth Science—which he was looking forward to since Remus taught it—followed by English. Geography and Maths replaced Double Potions, and he then had Magical Theory in the final time slot of the day.
Wednesday was the same as Monday, except for the final class period, in which he was scheduled for Geography again. Thursday then started with Latin, Magical Theory, and Mundane British History before the morning break, with Defense Arts and Transfiguration following it. After lunch, he had another free period due to testing out of Wizarding Studies, then Earth Science and Maths on either side of the afternoon break.
Friday was the same as Monday until after lunch when he had English, Latin, and finally Mundane British History after the break.
“There are classes on Saturday and Sunday?” Oliver asked as he looked at his schedule.
“Third years and older can have electives scheduled on Saturdays,” Micheil answered.
“First-years only have Flying and Physical Education on Saturdays and Sundays,” Finlay added.
“And those two classes are the only ones that can be scheduled on Sundays,” Penelope revealed. “Also the Flying classes are only until the end of October. After that, you’ll be down to only having Physical Education.”
“I suppose from the supply lists, I should have expected it,” Sally-Anne said, “but for some reason, I didn’t expect there to be muggle classes at Hogwarts.”
“They were added to the Hogwarts curriculum in 1952,” Micheil said. “The Board of Governors weren’t exactly thrilled, especially the pureblood members, but then Headmaster Armando Dippett thought they’d be a good addition. And Grand Duke Gervaise Ollivander, the father of the current Lord Garrick Ollivander, agreed with him.”
“And since Hogwarts is located in the Ollivander’s Grand Duchy of North Alba,” Finlay continued, “and because the Ollivander Grand Duke has been Master of Education—the King’s advisor on the Privy Council—for centuries, the Board grudgingly accepted the additions.”
“Shortly after Gervaise died in 1979,” Penelope added, “the Board of Governors tried to lobby Garrick to scrap them, but Garrick agreed with his father. And by then the other Grand Dukes had all added their support as well, so, at that point, there was pretty much no chance of getting rid of them.”
“The classes do seem to have had a benefit, however,” Micheil revealed. “In that Albion and Iwernia now has one of the lowest instances of breaches to the Statute of Secrecy in the world. Not getting fined by the ICW is always a good thing.”
“The ICW?” Sally-Anne asked.
“The International Confederation of Wizards,” Penelope replied. “Essentially the magical version of the United Nations, although far older since the ICW was founded in the 1600s.”
“Cool,” Oliver said, as everyone returned to perusing their schedules for a while.
After a few minutes, a curious Hadrian leaned closer to Finlay to get a look at the twins’ schedule. Finlay smiled as he wrapped his arm around Hadrian and pulled him a bit closer as Micheil moved their schedule a bit closer so that Hadrian could see it better.
The first thing Hadrian noticed was that Micheil and Finlay while having several of the same classes as him, had different teachers. For example, Hadrian’s Transfiguration professor was Thaddeus Bolton-Zabini, while the twins’ was Gideon Prewett. Of course, Hadrian knew that many of the professors only taught for certain years.
For example, both Professors Flitwick and Merrythought only taught the sixth and seventh-year students for Charms and Dueling, respectively. In fact, the same could be said for all of the Heads and Deputy Heads of House, in that all of them were Department Heads for their various subjects who only taught NEWT students.
This freed up a large portion of their days for their house duties. Their classes were also scheduled with no overlap to make sure that even if, for example, Professor Flitwick was busy teaching a class, then Professor Merrythought would be available or vice versa.
Looking at the twins’ Monday A-Week schedule, Hadrian noted that they had Charms, Defense Arts, and Transfiguration, and then Double Potions following the morning break. After lunch, they had Dueling, Physics, and Instrumental Music as their last class of the day.
“I see we have one teacher in common,” Hadrian said with a smile.
Micheil nodded. “Yeah, Remus teaches all of the compulsory muggle science classes. So, Earth Science for first years, Biology for third years, Chemistry for fourth years, and Physics for fifth years.”
“Second years don’t have a science class?” Hermione asked, having overheard the conversation.
Shaking his head from side to side, Finlay said, “They have Health and Sex Education instead. Professor Miles Scrimgeour, who teaches first and second-year Physical Education, teaches that class.”
“There are three other muggle science classes included in the Hogwarts curriculum,” Micheil said. “But they’re NEWT level electives: Medical Biology, Environmental Science, and Applied Physics. Very few people actually take them, however. Those who want to pursue careers as a Healer will usually take Medical Biology, but otherwise when given the choice, most students tend to focus on magical classes.”
“Only the Medical Biology class has a full-time professor on staff,” Finlay added. “The other two can sometimes go two or three years at a time without anyone signing up for them. So, they’re offered but a professor is only hired to teach them if somebody actually signs up for the class.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Hadrian said. “Not much point in paying a professor to sit around and do nothing, because they literally have zero classes to teach.”
Looking back at the twins' schedule, Hadrian noted that they had Latin as their last class of the day on Tuesdays. “I thought Latin was only compulsory for first and second years?”
“It is,” Finlay answered. “Mic and I chose to take it as an elective, however. We might drop it in NEWT year though, to make room for something else. Not sure yet.”
Nodding, Micheil added, “Yeah, we figured it was best to get through this year before we start worrying about our classes for next year.”
“Makes sense,” Hadrian said, as he continued to peruse the twins' schedule and noted their other electives. They also had Battlefield Medicine, Connective Magic, Elemental Magic, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Care of Magical Creatures.”
“What’s Connective Magic?” Hadrian asked.
“It’s a class that teaches two or more witches or wizards to jointly cast spells,” Micheil said. “It allows one to cast more powerful and potent spells and rituals without as much strain on their magic since others are helping them.”
Finlay nodded, as he added, “While it’s by no means a requirement, as any student can take it, you’ll find that pretty much every single set of conjoined twins enrolled has the class.”
With a smile, Penelope said, “It doesn’t matter if they’re as closely connected as Mic and Fin or almost completely separate. All of them are still two people with two magical cores, so Connective Magic helps them learn how to work in concert.”
Micheil grinned. “There are certain benefits, however, to being a conjoined twin in that class. While not impossible, it’s almost completely unheard of for a non-conjoined witch or wizard to get the top spot for best in the class.”
“Makes sense, I guess,” Hadrian said. “I mean you and Fin have had to cooperate for pretty much everything your whole lives. So, where others might have to learn it, I’d imagine you’ve already got a good amount of skill in cooperation.”
“Yeah, we do,” Finlay agreed. “Obviously Mic and I and Kaid and Kart need to cooperate with one another far more than most, but it’s a skill that most sets of twins like us, even the ones connected far less, have.”
“I know Neall and Niall have only one arm each,” Hadrian said. “So I suppose they have to cooperate more than most. And I know that Lord Fontaine’s heir Crevan and his brother Finian are the same.”
“Even the ones that are almost completely separate still need to cooperate,” Penelope said. “For example, Brandon and Brendan Weasley.”
Thinking back to his lessons in which he’d learned all about the various noble families—with particular focus on his vassal lords and their families—Hadrian asked, “They’re Lord Weasley’s nephews right?”
Penelope nodded. “Yes, they’re the eldest sons of Claudius and Rafaella Weasley. Claudius is Lord Weasley’s youngest brother. They're seventh-years this year.”
“As Penny said, they’re almost completely separate,” Finlay added. “They don’t share any internal organs at all. They both have two arms, two legs, and two almost completely separate bodies. They’re joined at the hip, but there are no bones involved. There’s only a band of flesh and soft tissue joining them together. They can get just under a foot away from one another, stand back to back, and even turn to face one another and hug.”
Micheil grinned. “They’re big-time huggers, by the way, if you ever meet them. Though considering that you’re their liege lord, they probably won’t hug you without permission.”
“It sounds like you’re speaking from experience,” Hadrian said.
Finlay nodded. “Yeah, we are. They’re Ravenclaws too, so, we met. It’s definitely interesting to be hugged from both sides at the same time, especially when you can feel the band of flesh that connects them.”
With a shake of his head, Micheil said, “It’s almost like a fifth boneless arm joining in on the hugging action.”
-o-0-o-
Included with all of the first year’s schedules was a map that showed them how to get from the Great Hall to their first class. For the first year Ravenclaws and Slytherins, this was History of Magic.
Since both the Great Hall and the History of Magic classrooms were on the ground floor, it didn’t take long for them to reach it.
Arriving in the classroom, they found row after row of desks that were designed to seat two people. From upfront, their teacher, Professor Evangeline Murphy, said, “Sit anywhere for now. I’ll be pairing you up in alphabetical order, one Ravenclaw and one Slytherin, to each desk once everyone is here.”
Darius and Hadrian took a seat at one of the two-person desks near the front of the classroom, deciding to enjoy sitting together as long as possible.
Turning to his cousin, Darius asked, “So, who are we going to end up with?”
“You think I know?”
Rolling his eyes, Darius said, “Don’t play dumb, Rian. I know you know. You and your perfect, eidetic memory.”
Hadrian smiled and said, “You’ll be paired with Michael Corner,” and he paused here, as he ran down the class list in his head, and then said, “I’ll be with Blaise Zabini.”
“And Kevin and Hermione?” Darius asked.
“Draco Malfoy for Kevin,” Hadrian said. “And Daphne Greengrass for Hermione.”
Once the bell rang, Professor Murphy took roll call and found that everyone was present. When she finished she had everyone stand up and just as Hadrian had figured out since he could remember every single student’s name from the Sorting Ceremony, Darius was paired with Michael, he was paired with Blaise, Kevin with Draco, and Hermione with Daphne.
Of course, there were three more Ravenclaws in the class than there were Slytherins, so Professor Murphy paired Padma Patil and Sally-Anne Perks together. Noting, however, that that would leave Lisa Turpin without a partner, the professor tapped her wand on a rune engraved on the top edge of Padma and Sally-Anne’s desk. A second later, it expanded to seat three people, at which point she smiled and told Lisa to join the other two girls.
Returning to the front of the room, Prof. Murphy said, “Now, class, you should all have a copy of A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot. Please open your books to chapter one on page four. We’ll be starting with the early history of the Kingdom of Albion and Iwernia, as it became after the withdrawal of the Roman Empire from Britannia.”
-o-0-o-
Leaving the History of Magic classroom fifty minutes later, the first year Ravenclaws and Slytherins made their way to the nearest staircase to make their way up the two flights of stairs to the second floor where their Dueling classroom was.
Their professors, Logan, and Lucas Clarke were a pair of conjoined twins who were joined at the hip and had only three legs between them.
Once again they were all told to sit wherever they wanted for the time being but were then split up into pairs of two the same way that Professor Murphy had split them up. Thus they had the same partners as in History of Magic.
Of course, they didn’t do any actual dueling, being the very first class, and instead spent the forty minutes left after roll call and assigning seats reading chapter one of Curses and Counter-Curses by Vindictus Viridian and learning the basics of a wizarding duel.
-o-0-o-
In Charms, Professor Davetta Shacklebolt had the class studying the theory behind the Levitation Charm. All of the students were a bit sad by the fact that the first class was a theory only class. They’d been hoping for a chance to actually use their wands, but alas, no such luck so far in the two classes, Dueling, and Charms, that had a practical component.
Following Charms, was the morning break, which was technically 25 minutes instead of the 15 minutes it was said to be since it included two five-minute passing periods.
Speaking of Defense Arts, the class was also entirely theoretical. One difference, however, was that Professor Quirrell didn’t do assigned seating and instead allowed the students to sit wherever they wanted.
What was no doubt going to be the biggest problem, however, was that Professor Quirrell had a pronounced speech impediment. He stuttered so badly that most of the students could only understand every second or third word that he said, and even that was a challenge, as he added several unnecessary letters to most words. He seemed to always get stuck on the first letter of most of his words and repeated them several times before finally getting the word out.
For example, when he’d told them to open their textbook and read chapter one, it came out as, “P-p-p-please op-op-open y-y-y-your t-t-t-text b-b-book to c-c-ch-chapter one and r-r-r-read it s-s-s-s-silently.”
To make matters worse, for Hadrian at least, he spent the entire lesson with a low-grade headache that seemed to emanate from his scar. Oddly, however, it seemed to go away almost as soon as left the classroom.
Transfiguration was next and Professor Bolton-Zabini sorted the students and assigned them seats the same way that they had been the first three classes of the day.
Hadrian thus found himself sitting next to Blaise Zabini again. Curious, Hadrian asked Blaise if the professor was related to him, which he answered that yes, he was. Blaise apparently had a half-brother named Wyatt Bolton, whose father was named Thackeray Bolton. He’d had two older sons, Thaddeus and Maximillian, from his first marriage before he married Blaise’s mum.
Thackeray died in late December of 1976 when Wyatt was only about three weeks old. Thaddeus and Maximillian were 11 and 10 respectively, at the time. Since Thackeray had no brothers or sisters and his parents were dead, as were his first wife and her parents and siblings, Blaise’s mum took in her stepsons and eventually blood-adopted them two years later, along with her new husband, Blaise’s late father, who also blood-adopted Wyatt.
Thus, Wyatt, as well as Thad and Max, as they preferred to be called, took the surname Bolton-Zabini.
They spent their time in their first Transfiguration class studying the theory behind turning a matchstick into a needle. Hadrian, Darius, and several of the muggleborn or muggle-raised couldn’t help but get a kick out of that. As all of their parents had always told them not to play with matches and yet at Hogwarts, it was their school-sanctioned first lesson in Transfiguration.
-o-0-o-
After lunch, the first-year Ravenclaws and Slytherins arrived in the upper dungeon for Double Potions with Professor Dylan Wells. However, when they arrived, they found Head Boy Plato Meadowes—a Gryffindor—leaning against the teacher’s desk. He had a free period and had apparently been sent ahead to unlock the classroom for the first years. Professor Wells was nowhere in sight.
As the bell rang and the students sat down, Plato said, “Professor Wells will be unable to make it to class today. His husband, Professor Ridley-Wells went into labor during lunch.”
There were a few confused murmurs at this, making Plato smile and say, “Yes, for the muggleborns and muggle-raised among you who didn’t know, wizards can get pregnant.”
“Are you going to teach the class then?” Stephen asked.
Shaking his head, Plato said, “No, Heir Cornfoot, I’m not.”
Plato was the confirmed heir of the Right Ancient and Noble House of Meadowes, the sworn vassal of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Cornfoot, so obviously he recognized the son and heir of the Grand Duke that his family owed their allegiance to.
“I’m only here to watch all of you until the head of the Potions Department arrives to fill in for Professor Wells,” Plato added. “Professor Wells did tell me what he was going to cover when he gave me the keys to the room, however, so while you wait, why don’t you take out your books and read chapter one of Magical Drafts and Potions?”
The students nodded and took out their textbooks, where they found that chapter one covered the proper way to prepare potions ingredients. Such as the differences between cutting, chopping, slicing, and dicing, and the effects each of them had on a finished potion… including the effect if you used chopped ingredients in a potion that called for diced.
About seven minutes after the bell to start class, everyone jumped slightly as the door to the classroom suddenly opened so fast that it banged against the wall, as a tall, black-haired wizard in his early thirties walked into the room. He was dressed from head to toe in black robes.
“You’re dismissed, Mr. Meadowes,” Professor Severus Snape-Prewett said, as he made his way to the front of the classroom.
Nodding, Plato said, “I told them to start reading chapter one of their textbooks as that’s what Professor…”
“I said you’re dismissed,” Severus said, angrily. “Five points from Gryffindor for talking out of turn. Now get out!”
Remaining quiet, Plato nodded and made his way towards the door, only holding out Professor Wells’ keyring as he passed Severus. The professor roughly grabbed them and slammed them down on the nearby desk without a word.
Several of the students looked at each other, surprised, as they hadn’t expected the professor to come in and take points from the Head Boy. They all wondered if perhaps Plato would just give himself or somebody else five points soon to make up the difference since as both a Prefect and the Head Boy, he did have the ability to do so.
Usually, the Prefects were only allowed to take points, but the Head Boy and Girl could also give points, as well as assign detentions with Mr. Filch or a student’s Head or Deputy Head of House.
Once Plato had left the room and closed the door behind him, Severus looked at the class for a moment, before he said, “You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don’t expect that you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its fumes, the delicate power of liquids coursing through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses…”
After a second’s pause, Severus added, “I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death… if you aren’t as big a bunch of worthless dunderheads as most first years tend to be.”
Needless to say, the class was all rather shocked by those words, as not a single one of them, including the Slytherins whose Head of House Severus was, could believe that he’d just said that. It was definitely a first, hearing one of their professors calling them worthless dunderheads.
Scanning the class, Severus spotted Hadrian and said, “Ah, Mr. Potter, our new celebrity. What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?”
As a Ravenclaw with an eidetic memory, Hadrian had no trouble answering, “A sleeping potion known the Draught of the Living Death.”
Severus looked momentarily surprised that Hadrian knew the answer, but unperturbed he asked, “Where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?”
“The stomach of a goat, sir,” Hadrian answered.
“And its use?” Severus asked.
“It’ll save you from most poisons,” Hadrian answered.
“The difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?”
“There isn’t any,” Hadrian answered. “It’s the same plant also known as aconite.”
“Hmm, very well,” Severus said. “Correct on all counts. 10 points from Ravenclaw for being an insufferable know-it-all and reading ahead in your textbook for material that’s not covered until sixth-year!”
If the class had been surprised by the fact that Severus had taken points from the Head Boy, they were now even more surprised that he had taken points from Prince-Elector Hadrian Potter in such an insulting manner.
Even the Slytherins didn’t laugh, as they usually might, as they couldn’t believe that Severus would treat one of the Grand Dukes in such a manner… especially considering that he was married to a Prewett. The same House Prewett that were the sworn vassals of House Potter.
Things didn’t improve for the rest of the class. Instead of teaching the class how to properly prepare ingredients as Professor Wells had planned, Severus pulled out his wand and put the recipe for the Boil Curing Potion on the blackboard.
When nobody moved, Severus asked, “Well? What are you all waiting for? An engraved invitation? Start brewing!”
The class quickly got out their cauldrons and potions ingredient kits and got to work. Of course, while some of them might know how to properly prepare their ingredients, many of them did not. A fact which seemed to delight Severus as he went around the room watching the class as they weighed dried nettles and crushed snake fangs and criticizing most of them.
Eventually, a cloud of acrid green smoke and a hissing sound filled the dungeon, as Kevin Entwhistle managed to melt his cauldron into a twisted mass of pewter, his potion dripping down to the floor and burning holes in people’s shoes.
“Idiot boy!” Severus yelled. “I suppose you added the porcupine quills before taking your cauldron off the fire.”
Kevin didn’t answer and just whimpered as boils started forming all over his hands and face.
“Mr. Cornfoot, take him to the Hospital Wing,” Severus said, as Stephen stood up and helped his housemate out of the room.
After they were gone, Severus fixed an angry look at Hadrian and said, “You, Potter! Why didn’t you tell him not to add the quills? Thought you’d make yourself look even more like an insufferable know-it-all by making all your classmates look dumb in comparison? Five more points from Ravenclaw!”
“That’s not fair!” Darius yelled.
“Shut up, Mr. Dursley,” Severus said. “One point from Slytherin and detention with Mr. Filch tonight after dinner!”
Everyone—Ravenclaw and Slytherin alike—were very glad when the bell rang and they were all dismissed.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Ch10 of ‘The Seventh Olympian.’ I imagine Severus is going to be in some trouble next chapter…
Chapter 11: The Day that Just Keeps Getting Worse
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Eleven:
The Day that Just Keeps Getting Worse
-o-0-o-
2 September 1991…
A couple of hours earlier, Severus was in his private brewing area off of his office, working on a potion for the hospital wing. The potion he was working on needed to be simmered for several hours, but also needed to be stirred at very precise time intervals.
He’d been delayed getting back to his office by some bratty second year Gryffindors and had almost missed the stirring deadline, so he hadn’t paused to make sure that his office door was locked. He honestly didn’t have time because if he missed the stir, the potion would boil over and explode.
Severus breathed a sigh of relief as he stirred twice counterclockwise, once clockwise, and then again counterclockwise. Now, he just needed to add…
“Professor!” a voice called out as there was a loud knock on his door, which due to it not being locked or even fully latched in, swung open due to the force that the student had knocked with.
His concentration broken, Severus looked up and saw third-year Cedric Diggory standing in the doorway… seconds before the tricky potion in front of him boiled over and exploded.
As the acrid yellow smoke cleared to reveal one of Severus’s best cauldrons was now a twisted pile of metal, while his robes, hair, face, and every other surface within five feet was covered in a sickly yellow slime, the potion wasn’t the last explosion.
“Damn it, Diggory!” Severus raged. “Look at this mess! You just cost me twelve days of work, one of my best cauldrons, a brand new set of robes, and over fifty galleons worth of rare ingredients! 100 points from Hufflepuff and detention for a month!”
Cedric blanched at that, as he thought about how his housemates would react to suddenly being a hundred points in the hole on the first day of classes. He was truly sorry, however, and that was clear in his voice, as he said, “I’m sorry, professor, but the Headmaster sent me.”
“Don’t think for a moment that’ll get you out of detention,” Severus warned. “But why did he send you?”
“To tell you that you’ll need to cover Professor Wells’ first-year class with the Ravenclaws and Slytherins,” Cedric said. “Professor Ridley-Wells went into labor during lunch.”
“Very well then,” Severus said, as he glanced up at the clock and noticed that the next class period would be starting in about ten minutes. “They’ll have to wait until I clean both this mess and myself up, however.”
“He sent the Head Boy ahead with Professor Wells’ keys,” Cedric added. “Told him to wait with them until you get there.”
Severus nodded. “Fine. Message delivered, now go.”
A part of Cedric was tempted to stay and offer to help clean up the mess he’d caused, but he had a feeling that the professor would not be receptive to his help. He also had to get to English class.
Before Cedric could leave, Severus said, “Oh and Mr. Diggory?”
“Yes, professor?”
“If you tell a single soul about this,” Severus said in a low and cold voice, “you’ll be scrubbing out cauldrons in detention every night for the rest of the year. Do I make myself clear?”
Cedric gulped but nodded. “Yes, sir.”
-o-0-o-
It wasn’t until ten minutes after the first year Ravenclaw-Slytherin class left that Severus, thinking back on the class, realized his mistake.
The day had started out so nice. He and Fabian woke up, kissed, and were about to have sex when their children woke up and started crying out for their daddies. Both of them were currently two years old, as Cameron’s birthday wasn’t until December.
Fabian and Severus both sighed, but didn’t complain, and instead, they just got dressed and tried to think of the most disgusting things they could to get their raging cocks to go down before they got to their children’s rooms.
The cock-blocking wasn’t the last thing that went wrong, however. As it seemed like somebody had decided that today was officially Dump on Severus Day, as from that point on, every possible thing that could go wrong did go wrong.
For the past three months, Severus had been hard at work on writing a paper for Potion Masters Quarterly. It was one of the most prestigious publications in the field of potions and getting a paper published in it was a very positive mark on any Potion Master’s record.
Arriving at the breakfast table, however, Severus found a letter waiting for him that had been delivered by an owl while he was in the shower, as both he and Fabian had gone to shower after tending to their son Cameron and daughter Eileen. Everyone called their daughter Lena for short to avoid confusion with Severus’s mother who lived with them in their house in Hogsmeade.
Eileen Prince—she’d switched back to her maiden name after her husband died—was more than happy to watch Cameron and Lena during the day while Fabian and Severus were up at the school working.
The letter was from Potion Masters Quarterly telling him that his paper was rejected as it quote didn’t meet their needs at this time unquote. Severus was upset because he’d put a lot of hard work into that paper, but he could have let it go… if it wasn’t for the fact that he had a second note from a good friend of his that worked for the publication.
His friend, Rose, told him that she’d fought hard to get the paper into the edition, but the editorial board was firm in their decision not to print Severus’s paper. Instead, they printed three other shorter papers from other Potions Masters that made all the same points that Severus’s paper made, but in a far less concise way. One of them had even made some rather critical errors of logic.
Severus’s paper was without any room for doubt the best of the submissions that were made, but the editorial board decided not to publish it because of his “controversial beliefs.” Which was code for saying that they weren’t printing it because he was a Death Eater.
Not for the first time, Severus cursed the Dark Mark on his arm, as he’d never wanted the damn thing in the first place. He’d been tricked into getting it, however, and had cursed its existence ever since. That’s why he’d gone to Dumbledore and offered himself as a spy for the Order.
Because it was embarrassing for him and he didn’t like talking about it, only Dumbledore and Fabian knew the truth about how exactly Severus had come to be a Death Eater. They both agreed not to share it and had kept their words.
That wasn’t the only thing to have gone wrong, however. As he found as he and Fabian were walking up to Hogwarts that his husband had forgotten to do two things he’d promised. Wanting to lessen Severus’s workload so that he could focus on writing his now rejected paper, Fabian had promised to place the order for Eileen’s birthday cake and present.
He’d been so preoccupied with his paper that he hadn’t checked up on it and trusted that Fabian would handle it. Now, today was his mother’s birthday and Fabian had forgotten to place the orders for the present and the cake… and there was simply no way that the cake and gift that Severus had planned for could be gotten for same-day pickup.
This caused Severus and Fabian to have a bit of a fight on the walk up to Hogwarts for work. As far as Severus was concerned it was particularly egregious that Fabian had promised to order the cake and present and then forgot to do so since Eileen lived with them. Severus couldn’t understand how seeing her every day wouldn’t serve as a reminder of his promise.
At least Fabian didn’t try to use the lie that he and his brother sometimes used on other people. Claiming that their multiple-year comas had caused an issue with their short-term memories. It was believable enough that people not in the know didn’t question it. But, not only had Fabian admitted to Severus that it was a lie, but he’d also been present at enough of his healer appointments to know there was absolutely no truth to it.
Getting up to the school, Severus and Fabian parted ways on a sour note, as Severus headed down to the dungeons and Fabian up to the third-floor Charms corridor. Upon arriving in his office, Severus found that someone had broken in and raided his private ingredient stores… and then left the door unlocked when they left, which allowed Peeves to gain entry.
He knew it was Peeves because not only were several jars of ingredients dumped on the floor and a bottle of dragon blood dumped all over his desk, but ‘Peeves was here’ along with a collection of insults were also written in the poltergeist’s recognizable handwriting on the floor, the ceiling, the one wall of the room that wasn’t covered by floor-to-ceiling shelves, the front of Severus’s desk, and on the seat of his desk chair.
Oh, and he’d also rigged a dung bomb on a magic-detection trigger so that it would go off as soon as Severus tried to use magic to clean up the mess. So not only was his office a mess, but it stunk to high heaven. The only saving grace was that Peeves hadn’t managed to get past the wards protecting the in progress potions that Severus had brewing for the hospital wing.
Needless to say, Severus’s anger was well stoked by the time he managed to clean up his office and get rid of the horrid stench. Of course, by then he needed another shower. Thankfully, he had a spare set of robes in his private quarters down in the lower dungeon.
But the universe wasn’t done apparently and the water chose this day, in particular, to go on the fritz, because of course it did, and as Severus turned on the shower he got hit with a jet of ice-cold water. Even after magical adjustment, the best he could get was lukewarm.
Then one of the sixth years in his morning NEWT class blew up their cauldron while brewing the Draught of Peace. The brewer and three of their nearby classmates got caught in the explosion as the potion rained down. All four of them dropped to the ground in a heavy sleep. Severus could only hope that none of them were in an irreversible sleep, as was sometimes known to happen when one made a mistake with this particular potion.
At lunch, even though Severus knew he’d be cutting it close with one of the potions he was brewing for the hospital wing, he hurried down to the school gates and apparated down to the village. He would have simply Flooed to his home in Hogsmeade, but because of his status as a known Death Eater, the Ministry in their infinite wisdom had forbidden him from having a private Floo connection in his office.
Things just kept getting worse as he dashed around the village trying to get a cake and a present for his mother’s birthday. The jeweler was closed. The florist was sold out of the limited variety of flowers that didn’t aggravate his mother’s allergies. The baker had so many orders that they hadn’t been able to fill their shelves as much as they normally did. So the only cakes they had left that were ready for same-day pickup were coconut and carrot. Eileen was allergic to coconuts and hated carrot cake.
With no other options, Severus hoped that his mother would be happy with a pound of Honeyduke’s fudge and a dozen licorice wands. Definitely, a far cry from the rose gold and diamond watch that Fabian had promised to owl order and didn’t. Or his mother’s favorite cake—vanilla with raspberry cream filling, white chocolate buttercream icing and decorated with lemon zest, sprigs of mint and fresh raspberries—that he also didn’t order.
Stopping at home, Severus hid the fudge and licorice wands to give to his mother later in the day and decided to help his mother with the children for a few minutes before heading back up to the school. While they were working on it, neither Cameron nor Lena was fully potty-trained yet, so while Eileen changed Lena’s nappy, Severus changed Cameron’s… and got a face full of piss in the process.
Wiping off his face, Severus then helped his mother feed the kids, but Cameron had a temper tantrum and threw his applesauce, where it landed in Severus’s hair and was soon streaking down his face. Thinking this was some kind of new game, Lena then threw her strained peas all over the front of Severus’s robes. Thus, he had to shower and change clothes again.
Finally getting back up to the school, Severus had to break up a fight between two Gryffindor idiots in the entry hall on his way down to the upper dungeons. And that’s when the encounter with Cedric Diggory happened.
Thus, between all the other things that had gone wrong today, having to teach first years that he hated with a passion, and then having to look at Hadrian Potter who except for his eyes looked like James Potter reborn, Severus couldn’t take anymore and finally lost his mind, along with his temper.
“Oh shit,” Severus muttered, as he realized just how badly he’d treated Hadrian Potter. Normally, he might not have cared, but there was one very big difference between Hadrian and his father.
James had never been a sitting Grand Duke during their school years. True, Hogwarts bylaws did indicate that the only titles that were to be used or recognized during school hours would be those of an academic nature. Hence why the teachers were allowed to call sitting lords or the heirs of noble families Mr. and their surname, rather than Prince, Lord, or Heir whatever.
Still, Severus could admit in hindsight that his behavior during the class was abominable. Especially considering that he was a Prewett by marriage and the Prewetts were the sworn vassals of the Potter family. While only Fabian’s Uncle Ignatius—the current Lord Prewett—and his cousin Bilius—the current Heir Prewett—had actually sworn oaths of fealty to Hadrian, the rest of the family was still expected to treat the lord with a level of respect that Severus had failed to do.
Hogwarts bylaws did make it clear that sitting lords, including Grand Dukes, were not exempt from obeying the school rules or any point deductions, detentions, or other punishments given by their professors. Looking back, however, Severus knew that in his built-up anger over all the things that had gone wrong that day, he went beyond what was justifiable.
With a sigh, Severus said, “30 points to Hadrian Potter of Ravenclaw, for having to deal with his idiot professor’s misplaced anger. And 2 points to Darius Dursley of Slytherin for correctly coming to his cousin’s defense.”
He held no illusions that giving back double the points he’d taken from the two students would get him completely out of the dog house with Fabian and his family when they found out, but it was a start. He’d also make sure to cancel Darius’s detentions.
-o-0-o-
Leaving the dungeons, Hadrian hugged Darius and said goodbye to him, before turning and silently walking to the steps out of the dungeon. His fellow Ravenclaws followed him up but didn’t say much as they felt that they should respect Hadrian’s apparent desire to not talk about it.
He wasn’t raging and complaining as some of them thought he should be, so out of respect for his position, they just quietly followed him up the stairs to the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower.
“What has a mouth but can’t chew?” the feminine voice asked after Hadrian grabbed the knocker on the door and knocked.
“A person with no teeth?”
“Incorrect, Mr. Boot.”
Thinking about it for a moment, Hadrian said, “A river.”
“Correct, Mr. Potter,” the voice said before the latch clicked and the door swung open.
Anthony grinned and bumped shoulders with Hadrian as he said good-naturedly, “Show off.”
Hadrian just returned the grin, but otherwise said nothing, as he and his fellow first-years made their way into the common room. Since it was time for the afternoon break, many of the older students were lounging around the large room, reading, or engaged in conversation about their classes earlier that day.
The first years also noted that Professor Flitwick was seated at a desk near one of the large windows.
Spying Micheil and Finlay chatting with a couple of their year mates, Hadrian made his way over, as his own year mates moved to other parts of the room or up to their dorms.
“Hey Rian,” Micheil said with a smile, as he patted an empty spot on the sofa next to him.
“Hey Mic,” Hadrian said.
Motioning to the two boys sitting nearby that they’d been talking to, Finlay said, “Hadrian meet two of our dorm mates, Jason Samuels and Seth Fawley. Jason, Seth, this is Hadrian Potter.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Hadrian said, as he held out his hand and shook both of the boys’ hands, as they returned his sentiment.
After a moment, Hadrian asked, “You’re Heir Fawley, right?”
Seth nodded. “Yes, a sworn vassal of Prince-Elector Neville.”
“Cool,” Hadrian said before he glanced over at where Flitwick was and asked, “So what’s Professor Flitwick doing here?”
“Marking,” Finlay said. “We haven’t had him yet, but from what the older students have said, he tends to give a quiz to the sixth and seventh years on the first day of classes. To determine how much they remember from last year and to see if there are any students he thinks might need some extra help.”
“Outside of his office hours, classes, or choir practice,” Seth added, “he’s often up here to answer any questions that we might have. He’ll even help us with homework if we need it.”
“Professor Merrythought does the same as his Deputy,” Micheil added. “From what I’ve heard, the Heads and Deputies for the other houses do the same.”
“They all try to spend at least two hours a day in their houses,” Jason added. “Sometimes more, sometimes less. Depends on their workload.”
“Professor McGonagall, the Head of the Transfiguration Department and Head of Gryffindor House,” Seth added, “is apparently sometimes not able to spend the entire two hours in her house each day, due to her position as Deputy Headmistress.”
Nodding, Finlay said, “Especially if Professor Dumbledore is out of the castle, which he frequently has to be due to his other positions.”
“Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot,” Hadrian remembered. “And Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards.”
“Yes, when he’s out of the castle,” Jason said, “she tends to do her marking in her office so that she’s available to everyone in the school and not just the Gryffindors.”
“Makes sense I guess,” Hadrian said, as the door to the tower opened and Stephen Cornfoot came in with Kevin Entwhistle.
Spotting Hadrian, the two moved over to where he was, as Hadrian asked, “Okay, Kev?”
“Yeah, Madame Pomfrey sorted me out,” Kevin said. “We ran into Professor Merrythought on the way to the Hospital Wing. She said she’d owl-order a new cauldron for me so that I should have it before the next class.”
“You were brewing today?” Jason asked. “First years usually don’t brew until the third week of school.”
Nodding, Seth said, “Professor Wells usually spends the first two weeks teaching the basics, like ingredient prep and the various stirring methods.”
“Professor Ridley-Wells, his husband I assume,” Stephen said, to nods from the older students, “went into labor during lunch. So Professor Snape covered the class.”
“Oh, well, that explains it,” Finlay said. “Professor Snape has a well-known dislike of other people’s young children. He loves his own, of course, and tolerates them in Slytherin House, but anyone else… if you’re not at least fifteen he tends to see you as an annoyance at best and the bane of his existence at worst.”
“Yes, he made that abundantly clear,” Kevin said. “What with the way he had us brewing the Boil Curing Potion today with absolutely no preparation or instruction. Just put the recipe on the blackboard and told us to get to it. Growing up with wizarding friends, I knew a bit more about potions than most muggleborns, although I still managed to blow up my cauldron.”
Shaking his head, Micheil said, “Expecting first years to be able to brew anything in their first Potions class, especially the muggleborns or muggle-raised among them, is crazy.”
Nodding Finlay, “Agreed. That’s why Professor Wells covers the basics first so that when it’s time to brew everyone knows what they’re doing and there’s less of a chance of accidents.”
“The way he was acting during class, I think he wanted accidents to happen,” Stephen said. “Of course, at the beginning of class, he took points from the Head Boy for explaining that the Headmaster asked him to watch the class until he got there, and then proceeded to ask Hadrian a bunch of questions.”
“I got all of them right,” Hadrian said. “He accused me of being a know-it-all and took points.”
Nodding, Kevin added, “And then after I blew my cauldron and he told Stephen to take me to the Hospital Wing, we heard him yelling at Hadrian more as we were leaving.”
“Did you blow up your cauldron too?” Jason asked.
Shaking his head, Hadrian answered. “No, he asked me why I hadn’t told Kevin not to put the porcupine quills in before taking the potion off the heat and then took points from me before I could even answer.”
“Which makes no sense,” Stephen said. “Hadrian wasn’t Kevin’s partner, so he was focused on his own potion. Plus, Hadrian was seated two rows away from Kevin and me. No doubt if he had been paying close enough attention to Kevin’s potion to warn him, Snape would have yelled at him for not paying attention to his own work.”
Hadrian sighed. “My cousin Darius tried to defend me, saying it wasn’t fair to punish me for Kevin’s mistake, but Snape angrily took one point from Slytherin and gave Darius detention.”
“Well, that’s unusual,” Seth said. “Snape rarely takes points from Slytherin House.”
“Honestly, Hadrian, I think you should talk to Professor Flitwick,” Stephen said. “I know that the school by-laws say that sitting lords and heirs don’t get any special treatment due to the positions, but Snape seemed to be singling you out on purpose. Which is all the crazier when you consider that his husband’s uncle is one of your sworn vassals.”
Hadrian was quiet for a moment before he nodded. He didn’t really like confrontation, but he did feel slighted because he didn’t understand why a professor would punish a student for answering questions correctly.
Of course, thinking about it, Hadrian realized that Snape had probably assumed he wouldn’t know the answers, as he probably didn’t know that Hadrian had an eidetic memory, had read the entire textbook, plus some other books, and thus could easily answer the questions. Even though the material wasn’t covered in first-year. So, he was probably trying to make him look an idiot by having to say he didn’t know the answers and thus had to adjust course when he did.
Taking a deep breath, Hadrian stood up and walked over to Professor Flitwick’s desk.
The diminutive professor finished writing the grade on the paper in front of him, before he put down his quill, and looked up with a smile. “Yes, Mr. Potter?”
“Professor, something happened in Potions class today that isn’t sitting well with me,” Hadrian answered. “And I’d like to know if I have any recourse.”
Flitwick nodded, as he motioned to the chair next to his desk. “Okay, have a seat and tell me what happened.”
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
So there you have Ch11 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. Not saying it excuses his actions, but I hope this chapter shed some light on why Snape acted the way he did in the last chapter. Next chapter we’ll have a meeting in Professor Dumbledore’s office to resolve the issue.
Chapter 12: Meeting with Dumbledore
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Twelve:
Meeting with Dumbledore
-o-0-o-
2 September 1991…
After telling Professor Flitwick what happened, the Head of Ravenclaw House called Kevin and Stephen over and asked Micheil and Finlay to go get the rest of the first year Ravenclaw boys from their dorm room. He also asked Ciara Selwyn, the seventh-year prefect, to do the same for the girls.
It’s not that he didn’t trust Hadrian’s, Kevin’s, and Stephen’s accounts of what happened because he did, but he wanted to talk with all the others in their year. Not only to make sure they were all okay, but to see if any of them had seen or heard anything else that Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen hadn’t.
In the end, the others had all been able to share a couple of details about how Severus had acted in class that had either happened after Kevin and Stephen left the room, or that they and Hadrian hadn’t noticed as they were too busy focusing on their own attempts at brewing.
Pulling open a drawer on his desk and pulling out a few blank sheets of parchment and Everfull quills, Filius laid them on his desk and asked, “Could each of you write down what you saw and heard as briefly and concisely as you can and sign them? Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen you don’t have to as you’ll be accompanying me to the Headmaster’s office.”
The other first-year Ravenclaws nodded, as they grabbed a sheaf of parchment and a quill and went over to a nearby table.
Stephen, meanwhile, said, “I’ve got Muggle Studies soon.”
Filius smiled. “Don’t worry about that, Heir Cornfoot. I’ll talk to Professor Warren and you can get notes from one of your classmates. He’s a former Ravenclaw himself, so he’s not going to have any problems with you missing class under the circumstances.”
By the time the other students all finished writing, the common room had emptied out a bit, as many students left to head for the last class of the day. While all the first years that had a class probably had enough time to get there, just in case, Filius picked up his quill and wrote a quick note. Pulling out his wand, he duplicated it enough times so that they’d each have one.
