Only one line from Deb, but it is brilliant, and really helps the story. More changes inspired by Diane as well. As usual, most of the story, and all the mistakes, are mine.
*
Saturday May twenty-ninth the Hogwarts Express left for a normal trip back to London. Almost everyone was on the train. Albus and Cleo were allowed to ride the train, although their Elves were with them, and there was an Auror at each end of their train car, and other Department of Law Enforcement personnel shadowing the train.
Scorpius and Cleopatra were met at the train by Draco and Narcissa. Scorpius asked, "Where is mother?"
"She is at the healers," Draco replied, sighing. "The healers have told her that she is too thin, and that she needs to gain weight."
The four Magi took a Floo to Malfoy Manor.
"Are you worried about her health?" Cleo wondered as they exited the Floo.
"Very worried," Draco sighed. "She has not eaten a healthy diet for years, and has been chronically underweight."
"And you care?" Scorpius wondered.
"She is my wife, your mother, Scorpius!" Draco emphasized. "We do not always get along, I know, but she is my wife. I don't want her to just starve herself to death. Of course I care!"
"Sorry," Scorpius mumbled.
Draco stormed off.
Scorpius wondered, "Grandmother, could you and I talk? I am confused."
"Come into my office, and I will have an Elf bring us some tea," Narcissa kindly replied.
"I am going up to my bedroom," Cleo told the other two.
Narcissa and Scorpius went into Narcissa's private office, and she closed the door and performed some basic privacy spells. She called for an Elf, who could Apparate through the spells she had cast, and asked for some tea. Once it was delivered, she took a drink, and then looked at Scorpius, inviting him to talk by her look.
"Does mother love father?" Scorpius wondered.
Narcissa had to think about that. "I'm not sure," she finally suggested, "that your mother loves anyone, including herself. Your father and I have been trying to have her see mind healers since well before they married, but she has resisted. I'm not sure how she feels about herself or us. No one knows what happened to her during her time at Hogwarts and she refuses to talk about it, but something bad did and it's affected her."
"Does father love mother?" Scorpius persisted.
"I think he tries," Narcissa thought. "I think the wedding charms failed when it came to your mother, but not your father. Your father tries to love your mother, but she is not an easy person to love. He does care for her or tries."
Scorpius looked at his grandmother. "Do you love my mother?"
Narcissa looked down at the floor, and Scorpius thought she was going to cry. "I try, I really do. I have always wanted the best for her."
Scorpius started to cry. "It is hard having a mother that doesn't love you. I see so much love when we go over to see the Granger-Weasley and Weasley and Potter families. I wish I was part of that family."
"Rose?" Narcissa suggested.
"I wish I was going to be ... I hate it that ... I don't like Cassie, not like that!" Scorpius fumbled, trying to get out what he was feeling.
"You really like Rose, don't you," Narcissa observed.
"I wish I could just break up with Cassie," Scorpius spat out. "I will, after the International Conference of Witches and Wizards. It is just that father and grandmother Black wore me down, and I want to go to the Conference without any more drama than necessary.
"What would happen if I broke up with Cassie and came back here with Rose as my girlfriend? Would you accept us?"
"Rose is a delightful witch, and as good a partner for you as I could hope for," Narcissa smiled. "There would be drama with the other members of the household, though."
"Would anyone else accept us?" Scorpius wondered.
"I think your father might, reluctantly," Narcissa suggested. "He does love you, in his own way, and wants the best for you. I would not worry about your mother. I hate to say it, but I am not sure she would be nice to anyone. I am not sure about your great-grandmothers. Great-grandmother Black really does love you, and she would be thrilled, if she could just see past her Pure Blood prejudice. I am not sure about great-grandmother Malfoy.
"I know your grandfather Lucius would not," Narcissa sighed. "We had a good enough marriage before he became enamored with Voldemort. He has never repented, either. I know he has killed, for pleasure and without remorse. I think you lose a little of your soul with each killing. I will have to say that my love for your grandfather has died.
"I have no idea if Astoria's parents or sister would accept you. I am not saying they would not; I just do not know. Her brother would, though. I've met Merlin Merryweather at the toy store, and I am rather sure he would be delighted. There is some Muggle ancestry in the Merryweather family, and Merlin took his wife's name! That means something."
"Rose's family is big enough I would not lack relatives," Scorpius admitted.
*
As the Sunday morning gathering at the New Burrow was ending Ron and Hugo left for Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.
Rose went home with her mother.
"Care to talk?" Hermione asked her daughter.
Rose glared at her mother, then sniffed, then looked down at her feet.
"Up the stairs to someplace comfortable to sit?" Hermione persisted.
Rose hiked her shoulders, indicating that maybe it was acceptable to her, and sighed.
