'Ancestry' had become the byword of the day and when Harry eventually sat down to have a cup of coffee and quiet word with Dumbledore's portrait, the old Headmaster admitted that Minnie was far more clued up on the discipline than he was.
'She has, right from the start, my dear boy, had a far better understanding of these things than I. I'm afraid I rather tended to dismiss it as a field of magic, it has always been so poorly researched with little evidence of the theories. But Minerva was adamant that your shared ancestry would be strong enough to protect the Blood Bond your mother made to protect you. Yes, I rather believe it is Minerva you should be talking to about this, though I would be most interested to hear the results of your research.'
Harry nodded.
'By the way, young man,' Dumbledore said, a mischievous twinkle appearing in his blue eyes. 'A pair of socks, dirty, I believe, has recently appeared on the mantlepiece over there. I don't think any of your diligent House-Elves have realised yet.'
Dumbledore smiled knowingly as he pointed towards the hall's huge stone fireplace.
Harry flushed profusely, not that Dumbledore should have any clue why Harry's socks should suddenly reappear a day after Harry had vanished them when he was slightly distracted by Draco. He retrieved them and thrust them deep into his pocket. A mystery for another day.
He decided that perhaps it was a good time to start tackling the portraits.
Harry and Teddy spent several hours scouring rooms, rooting out all the portraits that they could find with Harry steering Teddy well away from the south wing and the bust of Henry Potter. The search grew to include the help of Ammy and Ruby and each portrait was carefully stacked against the walls of the gallery, which had been cleaned in preparation. Of course, once a couple of portraits caught on with what was happening, a general excitement grew amongst them and searches began until each and every painting was unearthed from around the Hall and there was a great chattering amongst them all as if they had all woken up after centuries of sleeping. Harry took it upon himself to start hanging the portraits with the help of Ossy, Teddy, Ammy, and Hercules. Well, Hercules was mostly just getting underfoot and distracting Teddy, but Teddy was particularly vocally regarding where certain pictures should be hung so he could see them. Mostly because he liked the look of particular occupants or how they were painted. His favourite image was a great bold man in silver armour with flaming red hair and a huge bushy beard that reached his chest. He leant on his sword in triumph and, as Harry studied the picture, a horrible dawning occurred.
'You're Godric Gryffindor,' he said, somewhat in awe.
'Yes, young man, an honour to meet you,' the great man boomed back. 'And who might this be.'
'Edward Lyall Lupin, sir,' Teddy said, puffing his chest out. Teddy had found a stool and heaved it up to the gallery so he could inspect the portraits and chat to them a little easier.
'Ah! An incorrigible young man of great tenacity,' exclaimed Godric.
Teddy puffed his chest out further, even though he had absolutely no idea of the meaning of incorrigible or tenacity.
Harry smiled. 'I didn't realise we were related,' he said.
'We are not related by blood, though you might think so seeing as your family seat centres on Godric's Hollow. But I see you have much to learn, young man.'
Harry was confused. 'But why do I have your portrait?'
Godric continued, 'I believe it might be wise, as this juncture, to request the presence of Ms Granger, Ms Parkinson, Professor McGonagall, Mrs Tonks, and Mrs Malfoy. We need a collection of intelligent brains at this point. I am not dismissing your mind, Mr Potter, but these women have a particular clarity and aptitude for what we are about to discuss, whereas you and I are men of a similar mould-men of action and great deeds,' he said proudly. 'Perhaps, young Master Lupin, you might oblige an ancient man and go and fetch them for me.'
Teddy, much enamoured with the great red-haired man, charged off as directed and shortly returned with the five women and Draco in tow.
Harry and Narcissa hadn't yet been able to talk yet beyond a brief signalling of 'hello' as Harry stood in the gallery when Narcissa arrived. He was going to go down and greet her but Draco had immediately appeared and they had gone for walk together in the gardens. He guessed a lot had been discussed with good outcome because Narcissa came straight to him and took his hand in both of hers. Her blue eyes soft, slightly worried.