“Here’s a note to your professors,” Filius said. “It explains that I held you in the common room, so you won’t get in trouble if you’re a few minutes late to class. If you’re not, you can just tear it up, but otherwise, give it to them when you arrive.”
The other first-years nodded before they all headed up to their dorms again to grab their books and supplies before leaving. They left as one large group, so just before they reached the door, Filius called out, “The notes are dated for today and charmed to be inalterable so they’re good for today only.”
One or two of the first years nodded at that warning but otherwise said nothing as they filed out the door. Smiling at Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen, Filius said, “They’re Ravenclaws, so I doubt they’d attempt to change the date on the note to skip any classes tomorrow if they don’t use it today, but it doesn’t hurt to be careful about such things.”
Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen nodded as they helped gather up the quills their classmates had used for the professor as he organized their written statements into a neat pile, which he then shrunk and put in his pocket.
Once the quills were back in the desk drawer, Filius stood up and said, “Follow me.”
-o-0-o-
Rather than going out the common room door, Filius led the three students through the bookcase door that led to the boys’ dormitories and down the two flights of stairs to where his office was located. They then left Ravenclaw Tower through the door in his office that connected with the rest of the school.
The advantage of this was that by the time they emerged into the corridor outside of Filius’s office, the passing time was over and the corridors were empty of students. The other advantage, of course, was that Filius’s office was on the third floor, the same as the entrance to the Headmaster’s Tower.
Arriving at a large stone gargoyle, Filius said, “Pepper Imps,” causing the gargoyle to jump aside and reveal a moving staircase beyond.
‘Can’t say I’ve ever seen an escalator made of stone,’ Hadrian thought, as he stepped onto it with his housemates and Filius.
As they arrived at the top of the staircase, a voice called out from beyond the pair of doors at the top, “Enter.”
Opening the door, Filius waved the three boys inside as he brought up the rear.
Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen had never seen the Headmaster’s Office before and took a moment to look around at the spindly tables covered in a wide array of delicate silver instruments that whirred and emitted puffs of smoke.
The walls were covered in portraits, most of them asleep, and a large perch sat near the headmaster’s desk. Sitting on top of the perch was a large scarlet and gold bird the size of a swan that Hadrian immediately identified as a phoenix.
From behind his desk, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore smiled and said, “Ah, Your Royal Highness, Heir Cornfoot, Mr. Entwhistle, Filius… to what do I owe this visit?”
Stepping forward, Filius said, “Severus crossed the line today when he filled in for Dylan’s first-year Ravenclaw-Slytherin class.”
Albus remained quiet for a moment before he grabbed a quill and wrote a quick note which he then held out to the phoenix. “Fawkes, could you take this to Severus?”
Fawkes nodded before he grabbed the note in one of his talons, before spreading his wings and disappearing in a flash of flame.
Seeing the look on the faces of Kevin and Stephen, Albus smiled. “Fawkes is a phoenix. Truly remarkable creatures.”
Nodding, Hadrian said, “Yes, they can carry immensely heavy loads and their tears have healing powers. And, of course, there’s the whole bursting into flames when they die and then being reborn from the ashes thing.”
Albus nodded. “You certainly seem to have a keen interest in magical creatures, Your Highness.”
Kevin snorted. “What he has is a perfect memory.”
“Mr. Entwhistle?” Filius asked.
“Hadrian,” Kevin said. “His memory is perfect… honestly I’m not sure what to call it. Eidetic usually refers to short term memory, but Hadrian… well, his mind is like an inescapable trap. Once it goes in, it doesn’t come out.”
Hadrian nodded. “It’s true. I can remember everything that I’ve ever seen, heard, smelled, touched, or read with perfect clarity.”
Seeing the looks that suggested they weren’t sure if they believed him or not on the faces of Stephen, Albus, and Filius, Hadrian grinned and said, “Seventh Edition, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by His Grand Ducal Highness Prince Newton Scamander of South Anglia, published by Obscurus Books, 1987. Page 42: Phoenix. Ministry of Magic Classification: XXXX.”
Realizing what Hadrian was doing, Albus pulled out his wand and summoned the latest edition of Newt’s book—which he updated with a new edition every ten years following the original 1927 publication—from a nearby bookshelf and opened it to the correct page.
Not missing a beat, Hadrian continued, “The phoenix is a magnificent, swan-sized, scarlet bird, with red and gold plumage, golden beak and talons, and a tail as long as a peacock’s. The phoenix’s scarlet feathers glow faintly in the dark and its tail feathers are too hot to touch. Their tail feathers do cool enough to touch once they’re no longer attached to the phoenix’s body, which is why wandmakers can utilize phoenix tail feathers as wand cores, although the tail feather must have been willingly given to be used for this purpose.
“Not known for fighting, these gentle herbivores, usually nest on mountain peaks and are most often found in Egypt, India, and China. Their XXXX rating is thus not due to their aggressiveness, but instead because very few witches or wizards have successfully domesticated them, as they are known to have a very independent nature. The phoenix can live to an immense age and may, in fact, be immortal due to their ability to regenerate, as they will burst into flames when their body begins to fail, only to be reborn from the ashes. While they are reborn as a chick, within only a few days, they will have grown to their full adult size.
“Like the Diricawl (see page 19), the phoenix can disappear and reappear at will. For phoenixes, this is done in a flash of flames and has thus come to be known as phoenix flashing. The phoenix is capable of taking another living creature with them when they flash if that creature is held in or holding onto the phoenix’s talons.
“The song of a phoenix is magical and has been known to induce a sense of happiness and courage in the pure of heart while inducing melancholia and striking fear in the hearts of the impure. Phoenixes can carry immensely heavy loads, as they are known to be able to lift more than ten times their own weight, although the upper limits of this ability are as of yet unknown.
“Phoenix tears, if willingly given, have powerful healing properties which can heal both minor cuts and serious lacerations with ease. It is also known to be able to neutralize poisons, including the normally deadly venom of the Basilisk (see page 13). Phoenix tears do, however, have a very short shelf-life, usually lasting three days, before they crystallize. Crystallized tears lose their healing ability, but still, hold enough magic within them to make a potent wand core.
“Legends surrounding the phoenix are too numerous to mention in this volume, although one particularly interesting one is that phoenixes will appear to members of certain families when they are in dire need. One family for which this is believed to be true is the Dumbledore family of Albion and Iwernia since at least three living members of their family at the time of the writing of this edition are known to have pet phoenixes.”
Hadrian fell silent at this point, as he’d run out of material to quote. Filius and Stephen were looking between Hadrian and Albus, not sure what to say. Kevin, meanwhile, having known about Hadrian’s memory for years now had an ‘I told you so,’ smirk on his face.
“He literally quoted the entire entry word for word,” Albus said after a moment. It had taken him a little while to comprehend what he’d just witnessed, but now that he had, he smiled and said, “Quite impressive, Mr. Potter. Quite impressive indeed.”
“Hermione, Piers, Wayne, Darius, and I have been testing him for years now,” Kevin admitted. “We’d take turns randomly asking things like ‘what’s the eleventh word on the twelfth page of Quidditch Through the Ages.’ Sometimes we’d even ask him to relay the entire sentence surrounding a given word… he’s never failed to do so for any book that he’s read. Even if he hadn’t read it in years.”
“It’s very impressive that you can retain information that long, Mr. Potter,” Filius said. “I don’t think I’ve ever had a student so gifted.”
Stephen was about to ask if Hadrian had any idea why his memory was so good but didn’t get the chance because at that moment, the door opened and Severus walked in with Fabian. Fawkes flashed back onto his perch a moment later, as it had taken the phoenix a bit to find Severus. He finally did when they were almost to the Headmaster’s Tower anyway, thus their arrivals being so close together.
Upon seeing Hadrian seated in front of the headmaster’s desk, Fabian immediately dropped to his knees, pulling Severus down with him. They both bowed their heads, as Fabian said, “My prince, on behalf of House Prewett, I offer my most sincere apologies for my husband’s actions.”
It was at this point that Fabian turned his head slightly and glowered at Severus for a second, before he added, “Rest assured that he will be punished for the inexcusable lack of decorum and respect that he showed you.”
“Do you have anything to say for yourself, Severus?” Albus asked as he looked at the potions master over the top of his half-moon spectacles. There was no sign of his normal twinkle, his expression a mix of sadness and disappointment.
“I apologize for treating you the way I did, my prince,” Severus said. “I’ve been having a crap day and I took my frustrations out on you and that was wrong. I’ve already canceled the detentions I gave your cousin and given back double the points I took from you both. It doesn’t make up for my actions, but I’m prepared to accept whatever censure you deem best.”
Inside, Severus was almost seething at having to be so nice to the boy who looked so much like James Potter. He’d loved Lily with all his heart, but he wasn’t sure he’d ever forgive the Marauders for the years of abuse, name-calling, and humiliation they’d heaped upon him. Not to mention Sirius attempting to murder him by luring him to the Shrieking Shack on the night of a full moon.
Still, deep down, he knew that no matter what sins James and his friends had committed over a decade ago, it was no reason to treat the man’s son—Lily’s son—the way he had. Even the crap day he’d had thus far didn’t excuse it.
“Having a bad day doesn’t excuse mistreating your students, Severus,” Filius said, the disapproval clear in his voice.
“I’m not condoning what you did,” Hadrian said. “But, out of curiosity, since you brought it up, what exactly did happen? I find myself curious about what exactly lead to the incident in class.”
He’d been sorely tempted to call it a shit storm but chose not to in front of the Headmaster and his Head of House… as he was afraid that it’d get back to his aunt if he did. As he’d told his vassals at Seacliff before school, legal adult or not, he was still only eleven. And he knew Petunia well enough to know that she wouldn’t be amused by Hadrian using that kind of language. Especially in front of the headmaster and several professors.
With a nod from the headmaster, Severus provided an abridged version of what happened over the day. He left out the sexual bits because he didn’t feel comfortable discussing that around three eleven-year-olds. Or Albus and Filius to be honest. He also left out a few other details, such as his Dark Mark, as the less said about that the better in Severus’s opinion.
Taking a few minutes to digest everything that had happened, Hadrian said, “Well, I can see how that would be a truly annoying day.”
Kevin and Stephen nodded but otherwise remained silent.
Shaking his head, Filius said, “It doesn’t justify your actions, but I can see why you were annoyed.”
“Too annoyed, perhaps, to think clearly,” Albus said with a shake of his own head. “Or perhaps you would have remembered that Hogwarts has a kitchen full of house-elves who could probably bake your mother’s favorite cake if you had only asked them.”
“Or that you could probably have gotten her flowers from the school greenhouse,” Fabian said. “Pomona does have an entire greenhouse dedicated to flowers, after all.”
“I did consider that,” Severus said. “But last time I checked, Pomona didn’t grow any of the limited types of flowers that don’t aggravate mother’s allergies.”
Turning to the headmaster, he looked abashed, as he admitted, “And I totally didn’t even think of the kitchen elves, sir.”
“Clearly,” Albus said with another shake of his head, before he called out, “Nitwit!”
To the surprise of Kevin, Stephen, and Hadrian, a house-elf popped into the room and bowed to the headmaster.
“How can Nitwit help you, headmaster?” the little elf asked.
“The bakery down in Hogsmeade is overwhelmed with orders and Fabian forgot to order a birthday cake for Severus’s mother,” Albus explained. “Can you and the kitchen elves bake one?”
Nodding, Nitwit said, “Of course, headmaster,” before he turned to Severus with an expectant look.
“My mother’s favorite is vanilla cake with raspberry cream filling, white chocolate buttercream icing, and decorated with fresh raspberries, lemon zest, and sprigs of mint.”
Nitwit nodded. “Nitwit pass it on to pastry elves. You need for today?”
Severus nodded. “Yes, around the normal Hogwarts dinner time if it’s not too much trouble.”
“Nitwit is sure it won’t be.”
With that, the elf popped out of the room.
Recovering first, Hadrian asked, “One of the house-elves is named Nitwit?”
Albus nodded. “Yes, Hadrian. In fact, during the arrival feast, when I said, ‘Nitwit, Blubber, Oddment, Tweak’ I was actually calling out to the four house-elves down in the kitchens who are in charge of sending the food up to the house tables during the feasts.”
“Each of them is responsible for a different house’s table,” Filius said. “Nitwit is the Slytherin kitchen elf. Blubber is Hufflepuff, Oddment is Ravenclaw, and Tweak is Gryffindor.”
“About a hundred elves are working in the kitchens,” Fabian said. “They’re all arranged into teams based on what they specialize in. Some are pastry elves that make all the desserts, others bake bread, make soup, or prepare the main courses. And still, others are responsible for putting the finished food on serving platters and putting it on the house tables.”
“The kitchens are directly beneath the Great Hall,” Albus said. “And in them, there are four copies of the house tables. The elves put all the food there and when I call out to the four elves in charge of each house, they wait about a minute, before they magically transport all the food from the kitchens up to the hall and then back down after dinner.”
The students nodded before Albus sighed and said, “Now, Severus, about your behavior today…”
“A public apology,” Hadrian said. “To me and every other student in the first year Ravenclaw and Slytherin class. Since today is your mother’s birthday, I’ll give you a reprieve, so you can spend it with her. So tomorrow, either at breakfast or dinner… your choice.”
Severus nodded. “Yes, my prince. Tomorrow happens to be one of the days I eat meals up at the school anyway.”
“Severus and I take several meals each week down at our home in Hogsmeade,” Fabian explained. “Help his mother feed our two kids.”
“Ah yes,” Hadrian said, remembering the mishap with the applesauce and strained peas. Turning to the headmaster, he added, “Perhaps some sort of probation, professor? I’m not going to say that he should be fired without the chance to make up for his actions, but if he doesn’t learn from them and repeats his actions… Three strikes and he’s fired seems fair to me.”
Albus nodded. “Very well, my prince. It will be done.”
Turning to Fabian, Hadrian added, “As for House Prewett, I’ll let it slide this once, but you’d be well-served to not test my patience again.”
“Yes, my prince,” Fabian said with a nod.
“As Heir of House Cornfoot,” Stephen said, “I will accept the public apology and probation as acceptable punishment and urge my father to do the same.” After a brief pause, he added, “Although I do think you should also give back the points you took from Heir Meadowes, Professor. He didn’t do anything wrong, since he was only doing what Professor Wells and the headmaster asked him to do, so punishing him for that…”
Severus nodded. He was sure that Plato had already remedied his point loss. The Head Boy and Girl were limited in the number of points they could award, and they couldn’t give themselves, each other, or the other prefects points, but all the other students were fair game.
“Five points to Plato Meadowes of Gryffindor,” Severus said.
“As for Cedric,” Hadrian said, “while he isn’t one of my vassals, I did get to know him fairly well since he was my escort at my Claiming Ball. So I think I can say with certainty that he didn’t mean to cause the damage that he did.”
Severus sighed. “That was Blood Replenishing Potion and Madam Pomfrey is running low. I can’t finish a new batch before she runs out, so that means the school will have to order it in, which is more expensive than brewing it in-house. So, whether Mr. Diggory meant to cause the damage or not, I do think some punishment is warranted, if only due to the monetary value of what he inadvertently destroyed.”
“I agree,” Albus said. “Although I do think that 100 points and a month’s detention are a bit too harsh, Severus.”
“Fine,” Severus said. “50 points to Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff, and I’ll cancel two weeks of his detention.”
“Make it three weeks, since he was there at my request,” Albus said.
“Very well,” Severus said.
-o-0-o-
After Filius, Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen left the office, only Albus and Severus remained. Fabian had also had to leave as he had a class to teach.
The headmaster was quiet for a moment, as he just stared at Severus over to the tops of his spectacles. Finally, he sighed and said, “Severus, you took things with Hadrian a bit too far, especially now that he’s a Grand Duke.”
Holding up his hand to stop Severus from speaking, Albus said, “I know, Severus. You and I both know that Voldemort isn’t dead and your continued use as a spy would be endangered if any of the children of Death Eaters report you treating Hadrian too well… but I’m sure you can find a balance between keeping up appearances and not openly insulting one of the seven most politically powerful men in the country.”
“Yes, Headmaster,” Severus said before he sighed. “It would be so much easier if he was aware of my role as a spy.”
Albus sighed and nodded. “That’s true, it would be, but he’s only eleven, Severus. He should be free to enjoy his childhood while he still has it. Petunia agrees with me. It’s bad enough that law and tradition required him to take up his place this young. He doesn’t need to be worrying about the man who murdered his parents… at least not now, while he’s not a threat.”
“Not a threat?” Severus asked, incredulous. “He’s possessing Quirrell.”
“I’m aware of that,” Albus said, as Severus had come to him before the school year had even begun to tell him about sensing Voldemort.
As a marked Death Eater, it was impossible for Severus to not notice when Voldemort, or in this case his spirit, was present. One encounter with Quirinus was all it took and he immediately went to Albus to make sure he was aware.
“He’s being watched,” Albus said. “Every ghost and portrait in the castle is keeping a discreet eye on his movements. Even Peeves agreed to keep an eye on him. And possessed or not, Quirinus is a mediocre wizard at best. The disembodied spirit that he is, Voldemort can’t do anything about that.”
“And what about the stone? I still can’t believe that Lord Flamel let you have it in the first place, considering that Hadrian is his liege lord.”
“He never did, Severus,” Albus said. “Nicolas and his family have kept the Philosopher’s Stone safe for over six hundred years. The idea that they’d suddenly need to hide it at Gringotts or here at Hogwarts is rather ludicrous if one bothers to think about it hard enough. Tom, however, is too blinded by greed and his desire for power to realize that, so he fell into the trap quite easily.”
“So what is it that’s at the end of that maze of traps and protections you set up downstairs?”
“One of Nicolas’s rejects from before he perfected the process,” Albus answered. “It looks right, but it doesn’t work. It turns lead into fool’s gold and the Elixir it produces isn’t going to grant eternal life. The only thing you’ll get from drinking it is a severe hangover. It’ll most likely also burn your esophagus and put you well on your way to a bad case of liver cirrhosis, as a single ounce of it has a higher alcohol content than an entire bottle of firewhisky.”
Severus whistled. “So it’s still the plan to get Hadrian to go after the stone?”
Albus nodded. “Yes. Now I know you don’t agree with the plan, but I assure you, Hadrian will be perfectly safe. He won’t be going after it alone, after all. I imagine that at the very least, he’ll get help from his cousin Darius, and the other students in his year that he made friends with before Hogwarts, plus Micheil and Finlay MacDougal and probably Kaidan and Karter Shacklebolt. And there are others he can call on for assistance due to his position as a Grand Duke… or through his friends and housemates.”
“Why is it even necessary?” Severus asked. “The whole thing seems rather stupid, especially considering that it’s not even the real Philosopher’s Stone at the end.”
“True, but Hadrian won’t know that. And Quirrell and Voldemort don’t know that. Only myself, Lord and Lady Flamel, Petunia, and now you know that.”
“Petunia? She’s part of this plan?”
Albus chuckled. “Part of it? It was her idea, my boy. And before you ask, no, she didn’t tell me why she wanted it to happen. Just that it needed to happen. I wasn’t sure about it myself, to be honest, but then you know firsthand how convincing she can be… especially when her eyes start glowing.”
Severus nodded. “True. I don’t know why or how, but whenever her eyes glow and she tells you to do something, it’s next to impossible to resist her. Lily was the same… so was Potter, now that I think about it.”
“Indeed,” Albus agreed. “Minerva would no doubt have put a stop to the Marauders before the end of their first year if it wasn’t for James’ ability to charm her with his glowing golden eyes.”
Shaking his head, Albus added, “I’ve never found even the tiniest scrap of information on why Petunia has, or James or Lily had glowing eyes. I’ve scoured every book I can think of for years now and the answer still eludes me.”
“I did briefly wonder if maybe they were werewolves,” Severus admitted. “As I know that Lupin’s eyes glow gold sometimes, but Petunia’s eyes don’t look the same as Lupin’s when they start glowing. Neither did Lily’s or Potter’s. They looked similar to Petunia’s but not Lupin’s.”
Nodding, Albus said, “Yes, so I suppose all we can do is go along with Petunia and do as she asks. I’ve never known her to do anything for no reason.”
“True. And I know from the Order dinners over the years that she loves her nephew almost as if he was her own son. So, I suppose she wouldn’t insist on anything that’s going to result in harm coming to him.”
“Indeed,” Albus agreed.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there’s Ch12 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. I hope you enjoyed it. Stay safe everyone.
Chapter 13: Halloween
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Thirteen:
Halloween
-o-0-o-
5 October 1001…
Twenty-year-old Niklaus Mikaelson crept quietly through the Yorkshire woods. Tonight was the full moon and he knew that some of the men from the local village turned into werewolves in the light of the moon. Having an adventurous spirit, he had always been a daredevil and he decided that tonight, he would watch the transformation.
He’d almost reached the clearing about three miles from the village where the men went on the full moons when the snap of a twig from behind him, caused him to spin around as he realized that he’d been followed.
“Henrik?!” Niklaus exclaimed softly, surprised to see his not quite twelve-year-old baby brother—his birthday was in four days—behind him. “What are you doing here?”
In the light from the tip of his wand, which was emitting a soft glow, Henrik grinned at his brother, one of his eyebrows quirking as he whispered, “I could ask you the same thing, Nik.”
“I’m an adult, I can go out at night if I want,” Niklaus said. “You’re just a kid and it’s way past your bedtime.”
“Oh come on, Nik, I’m not tired,” Henrik whined. “I saw you sneaking out of the house and I figured you were doing something far more interesting than sleeping. So, what is it?”
Niklaus sighed, knowing that his baby brother wasn’t going to be deterred. “I’m going to watch the men from the village transform.”
“The werewolves?” Henrik asked. “Cool! Can I watch too?”
Shaking his head, Niklaus said, “No, it’s too dangerous. I’m taking you back home.”
“I’m a wizard! I can protect myself.”
Niklaus didn’t look impressed. “You’re a first-year with only a little over a month of training.”
“So? I’m not scared.”
‘You’re a damn fool totally unconcerned for your own safety… just like Professor Gryffindor,’ Niklaus thought, as he steadfastly ignored the rather hypocritical part of that statement. He was the one who’d decided to sneak out and watch the werewolves transform, after all.
Aloud, he said, “Fine, you can come with me, but you’re to stick by my side, okay? As close to me as if you were in my clothes with me, understood? Keep quiet and for the love of the gods, put out that light.”
Henrik grinned, as he immediately mumbled, “Nox,” before he tucked his wand into the pocket of his breeches and then moved over to stand as close as he could to his brother.
Shaking his head, Niklaus knelt down and motioned for his brother to climb onto his back, which he did, before the pair of them crept closer to the edge of the clearing.
-o-0-o-
6 October 1001…
Niklaus groaned as he regained consciousness.
‘Where am I?’ was his first thought. ‘Why is it so bloody bright and why is my bed so hard and damp?’
It was then that he shifted and a twig poked him in the back, at which point he realized that he was lying in the clearing on top of dew-covered grass and fallen leaves.
Not long after this realization struck him, he remembered why he’d come out to the woods and that’s when his eyes shot wide as he said, “Henrik!”
Sitting up, his muscles stiff from sleeping on the ground for what must have been several hours since the sun had come up, he looked around franticly for his baby brother.
Finally seeing a pile of leaves about twenty feet away, Niklaus pulled himself up and ambled over, dread filling him when the morning sunlight hit the leaves and he saw that some of them were stained with a brown-colored substance that he soon realized was dried blood.
“No, no, no, no!” Niklaus said, as he dropped to his knees next to the pile and pushed them away.
“No, no, Henrik, please be alive!” Niklaus said as he leaned down over his brother’s body, which was twisted at an odd angle and covered in long gashes that could only be claw marks.
Henrik coughed weakly and Niklaus thanked every god and their mother, as he pulled out his wand and cast a Diagnostic Charm… however, he was soon swearing in his head as the results said that his brother was barely clinging to life.
“Oh I hope this is the right spell,” Niklaus said, as he attempted to put his brother in medical stasis. He hadn’t studied healing at Hogwarts, but Aaron, Freya, and Finn had so he hoped that in watching them practice at home, he’d picked up enough to at least get his brother back home where a more competent healer could tend to his wounds.
-o-0-o-
It wasn’t the right spell or he hadn’t done it right. Niklaus knew that before he was even halfway back home, as his brother let out a strangled gasp of breath and then nothing.
Tears in his eyes, Niklaus whispered, “Henrik, please, hang on bro.”
It wasn’t long, however, before Niklaus realized that Henrik had died. His skin was getting cold and it wasn’t long before he lost control of his bladder and bowels, as his body ceased to function.
“NO!!” Niklaus screamed at the top of his lungs, loud enough that when he emerged from the woods carrying his brother’s body, he found several people standing outside of their houses… including his parents and siblings.
“Niklaus!?” Esther said, as she spotted her son and hurried over, Mikael hot on her heels.
Seeing that the bundle in her son’s arms was her youngest, Esther screamed and said, “By the gods, Niklaus? Henrik? What happened?”
Niklaus sniffled and couldn’t speak, as he sobbed. Grabbing his youngest son’s lifeless body from his son, Mikael handed him off to one of the neighbors, whose mother was the town healer. Esther hurried after him, as Henrik’s body was taken away.
“Niklaus! Stop crying and tell me what happened!” Mikael shouted as he slapped his son across the face to shock him out of his sobbing.
Taking a deep breath and willing his tears to go away, lest he get slapped again, Niklaus said, “I snuck out to see the werewolves transform. I didn’t realize until I was almost there that Henrik had followed me.”
If Niklaus was hoping that his father wouldn’t strike him again, he was mistaken, as Mikael grabbed him by his shoulders, shook him briefly, and then slapped him hard enough that he fell face-first into the dirt.
“You stupid, stupid boy!” Mikael shouted. “I told you not to go anywhere near that clearing on the full moon! Your mother told you. All of your professors told you! You knew it was dangerous and you did it anyway? Why didn’t you bring Henrik back as soon as you realized he’d followed you?”
“He didn’t want to…” Niklaus said.
“I don’t fucking care what he wanted!” Mikael roared. “You’re a grown man, he’s a kid. You should have known better!”
Mikael was quiet for a long moment as he just stared down at the kneeling form of Niklaus with fury burning in his eyes. He knew the moment he’d touched Henrik that he was dead. If the fact that his skin was pale and ice cold wasn’t enough a giveaway, then the fact that he was soiled and wet from the inevitable release of death certainly was.
Shaking his head, Mikael practically growled as he said, “Niklaus, your brother is dead. And it’s all your fault!”
-o-0-o-
15 October 1001…
Over the next several days, a pall hung over the Mikaelson household as they grieved for Henrik.
Mikael and Esther had already lost their eldest children, twins Aaron and Freya, earlier that year to a plague. So now to lose Henrik, their baby boy… Esther was nearly inconsolable in her anguish. Mikael didn’t cry, but you’d have to be blind not to see the pain in his eyes.
Determined not to lose any more of their children, Mikael and Esther visited their friend and neighbor, Ayana, and begged her to help them cast a powerful spell to protect them. Ayana, however, refused to do so, seeing what they were asking for to be a crime against nature.
A powerful witch in her own right, at Mikael’s urging, Esther finally decided to cast the spell herself. While their remaining children— Finn, Elijah, Niklaus, Kol, and Rebekah—were all powerful wizards and a witch themselves, Mikael and Esther decided not to tell them what they had planned. They didn’t want to risk any of them not being willing to go through with their plan.
“Is everything ready?” Mikael asked.
“Yes, I believe I have everything I need,” Esther said. “The sun for life, the white oak tree for immortality, and the doppelganger Tatia’s blood which I’ve spelled. Now, all we have to do is get the children to drink Tatia’s blood and then…” she hesitated at this before she took a deep breath and continued, “kill them. The power of the sun will then resurrect them, while the white oak grants them immortality.”
“You’re sure?” Mikael asked because as much as he wanted to protect his remaining children, he didn’t want to have to kill them only to find out that his wife’s ritual magic didn’t work properly. He didn’t have magic himself, so even though his wife and children did, he didn’t always fully understand it.
Going over her notes again, Esther nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.”
“Very well, then,” Mikael said, as he settled in to wait for their children to return home.
-o-0-o-
Godric Gryffindor was quietly sitting at his desk in his office. He’d been working on grading some test papers for the fourth-year Defense Against the Dark Arts students, although his mind was not on the task at hand. This is probably why there was now a large ink stain in the margin of the topmost paper, as he’d hovered his quill over it deep in thought and all the ink had dripped off the tip and onto the paper below.
He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t even hear the knock on his door. After about five minutes of knocking with no response, the person tried the knob and finding it unlocked opened the door.
“Godric?” Rowena called out as she opened the door slowly. Seeing him sitting at his desk with a blank expression on his face, Rowena moved over and snapped her fingers near her friend’s face.
“Godric. Earth to Godric,” Rowena said.
Shaking his head, Godric finally noticed Rowena standing in his office.
“Rowena, when did you get here?”
“I’ve only been knocking on your door for the last five minutes. Are you all right? You seemed lost in thought,” Rowena said. It was at this point that she glanced down and saw the ink stain on the paper in front of her friend and said, “You’ve dripped ink on one of your student’s test papers.”
Looking down, Godric cursed as he put his quill in the nearby inkwell before taking out his wand and vanishing the offending spot from the paper. Thankfully, it had been in the margin and hadn’t obscured any of the answers the student had written.
“What’s got you so out of sorts, if I might ask?” Rowena asked as she took a seat in one of the chairs next to Godric’s desk.
Godric sighed. “I was just thinking about one of my first years. He showed so much promise.”
“Showed? Past tense?”
“He hasn’t been in class for over a week now,” Godric answered. “I was getting worried and was going to visit him at home in the muggle Danelaw and see if there was a problem, but…” Godric sighed heavily. “Then I got a letter from his mother this morning.”
“Did she decide to pull him out of school?”
Shaking his head, Godric replied, “I’m afraid it's worse than that. He’s dead.”
“Dead? Good heavens what happened? And which student are we talking about?”
“Henrik Mikaelson. He was mauled to death by a werewolf.”
“I take it he didn’t survive the bite?”
“He wasn’t bitten,” Godric revealed. “He suffered several lacerations from a werewolf’s claws, but it apparently wasn’t an Alpha who attacked him, so there was no chance of him turning.”
“Oh dear, that’s such a horrible way to go,” Rowena said. “And you’re right, Henrik was a very promising student. Just like his elder siblings… I had two of them in my own house. Twins Aaron and Freya… unfortunately, they apparently succumbed to a plague earlier this year.”
“I remember them,” Godric said. “They were in our first class the year we opened Hogwarts, along with their brothers, Finn and Elijah. All of them older than eleven when they started.”
When Godric, Rowena, Helga, and Salazar decided to open Hogwarts they planned on instituting a policy that you had to be eleven years old on or before the first day of school on 1 September to start Hogwarts. They agreed, however, that with no formal wizarding school existing before Hogwarts, that they’d accept older students as first years for the first few years as they were loath to turn away any potential students who needed their help.
Of course, there had also been a financial reason, as just starting out, they couldn’t afford to turn away any students, as they’d sunk much of their combined family wealth into constructing the school and didn’t have a ton left over to keep things running without charging some tuition fees to cover basic supplies.
This is why when the school opened on 1 September 990, Aaron and Freya Mikaelson were first years, despite already being eighteen years old. Their brothers Finn, at 15 almost 16, and Elijah, then 13, also started their first years that year. Where the twins had been sorted into Ravenclaw, Finn went to Hufflepuff and Elijah to Gryffindor.
Two years later, Niklaus Mikaelson started school, sorted into Slytherin. Kol Mikaelson started school in 994, joining Niklaus in Slytherin.
Aaron, Freya, Finn, and Elijah finished school in the spring of 997, with their sister Rebekah starting that autumn. She’d followed in Finn’s footsteps and was sorted into Helga’s house. Henrik’s sorting into Gryffindor in September 1001 had meant that each founder had two of the Mikaelson siblings as members of their house.
“I hate losing students,” Godric said with a sad shake of his head. “Especially when their deaths were entirely preventable. Henrik’s mother was vague on certain details, but from what I’ve been able to piece together on my own, Niklaus decided to go watch the men from their village turn into werewolves. Henrik followed him and paid for it with his life.”
“Horrible, just horrible.”
Godric nodded, looking grim, as he said, “Ro, I know we’ve discussed the possibility of making Hogwarts a boarding school someday… maybe it’s time we consider doing that now. At least then we could keep our students safe, during the school year at least, if they stayed here with us for nine months out of the year.”
“I do like the idea,” Rowena said. “However, you know what Salazar will say.”
“We can’t afford it yet. Which is true, the kind of additions to the castle that would be necessary to provide room and board for all the students and even the professors would be expensive.”
“You’re right, I would say that,” Salazar said as he walked into Godric’s office, along with Helga. Rowena had left the door open when she came in, so they didn’t both to knock.
“Oh Godric,” Helga said as she came over and pulled her friend into a hug. “Sal and I just heard about young Henrik. It’s such a tragedy in that it was entirely preventable.”
Nodding, Salazar said, “Yes, I must admit I have half a mind to go pay the Mikaelsons a visit and give Niklaus a stern talking to. But then I’m sure his parents have taken care of that already.”
“He's also probably beating himself up quite enough right now,” Rowena said. “As he no doubt feels responsible for his brother’s death.”
“As well he should,” Salazar said. “He’s twenty years old. He should have known better.”
“Yes, his age aside, he should have known the danger that werewolves pose just from his own education here,” Helga said with a sad shake of her head.
After a few minutes of silence, Salazar sighed and said, “While we don’t currently have the money necessary to fund the expansions that a boarding school would require, I do know where we could get it. Although it will likely require us to give up some of our control.”
“Where?” Godric asked.
“We could borrow the money,” Salazar said. “Prince-Elector Geraint Ollivander has been quite supportive of Hogwarts, so he’d probably be willing to invest some money. His fellow Grand Dukes and their vassals may also be willing to do so.”
“Yes, I suppose that’s true,” Helga said. “Although as you said, we’d probably have to agree to give up some control. Say through a Board of Governors or something.”
“It would be a small price to pay to keep our students safe,” Godric said, after a moment of thought.
Helga and Rowena nodded in agreement. Finally, Salazar nodded, and said, “I’ll send a proposal to Prince Geraint then.”
The others nodded, each passing on their condolences to Godric about Henrik and spending a few minutes grieving for the boy, who had shown promise in all of their classes before they went their separate ways and Godric forced himself to concentrate on grading the test papers in front of him.
-o-0-o-
That night, Mikael poured each of his children a glass of wine which unbeknownst to them was laced with Tatia Petrova’s blood, along with a powerful sedative that would make them sleep. It wasn’t long until Finn, Elijah, Niklaus, Kol, and Rebekah were lying on the floor sound asleep, as the wine knocked them out fast enough that they couldn’t even get to their beds before the need to sleep overtook them.
Mumbling a prayer to the gods, Mikael picked up his sword and one by one, drove it through his children’s hearts, before he finally impaled himself on his sword.
Despite being confident that her spell would work, Esther couldn’t bear to watch this part, so she had quietly excused herself to her’s and Mikael’s bedroom and put up a powerful silencing charm in case, despite being asleep, any of the children cried out upon being stabbed in the heart.
About an hour or so later, Mikael, whose wine hadn’t been laced with the sedative, awoke first and found himself strangely hungry, although he had the distinct impression that it wasn’t for food. Luring one of the village girls into the house, Mikael fed on her blood, completing his transition as the world’s first true vampire.
Later, as each of his children awoke, he forced them to feed on the girl, completing their transitions.
“What is going on?” Elijah asked. “Why do I suddenly have a taste for blood?”
Seeing what his father had been doing, Kol had pulled out his wand—12 inches, made of white oak, with a basilisk horn core—and tried to cast a spell to prevent his father from forcing him to drink the girl’s blood. Much to his surprise, however, his spell fizzled out and his wand burst into flames, forcing him to drop it with wide eyes and a muttered curse.
“My magic…” Kol said. “No… I can’t feel my magic.”
“Neither can I,” Finn said, before Niklaus, Elijah, and Rebekah reported the same.
Coming out of her bedroom, Esther said, “You’ve all lost your magic. It’s the price that Nature demands as a sacrifice.”
“Sacrifice for what?” Rebekah asked.
“Immortality,” Mikael said, as he held out the girl’s wrist to Kol and said, “Now drink.”
“What? No!” Kol exclaimed. “I’d rather die! I don’t want to be immortal. Not if it costs me my magic. You had no right!”
Slapping Kol across the face, Mikael said, “Shut up, boy! I’m the parent, you’re the child. You don’t get to tell me and your mother what we can and can’t do under our own roof. Now stop whining and drink!”
“No, I won’t do it,” Kol insisted. “If it’s a choice between eternity without magic and death, then I choose death.”
“Wrong answer,” Mikael said as he grabbed Kol by the back of the neck and using his new superhuman strength forced his son’s head down to the wrist of the village girl.
No matter how much Kol wanted to resist, having his mouth pushed against the bleeding wound on the girl’s wrist was too much for his transitional vampire status to resist, as his eyes went black and the veins on his face appeared as he sucked in the girl’s blood.
When his father let go of him, Kol stumbled backward and wiping his mouth, he said, “I hate you.”
“Fine,” Esther said. “Hate us all you want, Kol, but you’re alive and your father and I will never have to bury another one of our children.”
-o-0-o-
14 September 1991…
Hadrian smiled as he neared the Quidditch Pitch, as Ravenclaw was holding their Quidditch Trials to fill a few spots on the house team. There were three openings on the main team, as Seeker and Captain Danielle Cox, and Chasers Arjun Patil and Martha Gray had finished school in July.
It was expected that at least a few of the people on the reserve team in the 1990-91 school year would make the cut for the main team, which would, in turn, free up positions on the reserve team as well.
Arriving at the pitch carrying the Nimbus 2000 that he’d bought on Diagon Alley the previous month, more than a few people gave him a surprised look. Mostly related to the fact that he was a first-year with his own broom and was coming out onto the pitch to try out for the team… when first-years weren’t allowed to do that.
“Hey Hadrian,” Finlay said with a smile as he noticed him. In addition to their Prefect duties, Micheil and Finlay, as the most senior players on the main team—having shared the keeper position since the 1989-90 school year—had moved up to Quidditch Captain following Danielle finishing school.
“Um, Hadrian, first-years aren’t allowed to try out,” Micheil said, as he and Finlay didn’t know yet that Hadrian had received permission… as Hadrian knew they’d already left for the pitch when he got said permission. Thus, it didn’t make much sense to tell them via the journal, when he could just go down and surprise them.
With a smile of his own, Hadrian held out a note and said, “I’ve got permission.”
Micheil and Finlay tilted their heads to the left as they took the note and saw that, indeed, Hadrian did have permission, as the note clearly said that the normal rule about first years trying out for the Quidditch team was hereby waived for him.
It was signed by Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall, Head of Ravenclaw House Filius Flitwick, Deputy Head of Ravenclaw House Galatea Merrythought, and Flying Instructor and Quidditch Referee Madam Rolanda Hooch.
Finlay grinned, as he said with a laugh, “Wow, Rian, you don’t do anything in half measures do you?”
Laughing himself, Micheil said, “Yes, just one of them signing off would have been more than enough, let alone all five of them.”
“I didn’t seek them out for their signatures,” Hadrian said. “They’d all already signed it when Professor Merrythought came to me in the common room and gave me the permission slip. Apparently, Madam Hooch saw me playing during the pick-up game last weekend and was impressed enough to suggest I be allowed to play.”
Finlay nodded. “Well, I suppose your legal adult status and ability to own your own broom may have had something to do with that. There were several of your fellow first-years playing in that game last weekend and I don’t see any of them here trying out for the team.”
“True,” Hadrian agreed. “Definitely not complaining though.”
“Neither are we,” Micheil said with a grin. “You proved to have natural talent from what we saw.”
With a nod, Beater Seth Fawley, added, “That’s definitely true. The way you were flying I almost thought your broom was a part of you.”
Micheil, Finlay, and Seth hadn’t actually played in the game, but they had watched from the stands and given Hadrian and some of his fellow first-years some pointers before the game.
After a few more minutes, Micheil said, “Well, I think everyone that’s coming is here now, so let’s get started.”