The two witches went up to the family room at thirteen Grimmauld Place, and sat down at either ends of a comfortable overstuffed piece of furniture.
"You have been out of sorts all day, Rose," Hermione noted. "Grandmother and Aunt Ginny mentioned it to me, and I noticed it as well. Do you care to share what the problem is?"
"Boys," Rose quietly admitted.
Hermione waited for Rose to say more.
"Was dad your first boyfriend?" Rose wondered.
"I went to a Christmas Ball with Viktor Krum, and we corresponded for a while," Hermione replied. "He was never a serious boyfriend, I guess. I think your father was both jealous and clueless at the time."
"The famous Quidditch player?"
Hermione smiled a big smile, and giggled a little.
"Did dad have any other girlfriends?"
"Yes. Who is for him to tell you. I was the jealous one then."
"Is that why I invited Percy to spend the week with us? Just because I am jealous that Scorpius has a girlfriend, or that I think maybe I could never ever get another boy interested in me? I mean, I'm not really interested in Percy or any other boy, except maybe Scorpius but even if he didn't have a girlfriend it would never work out, and so I'm just hopeless."
"You are young, Rose. You have plenty of time."
"But I am not nice and ... willing and ... I just cannot sigh when some guy says something stupid that I am supposed to laugh at or ... games. There are games that girls play to get guys interested, and I'm not interested in those games or letting some wizard feel me all over. I'll never find someone who will like me for who I am."
"Would you like it if Scorpius was your boyfriend, Rose?"
"Yes," Rose whispered, "but you were tortured in their house! I have read all I could about the war and what you and dad and Uncle Harry and the other family members did, and you were tortured! How could Scorpius be more than a friend?
"Plus, everything changes when you are boyfriend and girlfriend. You have to let him ... it is not like I don't want him to touch me but ... it is just all different."
"Do not worry about Malfoy Manor, Rose," Hermione advised her daughter. "There is nothing saying you will have to live there. And Mrs. Narcissa Malfoy is nice. Uncle Harry's aunt is not nice to him, and his uncle was as nasty a person as you could be to someone, and Aunt Ginny married into that family. If you want to date Scorpius, I do not have any problem with it.
"I understand that Scorpius may break up with Cassie before we go to Switzerland. Just be patient."
"I guess, but it is hard," Rose sniffed. "I'm not even sure if I want Scorpius to, that is the problem. I just don't know."
*
"Why do I have to meet Jane and her friends and show them around?" Lily Luna wondered out loud, again, as she sat at the large kitchen table in the Potter's Grimmauld Place home.
"Because they are in your class, and you do know some of the other young people who live here, Lily," Ginny insisted, a little frustrated at Lily's attitude.
"Marvin Shook is in our class too," Lily pointed out. "Why did they not ask him?"
Ginny kept quiet.
"I think there are quite a few classmates who live here," Lily suggested. "Is Uncle Bill the one who keeps adding housing here? There just seem to be way more people here than before, but somehow it isn't any more crowded."
"It is bigger on the inside than the outside, Lily," Ginny pointed out. "Once the Magi owned all the houses we could make the garden area bigger on the inside than it would be possible without magic, so it is less crowded."
"Don't spaces just get bigger when you need them to?" Lily wondered. "I guess they don't. I remember something from my Muggle Studies class about Muggle spaces. I thought it was dumb that I had to take it for two years, because we have Muggle things like television and electricity, but I guess I learned a lot. It is just hard to remember how different it is sometimes."
Jane Clark knocked, and then went into the kitchen. "Hello, Mum Potter," she said, since 'Mum Potter' was what she called Ginny when she was living with the Potters. "Hello, Lily."
Lily reluctantly waved hello.
"I will contact the other students," Ginny told the two girls. She conjured her mare Patronus and contacted the three young Magi, and one by one they came through the Floo.
"I spoke to Mrs. Shook this morning, and Marvin is outside waiting for you," Ginny told the young people. "I think Blue Blackburn and Perri Dursley are with him. They are both going to Hogwarts next year, and would like to talk to you."
"Thank you, Mum Potter, for doing this for me," Jane acknowledged." My uncle and aunt do not have a Floo, since they are Muggles. It is nice to be able to get together with friends, even when they do not live close."
"You are very welcome, Jane," Ginny replied.
Lily went out the door with Jane and her friends.
Ginny thought it would be good to have Lily do something other than fly. She looked out on the large, shared garden area between the houses several times. An ever changing group of young people were playing, talking, and having a good time. Even Lily seemed to be enjoying herself. This what summer should be for children, she thought. This was what she and Harry and the rest of them had been fighting for.
Maybe they could have a nice, normal summer, at least until they had to go to Switzerland, and a nice, normal summer after they returned.
