Chapter 4
31st of May 1989
It was time for the reading of the wills. Since Harry was Lord Potter now, he could read the wills beforehand and in the other reading would be called those who got something.
“Here are the wills. You can unseal them whenever you are ready”, Ragnok said, handing the wills to Harry.
Harry took a deep breath and opened the wills. His hands shook so he handed them back to Ragnok and asked: “Could you read them aloud?”
Ragnok took the wills and read aloud: “We are James Fleamont and Lily Marie Potter. We are with a straight mind, free of potions and charms. No one is making us to do this. So mote it be! Before you read any longer, we want to inform you that we are making a memory for you so you can also look at us while hearing this.” Ragnok stopped at that and looked at Ironblade.
“I'll go looking for them and I will fetch them and bring them with me”, Ironblade said. “There were also memories for some of the people with the will, so I didn’t look too closely since that’s the protocol.”
After Ironblade came back with a vial, everyone was already feeling a little bit restless.
He put the vial on the table and took a pensieve out of his pocket and placed it on the table. He poured the silvery liquid into the pensieve.
Two people rose out of the bowl. Harry looked at them and for the first time everyone could read his emotions like an open book. He already had tears in his eyes just from the sight of them. Then everyone realised this was the first time the boy had ever seen his parents that he could remember. That would break even the most hardened soldiers.
The figures started to speak: “We are James Fleamont and Lily Marie Potter. We are with a straight mind, free of potions and charms. No one is making us do this. So mote it be!” After that the will went differently.
“Firstly for our dear son Harry, we are sorry that you are hearing this. It means that we are dead. We love you so much and we are sorry for leaving you this early. We have left you letters so your guardian can read them for you when you are older and start asking for us. There are also memories of us together, our school years and life before and after school. There are bad and good so you will see our good habits but also our faults. We think everyone is just going to tell you only good things about us. We want you to see more of us. This doesn’t make us come back but we still want you to be able to get to know us if you want.
Guardianship of Harry James Potter is to go to Sirius Orion Black. If Sirius is unable to look after Harry, he is to go to Alice and Frank Longbottom. If neither of those are unable, Harry goes to people in this order: Amelia Bones, Cecilia and Amos Diggory, Andromeda and Ted Tonks and lastly to Molly and Arthur Weasley.
Remus Lupin, we are sorry we couldn’t put you on that list with Sirius but there isn’t a chance that the ministry gives the guardianship to you because of your Lycanthropy.
Harry is never to go near Petunia and Vernon Dursley.
Whoever gets Harry, will be paid a monthly stipend of 1000 galleons for his upbringing.
Here is what we are leaving to people:
To Sirius Orion Black goes the guardianship as stated earlier. On top of that we are leaving you 50 000 galleons, half of the things under Marauders that James owns, letters and our cottage in Godric’s Hollow.
To Remus John Lupin we leave 50 000 galleons, half of the things under Marauders that James owns, letters and a cottage in high Scotland with a big forest where you can roam free during full Moons.
You two can fight over the Marauders’ stuff.
To Frank and Alice Longbottom we leave 30 000 galleons, letters and pieces of jewellery, which we named and put into the vault.
To Andromeda and Ted Tonks we leave 10 000 galleons and pieces of jewellery, which we named and put into the vault.
To Peter Pettigrew we leave nothing since it is your fault that we are dead in the first place if it was Voldemort who got to us first.
To Albus Dumbledore we leave nothing. You also were the caster of our Fidelius-charm. We found out about you and we put memories, letters and our notes to the vault to Harry’s guardian to sort out and do what they think is the best way to act. We don’t have a different place available right now and Sirius is currently working to find us a different place. We can’t do anything yet so that we don’t raise suspicion on Dumbledore and Peter Pettigrew. Our best chance is to hope that they don’t act yet for their own goals. But if you are listening to this, our hopes were in vain.
In the vault is also better evidence of Sirius not being guilty if Peter is the one who betrays us before Dumbledore can act. You don’t have to use this memory of us to prove him being not guilty because it also tells about Dumbledore and we don’t know how you want to act on that part.
All the rest that we have in our name goes to our lovely son Harry James Potter. We hope you live a happy life, find good friends and maybe a lover and eventually a family. Remember to have a good time.
We wish best for everyone and hope you can live the rest of your life happily!”
With that the two figures dissolved in the air.
Everyone just stood there in silence for a while and digested everything they had heard.
Finally Ragnok cleared his throat and everyone startled slightly, having forgotten about the world around them. “That at least cleared the suspicion about Sirius for not being guilty”, said Ragnok. “This however didn’t help with the guardianship since Harry Potter needs to die and it would look suspicious for Sirius to take in a “random” boy who nobody has heard of before so soon after being cleared”, he continued.
“Dumbledore will try to do something to Sirius or to the one who is in charge of his case before they can get him free”, Ironblade said, thinking hard how they could go around that.
“What if I make my first appearance via letter and signet and request for him to be handed to the care of the House of Reynes. It would make the News and everyone would be on their toes and waiting for me to appear next. Nobody would have time to look too closely at the case of Harry Potter and him not having much of his inheritance left”, Harry said.
All of them looked at the young boy in surprise. Nobody had really realised before how mature the soon to be nine years old boy was. And they were hit by a wave of sadness and anger.
“That would be an excellent plan”, said Silverclaw. “It would also give us a little bit of time to make better plans for your future and find tutors that could help you become the best King this world has ever seen.”
“Since I’m also blood of the Blacks, we could find me a guardian and tutors that way”, Harry suggested. "They could also help with Sirius."
Now they looked more thoughtful than surprised.
