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The yellow Brickroad	By : Lalani Category: Harry Potter > General > General Views: 8131 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor the characters. I do not make any money off of this

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Chapter Four

Making a decision

RPOV

They had slaved hard for the rest of the year, he remembered, so they could get out of the mess they had put themselves in. Their priority had been a way out of the Dark Mark. In the end, he had come up with a complicated combination of a potion and an original spell. The downside of this had been a change in both him and Regulus. While the Dark Mark would only be able to stay for 48 hours, it changed their magical cores in a way that was…disturbing. Too late they had noticed the changes. For whatever reason, the potion woke up dormant genes in their linage. Regulus had gotten off easy. He apparently had had a House-Elf somewhere in his lineage, which explained the Blacks’ desire to follow a ‘Lord’ and serve him. Regulus had gained a few new skills, like wandless apparition. Still, to this day it was too weird a concept to truly think about: How did you actually procreate with a House-Elf???

For Russel, though, it had been a near catastrophe. Apparently the Princes were direct descendants of a banshee, which explained their pale skin and black hair. And their soft, melodic voices were due to that connection. The centuries had washed out most of the abilities of a banshee until there had been nothing left but the appearance. Taking the potion had awoken most of his dormant abilities. To this day he regretted getting Belle pregnant so quickly after taking that potion, but he had been drowning in grief and she had loved him like no other. Now their oldest daughter had the same abilities.

They both knew when someone was to die and felt the overwhelming grief that caused them to cry out everytime it happened. He would weep silently while Hannah…Hannah would wail like the banshee she was. It had taken him nearly a year after the birth of his children to find a solution to suppressing their urges. In the end it had been Minuschka who had given him that: goblin-silver, blackened in the fire of a dying phoenix. For some reason, wearing jewellery made from that closed the connection a banshee had with the other side and the In-between. At least, that’s what he called the place where parts of the soul went before the body died. And that was what a banshee saw, that brief period where the soul is called to the other side, but still connected to the body. It might take days, weeks or hours, but it happened every time someone was to die. It nearly drove him crazy and the thought of his little baby girl going through that made him determined.

With this information in mind, he had gone to Albus Dumbledore to make a deal: He would give the old man the chance to defeat Voldemort, if he blackened the jewellery in Fawkes’ rebirth. He had made the old man give his oath to never disclose his involvement to anyone.

After finishing the potion and giving it to the Dark Lord, he had given Dumbledore a time frame for when to strike. It had worked out well enough and they had had nearly 14 years of peace. But apparently someone had found a Horcrux and a way to bring back the Dark Lord and everything would start again.

At least the children are old enough to defend themselves, he thought.

He knew he could stay here and hide, but with the Dark Lord thinking he had the Dark Mark it was too dangerous. They would have to return to England and to the protection Hogwarts would offer his family.

He heard a small noise behind him and turned around to find his wife standing in the Archway. She was so beautiful, it took his breath away. When he thought about what they had to return to, he felt desperation grip him and tears prickle his eyes. The only thing making noise was their breathing and the drip-drip of raindrops hitting the window.

“Don’t cry, love.” She said with a wobbly smile. “We made this decision years ago and have prepared the children. The last time we ran away, this time we will stay and fight.”

“It wouldn’t have been necessary to fight if I hadn’t been such an idiot. And you wouldn’t have been stuck with me in his.” He answered, his throat clogged up with regret.

“Well, if I had thought of contraception when you came to me scared and grieving. But what has happened has happened, and after the initial shock of finding myself pregnant at seventeen, I have had a happy life with you. There is no need for regret. We are a family, we stand together. There is nothing more to be said for this. If it hadn’t been for you, I would have never had the chance to learn magic after pretending to be a squib and then running away when they wanted to purge me from the family tree. And a witch who is not able to use her magic? That would have destroyed me in the long run.”

“It’s not your fault we didn’t use anything. I am as capable of thinking of contraception as you are. Even more so since I have been brewing those bloody potions for money through all of school. And if it hadn’t been for you Hogwarts would have been the most miserable place on earth for me. The only thing that kept me going were your letters, copying our curriculum and getting you a wand in Diagon Alley was nothing. It was actually a lucky thing your ancestors didn’t believe in registering in the Book of Admittance and sabotaged that quill to not enter any of the children’s names. Pretending to be a squib would have never worked otherwise. ”

During their conversation they had started gravitating towards each other, like always, and now he had his hands on her hips and his head resting on her the top of hers. She put her arms around his middle and snuggled into his body.