'Thank you,' she whispered quietly. 'Thank you for invite, for welcoming me in. And, more importantly, thank you for bringing my son happiness...'
'Ladies,' Godric bowed deeply.
'...we'll talk later...' she whispered.
Godric eyed them with a sparkle in his amber-brown eyes. 'Ladies, Mr Malfoy, An honour!'
'Godric Gryffindor,' Harry said, possibly needlessly.
'Goodness me,' said Minnie. 'A pleasure, sir.'
'He thought it prudent to have to you present while he explains why he's amongst the portraits of my ancestors,' said Harry.
Hermione's eyes were wide with wonder, though she immediately withdrew a notepad and pen. Narcissa blushed slightly and stayed by Dromeda's side, finding familiarity in her sister's company even though they were only making the first tentative steps towards reuniting. He thought Dromeda, too, looked like she'd found comfort in the connection that had been broken for so long as she linked arms with her sister.
Draco snuggled in behind Harry again, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist and resting his chin on Harry's shoulder as they leant against the gallery railing with Hercules at their feet. Minnie transfigured the stool Teddy had brought up into a long bench seat for the five women and Teddy climbed onto Minnie's lap and snuggled in with his thumb in his mouth. Even Otrera and Iolaus appeared, but Harry had noticed they had a way of following Draco around the house.
Harry couldn't quite help smiling when he saw Teddy reach for Narcissa's hand and take it, especially when Teddy smiled at her shyly and said, 'hello, Aunty Nissa.' It was then that the austere mask melted a little more and she clutched his little hand in hers.
Godric cleared his throat and looked at Harry. 'You told everyone that you could feel the power of the magic in Hogwarts, you even felt the magic of the four Founders.'
The other portraits had all fallen silent, obviously respecting Godric Gryffindor and what he had to share.
'Yes,' said Harry.
'I believe you are starting to understand why now?'
'Ancestral magic?' Harry queried.
'Indeed.'
'But I'm not related to any of the Founders...'
'Not related no. But you are united to myself, Salazar, and Rowena... all but my esteemed colleague, Helga. Ancestral Magic is more complex than simply bloodline, though that is where we'll start. Descendance is not all about blood genealogy, though many have lost sight of the fact, including the dear Ministry.' He winked at Pansy. 'And it is certainly never about the Pureblood status of the Ancient Houses. More than anything, Ancestral Magic is about understanding how descendance works and the interlinking of magical lines. Anyone who is an heir or who marries into such a position should understand this; unfortunately, the teaching has been lost over the centuries.
'So, we will start with myself and young Mr Potter here, seeing as I'm the one giving the explanations. You know that your bloodline connects back to the Peverells and it is here that we begin to get into the complexities and nuances of Ancestry Magic, heredity and descendance.' He pointed his sword at the portrait that had been moved from the library, 'Iolanthe was the granddaughter of Ignotus Peverell, who was my Godson.' He pointed at the portrait of an ancient white-haired man sleeping in an armchair. 'I did not have any descendants, but I formally named Ignotus as my heir. And that is important. Important for you to consider as a man in a homosexual relationship, as well as being important in terms of understanding your Ancestral Well. With my naming of Ignotus as my heir, my bloodline and my ancestral line passed to him. And then to his children. And so forth down to you. I am, in short, part of the Potter Ancestral Well.'
'That's why they're all bloody Gryffindors!' muttered Draco.
'Indeed, young man, indeed. Apart from, of course, our own dear Harry, who nearly muddied the waters.'
The others turned to look at him, apart from Minnie whose lips were twitching.
'What! Look, I didn't want to be in Slytherin House, okay. I had very negative feelings about it at the time. And I wanted to be in mum's House,' Harry said defensively. 'I was only eleven.'
