Harry opened the door of Number Twelve Grimmauld Place and walked in. The house had changed a lot in the past years; every surface was gleaming, thanks to the tireless efforts of Kreacher and Ginny. All the serpent shaped artefacts were replaced by more subtle decorations. The stuffed House-elves’ heads no longer dominated the stairways. The floorboards no longer creaked when stepped on, and the termite-eaten furniture had been replaced by newer, decorative ones. The house had almost undergone a complete makeover; the only thing reminding the occupants of its past owners were the Black Family Tree and Walburga Black’s portrait- two things that would probably never come off.
Silently, Harry walked into the kitchen and collapsed on a chair. He rested his elbows on the gleaming dining table and held his face in his hands, letting out a deep sigh. He couldn’t believe what was happening. His son was eleven years old, for Merlin’s sake! How could someone so young compete in the Triwizard Tournament? Harry racked his brains, searching for any wizard who might want to harm Albus. Who would want to put his son’s life in danger?
“Harry? Is that you?” a voice called. Harry heard soft footsteps, and soon someone entered the kitchen. He looked up to see his wife, Ginny. She was wearing an apron, looking exhausted from the day’s work. She smiled at him as she discarded her apron on another chair.
Ginny had grown to be an even more beautiful woman. Harry still marvelled the difference between the shy eleven year old Ginny and the Ginny who was his wife. She had grown quite tall, and her body was in perfect shape even after giving birth to three children. She still retained the perfect figure that she had during her Quidditch-playing days. Her long red hair now reached her waist, and her beautiful rosy face was as cheerful as always. Her brown eyes were sparkling, and even though it was past midnight, she looked wide awake.
“How was your day?” she asked, as she bustled about the kitchen, preparing him tea. Harry always liked to have tea whenever he came home from work. “How are Al and James? Are they “ Harry, what’s wrong?”
Ginny stopped in the act of pouring the tea and looked at Harry closely, who was staring pensively at her. He had been thinking hard about how he’d break the news.
“Harry, are you alright?” Ginny asked again, coming to his side. She rested her hands on his shoulders, her brows knitting together in a worried frown. “Has something happened at work?”
“N-no, Ginny,” Harry replied, shaking his head. “Everything is fine…” How could he tell her what had happened? How was he supposed to tell her that Albus had been chosen as a Champion?
Ginny was not convinced. “Harry, please don’t hide it from me,” she pleaded. “I can tell when you are hiding something from me. I am your wife, after all… what happened?”
“Ginny,” Harry muttered, looking up at her. He was at a loss of words. Ginny seemed to understand.
“Did something happen at Hogwarts today? Did James get chosen somehow?”
“No,” he replied, shaking his head sadly. “Worse.”
“What?” Ginny looked scared.
“It’s… Al “ Ginny, Al got chosen.”
“What!” Ginny exclaimed, standing up, her eyes widening. Harry noticed that she had turned very pale. “How “?”
“I don’t know, Ginny,” Harry replied, standing up as well, and he went closer to her. “All I know that it’s my fault.”
“How is it your fault?” Ginny asked, looking close to crying. Harry put his arms around her and pulled her into a tight embrace, stroking her hair slowly.
“Ginny, it would never have happened if I had not been the Chosen One. They are doing this to get to me. I know it. It’s entirely my fault! I’m responsible for it!”
“Oh, Harry,” Ginny whispered. She pulled away from him. “How…how can Al compete? He barely knows any magic! Surely he can't “ you have to stop this!”
“I tried,” Harry said miserably. “I told them that Al won’t compete, but…”
“Harry, you’ve got to stop this!”
Just then, green flames erupted in the fireplace. Harry turned his head to see who it was, and he wasn’t surprised when Ron stumbled out of the fireplace. He knew Hermione would tell him.
“Harry, Hermione just told me about it,” he said, confirming Harry’s suspicions, brushing the dust off his robes as he came towards them. “How the bloody hell can Al compete in this Tournament?”
Behind him, Hermione came out of the fireplace, looking peeved. “Ron, you can’t just go barging-” she stopped in her tracks, looking at Ginny with wide eyes. “Ginny!” she cried, and hurried forward to the other woman.
“I tried to stop it,” Harry told Ron sadly, “but they said that he has to compete. But how can Albus do it? He can hardly do any magic, let alone compete in this competition! He’s just a little kid!”