“True. Hooray for the distrusts of my ancestors in the Founding Four. Although I do believe it was more of a case of a disgruntled old coot who wasn’t invited into joining them in building Hogwarts. Old Percival has always been rather snobbish.” His wife said with some amusement in her voice.

“On a happier note, you do know that Elias and Hannah will rain fire and brimstone on our heads? The national championships start a week after the Hogwarts year begins and they won’t be able to participate.”

Russel groaned aloud at that. Two angry teenagers while moving the whole household? That was hell.

“Let us be optimistic about that. Maybe they will understand? They are smart and well behaved children after all.” He said, with forced cheer in his voice.

August 26^th

“I DON’T CARE! WE HAVE BEEN WORKING OUR ASSES OFF FOR THIS!! AND KNOW WE CAN’T PARTICIPATE??” his eldest daughter was shrieking at him at the tops of her lungs. He had put at least half a dozen silencing charms all around them for weeks now. Currently they were at The Leaky Cauldron, the formerly run-down Pub/hotel now a sparkling and shiny hotel. He had been pleasantly surprised at this, but in a nostalgic way missed the old dingy bar it used to have. The first time entering Diagon Alley through the Pub was still a fresh memory. Now you would go through the lobby out into a small walled garden and through some nice plants, up to that old, battered wall. It was different.

His daughter was still shrieking at the top of her lungs, while Deborah was calmly practicing on her Cello, making the room a cacophony of sounds that was ready to drive him up the wall. His patience was wearing thin, but he wasn’t going to yell at his daughter for being disappointed. The wailing was just her banshee-heritage making a spectacular appearance.

He glanced up at Hannah and to his shock saw her skin had turned pale and her hair darker. All of his children had their mother’s golden tinged skin and her blue eyes. Hannah and her twin Mikhail had Belle’s hair colour and her curls that had been tamed by his lanky hair, making their curls look smooth and shiny and soft. His other twins, Deborah and Elias, had his dark hair and only a slight curl to it, but with the odd light strand of hair in between. His wife’s hair tended to be a bit on the wild side. The facial features were more like their mothers’ too, only his nose making a rather dominant appearance in all of their faces. Less so with the girls, their noses were a bit smaller than his and didn’t have the slight curve he had. But the boys’ noses were identical to his own.

Considering their mother’s heritage, of course her genes would win out, he thought distractedly.

What they all had from him in abundance, though, was their height. They seemed to grow taller every time he looked away.

“Calm down, sweetheart, or you will go full banshee on us.” He said to his daughter, while motioning to Deborah to stop practicing on her Cello. His youngest child understood his meaning, put away her Cello and went into the connecting bedroom she shared with her sister.

“I don’t want to calm down! This is important to us!” Hannah shrieked at him, but with less volume.

“I understand you are disappointed. If you want to make a career of dancing…”

“Of course not! I want to be a Potions Mistress!” she interrupted him.

“…then there is no need to be THIS upset over this. Had it been your career plan, we would have stayed until the championships were done.” He said, discreetly putting up wards around him. If she lost her patience and control, he didn’t want to be hit by a banshee wail. His words had apparently appeased his daughter somewhat. She had calmed down a bit, her hair turning the right colour again and her skin going back to the right shade.

They had moved everything over before their children got back from summer camp and the only thing left was locking up the house. He had taken his daughters with him to England sooner, though. There was no need to have one of them go alone, while the other had to take care of four cranky teenagers and his wife had refused to let him ‘pack up’ her greenhouse and all of her plants. Hogwarts was going to be hit by an avalanche of sunflowers soon…

Just then, Hannah plopped down on one of the armchairs in the ‘living room’ of their suite. Deborah had poked her head out of the door and waited until her sister calmed down. She walked back in again and took a seat in the other armchair.