'Ho! So, you hadn't told them!' Godric laughed, giving them all time to digest this information about their Saviour. 'Shall we continue because Harry has more complicated ancestral lines than just the connection to me?'
'Of course he does,' said Mione. 'Nothing is ever simple when it comes to Harry Potter.'
Godric chuckled. 'So I hear. But actually, it is rather more the way things should be for it is better to be connected and united than divided and isolated. Harry, you are in the same position as Ignotus at a more recent level. As you know, you were named as Sirius Black's heir and therefore are the first heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Black, before young Mr Lupin here or even our Andromeda Tonks, nee. Black, or Narcissa Malfoy, nee. Black. The first line of ascendency was passed to you through ancient Natural Laws of Ancestral Magic which actually stand above our legalities of the Wizarding Statutes. You are, as you know, not just Lord Potter but Lord Black too.'
'So, Sirius Black is now part of the Potter Ancestral Well going forward?' asked Hermione.
'Exactly, young lady. Exactly! Now, let us add to your connection to the other founders. Our indomitable Minerva McGonagall has named you as her heir, so you are also the legal descendant of the names of Urquart and Ross. The Urquarts and Rosses are, like the Blacks and the Potters and the Malfoys and so forth, two of the Ancient Houses, they are not named as Noble so there are no heredity titles. But, in reality, the "Noble" bit is unimportant in terms of Ancestral Magic. It is through Minerva's bloodline that you have become an ancestral descendant of Rowena as our Minerva here is directly related.
'With Salazar, it becomes more convoluted: the death of Tom Riddle means you are the last descendant of the Peverells. Marvolo Gaunt was a descendant of Cadmus Peverell on one side of his family and the last direct descendent of Salazar's on the other, through a complex weaving of marriage lines and named descendants, you are connected to him. However, you are actually linked to Salazar more directly through the Blacks too. Salazar married Morgana Black; therefore, your ancestral inheritance can be traced back that way too. I can see that Ms Granger has already grasped the complexity of what I'm saying...'
'That the tie is not simply through direct biological bloodlines to become the descendant of a House but rather through becoming the last standing named descendant. Blood is irrelevant. Naming a descendant is key, blood or adopted. Harry has, through unwitting circumstances, become the ancestral heir of the Ancient Houses of Potter, Black, Gryffindor, Peverell, Urquart, Ross, and Slytherin. Fleamont too.'
'Yes,' said Godric, beaming widely.
'So, you are the Heir of Slytherin?' said Draco who held him a little tighter.
Narcissa glanced at him with wonder in her eyes.
Harry swallowed deeply, 'I am now, but not while I was at school. Not while Riddle was still alive.'
'Indeed. Now, we must consider what this means in terms of Ancestral Magic,' said Godric. 'The strength of an Ancient House lies not in its bloodline but in its Ancestral Well. Too much inbreeding not only weakens genetics but weakens the Ancestral Well for the Well is fed by threads of magic coming in from many diverse outlets. My point about being connected is vital. Ironically, as some of the Ancient Houses have strived to make their bloodlines pure through controlled marriages within a limited pool, they have made the magical lines "impure" and weaker. Again, I see Ms Granger has something to add.' His eyes twinkled as he looked at her.
She blushed slightly, 'the word "incest" is derived from the Latin incestus, it means impure or unchaste.'
'Perfect. You may wish to consider lines such as the Crabbes and Averys who are first cousins in all directions for many generations. Consanguinity doesn't just weaken genetics but corrupts and violates the Ancestral Well too. The Gaunt line is a perfect example too. It had become so weak and corrupted by inbreeding that the threads of magic were too fragile, too damaged, too few... the Well was too limited and weak...'
'But Riddle wasn't weak,' interjected Harry.