-o-0-o-
About forty-five minutes later, everyone who’d tried out for the team had been given their fair shot and had landed, while Micheil, Finlay, and Seth moved off to one side to put their heads together and discuss who would be making the team and in what positions. Joining them in their discussion was their fellow fifth-year Jordan Tennant, who played Chaser, and Seth’s fellow Beater, fourth-year Dallas MacCallum.
Micheil and Finlay opted to get their input on who should make the cut since the three of them were the only current students who’d been on the main team the previous school year.
After ten minutes of whispered conversation, they broke up and rejoined the hopefuls.
“Okay, so, for the two vacant Chaser positions on the main team,” Finlay began, “Roger, Corvus, congratulations.”
Third-year Roger Davies and sixth-year Corvus Lestrange were all smiles as they moved over to join Seth, Jordan, and Dallas.
“And taking Roger’s and Corvus’s former places on the reserve team,” Micheil added, “Congrats Jeremiah and Erik.”
Second-years Jeremiah Prince and Erik Bones high-fived each other as they moved over to join third-year Zoe Ogden, who’d kept her place as Reserve Chaser from the previous year. Standing nearby were Zoe’s fellow reservists, third-years Ryan MacDougal and Nathaniel Douglas, who’d made the reserve team the previous year as Beaters.
Looking over the hopefuls, Finlay said, “Reserve Keeper goes to Evan.”
Second-year Evan Diggory—Cedric’s half-brother—grinned as he moved over the join the other reservists.
“That leaves two positions,” Micheil said. “Seeker and Reserve Seeker. First off, I’d like to thank the four of you who tried out for those positions.”
“Thanks to all of you who tried out,” Finlay added. “Even if you didn’t make the cut this year, there’s always next year. Keep practicing and there’s a chance.”
There were nods all around among the hopefuls, as even those who’d tried out for the now filled positions had remained to see who else would make the team.
“We agree that two of you stood out,” Micheil said, as he addressed Hadrian, along with the other three who’d tried out for Seeker: second-year Cho Chang, fourth-year Jake Flinton, and third-year Vivian Fawley. The latter of whom was Seth’s sister.
Finlay nodded. “The position of Reserve Seeker goes to… Cho.”
As Cho moved over to join the rest of the reserve team, Hadrian, Jake, and Vivian inched slightly closer, as they waited to see which one of them would take the coveted Seeker position on the main team.
“So, for Seeker,” Micheil started, before he and Finlay spoke in perfect unison, “Congratulations, Hadrian.”
Hadrian grinned and did a quick fist pump, as he moved over to join the main team, as Roger, Corvus, and Jordan each gave him a congratulatory pat on the back, and Seth, Dallas, and the twins each gave him a high-five.
“First practice will be from 5-7pm next Saturday and then from 8-9pm every Monday night,” Finlay said. “All team members, main and reserve, are required to attend all practices.”
“Extra practices will be added closer to game days,” Micheil added. “But since we don’t play our first game until March, you don’t have to worry about those for a while. Also, in case you were wondering since our first practice is during dinner in the Great Hall, the house-elves will be providing us with a picnic.”
“First and second years who made the team,” Finlay said, “don’t worry about your scheduled 9pm bed check. Micheil and I will make sure that Professors Flitwick and Merrythought know where you are, so you won’t be penalized for being out after curfew or late to your beds.”
Hadrian, Cho, and Evan all sighed in relief, as they’d all been slightly worried when some of the practices had been slated to last until 9pm when like all first and second years, they had an 8pm curfew by which point they were expected to be in Ravenclaw Tower and a 9pm check by which point they were expected to be in their beds.
-o-0-o-
19 September 1991…
“Happy Birthday, Hermione,” Hadrian said with a smile as he entered the common room and found her sitting with some of her dorm mates.
“Thanks, Hadrian,” Hermione said with a smile, as they hugged each other.
Pulling a shrunken gift-wrapped package from his pocket with his left hand, Hadrian tapped his wand on it to enlarge it before he smiled and said, “Here’s your present.”
Hermione smiled. “Thank you,” as she accepted the package and carefully opened the paper.
Hadrian was seriously tempted to just tell her to rip it open already, but he held his tongue since after being friends with her for the last several years, he knew that she always took her time opening gifts. She figured that if the person giving the gift spent time wrapping it and making it look nice, the least she could do was respect the time it had taken them by not tearing the wrapping off and tossing it aside like yesterday’s garbage.
Of course, she sometimes also reused the paper on the gifts that she got, as she liked to save as much of her pocket money as possible for more important things. Like books.
Finally setting the paper aside, Hermione looked at the cover and said, “Hogwarts, A History.”
Hadrian grinned. “I know, you’ve already got a copy, but this one is special.”
“Oh?” Hermione asked.
“Your copy is the 40th Edition, printed in 1990,” Hadrian said, as he tapped the cover of the book he’d given Hermione, and added, “This, however, is a 1st Edition from 1015… and one of only ten copies that were handwritten by Helena Ravenclaw herself. Oh, and she signed it too.”
Hermione’s eyes widened in surprise, as did Mandy’s, Morag’s, Padma’s, and Sally-Anne’s, who’d been sitting with Hermione when Hadrian came over.
“Oh my gosh, Hadrian,” Hermione said. “I can’t accept this. It must have cost a fortune.”
Shaking his head, Hadrian said, “No, actually you can, because I gave it to you and I’m not taking no for an answer. Besides, Helena only handwrote ten copies because the others were obviously copied with a Duplication Charm. The ten handwritten copies, however, went to Hogwarts, the seven Grand Dukes, the Camelot Royal Library, and the tenth was kept by the Ravenclaw family.”
“Still, Hadrian, I can’t let you part with the Potter family’s copy,” Hermione said.
“He’s not,” the Grey Lady said as she floated over. Motioning towards the book, she added, “That’s the Ravenclaw copy. When the line went extinct it was taken by the Ministry, but then in 1962, Minister Ignatius Tuft insulted Hadrian’s grandfather, Julian, who led the charge to oust him from office.”
Nodding Hadrian said, “Tuft was ousted from office, and the Ministry was slapped with a hefty fine by the Council of Electors, who had long felt that the Ministry was ignoring their authority and needed to be taught a lesson. To pay for it, the new Minister allowed the Grand Ducal families to raid the Ministry Library of any priceless volumes they wanted. This is one of the books that House Potter chose.”
With a smile, the Grey Lady said, “So, Hadrian came to me and asked if I would mind if he gave my family’s copy to you since he didn’t need two copies. I gave my consent, because I’ve seen how much you love books, so I knew you’d treat it with care and respect.”
“Thank you,” Hermione said. “I’ll treasure it.”
“Why did your grandfather want Minister Tuft out of office?” Sally-Anne asked.
Hadrian grimaced. “He was championing a controversial and dangerous program to breed Dementors.”
Since it was hard to understand Professor Quirrell, all of the first-year Ravenclaws—joined by several of the first-year Slytherins, Hufflepuffs, and even a few of the Gryffindors—had begun a program of self-study for Defense Arts, aided by a few of the older students and Professor Merrythought, since she used to teach the subject back when it was still called Defense Against the Dark Arts.
In doing so, they’d recently read about Dementors, so Padma shook her head in both fear and disgust, as she asked, “Why in the name of the gods would anyone want to breed more of those things?”
“I have no idea,” Mandy said, as she shivered at the thought. “But anyone who does is clearly not right in the head.”
“Definitely,” Morag, Sally-Anne, Hermione, and Hadrian said in near-perfect unison.
-o-0-o-
31 October 1991…
Despite it being the anniversary of his parents’ deaths, Hadrian was smiling as he laughed and chatted with his friends at the Ravenclaw table during the annual Halloween Feast, as they were all taking turns swapping funny stories about past Halloweens.
As had become their normal seating arrangement since the start of the school year, Hadrian was seated next to Hermione on his right, Micheil and Finlay to his left, and Kevin across from him, with Stephen across from Hermione and Seth across from the twins. The rest of the first-year and fifth-year Ravenclaws were all seated nearby as the two years had bonded with one another through the twins’ friendship with Hadrian.
“So like total idiots,” Seth said, “Micheil, Finlay, and I made a bet with the Weasley twins,” referring to fellow Ravenclaws Brandon and Brendan Weasley, not their cousins Fred and George… although the four of them were like peas in a pod, with very similar personalities.
“Oh gods,” Morag said, as she started laughing. “I remember that. You guys looked so uncomfortable when you lost.”
Seth and the twins blushed, as the former said, “Well, you would be too if you ended up going to a costume party with two of your best friends, who also happen to be your girlfriend’s brothers, wearing a kilt and nothing else.”
“What’s so bad about wearing a kilt?” Terry asked. “I’ve never done it, but I don’t see what’s so bad about it. I mean, several of the male students wear them, since they’re an allowed uniform option.”
Morag chuckled. “When Seth says that he was wearing a kilt and nothing else, he means nothing else. As in no shirt, no socks, no shoes, and no underwear.”
Seeing some of the students’ eyes widen, Jason Samuels, who’d been at that particular party, grinned and said, “The party was at the MacDougal seat, Stormvale Castle, so the Hogwarts rules requiring students who opt to wear a kilt to wear underwear didn’t apply.”
Nodding, Morag said, “Yes, and in case it wasn’t clear, Seth, Mic, and Fin were wearing the same kilt… borrowed from my brothers, Neall and Niall.”
Several of the first and fifth year Ravenclaws burst out laughing at this, as they tried to imagine Seth, Micheil, and Finlay dancing at a costume ball wearing a single kilt between them, as Seth danced with his girlfriend—Micheil and Finlay’s sister Alanna—while the twins danced with Kaidan and Karter.
“Oh, I would pay money to see that,” Hadrian said, as he laughed.
“I’ll send you the pictures,” Morag said. “The looks on their faces throughout the evening are hilarious.”
“How do you still have copies?” Micheil asked. “I thought Fin and I destroyed them all.”
“Oh please,” Morag said. “Ryan, Carrick, Kieran, Declan, and I made sure to make plenty of copies. And that’s not counting the copies that mum and Uncles Logan and Cliff made. You’ll never get them all.”
Seth and the twins all groaned, but before anyone could say anything else, the doors to the Great Hall burst open as a panicked Professor Quirrell ran into the room, shouting, “TROLL!! IN THE DUNGEON!! TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!!”
As silence fell over the hall, and Professor Dumbledore stood, Quirrell, said, “Thought you’d want to know,” before he fainted dead away.
The laughter of only a few moments ago was soon replaced by the panicked screams of several students from all four tables. Raising his wand to his neck and mumbling a spell, Albus called out, “SILENCE!!”
When the screams died down and everyone turned to face the Headmaster, Albus said, “The Head Boy and Girl and the Prefects will remain here in the Hall with your houses. Teachers will follow me to the dungeon.”
“No student is to leave this room for any reason until we return,” Minerva added. “If you do you’ll be in detention with Mr. Filch every single night for the rest of your time at Hogwarts. Do I make myself clear?”
Nearly as one, almost every student in the hall nodded, as many of them gulped at the thought of being in detention every night with the sadistic caretaker. Considering that he frequently bemoaned not being allowed to use the old punishments, such as, thumbscrews and the rack, on students, there wasn’t anyone who looked forward to detention with the man.
As she made her way towards the doors to the Great Hall, Madam Pomfrey conjured a stretcher and levitated Professor Quirrell’s unconscious body onto it, before levitating him out of the room behind her.
Once the teachers were gone and the large doors into the hall were closed and locked behind them, several students at all four tables began talking.
“How the heck did a troll get into the castle?” Stephen asked.
Nodding, Seth said, “That’s a very good question, as they’re not exactly known for their brains.”
“I doubt most trolls would be able to figure out how to work a doorknob,” Micheil said. “Not to mention that there are magical protections in place around the castle that should prevent them from getting anywhere near it.”
“Are you saying that somebody let it in?” Hadrian asked.
“I can’t imagine anyone being dumb enough to do that,” Finlay said. “Although it would make more sense than the magical protections suddenly ceasing to work at the same time that the rare troll with enough brainpower to open a door found its way into the school.”
Cedric, Darius, Wayne, Piers, and Neville came over to the Ravenclaw table at this point, prompting Hadrian to get up from his seat and hug each of them, as he was happy to see that they were all present and accounted for.
“Did anyone else notice that Professor Quirrell wasn’t stuttering, like at all, when he was yelling?” Darius asked after a moment.
“Honestly? No, I hadn’t noticed,” Piers admitted. “Although now that you mention it…”
“That was kind of strange,” Wayne said. “I mean he’s raised his voice in class before and he still stutters like crazy.”
“But just now he sounded normal,” Kevin said. “Or at least as normal as I’ve ever heard him speak.”
“Could his fear have made it go away?” Cedric said.
“Actually, if anything I would think fear and anxiety would make it worse, not better,” Seth said. “It’s strange though because Professor Quirrell never used to stutter.”
“What?” Hadrian asked.
“He took last year off from teaching,” Micheil said. “I’m not sure where he went, although I think heard he was in Albania for a time.”
Nodding, Finlay added, “This is only Professor Warren’s second year on the job teaching Muggle Studies for the first and second years. Before that, Professor Quirrell taught the subject.”
“Yes, Mic, Fin, Jason, and I had Professor Quirrell for Muggle Studies in our first and second years,” Seth said. “And he never had a speech impediment. I don’t know what happened while he was on his break from teaching but when he came back and moved departments, that’s when he started stuttering.”
“Come to think of it,” Jason said, “that’s also when he started wearing that turban all the time.”
“I’ve heard that he keeps garlic under his turban,” Micheil said. “Supposedly to keep vampires away.”
“No clue if that’s true,” Stephen said. “Although I can definitely say that he does smell like garlic, so I can see why people might say it.”
“Huh,” Hadrian said. “Strange.”
He shared a look with Micheil and Finlay at this, as other than Darius, they were the only ones he’d told about the strange fact that his scar always hurt whenever Quirrell was around. So the coming and going speech impediment, turban, and persistent smell were just a few more oddities to add to a seemingly ever-growing list of things that didn’t quite make sense to Hadrian.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Ch13 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. I hope you enjoyed the surprise appearance by the Mikaelsons and the Founders. I doubt anyone saw those scenes coming.
And yes, I’m aware that in TVD canon, only Kol is said to have tapped into his magic before becoming an original vampire and losing it. Obviously, I opted to change that by making all of the Mikaelson siblings attend Hogwarts. During the scenes in this chapter, they’re living in the Danelaw, the historical section of England that was under Danish law before the Norman Conquest of 1066. So, yeah, that’s why they went to Hogwarts instead of Ilvermorny. Well, that and the fact that Ilvermorny wasn’t founded until 1627.
Anyway, you’ll no doubt notice that there were some pretty big time jumps in this chapter, as we’ve gone from early September in the previous chapter to the last day of October at the end of this one. I think I’m going to be doing more of those in the next several chapters to not only wrap up Hadrian’s first year at Hogwarts but bring the story closer to the point where the crossovers can start in earnest.
I may skip over most of second year and possibly all of third year, simply because with Sirius never going to Azkaban in this universe, much of the canon storyline for Hadrian’s third year is invalidated.
Chapter 14: Christmas at Seacliff
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Fourteen:
Christmas at Seacliff
-o-0-o-
1 September 1990…
Arriving at Penn Station in New York City, New York, Dean was all smiles as he pulled a suitcase on wheels behind him. A standard feature of the school trunks sold in America was a charm that when activated would make them look like a muggle suitcase.
This allowed students bound for Ilvermorny to blend in, as it would no doubt raise a few eyebrows if a throng of students with trunks descended on the station every September.
John and Sam were back at the hotel, having already said their goodbyes to Dean before he left. It was Rafael McCall, the recent Ilvermorny graduate who along with Professor Sheila Bennett had taken Dean shopping on Pegasus Street for all of his school supplies, that had picked Dean up at the hotel and brought him to the train station.
Dean was confused when Rafael led him down a short corridor that appeared to be a dead end and had no doors.
“Um, why are we going here?” Dean asked.
Rafael smiled. “This is likely going to sound crazy, but trust me,” pointing at a blank wall ahead of them, he added, “Just walk straight at that wall. Best do it at a bit of a run if you’re nervous.”
Dean indeed spent a full minute looking at Rafael as if he’d suddenly sprouted a second head, but then he took a deep breath as he realized that the older teen had been nothing but kind and helpful, and hadn’t misled him yet.
Taking a deep breath, Dean grasped the handle of his suitcase and ran towards the wall. He’d never been particularly religious, but he couldn’t help sending up a very short prayer as he neared the wall that he wasn’t about to break his nose by running face-first into a brick wall.
If he did, well, seven years his senior or not, Rafael McCall was going to get a serious ass beating.
Thankfully for Rafael’s ass—which even at only eleven, Dean had found himself admiring as he walked behind Rafael through the station—Dean did not break his nose or run face-first into a brick wall. Instead, he found himself standing in a large tunnel decorated in the 1920s art deco style that Dean had noted seemed to be very popular in the wizarding world, at least from what he’d seen thus far.
Rafael came up behind him and placed a hand on Dean’s shoulder as he said, “Pretty amazing isn’t it?”
Dean nodded, as he looked around at the tunnel. There were many students on the platform saying goodbye to their families, but Dean’s gaze was soon captured by the navy blue 4-4-0 American steam engine with Ilvermorny Zephyr written in silver letters under the window of the cab.
It had cranberry red trim and silver accents, with the words Mt. Greylock and Salem Railroad written on the navy blue tender in large silver-trimmed cranberry red letters. Behind the engine were eight matching passenger cars which Dean was pretty sure were Pullman cars.
“The tender and smokestack are just for show,” Rafael revealed. “It is a steam-powered train, but the steam is generated in a boiler powered by magic. So, there’s no coal or wood in the tender and nothing comes out of the smokestack when the train is moving.”
Dean nodded. “I did wonder about that, considering that we’re underground.”
“Yes an underground tunnel is probably not the best place to have smoke pouring out of a smokestack,” Rafael said. “Anyway, this is where I leave you, Dean. I’m sure you can find your way from here and I need to get back home and finish packing.”
“You going on vacation or something?”
Shaking his head, Rafael said, “No, I’m off to college in California.”
“Sam’s always talking about wanting to go to Stanford,” Dean said. Shaking his head, he added, “Sometimes I don’t know what’s wrong with that boy. When I was seven, I certainly wasn’t thinking about college already. Not that I’m thinking about it even now, as you don’t really need a college degree to go into my family business.”
“No, I suppose you don’t,” Rafael agreed before he patted Dean’s shoulder and said, “Well, have fun at Ilvermorny, Dean. We probably won’t meet again, so take care and try not to get into too much trouble.”
“Thanks for the help Rafe,” Dean said, remembering that the older teen had asked him and Sam to call him Rafe.
“It was my pleasure,” Rafael said, before with a slight twist and a pop, he was gone.
Dean looked at where he’d been standing for about half a minute, before he shook his head and said, “I really want to learn how to do that.”
-o-0-o-
Twenty minutes later, Dean found himself alone in the rearmost compartment of the last car on the train. His trunk, which now looked like a trunk, was stowed in the baggage rack above his seat.
The compartment he was in had polished wood paneling on the walls and navy blue carpeting. Along the longer two walls of the compartment were matching banks of cranberry red seats. By Dean’s estimation, each one would hold three people comfortably, so he was sure that eventually he would be joined by others.
With nothing else to do, Dean pulled out his headphones and Walkman. While on the shopping trip, Professor Bennett had charmed it for him so that it ran on magic, instead of batteries. Dean was quite happy at the prospect of not having to buy batteries anymore, especially as it meant that he could listen to music now as much as he wanted and not have to worry about running down the batteries. She had also shielded it so that it wouldn’t blow up due to exposure to magic.
He had just put his headphones on and was about to press play when the compartment door opened and a kid that Dean was pretty sure was also a first-year like him, stuck his head in.
The boy had a mop of blond curls on the top of his head, with the sides of his head shaved. He had piercing blue eyes that Dean was momentarily lost in, before he shook his head when he realized the boy was asking, “Any of these seats taken?”
“Nope, they’re all free,” Dean said.
“Mind if we join you?”
Dean raised an eyebrow at the ‘we’ but didn’t comment otherwise as he said, “Sure, I don’t mind.”
Pushing the door open and coming into the room, Dean immediately realized why the boy had said we. Having seen a couple of sets shopping on Pegasus Street or manning the registers at some of the stores, Dean knew that conjoined twins were more common in the magical world.
According to Professor Bennett, wizarding parents didn’t get their conjoined children separated because of the very high risk—over 90%—of the operation costing the children their magic and leaving them little more than squibs. It was for this same reason that even when they were grown up, wizarding conjoined twins never sought to get separated on their own… as the loss of their magic was not a price they were willing to pay.
Having known about his magic now for the last two months, Dean couldn’t imagine himself ever willingly doing something that would make him lose it.
This pair of twins, however, was the closest he’d ever seen, as the sets he’d previously encountered had all been joined side by side with a varied number of limbs between them but still two bodies.
The blond, however, shared a single body with his brother, resulting in their shoulders being a bit broader to accommodate two heads. What was really throwing Dean for a loop, however, was the fact that the blond’s twin didn’t look anything like him. In fact, they weren’t even the same ethnicity as the blond’s black-haired, brown-eyed twin looked Asian, which was quite the contrast, considering that the blond looked about as Asian as Dean did, which was to say not at all.
The twins lifted their trunk up onto the rack next to Dean’s before the blond held out his hand and said, “Jack Shen.”
Taking the hand and shaking it, Dean said, “Dean Winchester.”
As Dean let go of the blond’s hand, his twin held out his hand and said, “Jake Shen.”
Dean took the offered hand and shook it, as he said, “Nice to meet you.”
Sitting down on the couch across from Dean, Jack said, “You looked more than a bit shocked by our appearance.”
“I’m a halfblood,” Dean said. “Raised by a muggle single father. My mom was a witch but she died when I was four.”
“My condolences,” Jake said. “I suppose you probably haven’t seen many conjoined twins in the muggle world.”
“No, they usually get separated there,” Dean said. “I know why wizarding twins aren’t though. School sent Professor Bennett to take me school shopping and she explained it all.”
“Cool,” Jack said. “Well, as you can no doubt tell, Jake and I are fraternal twins. We have two mothers, one American, born and raised right here in New York City. The other Chinese, born and raised in Shanghai, China.”
“Which is where we were born,” Jake added. “Our American mother got a teaching job for a few years, teaching English, which is where she met our other mother. We moved to New York when we were six.”
Dean nodded. “I was born in Lawrence, Kansas. So, why do you two look so different? I mean, I didn’t even know fraternal twins could be conjoined. I thought they had to be identical.”
“That’s true in the muggle world,” Jack said. “But with magic, lots of things are possible that aren’t without it. I strongly resemble our American mother, while Jake got his looks from our Chinese one.”
“As for us being conjoined,” Jake said, “it’s something that can happen in the womb to magical twins if one of them was in danger of being stillborn.”
“So your magic fused you together to save your lives?” Dean asked, prompting the twins to nod. “Do you know which one was going to be stillborn?”
Shaking his head, Jake said, “No, and honestly I’m glad.”
“Yeah, I mean if it was you, would you really want to know?” Jack asked. “That you could have been born dead and that your brother saved your life?”
“Yeah, I suppose I can see how that could be an issue,” Dean answered, after a moment of thought. “I know the older of some sets of twins sometimes hold it over their twin’s head that they’re older, even if it’s only by a minute. I don’t even want to imagine what it would be like to have a brother being able to hold it over my head that I never would have drawn breath if it wasn’t for them.”
“Precisely,” Jack said. “So, are you a first-year?”
“Yes, you?”
“Yup,” Jake said.
“Cool,” Dean said. “Any idea which house you’ll be sorted into?”
“I was thinking Wampus,” Jack said, “but Jake is sure that we’ll go to Pukwudgie.”
“My mother was a Pukwudgie,” Dean said. “But like you, I’m thinking Wampus.”
“Well, time will tell, I guess,” Jake said, as Dean and Jack nodded.
-o-0-o-
9 December 1991…
Hadrian was seated at the table in the first-year boy’s dormitory putting the finishing touches on an essay for Charms. Kevin, Stephen, Anthony, and Terry were also seated at the table, as they too worked on the Charms essay. Having already finished their own essays, Michael and Oliver were playing a game of Wizard’s Chess.
Just as Hadrian was writing the final word of his essay the door opened and Professor Flitwick walked in.
“Good evening,” Filius said. “May I have everyone’s attention please?”
Michael and Oliver looked up from their chess game, as Kevin, Stephen, Anthony, and Terry finished writing the words they were writing when their head of house entered, and Hadrian having just finished his essay rolled it up and put it and his quill in his bag.
Seeing that he had everyone’s attention, Filius smiled and said, “It’s that time of year when I’m stopping in to take down names for the students who wish to remain at Hogwarts over the Winter Break. So is anyone staying?”
Both Kevin and Stephen raised their hands.
“You’re staying, Kev?” Hadrian asked, surprised.
“Yup,” Kevin confirmed. “My mum and dad are going to be out of the country. Some mandatory team-building retreat for my dad’s work that all the top executives and their spouses are required to attend. Mum figured it was better I stay here then sit around in a hotel room by myself most of the day.”
Nodding, Hadrian turned to Stephen and asked, “Ste?”
“My parents are going out of the country too,” Stephen said. “On their second honeymoon, so yeah, not something I’m too keen on joining them on. My younger siblings are going to be spending the holidays with my mum’s parents, but when I found out Kev was staying I decided to stay and keep him company.”
“Well, at least I won’t be alone then,” Hadrian said. “I’m staying too, Professor. My aunt gave birth to twins in early October, so between that and moving house, it was decided that Darius and I would stay at Hogwarts for the break. We’ll be going to Seacliff from the 24th until the 26th, but we’ll be here for the rest of the break.”
“Anyone else?” Filius asked as he made note of Hadrian’s plans. When nobody else indicated they were staying, the professor waved goodbye, before he left the room to head up to the second-year dorms.
“You’re moving?” Kevin asked, once Filius had left.
“Yeah, my aunt and uncle decided we needed a bigger house,” Hadrian answered. “We’d move to Seacliff, but since my uncle is a muggle, he can’t live there full time. So my aunt and uncle bought a townhouse in Kensington.”
“As in the Muggle London borough of Kensington and Chelsea?” Kevin asked, prompting Hadrian to nod. Kevin whistled. “That couldn’t have been cheap.”
“No, it wasn’t,” Hadrian agreed. “In fact, my aunt and uncle couldn’t afford that neighborhood on their own, so I’m actually paying for it. But then, it was agreed that the new place should fit my status as a Grand Duke, which Privet Drive doesn’t.”
“Yeah, I suppose I can see that,” Kevin said.
“Your place on Privet Drive is only four bedrooms, right?” Terry asked.
“Yup,” Hadrian confirmed. “My aunt and uncle have the master bedroom. I’ve got the second-largest bedroom and Darius the third largest. The fourth bedroom is less than half the size of Darius’s room, so very small in comparison. Works as a nursery, I guess, or as a room for one person, but eventually, my baby cousins will need their own rooms.”
With a nod, Stephen said, “Considering that one’s a boy and the other is a girl, that makes sense. As I can say I definitely wouldn’t want to share a bedroom with either of my sisters.” He paused for a moment, before he added, “Or my little brothers, for that matter.”
“I’m sure Fairwinds Castle has more than enough bedrooms that none of your siblings have to share,” Anthony said.
“True,” Stephen conceded. “Plus, even if there weren’t, I’d get my own room anyway, as a perk of being the eldest and the heir.”
-o-0-o-
25 December 1991…
Hadrian grinned at Darius as they walked into Hadrian’s study at Seacliff Castle. Chase was following along behind them wagging his tail, almost as if he knew what mischief they were about to get up to, and was totally there for it.
It was six in the morning and while it was true that the sun wasn’t even up yet—as sunrise in December wasn’t until about quarter after eight in the morning in Seacliff’s region of Cambria—it was still six hours past midnight.
Which meant that it was Christmas.
And Christmas meant presents.
Which meant that everyone had to get their arses out of bed already!
Walking over to the Potter family coat of arms on the wall behind the desk, Hadrian pulled out his wand and tapped a few runes which would project his voice throughout every room in the estate… well, all except for the nurseries.
Hadrian wasn’t a masochist, after all, so he did think ahead far enough to not project his voice into the rooms where his two-month-old baby cousins and Sirius and Remus’s two sets of twin boys—ages two and one—were sleeping.
No need to wake them up and have them start crying, as his Aunt Petunia, Sirius and Remus would no doubt want to kill him if he did.
Everybody else, however, well… it was time for their wake-up call.
Pressing his wand against the center of the shield, Hadrian cleared his throat and said, “Everybody wake up, it’s Christmas! And that’s an order from your Prince and Grand Duke!”
As Hadrian removed his wand from the center of the shield, he looked over at Darius and they both burst out laughing, as Chase barked happily at their feet.
“Shall we head for the drawing room and wait for the grumpy adults to start filtering in?”
“Yes,” Hadrian said with a grin before he and Darius left the study and headed for the room where the castle’s main tree was located.
-o-0-o-
It took ten minutes—which to the eleven-year-old Hadrian and Darius seemed like the longest ten minutes of their lives as they sat in the drawing room staring at the piles of gifts under the tree—before anyone else entered the room.
“Happy Christmas,” Bastian Potter said with a yawn, as he and his brother Nathan walked into the room. They were wearing matching red and green plaid pajamas and robes with black bedroom slippers over their white sock-covered feet.
“Happy Christmas,” Hadrian and Darius said in unison, much more chipper than either of the other two looked.
Nathan groaned. “You two are far too chipper for this early in the morning.”
Darius grinned as he motioned towards a nearby table and said, “There’s coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and hot spiced cider if you need a pick-me-up.”
“Coffee sounds so good right now,” Bastian practically moaned. “But, I can’t drink it,” as he sat down in a nearby chair. “Nat, get me a cup of cider will you?”
“Sure babe,” Nathan said, as he made his way over to the table as Hadrian and Darius turned to each other and mouthed, ‘Babe?’
Turning his gaze to scrutinize Bastian, Hadrian’s eyes widened as he took in his nineteen-year-old second cousin and said, “Holy shit. You’re… you’re pregnant.”
Darius’s eyes widened at this statement, as he whipped his head around from where he’d been watching Nathan to look over at Bastian instead, who was clearly sporting an obvious baby bump.
Yawning heavily, Bastian smiled and said, “Well spotted, cousin.”
“You were in lockdown until I unlocked the wards on the 26th of August this year,” Hadrian said. “So not quite four months ago… but you look a lot further along than four months.”
“That’s because I am,” Bastian said. “I’m seven months.”
“Seven months?” Darius asked. “Wait, Nathan called you…” he paused as his eyes widened to a comical size, as he blurted out, “Your brother knocked you up?”
“Yes,” Nathan confirmed, as he moved over to the chair that Bastian was sitting in, prompting Bastian to stand up so that Nathan could sit down, and then Bastian sat down in his lap.
Everyone was quiet for a moment, as Nathan and Bastian sipped their drinks—coffee for Nathan and cider for Bastian—before Nathan said, “Go ahead and ask.”
“How… wait, no strike that, I know how,” Hadrian said, as he blushed. “Why?”
Bastian grinned. “Nat and I didn’t exactly have a plethora of dating options while in lockdown. It was either each other or our parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents. Obviously, we chose each other.”
“I would also point out, however,” Nathan said, before Hadrian or Darius could comment, “that we have matching griffins on our inner right thighs.”
“Wow,” Darius said. Hadrian had filled him in about soulmates in the months since Micheil and Finlay had told Hadrian. “You’re each other’s soulmates?”
“Well, one of them anyway,” Bastian said. “We both got two marks upon turning thirteen. Matching griffins as Nat said, plus one differing mark each on our inner left thighs. We don’t know who has the corresponding marks, but then we haven’t been actively looking.”
Nathan nodded. “Too busy enjoying life out of lockdown and preparing for the twins.”
“Twins?” Hadrian asked.
“Yeah, Nat’s little swimmers were feeling rather ambitious,” Bastian said with a fond smile, as he kissed Nathan on the cheek. “Turns out he got me pregnant twice within a few hours. Fraternal twins, one of each, if you’re wondering.”
Before anyone could say anything more, two more people walked into the room, with one asking, “Enjoy getting the King out of bed, did you?”
Darius looked confused at Nathaniel Potter’s words, as Hadrian just grinned. “Yes, I did,” before he whispered to Darius, “He’s the King Emeritus, remember? He was King for fifty years before King Logan’s election.”
Darius’s mouth formed an ‘o’ as he remembered, even as Nathan and Bastian smiled and said, “Hello Grandmother, Grandfather.”
“Hello boys,” Elspeth said, as she leaned down and kissed Nathan and Bastian on their cheeks, before leaning even further down and planting a quick kiss on Bastian’s pregnant belly.
Elspeth took a seat as Nathaniel moved over to the table and got cups of tea for both himself and his wife. Charlus, Dorea, Jacob, and Glenora entered the room about a second after Nathaniel sat down and handed one of the cups to Elspeth.
Petting Chase, who had snuggled up on his lap, Hadrian sighed with relief when five minutes later, Sirius, Remus, and his Aunt Petunia entered the room.
Vernon wasn’t at Seacliff, since as a muggle he couldn’t spend large amounts of time in a magical property. Instead, he was staying at the family’s new townhouse, Number Thirteen Hawthorne Terrace. He’d be coming over later in the day for a few hours and to eat Christmas dinner.
Shaking her head, Petunia said, “At least you had the good sense not to project your voice into the nurseries.”
“Yes, we would have had to hurt you, if you had,” Sirius said, as he sat down with a cup of tea.
“I’m not stupid,” Hadrian said. “I know very well that Grand Duke or not, I’d be in big trouble if I woke up Regulus, Rigel, Asterion, Alphard, Ivy, and RJ.”
“Damn straight,” Remus agreed, as Sirius and Petunia nodded in agreement.
-o-0-o-
27 December 1991…
Darius and Hadrian were happy to be back at Hogwarts after their brief visit to Seacliff Castle for the holidays. They hadn’t enjoyed having to be quiet around Sirius’s and Remus’s sons or around their newborn siblings/cousins.
They liked them well enough, they supposed, but babies were still kind of boring. All they seemed to do was eat, cry, sleep, and soil themselves. Not much fun in Darius’s and Hadrian’s opinions. They hoped they’d be more fun when they were older.
“Welcome back, Hadrian,” Stephen said with a smile, as Hadrian entered the Ravenclaw common room.
“Thanks, Ste,” Hadrian said with a smile as he walked over and flopped down on the couch next to Stephen and Kevin. “So, how was Christmas at Hogwarts?”
“It was good,” Kevin said. “Professor Dumbledore banished all of the house tables and we had Christmas dinner at a large round table in the Great Hall.”
“Yeah, with you and Darius not here, there were twenty-two students in all,” Stephen said. “And I couldn’t help but notice something a bit strange.”
“What’s that?” Hadrian asked.
“With the exceptions of myself, my cousin Kris, Kevin, Cedric Diggory, and your cousin Darius,” Stephen answered, “everyone who stayed at school for the holidays is all members of your vassal houses, Hadrian.”
“What?” Hadrian asked, looking more than a bit surprised by that.
He certainly hadn’t noticed that in the time between the end of the Autumn term and when he and Darius had gone to Seacliff for the holidays. The departing students had mostly left via the Hogwarts Express on Saturday, 21 December 1991, which was the day after term ended, while Hadrian had remained at Hogwarts until the morning of 24 December. He’d then traveled to Seacliff via the Floo in Professor Flitwick’s office and returned the same way this morning.
Of course, he supposed that since he’d spent most of his time between term’s end and going home in his dorm with Stephen and Kevin, or in the common room, that he hadn’t really been paying all that much attention to who outside of Ravenclaw had stayed. Especially since the three of them had all chosen to take their meals in their dorm room, rather than go down to the Great Hall.
Nodding, Stephen said, “It looks like all the school-age members of your vassal houses stayed at school.”
“Whether they were always planning to do that,” Kevin said, “or they only decided to do so after they found out you were staying for the break, I don’t know.”
“They did seem a bit surprised that you weren’t at Christmas dinner with the professors that stayed for the break,” Stephen said. “So, if they did know that you were staying, they apparently didn’t know that you’d gone to Seacliff from three days.”
“Of course, it was only the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs that seemed surprised,” Kevin clarified. “The Slytherins weren’t, but then I assume they may have known about your plans through Darius.”
“Huh, I guess I should probably meet up with them then,” Hadrian said after a moment. “I mean, they are my vassals, I should try to cultivate good relations with them, I suppose. It’ll make working with them in the future easier.”
“Yeah, you probably should,” Stephen agreed. “All in all, there’s one member each from Houses Flamel and Fontaine, two from House Shacklebolt, four from House Flint, and ten from House Weasley.”
“Hmm, so all of my vassals except House Prewett,” Hadrian said. “And it’ll be a few years until there’s another Prewett at Hogwarts, as the current youngest members of the house are the two children of Transfiguration Professor Gideon Prewett and his wife Auror Emmeline Prewett: Laura and Alexander, who are only 3 and 2 respectively, and their cousins, Charms Professor Fabian Prewett and Potions Professor Severus Prewett’s two children, Cameron and Eileen, who are the same ages.”
“I imagine that your memory really comes in handy remembering all those names,” Kevin said with a grin to his friend.
“Definitely,” Hadrian agreed.
Not wanting to get up because he was comfortable, Hadrian summoned Tilly, the Potter family Head Elf, and asked her to personally invite all the school-aged children of his vassals who’d stayed at Hogwarts to join him for his morning run the following morning.
Thankfully, Micheil and Finlay had been able to let Hadrian in on the secret of the Room of Requirement. The room’s magic wasn’t just capable of creating interior rooms, but could also create outdoor ones as well. Thus, when it was raining, or once the snows began falling and the temperatures dropping, Hadrian, Darius, and their friends had been able to keep running without having to go out in the rain or cold, or worrying about slipping on a patch of ice.
-o-0-o-
29 December 1991…
After taking a few days to celebrate Christmas with his sons, John was back on the road with twelve-year-old Dean and eight-year-old Sam. Both of them were currently sitting in the backseat of the Impala with Jack and Jake Shen. After meeting on the Ilvermorny Zephyr last year and all being sorted into Wampus, Dean, Jack, and Jake had become best friends.
John and Sam had both been more than little surprised by Dean’s letters home telling them about his conjoined housemates, especially the fact that they weren’t identical, but they’d had enough time to adjust to it by the time they met them for the first time at Penn Station at the end of the school year.
It turns out that the Winchesters and the Shens had something in common, as Jack’s and Jake’s mothers, Diana and Alix, were also hunters. The only difference is that the two women were only part-time hunters. They both taught at a muggle high school in Queens, with Diana teaching English and Alix teaching Math.
So, during the school year, they kept their hunting limited to the weekends and only jobs within the city. Over the summers, however, they’d frequently go on road trips around New England and the east coast taking on hunting jobs further afield from their home.
What had really interested John was when he learned that Diana and Alix were actually paid hunters. It turns out that the Magical Congress of the United States of America, or MACUSA, had an entire division dedicated to providing resources to witches and wizards who were willing to become hunters. They were given a budget for supplies and a stipend to cover their living costs.
Additionally, they were paid for each job they took and successfully completed, with some of the more dangerous jobs even qualifying for extra hazard pay.
There were some limitations, of course. First and foremost, they had to abide by the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy and do everything within their power to uphold it. They also were not allowed, under any circumstances, to hunt witches and wizards who were born with magic.
They were given a means of identifying those who’d gained their magic through a demon deal, however, and they were fair game because they tended to give real witches and wizards a bad name.
They also were not allowed to hunt and kill certain protected species of magical creatures or any other intelligent magical species that MACUSA had a treaty with. However, if said species was openly flaunting the terms of the treaty or breaking the Statute of Secrecy, and a peaceful solution couldn’t be achieved despite all reasonable efforts to achieve one, then more extreme measures were allowed.
As the Impala came to a stop at a stop sign on the edge of Walnut Grove, Minnesota, where the Winchesters had just finished up a job involving a vengeful spirit who’d been terrorizing the local hardware store, John looked at the four boys in the backseat in the rearview mirror.