“Isn’t there any other way?” Ron asked, sitting down on a chair and conjuring goblets of firewhisky. They landed on the wooden table in front with a clink.
“No,” Harry replied. “They say he has to compete. Ron, it’s all my fault!”
“What?” Ron said. “Stop blaming yourself, mate!”
“But it is, Ron! He’s in this mess because of me!” Harry whimpered, clutching his hair.
“Oh, Harry,” Hermione said, coming forwards to comfort him. “Please, don’t take all the blame on yourself.”
Ginny sniffed. “Harry, please,” she said. Harry looked up. She seemed to have been crying a few minutes ago. Her eyes were slightly red and puffy, and her voice was broken. Harry was slightly surprised to see her breaking down. She was always so strong about everything. “Don’t say that. Everything’s not your fault.”
“He’s following in my footsteps,” Harry said. “It’s happening again, I’m sure of it. His name coming out of the Goblet of Fire proves it.”
“Blimey, Harry,” Ron said suddenly, looking worried. “Are you trying to say “ you don’t think Voldemort’s back, do you?
“No,” Harry replied, though he wasn’t too sure himself. “That’s not possible. We destroyed all the Horcruxes.”
“But he may have made more than seven.” This time it was Hermione who spoke.
“Dumbledore says “”
“Dumbledore may have been mistaken, Harry,” Ron interrupted. “He was bloody brilliant and all, but he was still human. He might have messed up.”
“But Voldemort cannot come back! I killed him, he’s dead!”
“I hope you are right, Harry,” Ginny said. “For the sake of the entire Wizarding world.”
“But then who’s doing this?” Hermione said. “Who’s trying to hurt Al?”
“He can’t have a son, can he?” Ron asked. “Maybe that kid’s trying to take revenge on Harry?”
“I can't imagine that happening,” muttered Ginny, sounding exasperated.
“Then how?”
“Lucius Malfoy?” Hermione asked.
“Nah, he’s not smart enough,” Ron said, while Harry rolled his eyes. “I know who it is.”
“Who?” Harry asked, suspecting it was another crazy theory. He was tensed enough as it was, and he earnestly hoped that Ron wouldn’t say anything wild.
“Dear old Draco!” Ron replied, confirming Harry’s suspicions. “That’s why his son is friends with Al and Rose!”
“Ron, stop making weird guesses!” Harry said agitatedly. “I’ve met the kid, and he’s pretty good.”
There was a long silence. Finally, when he couldn’t take it anymore, Harry stood up. “I have to do something about this. It’s compulsory that Al competes, so we can’t stop that. But we can make the Tournament safer. I’ll go to the Ministry now. Kingsley and I will think of something.”
“Harry, its eleven o’clock, you can't go to the Ministry now!” Ginny exclaimed. “And Kingsley “”
“I’ll tell Kingsley when he comes tomorrow. Right now, I’ll be there alone.”
“I’ll come with you,” Hermione said, standing up. “Ron, what about you?” she asked, looking at her husband.
Ron shrugged. “Sure.”
“Harry, I want to come too,” Ginny said.
“Ginny “”
“No!” Ginny said stubbornly. “He’s my son too!”
“But who’ll take care of Lily?”
“Kreacher can do it.”
“No, Ginny, stay here. I’ll keep you informed on everything, don’t worry, I promise.”
But“”
“Please.”
“Fine,” Ginny mumbled angrily, defeated. Harry knew it wasn’t anger; it was tension. She was afraid for her son, afraid that something would happen to him. But he also knew she was like a lioness”she’d do anything to protect her lion cubs. Like her mother, Ginny would not hesitate to kill the person who’d threaten her son... and that’s exactly why he didn’t want her around at the time.
“Let’s go,” Harry said to the others, and they walked towards the fireplace. I have to figure something out, Harry thought. I can't allow this to happen. My son can't have the same fate as me. I have to stop this. Thinking about that, Harry stepped into the fireplace and, looking at Ginny, he vanished in a swirl of green flames.
Albus Potter and the Triwizard Tournament by majestic_ginny
Chapter Notes: This chapter is entirely about Harry's reaction. Enjoy!
Chapter Endnotes: Please review, guys, they make my day. Reviews = Love + shield against writers block. :)