“Really Hannah, there is no need to yell like that all the time.” Deborah said, training her blue eyes on her sister. He was always amazed by the difference in his children. While all their facial features were eerily alike, Hannah was light where Deborah was dark. With only a slight curl to the strands it always looked freshly coiffured. Her skin was a shade paler than Hannah’s, but still sun kissed.

Honestly, looking at his four children, his first set of twins looked like their mother, while the second pair looked like him. His wife and he always joked about this, calling them Set No.1 and Set No.2. The Twin-Sets hated that.

“You are calling us the Twin-Sets in your head again, aren’t you?” Hannah asked with a frown on her face. Deborah rolled her eyes at him and he felt his lips twitch upward into a smile.

“Maybe?” he asked.

Hannah frowned, before squinting at him and throwing one of the pillows at his head. He laughingly launched himself out of his chair, picked up the offending pillow and threw it point blank at his daughter’s face. Just when he wanted to Whoop! In victory, he felt a weight jump on his back. Deborah had decided to incapacitate him, while Hannah quickly collected all the pillows and threw them at his head.

Knowing if he didn’t change his tactic quickly he would lose the pillow fight to his two daughters, he stalked into the girls’ hotel room and climbed on the bed, grabbing the pillows. Deborah giggled, let herself be shaken off his back and started wrestling the out of his grasp. Hannah was standing in the doorway, holding her belly with laughter.

“Give up, lill’ girl, you won’t be takin’ any one thang from me! Only over my cold, dead hands!” he said in his best southern drawl, with a loud and booming voice. Deborah was shrieking in laughter when he hugged her to him, while she was holding the pillows to her chest. Hannah let out a fake, blood curdling scream, before launching herself on him with a pillow in her hands.

“Hands off of my sister, you filthy beast!” she screamed in a high pitched voice and started beating him savagely with the pillow.

Amongst all the giggling, laughter and screaming, they didn’t hear the knocking on the door or the door being opened by a spell and a group of people dressed in black wizarding robes rushed into the room.

Russel himself barely registered what was going on, until he felt himself being thrown against the wall by a powerful stunner.

“WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, SEVERUS TOBIAS SNAPE??” he heard a woman bellow through the ringing in his ears. He felt two sets of hands on his face and chest, shaking him, before he heard the woman shriek again. Dimly, he thought his daughter might have lost control and started shrieking. He was fully prepared to get rid of the bodies if that was the case.

“Two teenagers? What is wrong with you! I always knew you didn’t have any sort of morality but this takes the cake!” he heard the woman continue, only recognizing the furious face of Lily Potter when he opened his eyes. Well, if he were honest, there seemed to be three of her and three James Potters. And what looked to be three Professor McGonagalls. Why his former Transfiguration teacher would be here he didn’t know, though.

“What is wrong with you, lady! Barging in here and stunning him like that! You have no right and if you don’t leave right now, we will be calling the Aurors! Seriously, woman!” Hannah said, while still shaking him like crazy.

“Hannah, stop shaking him like a milkshake!” Deborah seethed at her sister. He felt oddly proud. Deborah had all of his snarkiness.

“What?”

“If he doesn’t have a concussion already, you are must certainly giving him one, you imbecile!” Deborah went on. Her snark always came out in spades when she was embarrassed or worried and everyone got a good portion of it.

“Oh, right. Wait, we need a healer!” Hannah said before launching herself off the floor.

In the meantime, he had been able to regain some of his senses and stood up slowly, looking at the three people standing in the doorway. Lily Potter was looking at him like a cockroach, James Potter was looking at him with an odd sense of subdued admiration and envy, stealing glances at his wife in between. Professor McGonagall, the only smart one in the bunch if he were asked, was looking back and forth between Deborah and Hannah, before giving him a smile. He was oddly touched by her show of faith, but felt weird about seeing his favourite teacher look older and more wrinkled.

“How nice of you to show up to this little party, uninvited no less. I must admit, though, if Mrs. Potter is your ring leader, it does surprise me you actually found the way here. Maybe next time, you wait to ask what is going on before hexing a man straight across the room?” he snarled at them.

Professor McGonagall hid a smile behind her hand, while her eyes crinkled at the corners.