“Interesting ability you boys have,” he said to Jack and Jake. “Quite useful.”
Jake grinned. “Yes, it is pretty useful,” referring to the fact that he and Jack were metamorphmagi.
Nodding, Jack added, “The ability can’t do anything to hide the whole two heads thing, but it certainly helps with the non-identical bit.”
“I’ll say,” Sam said. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were identical twins.”
Jake grinned, “It is pretty cool, isn’t it?”
He currently looked exactly like Jack, having learned how to hide his Asian features and coloring and make himself look exactly like his brother. Of course, they alternated which one of them did it, as Jack was also capable of altering his own appearance to match his brother’s natural appearance.
Of course, some people had some pretty strange opinions about that. For example, when the twins were eight years old, Diana and Alix had parent-teacher conferences late into the evening and thus hired a witch to babysit their sons.
This witch had been upset when the boys had come down for dinner and Jack had used his metamorphmagus abilities to look like Jake and was speaking to his brother in Chinese. She yelled at Jack for being racist and committing cultural appropriation, saying that it was wrong for a white boy to put on Asian-face as she called it or to embrace any element of Asian culture, including speaking the language because it wasn’t his culture.
She then sent the twins to bed without supper as punishment, deciding that Jake needed to be punished too since he’d tried to defend Jack’s actions. Diana and Alix, of course, were furious when they got home and found out what happened. They verbally tore the woman a new asshole before kicking her out of their house.
As Diana called the childcare agency to lodge a formal complaint about the woman, Alix took dinner up to her sons and consoled them. They’d both been upset by the exchange with their sitter.
Alix explained, and Diana agreed when she later joined them after getting off the phone, that some people were just stupid and insensitive. That particular sitter definitely fit the bill and the manager at the agency had been horrified when they found out what had happened.
Pulling their sons into a hug, Diana and Alix told them to just ignore the stupid, narrow-minded people who expected the world to fit neatly into their own view of the world and got mad when others didn’t share their limited worldview.
They also assured Jack that it was absolutely not wrong for him to celebrate or embrace Chinese culture because he was literally born in China to a Chinese mother. The fact that genetics had made him look far more like his American mother than his Chinese one didn’t make any difference. He was still half-Chinese and thus it was just as much his cultural heritage as it was Alix’s or Jake’s.
“So where are we going now?” Dean asked.
“Windom, Minnesota,” John answered, as he pressed the foot on the gas pedal.
“So what’s the problem there?” Sam asked. “Another salt and burn?”
“No, there’s no hunting job,” John said.
He then steadfastly ignored the questions coming from the backseat as he drove, not talking at all except to order food when they went through a McDonald’s drive-thru about twenty minutes later.
Stopping the car in front of a small house another twenty minutes later, John undid his seatbelt and turned around. “Sam, Dean, there’s something you need to know.”
“What?” Dean asked.
Taking a deep breath, John said, “You have a brother and no, I’m not referring to Sam.”
“A brother?” Sam asked.
Nodding, John said, “Yes, Adam, he’s your half-brother… that is I’m his father, but your mother isn’t his mother. His mother is Kate Milligan, a nurse here in Windom who patched me up a few years ago after I was badly injured on a hunt.”
“This is because of our project in Charms class isn’t it?” Dean asked as he, Jack, and Jake had been taught a spell in Charms class that would magically create their family tree.
“Yes,” John said. “I knew that when you went back to school after the break and looked at your scroll, you’d see your brother on it, so that’s why I took the job in Walnut Grove. So that we could stop here on the way back and you could meet Adam.”
“How old is he?” Sam wondered.
“He’s four,” John answered. “He also doesn’t know anything about hunting and his mother wants to keep it that way. I’m okay with that because she’s a powerful witch and he’s already shown early signs of having magic himself. So, he will be aware of the supernatural and his mother can keep him safe, even if he isn’t out actively hunting.”
Dean and Sam nodded their heads, while the twins remained silent. This wasn’t really their business. They’d befriended Dean and had planted the seeds for a friendship with Sam. Maybe they’d also befriend Adam in time.
Getting out of the car, the five occupants walked up to the front door and John rang the bell. A few minutes later, a blond woman opened the door.
“Hello John,” Kate said with a smile before she noticed the boys standing behind him. “Are they?”
Placing his hands on his son’s shoulders, he said, “My sons, Dean and Sam. The other two are Jack and Jake Shen, Dean’s housemates at Ilvermorny.”
‘They’re more than that,’ Kate thought as she looked between the twins and Dean, but said nothing as she motioned for the group to come in.
“Adam?” Kate asked as she led everyone into the living room after closing the front door. “Your father is here.”
The four-year-old looked up at that, as while he’d seen pictures of his father, he’d never actually met him in person. Now, seeing the man, he jumped up from the floor where he’d been using a toy stethoscope to listen to the heartbeat of his teddy bear and ran towards John.
Wrapping his arms around the older man’s legs, Adam said happily, “Daddy!”
“Hey son,” John said with a smile, as he knelt down to Adam’s level and hugged him.
When the hug ended, he motioned Dean and Sam forward and said, “Adam, I want you to meet Dean and Sam… they’re your older brothers.”
“Hi!” Adam said as he stuck out his hand in Dean’s direction, as Dean got down on one knee before he took his brother’s hand and shook it.
He could definitely see the family resemblance. Adam did have a certain amount of his mother in him, but he was also clearly a Winchester.
After Sam had also shaken Adam’s hand, Dean said, “Adam, these are my friends, Jack and Jake. You know about Ilvermorny, right?”
Adam nodded. “Magic school.”
Dean nodded. “Yes, that’s right. Jack and Jake are my housemates in Wampus.”
“Cool,” Adam said. “I want to be a Pukwudgie, like Mom.” Smiling brightly at his mom, he added, “Gonna be a doctor when I grow up and help people like she does.”
“That’s cool,” Sam said.
He figured Adam would probably change his mind several times in the next few years, but there was no harm in encouraging him to be a doctor if that’s what he wanted. Sam knew that he’d certainly gone through wanting several different jobs when he grew up.
Standing in the doorway, Kate smiled as the Winchesters and Shens got acquainted with her son. Muttering a soft spell under her breath, none of them noticed when Kate’s eyes briefly glowed gold.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Ch14 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’. I know it’s been a while since I last updated this story, so I hope it was worth the wait.
I’ve amended the timeline a bit, so Adam is older in this story than he is in canon. Canonically, he wasn’t born until 29 September 1990, so he should only be a little over a year old right now, but I changed his birth year to 1987 for this story to make him a bit older. And a little closer in age to his future boyfriend, Hadrian Potter.
Not sure when the next chapter will be out, but I do plan on jumping time ahead quite significantly in the next chapter. By the end of the next chapter I plan to not only wrap up Hadrian’s first year, but also progress the story forward to the summer before Hadrian’s fourth year.
I know that seems like a big jump, but the events of second year will likely play out exactly the same as in canon, so not much point in rehashing them. And Sirius never going to Azkaban pretty much invalidates most of third year, so I figure I’ll just skip over it… let Hadrian actually have a relatively uneventful year for once.
Chapter 15: A Cloak and a Map
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Fifteen:
A Cloak and a Map
-o-0-o-
27 December 1991…
A few hours later, Hadrian, Stephen, and Kevin left the Ravenclaw common room and headed upstairs to their dormitory. Walking over to his curtained alcove, Hadrian pulled back the curtain and cocked his head when he saw a wrapped box resting on his bed.
“Kev? Ste? Did you guys leave this?”
“Leave what?” Stephen asked, as he and Kevin walked over and saw the box.
Shaking his head, Kevin said, “No, I didn’t. You packed my gift for you in your luggage.”
“What Kev said,” Stephen added, as he’d also given Hadrian a gift that had been packed into his luggage to open on Christmas morning.
“That’s what I thought,” Hadrian said. “Thanks for your gifts, by the way, I really liked them.”
Kevin had bought half a dozen Chocolate Frogs and a broom maintenance kit for Hadrian, while Stephen had gifted him with a box of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans and a framed map of the Grand Duchy of Cambria that was color-coded to show each of his vassal’s territories.
“You’re welcome,” Kevin said, as Stephen nodded, before adding, “Well, the only way to find out who left it is to open it, I guess.”
Hadrian nodded as he sat down on the bed. Remembering his lessons, however, and knowing that he should be cautious about opening a package that he was unsure of the origin of, before touching it, he called out, “Tilly!”
“Master Hadrian called for Tilly?”
“I found this package on my bed. I don’t know who sent it, can you just check to make sure there are no curses on it?”
Tilly nodded, as she closed her eyes and snapped her fingers in the direction of the package. A moment later, she said, “It’s clean, sir. There is a charm that’ll alert the sender that you’ve opened it, but there’s nothing on or in the package that could harm you.”
Looking over at Stephen and Kevin, he said, “Well, I suppose the charm that tells the sender I’ve opened the package is pretty benign.”
Stephen nodded. “Yes, I can’t see why that would be anything to worry about, really.”
“Thanks, Tilly. I’ll call if I need anything else.”
Tilly nodded, bowed, and then popped out.
Pulling the ribbon free and undoing the bow, Hadrian then proceeded to tear open the package before opening the box. Inside he found something wrapped in white tissue paper with a note resting on top. Picking up the note, he read it aloud:
Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time that it was returned to you. Use it well. A very Happy Christmas to you.
“Huh,” Hadrian said. “There’s no signature and I don’t recognize the handwriting.”
“Neither do I,” Kevin said.
Stephen cocked his head to one side and said, “I could be wrong, but I think that’s the headmaster’s handwriting.” After a moment of thought, he said, “Lord Flamel might be able to tell you, Rian. Dumbledore’s chocolate frog card does mention that he’s partners in Alchemy with Nicolas Flamel, so he presumably could recognize the headmaster’s handwriting.”
Hadrian nodded and called out, “Tilly!”
“What can Tilly do for Master Hadrian?”
“Could you take this note to Lord Flamel?” Hadrian asked as he held it out to her. “Ask him if he recognizes the handwriting and if yes, whose it is?”
Tilly nodded, took the note, and popped away.
Not waiting for the elf to return, Hadrian pushed aside the tissue paper to reveal a bundle of folded cloth with a silvery liquid-like appearance. Running a hand over it for a moment, Hadrian cocked his head and said, “What is it?”
Kevin shrugged, having no idea, although Stephen’s eyes widened as he looked at it and said, “I think… I think it’s an invisibility cloak.”
“An invisibility cloak?” Kevin asked.
Nodding, Stephen said, “They’re incredibly rare, but if you put it on, you should become invisible.”
Deciding to test it, Hadrian pulled it out of the box and draped it over his shoulders. As soon as he’d done so, Kevin and Stephen grinned as the latter said, “Definitely what I thought it was.”
Hadrian had to nod, as he looked down and noticed that everything below his neck had disappeared. Of course, since he was seated on his bed, the cloak only hid his torso and part of his upper thighs, while the lower half, his knees, lower legs, and feet were still visible.
Standing up, Hadrian grinned as the cloak unfurled and everything below his neck disappeared. Turning to face his wardrobe, Hadrian pulled open one of the doors and looked at himself in the full-length mirror on the inside of the door.
“Cool,” Hadrian said, as he lifted the hood of the cloak and his head disappeared.
“Yes, very cool,” Kevin agreed and Stephen nodded.
“I wonder,” Hadrian said before he turned from the wardrobe back to his friends and spread his arms to open the front of the cloak and said, “Get under it. I want to see if it can cover all of us.”
Kevin and Stephen shared a look before they shrugged and moved over as the ducked under the cloak with their friend and housemate. Almost as soon as they had, they felt a wave of magic washing over them and they were surprised when they were able to stand up and found their heads joining Hadrian’s in the hood.
“I think this cloak has Wizard Space charms,” Stephen said.
“I think you’re right,” Kevin agreed. “Unless I’m very much mistaken, that wave of magic we felt was the cloak resizing itself to cover all of us.”
The three boys were so engrossed with the cloak that they didn’t hear the soft pop from behind them just after Kevin had said, ‘I think you’re right,’ and before the rest.
“You’re correct, it did,” a voice said from behind them, making the boys jump at the unexpected voice, although they all recognized it.
Turning and putting the hood down, revealing his own head and Kevin’s and Stephen’s, Hadrian said, “Nicolas, how’d you get here?”
Nicolas Flamel smiled. “You can’t Apparate into or out of Hogwarts… or more precisely, witches and wizards can’t. The Hogwarts house-elves, however, can Apparate on Hogwarts grounds, as can the house-elves belong to the noble families. They can also bring passengers with them.”
Motioning towards Tilly, who was standing on Hadrian’s bed, Nicolas smiled and said, “Tilly brought me. When I read your note, I was curious about what the gift was. I thought it might be this, but I wasn’t sure. And yes, the note is Albus’s handwriting.”
“You know about this cloak?” Hadrian asked, as he reached up and undid the clasp and pulled it off of him and his two friends.
Nodding, Nicolas said, “Yes, it was your father’s. And his father’s before him, and his father’s, and his father’s, going back several generations.”
“Invisibility cloaks don’t last that long,” Stephen said. “Or at least, that’s what I’ve always read. They’re usually made with demiguise hair or strong Disillusionment Charms, but either way, they go opaque after a few decades.”
“Before I say anything more,” Nicolas said, “I know Kevin has already done so, but I suggest that you ask Heir Cornfoot for a privacy oath, Hadrian. As this involves Potter family secrets.”
“Ste?” Hadrian asked.
Stephen nodded, as he pulled out his wand and holding it over his heart he said, “I, Stephen Quentin Cornfoot, Electoral Prince and Confirmed Heir of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Cornfoot, courtesy Duke of Carringholt, solemnly swear upon my magic to keep the personal and family secrets of Hadrian James Potter, Prince-Elector and Lord of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, Grand Duke of Cambria and not reveal or discuss them with anyone who doesn’t already know them without Hadrian’s permission. So mote it be.”
Nodding, Nicolas raised some privacy wards so that on the off chance that anyone came into the dormitory, they wouldn’t hear what was happening in Hadrian’s alcove. Turning the chair in front of the desk so that it was facing the bed and sitting down, he motioned for the three boys to take a seat, as Tilly popped out to go back to her normal duties.
“I assume that Stephen and Hadrian are familiar with it, being wizard-raised,” Nicolas began. “Kevin, are you familiar with The Tales of Beedle the Bard?”
“Yes,” Kevin answered. “I slept over at Hadrian’s house several times and there were a few times when his Aunt Petunia read them to us as bedtime stories.”
“Okay, so you’re all familiar then with the Tale of the Three Brothers?” Nicolas asked, prompting all three boys to nod. “This might surprise you, but that story is true. The three brothers depicted in the story were Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus Peverell and Thanatos did grant them boons.”
Hadrian’s eyes widened slightly, as he asked, “So you mean this cloak is the one given to the youngest brother in the story?”
“Yes, the youngest being Ignotus Peverell,” Nicolas answered. “When he died, Ignotus left the cloak given to him by Thanatos to his eldest son, Ignatius Peverell. Ignatius, however, had no sons, so his eldest daughter, Iolanthe, inherited the cloak when he died. Iolanthe married Hardwin Potter and ever since, the cloak has been a Potter family heirloom, handed down from eldest son to eldest son.”
“Wow,” Stephen said, as he ran a hand over the shimmering silver fabric. “So, this is basically a divine artifact?”
“Yes, it is,” Nicolas confirmed. “Which is why it’s lasted for as long as it has without losing any of its power. The cloak is highly charmed, as before he died, James told me that it has a form of Auto-Resizing Charm, so it will resize to fit the wearer. It wouldn’t be very useful, after all, if it was too short to cover a person’s entire body and the cloak ended a foot above the ground.”
“Yeah that would be pretty useless,” Kevin said. “You’d still be able to see part of the person’s legs and their feet.”
With a nod, Nicolas added, “The cloak also, however, makes use of Wizard Space, partly to ensure that it will cover the wearer no matter what their girth. It will, however, as you three have already discovered, allow more than one person to wear it at the same time. The Wizard Space basically allows multiple people to share the cloak by allowing them all to occupy the same space. So while all three of you were under the cloak, if I had wrapped my arms around your waists it would feel like I was only wrapping my arms around a single person’s waist, rather than three people’s.”
“So almost like Micheil and Finlay?” Stephen asked.
“Sort of, but not exactly,” Nicolas answered. “The cloak doesn’t make you conjoined twins. Everyone under the cloak is still completely separate. It’s just that the Wizard Space expands the interior space of the cloak to allow more people to fit under it than what would appear possible from the outside.”
“Is there a limit to how many people can wear it at once?” Hadrian asked.
“None that I’m aware of,” Nicolas said. “In fact, I can tell you that James did wear the cloak with Lily, Sirius, Remus, and Peter on at least one occasion. And his father’s father, Henry Potter, wore it with his wife, Josette, their three sons, Julian, Fleamont, and Charlus, and their respective wives, Katherine, Euphemia, and Dorea.”
“So it can accommodate at least eight people,” Kevin said, as Nicolas nodded.
Hadrian, meanwhile, grinned at the reminder, as he bumped shoulders with Stephen and said, “We’re related… Henry’s wife was Josette Marie Potter née Cornfoot.”
Stephen smiled and said, “If I remember correctly, she was my great-grandfather’s sister.” He paused here, looking confused, as he said, “Or was it my great-great-grandfather?” Shaking his head, he added, “Well, it was one of them, I think.”
Hadrian shrugged. “Don’t know as I’ve only seen the Potter family tree and while it does list Josette, it doesn’t list her parents or siblings, so I couldn’t say how you’re related to her, other than that you’re not her direct descendant.”
Stephen grinned. “True, I’d be a Potter then, not a Cornfoot.”
-o-0-o-
30 December 1991…
Over the next few days, Hadrian, Stephen, and Kevin continued to play around with the invisibility cloak, oblivious to the fact that they were greatly confusing two other occupants of the castle.
“They disappeared again.”
“How?”
“I don’t know. All I know is they’re not on the map. They were there one minute and gone the next.”
“I think we need to investigate.”
“A capital idea.”
“Where were they last?”
“Seventh-floor corridor headed in the direction of the Fat Lady.”
“Coming our way, huh? Perfect, let’s get downstairs shall we?”
George nodded at his twin before he tapped his wand on the map and said, “Mischief managed,” before folding it up and tucking it away.
Entering the Gryffindor common room, Fred and George found Kaidan and Karter sitting in a chair by the fire reading a book. Nobody was around, but then Fred and George knew that Ron was down in the Great Hall playing chess with their cousin Pierce. And Percy was in the library, again. Because of course, he was.
“Hey, Kaid, Kart,” Fred said with a smile to his teammates.
Kaidan and Karter were on the reserve team but since they played Keeper, they very rarely got to play since Oliver rarely missed a game. About the only time, they were able to was during practice or if their Quidditch-obsessed Captain got injured badly enough during a game that Madam Pomfrey refused to let him back onto the pitch to finish the game. Although she usually had to sedate him or tie him to a bed to stop him from trying to escape the moment her back was turned.
“Hey,” Kaidan said with a smile as Karter nodded, even as George went over to the portrait hole and pushed it open just far enough that it would still appear to be closed from the outside but he’d still be able to hear what was going on in the hallway on the common room side.
“What are you doing?” Karter asked, as he and his twin stood up and saw what George was doing.
“Shhh,” Fred said, as he put a finger to his lips, even as he pulled out his wand and quickly tapped Kaidan and Karter on their heads and cast the Disillusionment Charm on them, before turning his wand on himself and doing the same, even as George cast it on himself.
“Trust us,” Fred whispered in Kaidan’s and Karter’s ears, having gotten close enough that he could whisper in both of their ears at the same time.
“When you say that, experience tells us we should be worried,” Karter whispered back, but made no move to take out his wand to remove the charm.
George would have retorted, but hearing the very soft, barely audible footsteps in the corridor, he quickly positioned himself on the hinge side of the portrait. Straining his ears, he managed to catch a snippet of whispered conversation… just enough to know that his quarry was right outside.
With a grin, he pushed the portrait open a little bit further so that you couldn’t miss it opening.
“What’s through there?” George heard the soft whisper from outside. He was pretty sure it was Heir Stephen Cornfoot.
“Don’t know, never been this way before,” George heard Kevin Entwhistle whisper a second later. He and Fred had joined Hadrian for a morning run every single morning since he’d returned from Seacliff and was beginning to recognize the voices of him and his friends, as a result.
“I think this is the way the Gryffindors usually go to get to their dorm,” Hadrian whispered a moment later, even as the Fat Lady’s voice could be heard asking, “Who’s there? Is someone there?”
Everything was silent in both corridor and common room for about two minutes, before Hadrian whispered, “Should we sneak in?”
His two friends must have nodded yes, as a second later George grinned as he saw fingers wrap around the edge of the portrait frame and pull it open. A few seconds later, however, when the portrait swung open, George turned his head to the side and saw nothing in the periphery of his vision, even though he could see the empty corridor outside the hole.
He wondered for a second if they’d decided not to sneak in after all, but then a slight movement caught his eye… a slight shimmer as if something hidden had stepped over the lip of the portrait hole.
One didn’t reach his level of pranking prowess without being observant of one’s surroundings. So, George smiled as his keen eyes saw the slight split in the fabric that said the boys must be hidden beneath an invisibility cloak. It was as he saw the slight shimmer again, followed by the slight split in the fabric that he quickly darted his hands forward and grabbed onto both sides of the split fabric, and pulled forward.
A second later, there were three surprised yelps as three Ravenclaw first years tumbled over the lip of the portrait hole and landed in a heap on the floor inside the common room. George grinned, even as he closed the portrait so that they couldn’t make a quick getaway.
“Well, well, what have we here?” Fred asked as he came over, still Disillusioned so it was hard to make him out against his surroundings.
“Three firstie eagles by the looks of it,” George answered, even as the three boys on the floor disentangled themselves, the hood of the cloak falling off their heads in the process. “Using an invisibility cloak.”
Fred and George had only shared the existence of the Marauder’s Map with six other people… their best friend and dorm mate, Lee Jordan, their twin cousins, Brandon and Brendan Weasley, their cousin and dorm mate, Pierce Weasley, and one other set of twins… Kaidan and Karter Shacklebolt. While Lee and their cousins helped them far more often with their pranks, Kaidan and Karter had still helped them occasionally, especially when they wanted to prank Percy.
“Question is how could a simple invisibility cloak hide them on the map?” Fred asked, even as he knelt down and helped the three boys to their feet. With a grin, he added, “Oh, where are my manners, welcome to the Gryffindor common room, Your Royal Highnesses and friend.”
Tracking the voice and the direction of the hands helping him up, Hadrian finally managed to spot Fred’s grinning face against his surroundings.
Removing the Disillusionment Charms from themselves and the Weasley twins, Kaidan and Karter walked over and eyed the cloak as Hadrian took it off of himself and his two friends.
“I’ve seen invisibility cloaks before,” Kaidan said. “And that doesn’t look anything like the ones I’ve seen.”
Karter nodded. “True. If you don’t mind my asking, where did you boys get it?”
Hadrian raised an eyebrow before he said, “Potter family heirloom… that I expect the four of you to keep quiet about.”
“Of course, my liege,” Fred said with a grin and a bow, as the other three nodded.
“You mentioned something about a map?” Stephen asked after a moment of silence. “What map?”
Knowing that the common room wasn’t the most secure of locations since the other Gryffindors could walk in at any moment and they didn’t have the map activated to let them know they were coming, George said, “Not here,” before he motioned for everyone to follow him.
Hadrian, Stephen, and Kevin soon realized that George was leading them upstairs to the third-year boy’s dormitory. They couldn’t help but feel a little bit of a thrill to be inside Gryffindor tower, because they were Ravenclaws, after all. They were also curious to see if the Gryffindor boy’s dorms were laid out the same way as theirs… they were both in towers, after all.
Of course, the Gryffindor common room was nothing like the Ravenclaw common room and of the two, the three eagles couldn’t help but think that their common room was so much better.
Arriving in the third-year boy’s dormitory, Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen realized that much like the common room, the Gryffindor dorms were quite different. Instead of each student having a separate alcove to call their own, everything was far more communal. There were eight four-poster beds positioned around the outside walls, with each student’s trunk positioned at the foot of their bed.
They each had a nightstand, although it looked like they had to share wardrobes as there were only four that the three Ravenclaws could see. There were no desks, chess tables, or sofas. Instead of the large fireplace that was open on three sides, the Gryffindors had a small cast-iron wood-burning stove for warmth and they had no balcony.
“Wow, color me unimpressed,” Hadrian said.
“Ditto,” Kevin and Stephen said in perfect unison.
“Why do you say that?” Kaidan asked.
“Because this is rather, well, not very nice,” Hadrian answered. “At least when compared to Ravenclaw tower.”
“We’ve never been in Ravenclaw tower,” Karter said. “What’s it look like?”
“Each dorm has a full fireplace and private balcony…” Fred started before the three Ravenclaws could say a word.
“Private curtained alcoves for each student,” George continued.
“Sofas, table, and chairs for homework or meals,” Fred added.
George nodded and said, “They each have their own wardrobes instead of half a Wizard Space enlarged one.”
“Well you two have clearly been in our tower,” Stephen said with a grin.
Nodding, Fred and George said, in unison, “We’ve been in all four houses at least once.”
“How would you rank them, out of curiosity?” Kevin asked.
“Ravenclaw first, Hufflepuff second,” Fred said.
“Slytherin third, and Gryffindor,” George sighed at this, “dead last, unfortunately. Slytherin would probably take the number two spot if only it wasn’t so dark and eerie, but then I guess being completely under the Black Lake with no sunlight will do that.”
“The other three houses each student has their own private alcove with walls on three sides and a curtain on the fourth,” Fred added. “Gryffindor is the only house where students have to rely solely on the curtains on their bed for privacy.”
“Huh, never thought I’d hear myself say this,” Kaidan said, “but I almost wish I wasn’t a Gryffindor.”
Nodding, Karter said, “Yes, private alcoves do sound nice, and not having to share half a wardrobe with somebody else would also be nice.”
“Wouldn’t you have to share anyway?” Stephen asked. “With Kaidan?”
“Karter and I can never escape having to share with each other,” Kaidan said with a grin. “There are six boys in our year, including us, instead of the eight third years…but only three wardrobes.”
“Kaid and I share with Percy Weasley, while Oliver Wood shares with a muggleborn boy named Kyran Jacobs. Only Cameron has his own wardrobe, although as the Heir of House Cameron and courtesy Earl of Bembridge, he is the highest-ranked person in our year.”
“Wow,” Hadrian said. “So, the map?”
“The secret to our success,” George said as he pulled a bit of parchment out of his pocket and showed it to everyone.
“A blank parchment?” Kevin asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Not just a blank parchment,” Fred said, as he pulled out his wand, tapped the parchment, and said, “I solemnly swear that I’m up to no good.”
Immediately, a blot of ink appeared on the page near the tip of Fred’s wand, which quickly expanded and formed into letters, spelling out, “Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs, purveyors of aids to magical mischief-makers, proudly present the Marauder’s Map.”
Hadrian’s eyes widened as he said, “Wow, I never thought I’d actually see it. They said it was lost.”
George looked over at Hadrian at this and said, “You knew about the map? Who said it was lost?”
“Yes, I knew about it,” Hadrian confirmed. “Darius and I have grown up hearing stories about it… from none other than Messrs. Moony and Padfoot.”
“You know two of the Marauders?” Fred asked, the awe clear in his tone.
“I know who all four of them are,” Hadrian said. “Though I’ve only met two of them. Moony and Padfoot are Remus Lupin-Black and Heir Sirius Black. Wormtail is the cowardly traitor Peter Pettigrew who was my parents’ Secret Keeper and betrayed them to Voldemort, and Prongs, well, he’s my father, James Potter.”
Fred and George, eyes wide, dropped down to their knees in front of Hadrian and began prostrating themselves before him as if he was a god, as they chanted, “We’re not worthy, we’re not worthy!”
“Oh get up you two,” Hadrian said, grinning even as he rolled his eyes.
Once Fred and George were standing back up, Hadrian held out his hand and asked, “May I?”
“Of course,” George said, as he handed over the map.
He loathed to part with it, but Hadrian was his liege lord and the son of one of the map’s creators. He certainly had a right to take a closer look at it.
The moment Hadrian’s fingers touched the map, it seemed to glow briefly, as the words, “Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs are glad to see their greatest creation has made it into the hands of the next generation. Mr. Prongs bids welcome to his son, Hadrian.”
“Dad,” Hadrian muttered, as he brushed his fingers over the words almost lovingly.
The others couldn’t help but smile at the happy look on Hadrian’s face. Even Fred and George were less upset about potentially losing the map now, as having something of his father’s that he could touch clearly meant a lot to Hadrian.
Hadrian had actually slept in James’s childhood bedroom while at Seacliff, instead of in the Lord’s Suite as would be his right as Lord Potter. James’s bedroom was traditionally the room that the Heir Potter slept in, but Hadrian had wanted to feel close to his father, so sleeping in his old room, surrounded by his things had felt right to him.
His parents had never slept in the Lord’s Suite, as they’d already gone into hiding when Julian and Katherine Burke Potter contracted Dragon Pox and died in November of 1980. James hadn’t even been able to go to his parents’ funeral, as it would have meant leaving the protective bubble of the Fidelius and leaving behind his wife and newborn son.
With the death of his father on 18 November 1980, followed shortly after by his mother the very next day, James had become Grand Duke of Cambria, but he never set foot inside Seacliff following his ascension to the lordship of House Potter. Dying the following Halloween, James was one of the shortest reigning Grand Dukes in Cambrian history, with a reign of eighteen days shy of one year.
After a moment, as Hadrian scanned the map, his eyes widened as he caught sight of three names sitting in the Great Hall.
Pierce and Ronald Weasley… and Peter Pettigrew.
“That bastard,” Hadrian shouted.
“Rian, what’s wrong?” Stephen asked.
“That!” Hadrian said as he jabbed a finger at the map. “Look at the name right next to Ron’s.”
“Peter Pettigrew,” Kaidan said. “Oh, that’s…”
“The fucking bastard who sold out my parents to Voldemort,” Hadrian said, ignoring the sharp intakes of breath from the others at his mention of the Dark Lord’s name. “I’m going to kill him.”
“Now, Hadrian, don’t be rash,” Kevin said. “I know you’re a Grand Duke, but you’re not completely above the law. You can’t just kill somebody in cold blood, especially not here at Hogwarts. We’re in the Grand Duchy of North Alba, so Lord Ollivander would be well within his rights to have you arrested.”
Nodding, Stephen said, “If he does that, he can convene the Elector’s Court so that you can be tried by your peers. If they find you guilty, they could strip you of rank and send you to prison. And now that you’re no longer the last of your line, they’re far more likely to do that, since your Granduncle Charlus can become the new Lord Potter.”
Taking a few deep breaths, he nodded and said, “You’re right. Fred, George, go down to the Great Hall, make sure that bastard stays there. Kaidan, Karter, go get Dumbledore. Kevin, Stephen, we’re going to get Sirius and Remus.”
Everyone nodded, as Kevin, Stephen, and Hadrian got back under the cloak so that they could sneak back out of Gryffindor Tower without anyone seeing them.
-o-0-o-
Ten minutes later, Sirius was momentarily confused when he opened the door to his quarters that he shared with Remus to find nobody there, despite somebody pounding on the door only a second earlier. He quickly realized what was going on, however, when he felt something brush past him into the room.
Closing the door, Sirius asked, “Hadrian, is that you?”
“Yes,” Hadrian said, as he pushed down the hood of the cloak. “And Stephen and Kevin.”
“You found your dad’s cloak, I see,” Remus said with a grin.
“Dumbledore gave it to him for Christmas,” Kevin said. “It was waiting on his bed the day he got back to school.”
“Okay, well, what brings you here?” Sirius asked.
“Fred and George Weasley have been using the Marauder’s Map,” Hadrian said as he held it up, still in its active state since the three boys had used it to navigate the corridors to avoid any other students or teachers and to keep an eye on Peter and make sure he was still in the Great Hall. “They let me see it and there’s a name on the map that should not be there.”
Standing up, Remus asked, “Who?”
“Peter Pettigrew,” Hadrian spat.
“He’s here?! At Hogwarts?” Sirius asked, as he quickly came over and took the map from Hadrian.
“In the Great Hall,” Stephen said, as Remus came over, just as Sirius flipped the map to display the Great Hall and saw the names, Fred, George, Pierce, and Ronald Weasley, along with Peter Pettigrew.
“How could he be walking around Hogwarts?” Kevin asked. “There are several professors that stayed for the break that were on staff when you guys were students. Wouldn’t they recognize him?”
“Not necessarily,” Remus said. “If he’s disguised as Wormtail… a grey rat, his animagus form. Sirius and I would recognize him, of course, but he knows that. And while he was never the sharpest crayon in the box, he’d be smart enough at least, for his own self-preservation, to make sure that we never saw him.”
“And there are spells which can hide scents from werewolves,” Sirius said. “We thought the Map was lost, however, so he probably never considered that it would be his downfall.”
“I sent Kaidan and Karter Shacklebolt to get Professor Dumbledore,” Hadrian said. “And asked Fred and George to go down to the Great Hall and make sure they don’t leave. But, if Pettigrew is in his rat form, they’ll likely be confused when they don’t see a man.”
“Indeed,” Remus said. “Can Sirius and I borrow your dad’s cloak, Hadrian? Peter will no doubt run the minute he sees us entering the Great Hall.”
“He probably won’t run from you or your friends, though,” Sirius said. “As he probably won’t know that you know about his animagus form.”
“Of course,” Hadrian said, as he handed the cloak over to Sirius. Holding up the map, he asked, “How do you turn this off? Fred and George didn’t get the chance to tell me.”
“Tap your wand against it,” Remus said. “And say ‘Mischief Managed.’”
Doing so, Hadrian watched as the map went blank, even as Stephen wondered aloud, “I wonder how Fred and George managed to figure out how to use it.”
“Oh that’s easy,” Sirius said. “James charmed it so that if it found its way into the hands of a Potter family vassal that it would reveal the activation and deactivation phrases to them.”
“He figured his family’s vassals could be trusted to keep it safe,” Remus added. “Until it could, hopefully, be returned to Potter hands. Which it seems is exactly what happened.”
“Well, let’s go deal with a traitor, shall we?” Sirius asked, as he walked up behind Remus and put the cloak around both of them, making everything below their necks disappear.
“Yes, let’s,” Hadrian said, as Sirius pulled up the hood and the three students left the room with the two invisible professors following behind them.
-o-0-o-
Hadrian, Stephen, and Kevin, with Sirius and Remus under the cloak, arrived in the entry hall outside the Great Hall a few seconds before Kaidan and Karter arrived, with Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, and Snape following behind him.
“The Headmaster was meeting with the Heads of House when we arrived,” Kaidan said to Hadrian when he saw that momentarily surprised look on the raven-haired boy’s face.
Hadrian nodded, as Albus asked, “What is this about a dangerous criminal being on the loose in the castle?”
“Peter Pettigrew,” Hadrian said. “He’s in the Great Hall.”
“Are you sure, Mr. Potter?” Filius asked. “I was under the impression that Mr. Pettigrew is dead.”
“He’s an unregistered Animagus,” Stephen said. “Sirius and Remus gave Hadrian a collection of photos from their school days to Hadrian for Christmas. Including one that Lily took of Sirius, Peter, and James in their Animagus forms.”
“That’s when Hadrian recognized Scabbers,” Kevin added, just as Argus Filch walked into the entry hall carrying Mrs. Norris.
“Scabbers?” Pomona asked.
“Ronald Weasley’s pet rat,” Hadrian said. “Ron and all the other students who stayed at the school for the break have been joining me for my morning run for the last two days. I’d noticed that Scabbers was missing a toe, but I didn’t put two and two together until today when I was showing Stephen and Kevin the pictures that Sirius and Remus gave me for Christmas.”
“I think the man who murdered twelve muggles and tried to frame Professor Black for murder definitely counts as a dangerous criminal, Professor,” Stephen added. “Especially since he was also the Secret Keeper for the late Lord and Lady Potter and is the reason You-Know-Who was able to kill them.”
“I’m inclined to agree, Heir Cornfoot,” Albus said, his eyes twinkling as he caught sight of Sirius and Remus under the Potter heirloom invisibility cloak. Looking over at Argus, he said, “Secure the castle, Mr. Filch, we have a mass murderer in our midst.”
“Yes, sir,” Filch said, as he hurried over to the large doors that led outside and shifting Mrs. Norris into one arm, tapped the large stones to the right of the doors in a complicated pattern with his hand.
Almost immediately, the heavy iron portcullis began descending, as the large wooden doors closed and the bolts began moving into place. A few seconds later, large wooden shutters descended over all of the windows.
Opening the door into the Great Hall and entering the large room, Hadrian covertly motioned towards the door to the antechamber near the head table. Stephen and Kevin nodded ever so slightly, as they made their way over to it as calmly as possible.
Hadrian couldn’t help but notice that the rat on Ron’s shoulder was looking over at the large stained glass windows above the head table, which were now covered by the heavy wooden shutters. Albus and the heads of house followed Hadrian in, along with Sirius and Remus, before Albus closed the door behind him, as he and the heads lined up in front of the doors.
Percy had apparently come down to the Great Hall at some point, as he was currently playing a game of chess against his little brother. Although, he and all the other students were looking quite curious about the lockdown and the professors blocking the doors.
Fred and George were about to come over to Hadrian and tell him that the map must have been wrong or Pettigrew had left before they got there because of course, they didn’t know that Scabbers was Pettigrew, when a hand shot seemingly out of thin air behind Ron’s shoulder and roughly grabbed Scabbers by the neck.
Throwing off the cloak, Sirius growled, “Hello Peter, miss me?”
Ron, of course, was upset as he cried out, “What are you doing? Scabbers! Leave him alone!”
“This isn’t a rat, Mr. Weasley,” Remus said.
“What? Of course, he is!” Ron said. “He’s my pet. He was Percy’s before he was mine.”
Percy nodded. “Ron’s right, he’s been in our family for…”
“Ten years,” Sirius said, as he moved away from the Gryffindor table, still clutching the struggling rat by the nape of the neck. “Curiously long life for a common garden rat.”
Leveling his wand at Scabbers, Albus said, “Animagus Revelio!”
Ron practically fell off the bench he was sitting on and Percy’s eyes widened, both shocked as the rat they’d both kept as a pet got bigger and bigger until it turned into a balding, blond-haired man in his early thirties. Fred and George were also looking quite surprised at the revelation that their brothers’ mutual pet was actually an Animagus.
“Incarcerous!” Severus said with a wave of his own wand, as thick ropes shot out of the end and wrapped around Peter’s struggling body, as he tried to get free from where Sirius was holding onto the collar of his threadbare jacket in an iron grip.
With Peter secured, Sirius let go of him and pushed him, making him fall to his knees.
“Sirius. Remus. My old friends.”
“We’re not your friends anymore, you pathetic little worm!” Remus said.
Shrinking away from the werewolf’s rebuke, Peter caught sight of Hadrian and said, “Hadrian, look at you. You look so much like your father, like James. We were the best of friends.”
“How dare you speak to Hadrian!” Sirius thundered as he kicked Peter in the back, making the bound man fall face-first onto the cold stone floor. “How dare you speak about James in front of him!”
“You sold out James and Lily to You-Know-Who, didn’t you?!” Remus shouted.
“I didn’t mean to,” Peter whined, as he rolled onto his back, and gulped as he saw Sirius’s wand pointed at his throat. “The Dark Lord, you have no idea of the weapons he possesses. You were going to be their keeper, Sirius, what would you have done?”
“I would have died!” Sirius shouted, without a moment’s hesitation. “I would have died before I betrayed my friends.”
“As would I!” Remus said. “You sniveling, whiny little rat. We should have realized what you were the moment we saw your Animagus form.”
“Fawkes!” Albus called out.
A sudden burst of flame heralded the arrival of the headmaster’s phoenix, as he said, “Fawkes, take Professor Flitwick to the Ministry.” Then turning to the Charms professor, he said, “Filius, get Madam Bones, tell her we’ve got a wanted murderer in custody at Hogwarts.”
“With pleasure, Albus,” Filius said as he reached up and grabbed Fawkes’s talons after the phoenix had flown down far enough for the diminutive professor to reach him. They both disappeared a moment later, in a flash of flame.