'No, but his magic was corrupted. Marvolo Gaunt's parents were siblings, Marvolo married his first cousin. And truthfully, if Merope had married Morfin, as their father intended in his bid to keep the Gaunt bloodline "pure", Tom Marvolo Riddle probably would have been a squib. It was the Muggle blood that gave a new lease of life to the Ancestral Well. Of course, the Riddles, a long way back, were related to Sayres, so that magic thread existed... And it was probably that Sayre thread as well as his knowledge and interest in the Dark Arts which gave him the power he exhibited.'
Narcissa exhaled sharply through her nose at the irony. 'The Dark Lord was nearly a squib,' she sneered in condescension.
'Indeed. So, returning to Harry, the Potters have always been a strong family, not because they have a heredity tie to the Gryffindors or the Peverells but because they have never weakened the Ancestral Well by intermarriage. Their bloodline is diverse and therefore, so is the magic that flows into it. That means there are an awful lot of "magical threads" feeding into the Potter Ancestral Well which balance it and make it stronger. So now, with all those other big names attached to you, you have, a strong and healthy magical heart and what you must consider is the amount of ancestral pull that you are on the end of. You are, of course, a powerful wizard too, but that is a separate matter. It is no small wonder that when you returned to Hogwarts yesterday, you felt both my magic and Salazar's and Rowena's, plus that of the many, many students who have passed through those walls to whom you are no doubt connected to in some way, past and present. You are feeling the pull of the Ancestral Magic of all you are united with.' Godric waved his sword around again, indicating with it to the large number of portraits around the wall. 'How many surnames are repeated on your family tree?'
Harry shrugged, uncertain.
'Black, twice. Indirectly through Sirius,' said Andromeda. 'Directly through Dorea Black who was disinherited when she married Charlus Potter, burnt from the family tree by our darling Aunt Walburga.'
'And Malfoy,' said Narcissa quietly.
Draco looked at his mother in surprise.
'Your father didn't like to talk about it but in the fourteenth century, I think, there was a marriage between Gabriel Malfoy and Gladwyn Potter. Of course, now there is you two, if...' her voice faded at the assumption.
'And that is precisely it,' said Godric. 'By the way, Harry. A portrait of Gladwyn is missing from the gallery, a mere oversight, I believe, but it would be good to add her. She still has, I believe, her portrait hanging in Malfoy Manor, it might be good to retrieve it at some moment.'
'There's a portrait of this Gladwyn Potter, hanging in the Manor!' exclaimed Draco, looking at his mother.
She smiled, amused by his disbelief, but shook her head to say she didn't know where.
'Absolutely. May I continue?' asked Godric.
Draco nodded.
'As Ms Granger has pointed out, Harry is currently the last named descendent of eight of the Ancient Houses. Now, imagine that each of those Ancient Houses contributing to your Ancestral Well which will, at all costs, try not to die out and wither into insignificance like the House of Gaunt. Which, in theory, is what would happen if you had chosen not to come back to us in May four years ago.' Godric paused, possibly because of the seriousness of what he had just said. 'This is where Soulmate Magic is key in what we are talking about. Why do you think such a thing exists?' asked Godric with a smile.
'Because it reinforces and strengthens the Ancestral Well, if the right pairing is made,' Hermione answered.
'Exactly. Ideas of blood purity became an ideology because, during Salazar's time, Pureblood families were finding their soulmates within other Pureblood families. That was why he was so adamant that his students should only be purebloods. It felt right to him. And if you're in that mindset, it only takes one person to find their soulmate is a Muggle for them to turn away from such an ancient form of magic and decide on a new way of doing things which suits their rhetoric.'
'So, our soulmates are no more than our ancestors deciding our fates for us,' said Draco with slight distain.
'That is very much not the case,' said Iolanthe. 'Your ancestors have absolutely no say in Soulmate Magic. I could no more decide that you and Harry are destined to be together, any more than I could influence Mr Hercules to roll over onto his back this very instance. It is nothing to do with people and more to do with the threads of magic that are created and connected and interwoven. Soulmate Magic connects to the two most compatible people; there can be no stronger union. You two are more than just suited-you are meant to be. Otherwise, your ancestors would decide on who they considered to be from the most powerful or greatest names and the unions would be disastrous. Yes, Soulmate Magic ensures the strongest and purest way of continuing Ancestral Magic too, should new lines need be continued, but it can only do that through an absolute affinity.'