“You still dare? You have two girls, teenagers and under aged, in a bedroom and were forcing yourself on them!” Lily seethed at him.

“Forcing myself?” he asked, rage dripping off his words.

“Obviously! One of them was yelling at you to keep your hands off of her sister!” she raged at him, while stalking over to his daughters and grabbing them by their wrists. She started dragging them to the door.

“Hey, keep your hands off of me!” Deborah called out. Hannah, on the other hand, seemed to think it was past words and just twisted her wrist out of Lily’s grasp, turned around and kicked the older woman in the shin. Lily let out a wail and dropped Deborah’s wrist.

“Ouch!”

“Hands off of me and my sister, you crazy woman! I have no idea who you are, but you better leave right now before I put you to an early grave!” Hannah seethed, all the while pulling Deborah behind her in a protective move.

“Lily, let’s leave and come back later.” Professor McGonagall tried to diffuse the situation, but her words fell on deaf ears.

“Who I am doesn’t matter! I am trying to help you! You should not be put in this situation, he is old enough to be your father!” Lily said to his girls. Russel crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against the wall, quite enjoying the show. His daughters could handle themselves.

“Of course he is old enough to be our father, you idiot woman.” Deborah snarled from behind Hannah.

“And it still is none of your business, by the way! Maybe we like them older!” Hannah said.

“Jup. Older men tend to be more experienced. Young men are more concerned with getting it in, rather than being effective while there!” Deborah added. At this, everyone in the room stared at the girl in disbelief, including her own sister, before Professor McGonagall’s giggling grew more pronounced and James Potter cringed when he finally understood the meaning implied. Russel didn’t know if he should scold his youngest daughter, or applaud her.

“Wow, little sis, that one was a really good , well, shall we call it a comeback?” Hannah told her sister with a laugh.

Wrong choice of words, he thought, choking with laughter. Professor McGonagall was now flat out chuckling into her hand, her shoulders shaking.

“I can see that there is no helping you two. Apparently you do not want to leave but would rather sleep with a man twice your age and everyone else here thinks this is really funny. I will be calling the Aurors, though.” Lily replied in a rather stuck up manner, glaring at Professor McGonagall, who was calming down somewhat.

“Come down, woman.” He said, sending nearly everyone into another fit of laughter. “Those two really are my daughters. May I introduce, Hannah and Deborah.”

“You’re what?” Lily and James asked in unison, completely caught off guard.

“My daughters.” He repeated expressionless.

“You have children?” Lily asked faintly.

“Of course I have children.” He said with a frown on his face.

“And the mother?” James piped up, staring at him in disbelief.

“Wrapping up the last of our belongings with my two sons, before they come here tomorrow.” He replied.

“Oh, how delightful! You have four children!” Professor McGonagall gushed at him, before finally walking over and giving him a hug. He returned it warmly. The older witch had always been good and kind to him, even going so far as buying him new clothes after the ‘Levicorpus’ incident.

She then turned around to his daughters.

“I am Minerva McGonagall, your father’s transfiguration teacher when he was at Hogwarts. It is a pleasure to meet you girls.” She said, before shaking each girl’s hand. His daughters smiled prettily up at the witch and gushed their hellos, completely wrapping the older witch around their fingers. He snorted at their happy facades. His daughters were Slytherins through and through, he would bet his left hand on that.

Lily was still staring at him, completely caught off guard.

“And these two are Lily and James Potter, former classmates of your father’s” he heard the older witch go on. His daughters lost their smiles when faced with the Potters, already having made up their minds about the crazy woman and her husband.

He finally decided he had enough of standing in a bedroom with this many people.

“How about we reconvene in the sitting room of the suite? I do believe that would be more appropriate than standing here. Girls, you will stay here.” He said before ushering out everyone. Somehow he recently found himself too often in situations where he had to usher a group of people somewhere else, and he blamed Lily Potter for that.

“I do believe that would be better.” Professor McGonagall said while stalking out, the tip of her black hat flopping back and forth with her gait.

He dimly heard his youngest daughter whisper to her sister: “What’s with the black robes anyway?”

“Don’t know. Maybe they were at a funeral before coming over?”

My muse was nice enough to pay me a double visit today. :))
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The yellow Brickroad