As Peter continued to whine and beg, Severus rolled his eyes and shot a spell at him which conjured a thick silk handkerchief in his mouth, gagging him. “That’s quite enough out of you.”
“Good show, Severus,” Sirius said, although saying the man’s real name instead of Snivellus had been a challenge. Still, they were both professors now and the headmaster had been very clear before the school year had begun that they needed to keep their animosity towards each other well hidden and not show it in front of the students.
Severus nodded but remained silent.
Ron shivered as grabbed onto Percy and said, “He slept in my bed.”
Percy nodded, obviously equally freaked out by the revelation, as he said, “Mine too.”
“You never had any idea?” Pierce asked his cousins.
“Hell no!” Ron and Percy exclaimed in unison.
The professors usually would have had something to say about Ron and Percy—especially the latter since he was a prefect—using that kind of language. However, given the circumstances, they decided to let it slide this time.
“Mr. Weasley, he never did anything… untoward to you, did he?” Minerva asked.
Being older, Percy caught on to what his head of house was asking first, and he shook his head. “No, thank Merlin, no he didn’t.” Turning scared eyes towards his little brother, he asked, “Ron?”
It took Ron a moment to realize what was being asked, before he shook his head vehemently as he said, “No, he never did anything like that. Just slept on my pillow, usually.”
“Same,” Percy said.
“Well, thank Merlin for that,” Pomona said, as several of the others in the room nodded in agreement.
Twenty minutes later, Albus excused himself to his office, which locked up tight the moment that the school was put into lockdown. The reason for this was because he’d gotten the ping from the wards that Filius and Fawkes had returned, with Madam Bones and a team of Aurors, having Flooed into the Headmaster’s office, as it was the only way in or out of the castle during the security lockdown.
Only once Peter was stunned and levitated by the Aurors that Madam Bones had brought with her and they’d all departed back to the Ministry via the headmaster’s Floo did Albus cancel the lockdown.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there’s Ch15 of ‘The Seventh Olympian.’ Yes, I know, I said in the last chapter that I’d wrap of Hadrian’s first year in this chapter and do several time-jumps to bring the story to the summer before his fourth year. However, when this chapter began getting up to being over 6,000 words, I decided that maybe I should split it up into more manageable pieces.
I’ve already got a significant bit of story that happens in the summer before Hadrian’s third year written that by itself is over 5,000 words, so if I’d included it here along with everything else… this chapter would probably have been over 20,000 words. And I figured that’d be a bit too cumbersome and long.
Depending on how Ch16 shakes out in wrapping up Hadrian’s first year and showing a little bit of the summer that follows, the third-year scene will either be in Ch16 or 17, I think. I’ll have to see.
Chapter 16: The Mirror and the Stone, Part One
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Sixteen:
The Mirror and the Stone, Part One
-o-0-o-
31 December 1991…
In the early morning hours of New Year’s Eve, Hadrian woke up in his bed in Ravenclaw Tower and immediately noticed that he wasn’t alone. Kevin and Stephen were with him, as the three of them had fallen asleep on Hadrian’s bed while watching a movie marathon on the magically shielded and powered TV and VCR that Petunia had given Hadrian for Christmas.
Hadrian grinned as he looked over at his two friends. Kevin was lying almost completely on top of Stephen and they both had their arms wrapped around each other. He knew it was clichéd, but they really did look like two puzzle pieces that fit together perfectly.
They probably weren’t going to start dating yet, as Kevin was only eleven and Stephen had turned twelve two days ago on the 29th of December. Still, he had this funny feeling that they would, in fact, get together eventually, as they’d become fast friends since starting school. And Hadrian thought it was rather telling that Stephen had decided to stay at Hogwarts to make sure that Kevin didn’t spend Christmas alone.
Turning his mind to what had woken him up, Hadrian thought back on the dream he’d been having. He’d been in what he thought was one of the old, disused classrooms on the ground floor that was being used as storage. There was a strange, full-length mirror on one side of the room with writing around the frame, though Hadrian couldn’t make out what it said in his dream.
There was also a strange, soft voice whispering in his head. Hadrian was pretty sure it was male. He’d heard it before in his dreams, though he’d never been able to place it. He’d run through every male he knew and remembered and none of them matched.
Of course, he’d never told anyone about the voice, as he knew that hearing voices wasn’t generally considered to be a good sign. After reading a single psychology book a year ago, he had briefly wondered if maybe he was a paranoid schizophrenic. But he quickly dismissed the idea, because continuing to read said book it said that sometimes people with the disorder had cognitive issues and he certainly did not.
He also wasn’t hearing multiple voices, nor was the voice he did hear telling him to harm himself or others. Or trying to belittle him or make him feel like the world was against him. He’d certainly never had the thought that somebody was implanting anything in his brain.
Well, except maybe himself, as he did have a voracious appetite for reading and knowledge. Still, he was pretty sure that wasn’t what the psychologist who wrote the book was referring to. Honestly, the whole thing had only proven to him why doctors and healers alike warned about the dangers of self-diagnosis. It never ended well.
Shaking his head, he focused on what he remembered of the voice he’d heard whispering in his dream. It didn’t fill him with any form of dread or worry. In fact, it had actually been soothing, now that he thought about it. The words seemed to be just outside of his grasp, but he had this feeling that he couldn’t explain that the voice wanted him to find the mirror.
He’d also gotten the occasional flash of the forbidden third-floor corridor interspersed with the images of the disused classroom and mirror.
‘The headmaster said ‘use it well,’’ Hadrian thought. ‘I wonder what he meant by that.’
“Maybe you should do as he says,” the voice in his head whispered, only just barely audible enough for it to even register in Hadrian’s brain. “Take KK.”
‘KK?’ Hadrian thought. ‘What? And since when do you speak when I’m awake?’
“It’s not the first time,” the voice said, a bit louder and more clearly this time. “Though you might not have registered it due to the background noise at the time.”
‘What do you mean?’ Hadrian asked, wondering if he should maybe be worried that he was conversing with a voice in his own head.
“I told you it was Quirrell who enchanted your broom,” the voice said. “Though with the noise in the stands, you probably didn’t hear me.”
Before Hadrian could respond, the voice added, “Thankfully, your friends were smart enough to figure out that it wasn’t Professor Snape… that he wouldn’t be fool enough to try and kill you at a Quidditch match in front of all the students and staff. Especially after the whole first day of school fiasco and the headmaster putting him on probation. And that’s not even considering what his husband did to him when they got home.”
Shuddering, Hadrian said, ‘Please, I don’t want to know!’
“Oh you sweet, innocent child,” the voice said, a hint of laughter audible. “I suppose I forgot what it’s like to be your age… pre-pubescent and all… it’s been ever so long.”
Not liking the direction of this conversation, because it was making him uncomfortable, he instead asked, ‘What is KK?’
“The better question would be whom?” the voice said. “They’re initials. Don’t bother asking who. You’re smart. I’m confident you’ll figure it out. Now, I believe your friends are about to wake up.”
The voice fell silent, as Hadrian felt Kevin and Stephen stirring. They woke up a moment later and Kevin immediately rolled off of Stephen, both of them blushing and looking embarrassed by the position they’d been sleeping in.
“Nothing to be embarrassed about,” Hadrian said, grinning. “You looked cute together.”
“Shutup!” Kevin and Stephen said in unison, their blushing intensifying as they moved to opposite ends of the bed.
Hadrian grinned, even as he bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from laughing. As embarrassed as they clearly were, he didn’t think his friends would particularly appreciate it.
Knowing that they’d probably prefer a change of subject, Hadrian said, “So, I had a weird dream.”
“What was it about?” Kevin asked.
Hadrian would have had to be blind not to notice the relief on both their faces at not being the topic of conversation anymore.
‘They are so gonna get together,’ Hadrian thought, even as he said, “I was sitting in one of the disused classrooms on the ground floor. One of the ones used for storage and there was this big full-length mirror there. It had some kind of writing around the frame, but I couldn’t make it out. Looking in the mirror, I saw my reflection, but the strange thing was that I was standing at the entrance to the forbidden third-floor corridor, instead of the disused classroom.”
“Hmm, that is kind of weird,” Stephen agreed.
“There was also an old gramophone in the room,” Hadrian said. “The record must have been badly scratched or something because the needle kept jumping so that all I could hear were the words take and people, followed by the letters k and k.”
“Strange,” Kevin said. “What do you think it means?”
“I’m not sure,” Hadrian said. “I’ll admit, since getting the cloak, I have thought about going to see what’s in the third-floor corridor.”
“Even though the headmaster said, and I quote, ‘The third-floor corridor, on the right-hand side, is forbidden to all students who do not wish to die a most painful death?’”
Raising an eyebrow at Stephen, Hadrian answered, “Yeah, that just makes me want to check it out more. I mean, honestly, why would he say that to a room full of children and teenagers? At least some of whom are probably going to be driven to do the exact opposite simply because he said not to.”
“True, I’m sure some of the Gryffindors especially have considered trying it,” Kevin said. “If he truly wanted to keep people away, he should have just not mentioned it at all and used magic to brick up the entrance to that corridor.”
Hadrian and Stephen nodded, before Stephen said, “It does make me wonder just what is in that corridor now though. My cousin Kris is a fifth-year, after all, and he said that corridor was never forbidden before this year.”
“Hmm,” Hadrian said. “Obviously something happened between the end of last year and the beginning of this one then for the headmaster to bar the corridor. The question is what?”
“No clue,” Kevin said with a shrug.
-o-0-o-
Later that day, Hadrian walked into the nearly empty Great Hall and spotted Kaidan and Karter Shacklebolt sitting at the Gryffindor table.
‘Wait, KK… could it mean Kaidan and Karter?’ Hadrian thought before he was suddenly overcome with a feeling of strong emotion. It felt like happiness and pride.
Deciding to go with it, Hadrian took a deep breath and walked over to the twins.
“Hey Kaid, Kart.”
Kaidan and Karter looked up and smiled, as Kaidan said, “Hey Rian.”
“What’s up?” Karter asked as he leaned slightly forward to look past Kaidan at Hadrian.
“I need you to come with me,” Hadrian said. Seeing them about to ask why, he added, “No questions and I’m saying this as Lord Potter.”
Kaidan and Karter turned their heads and looked at each other, each raising their left eyebrows at Hadrian’s statement, before they shrugged and Kaidan said, “Okay.”
As they stood up, Karter said, “Far be it for us to refuse a direct order from our family’s liege lord.”
Hadrian smiled, but nodded, before leading the two out of the Great Hall and down the ground floor corridor that held the abandoned classroom he’d seen in his dreams.
Being the Winter Break, the corridor was, unsurprisingly empty as the people who had stayed over the break weren’t spending much time wandering corridors. Finding the door he wanted, Hadrian tried the handle and found it unlocked. Opening the door, he ushered a confused Kaidan and Karter inside, before entering himself and closing the door behind him.
“May I ask what we’re doing in here?” Kaidan asked, even as Karter sneezed from the thick layer of dust that covered some of the nearby boxes.
Hadrian grinned as he said, “Snogging lessons.”
Kaidan and Karter looked surprised as they asked in unison, their disbelief obvious in their tones, “Seriously?”
Hadrian held it together for about a minute before he burst out laughing and said, “No, but the looks on your faces? Totally worth it.”
Shaking his head, Karter said, “With all due respect, you’re a little prat.”
Hadrian laughed for another minute, before he got control of himself and then said, “Seriously though, we’re here because I’ve been having a very strange recurring dream, set in this room.”
“So, what’s this dream about?” Kaidan asked.
Looking around, Hadrian said, “That mirror for one,” as he pointed at the large floor-length mirror. He wondered how he could explain the voice, but then from the corner of his eye, he saw a brief flash from behind the twins’ back.
‘Okay, now that’s just… weird,’ Hadrian thought as he realized that a gramophone, partially covered in a sheet, had just appeared on one of the boxes, where it had decidedly not been a few seconds earlier.
Shaking his head, Hadrian said, “Also that gramophone,” as he pointed, causing Kaidan and Karter to turn from where they were looking at the mirror to the gramophone. “In my dream, the needle kept getting stuck and repeating the words ‘Take people KK’ over and over again.”
“Okay, well, I guess that explains why you wanted us,” Karter said. “As we are people and our first initials are KK.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Hadrian said. “I’ve had this dream a few times now so I figured it was time to check it out. I know there’s writing on the mirror frame, but I’ve never been able to read it in my dream.”
At this, Hadrian moved closer to the mirror and looked at the words carved into the frame.
“Um, what?” Hadrian asked. “Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi?”
Kaidan and Karter came up behind Hadrian and examined the inscription for a moment, before Kaidan said, “It’s backward and jumbled.”
Karter was silent for a moment, before he nodded, “Ah, yes, I see now.”
“Care to share your revelation?” Hadrian asked, having turned away from the mirror when Kaidan spoke.
Kaidan grinned. “It says, ‘I show not your face but your heart’s desire.’”
“Huh, interesting,” Hadrian said, as he turned back around, stepped closer to the mirror, and peered into it.
Almost immediately he could see himself standing in the forbidden corridor, but what surprised him is that he wasn’t alone. Surrounding him were six people, their faces completely blurred out so that he couldn’t make out who they were.
Three of them were taller than him, while two were shorter, and judging by their builds, Hadrian got the impression that the latter two were little kids, maybe four or five years old. Not being able to see their faces, Hadrian couldn’t be one-hundred percent sure, but he was pretty sure that all six of them were male.
What really surprised Hadrian, however, and almost made him jump backward in shock was the sight of the sixth person. While the others were wearing relatively modern-looking clothes, the sixth man was wearing clothes that looked about a hundred years out of date.
His clothes were not the main cause of Hadrian’s shock, just something that his mind noticed and cataloged. No the real cause for his shock was that the sixth man was lying flat on his back… with a silver dagger sticking out of his chest.
“What the bloody fuck?!” Hadrian asked.
“Language,” Kaidan said automatically, before he asked, “What do you see?”
“I’m standing in the forbidden third-floor corridor,” Hadrian explained. “There are six people around me, but their faces are blurred out so I can’t see them. Three are taller, two are shorter, I think they’re little kids, and the sixth… the sixth is lying on the ground with a dagger in his heart.”
Kaidan and Karter were quiet for a moment, before Karter said, “Okay, now that’s just creepy… especially considering what the inscription says this mirror shows.”
“Yeah, it’s supposed to show your heart’s desire,” Kaidan said. “Seeing a person with a dagger in their heart seems like a rather morbid desire if you ask me.”
“I agree completely,” Hadrian said. “Hence my language.”
“Well, I understand why you said it now,” Karter said, as Kaidan nodded in agreement. “So, the forbidden third-floor corridor?”
“Yes,” Hadrian said. “Seems rather strange for the headmaster to call attention to it the way he did. Correct me if I’m wrong, but that was basically like a challenge to all the Gryffindors to check it out.”
Kaidan laughed. “You’re not wrong. Many of our housemates have been talking about it all term.”
“Though if any of them have been brave enough to actually go there,” Karter said, “then we haven’t heard about it.”
Hadrian really wanted to check it out, but first, he said, “So, what do you guys see in the mirror? I told you what I saw, so it only seems fair for you to share.”
Kaidan and Karter nodded, as Hadrian moved off to one said and they moved to stand in front of the mirror and peer into its face.
Kaidan smiled. “I’m standing in front of family and friends marrying Micheil and Finlay, while Kart marries Finlay… and some other person who I can’t make out, as their face is blurred.”
“They are male, right?” Karter asked in a tone that was almost pleading.
Kaidan grinned, not surprised by his brother’s tone because they were both one-hundred percent gay. They had several female friends but had never looked at any of them in an even remotely sexual or romantic way. It had always been very clear to them both, before and after puberty, that men were what they wanted.
“Yeah, don’t worry, bro, I’m pretty sure they’re male,” Kaidan said before he grinned and added, “Either that or they’re one very flat-chested and muscular female.”
Karter shook his head as he raised his hand and flicked his fingers against his brother’s chin for that comment. Before Kaidan could say anything further, Karter said, “I see myself face to face with Finlay in a loose hug, our foreheads touching. We’re both smiling, and…” he paused here.
“And?” Hadrian prompted.
“I’m pregnant,” Karter said.
“You mean we’re pregnant?”
“Well, duh, of course, it would be ‘we’. We’re standing in profile so I can’t really see your head, but obviously, if I’m pregnant then you would be too.”
“Cool,” Kaidan said. “Though hopefully, that’s a long way in the future because I’d kind of prefer to at least finish Hogwarts before having a kid.”
“Same,” Karter agreed. “There’s also someone standing behind me, their arms wrapped around so that their hands are on our pregnant belly and they appear to be kissing the back of my neck. It’s a little hard to tell because their face is blurred.”
“Interesting,” Hadrian said. “So, up to exploring the forbidden corridor?”
Kaidan and Karter turned away from the mirror at that and just stared at Hadrian for a moment.
“You’re serious?”
“Yes, Kaid, I am,” Hadrian said.
“I’m not sure how we’d get up there without anyone noticing,” Karter said. “I mean even with fewer people in the school right now, I’d think the professors are going to be monitoring that hallway.”
Hadrian grinned as he pulled out his invisibility cloak and said, “This might help.”
Kaidan grinned. “Yes, I suppose it could.”
“I think Dumbledore can see through it,” Hadrian said. “But, I’ve still got the map, so we can use it to check where he is.”
Kaidan and Karter shared a look with each other for a few moments, almost as if they were having a silent conversation with each other before they nodded and Karter said, “Fine,” as he pulled out his wand and cast a silent spell at his and Kaidan’s feet.
“What was that?” Hadrian asked.
“Silencing spell,” Karter said. “And a spell to harden Kaid’s and my shoes. Come over here, turn your back to us and then stand on our feet.”
“The spell will make sure you don’t hurt us,” Kaidan said when he saw Hadrian hesitate for a moment. “So, stand on our feet, and then I’ll tie your legs to ours. That way we can go a bit faster than you could while sharing the cloak with Kevin and Stephen as it won’t be as hard to coordinate our movements. Which should lessen the chance of the cloak splitting open in the front.”
Shrugging, Hadrian did as he was asked, at which point Kaidan pulled out his wand and used it to conjure several black ribbons tying Hadrian’s legs to his and Karter’s.
“We’ll handle the walking,” Kaidan explained. “You just focus on the map.”
Hadrian nodded, as he pulled out the map and his wand, activated it, and then said, “The headmaster is in his office. None of the other professors or students are anywhere near the stairs or the third-floor corridor.”
“Cool,” Karter said, as Kaidan cast one final spell, adding another long black ribbon which secured Hadrian’s waist to their own. “Okay, bro, I think he’s secure enough.”
Kaidan nodded before he and Karter draped the cloak over their shoulders and fastened the clasp before lifting the hood and then making sure that it covered both them and Hadrian.
“Ready?” Kaidan whispered.
“Yeah, let’s go,” Hadrian said, prompting the twins to nod before they left the disused classroom and headed for the stairs that would take them up to the third-floor corridor.
It was a bit strange at first, as Hadrian wasn’t used to his legs moving without his input, but he could admit that Kaidan was right. They were moving a bit faster than they had been when he’d used the cloak with Kev and Ste… and the cloak wasn’t opening up in the front anywhere near as much as it had been.
Before long, they were stepping off the staircase on the third floor and then made their way down the forbidden corridor. There was only one door in the corridor, at the very end of it, so they immediately knew which door to go to as it was the only option.
Reaching out and trying the knob, Kaidan whispered, “It’s locked.”
Rolling his eyes, Karter whispered, “I can’t say that I’m surprised,” as he pulled out his wand and cast a diagnostic spell on the knob that would tell him what, if any, spells were cast on the door.
After a moment, he said, “Oh come on, you can’t be serious.”
“What?” Hadrian asked.
“According to my diagnostic,” Karter said, “there’s only one spell on the doorknob: the Locking Charm.”
“Wait, really?” Kaidan asked, surprised. “The Headmaster makes a point of calling the entire school’s attention to this corridor and the only spell used to lock the door is a spell they teach to first years?”
“Yup, cast it yourself if you don’t believe me,” Karter said.
“Nah, that’s fine,” Kaidan said. “I trust you, Kart.”
Hadrian snickered as he said, “Probably a good thing. It’d be very bad if two people as close as you didn’t trust each other.”
“Yes, you’re right, that would be bad,” Karter agreed, as Kaidan nodded in agreement.
Neither twin could ever imagine a scenario that would make them not trust the other. Considering their inescapable closeness, that just wouldn’t be a workable situation.
“Well, simple enough to deal with then,” Kaidan said as he pulled out his wand and cast the Unlocking Charm.
All three of them heard the click of the tumblers unlocking, prompting the twins to put their wands away, even as Harry took one last look at the map to make sure nobody was in the corridor or the room beyond, before rolling up the map and sticking in his pocket.
“Ready?” Kaidan whispered.
“Ready,” Karter and Hadrian said in unison.
Reaching out and turning the knob, Kaidan pushed the door open and the three of them went into the room beyond, as Kaidan closed the door behind them.
And immediately regretted that decision, as he saw a large paw that was bigger than his and Karter’s entire body on the floor in front of him.
A paw that was connected to an even larger canine body with three very large heads full of razor-sharp teeth.
The Cerberus couldn’t see them, but it had clearly seen the door opening and closing and now all three heads were sniffing the air.
“Oh shit,” Karter whispered, as all three heads immediately turned in the direction of the whispered curse and began growling.
Their breath caused the hood of the cloak to move just enough that the three boys’ heads weren’t completely covered.
The two outer heads continued growling menacingly, while the middle one stopped and cocked its head slightly at the three boys.
Due to the height increase he’d gotten from his Claiming and standing on their feet, Hadrian was nearly as tall as Kaidan and Karter. So with the cloak covering their lower bodies, they almost looked like a three-headed man.
It was at this point that Hadrian noticed that he could see his and the twins’ faces reflected in the six pairs of eyes staring back at them, so he noticed it when Kaidan’s and Karter’s eyes suddenly flashed gold.
Within seconds, the two outer heads stopped growling, as the Cerberus laid down on the floor, and promptly fell asleep.
Kaidan and Karter just stood there shocked, as they listened to the snoring of the huge three-headed dog.
After a moment, Hadrian asked, “What just happened?”
“I have no idea,” Kaidan answered.
“Me either,” Karter said. “One second I think they’re about to kill us and then the next they fall asleep.”
“I know Cerberuses are supposed to be unable to resist falling asleep to music,” Kaidan said. “But there’s no music playing."
Hadrian was quiet for a moment, before he said, “Um, guys, just before they fell asleep, your eyes glowed.”
“What?” Karter asked. “What do you mean?”
“Just what I said,” Hadrian said. “I could see your faces reflected in the dogs’ eyes and your eyes flashed bright gold and then the Cerberus fell asleep.”
“Really?” Kaidan asked.
“Yes, really,” Hadrian said. “What was that?”
“I have no idea,” Kaidan said, as Karter added, “Me either.”
“Definitely a mystery we should look into then,” Hadrian said. “Though perhaps we could do it after we leave this room? You know, before the gigantic three-headed dog wakes up?”
“Excellent idea, Hadrian,” Karter said, as he fixed the hood of the cloak so that it was covering their heads again and Kaidan grasped the doorknob.
“All clear?” Kaidan asked before pulling the door open.
Pulling out the map and taking a look, Hadrian nodded and said, “Yes, the closest person is Filch, but he’s four corridors away and moving away from here.” A moment later, he added, “And Mrs. Norris is in the Entrance Hall.”
“Good enough for me,” Kaidan said as he pulled the door open and the three of them left the room.
After closing the door, Karter took a moment to relock the door, only he instead used a much more complicated locking charm that wasn’t even taught at Hogwarts. It was actually covered in Auror training and was a spell that his father, Kingsley Shacklebolt, had taught him and Kaidan over the summer.
He knew that might raise some eyebrows if the person who’d cast the original spell on the door checked, but come on… a Cerberus? There was no way that Karter was going to risk the younger students getting hurt or Merlin forbid killed because they decided to check out the forbidden corridor.
None of them noticed that as Karter whispered the incantation for the advanced locking charm, his eyes briefly glowed.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there’s Ch16 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’.
So, what’s with the strange voice in Hadrian’s head? And Kaidan’s and Karter’s glowing eyes?
Next chapter, I’m going to try to wrap up first year. If I don’t end up covering everything that happened, just assume it either didn’t happen or that it happened the same way as in the books. There will be some time jumps coming soon, as I plan to cover a few important events, but skip over most if not all of the next two of Hadrian’s school years.
Honestly, I can’t see second-year turning out a whole lot different than it did in the books, so I don’t think it really needs to be covered. And the major plot points of third year are pretty much invalidated by the fact that Sirius never went to Azkaban and Peter has already been caught.
Chapter 17: The Mirror and the Stone, Part Two
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Seventeen:
The Mirror and the Stone, Part Two
-o-0-o-
1 January 1992…
Kneeling in front of the fireplace in his office, Albus threw a pinch of Floo powder into the flames. Watching them turn from orange to emerald green as the heat noticeably decreased. This was because part of what the powder did was absorb the heat so that witches and wizards could use the Floo without burning themselves.
“Number 13 Hawthorne Terrace, Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, London, England, UK,” Albus said before he leaned forward and stuck his head into the flames.
A second later, Albus was looking out of the fireplace in Petunia Dursley’s sewing room on the third floor of their new London townhouse. It was two side-by-side units, Numbers 13 and 15, which had been remodeled to turn them into one large home. Thus the address was Number 13 because the entrance to Number 15 no longer existed, as it had been removed in the renovations.
The Floo connection for the house was on the third floor because it was very much still a muggle residence. So, everyone agreed that placing the Floo in an upstairs room far away from the public ground-floor entertaining rooms would be best, as it was very unlikely that guests who were unaware of the existence of magic would ever be invited up to the higher floors that held the family’s private living quarters.
It took a few minutes, but finally Petunia entered the room, having heard the ringing bell that signaled an incoming Floo-Call.
“Hello Albus,” Petunia said as she sat down in a chair across from the fireplace. “To what do I owe this call?”
“I thought you’d like to know that Hadrian visited the third-floor corridor with Kaidan and Karter Shacklebolt.”
“Good,” Petunia said. “Then the plan is progressing.”
“Indeed, although there is a problem.”
“What sort of problem?”
“Well, they fled the room after encountering Fluffy.”
“Sensible.”
“Yes, well, they relocked the door when they left,” Albus explained. “The problem is they didn’t use the same spell that was used to lock it originally. As near as I can tell one of the Shacklebolt boys must have used a spell that Kingsley taught them, as it’s not a spell that’s even taught at Hogwarts but rather during Auror training.”
“I fail to see the problem,” Petunia said. “Honestly, even though much of this was my plan, I always was a bit uncomfortable with using a first-year spell to keep people out of a room guarded by a Cerberus.”
“As was I,” Albus admitted. “The problem though is, and I don’t know how it seems that the Shacklebolt boys managed to cast the spell a little too well. They not only locked the door, they completely sealed the room. Not even the house elves can get in. Nor for that matter can Hagrid, who has to visit every few days to clean up after Fluffy and refill his food and water dishes.”
“Hmm, yes, I can see how that would be problematic, but why don’t you just unlock the door, Albus? Even if it is beyond Hagrid’s ability with his umbrella, I’m sure you can do it.”
“Except that I can’t. I’ve tried. I even called Kingsley in and asked him to unlock it. He couldn’t. We’re going to have a very angry, hungry, and thirsty Cerberus on our hands if something isn’t done soon. Plus, the Mirror of Erised hasn’t been relocated yet, as Hadrian hasn’t been back to visit it since he visited it the first time. The portraits and ghosts report seeing him lingering outside the old classroom a few times, but so far he hasn’t gone in.”
Petunia sighed. “In other words, the mirror hasn’t yet absorbed enough of his magic to function the way we need it to when Quirrell makes his attempt to get the stone for his master.” Albus nodded. “Very well, Albus, step back. I’m coming through.”
Albus wasn’t sure what Petunia could do, but grateful at the thought of getting off his poor old knees, he did as she asked.
Stepping through the flames and into the Headmaster’s office, Petunia smiled at Dumbledore, “I’ll handle it from here, Albus. Wait here,” as she said this, her eyes glowed gold and Albus who’d been fully prepared to accompany her to the room, nodded as he took a seat behind his desk.
“I’ll just wait here then,” Albus said, his voice sounding a bit far away.
Petunia smiled and nodded as she left Albus’s office, disillusioning herself as she rode down the stairs and then made her way over to the forbidden corridor. Reaching the door, she laid a hand on the knob and closed her eyes, wandlessly casting a diagnostic charm.
“Well, well, clever boy,” Petunia said. “No wonder Albus and Kingsley couldn’t disengage the lock. Karter unknowingly drew upon the font of magic he and his brother share that no mortal can counter. Quite the feat at his age, as he shouldn’t even be able to access those powers until he turns nineteen unless a certain someone decided to have a little fun.”
Petunia’s eyes flashed gold and a second later, the tumblers disengaged as the door unlocked and she opened the door. Fluffy growled briefly, but with a wave of her hand, the dog was lying down to sleep, all three heads snoring heavily.
With another wave of her hand, the wet, soiled newspapers where Fluffy was trained to do his business vanished, as new ones were laid. The three large food and water bowls were also refilled, Fluffy’s fur was brushed and cleaned, and for good measure, an air freshening charm was cast. Though vanishing the soiled newspapers had already reduced the smell present in the room when Petunia first entered.
“There, that should take of things in here,” Petunia said, as she exited the room and closed the door. She reapplied the same spell that Karter had used to lock the door, but she refrained from adding the extra oomph to the spell that he’d unknowingly added.
Her work done, Petunia went back to Albus’s office and Flooed back to London. She was tempted to stay and visit with Hadrian and Darius for a little while, but looking at her watch she knew that Ivy and RJ would be waking up from their naps soon, so she had to get back home for their next feeding.
-o-0-o-
Several hours later, Hadrian found himself outside the old abandoned classroom again. He wasn’t sure why, but he kept feeling drawn to this room. So far, he’d resisted the temptation to actually enter the room, however. This time, however, with a deep breath, he reached out and grabbed the knob, entering the room and pushing the door shut behind him.
Making his way over to the inscribed mirror, Hadrian took a deep breath, before he peered into it. Once again he saw himself in the mirror, surrounded by several other men. Two of the men were standing in profile to his right and left, their arms wrapped around him and each other. Their foreheads rested against the sides of Hadrian’s head. Their features were still blurry and indistinct so he couldn’t make out who they were.
Another man who appeared to be roughly the same age as the two men on either side of Hadrian was seated in a chair in front of Hadrian’s reflection in the mirror. Mirror Hadrian’s hands were resting on this man’s shoulders.
On the opposite sides of the two men to Hadrian’s left and right, were two more men, although they looked far younger than the rest based on the size of their bodies. He couldn’t see their faces, but it was clear they were quite young. They were leaning back against the other two men, although being much shorter, the backs of their heads were resting on the other men’s arses.
Closing his eyes briefly and shaking his head, Hadrian opened his eyes and allowed his eyes to drift further down toward the feet of the seated man. He took a shaky breath as he was again spotted the man flat on the floor with a silver dagger in his chest.
It was primarily this last person who had Hadrian avoiding this room because it still made him very uncomfortable to think about the fact that this mirror supposedly showed those who peered into it their heart’s desire. Hadrian really did not want to think about what it said about him that his heart’s desire included a man lying on the ground with a dagger in his heart.
Briefly closing his eyes again to compose himself, Hadrian opened them and looked closer at the man’s body. He knew it was fruitless to try and look at his face, as all of the men’s heads and faces were completely shrouded and hidden from view. He knew he could stare at this mirror all day, every day and he’d never be able to figure out who any of them were.
Hadrian did feel some modicum of comfort when he saw that the man wasn’t lying in a pool of blood, nor was the white shirt around the dagger stained red with blood. It was still unsettling, however, as he couldn’t understand why his heart desired a man who appeared to be dead.
-o-0-o-
5 January 1992…
A few days later, Albus decided it was finally time to move the Mirror of Erised, as Hadrian had now visited the mirror for at least half an hour every day for the last five days. He doubted Hadrian would be coming back much come tomorrow anyway as the Express was due to arrive with the returning students in an hour and classes resumed in the morning, as the winter break would be coming to an end.
“Back again, Hadrian?” Albus asked, startling the boy, who stood up from where he was seated on the floor peering into the mirror, and turned to the headmaster. “I see you like so many before you have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised.”
“It shows what the person who looks into it desires.”
“Indeed, five points to Ravenclaw,” Albus said.
Glancing back at the mirror and then back at the headmaster, Hadrian said, “I don’t really understand why I’m seeing what I am.”
“May I ask what it is you see?”
“I’m standing in the middle of… well, the room changes each time I look into it,” Hadrian said. “Sometimes I’m standing in the middle of the Ravenclaw common room, another time I’m standing in this classroom, or the drawing room at Seacliff.”
He decided that he wouldn’t mention that he’d seen himself standing in the forbidden third-floor corridor the first time he’d looked into it.
“What doesn’t change, however, is the people around me,” Hadrian said. “I can’t see any of their faces. It’s as if they’re wearing shrouds that obscure their features. I’m relatively sure they’re all males, from their builds, but then again two of them appear to be children. Both about four years old, if I had to guess.”
“Hmm, interesting,” Albus said. He’d thought Harry would see himself with his parents, but apparently not. Of course, it is possible that growing up as he had, in a loving home with his aunt, uncle, godfather, Remus, and his cousin Darius, he didn’t yearn as much for family as he otherwise might have in another life.
“It looks like there’s six people in the mirror with me,” Hadrian said. “Two standing on either side of me, holding me, another seated in front of me, my hands on their shoulders, and two more, the kids, leaning against the two taller people on either side of me.”
“That’s only five.”
Hadrian nodded, as he glanced back at the mirror. “Yeah, there’s another person in the mirror. They’re lying on the floor in front of the person seated in front of me. If I’m being honest, that person kind of scares me.”
“Why?”
“Well, he’s lying on the floor on his back,” Hadrian replied. “He’s got a dagger in his chest and appears to be dead, but there’s no blood visible. I don’t… I don’t understand why my heart would desire such a thing.”
“Hmm, I can’t say either. Though I assume you’re seeing what you’re seeing for a reason, my boy. The happiest man alive would look into the mirror and see only himself, exactly as he is. Many people have taken that to mean that it shows us what we want. But that’s not entirely true. It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desires of our hearts.”
“With, all due respect, sir, that’s not really helping my state of mind.”
Albus smiled. “No, I imagine not, as I can understand why you’d be disturbed by the man on the floor. Putting him out of your mind for a moment, can you tell anything about the others?”
Hadrian looked back and studied the others. “It’s hard with the faces blurred, but the two on either side of me are standing in profile with their arms wrapped around me and I think their foreheads are resting against my head. And the one seated on a chair in front of me occasionally reaches up and rubs my arms in what I think is an affectionate way.”
Albus nodded. “Perhaps what you’re seeing is yourself with your future mates and the two young children are your future children. Though I admit that doesn’t explain the daggered man.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Hadrian agreed.
“But remember this, Hadrian,” Albus said after a moment of silence. “This mirror gives us neither knowledge nor truth. Men have wasted away in front of it, even gone mad. That is why before today is over, it will be moved to a new home and I must ask you not to go looking for it again. It does not do to dwell on dreams, Hadrian, and forget to live.”
Hadrian was silent for a moment before he nodded and took a step away from the mirror. He hesitated for a moment, before he asked, “Sir?”
“Yes, Hadrian?”
“What do you see, when you look into the mirror.”
Albus turned his gaze to the mirror and looked into its surface, unsurprised when he saw himself in his late teens, alongside the man he’d been sure at the time was the one, great love of his life: Gellert Grindelwald.
He wasn’t about to say that aloud, however, so instead he said, “I see socks, Hadrian. You’d be surprised how many people gift me with books for my birthday or Christmas when all I really want are some nice woolen socks.”
Hadrian suppressed the urge to raise his eyebrow at that, as he rather doubted the headmaster was telling the truth, but he decided it didn’t pay to press him on it. If the headmaster truly didn’t want to reveal what he saw then that was his own business. If Kaidan and Karter hadn’t been comfortable telling him what they saw, even after he’d told them, he wouldn’t have pressed them.
After a few more moments of silence, Albus said, “Now, Hadrian, I suggest you head up to your dorm room, as the Express will be pulling into Hogsmeade in about half an hour and the rest of the students will be returning. The elves will be up with dinner after they arrive.”
Hadrian nodded, as he said goodbye to the headmaster, and looked at the mirror one final time before he left the old classroom. He felt relieved that the mirror was being moved and he could concentrate on other things now, without the urge he’d felt to peer into it.
-o-0-o-
20 June 1992…
“What do you mean the headmaster’s gone?” Hadrian asked.
“Exactly what I said, Rian,” Micheil said.
“He’s gone to the Hague to deal with some ICW business for a few days,” Finlay added. “He’ll be back before the end of the school term, but if you’re right that the stone is going to be stolen today, it’ll be too late.”
“Your father is the King,” Stephen said. “Can’t you have him recall Professor Dumbledore? International relations is the King’s purview, after all.”
Shaking his head, Micheil said, “International relations strictly related to Albion and Iwernia is Dad’s purview. He has no authority where the ICW is concerned.”
Hadrian blew out a frustrated breath.
“Am I crazy or does it seem like all the professors we have the best relationships with are suddenly unavailable?” Kevin asked. Ticking off on his fingers, he said, “Headmaster off on ICW business; Flitwick to see his new granddaughter; Sirius and Remus off to see Sirius’s ailing aunt…”
“Merrythought in Paris for her great-great-granddaughter’s wedding,” Stephen picked up. “And all of the professors among Rian’s vassals seem to have disappeared off the face of the world as we can’t find any of them on the map or anyone who knows where they are.”
“I’ve had this nagging feeling for a while now,” Hadrian said. “It’s as if someone is manipulating this whole situation to make sure that I’m the one who has to deal with the stone. I mean, how else do you explain that the lock on the door to Fluffy’s room was protected with a first-year spell until Karter changed it?”
“I admit that is rather suspect,” Finlay said. “Especially given the fact that the headmaster made a point of calling attention to that corridor the way he did at the arrival feast.”
“And all the clues being dropped throughout the year,” Micheil said. “Everything from articles in the Prophet and overheard conversations to your recurring dreams, Rian.”
“Yes, some were more subtle than others,” Hadrian said in a somewhat absentminded tone. After a moment, he shook his head and said, “Well, if the professors can’t help, then we’ll just have to do it ourselves because I don’t know about you, but I don’t want Voldemort getting immortality and unlimited funds.”
“Yeah, that would be bad,” Hermione said. “Though we’d be breaking about fifty school rules.”
“Maybe if you, Hadrian, Kevin, and Stephen handled it on your own,” Micheil said. “But you won’t be alone. Hadrian can order some of the prefects to help us.”
Giving Stephen a pointed look, Finlay added, “And as Heir Cornfoot you can order Plato to help us.”
Nodding, Stephen said, “True. Having the Head Boy with us can’t hurt.”
Hermione sighed. “Very well, count me in.”
“Thanks, guys,” Hadrian said. “Well, let’s get a move on. We’ve got a stone to save. Mic, Fin, go get your violin. We can’t rely on Kaid and Kart being able to repeat whatever they did back in December when we first met Fluffy, seeing as how they don’t even know what they did.”
Micheil and Finlay nodded. “Be back in a moment,” before they turned and headed for the stairs up to their dorm room.
-o-0-o-
Approaching the door in the forbidden corridor that held Fluffy, Hadrian looked over his shoulder at those accompanying him.
First, there were Kevin, Stephen, Hermione, Wayne, Neville, Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter, who were all here willingly.
After them came Head Boy Plato Meadowes, who had no choice but to come after his family’s liege lord’s heir, Stephen, ordered him to. Head Girl Bianca Zabini was with them as well, though not because she was ordered to be, as the Zabinis were vassals of House Thomas. She and Plato were engaged to be married, however, their wedding was set for two weeks from the last day of school. So she had a vested interest in making sure he stayed safe.
Behind them were a few of the prefects, namely sixth-year Ravenclaw Corvus Lestrange, his identical twin Constantin who was Heir Lestrange and a Slytherin prefect, fifth-year Gryffindor Percy Weasley, and fifth-year Hufflepuff Storm Weasley.