Godric sighed, looking satisfied by the conversation. 'I assume you now understand why the Ancestral Well is pulling at you, Harry. Imagine the potent magnitude of such a powerful wizard connected to so many old and dominant Houses, especially one prime for producing descendants, even homosexual wizards cannot escape such potency. That is partly why your magic is feeling so very volatile.'
'In fact,' Mione said, 'I read today that there's a belief that the original bonding between to soulmates was also the first rite of fertility. The strength of magic during a bonding and the true connection meant that, for many, pregnancy was an unavoidable consequence during that first bonding. That's why Contraceptive Spells became imperative... but even then, the strength of Soulmate Magic often means that many forget to cast the spell in the heat of passion.'
'It's a good thing male pregnancy is not a thing then,' Draco murmured in Harry's ear and Harry blushed as he also tried to control a sudden surge of magic at the memory of his and Draco's Bonding.
Mione looked at Harry in alarm. 'Maybe we should talk about something other than sex.'
Harry was mortified as both Minnie and Narcissa looked at him with meaningful smiles. Indeed, half the portraits were looking at him with intrigue.
'Doesn't this all rather point to being pro-creationist?' said Hermione, her brow furrowed.
'Not necessarily,' said Iolanthe. 'For Harry and Draco, the focus on producing descendants would be a natural outcome for them anyway. The magic seems to know. It certainly understands that family is important to you as Harry Potter and you as Draco Malfoy, perhaps that is why the magic is so strong, it is drawn to you as the right route to take. Being in a same-sex relationship is not the focus here in terms of procreation.'
'And there are always ways around such things. All the old families know this, you are not the first same-sex relationship in the history of the Ancient Houses,' said Narcissa quietly.
Harry looked at her gratefully and offered her a thankful smile.
Iolanthe smiled, 'As far as Soulmate Magic is concerned, procreation is not destiny of all couples. Even finding a soulmate is not everyone's destiny. There may be a soulmate out there for most but some people do not require that connection at all. For others, finding a soulmate is no more than asexual companionship. Some soulmates are not destined to have children. Soulmate Magic does not go against the nature of the person, so if, for example, Harry was asexual...' both Draco and Hermione spluttered, causing a raised eyebrow from Minnie. '...it would be unlikely that he would have a soulmate who was both a sexual being and sought to raise children. And if descendance is key outside a Soulmate union, the Ancestral lines would find another way, whether through a new named descendant or a previous bloodline. It is complex and not all is understood about the field of study. It would be beneficial for your Unspeakables to redirect their experiments away from trying to understand 'love' but rather, Soulmate Magic and Ancestral Magic. Though perhaps they are starting to see that now.'
'What would have happened to my Ancestral Well,' Harry said quietly, 'if I hadn't chosen to come back, after Voldemort...?'
There was a horrible silence that hung in the air and Minnie looked at Harry unwaveringly but Harry could see the anxiety in her eyes.
'Then all this would have been transferred to Edward's shoulders when he came of age,' said Godric. 'He is, after all, Sirius's nearest next of kin and as Fleamont and Euphemia adopted Sirius into the family when he was sixteen, he and his rightful descendants would have become next in line after James and you. Teddy's link to Sirius is reinforced by Soulmate Magic; with Remus and Sirius being soulmates, Nymphadora was, in essence, a surrogate. That does not diminish Remus and Nymphadora's relationship in any way whatsoever. Rather it strengthens the Ancestral chain between Teddy and the Blacks and provides the link from Sirius to his second heir after you, Harry.'
'Oh...' said Harry, looking at Teddy who was dozing in Minnie's arms, his thumb in his mouth.
