Daphne Greengrass and the Importance of Intent

The Parent Trap: Part 2

"I was a prefect at Hogwarts. Did I ever tell you that?" He waited for Daphne to shake her head no before continuing.

"I was on patrol in my fifth year and came across a first-year Gryffindor who was also a pureblood. It was only a few days into term. He'd gotten lost on his way back from the library and was out after curfew by accident. He was being harassed and threatened by three Slytherin seventh-year students. Typical pureblood bullying: three against one...NEWT level experience against someone who had literally just learned Lumos. Embarrassing." He paused to take another drink of coffee.

"They were calling him a 'blood traitor' and making fun of his parents telling him they were going to teach him a lesson...all the standard insults. I could tell he was terrified but he just stood his ground with his wand pointed at them. His arm was shaking...he hadn't learned any spells that could help but he wasn't giving in. He waited until they were done, looked them right in the eye and...I'll never forget it...said 'well at least I'm not an idiot.'"

Her father paused and smiled before continuing.

"None of them had noticed I was there and before he had said that I honestly was not sure what to do. I was on one of my first patrols ever and I knew that I should punish them but they were seventh years from my own house. I knew what I should do but I was scared to do it. Once he said that I realized how brave he was and what a coward I was being. I couldn't help it...I just started laughing. I eventually took forty points from my own house and gave each a week's worth of detention. They were so angry with me and I heard about it for weeks after but I didn't care. If he could stand up to them then so could I. They were the idiots after all."

Daphne laughed despite herself, so proud of her then fifteen-year-old father. Her father's constant mantra to Astoria and her since she was a child was "don't be an idiot." She had never considered its origin but now she knew where it came from. A thought suddenly struck her. "Was it Harry's dad?"

Her father shook his head 'no' and continued. "Not James Potter but you are close...I believe his son is also a Gryffindor in your year...his name was Frank Longbottom."

"Anyway...I walked Frank back to Gryffindor and I think I became a bit of a hero to him. He always made a point of smiling and waving to me when he saw me and we became genuine friends despite the four-year age difference. We stayed in touch even after I was done with Hogwarts and really reconnected after he graduated...meeting every month or so to catch up."

Her father made to continue but his voice caught in his throat as his emotions seemed to get the better of him. Her mother placed a hand on his arm and squeezed reassuringly. The simple act seemed to be enough as he gathered himself and continued.

"I'm not sure when it changed but at some point, the hero worship transferred from Frank to me. He became an Auror right out of school and was in a secret organization dedicated to fighting You Know Who. Whenever we'd meet he would mention how much my family's public support would help the cause and I always said I would think about it. Eventually, he gave up asking. He never said anything but I could tell how disappointed he was with me. Then the Potter miracle happened. Your mother and I were so relieved and I patted myself on the back for being smart enough to stay out of it. We didn't know the Potters very well and to my shame, my joy at the war being over made their deaths almost an afterthought."

Her father paused again and Daphne was struck by how old her father suddenly looked.

"This all happened on October 31st and we were supposed to meet Frank and his wife Alice for lunch on November 2nd. I could not wait for that lunch to celebrate with them and have the chance to talk about anything but the war again. But they never showed up."