The final member of the group was third-year Cedric Diggory, as he’d been chatting with Storm when Hadrian arrived to get the Hufflepuff prefect. He came of his own volition, as he and Hadrian had grown close since Cedric had served as Hadrian’s date for his Grand Ducal Claiming Ball.
“This is the forbidden corridor,” Percy said. “We shouldn’t be here.”
Storm nodded. “The headmaster said it should be avoided by any who did not wish to die a most painful death. I’m definitely among that number.”
“I think most of us are,” Hadrian said. “That doesn’t change the fact that we have to press on. Kevin, Hermione, Stephen, and I met Voldemort in the Forest, feeding on a unicorn. He’s possessing Quirrell.”
“We thought it was Snape going after the stone at first,” Kevin said. “But that just didn’t make any sense, as he’s married to a Prewett.”
Nodding, Stephen added, “He’s already been on probation once this year after how he treated Hadrian on the first day of classes back in September. It just doesn’t make sense that he’d risk getting in trouble again by helping a murderer.”
“How’d you come up with the idea that You-Know-Who is possessing Quirrell though?” Corvus asked.
“My scar hurts every time I get near him,” Hadrian said. “I’ve spent every DADA class this year with a low-grade headache that goes away the moment I leave the classroom and comes back every time I get anywhere near Quirrell, whether in his classroom or anywhere else. I also felt it that night in the Forest when a hooded figure that he saw drinking unicorn blood tried to attack us. If it hadn’t been for Firenze the centaur, we probably wouldn’t be alive right now.”
“It takes a special kind of evil to kill a unicorn,” Bianca said, as several others nodded.
“Okay, Kaid, Kart, unlock the door,” Hadrian said. “Mic, Fin, you’re up.”
Kaidan and Karter nodded as Karter raised his wand and cast the spell to unlock the door. Micheil and Finlay raised their violin, one end tucked beneath Finlay’s chin as Micheil reached across and placed the bow on the strings. Within seconds they were playing Bach’s Minuet One, as Kaidan turned the doorknob and pushed the door open.
“Woah!” Storm exclaimed. “A Cerberus? Really?!”
“Well, it’s sleeping at least,” Kaidan said. “That’s a far cry from the last time I saw it.”
“You’ve seen it before today?” Plato asked.
Nodding, Karter said, “Hadrian, Kaid, and I came here in December. It’s name is Fluffy, by the way.”
“Fluffy? You have got to be kidding me,” Corvus said.
“Nope, he’s one of Hagrid’s pets,” Hadrian said. “He would have a baby Norwegian Ridgeback dragon named Norbert, as he hatched one a couple of months back, but Fred and George helped me get in touch with Charlie, who came along with some of his co-workers and got the newborn safely off to Romania.”
“How in Merlin’s name did Hagrid get a dragon egg?” Constantin asked.
“Won it in a poker game, apparently,” Kevin said. “Anyway, McGonagall caught us coming down from the Astronomy Tower the night Charlie came and got the dragon. That’s how we ended up in the Forbidden Forest at night, as we got detention with Filch and he turned us over to Hagrid who was going into the Forest to hunt down whatever was killing unicorns.”
“McGonagall took 300 points from us,” Hadrian said. “50 each from Mic, Fin, Kev, Ste, Mione, and me. But after we explained the reason we were out after hours, Professor Flitwick gave us 240 points, dropping the point deduction to only ten points each.”
“He reasoned that we shouldn’t have been out of bed,” Kevin added. “But that we had a good reason to be and we were with a prefect, and since it was outside of school hours, a legal adult and Grand Duke. So he said 60 points and detention was enough of a punishment.”
“We’ve since made all of those points back and more,” Stephen said, as they all entered the room and saw that there was a charmed harp playing in the corner and the trapdoor in the floor was wide open. “Looks like Quirrell beat us here. Anyone know a spell to keep the harp playing so that Mic and Fin can stop playing and Fluffy will stay asleep?”
Bianca nodded, as she pulled out her wand and shot a silent spell at the harp, which had stopped playing as Stephen was finishing his question, but thankfully Fluffy stayed sleeping thanks to Micheil and Finlay’s violin playing.
Micheil and Finlay slowly stopped playing the violin, taking a breath as the enchanted harp kept Fluffy asleep.
“Okay, everyone through the trapdoor,” Finlay said. “Mic and I will stay until last, just to make sure Fluffy stays asleep.”
Micheil nodded, as he and Finlay kept their violin poised and their eyes on the Cerberus, ready to resume playing at the first sign that Fluffy was waking up.
“Ladies first,” Plato said with a grin, as Bianca rolled her eyes and moved into a sitting position, her legs dangling through the trapdoor for a moment, before she pushed herself through and fell.
Hermione went next, then Piers, Kevin, Stephen, Darius, Wayne, Neville, and Hadrian, as the prefects in the room wanted to ensure that all the first years were out of harm’s way before they went down. Once they were all down, Corvus, Constantin, Percy, and Storm went down, before Plato nodded, and Mic and Fin, who stowed their violin in its case, shrinking and pocketing the case, before jumping through the door, with Plato bringing up the rear.
As everyone landed they quickly found themselves falling into what first seemed like a net, but they all quickly realized was actually vines—thick, black tentacle-like vines that began grabbing and squeezing them.
“It’s Devil’s Snare,” Neville said.
“Impressive, considering that it’s not covered in first year,” Bianca said. “5 points to Gryffindor. Now, everyone don’t struggle. Just relax. Struggling will only make it grab you tighter.”
“That’s easier said than done,” Piers said.
“I know, but you have to relax,” Bianca said. “It’ll only kill you faster if you struggle.”
“Kill you faster?!” Kevin asked. “Oh thank you for that ever so relaxing thought.”
Plato grinned at his fiancé as he said, “1 point from Slytherin for scaring the first years.”
Before anyone could respond, Plato went completely still and the vines stopped squeezing him. A moment later, he dropped down to the floor ten feet below, as all the Ravenclaws and Slytherins followed suit, with the Hufflepuffs and Neville next.
The remaining Gryffindors, however, seemed to be having a hard time with the concept of relaxing. Those on the floor could hear their panicked voices as they struggled and got squeezed tighter. Pulling out her wand, Hermione was just about to cast her Bluebell Flames spell when everyone down on the ground beneath the Devil’s Snare saw Kaidan’s and Karter’s eyes—they’d landed in the Devil’s Snare heads first so everyone on the ground see them instead of their feet—flash a brilliant gold that lit up the otherwise dark room.
A second later, Kaidan, Karter, Percy, and Piers were falling as brilliant golden-colored flames burned the Devil’s Snare away.
“Arresto Momentum!” Plato called out, targeting Kaidan and Karter since the others at least were on course to land on their feet instead of their heads.
With the Devil’s Snare no longer grabbing them and their falling velocity slowed, Kaidan and Karter used their athleticism to flip in midair, landing gracefully on their feet a moment later.
“What… what just happened?” Percy asked.
“Your eyes glowed,” Plato said.
“And you seem to have vaporized the Devil’s Snare,” Neville said, as he held his wand aloft, the tip glowing.
As a few more of the group did so, adding more light to the darkened chamber they were standing in, it soon became apparent that Neville was right. There was no sign of the Devil’s Snare left. It was gone. Burned away by whatever the golden light had been.
“I don’t know,” Kaidan said.
“This happened one other time that I know of,” Hadrian spoke up. “It was when Kaidan, Karter and I first met Fluffy. We didn’t know there was a Cerberus in the room. We were disillusioned when we entered the room,” as he didn’t feel like revealing the truth about his cloak to the mixed group, especially since not all of them were his vassals.
“Fluffy could smell us though,” Kaidan said. “And the disillusionment fizzled out at the worst possible moment.”
“Fluffy was growling and that’s when Hadrian said he saw the three of us reflected in Fluffy’s eyes,” Karter said. “And he says our eyes glowed gold.”
“Fluffy fell into a deep sleep a second later,” Hadrian finished. “And we hightailed it out of there.”
“Well, whatever happened, it seems to have been to our benefit,” Piers said. “And I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m not about to look a gift horse in the mouth.”
With a nod, Darius said, “I agree. If Kaidan and Karter have some kind of power that can help us get through what’s to come alive, then I for one am not about to complain.”
Kaidan and Karter looked at each other, before turning to the rest of the group and shrugging. “We don’t know what it is,” Kaidan said. “And whatever it is, I can tell you that we have no control over it.”
Nodding, Karter added, “It seems like whatever it is only activated when we’re in mortal danger.”
Everyone was silent for a moment, before Hadrian said, “Interesting.” He was about to suggest they move on when he looked down and asked, “Kaid, where’s your shoe?”
“I caught the laces on a nail or something as Kart and I were falling through the trapdoor. That’s why we ended up in the Devil’s Snare headfirst because we flipped over when my shoe got caught.”
“The weight of our body being enough to Kaid’s foot to slip out of it. We just didn’t have enough time or space to flip back before hitting the Devil’s Snare.”
Everyone shined their wand tips upward, pointing at where they believed the trap door to be, and low and behold, dangling by the laces on a nail in the left rear corner of the trapdoor, where the hinges connected to the floor was Kaidan’s shoe.
“Accio Kaidan’s shoe!” Micheil said, summoning the shoe down. Handing his wand to Finlay, he caught it and said, “Lift your foot, babe, and I’ll put it back on for you.”
Coming over and standing next to Karter, Percy said, “Put your hand on my shoulder to help balance yourself,” knowing it might otherwise be a bit awkward for them to be trying to stand on only one foot. With two heads on their shoulders, Kaidan and Karter tended to be a little more top-heavy than the average person.
Kaidan and Karter smiled as they put their wands away before Karter placed his hand on Percy’s shoulder and then Kaidan bent his leg at the knee lifting his foot off the floor so it was in the air behind him. Micheil and Finlay then pulled the shoe back onto Kaidan’s foot, before straightening up and both kissing him on the lips as he put his foot back on the floor. Finlay quickly kissed Karter too, so he wouldn’t feel left out.
Hadrian grinned, but in a serious tone, he said, “Now that we’ve handled that, I think it’s time we move on. Quirrell has a head start and we have to reach him before he finds the stone and lets Voldemort use it.”
Several members of the group shuddered at Hadrian’s use of the Dark Lord’s name but nodded as one as they moved towards the door on the far wall and made their way into the next chamber. Upon entering the group heard a strange fluttering noise and looking up towards the vaulted ceiling they could see dozens of small winged creatures flying through the air.
“Are those birds or insects?” Wayne asked.
“Neither,” Cedric said. “They’re keys. Winged keys.”
“Hmm, well, I assume that one of those keys unlocks that door,” Constantin said as he motioned towards the closed door on the far side of the room, opposite the one they’d entered the room from.
“Question is which one?” Corvus asked.
“No idea,” Micheil said. “Though I’m assuming that’s what the broom is for. So who wants to go up and get the key?”
“Well, we’ve got two seekers here,” Storm pointed out. “Cedric and Hadrian.”
“Yeah, seekers would probably be more effective at seeking the right key,” Corvus said. “I’m a chaser and Con is a keeper, but I don’t see our skills really fitting this task.”
Plato, who was the Reserve Beater of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, nodded. Seeker was his weakest position. Beater was easily his strongest. Not strong enough to get a spot on the main team as Fred and George Weasley had both positions sewn up, but he wasn’t complaining. They were good.
“Yeah this isn’t really a job for a Keeper,” Micheil said since he and Finlay were the Ravenclaw Keepers.
“No, it’s not,” Kaidan agreed.
“Well, first things first, let’s examine the door and the lock,” Hermione said. “It might give us some idea about which key is the correct one.”
“Excellent suggestion, Miss Granger,” Bianca said with a smile.
Moving over to the door, everyone studied it for a moment, before Hermione said, “Lock looks old and a bit rusty, so I think we can eliminate any of the keys that look brand new.”
Scanning the keys flying in the air, Hadrian spotted an old, slightly rusty key with a broken wing and said, “There! That one is old, rusty, and has a broken wing. Quirrell must have damaged it when he grabbed it.”
“You want to get it or should I?” Cedric asked, looking at Hadrian.
“Rock, paper, scissors? Best of three?” Hadrian asked and Cedric nodded.
There was a time when Cedric, as a pureblood wizard, would not have known what “rock, paper, scissors” was. But, having spent quite a bit of time with Hadrian and his friends ever since the Claiming Ball, he’d learned.
Hadrian threw paper on his first turn, while Cedric threw scissors. They tied on their second turn when they both threw rocks. And on the final turn, Cedric threw rock, while Hadrian threw scissors.
Smiling, Hadrian motioned towards the broom and said, “It’s all yours, Ric.”
“Thanks,” Cedric said, as he moved over to the broom.
The moment he placed his hand on it, however, all the flying keys, which had previously been flying around at a rather slow and sedate pace, sped up and started swarming Cedric.
“Well, this complicates things a little,” Cedric said as he swung his leg over the broom.
Before he could take off, however, Hadrian made a decision and running forward into the mass of keys swarming the older seeker, he jumped onto the broom behind Cedric, wrapping one arm around the older boy’s waist, as he said, “Two seekers are better than one.”
Cedric grinned as he pushed up and the broom went flying up into the air, as Cedric said, “Okay, Rian, you look for the key to our right. I’ll handle the left.”
“Cool,” Hadrian said, as he adjusted so that it was his left arm around Cedric’s waist so that he could reach out with his right hand.
Cedric, meanwhile, leaned forward on the broom slightly, holding it firmly in his right hand, leaving his left hand free to grab the key if he spotted it. Flying around the room doing loop-de-loops or flying around columns or buttresses, the two boys scanned the keys flying all around them.
Everyone on the ground had now gathered near the door and were watching in rapt attention as the two seekers scanned the opposite sides of the broom. Noticing that the keys were following the broom, Plato pulled out his wand and incanted, “Protego Maxima, Fianto Duri, Repello Inimicum!”
A moment later, Cedric spotted the key with the broken wing to the left of the broom and reached out to grab it, but it was just out of reach and he had to quickly steer the broom in a different direction to avoid crashing into a column.
As they turned, the key came into Hadrian’s view, and outstretching his fingers, he managed to grab it. “Got it, fly towards the door. The other keys seem to be charmed to follow the broom. I have an idea.”
Cedric nodded, as he steered the broom toward the locked door. As they were nearing the area, Hadrian called out, “Mic, Fin, Kaid, Kart, catch me!” before he let go of Cedric and hurled himself off the broom midflight, as Cedric flew away drawing the swarming keys away from the group.
Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter jumped into action and caught Hadrian, with the Lestrange twins, Percy, Storm, and Plato backing them up to make sure the MacDougal and Shacklebolt twins didn’t end up on the floor when they caught Hadrian in their arms.
Putting his feet on the floor, Hadrian dashed forward and put the key in the lock, unlocking the door. Pushing it open, he said, “Everyone through the door!”
The large group of students quickly filed through the door, with some of the younger ones managing to get through two at a time. Once everyone was through, Hadrian called out, “Okay, Ric, fly through the door,” as he looked to Storm and Percy who’d gathered behind the door, and added, “Be ready to push the door closed the moment he’s through.”
The two Weasley cousins nodded, and a moment later, Cedric flew through the door, as Percy and Storm pushed the door shut. Some of the keys disintegrated on impact with the shields that Plato had put up, but there were enough keys that the shield couldn’t block them all and as the door closed, they heard several thunks as the keys hit the door.
Bianca shook her head and said, “Reckless, but brilliant. Five points each to Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw for some excellent flying, seeking, and cooperation.”
“And five points to each of you,” Plato added looking at Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, Karter, Percy, and Storm, “for each playing your part in saving Hadrian and the rest of us from being attacked by keys.”
“Wow, having the Head Boy and Girl with us is certainly proving advantageous in the points department,” Piers said, as several of the others nodded.
“Yeah, prefects are only allowed to take points,” Storm said. “Not give them. But Play and Bia are exempt from that rule.”
“Well, let’s continue,” Hadrian said, as the others nodded and they soon found themselves facing another door.
This one was different from the others they’d come across thus far, however, as it had a large archway around it with ten different magical creature pictures engraved around the arch. The door in the middle of the arch had a blackboard on it with two different ciphers consisting of three different numbers or creature pictures. Both of the ciphers had an unknown, however, as the top one had a single question mark on one of the three possible numbers or creatures, while the bottom one had a double question mark.
“It’s an Arithmancy Puzzle Door,” Percy said. “There’s one that blocks the corridor leading to the Arithmancy classroom. The entire class rarely shows up all at once, so Professor Vector has it set up so it automatically closes and locks after every five students. The required ciphers change each time it locks.”
“So, how do we solve it?” Kevin asked since as a first-year student he hadn’t taken Arithmancy yet, since it was an elective not available until third-year.
“Each creature has a numerical value, from 0 to 9,” Plato explained. “From the lower left around its Demiguise 0, Unicorn 1, Dragon 2, Runespoor 3, Owl 4, Quintaped 5, Salamander 6, Grindylow 7, Acromantula 8, and Hydra 9.”
Percy nodded. “The goal is to take those numerical values of the creatures or the displayed number, add them together, and then figure out which creature you’d need to add to the other two in each cipher to equal the number in the center.”
“Okay, I get it,” Hadrian said. “The ciphers are 2+Runespoor+?=9 and 0+1+??=4. So it’s 2+3+Owl=9 and 0+1+Runespoor=4.”
“Correct,” Storm said. “To enter the numbers, you have to flip these dials to the left and right of the door. They each have several creature pictures on them, so the first one needs to be turned until the owl picture is showing and the other to show the runespoor. When both are entered correctly, the door will unlock and open when you touch the door.”
As they were standing the closest to the dials, Kevin and Stephen nodded, as Kevin turned the ‘?’ dial to show an owl, while Stephen turned the ‘??’ dial to show a runespoor. Once both were done, Plato tapped the door and everyone heard the tumblers unlock as the door swung open.
Plato, Bianca, Kaidan, Karter, Hermione, and Corvus went through the door before it closed and locked, preventing the others from going through.
“Well, the combination has changed,” Hadrian said. “Oh well, we know how to do it at least. Assuming the door is set up the same way Plato said the door outside the Arithmancy corridor is set up, then I’m guessing it counts bodies, not people, as it technically six people through, not five.”
Finlay nodded. “Yeah, we asked Professor Vector about that and she confirmed that the spell she used counts bodies not people. Although if the fifth person through the door has a conjoined twin that isn’t as closely connected as Mic and I, as in they have separate bodies, the door will let their twin through before closing and locking.”
“Well, that’s good,” Wayne said, “as I imagine it would hurt quite a bit if a pair of conjoined twins like Neall and Niall, for example, ended up on opposite sides of a door.”
“Yes, that would hurt,” Darius agreed.
Solving the next puzzle, Wayne, Storm, Cedric, Darius, and Neville went through before the door closed and locked. The next group through was Hadrian, Micheil, Finlay, Percy, Piers, and Kevin, before finally Stephen and Constantin came through last.
Moving down the corridor beyond the door, they soon found themselves in a large room with a desk in the center of the room. However, as they entered, the number of desks changed before their eyes, as sixteen more appeared, one for each member of the group, with the MacDougal and Shacklebolt twins sharing a desk each.
As they approached, the disembodied voice of Professor Binns said, “To progress you must take a ten-question quiz on wizarding history. Each correct answer is worth 10 points and as a group of nineteen students, you must collectively score 1,330 points or higher to progress. If you score less you’ll all be held back for two hours of mandatory study hall.”
After a moment’s pause, Binns added, “Now, everyone please take a seat, but don’t turn over your test papers until I say begin.”
“Well, I guess we’re taking a test,” Neville said, as he moved to the nearest desk and sat down, as a parchment and self-inking quill appeared.
“Good luck everyone,” Darius said. “If my math is correct, we all need to answer at least 7 of the 10 questions correctly to get 1,330 points.”
The others nodded and took their seats. As Micheil and Finlay, and Kaidan and Karter took their seats at their respective desks, two parchments and quills appeared on their desks, as a divider rose from the center of the desk between their heads, blocking their view of each other’s parchments.
Once everyone was seated, Binns said, “Begin.”
Turning over his test paper, Plato read the first question.
Question #1: Who founded the Durmstrang Institute of Magic and in what year was it founded?
Picking up his quill, he wrote Nerida Vulchanova, in 1294. A green checkmark appeared a second later, as he realized the test was being graded in real time.
Question #2: What event prompted the Magical Congress of the United States of America to move its headquarters for the fifth time in its history?
The Great Sasquatch Rebellion of 1892, Plato wrote, which was marked again with a green checkmark a second later.
Question #3: Who was the leader of the 1890 Goblin Rebellion?
Ranrok, Plato wrote, getting another green check.
Question #4: In what year did Azkaban become a prison and who was Minister for Magic at the time?
1718, Damocles Rowle, Plato wrote. Green check.
Question #5: When was the last Triwizard Tournament held and why was it the last?
Putting quill to parchment, Plato wrote, in 1792, officially because the death toll got too high, but unofficially it only ended after a cockatrice got loose and attacked the judges.
Green check.
Question #6: Who killed Emeric the Evil?
Egbert the Egregious. Green check.
Question #7: What was the name of the first Minister for Magic?
Ulick Gamp. Green check.
Question #8: Who founded Hogsmeade?
Hengist of Woodcroft. Green check.
Question #9: Who founded the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and in what year was it founded?
Isolt Sayre, James Steward, Chadwick Boot, and Webster Boot, in 1627. Green check.
Question #10: Before the invention of the Golden Snitch, which magical creature was used in Quidditch?
Golden Snidget. Green check.
Plato smiled as he put his quill down, happy that the tutor that his father had hired for him had managed to teach him enough that he got a perfect score. If he’d had to rely only on Professor Binns’ boring monotone lectures for the answers, he probably would have only gotten two or three right.
Ten minutes later, after everyone else had put their quills down, Professor Binns’ disembodied voice said, “You’ve all finished your test. Your final collective score was 1,850 points. Congratulations class, you may proceed to your next objective.”
As Binns’s disembodied voice fell silent, the blackboard against one wall split down the middle as the two sides slid apart to reveal a door behind it. Everyone stood up and made their way to the door, discussing the test they’d all just taken as they did so. It was in this way that they realized that all of them had different questions. They also figured out that when anyone had gotten a question wrong a red X appeared instead of a green checkmark.
“Well, I’d say we did pretty damn good,” Hadrian commented as they reached the door to the next chamber, which was at the other end of a corridor and down a flight of stairs from the last one. “1,850 points… that means between all nineteen of us, we only had five answers wrong.”
“I think all our houses deserve a little something for that,” Bianca said. “Don’t you agree, Play?”
Plato nodded. “Definitely. I just wish we were allowed to give more than five points. Oh well. Five points to Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Gryffindor for some truly epic test-taking.”
Everyone thanked Plato, as Hadrian opened the door into the next room. As they entered, they found themselves in a room with another vaulted ceiling, only this one was painted completely black and had tiny glowing dots all over it.
“Those dots on the ceiling are stars,” Constantin said. “So, this must be Professor Sinistra’s contribution.”
As he said this, three stone pedestals with large round globes resting on top of them appeared. Each globe had what looked like half a telescope sticking out of them.
“Hmm, I dropped Astronomy after fifth year,” Bianca said. “But if I recall correctly these are called astrariums. If you look into the telescopes, you’ll see a field of stars and a small image in the lower left corner depicting a constellation. The objective is to draw lines between the stars to connect them and form the pictured constellation.”
Percy nodded. “You’re correct. You can’t go backward, however, so once you’ve drawn a line between two stars, you can’t backtrack over the line you just drew. So if you make a mistake, you have to start over from the beginning.”
“Hello students,” Sinistra’s disembodied voice said. “My there’s several of you. Pick three among your number who can each solve one of the astrarium puzzles. Once they’re all solved the door to the next chamber will be revealed. But beware, you only have three chances to solve each puzzle. If you fail to solve a puzzle after three tries, the astrarium will lock and will not unlock for further attempts for an hour. Good luck.”
“I’ll give it a go,” Percy volunteered. “We just studied these about two months ago, so I think the details are still fresh in my mind.”
Storm and Corvus also volunteered, as the three of them each picked one of the pedestals and got to work. About two minutes later, a bright blue beam of light shot up out of Storm’s puzzle connecting to the one Percy was working on as he stepped back and said, “Got it in one.”
A few people gave him a pat on the back for a job well done, as they waited for the others to finish. Percy finished next about a minute later as another blight blue shaft of light shot out connecting to the third, though as he was stepping back, a bright beam of red light shot up out of Corvus’s astrarium, suggesting that he’d gotten it wrong.
“What happened, Cor?” Constantin asked.
“Made a mistake,” Corvus replied without looking up from the astrarium. “There’s a few decoy stars in the field that aren’t part of the constellation and I accidentally connected to one of them, forcing me to start over.”
It took a couple more minutes, as Corvus was being careful not to make another mistake. Even though they were on a bit of a time crunch, they all agreed that they’d rather Corvus take a couple of minutes to get it right than try to rush through it and use up all of his attempts, resulting in the astrarium locking for an hour.
After a total of five minutes, since he’d begun his second attempt, a bright blue shaft of light shot out connecting the third astrarium back to the first. This caused the globes on top of all three of them to rotate before three new beams shot upwards toward the ceiling at an angle, hitting a mirror that nobody had seen before now. The beam of light hit the mirror and then reflected off it to a section of blank wall on the far side of the room where a door suddenly appeared.
“Well, that’s one more obstacle finished,” Darius said. “How many are there I wonder?”
“Well, so far, we’ve had one from Hagrid,” Storm said. “Plus, ones from Sprout, Flitwick, Vector, Binns, and now Sinistra. If I had to guess, I’d assume that Merrythought, Quirrell, McGonagall, Snape, and Dumbledore would all have an obstacle yet.”
“Babbling, Trelawney, and some of the other elective professors may have provided an obstacle as well,” Percy said. “I guess time will tell though. The good thing though is that if we have to do these puzzles then so did Quirrell.”
Hadrian nodded. “True, but on the other hand, we don’t know how much of a head start he had on us.”
Everyone nodded as they moved through the newly revealed door and into another corridor which led down another flight of stairs and to another door. Entering the room, everyone’s eyes widened when they saw Professor Merrythought standing in the center of the room.
“Hello students,” she said. “I am Professor Merrythought’s simulacrum. If you wish to proceed beyond this room, you must duel me and win.”
“Oh shit,” Hadrian said. “Isn’t Professor Merrythought an undefeated international dueling champion with over a hundred years of dueling experience?”
“Yeah, this is gonna be brutal,” Bianca said.
“If you think you need to team up to level the playing field,” Merrythought said, “then you may select the five of you who you think are the best duelists among you and I’ll take you all on at once.”
After a moment’s pause, she added, “I’ll even count Messrs. MacDougal and Shacklebolt as only two of the five if you wish to give yourselves a further edge.”
After some discussion, it was decided that Plato, Bianca, Constantin, Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter would be the team that faced off against Professor Merrythought.
“Interesting choices,” Merrythought said. “Two seventh years, a sixth year, and four fifth years. Very well, wands at the ready. The rules are no Unforgivables and all lethal spells are banned. Everything else, however, is fair game. Understood?”
“Yes, professor,” the seven duelists responded in unison.
“Very well then,” Merrythought said. “Normally, we’d stand back to back, walk three paces, turn, and begin. But since there’s seven of you and one of me, we’ll just do on the count of three.”
Glancing over at the others, she said, “The rest of you should stand back. You wouldn’t want to get hit with any errant spells.”
Pulling out his wand, Corvus said, “Protego Horribilis, Fianto Duri, Repello Inimicum!”
Merrythought nodded appreciatively, as she said, “Excellent casting, Mr. Lestrange,” as the shield dome descended around the group of non-combatants. “10 points to Ravenclaw.”
Turning back to the duelists, she said, “Now… three, two, one… duel!”
Within half a second of saying the world duel, Merrythought had a shield up and another half second later she was sending out spells in rapid succession at each of her opponents, forcing them all to quickly go on the defensive. Not that any of them were surprised.
Professor Merrythought was the oldest teacher currently on staff at Hogwarts, as she’d joined the Defense Against the Dark Arts department in 1895 as a junior professor, before moving up to head of the department upon the 1901 retirement of Professor Dinah Hecat. She remained on staff until 1945 when she retired, only to then come out of retirement twenty-two years later to head up the new Dueling department.
Of course, it had been during her retirement that she joined the international dueling circuit and became an undefeated twenty-year veteran. Building a reputation that remains to this day as many were afraid to even think about challenging her. The seven students would never have done it themselves if it wasn’t necessary or if they had to go up against her one-on-one.
The next several minutes saw flashes of color and other spell effects flying between the duelers as they all tried to get the upper hand. It quickly became clear that Professor Merrythought was barely breaking a sweat, despite dueling seven people who were all individually less than a quarter of her age.
But then she had been the head of the Dueling department for the last 25 years. And was the head of the Defense Against the Dark Arts department for 44 years before that. She was also an undefeated international dueling champion for the last 47 years. And none of that counted the nearly 30 years she’d spent as an Unspeakable for the Ministry of Magic before she ever started teaching at Hogwarts back in 1895.
The group of seven students quickly managed to come up with a strategy that seemed to work, however. Kaidan, Micheil, and Constantin focused primarily on defense as they kept feeding a shield spell that protected them and the other four. This left Karter, Finlay, Bianca, and Plato to focus on offense.
They did, however, switch things up every few spells, as they’d randomly swap focuses in an attempt to keep their professor’s simulacrum guessing. Finally, after nearly fifteen minutes, Plato and Finlay spotted an opening which they exploited. Karter and Bianca noticed it too, but decided not to act just in case this was a feint by their professor to lure them in. Instead, they closely watched as Merrythought reacted to Plato’s and Finlay’s assault and then sent spells flying.
At the same time, Kaidan, Constantin, and Micheil added a spell to the shield dome protecting them and the other four which should reflect most of the professor’s spells at her. They then reinforced the main shield, before going on the offensive themselves with a slew of rapid-fire spells, forcing Merrythought to not only defend herself against their attacks but also her own.
They knew they were making progress as the professor began moving more than she had been, relying more on dodging than just allowing her shield to absorb the attacks, especially now that it wasn’t just the students’ attacks she had to avoid but her own as well.
After a few minutes of their stepped-up assault, Merrythought’s simulacrum was panting hard and even flickering slightly as their students continued their assault on it. Finally, they all managed to break through the professor’s shield, and seeing their opening all seven of them sent Disarming Charms at the professor. They weren’t sure which one of their charms found its mark, but one of them did as Merrythought’s wand left her hand it dissolved into nothingness.
Taking a moment to catch her breath, Merrythought smiled and said, “Well done, you’ve won. I yield and you may now pass to the next room.” As she said this a section of the wall slid open to reveal an archway.
As they were walking down the corridor, they spotted the ‘??’ dial which told them there was another Arithmancy puzzle door coming. The difference this time is that the dials were not right next to the door as they had been the first time around.
The ‘??’ dial was down the corridor about twenty feet away from the door and they hadn’t found the ‘?’ dial yet. After a bit more exploration, they did find the ‘?’ dial, as it was further down the corridor, past the Arithmancy door itself, and up a small flight of stairs that led to a mezzanine.
Working out the necessary images, they got the door open and almost immediately wished they hadn’t, as they were hit with disgusting stench. Knowing they needed to press on, however, they all headed through the door… only to stop dead in their tracks as they realized where the stench was coming from.
“Oh shit,” Plato said, as he drew his wand. “A mountain troll.”
The troll turned its head at the sound of Plato’s voice. It quickly stood, raised its club, and began ambling quickly toward the group.
“Depulso Maxima!” Bianca said, pushing the troll back several feet, even as Constantin pointed at the troll’s club and said, “Expelliarmus!”
The club was ripped out of the troll’s hand and as it came hurdling toward the group, Corvus said, “Depulso Maxima!” sending the club flying back toward the troll, where it hit the troll square in the face, knocking it unconscious.
The club fell to the ground in front of the troll, so Plato pointed at it with his wand and said, “Incarcifors!” as he transfigured the club into a large iron cage around the troll.
“Good work everyone,” Hadrian said. “Now let’s get the hell out of here before it wakes up and tries to get out of that cage.”
Everyone nodded in agreement as they quickly crossed the room and exited the room through the door on the opposite side, thankful when they could close the door behind them and cut off the troll’s truly wretched scent.
Moving down the corridor and another flight of stairs, they reached the door to the next chamber, and upon entering, they found a life-size chess set.
“Well, I’m going to guess we’re going to have to play our way across the room,” Hadrian said. “So, who’s good at chess? I’m okay, but I’m certainly not the Ravenclaw champion.”
“I’m the undefeated champion of Slytherin House,” Constantin said, at the same time that Storm revealed that he was Hufflepuff’s undefeated champion.
“Well then, guys,” Darius said, “put your heads together and get us past this.”
Constantin and Storm nodded, as they saw a few missing pieces on the black side, which were the pieces closest to them. Now, they knew they could put themselves or the others on the board in place of the missing pieces, but if this was going to be like real wizard’s chess, they knew that would be dangerous. So scanning the room, they noticed a few vases in niches along the sides of the room.
With smiles, they summoned the vases, transfigured them into the missing pieces, and moved them into the appropriate places on the board.
“Now what?” Hermione asked.
“White moves first,” Storm said. “And then we play.”
As if on cue, the white pawn at position C7 moved forward to tiles to C5.
Wanting to confirm that this was going to be like real wizard’s chess and that he and Storm had made the right decision by not placing themselves or the others on the board, Constantin called out, “Pawn to D4.”
Within seconds of the black pawn stopping on the new tile, the white pawn that had moved first and was now diagonal to the black pawn pulled out two swords and swung them across at the black pawn, breaking the piece into several smaller pieces.
“Well, that answers that question,” Storm said. “Glad we didn’t put ourselves or the others on the board in place of the missing pieces.”
Everyone nodded at that, as Constantin and Storm whispered strategy in each other’s ears and then made their next move. This continued for several minutes before Constantin and Storm smiled.
“Knight to H3,” Storm said. As soon as the knight finished moving, Constantine said, “Check!”
Almost immediately, the white queen began moving toward the black knight and when she came into range, she swung her scepter at the knight’s flank causing it to break into pieces.
“Bishop to E2,” Constantin said, as the white bishop began moving. Once it stopped, Storm called out, “Checkmate!”
The white king dropped his sword, as there wasn’t a square that he could move to get out of check or any other white pieces that could reach the white bishop.
“Good work, guys,” everyone said as they gave Constantin and Storm pats on their backs.
Moving through the door and into the next room, they found what was obviously Snape’s contribution, as it involved potions. As they entered the room, purple flames shot up out of the floor, blocking the way they’d come, while black flames shot up in the opposite archway, blocking the way forward. Making their way over to the table in the middle of the room, Hermione picked up the scroll to start reading it, but before she could finish, Constantin smiled.
“Reading that won’t be necessary,” Constantin said. “At the time, I didn’t understand why, but Professor Snape gave me these,” as he reached into a fold of his robes and pulled out three vials. “He said that some friends and I would need them and that I should keep them on me at all times, but refused to elaborate further.”
“Huh,” Neville said. “He must have figured out that Hadrian would ask for my help and that I’d order you and your brother to help us.”
Constantin nodded. “Indeed, so he secretly gave me several vials of the potion necessary to move past his puzzle without even finishing it.”
Handing out the vials, Constantin said, “One swallow will be enough, so take one and then hand it to someone else who hasn’t taken any yet, so that everyone gets one.”
Once everyone had drunk a swallow of the potion, the disembodied voice of Professor Snape said, “Good job, Mr. Lestrange. Twenty points to Slytherin for following my rather vague instructions. And 15 points to Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Hufflepuff for trusting a Slytherin.”
After a pause, Snape spoke again. “Might I suggest Hadrian going ahead alone, but with the rest of you following him, hidden with Cave Inimicum? Allow the traitor to think it’s just Hadrian he has to deal with and then surprise him.”
Hadrian smiled. “That sounds like a good plan. Thank you, Professor. You can definitely consider yourself officially out of the doghouse in my books.”
Snape didn’t respond, as Hadrian moved forward toward the line of black fire blocking the way forward. Looking past the flames, he could see a staircase leading down that had a landing halfway down. Turning to the others, he said, “All right, everyone, let's move. You can use the spell Snape suggested once you’re all through the flames.
Everyone nodded as they followed Harry through the flames and then Plato and Bianca, as the eldest students in the group, cast Cave Inimicum on the group, creating a shield dome around them that would make it so that anyone outside of the shield couldn’t see or hear those inside it, and assuming that they’d cast it well, which they believe they did, wouldn’t be able to smell them either.
Moving down the stairs to the landing, they spotted the large door at the bottom of the stairs, hoping that this would be the final room. Hadrian went on ahead, leaving the door open behind him so that the others could enter.
Taking a deep breath, Hadrian moved down the short corridor beyond the door and then through the archway that led into what almost appeared to be a small amphitheater. Down in the center, where the performers would normally perform, he spotted Professor Quirrell standing in front of the Mirror of Erised.
“It’s over Quirrell,” Hadrian said.
“No surprise that I’m not Snape?”
Shaking his head, Hadrian said, “None. I figured out that Snape was a red herring months ago. I’m actually rather disappointed, Professor. I would have expected a better frame-up from a fellow Ravenclaw… especially when they’ve got a washed-up, wannabe dark lord on the back of their head. Enjoy getting pelted by the snowballs this past winter, Voldemort?”
There was an angry hiss at these words, which Hadrian was unsurprised to figure out had come from beneath Quirrell’s turban. His eyes drifted toward the Mirror and he caught sight of his reflection… except his reflection reached into his right pocket and pulled out the Philosopher’s Stone.
“Let me speak to him,” a raspy voice said.
“Master, you’re not strong enough,” Quirrell objected.
“I have strength enough for this,” the voice said before Quirrell unwrapped his turban and turned around, allowing Hadrian to see Voldemort’s face on the back of Quirrell’s head.
“See what I’ve become? Forced to share the body of another. Unicorn blood can sustain me, but it can’t restore my body. Fortunately, there is something that can, and conveniently it lies inside your pocket!”
“Come and take it then,” Hadrian said.
“We don’t have to be enemies, Potter,” Voldemort said. “Join me, we’ll live forever, and rule the world together.”
“Sorry, but you’re not my type. Besides, you killed my parents. I’d never join you.”
“Ah yes, your parents,” Voldemort said. “They were brave too. I’ll make you a deal, Hadrian. Together you and I can bring your parents back. Wouldn’t you like to see them again? All I ask is that you give me the stone.”
“Don’t listen to him, Hadrian,” Plato said, as he stepped forward out of the shield dome hiding him from view. “Magic can’t bring back the dead and he knows that.”
“Ah, you’ve brought a friend,” Voldemort said. “How cute.”
“He’s brought more than one,” Bianca said, as she dropped the shield dome and the others all moved around Hadrian, close enough that they were still only a few steps away from him, but also far enough away that all of their wands were trained on Voldemort.
“Nineteen-to-one odds aren’t very good, Voldie,” Hadrian said in a mocking tone.
Quirrell turned to face the group at this and raised his wand. A second later a jet of green was speeding toward them, but Cedric reached into his pocket, grabbed a galleon, tossed it in the air, and transfigured it into a large rock, which blocked Quirrell’s Killing Curse.
At the same moment, Bianca turned around in a circle, quietly incanting a spell, as a ring of black fire shot up out of the ground, surrounding her and the others.
“Get them!” Voldemort rasped, as Quirrell lifted off the ground and flew towards the group.
With one flick of her wand, however, a tendril of flame shot out of the ring and incinerated Quirrell. They all saw what remained of Voldemort’s spirit leave Quirrell’s body before it was completely consumed, but it didn’t stick around long.
-o-0-o-
27 June 1992…
A week later, Hadrian found himself sitting at the Ravenclaw table with his fellow first years and Micheil’s and Finlay’s fellow fifth years, as had become their habit over the course of the year. It was their last night at Hogwarts, as they’d all be boarding the Hogwarts Express to go home for the summer in the morning.
Dumbledore nodded to McGonagall, who tapped a goblet with her spoon as Dumbledore stood up.