'So, what do we do?' Mione asked.
Godric looked at Harry with a raised eyebrow and a knowing smile.
Harry muttered, 'clearly, I need descendants, lots of them, one for each of the Ancient Houses, preferably sooner rather than later. I can obviously name Teddy, with immediate effect, as the next heir of the House of Black but the rest... an interesting dilemma for a man bonded to another man.' Remarkably, Harry felt a little of his magic lift, a little of the tension faded.
'Yes,' said Godric in understanding. 'You felt it then, didn't you? Your word alone is legally binding according to the Natural Laws of Ancestral Magic. It is recorded. As Iolanthe said, the Ancestral Well will always find a way.'
'Eight descendants are a lot to have though...' said Mione.
'Nine,' said Harry. 'There is the House of Malfoy too.'
Narcissa returned Harry's grateful smile from earlier.
'Indeed,' drawled Draco, squeezing Harry a little tighter and making the blood course through Harry's veins. 'Which means Prince too, seeing as Severus named me his heir.'
'Well, you've got a lot of rooms here to fill,' said Mione with a smirk.
'Even if we wanted children right away, bearing in mind we've only just got together and have only just bonded, I can't dispel all that magic in one go or with immediate effect. There's still a considerable amount of control and direction required until such a time as it becomes just the Potter bloodline in me.'
'May I, Godric?' said Hardwin Potter.
Godric nodded.
'First, you may combine Houses and give your offspring the responsibility of, for example, the Urquart and Ross families, even the Fleamonts, as they're all connected. And the Houses of Potter and Gryffindor and Peverell have been combined for so many centuries they are inseparable. Likewise, with Slytherin and Black, so similarly, if young Mr Lupin is the descendent of both those Houses, that reduces the number again. There is no dishonour in connecting the Houses, we are all so interlinked anyway. And the combined Ancestral Magic is manageable too. It's just that, as you rightly point out, the combination of eight important Houses and you as the only named descendant of them all is making the situation that more unusual.'
Harry nodded, 'so we're down from nine to four heirs, including Teddy. A little more manageable in terms of numbers.' Again, he felt the magic that filled every fibre of his being dissipate a little. 'It helps, but not to a substantial degree,' he said. 'It's like its only skimmed 5% of the magic from me. This can't be the only option.'
'In terms of taming the wild magic, the need to produce children is certainly not the only reason it is occurring.' said Iolanthe Peverell. 'There are other, more immediate, traditions that the old Houses adhere to, some may be no more than traditions, others definitely have their reasons. I understand two of the most important actions you must take are to restore and update the family tapestry to include all the missing names, including yours and Teddy's. And you need to add your portrait to the gallery.'
Harry groaned. 'I really don't want to have my portrait done.'
'You could always sit with Hercules,' Draco teased and the dog gave a small whine that suggested his disgust at the idea too.
'It is a necessity,' Narcissa said. 'Portraits are normally done by the time the sitter is twenty-one-years-old and they age with you, though some old Houses do it earlier. The Malfoys have always done their portraits at seventeen, when the wizard comes of age. It is a French tradition that they brought over with them. It may be another reason why your magic is surging because your magic doesn't have that constant channel which links it straight back into the House of Potter...'
'...I can feel that conduit, especially when I'm out in the grounds or working on the house. It feels better when I'm forcing my magic back into the Hall in some way.'
'Exactly. Your portrait acts that way permanently, taking some of the excess Ancestral magic and creating a continuous link,' said Iolanthe with a smile. 'But additionally, you must remember that without a portrait, you are declining your heritage. The Ancestral Well finds that unsettling and is vying for your attention.'
'Have you had your portrait painted?' Harry asked Draco with a nudge of his shoulder.