*
One advantage of working at The Ministry of Magic is that is where the International Floos were, so you could get to Switzerland, or many other countries, within minutes, Harry thought. One of the disadvantages of working at The Ministry of Magic is if people wanted to meet with you they knew you could get there within minutes.
There was no International Conference of Witches and Wizards last year, due to Covid-19, and they were talking about having an extra-long one this year, so Harry was in Switzerland for still another meeting about plans for the Conference.
Galadriel, her mate Thorin, and her sister Luthien were presenting their plans for a meeting of the beings, Elves, Goblins, and others, who were talking about becoming one people, High Elves. The last year and a half, the 'Covid Year,' had been one of great conflict and great progress for the Elves, a long and involved story that Harry was glad he was not involved with. There were twelve beings from the 'High Elf' contingent, Elves and Goblins, and twelve Magi, at a long table.
Galadriel proclaimed, "The High Elf contingent are meeting starting Monday, June twenty-first, four days before the Magi start to assemble. We have made it clear to all the key players that the meeting is not optional, and that it does not matter if their owners forbid it, they need to come."
Cindy Edington, the North American Minister of Magic, volunteered, "We have made it clear in the America's that owners have no choice in the matter."
Harry wondered, "How is that going over? I know from two years ago that Joseph DuMond was very upset that his Elves were not serving him, but meeting separately."
"The DuMond family is just abrasive," Cindy shook her head. "There are much more difficult problems elsewhere in the America's, and we do not have time to even talk about them here."
BD Wong, the Chinese Minister of Magic, added, "We have a full fledge war going on. There are villages of Magi, Goblins and house elves around what No-Maj call K-2, the high mountain. No No-Maj can live there, because it is too high and cold, but the Lord of the Dementors has surrounded himself with beings who do not want change."
Thorin the Goblin added, "The High Elves, Elves and Goblins, are involved in this war as well. We have a small army raised, and we lose members every year to the fighting. We are training a reserve army, in case a full-fledged war instead of this small war, breaks out."
"Everyone needs to know it is happening, but it is for the Asian Magi and Asian High Elves to fight this fight, at least right now," Fanishwar Chatterjee, the Indian Minister of Magic added. He sighed. "I have become involved in the issues in the Mid-East and Africa as well. I wish we had a representative or two from that region. The problems there are varied and complex."
The meeting lasted half a day, until late in the afternoon. As it broke up Harry asked Galadriel if he could talk to her, and when she agreed, called Ginny. "I am going to be home late today, Love. I am in Switzerland, and want to talk to Galadriel before coming home."
"We are going to have dinner at the normal time, and I will have the Elves just save some for you, Harry," Ginny replied. Harry tried to be home for dinner every night, she knew, and he tried to take extra time to be with her and the children, to make up for these occasional evening and weekend work. She still missed him when these things happened.
Harry sat down with Galadriel, and asked, "How involved are Albus and Cleo going to be with all these worldwide problems?"
"The Elves story is the Elves story," Galadriel proclaimed. "You do not need to be involved. Albus and Cleo may help us go back to the oldest records this summer, but the Elves story is not their story, not yet.
"If we succeed, and if Cleo and Albus can defeat the Pirate Witch Queen, then our stories will start to mingle more, but even then the prophesies talk of two wars, one of Magi against Magi and The Lord of the Dementors, one of High Elf against the old order of goblins and house elves, maybe at the same time, but two wars, two stories.
"Your story is tied to your son and his soulmate. Our story is not, at this time, your story. You need not concern yourself with our conflicts, or the deep sorrows buried in our past and all too present in our present."
Harry thought about all he had been learning. "It is not going to be a neat happy ending, is it?" he suggested.
"You know of all the people who died before and at The Battle of Hogwarts," Galadriel replied. "You know that the problems of the world did not end there. If we win, and I do think we will, the prophesies all say that it will be well worth it, good winning over evil, but that it will come at a terrible price. Your mentor Albus Dumbledore always told you, 'do what is good, not what is easy.'
"In many of the stories of heroes the hero is an orphan, so there does not have to be a mother and father terrified of the trials the hero has to go through. You are the father of a son who is destined to fight demons. It is in some ways harder to send a son or daughter off to fight than to fight oneself.
"Allow your son and his soulmate to be brave. They may fail, but better to fail at trying to be good than to succeed in saving one's life and lose one's soul."
"We need to pray for you as well," Harry suggested.
"I would appreciate it," Galadriel replied. "The prophesies strongly suggest that I will not come out of the battles unscarred, but no matter how scarred, like your Ginny with her health issues, I should have a happy life. If we succeed, if we live."
"If we succeed. If we live," Harry repeated.
It was time to go home, Harry thought, without many words of comfort. All he could do was pray, and prepare as best as he could.
2021