Once everyone had quieted down and given him their attention, Dumbledore smiled and said, “Another year gone, which means it’s time to award the House Cup and the points stand thus. In fourth place, Hufflepuff with 552 points. Third place, Gryffindor with 562 points. And in first place, we have a tie, with 692 points each, Slytherin and Ravenclaw! Well done to everyone, but according to the school rules, only one house can win the House Cup each year, so it falls to me as the Headmaster, to award a few last-minute points to break the tie.”
There were murmurs from all over the hall at this, as Dumbledore said, “To Mr. Hadrian Potter, for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Ravenclaw House, 100 points! Ravenclaw wins the House Cup!”
Everyone at the Ravenclaw table was soon on their feet cheering, as several members of the other tables applauded as well.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have it, Ch17 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’ and with it the end of Hadrian’s 1st year at Hogwarts. The next chapter will have the largest time jump to date, as I’ll be skipping the entirety of Hadrian’s second year at Hogwarts. You may assume that everything happened pretty much the same way it did in the books. If there are any changes that I feel warrant explanation, they’ll be mentioned by the characters in later chapters.
Also, if it wasn’t clear by this update, this story is now officially off hiatus. This chapter is a little over double the length I normally write these days, as I try to keep each chapter limited to approximately 5,000 words, but I just didn’t see a place where I could break the chapter in half and I really wanted to wrap up Hadrian’s first year.
Like with all of my currently active stories, updates will be rather sporadic for the time being, as I’m in the process of decluttering and cleaning my long-time home to get it ready for sale and then I’ll be moving. So I don’t have a ton of time to write at the moment, but I can tell you that the next chapter of this story has been written for over a year now. It was just finishing up first year that until recently had proved to be a major stumbling block for me, as the words simply weren’t coming, which is why the story ended up on hiatus while I concentrated on some of my other works that I wasn’t blocked on.
Chapter 18: Hadrian Turns Thirteen, Part One
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Eighteen:
Hadrian Turns Thirteen, Part One
-o-0-o-
31 July 1993…
The day had finally come. It was Hadrian’s birthday. But not just any birthday. No, this one was an important milestone, as it was his thirteenth birthday. Today was the day that he’d find out if he had a soulmate or not. Sitting on the edge of his bed, Hadrian was a bundle of nerves as he watched the clock tick ever closer to the exact minute of his birth. He knew that soul marks usually appeared within ten to fifteen minutes of that time… assuming one was going to appear.
Hadrian just couldn’t put the idea entirely out of his head that he wouldn’t manifest a soul mark. Logically, he knew that didn’t mean that he was condemned to be lonely and without love for the rest of his life. According to Aunt Petunia, Sirius, and Remus, on the morning of Darius’s birthday last month, it was normal to have such thoughts.
Even though most people never found their soulmates, often because they were looking in the wrong place, such as those witches and wizards who refused to consider the idea that their soulmate could be a muggle, it was still something of a romantic dream of pretty much every witch and wizard alive to think that there was somebody out there for them. Somebody that they were destined by the Fates themselves to spend their lives with.
Hell, many muggles liked to believe it too, even if they were unaware of the magical world and the whole existence of a tattoo-like mark that would mark them as having a soulmate if only they could find the person who shared the identical mark.
“Watching the clock isn’t going to make it move faster.”
Hadrian was so focused on the clock that he didn’t see Darius walk into the room and he jumped slightly at the comment. Turning to look at his cousin, he said, “I know, but I can’t help it.”
Darius grinned. “I know. I was the same way last month.”
“Well, at least you got a cool one.”
“Yeah, that’s true,” Darius agreed, who ever since his birthday last month was now sporting the grey outline of a runespoor on the small of his back. “Certainly fits with my house.”
“Yes, I’m sure a snake soul mark must be considered pretty cool in Slytherin house.”
Darius nodded. “My roommates all thought it was cool. Certainly went over better than if I’d gotten a lion or something.”
“Well, I suppose a griffin would probably have been likely considering a lion isn’t a magical creature, unlike the runespoor.”
“True,” Darius said, as he looked at the clock. “So, it was 9:47 in the morning, right?”
Hadrian nodded. “Yeah, that’s what was recorded by the healers on my birth certificate, and it’s what Sirius, Remus, and your mum said.”
“Well, they would know, I guess. They were there keeping your dad company while your mum was in labor.”
Hadrian nodded but otherwise remained silent. “So, what did it feel like, when the mark appeared?”
Darius was quiet for a moment, as he organized his thoughts and tried to figure out the best way to articulate the experience for his cousin. After a moment, he said, “Well, the best way I can explain it is that there was a warmth. It was localized to the area where the mark appeared. Also a bit of a pinprick sensation at first, but it didn’t really hurt. Honestly, it tickled more than it hurt.”
“Well, that’s good to know,” Hadrian said before he stood up and said, “Well, I guess I should head into the bathroom and strip down.”
“Yup,” Darius agreed, as he remembered doing the same on his birthday. According to the adults, it was a common practice among young witches and wizards, to lock themselves in the bathroom, strip nude, and then watch in the mirror as the time for their mark to appear approached. Sometimes they’d be lucky enough to actually see the mark appearing, depending on where it was and if they could easily see the location in the mirror. “Good luck, cousin.”
“Thanks,” Hadrian said, as he left his room and headed across the hall to the bathroom.
-o-0-o-
Twelve minutes later, Hadrian was completely naked and leaning against the bathroom counter, wondering if he was going to get a mark at all. In talking with Darius it was actually 9:50 in the morning when he’d left his room and crossed the hall to the bathroom. Meaning it was now fifteen minutes since he was born and nothing had happened. No marks.
He was just about to resign himself to the idea that maybe he wasn’t going to get one, when he suddenly felt the skin in the small of his back heating up, followed by a quick pinprick and then what almost felt like what he imagined it would feel like if somebody started drawing on him with one of his quills.
Holding up a hand mirror so that he could see the reflection of his back in the bathroom mirror, Hadrian watched with bated breath for another second, before the faint grey outline of what looked like a horse began appearing on the small of his back, in the same place that Darius’s runespoor had appeared. A few seconds later, however, as the mark became a little clearer, he realized that it wasn’t a horse but a unicorn, as the single horn sticking out of the horse’s head became visible.
“Well, a unicorn is cool,” Hadrian said. “Maybe not as cool as having a three-headed snake but it’s still a magical creature, I guess.”
Just as he said this, however, Hadrian almost jumped as he felt another part of his body warming up, followed by another pinprick… this time on his upper back, between his shoulder blades.
“Two? I’ve got two soulmates?” Hadrian asked himself, as he watched the faint grey lines beginning to appear between his shoulders. It took a moment before he could identify the form, but after a minute he grinned as he realized that it was a phoenix. “Wow, a unicorn and a phoenix… so I’ve got two…”
He stopped mid-sentence, however, as the now familiar sensation started up again, only this time it was simultaneous as he felt both of his biceps heating up, followed by twin pinpricks. Needless to say, Hadrian’s eyes were practically bulging as he said, “Unicorn, phoenix, plus t... t… two… more… four soulmates?!”
He couldn’t look at both of his biceps at once, obviously, so turning to the left, he watched as the outline began appearing and after a moment, he began to see what looked like a large dog. Hadrian briefly thought of Padfoot and smiled, but it wasn’t long before the outline of this dog didn’t look even remotely like his godfather’s Animagus form.
The first, most obvious difference was the head, as it had long sharply pointed ears and its snarling mouth was full of sharp teeth that looked like they could easily rip somebody to shreds. The head was surrounded by what Hadrian thought might be a lion’s mane, a portion of which extended down its back, where a long forked tail was visible. Large tufts of what he assumed were thick fur formed near the base of each of the dog’s legs and its paws were all equipped with long razor-sharp claws.
“That’s almost enough to give a person nightmares,” Hadrian said softly, as he decided to turn and look at his right bicep, where he found the outline of what was clearly a dragon… a Norwegian Ridgeback if he wasn’t mistaken.
“Wow,” Hadrian said, as the last of the outline of the dragon appeared. “Four…” he paused, as he once again felt the sensation of heat, this time emanating from his backside. “Another one… seriously five?”
Before he could even turn to look at his arse where he’d felt the heat and the pinprick, the back of his thigh began heating up. Quickly turning around in the mirror and moving away from the counter a bit so that he could get a better view of his arse, he held up the hand mirror, as he watched two more marks appearing… one on his left arse cheek and the other on the back of his right thigh. As they appeared, however, he had a feeling that the last one seemed very familiar, as if he’d seen it before.
It took a couple of moments, but after a minute or so, as the last of the outlines began to appear, it dawned on him. He had seen it before. In the fifth-year Ravenclaw boys shower back in his first year. On Micheil!
“Mic is my soulmate?” Hadrian asked softly, as he stared into the bathroom mirror for several more minutes, searching his memory, hoping to remember the exact pose that Micheil’s thestral had taken.
Thinking back to that day in his first year, he did his best to picture Mic’s soul mark in his mind’s eye. Once he had, he began cataloging the features of the outline that he could see on his own body and trying to spot even the tiniest difference.
Five minutes later, Hadrian gave up.
There were no differences.
The mark he’d seen on his longtime friends and the mark that had now appeared on him were identical. Same location, same creature, same pose, everything down to the smallest detail.
There was a time when he might have been confused as to why Micheil’s mark didn’t react to him on the multiple times over the years that they’d known each other that they’d touched one another. Now, however, he knew that soul marks that already had appeared on one half of a soul pair wouldn’t react if the other half of the soul pair touched them when they were under the age of thirteen, and thus had not manifested the matching mark. Something about the age and the marks being visible on both people’s bodies played a role in terms of whether or not they reacted.
Hadrian waited another five minutes just to make sure that no more marks were going to appear. Although, honestly, he was pretty sure that he would have fainted or possibly even had a heart attack or stroke if he’d manifested any more marks. Everything he’d read and what Micheil and Finlay had told him agreed that while somebody could have three or more soul marks, it was exceptionally rare.
So, it boggled Hadrian’s mind as he tried to comprehend the fact that he had six of them. Six soul marks. Connected to six other people. Meaning that if he managed to find all of them, he was going to have six husbands.
‘Actually, seven husbands,’ Hadrian thought after a moment. ‘Finlay isn’t my soulmate, but he and Micheil are a package deal.’
Of course, as he thought about that he realized that wives were also a possibility, as he couldn’t be sure that the matching mark to all the ones he bore would be on other men. He hoped they would be because as he’d gotten closer to his thirteenth birthday and some of the more sexual aspects of puberty began occurring, it became clear to him that he was gay. So having a female soulmate, considering that some form of sex act was necessary to activate the bond between soulmates… well, it didn’t appeal to him.
Getting dressed, he unlocked the bathroom door and opened it, half expecting to find his family waiting outside. They weren’t, however, which he was honestly thankful for. Right now, the only thing on his mind was getting into his bedroom and getting to the linked journal as quickly as possible. He had to tell Micheil and Finlay the news.
‘Micheil is my soulmate,’ Hadrian thought as he crossed the room and pulled the journal down from the shelf above his desk that he kept it on. ‘Wow, I can’t believe it.’
Thinking back to when he’d first met them, he remembered that the whole reason he’d wanted to give them the charmed journals in the first place was that he’d felt drawn to them. He hadn’t been able to explain it, but now, he couldn’t help but wonder if maybe even then, before the marks had manifested, if the draw and the easy friendship that had developed between them had been an indicator of what was to come.
If he wasn’t so focused on telling Micheil and Finlay the news, he might have thought to analyze his relationships with other people, to see if he’d felt that draw with anyone else, but his mind was completely consumed with one thing, and only one thing. Tell the twins.
Opening the journal, Hadrian took the cap off one of his ballpoint pens and prepared to start writing when he noticed that there were a few new entries in the journal from Micheil and Finlay that he hadn’t read.
Hey Hadrian, we’ve got some amazing news to share. – M
“So do I,” Hadrian muttered before his heart sank upon reading the next line.
We proposed to Kaidan and Karter. – F
Hadrian’s eyes widened as he suddenly remembered Kaidan and Karter. In his shock at getting six soulmarks and his haste to tell Micheil and Finlay the news, he’d completely forgotten about their boyfriends.
They said yes!! We’re getting married!! – M
And that’s not all. After they said yes, they told us they had some news of their own to share. – F
They’re pregnant. Fin and I are going to be parents. –M
As he read these lines, Hadrian suddenly felt sick to his stomach and he couldn’t help but think back to his first crush on Carl Hopkins and how devastated he’d been upon learning that Carl and Annabelle were getting married and that Annabelle was pregnant.
Hearing movement in the hallway, Hadrian turned in his chair, wand out, and cast a spell to close the door, which slammed shut a little more forcefully than he’d intended. He wanted to be alone right now.
“No, no, no, this isn’t happening,” Hadrian whispered to himself. “Not again. Not with my soulmate.”
Dropping his pen on the desk and not even bothering to close the journal, he stood up and flung himself down on his bed as he began sobbing into his pillow. The only thing going through his head was, ‘I’m too late… I’ve lost him… its Carl all over again… no!! Why gods? Why?!’
-o-0-o-
Hadrian spent most of the next two days in his bedroom, only leaving the room unless he had to use the loo or get something to eat or drink. He didn’t talk beyond the occasional grunt if somebody said something to him and he was giving off a ‘don’t bother me’ vibe.
Darius, Regulus, Rigel, Asterion, Alphard, Ivy, and RJ kept their distance, while Petunia, Vernon, Sirius, and Remus shared looks of concern, although they decided it was best not to push him. Sirius said that James had gone through a few similar phases when he was Hadrian’s age, where it was clear that something was wrong and that he was upset, but he also did not want to talk about it.
In each case, he’d just needed some time to work it out on his own and he’d eventually return to normal, usually within a few days. Thus, the adults all agreed that they’d keep an eye on Hadrian and make sure he didn’t do anything stupid, but they weren’t going to force him to talk if he didn’t want to.
The morning after his birthday, Hadrian had run out of tears and instead had been angry that Micheil and Finlay had never even wished him a happy birthday in their messages in the journal. Of course, his anger over that particular omission ebbed when he noted the next morning since the journal was still lying open on his desk, that they had remedied that.
Hey Hadrian… just realized what yesterday was. Sorry for not saying this then, mate, but happy belated birthday. – F
Sorry about not saying it yesterday, we were just so focused on making sure everything went off without a hitch when we proposed that we weren’t thinking of anything else. – M
And then Kaid and Kart dropped the pregnancy bombshell and… well, everything else kind of flew out the window, so to speak. – F
We weren’t expecting the news that we were going to be parents. It caught Kaid and Kart by surprise too, because we’ve been using protection, but… well, as their healer said when he confirmed it, no form of birth control is ever one hundred percent effective. – M
Of course, being reminded of the engagements and the pregnancy just set Hadrian off again, although rather than crying, he laid down on his bed and complained about how unfair his life was and asked why everything always happened to him. A part of his brain tried to tell him that he was being dumb, but he steadfastly didn’t listen to it.
Shortly after noon on the third of August, so, just over three days since his birthday, there was a knock on his bedroom door. Hadrian tried to ignore it the first time, putting a pillow over his head. After a moment, however, the knock sounded again.
“Go away!” Hadrian called out.
The knock came again, louder this time, prompting Hadrian to angrily yell, “FUCK OFF!”
There was a moment of silence at this, before Petunia’s voice could be heard, yelling, “Hadrian James Potter! Language! Open this door.” And a second later, she added, “Now, young man!”
Hadrian knew that tone and he knew it would be in his best interest to listen, but for some unfathomable reason, he hesitated—big mistake.
“Hadrian, open this door right now. You have until the count of three to do it yourself or I will do it for you. Just know that if I do, I’ll incinerate it and you won’t have a door for the rest of the summer! One.”
Hadrian knew that his aunt was serious, so he got up and moved over to the door. Opening the door, Hadrian just stood there for a moment, before Petunia shook her head and said, “I don’t know what’s gotten into you young man, but you have company.”
“I don’t want to see anybody.”
“Well, that’s too bad, because we’re not leaving,” Finlay said, prompting Hadrian to look up as Petunia stood aside and saw Micheil and Finlay standing behind her.
“Hadrian, what gives?” Micheil asked. “We haven’t heard from you in three days and you didn’t say you weren’t going to be able to write for a while. We got worried when you didn’t respond, especially since we shared some pretty big news.”
The phone rang at this point and since she was the only one home at the moment since Vernon was at work and Sirius and Remus had taken all the children to get ice cream, she said, “I’ll leave you boys alone to talk,” before she hurried down the hall and into the master bedroom to pick up the phone there.
Hadrian remained quiet for a moment before he moved to close the door. The twins looked momentarily surprised and more than a little hurt, but then they got a determined look on their faces as they stepped forward and before Hadrian could get the door closed all the way, Micheil stuck his foot between it and the frame, preventing it from closing.
“Something is wrong,” Micheil said. “Now what is it?”
“Go away, I don’t want to talk,” Hadrian said. “I just want to be alone.”
“From what your aunt said, you’ve had plenty of time to be alone,” Finlay said. “Now, come on, Rian, start talking. What’s up?”
“I said go away!” Hadrian said as he opened the door and putting his hand in the middle of the twin’s chest pushed them backward so that Micheil’s foot wouldn’t be in the way anymore.
Of course, as the twins stumbled backward, Micheil grabbed onto Hadrian’s hand on his and Finlay’s chest… the moment their bare hands touched, all three of them felt the warming sensation inside their trousers, followed by a visible pulse of magic between them.
Stumbling backward into the wall across from Hadrian’s bedroom door, Micheil didn’t let go of Hadrian’s hand, and thus pulled him along with them, where he ended up falling against them.
Micheil and Finlay looked surprised as they realized what the warmth and magic pulse meant considering where it had come from.
“Your birthday,” Micheil said. “It was your thirteenth…”
“You got your soulmark,” Finlay added. “And it matches Micheil’s.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Hadrian tried, even though he knew it was pointless to try to lie now because he’d also felt exactly where the warmth had been coming from when his hand touched Micheil’s. He knew their marks had reacted and would now be black and slightly more detailed outlines.
“Hadrian, don’t play dumb,” Micheil said. “It doesn’t suit you.”
“Indeed it doesn’t,” Finlay said, before he and Micheil silently agreed on something, and before Hadrian even really knew what was happening, he found himself being carried into his bedroom bridal style.
Finding his voice, Hadrian said, “Put me down!”
“Sure thing,” Micheil and Finlay said in unison, before they sat down on the bed with Hadrian on their lap, their arms moving around his waist and holding on for dear life so that he couldn’t escape.
“So, tell me, honestly,” Finlay said. “If we turned you over and pulled down your trousers and underwear, what would we see?”
“My arse?” Hadrian asked, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
“Duh,” Micheil said. “I mean what would we see on the back of your right thigh, just below your arse?”
Hadrian sighed. “You already know, so why are you even asking?”
“We want to hear you confirm it,” the twins said in unison.
Groaning as he rolled his eyes, Hadrian said, “You’d see a thestral on my right thigh.” After a moment’s pause, he sighed and added, “Which matches the one you guys are sporting in the same place.”
Micheil smiled. “You see? Was that so hard? Why didn’t you tell us?”
Before Hadrian could respond, Finlay added, “Yeah, Rian, why didn’t you tell us as soon as you recognized the mark that you were Micheil’s soulmate?”
“Don’t you think I have a right to know that?” Micheil asked, sounding more than a little hurt. “I mean, honestly, Rian, what were you thinking? That you’d just cut off all contact with us? We’ve been best friends for years. Did you think we’d just let you throw our friendship away without an explanation? Or that you could avoid touching us and revealing the truth?”
“I wasn’t sure?” Hadrian tried, although unfortunately for him, he didn’t sound even the slightest bit convincing.
“Really? You weren’t sure?” Micheil asked. “What do you think, Fin?”
“I think he’s lying,” Fin answered.
“So do I,” Micheil confirmed. “The question is why?”
Knowing that the jig was up, Hadrian sighed. “I was going to tell you. I took the journal out and was going to write you to let you know, but then I saw your messages about the proposals and the pregnancy. I… well, I figured what was the point in telling you after that? You’re marrying the men you love and you’re going to be parents. Why would you want me?”
Micheil and Finlay both looked at Hadrian as if he’d suddenly grown a second head. Shaking his head, the confusion clear on his face, Micheil asked, “Hadrian, you’re one of my best friends who it turns out is also my soulmate. Why wouldn’t I want you?”
“Because you’re engaged and expecting.”
“One has absolutely nothing to do with the other,” Finlay said. “Do we love Kaidan and Karter? Yes. But that doesn’t mean that Mic doesn’t have room in his heart for his soulmate, Hadrian. Or that I don’t, because let’s face it, Mic and I are inescapably a package deal.”
“I don’t want to make you choose between me and them,” Hadrian said. “Especially now that they’re pregnant.”
“What are you talking about choose?” Micheil asked. “Did you even hear what Fin just said? We can be with both them and you.”
Hadrian was quiet for a moment, before he asked, “You’d be willing to be with both them and me?”
Micheil grinned and said, “Duh, Hadrian. Soulmate.”
“What about Kaidan and Karter? Won’t they have a problem with sharing?”
“No, Rian, they won’t,” Micheil said. “As you already know, I have two soulmarks. You’re my soulmate, but so is Kaidan. And Finlay is Kaidan’s and Karter’s soulmate, so they’ve always made it crystal clear from the beginning of our relationship that they would never stand in my way if I found the person that matched my other mark.”
“We’ll still be marrying them,” Finlay said, “because we love them and they’re pregnant.”
“But that doesn’t mean that I can’t also be with you, Rian,” Micheil said. “I can’t believe you thought I wouldn’t want you. I admit, it’s a little odd as we’ve known you since we were ten and you were five, so we’ve watched you grow up.”
“Into a very handsome young man,” Finlay interjected with a grin.
Hadrian blushed. “Okay.” He fell silent for a moment here, before he said, “Um, guys, I should probably mention this… I have more than two soul marks.”
The twins both looked surprised at this, as Finlay asked, “You got three?”
Hadrian shook his head no, prompting Micheil to ask, “Four?”
When Hadrian again shook his head no, Finlay, looking completely gobsmacked, asked, “Rian, how many?”
“Six,” Hadrian said.
“You’re joking, right?” Micheil asked.
“Nope,” Hadrian said. “I’ve got the one that matches yours, Mic, plus one on each bicep, another on the small of my back, one between my shoulder blades, and a sixth one on my arse.”
Micheil and Finlay were both looking at Hadrian like he was nuts, as they had never heard of anyone getting six soul marks before. Just getting three was considered to be so rare that there were less than ten known people in the last hundred years.
“If you’ll let go of me,” Hadrian said, “I’ll take my shirt off and you can see them.”
While Micheil and Finlay rather liked Hadrian right where he was, they nodded, as they released him and he stood up, before pulling off his shirt, revealing the marks on his back.
“A phoenix,” Micheil said, at the same time that Finlay said, “A unicorn.”
Turning so that the twins could see his right bicep, Micheil said, “A dragon.”
Cocking his head to one side, Finlay asked, “Norwegian Ridgeback?”
Hadrian nodded before he turned to show off his left bicep.
“Whoa, that’s a vicious-looking dog,” Finlay said.
This time it was Micheil who cocked his head as he studied the outline for a moment and said, “I could be wrong, but I think it’s a hellhound.”
“A hellhound?” Hadrian asked as he flexed his bicep so that he could look at it, albeit upside down.
Micheil nodded, as he reached out and pointed at what looked like a lion’s mane and said, “Unless I’m very much mistaken I don’t think this is supposed to be hair, but flames. Same with the large tufts of hair at the base of the legs.”
“Huh,” Hadrian said. “Well, I guess I’ll know for sure if and when I ever find the person associated with that mark. I hope they’re male because no offense to them, but the female body does nothing for me.”
Finlay grinned. “Aww, Hadrian is growing up.”
“Shut up,” Hadrian said. “You’ve known that for the last three months, as the more sexual aspects of puberty started showing up and I told you.”
“True, you did,” Micheil said. “In quite lurid detail, I might add. Not that I’m complaining mind you, because I rather agree with you about Oliver’s sex appeal.”
One of the first sex dreams that Hadrian had was about the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, Oliver Wood. Well, at least the first dream that he told Micheil and Finlay about. He certainly wasn’t going to tell them about the dream that had featured them or their now fiancés. Well, maybe now he could, but at the time, hell no.
“Wait, what about the sixth mark?” Finlay asked. “Where did you say it was again?”
Hadrian blushed, as he said, “My arse… specifically the left cheek.”
“Can we see it?” Micheil asked. “You’ve seen all of ours, after all.”
Hadrian blushed harder, but nodded, as he turned his back to the twins, unbuckled his belt, and undid his fly, letting his trousers drop down before he pushed the back of his underwear down to reveal his arse.
A moment later, Hadrian felt a hand tracing the image, and then to his surprise, he heard laughter.
“What’s so funny?” he asked.
The next thing he knew, Hadrian was pulled into a sitting position on the twin’s lap, before they moved so that they were lying on his bed, spooning him.
“Oh Hadrian, if only you hadn’t decided to be dumb,” Micheil said.
“Yes, and told us from the beginning, you could have saved yourself, your family, and us from the last few days worrying about you!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Hadrian, we recognize the mark on your arse,” Micheil said.
Hadrian’s eyes widened as he turned around in the twin’s arms so that he could look them in the eye. “You do?”
Micheil nodded. “Yes, I should hope so, considering that we’ve seen it at least three times a week for three years now.”
“What?”
Shaking his head, Finlay said, “Rian, that hippogriff on your arse is a perfect match for the one in the same place and pose on Karter.”
“You mean?”
“Yes, Rian. Karter has two soulmates, just like Kaid, Fin, and I,” Micheil said with a big grin. “We already knew that he and Fin were soulmates, but the second mark was an unknown… until now.”
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Pt1 of Ch18, in which Hadrian is an angsty little idiot but all works out in the end. There’ll be one more chapter set during the summer of 1993, in which Kaidan and Karter react to the news that Hadrian and Karter have matching soulmarks.
Chapter 19: Hadrian Turns Thirteen, Part Two
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Nineteen:
Hadrian Turns Thirteen, Part Two
-o-0-o-
3 August 1993…
Hadrian looked dumbfounded at Micheil and Finlay for a minute before he asked, “You’re sure that Karter is my soulmate? I mean, like really sure?”
Micheil and Finlay laughed, as Micheil reached out and tapped Hadrian on the nose, before he said, “Rian, we have sex with Kaidan and Karter several times a week.”
“As evidenced by the fact that we got them pregnant,” Finlay added.
“I think we’ve seen their naked arse enough times to recognize that the hippogriff mark on Karter’s butt is identical to the one on yours.”
Hadrian blushed. “Yeah, I guess you’re probably right.” He paused momentarily before saying, “Well, in that case, why don’t you guys go get them?”
“We can do that,” Micheil said. “But first…”
He didn’t say anything else as he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Hadrian’s softly. Hadrian was slightly caught off guard but responded after a few seconds and began kissing Micheil back. Finlay shifted his head slightly before he started kissing and licking Hadrian’s earlobe.
While he didn’t completely break the kiss with Micheil as their lips still touched, Hadrian giggled and said, “Fin, that tickles.”
Finlay smiled. “Sorry, but I have to do something besides just lay here while you and Mic make out.”
Rolling his eyes, Micheil said, “We’re not making out. The kiss is far too gentle and chaste to be described as making out.”
“I’m just messing with you, bro.”
“I know,” Micheil said with a shake of his head. “You think I’ve spent our entire lives this close to you without learning your tells?”
Finlay laughed. “You’d have to be the most unobservant person in the galaxy not to. And I know you aren’t.”
“Definitely not,” Hadrian agreed. “I may not share a body with you guys, and considering that Micheil and I are soulmates that’s a good thing, but I’ve known you for long enough to know that you’re both observant, smart, and…” he blushed here as he paused for a second and then added, “…and sexy as all hell.”
Micheil and Finlay grinned as they turned their heads toward each other and then leaned forward, kissing opposite sides of Hadrian’s nose, making him giggle.
“Anyway, we should go and get Kaid and Kart,” Finlay said. “And you should get dressed while we’re gone.”
“Yes, it’s very distracting with you lying there with your arse hanging out,” Micheil said. “It’s a cute arse and I look forward to seeing it more in the future, but you’re a little too young right now for anything more than hugging, kissing, cuddling, and some light petting.”
Hadrian blushed. “You’re the ones who wanted to see the soulmark on my arse.”
“True,” Finlay said. “And it’s a good thing you agreed to show it because we wouldn’t have recognized it otherwise.”
Hadrian rolled his eyes, as he said, “Okay, okay, guys, go!”
“You want to get rid of us already?”
“No, Fin, I don’t. If I had my way, you guys would stay in my arms permanently, but the sooner you leave, the sooner you can come back, and the sooner Kaid and Kart can join in on our cuddle fest.”
“Good point,” Micheil said, as he and Finlay kissed the tip of Hadrian’s nose again before they pulled away and stood up. “We’ll be back ASAP. Kart won’t need to see your mark to know it matches his, so pull up your pants and trousers and put your shirt back on.”
Hadrian raised an eyebrow as he gestured toward his shirtless torso. “You don’t like this?”
“We do, Rian,” Micheil said. “But you’re only just thirteen a couple of days ago. We’re soulmates, so we’ve got plenty of time in the future to enjoy certain activities sans clothing.”
“Which there will be none of,” Finlay added, in his most authoritative prefect voice, “until you’re at least fourteen.” At the look on Hadrian’s face, Finlay added, “Yes, I said fourteen. I know you’re technically legal now, but that doesn’t mean you’re ready for such things.”
“Besides, I think we should take some time to court and alter the parameters of our relationship. We’ve been best friends for years, but now we’re going to be a couple.”
“Couple isn’t the right word,” Hadrian said. “If it was just me and you, Mic, yeah, it’d work, but considering how much you share with Fin, it’ll never just be the two of us. And that’s not even taking Kaid and Kart into account.”
“True,” Finlay said, as he reached forward and ruffled Hadrian’s hair.
Normally, Hadrian would have moved away and given Finlay a dirty look. Maybe even rebuked him for messing up his hair. Though as a Potter, his hair was always a bit on the messy side. Now, however? Well, he relished the touch.
“Okay, go,” Hadrian said. “But don’t tell Kaid and Kart you’re bringing them here. Blindfold them and then lead them back here. I’ll activate the mark by kissing Karter if that’s okay?”
The twins nodded, as Micheil said, “Of course, it's okay. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Well, they are your fiancés.”
“True, but Kart is your soulmate,” Finlay said. “So we don’t mind you kissing him. Or Kaid, if you want to.”
Micheil and Finlay said their goodbyes to Hadrian before they turned and left the room. Hadrian just sat silently on his bed for a few minutes before he stood up, pulled his pants up, followed by his trousers, and then put his shirt back on.
Not long after he finished this task, Petunia walked in and asked, “Did I hear correctly? Karter Shacklebolt is your soulmate?”
Hadrian nodded. “Yes, Aunt Petunia. Mic and Fin recognized one of my marks and they’re certain that it’s a match for Karter’s.”
“Well, they would know,” Petunia said. “One of your marks?”
The entire family had been curious about Hadrian’s soulmarks since his birthday. Since he’d been keeping to himself and not communicating beyond the absolute necessities, however, he hadn’t told them about his marks yet.
Hadrian nodded. “I got six of them. Mic is one of them and Kart is another. Don’t know who the others are yet.”
“Six? Well, that’s surprising,” Petunia said. “And at the same time, not surprising.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve come to expect the unexpected with you, Hadrian,” Petunia said. “Besides, I was just thinking about what you said you saw in the Mirror of Erised. Perhaps you should seek out the mirror once you go back to Hogwarts this year. See if the shrouds on any of the faces have lifted.”
Hadrian was quiet for a moment before he asked, “You think the people surrounding me in the mirror are my soulmates?”
“It would make sense,” Petunia said. “The mirror shows nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desires of your heart. The people you’ve been seeing in the mirror being your soulmates would explain why you’re seeing them.”
“True, though it doesn’t explain the one that’s lying on the floor with a dagger in their chest. That one still worries me.”
“As it should,” Petunia agreed. “Anyway, I have to go run some errands. I assume that I can trust you, your soulmates, and their respective brothers to behave yourselves while I’m gone?”
Hadrian blushed bright red at this. Much redder than he had with Micheil and Finlay. Of course, that was because they were at least much closer to his age and they were his best friends. While he did find talking about sex to be a bit embarrassing, he didn’t feel as embarrassed with the twins as he did with his aunt.
“Yes, Aunt Petunia,” Hadrian said. “In all honesty, even though I know I am technically legal for that stuff as of a couple of days ago, I don’t really feel like I’m ready for that stuff yet. Besides, I think I should take some time to get to know Mic, Fin, Kaid, and Kart better.”
He paused here. “I’ve been best friends with Mic and Fin for years now, and Kaid and Kart for about a year or two, but the whole soulmate thing will change the dynamics of our relationship. I think I should get to know them in a more romantic light before we cross any further physical bridges.”
“Further bridges?”
“I kissed Mic and Fin. And I’ll be kissing Kaid and Kart when they get here. But, I promise we won’t go beyond kissing, hugging, or cuddling. At least not today.” His blush returned a bit as he added, “I’d like to go on a few dates before I do anything more than that. Plus Mic and Fin said we’re not doing anything until I’m at least fourteen.”
Petunia smiled. “I knew there was a reason I liked those boys.” Shaking her head, she said, “Anyway, have fun, Hadrian. I don’t mind if you kiss, hug, or cuddle with them. So long as all your clothes stay on. Capiche?”
Nodding, Hadrian replied, “Yes, Aunt Petunia.”
-o-0-o-
“Where are we?” Kaidan asked about ten minutes after Petunia left the house and Micheil and Finlay had Apparated themselves and Kaidan and Karter into Hawthorne Terrace.
Both Kaidan and Karter had a black sleep mask-like blindfold over their closed eyes that prevented them from seeing anything.
“No hints,” Finlay said, as he and Micheil carefully led their fiancés forward.
They were pregnant, after all, even if it was still very early and they weren’t showing yet. Micheil and Finlay were being extra careful as a result, walking behind Kaidan and Karter, their arms wrapped around their waist.
Leading them from the Apparition room down the hall to Hadrian’s room, they entered the room and Hadrian smiled. After his aunt had left, Hadrian cast a spell on his shoes, allowing himself to walk silently. He’d also magically removed any trace of the cologne he’d begun wearing about a year ago after Micheil and Finlay had given him a bottle for Christmas.
Micheil and Finlay grinned as Hadrian slowly approached Kaidan and Karter and then leaning forward, pressed his lips to Karter’s in a gentle and chaste kiss. Karter didn’t have a chance to be surprised, as the second their lips touched, Karter, Hadrian, and Kaidan all felt the warming sensation from inside their trousers as a visible pulse of magic briefly passed between them.
With Karter and Hadrian still kissing, Kaidan reached up and pulled the blindfold from his eyes.
“Hadrian?” he asked, as he saw the boy in profile, kissing Karter.
Breaking the kiss with Karter, Hadrian turned his head to face Kaidan with a grin and said, “Hey Kaid… looks like we’ll be getting much closer than we ever thought we would.”
Before Kaidan could say anything, Hadrian leaned forward and pressed his lips to Kaidan’s. Kaidan raised his hand and cupped Hadrian’s right cheek, even as Karter reached up with his hand and removed the blindfold.
“Rian?” he asked. “You’re my soulmate?”
Breaking the kiss with Kaidan, Hadrian leaned back a bit so that he could look both twins in the eye as he said, “Yup. And Mic’s too.”
“Wow,” Kaidan said. “I knew Mic and Kart both had undiscovered soulmates but I never seriously thought they’d be someone we already knew. Or that they’d be the same person.”
“Disappointed?”
“No, definitely not,” Kaidan said. “I’m glad it’s you, Rian because I actually like you. A part of me always feared that we’d find out who Karter’s other soulmate was and it’d be someone that I didn’t like.”
Hadrian smiled. “Well, the feeling is mutual. I like you too, Kaid. And you too, Kart. I won’t say that I’m in love with any of you, Mic and Fin included, but then until today, I’ve never really had a reason to look at any of you as anything more than friends.”
“True,” Karter said. “Well, I guess some dating is called for.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Hadrian said. “We can start right now, with a cuddle date. All five of us.”
Kaidan smiled. “Sounds good to me,” as Karter and Finlay nodded, and Micheil added, “Lead the way, Rian.”
A couple of minutes later, the five boys were lying on Hadrian’s bed, with Hadrian lying on his back in the middle, as Micheil and Finlay were lying on their side to Hadrian’s right and Kaidan and Karter on their side to Hadrian’s left. This position placed Finlay’s and Kaidan’s heads on the pillow next to Hadrian’s. In contrast, Micheil’s and Karter’s heads rested against a pair of specially designed neck pillows that allowed conjoined twins that shared a single body between them to lay on their sides without the twin whose side wasn’t on the bed having to rest their head against their sibling’s head.
“Those neck pillows must come in handy,” Hadrian said.
Kaidan nodded. “Yeah, they do, as it allows us to comfortably lay on our sides without getting a crick in the neck of whichever one of us is essentially on top.”
“Yeah collarbones don’t bend,” Micheil said. “So with the seven-inch space between Fin’s and my heads, I’d definitely be getting a crick in my neck if I spent any great length of time with my head on top of Fin’s.”
“Not to mention it tends to hurt the earlobes,” Karter said, “when we don’t use the pillow.”
“Hence the reason that the pillow as straps the attach the pillow to both of our necks,” Finlay said. “It's why we attach it before bed every night even if we fall asleep on our backs or stomachs. The straps keep the pillow in place throughout the night so that it remains between our necks no matter which side we might roll onto in our sleep.”
“I kind of feel sorry for those sets of conjoined twins that aren’t as closely connected as we are,” Karter said. “As they don’t really have a choice when it comes to sleeping on their backs or their stomachs. As sleeping on their sides and trying to balance the weight of a second body on top of them would be very uncomfortable.”
Hadrian nodded, "Yeah, I can't imagine Neall and Niall trying to sleep on their sides, as one of them would end up rather precariously balancing on top the other," and the five of them fell silent for a few minutes, as they simply enjoyed being in each other’s arms. Micheil and Karter both adjusted their legs, placing them between Hadrian’s legs.
“I guess we’ll have to enjoy this while we can,” Karter said. “As in a few months, Kaid and I won’t be able to lay in this position.”
“Well, then we’ll just swap positions,” Hadrian said, knowing that Karter was talking about when he and Kaidan started showing their pregnancy. “You guys can lay on your back in the middle, while Mic, Fin, and I lay on either side of you.”
“Possibly with our fingers interlaced over your bump,” Micheil said, grinning, as he leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on Karter’s lips.
“Mic and Fin already know this,” Hadrian said, “but, Kaid, Kart: the babies you’re carrying won’t be the only new additions on the way.”
“Mic, Fin, did you…” Kaidan began to ask.
“No!” Finlay said. “We did not get Hadrian pregnant.”
Hadrian smiled and shook his head. “Nope, definitely not pregnant. My v-card is still very much intact. No, when I said new additions, I was referring to my other soulmarks.”
“Other soulmarks?” Karter asked. “You’ve got more than two?”
Micheil and Finlay laughed, as Micheil said, “Oh yeah, he’s got more than two all right.”
“How many?”
“Other than you and Mic?” Hadrian asked, prompting Karter to nod. “Four more.”
“Four?!” Kaidan asked, his eyes widening. “You mean you’ve got six soulmarks?”
Nodding, Micheil said, “Yeah, he does. Fin and I saw all of them.”
“He’s got the marks that match Kart and Mic,” Finlay said, “and then he’s also got a unicorn on the small of his back, a phoenix on his back between his shoulder blades, a Norwegian Ridgeback on his right bicep, and what we think is a hellhound on his left bicep.”
“Wow,” Karter said, as he shook his head. “Note to self, make sure Hadrian buys a really big bed.”
Micheil, Finlay, and Kaidan laughed, as Hadrian shook his head. “Yeah, I suppose I’ll have to, huh? Assuming, of course, I actually meet any of the others. Just because I’ve been lucky enough to meet two of them doesn’t mean that I’ll meet any of the others.”
The two sets of twins nodded, knowing that Hadrian was correct.