Narcissa answered for him. 'Yes. He has. Not when he was seventeen, for reasons I am sure you understand. It was done after the war and is in France. He chose not to take it but he can use his magic to create a frame here so that his image can wander between the two houses should he want to communicate with me going forward.' She looked pleadingly at her son. 'Most of the Malfoy portraits are in storage after we had to sell the manor. Thank goodness it was only duplicate frames in the London house.'
Godric looked at Harry intently, 'you realise, young man, it is not just your portrait that needs completing but those to whom you are a named descendant of. Then you are not carrying their magic too and you are showing you are accepting your lineage. That means Minerva must join the gallery and Sirius Black. And Remus and Nymphadora for young Teddy too. And your parents are not amongst the portraits.'
The portraits had caused something of period of contemplation as everyone tried to gather their thoughts around Ancestral Magic and its complexities and how important it was. Conversations continued at the dinner table. Madame Knipping, who'd relaxed enough to insist everyone called her Hebe had joined them; Molly and Arthur had stayed for dinner; and George and Angelina and Neville too, they had come straight back to help after they'd finished work. Teddy was sitting between Luna and Pansy, adamant about hearing all about Luna's ideas for animals she wanted to breed. Harry wondered if the boy was destined to follow in Draco's footsteps in some way, he'd been enamoured by Hagrid and loved being outdoors. Narcissa Malfoy sat quietly at the end of the table next to Dromeda. Harry did wonder, with the amount of wine George and Angelina were currently consuming, if they were going to be staying too, in which case he'd put them in the east wing turret because he thought it would be better if they were away from the older women and Henry.
As they all sat around the table, Harry listened to the conversations discussing all that Godric and Iolanthe had told them. What struck him was the loss of knowledge that was not being passed down by the generations.
'Why don't they teach Ancestral Magic and the Ancient Traditions at school?' he asked to no one in particular, but the table fell silent and looked at him. 'All Voldemort's righteousness about blood purity was so misguided, two wars, all those lives, because he didn't know about the importance of his ancestry. Finch-Fletchley too, burning those houses in an aim to raise sympathy for the pureblood cause when, if the knowledge was out there, his actions totally defeated his aim. He should have been protecting the old Houses and rebuilding them, not trying to destroy their last descendants. His own ignorance as a "Muggleborn" came into play. But he wasn't even a Muggleborn, his family line was one of the old Houses until there was a squib along the way. If I understand what we've been told, his magic came from his Ancestral Well; a line of magic that was trying to be restored.'
'He was the last descendant of the Finches,' Pansy said. 'I didn't realise the significance at the time. I wonder if we were to trace the descendant of all Muggleborns, who they would be traced back to.' She looked at Hermione. 'Sorry,' she said. 'All that name calling from school was so utterly meaningless and awful.'
Mione smiled at Pansy brightly. 'It doesn't matter now, does it? Look at us all, sitting here together, all connected in one way or another, mainly through Harry and all those ancestral links,' she laughed lightly.
'It goes for all the blood-traitor nonsense too,' said Narcissa, looking at first her sister and then Molly and Arthur. 'I'm sorry too. All those half-truths and deliberate lies have divided us meaninglessly.' She reached for her sister's hand, tears in her eyes. 'Oh, I've missed you, Dromeda,' she exclaimed suddenly and Dromeda pulled her up and led her out of the door and Draco could see his mother and his aunt hugging in the corridor. He'd never seen his mother let go of her emotions like that and he stood too and joined them both, wrapping his arms around them and they huddled in a family group as his mother cried away the pain of the last twenty-five years.
'At least Walburga wasn't able to actually disown any of you, it wasn't her choice. No wonder her portrait went so mad at Grimmauld Place,' Narcissa said through her tears.
They laughed a sad laugh together and when Draco led them back into the dining room, nothing was said about the outburst, although Molly did lean across and give Narcissa's hand a gentle squeeze.
It was then that Draco announced, 'I've found you a portrait artist, you know... well, you know him really: Blaise Zabini. I've invited him over tomorrow and told him to bring his portfolio.'
***