“Oh Hadrian,” the voice in his head said. “Worry not. You will meet them all… eventually.”
‘Oh great, I’m still hearing voices,’ Hadrian thought.
The mysterious voice laughed. “You’re not going crazy. I promise.”
‘Says the mysterious voice in my head that refuses to tell me who they are,’ Hadrian thought.
“I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you,” the voice said in a serious tone that would have terrified Hadrian if he hadn’t heard the voice enough times now to pick up on when it was actually being serious and when it was pranking him by attempting to sound serious when it wasn’t.
‘Ha, ha, very funny,’ Hadrian said in a tone that didn’t sound the slightest bit mirthful.
“Oh come on, Hadrian, lighten up,” the voice said. “And you call yourself the son of a Marauder.”
Before Hadrian could respond, the voice said, “Anyway, gotta go. Busy, busy, busy, can’t spend all day talking to you. Besides your new boyfriends are trying to get your attention.”
Shaking his head, Hadrian saw both sets of twins looking at him curiously, as he asked, “What?”
“You okay, Rian?” Kaidan asked.
“Yeah you kind of spaced out there,” Finlay said.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Hadrian said. “Sorry, I just stuck in my head for a bit, thinking about something Aunt Petunia told me earlier.”
“Oh? What?” Micheil asked.
Hadrian explained what his aunt had said about the Mirror of Erised and her opinion that he should seek it out when school resumed.
“Hmm, I guess it makes sense,” Karter said. “Honestly, I’d be interested to know if Kaid and I or Mic and Fin are among those you’ve been seeing in the mirror.”
Micheil nodded. “Yes, so would I. Let’s just hope none of us are the ones on the floor with a dagger in our chests.”
“Yes, definitely would prefer not to be that one,” Kaidan said, as everyone else, including Hadrian, nodded.
-o-0-o-
27 June 1994…
As Hadrian and Darius stepped off the Hogwarts Express on Platform 9 ¾, they spotted Petunia standing on the platform and made their way over to her.
“Hey Mum,” Darius said with a smile as he hugged his mother.
“Hello, Darius, my darling,” Petunia said as she returned the hug before she pulled Hadrian in for a hug.
Hadrian happily hugged his aunt back for a moment, before she took a step back and looked around, before she asked, “Where’s your boyfriends?”
“They should be getting off the train in a few minutes,” Hadrian said. “They were just having a final meeting with their fellow seventh years since many of them won’t be going back to Hogwarts next year.”
Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter would be returning to Hogwarts during Hadrian’s fourth year, as they’d secured apprenticeships with Hogwarts professors. Finlay secured an apprenticeship with Professor Babbling to get his Mastery in Ancient Runes. The professor technically only had room for one new apprentice, but since Micheil had little choice but to attend all of his brother’s lessons, he’d be able to test for his Mastery alongside Finlay when the time came.
Micheil didn’t mind this as he considered Ancient Runes to be his second favorite subject after Arithmancy, which happened to be Finlay’s second favorite after Ancient Runes. They’d agreed that they would seek masteries in both subjects, initially planning on seeing if they could get Professors Babbling and Vector to agree to let them take both at once. Plans changed upon the realization that Hadrian was their soulmate, as masteries usually took three years after the NEWTs to obtain. Some managed to do it in only two, but for most, it took three.
Three years, however, would keep them at Hogwarts through the end of Hadrian’s seventh year. And by not doing two masteries at once, they could then hopefully do another while Hadrian was seeking his first Mastery.
Kaidan, meanwhile, had secured an apprenticeship with Professor McGonagall to get his Transfiguration Mastery, while Karter secured an apprenticeship with Professor Vector so that he could get his Arithmancy Mastery.
Petunia nodded. “Okay, well we’ll wait here for them then.”
She didn’t say anything more despite Hadrian and Darius both asking her questions. Though Hadrian certainly wasn’t complaining, as he’d never complain about spending time with two of his soulmates and their respective brothers, all four of whom Hadrian considered to be his boyfriends.
“What about Callan and Kellan?” Hadrian asked after a moment.
Callan and Kellan MacDougal were the conjoined twin sons of Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter, who were joined the same way as their fathers, sharing everything from their necks down. They were born in the last week of February and lived primarily in the royal palaces with Micheil’s and Finlay’s parents.
“Lady Shacklebolt dropped them off an hour before I left to come here,” Petunia said.
Hadrian and Darius shared a curious look but knew it would be a waste of breath to ask. So instead they simply leaned against the trolleys carrying their trunks and owl cages. As the owls hooted, Hadrian and Darius both reached into a pocket of the messenger bags they carried their books and school supplies in and each pulled out an owl treat.
“Here you go girl,” Hadrian said as he put the treat through the bars for Hedwig, who happily took it in her beak.
“Hungry boy?” Darius asked as he repeated the action for his screech owl, Japheth. The owl hooted and took the treat, lightly nipping Darius’s fingers in the process, though not enough to hurt.
About five minutes later, Hadrian spotted Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter disembarking from the train. Knowing that they’d each gotten their apparition licenses, he called out, “Mic, Fin, Kaid, Kart, over here!”
The heads of the two sets of twins turned in Hadrian’s direction, briefly looking a bit surprised that Hadrian, Darius, and their aunt were still on the platform. With smiles on their faces, they made their way over to the group, as the four boys each leaned in and, one by one, gave Hadrian a quick peck on the lips.
“Hey, Rian,” Micheil said. “I didn’t expect you to still be here.”
“Yeah, we said our goodbyes on the train,” Kaidan said.
Karter nodded. “We figured your cousin, aunt, and you would be gone before we finished saying goodbye to our yearmates.”
“Not that we’re complaining, mind you,” Finlay said.
“Hello boys,” Petunia said. “We waited for you because you’re coming home with us.”
The twins looked a little confused as Karter asked, “We are?”
Before Petunia could answer, Kaidan said, “We were planning on heading to Dragon’s Court to see Cal and Kel, as we haven’t seen them since spring break.”
“Callan and Kellan are already at our house,” Petunia said. “Your grandmother dropped them off an hour before I left to come here. Now grab your trolleys and let’s go. Sirius, Remus, and I have prepared a surprise for the four of you and Hadrian.”
Hadrian and the two sets of twins, plus Darius, all looked at each other at this, before they all shrugged, grabbed their trolleys, and followed Petunia toward the exit from the platform. Just before they reached the barrier, Petunia pulled a vial from a hidden pocket of her dress and handed it to Karter.
“Kaidan if you can add a hair?” Petunia said as Karter took the vial from her.
Kaidan nodded as he carefully plucked a single hair from his head and dropped it into the vial after Micheil reached over and pulled the cork from the vial. Taking a deep breath, Karter drank the potion. Within a few seconds, he looked identical to Kaidan.
He didn’t bother to ask why he was drinking Polyjuice because he knew why. Conjoined twins were a strange enough sight in the muggle world without adding the whole fraternal mixed-race thing into the mix. He knew that he and Kaidan, and Micheil and Finlay, would probably get a few stares once they went out into King’s Cross Station, but they would get even more if he and Kaidan didn’t look the same.
-o-0-o-
Twenty minutes later, Petunia’s car came to a stop in the underground garage at Number 13 Hawthorne Terrace. Garages and private parking were a rarity in London, but not completely impossible to find if one had the money to spend and Hadrian had when he bought Numbers 13 and 15 Hawthorne Terrace.
The two townhouses were renovated before the family moved in so they were now one large family home. A private road on the backside of the property allowed access to the underground parking garages of the townhouses.
As everyone got out of the car, Petunia called out, “Dobby!”
“Mistress Petunia called for Dobby?” the elf asked with a bow.
“Yes,” Petunia said. “Could you see to it that my son’s, nephew’s, and the twins’ luggage is brought upstairs?”
“Of course, Mistress,” Dobby said, as he moved over to the car and began unloading the boot.
Seeing the questioning looks on the faces of the twins, Petunia smiled and said, “All will become clear. Now, follow me.”
She turned from the six teenagers and headed for the lift that led to the upper floors. Neither townhouse had originally been equipped with a lift, but one was added in the renovations, as with the basement, the townhouse had a total of six floors and everyone agreed that a lift would be a welcome addition over potentially having to walk up multiple flights of stairs.
A few minutes later, the group exited the lift on the third floor and Petunia led them down the hall to the closed door of Hadrian’s bedroom. As they walked down the hall, however, Hadrian and Darius both cocked their heads in confusion.
“Is it just me or are there more doors in this hallway than there were a few months ago?”
“It’s not just you, Ari,” Hadrian said to his cousin. “There’s definitely more doors.”
“You’re right, there are,” Petunia said. “We did some more renovating while you were away at school. Sirius, Remus, and I used Wizard Space to move the magical library, potions lab, and wizarding portrait gallery down to this floor from the fourth. Also, Darius, you’ll be pleased to know that you now have your own private bathroom, as the door from what was Hadrian’s room has been walled off.”
“What was my room?” Hadrian asked.
Petunia nodded. “Yes, what was your room is now your private study,” as she opened the door and led the group into the room.
Looking around the room, Hadrian saw that all traces of his bedroom furniture were gone. Replaced by a large desk, several bookcases, a fireplace, and a comfortable-looking seating area. Something else he noticed was that there was now a staircase leading upstairs that he knew was not there before.
“Wait, you moved three rooms that were upstairs down to this floor,” Hadrian said. “And converted my bedroom into my study and added a staircase… is my room up on the top floor now?”
“Correct,” Petunia said with a smile. “We figured this is your townhouse and you are a Grand Duke, so you deserved better accommodations for yourself and your family.”
“My family?”
“Yes, Hadrian,” Petunia said. “Or do you not consider your two soulmates, your two boyfriends, and your two stepsons your family?”
Micheil perked up at this, as he asked, “Wait, you added a room for us?” as he gestured toward himself, his brother, and Kaidan and Karter.
“Yes, as well as for Callan and Kellan,” Petunia said. “I talked with your respective parents and I knew that now that the four of you are eighteen and seventeen, and married, you were looking to finally get a place where you could live with each other and your sons. I figured you might also want to live with Hadrian, however, so we’ve converted the entire top floor into a penthouse flat for the seven of you.”
Hadrian shared a look with the two sets of twins, before he darted up the new staircase, the rest of the group not far behind. At the top of the stairs was a living room, with a large fireplace, some more bookcases, an entertainment center with all the typical electronics, and a seating area consisting of a large overstuffed sofa, loveseat, and two wingback chairs. The room was decorated mostly in a combination of blue, red, and various earth tones, with some gold and bronze thrown in as accents.
Through an archway across from the stairs was a dining room with seating for twelve. A swinging door to the left of the china cabinet led into a full kitchen.
“There’s seven bedrooms,” Petunia explained. “Each with their own private bathrooms. We’ve set one up as a nursery for Callan and Kellan, another one for Hadrian, and a third for Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter. The rest are currently guest rooms.”
“Wow,” Hadrian said, as the two sets of twins nodded. “It’s perfect.”
“I’m glad you like it,” Petunia said. “One thing I should mention, Hadrian, is that every room in this flat has a monitoring charm attuned to you. You’ll notice I said that you had your own bedroom, separate from Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter.”
“Yeah, I noticed,” Hadrian said.
“You’re more than welcome to sleep with them in their room,” Petunia said. “Just as they can sleep with you in yours… so long as sleeping is all you’re doing. The charms will make sure you five don’t get up to any activities that Sirius, Remus, Vernon, and I feel that Hadrian is too young for.”
“In other words, no sex,” Darius said with a grin at his cousin.
“Well, not quite,” Petunia said with a smile, as she saw the look on Hadrian’s face. “The charms will only go off if you try to get naked and engage in penetrative sex. However, as long as you remain at least partially clothed, you can engage in any non-penetrative sex acts that you choose.”
Hadrian and the twins were all blushing bright red, as a grinning Darius mock-gagged and Petunia looked at them with mirth dancing in her eyes.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Ch19 of ‘The Seventh Olympian’ and the last chapter before another time jump. This one won’t be as large as the last few jumps, however, as the next one will only jump ahead about two months to the day of the Quidditch World Cup… where Hadrian will meet another of his soulmates.
I will be covering Hadrian’s fourth year and the Triwizard Tournament, although there will be changes to the tournament from canon.
Chapter 20: The Quidditch World Cup
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Seventh Olympian
Written By J.C. Vascardi
-o-0-o-
Chapter Twenty:
The Quidditch World Cup
-o-0-o-
18 August 1994…
Hadrian stood in front of the mirror in his bedroom looking at his reflection. He turned to the left and then to the right. It was eight in the morning and later that night the final game of the Quidditch World Cup, which was being hosted in Albion for the first time in nearly thirty years, would be taking place.
Many spectators were already camping on the moors surrounding the South Alba Stadium. There were seven stadiums in Albion and Iwernia large enough to host a Quidditch World Cup, one in each of the seven grand duchies. When Albion and Iwernia last hosted the World Cup it was held in the Grand Duchy of North Anglia and hosted by the Longbottoms, back when Neville’s grandfather was still alive and his father had only been five years old.
This time being in the Grand Duchy of South Alba, it was being hosted by House MacDougal. As the Grand Duke of South Alba, Lord Aindreas MacDougal was the host, although King Logan, a MacDougal by birth, was a sort of honorary host. It was the first time in over a hundred years that Albion and Iwernia would be hosting a Quidditch World Cup and the King was a member of the hosting house.
Hadrian was turning in front of the mirror because the tournament was being held in Scotland, and all of the MacDougal men would be wearing kilts. Since he was the soulmate of a blood MacDougal, plus the soulmate of a MacDougal by marriage, and was the boyfriend of their brothers, Hadrian would also be wearing a kilt. It was the first time in his life that he’d put one on and he was feeling just a little self-conscious about how he looked.
Deep in thought, he didn’t notice anyone entering the room until he heard someone whistling. Turning his head and seeing Kaidan and Karter standing in the doorway, Hadrian smiled.
“Hey guys,” he said.
“Hey yourself,” Karter said.
“Looking good,” Kaidan added.
“You think so?” Hadrian asked, sounding unsure, as he turned his eyes back to his reflection and turned left and right again.
Kaidan and Karter came up behind Hadrian at this and stilled his movements as they wrapped their arms around him. Hadrian took a deep breath as he leaned back against them, the back of his head resting on the collarbone between their heads.
Kaidan darted his tongue out of his mouth and made Hadrian shiver as he licked Hadrian’s earlobe, before whispering, “Yes, Hadrian. You look very good.”
Karter kissed Hadrian’s earlobe and whispered, “Dare I say it… you look very sexy.”
Hadrian couldn’t help but blush at those words. Reaching his hands behind him and grabbing the twins’ butt, Hadrian pulled them closer and said, “You guys are looking sexy too.”
So sexy that Hadrian pulled out of their embrace before pulling them over to his bed and pushing them backwards just as the backs of their knees hit the bed. They grinned as they fell backward and Hadrian stood in front of them, lifting their kilt to reveal their mismatched white and black legs.
“Decided against going commando?” Hadrian asked when he’d lifted their kilt enough to see that Kaidan and Karter were wearing a pair of black briefs beneath it.
“We’ll be in the MacDougal Box,” Kaidan said. “That’s high enough up that we’ll be level with many of the players.”
Karter grinned. “We figured it best to cover up down there so as to not potentially distract any of the players with a show.”
Hadrian laughed, nodding, as he said, “True, I would rather not spend the entire game flashing the Irish and Bulgarian Quidditch teams.”
“Especially the Irish,” Kaidan said. “We want them to win, after all. The last thing they need is to be distracted by a box full of men flashing them.”
The three were joking, of course, as while it wasn’t unheard of for wizards to wear nothing under a kilt, it also wasn’t common. It was mostly a muggle tradition to wear nothing beneath it, which is why it was mentioned on the Hogwarts equipment lists… mostly for the benefit of the muggleborns or muggle-raised.
There were exceptions, of course, as was true of almost any rule. There were some men who naturally preferred not to wear underwear ever, for example. Or there was also that one time that they’d lost a bet to the Weasley twins and Micheil, Finlay, and Seth ended up wearing nothing but the kilt they’d borrowed from Neall and Niall to the costume party at Stormvale Castle.
Lifting his kilt to reveal his own navy blue briefs, Hadrian smiled as he straddled Kaidan and Karter and said, “Good thing we’re both clothed, as it means we can do this…”
Hadrian trailed off as he pushed his hips down against the twins’ and they all groaned as their cloth-covered half-flaccid cocks made contact. Within seconds, they were both hard and Kaidan and Karter grabbed Hadrian’s arse, pulling him closer to increase the friction. The hippogriffs on their butts were both displayed in vibrant full-color and had been for nearly six months now.
Fully activating a soul bond required some form of sex act and for the soulmates to be in love with each other. What it didn’t require, however, was penetrative sex. And thus, six months ago, when Hadrian, Kaidan, and Karter engaged in a frottage session for the first time, their marks exploded in color as Hadrian’s and Karter’s bond fully activated. They hadn’t said the words to each other by that point, but it was clear that after two years of friendship and about six months of dating, they’d fallen in love, as their marks wouldn’t have reacted that way if they hadn’t.
“Oh Kart, Kaid, yes,” Hadrian moaned.
Hadrian was still a virgin, in so far as he had not engaged in any form of penetrative sex. For most of this past year, after he’d turned thirteen, he simply did not feel ready to do so. Though he was still a teenage boy with hormonal urges and four hot boyfriends, so it wasn’t the least bit surprising that they found alternative ways of having sex.
The monitoring charms on every room of their flat certainly played a part in that. Of course, even when they were at Hogwarts for Hadrian’s third year, and Micheil’s, Finlay’s, Kaidan’s, and Karter’s seventh, they’d refrained from anything penetrative because, in addition to Hadrian not feeling ready, the four older boys felt that thirteen was too young.
Of course, Hadrian was now fourteen and he had plans for the night of the World Cup, as the monitoring charms would not be present in the bedroom of the House MacDougal tent that Hadrian would be sleeping in with his twin boyfriends. In discussing the issue with Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter they agreed that fourteen was acceptable so long as Hadrian felt ready.
Needless to say, since Hadrian was the one who initiated that conversation, he felt he was ready. Still, there wasn’t anything wrong with having some fun before they took things to the next level.
Nothing more was said for a couple of minutes, as Hadrian, Kaidan, and Karter groaned as they immersed themselves in rubbing their bulges together.
“Having fun?” a familiar voice asked.
“Yes,” Hadrian said, recognizing the voice. “But we’d be having more fun if you two would get over here and join us.”
There was a laugh at that, before Finlay said, “You don’t have to tell us twice. Right Mic?”
“Oh hell no,” Micheil answered. It was he who’d asked the initial question.
The next thing Hadrian knew, he could sense a presence behind him, as Micheil and Finlay knelt on the bed. A second later, he felt the back of his kilt being lifted and tossed over his lower back as he felt a very familiar bulge press against his bum. It wasn’t just Hadrian’s and Karter’s marks that were full-color these days. As Hadrian’s and Micheil’s thestrals were also full color.
“Oh Gods, yes,” Kaidan moaned, as Micheil and Finlay pressing their cock against Hadrian’s arse increased the pressure and friction between Hadrian’s cock and the cock that Kaidan shared with Karter.
-o-0-o-
About an hour later, Hadrian, Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter had said their goodbyes to Callan and Kellan who’d be staying at their flat with their great-grandmother, Lady Cornelia Shacklebolt. At only about six months old, everyone agreed that Callan and Kellan would not get much out of the Quidditch World Cup, as they most likely wouldn’t even understand what was going on.
Heading downstairs to the ballroom on the ground floor of the townhouse, they met up with Petunia, Darius, Sirius, Remus, Regulus, and Rigel.
“Ah, there you boys are,” Petunia said, as Hadrian entered the room with Kaidan, Karter, Micheil, and Finlay. “The portkey is about to go off, so gather round and grab on.”
The four newest arrivals nodded as they came over, as Hadrian, Kaidan, and Finlay each grabbed onto the silver cup that Petunia was holding. They were the only ones in the house that were attending the Cup. Ivy, RJ, Asterion, and Alphard all wanted to go, but Petunia, Vernon, Sirius, and Remus agreed that they were too young.
Asterion and Alphard were four and Ivy and RJ were three. As much as they each enjoyed Quidditch, Petunia knew that none of them had the patience at their ages to sit through a match that could go on for hours. Regulus and Rigel were only five, but had shown themselves to be patient enough that their dads agreed that they could go.
“Three… two… one!” Petunia counted down, as the portkey glowed as she said one and everyone felt a hook behind their navels as they were whisked away from Hawthorne Terrace and up to the Grand Duchy of South Alba.
Hadrian was pleased that he managed to stay standing upon landing, though that was partially because Micheil wrapped an arm around his waist to steady him. Kaidan did the same for Darius, as Remus smiled and helped his eldest sons up from where they’d landed on their bums.
“Mic, Fin, hey!” Ryan said, as he approached his elder brothers.
“Hey Ry,” Finlay said as he gave his brother a one-armed hug, even as Micheil let go of Hadrian and held out his hand to the blond-haired guy standing to Ryan’s left.
“Hey Con,” Micheil said.
“Hey,” Constantin Lestrange V, Ryan’s boyfriend, said with a smile, as he shook hands with Micheil. “Thanks for inviting me to watch the Cup from your box.”
“No problem,” Finlay said. “You’re Ry’s boyfriend, after all, so you’re family.”
Ryan, who was seventeen, and Constantin, who was nineteen, both blushed slightly, but nodded, as they’d been going out for the last four years now. Everyone in the family fully expected that Ryan would announce that he and the Lestrange heir were engaged eventually. There was no rush though, as everyone understood that the two young men might not want to get married while they were still teenagers.
A part of Micheil and Finlay had been leery about getting married to Kaidan and Karter while the four of them were still teens. But, since Kaidan and Karter were pregnant at the time, they figured it was the best thing to do. Ever since, however, both sets of twins were incredibly diligent about wearing condoms and drinking regular birth control potions. They all loved Callan and Kellan, but they were in no rush whatsoever to give them any additional siblings.
Their attention was drawn at this as they heard a voice say, “Deck! Stop pushing. I can do it myself.”
Ryan, Constantin, Hadrian, Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter turned their heads in the direction of the voice and spotted the now thirteen-year-old Kieran MacDougal and his first cousin, once removed fifteen-year-old Declan MacDougal. As usual, Kieran was sitting in his wheelchair… that Declan was currently pushing, clearly to Kieran’s annoyance.
“Hey guys,” Declan said, as he steered Kieran toward the group of his first cousins, as Declan’s father, Laine MacDougal, was the identical twin brother of Micheil and Finlay’s father, Logan MacDougal.
“Hey Deck,” Finlay said, with a nod, as Micheil nodded and said, “Hey Key.”
“I’m kind of surprised to see you here,” Kaidan said. “And wearing a kilt.”
Kieran grumbled. “My siblings insisted. Said all the MacDougal men would be wearing one and that since I was a MacDougal man, I had to. I agreed, but only if they allowed me to wear leggings under it.”
Hadrian nodded, knowing that Kieran was extremely self-conscious about his legs since the magical variant of Vrolik’s Syndrome had the side-effect of making the skin of his legs look old and wrinkled, as if they belonged to a man of about ninety instead of thirteen. In addition to the leggings, Hadrian couldn’t help but notice that Kieran was also wearing gloves, which was a signal in the wixen culture that the person did not want to be touched in terms of finding one’s soulmate.
So Kieran had clearly gotten a soulmark when he turned thirteen, but Hadrian assumed that because of his condition, he didn’t want to meet them. Not only because of his legs, but Hadrian could only assume that he didn’t want to burden them since there was quite a lot that Kieran couldn’t do for himself, no matter how independent he tried to be. The fact that he was thirteen and had never learned how to walk could certainly be seen as burdensome. Not that it was Kieran’s fault, as Hadrian knew that if he had the choice, he wouldn’t choose to remain wheelchair-bound. He’d made it clear that he hated it, but there was nothing he could do about it, since the bones of his legs were too brittle and weak to support the weight of his upper body even if he tried to stand up. And one can’t learn how to walk without being able to stand.
“Well, we should get up to the box,” Finlay said, as Darius, Petunia, Sirius, Remus, Regulus, and Rigel had already headed up to the boxes.
While Hadrian was joining his boyfriends in the MacDougal box, Petunia, Darius, Sirius, Remus, Regulus, and Rigel would be seated in the Potter family’s box. All seven of the Grand Ducal houses had their own private box at the World Cup stadiums. Whichever house was the lord of the land the particular stadium was in had the largest box. So, at the South Alba Stadium, the MacDougals had the largest and highest of the boxes, which could seat a total of fifty people.
In the mundane world, seats in the higher elevations of a stadium would be considered nosebleed seats and not good. However, for Quidditch, it was very much the opposite. The game was played not on the field, making it desirable to be as close to it as possible, but in the air on broomsticks. Thus, being higher up was actually preferable.
The highest and best seats in the stadium, therefore occupied the three highest levels of the stadium. The MacDougals were on the highest level, and there were seven boxes below them on the second highest level. One for each of the other six Grand Ducal houses, plus one for visiting foreign royalty that was directly below House MacDougal’s box and the only other box in the entire stadium that could seat fifty people. The other boxes all had seating for only thirty.
On the lowest level of the topmost section of the stadium were two boxes for the National Teams, so for today’s game, Ireland and Bulgaria, where the families and friends of the players could sit. There were also two boxes known as the Money Boxes, as the seats could be bought by anyone who possessed enough money to get good seats but didn’t get invited to join one of the Grand Ducal Houses in the private boxes. The host country’s Ministry of Magic also had their own box, and there was also another box for visiting ambassadors and foreign dignitaries.
Directly beneath the box for visiting royalty was a large cental meeting area, where the occupants of all the boxes could go to meet and talk, use the restroom, or get food and drinks. It was a good place to go if you wanted to stretch your legs a bit during a long game or had friends in other boxes that you wanted to talk to. Or if you wanted the chance to do some networking with foreign royals, ambassadors, and dignitaries.
While it was true that in Albion and Iwernia, foreign affairs and diplomacy was the elected King’s job, that didn’t mean that the Grand Dukes never socialized with foreign royalty. It was always good for the high nobility to network and have friends in high places, especially considering that many of the foreign royal houses considered members of the Albion and Iwernia Grand Ducal Houses to be suitable marriage candidates. They were the true power behind the throne, after all, and all of the sitting Grand Dukes, and other family members within two degrees of relation to the current or a former Grand Duke, all held royal titles.
Hadrian didn’t use it often, in his day-to-day life as a Hogwarts student, but that didn’t change the fact that as the Grand Duke of Cambria, he was still His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Hadrian Potter. And there were plenty of foreign royals to whom that mattered.
-o-0-o-
Stepping off the lift they’d ridden up to the MacDougal box, as Kieran couldn’t and the others didn’t feel like climbing up the several floors to the topmost level, Hadrian couldn’t help but be impressed. It was the first time he was seeing one of the private boxes.
Each box consisted of more than just seats, like the cheaper non-box seats did, which were nothing more than rows of seats on elevated platforms. The private boxes, however, each had two private bathrooms, one for wizards and the other for witches, a small buffet table with snacks and drinks, a play area for younger children, indoor seating for those who wanted to watch the game from inside the comfort of an enclosed box, as well as outdoor seating for those who wanted to be outside and closer to the action.
Much to Hadrian’s surprise, there were even bedrooms in the boxes… in case a Quidditch match ended up lasting longer than a few hours. And considering that the longest one in history had lasted approximately three months since the game could not end until the Seeker found the Snitch, Hadrian could see why it made sense. Of course, he also knew that did not mean that the players were on their brooms actually playing for three months straight. There’s no way they could have survived that. The game was paused several times over the course of that time for multiple lengthy intermissions, allowing both players and spectators time to eat, use the restroom, and get some much needed sleep.
“Hopefully the bedrooms won’t be needed,” Micheil said as he noticed where Hadrian’s eyes were looking.
“At least, not for sleeping anyway,” Finlay whispered in Hadrian’s ear, making him blush.
“Well, we’ve got about an hour to kill before the match starts,” Kaidan said. “So, how should we spend it?”
“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m going to take a nap,” Kieran said. He paused for half a second and then asked, “Mic, Fin? Could you help me transfer from my chair?”
“I can help you,” Declan said.
“No,” Kieran said. “The last time you helped me transfer you almost dropped me and I ended up with a broken foot.”
“That wasn’t my fault,” Declan argued. “You were hitting me the entire time.”
“Yeah, probably because you decided to pick me up and transfer me when I didn’t want to be transferred.”
“I thought you’d be more comfortable,” Declan said. “Whatever,” before walking to the door that led to the outdoor seats and going outside.
“Yeah, we can help you,” Finlay said, as Micheil nodded and they followed Kieran into one of the bedrooms, allowing him to move his own wheelchair, instead of trying to push him.
They knew that Declan’s heart was in the right place, as they knew that he did genuinely care about Kieran, but he could sometimes be a little overzealous.
“I think I’m gonna head down to the lounge box and see if there’s anyone interesting to talk to,” Hadrian said.
“Oi!” Kaidan exclaimed.
“Are you trying to say we’re not interesting?” Karter asked.
Wrapping an arm around the twins’ waist and planting a quick kiss on the tips of their noses, Hadrian said, “No, I’m not saying that. However, I do see you two everyday since we live together and all.”
“I guess you’re forgiven,” Kaidan said, as he kissed the top of Hadrian’s head.
“Can we join you?” Karter asked.
“Of course you can,” Hadrian answered. “Just because I’m looking for some interesting conversation with people I don’t live with doesn’t mean I don’t want to be with you. If I had my way, you guys, and Mic and Fin, would be with me twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.”
He paused, grinned, and then added, “Especially if I can stare at your cute arses.”
Kaidan blushed crimson at that comment and Karter cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck.
“Come on you two,” Hadrian said, his arm still wrapped around their waist, as he moved over to the lift.
-o-0-o-
Fifteen-year-old Dean Winchester looked out over the massive South Alba Stadium, his eyes large as he looked out over the pitch. With a maximum capacity of 250,000 people, it was definitely the largest stadium that Dean had ever set foot in.
Ever since John introduced Dean and Sam to their half-brother Adam, Dean had been to several stadiums, as John took his three boys, often accompanied by Jack and Jake, to several stadiums across the country as they took in several baseball games over the summer when the three boys were off from Ilvermorny during the summer break. John had also taken Adam and Sam to several games that fell during the school year, although that would likely go down to just John and Adam now, as Sam turned eleven in May and the upcoming school year would be his first year at Ilvermorny.
Sam was, of course, chomping at the bit to attend Ilvermorny, as he had spent the last several years ever since finding out that Dean was a wizard reading everything he could possibly find out about the school and it’s history. He also made a point of pestering Dean, Jack, and Jake with questions. In years past, Dean might have been annoyed and told his little brother to just shut up.
He had mellowed a little, however, as he could understand why Sam was so excited to attend the school. As Dean himself was thoroughly enjoying himself and secretly had to pinch himself every now and then to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming. Although it wasn’t only his enjoyment of Ilvermorny that caused Dean to have to pinch himself.
No, that was also due in large part to his two best friends, Jack and Jake Shen. They had hit it off from the moment they’d met on the train before their first year and had only gotten closer ever since. Of course, a large part of that was down to the fact that Dean and Jack were soulmates, sharing a pair of matching thunderbirds on their right hips.
Jake was not Dean’s soulmate, but due to their inescapable closeness, Dean was very happily dating both of them. Dean and Jack were very much in love, as evidenced by their vibrant full color marks, but Dean was also in love with Jake, since it was, obviously, impossible to spend any amount of time with Jack and not spend it with Jake at the same time.
“It is quite the view, isn’t it?” Jack asked as he and Jake came up behind Dean, and Jack wrapped his arm around Dean’s waist.
“Yes, it is,” Dean agreed. “Definitely the largest stadium I’ve ever been in.”
“Also quite the contrast with muggle stadiums,” Jake grinned. “Seats this high up would be considered terrible at a baseball game, but are considered to be some of the best seats in the house for Quidditch.”
“Much closer to the action,” Jack said, as he leaned over and kissed Dean on the cheek. “Thank you for winning the tickets and inviting us.”
Dean smiled as he turned his head and kissed the tip of Jack’s nose, making him giggle, before he said, “As if I’d enter a contest and actually win seats for the Quidditch World Cup and then not invite my best friend, boyfriend, and literal soulmate as one of my guests.”
“I should hope not,” Jake said with a grin.
Dean, Jack, and Jake were all in Wampus house at Ilvermorny and had, thankfully, been assigned to the same dormitory. In their third year, Dean, Jack, and Jake also tried out for the Wampus Quidditch team, after several spots on the team opened up due to seventh year players graduating at the end of the previous year.
Dean earned a spot as the reserve beater which he held for all of third year, before being promoted to the main team in his fourth year, when one of the beaters, who’d also been team Captain in Dean’s third year, graduated. Jack and Jake, meanwhile, shared one of the three chaser positions on the Wampus team.
“Do you boys want to accompany us to the lounge box?” Kate Milligan asked. “Adam and Sam want to see it.”
Dean entered a contest at Ilvermorny and won tickets for the Quidditch World Cup in one of the so-called “money” boxes, as a wealthy American wizard had bought several tickets in the box and then raffled them off in a contest for current Ilvermorny students. Dean won five seats, so he invited Jack and Jake, who obviously shared a single seat, along with Sam, Adam, and Adam’s mom Kate. It was a requirement of using the tickets that at least one person for each block of seats was a legal adult. John was busy on a hunting job that had become a bit more involved than he initially expected, so he asked Adam’s mom if she’d be their chaperone.
“Sure, why not?” Dean asked, as Jack and Jake nodded, as they moved away from the railing at the front of their box, and followed Kate, Sam, and Adam to the lounge.
-o-0-o-
Hadrian, Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter walked into the Top Box Lounge and found it mostly deserted. There were a few people scattered about the large room, but nowhere near it’s capacity. If Hadrian had to guess there were probably less than ten percent of the total people the lounge could hold currently using it.
“Well, not many people here, but let’s mingle with those that are,” Hadrian said, as he and his soulmates and boyfriends nodded in agreement.
About five minutes later, a new group of six people arrived, with Kaidan, Karter, Micheil, and Finlay immediately noticing two of them as they tended to notice other sets of twins who were like them, not only conjoined, but sharing a single body between them. Kaidan and Karter took an extra interest in the new pair of twins because they had something else in common… not being identical and having different ethnicities.
While Kaidan was white and Karter was black, the new pair of twins were a white boy with a curly mop of blond hair on the top of his head, with the sides and back shaved short, and an Asian boy with short, wavy black hair. Kaidan and Karter were just about to walk over and introduce themselves, when the young boy in the group, who couldn’t be more than about seven or eight, ran forward from the door toward the door out to the outdoor section of the box.
“Adam, don’t run!” the adult woman of the group, who from the resemblance, Micheil and Finlay both assumed was the boy’s mother chastised.
Adam didn’t listen, however, and darting around a table, his eyes fixed on his destination, he didn’t notice when Hadrian took a step backward right into his path…
“Oof,” Hadrian said as he found himself knocked over, the small golden circlet with the Potter family coat of arms emblazoned upon it falling to the floor as the little boy who ran into him ended up sprawled out on top of him.
“Adam!” Kate said, as she walked over, her hands on her hips, and said, “I told you not to run!”
“I’m sorry,” Adam said, looking abashed.
“It’s not your Mum you should be apologizing to, little bro,” Dean said, as he walked over and helped his brother off the floor, before holding out a hand to the man he’d bowled over.
“Hello,” Dean said. “I’m Dean Winchester. Sorry for my little brother.”
Taking Dean’s hand, Hadrian said, “It’s okay. I was his age once, I get that he’s excited.”
“You dropped this,” Adam said, as he picked up the circlet and held it out to Hadrian. “I’m sorry for knocking you down.”
“Apology accepted,” Hadrian said, as he took the circlet from Adam, their fingers brushing lightly as they did.
Hadrian ignored the chuckle in the back of his mind from the voice he sometimes heard in his head. He’d gotten very good at ignoring it unless it decided to be insistent about it. This wasn’t one of those times.
As Hadrian placed the circlet back upon his head, Adam cocked his head to one side and asked, “Why are you wearing a crown and a skirt?”
“Adam,” Sam said as he came over. “It’s not a skirt. It’s a kilt.”
Looking over at Sam, Adam, confused, asked, “What’s the difference?”
“Skirts are usually worn by women all over the world,” Jack said, as he joined the group, before Jake, picked up, “Kilts are a different type of garment, generally made of wool with tartan patterns and are worn by men, especially here in Scotland.”
Before Hadrian could answer about the crown, the woman introduced herself as Kate Milligan and her son as Adam Milligan. Sam then introduced himself as Sam Winchester, brother of Dean and explained they were Adam’s half-brothers.
“I’m Hadrian Potter,” Hadrian said, as he knelt in front of Adam and said, “As for the crown, well, my full name and title is His Most Royal Highness Prince-Elector Hadrian James, Lord and Head of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, and the Grand Duke of Cambria.”
“So you’re a prince?” Adam asked.
Nodding, Hadrian said, “Yes, I am.” Nodding behind him at Micheil, Finlay, Kaidan, and Karter, who were all wearing circlets of their own, he added, “So are they.”
Holding out his hand to Dean, since he was closest, Finlay said, “His Grand Ducal Highness Prince Finlay MacDougal of the Uttermost Ancient and Most Noble House of MacDougal,” tilting his head in Micheil’s direction, he added, “And my brother, Prince Micheil.”
“Nice to meet you,” Dean said, shaking Finlay’s hand. He knew that he’d probably be meeting some famous and rich people in the best seats in the house, but he hadn’t expected to meet literal royalty.
Holding out his hand to Sam, Kaidan said, “I’m His Grand Ducal Highness Prince-Consort Kaidan MacDougal, and this is my brother, Prince-Consort Karter.”
“We’re married to Micheil and Finlay,” Karter added.
“Nice to meet you,” Sam said, shaking Kaidan’s hand.
“So why are your titles different?” Adam asked. “Most Royal and Grand Ducal?”
“Fin and I are King Logan’s and King-Consort Cliffton’s sons,” Micheil explained. “As the elected monarch, King Logan is technically the Lord and Head of the Foremost Ancient and Most Royal House of Pendragon… yes, like King Arthur…” as he noticed the look on Adam’s face, “but only the monarch and their spouse bear the Pendragon name.”
“Their children,” Finlay said, “of which Mic and I are the eldest of seven total are all members of House MacDougal, the house that Father, King Logan, was a member of before he was elected King.”
“The children and grandchildren of the sitting monarch, or a past monarch,” Hadrian added, “are given the title of Prince or Princess and the style of His or Her Grand Ducal Highness. It differentiates them from the children and grandchildren of the seven Grand Dukes and Prince-Electors.”
“Albion and Iwernia is an elective monarchy,” Sam explained to his brothers, Kate, and the Shen twins. “I read about it when Dean invited us to the Cup. The seven Prince-Electors, the heads of the seven Grand Ducal Houses, elect someone to hold the position of King until death or fifty years, whichever comes first. That person is always a younger son, brother, or nephew of one of the Grand Ducal Houses.”
“In a nutshell,” Hadrian said, “the King is Head of State and while he does personally govern some land within the Kingdom, he has no control whatsoever over the Grand Duchies belonging to the seven Grand Dukes who elected him. We handle the vast majority of internal affairs, while the King and his family handle the external affairs.”
“We’re basically ambassadors with fancy titles,” Micheil said.
“Interesting,” Jack said.
“We’re from America,” Jake said. “Dean, Jack, and I are students at Ilvermorny and Dean won tickets in one of the money boxes to the Cup from a school contest. So he invited us, Sam, Adam, and Adam’s mom to come with him.”
“Interesting,” Hadrian said, as the two groups, hitting it off quite well, settled down to chat for the next half-hour, before they all said their goodbyes, for now, and returned to their respective boxes when the announcement was made that the game would be starting in ten minutes.
-o-0-o-
To be continued…
Notes:
And there you have Ch20 of The Seventh Olympian. So, Hadrian and company have met the Winchesters. Next chapter, he’ll be meeting another of his soulmates. For those paying attention to the tags on this story, you can probably guess that he actually did meet one of his soulmates in this chapter… only he doesn’t know it because the person in question is still too young to have manifested their soulmark.