“That could work”, Ragnok said. “We could contact the living Blacks and hold an emergency meeting for them. Since they are from the same blood you could make them take a blood bond to serve only you. That would make them in a better position and status in your Kingdom”, he continued.
“That is actually the best bet we have right now. And their family knows the culture, customs, etiquette, all the laws and how the Wizarding World works. They also have an infamous reputation of having a lot of blackmailing material. That could work to your advantage since you are so young you couldn’t even find that much in such a short time” Davis stated.
“I could go to contact them straight away if you don’t need me anymore”, said Griphook and left after getting an agreement from the others.
“We need to wait until after the meeting before we discuss those topics again. Would you, Ironblade, go fetch those pieces of evidence from the vault against Sirius and Dumbledore?” Ragnok asked.
“Yes I can”, he said while standing up and already leaving.
“Davis, could you go with Harry, and plan about the Horcrux with Galena?” Ragnok asked.
“Yes I can”, he said leaving. Harry started to follow him but he turned and looked at the goblins and asked: “Where is Amyntas?”
“We haven’t seen her since the Dursleys”, Silverclaw said. Harry nodded at that and left.
Only Silverclaw and Ragnok were left but they started getting the room ready for the meeting with the Blacks.
-
Narcissa was having a calm day. Draco was with his godfather Severus Snape doing some brewing and Lucius was busy in the Ministry. She was enjoying her tea in the sun room when there was tapping on the window. She looked up and saw an unfamiliar owl with a letter. She opened the window and let the owl in. The owl flew on the perch, which was put in the room for this reason, and waited for her to take it. After she had taken it, the owl flew out indicating that answer wasn’t required.
Narcissa turned the envelope and was met with the signet of Gringotts.
That was unusual since she didn't have many things to her name in Gringotts. Lucius usually dealt with the Goblins. She was curious and a little bit suspicious when she opened the envelope. She took the first look at the letter and froze. What had happened that would need an emergency meeting for Blacks was to be held.
She wrote a note for Lucius and charmed it to go straight to Lucius when he got home. She went to change her clothes with the Black house sign and left in a hurry.
When she got to Gringotts there was already a goblin waiting for her and taking her straight to the meeting room. In the room already were most of the Blacks alive. Only Pollux, Cygnus, Sirius and Bellatrix weren't there. Even Arcturus had come.
She greeted all of them formally. Even Andromeda all though they hadn’t talked in years. It was the right way of being Black.
-
“You are all hopefully here”, said Ragnok, while walking in the room with Silverclaw and Bonecrusher, who was the Black manager, behind him.
“You may be wondering why you were alerted here”, Silverclaw said while walking to table and sitting down at the end of the table with Ragnok and Bonecrusher. They got agreeing nods.
“We have a young boy who came here, a sanctuary in mind. He is nine years old and blood of the Blacks. The boy was abused and barely got here alive. It took three days for him to wake up after being healed by goblin healers”, he continued after getting the nods.
Everyone tried to look calm but especially the women were cracking with their anger. Wizarding children were considered precious since there were nowadays so few. How somebody could abuse one, was the thought that everyone had. Many witches had a hard time getting pregnant and it was taking a toll on the population. Fewer and fewer children were born. Also the fact that it had taken three days for goblins to get the child awake, hit hard since goblins’ healers were much better than wizarding. The child wouldn’t have survived in the care of wizards. Goblins also cost more which was the usual reason for wizards to tend their problems and illnesses in wixens’ hospitals.
“His Black blood comes from Sirius Orion Black and the children had grown up until now with muggles. He was placed there wrongfully by Albus Dumbledore”, Ragnok stated, making everyone sputter in anger. They hoped the anger was towards Dumbledore and not the fact that the boy was Sirius’ child. But the answer was luckily as they hoped.
“How dare that old goot do such a thing! Do you have any waterproof evidence against him?” Cedrella Weasley neé Black was the first one to show her contempt towards Dumbledore.
“We have evidence but the evidence is only available for the guardian of the boy. We hope someone out of you could take the boy in. Money isn't a problem here since there is a stipend for the child’s education”, Ragnok said.
“I could take him in”, Andromeda spoke for the first time since arriving. “But who is the mother of the boy?”
“The mother died in the war but we can’t say it before we get vows in case someone tries to get the information out of you. All I can say is that the boy is going to be the most important person in the Magical World.”
“We could swear in our blood”, said Narcissa. Everyone looked at her surprised even though some of them tried to mask it.
This was going better than the goblins had thought. They didn’t have to bring up the blood binding themselves. That way it wouldn’t look too bad for them.
“I think that is a good idea since it is done for everyone marrying in the blood line”, said Lucretia Prewett neé Black. “The boy can be safer that way and we can’t betray him knowingly without dying.”
“If everyone agrees that would help with this case a lot”, Silverclaw said without showing that they were hoping they would do that.
Everyone showed their agreement and Bonecrusher stood up and went to get everything for the ritual.
While he was gone, everyone chatted with one another quietly and were guessing who was the mother of the child and what the goblins had meant when they said about him being important to the world.
-
Bonecrusher came to the room holding a tray. There was a bowl, an onyx blade, seven empty vials and a vial of blood in the tray. Those were the only things needed for the small ritual. Everyone got ready and took the blade with turns dropping some of their blood to the empty vials. After that was done, everyone chanted on latin and the goblins added three drops of blood from the other vial to theirs. After that there was more chanting and then everyone poured their vials to the bowl.
There was a blinding light surrounding the Blacks being a mark of ritual done correctly.
Everyone sat back down and the meeting continued.
“Andromeda volunteered to take the boy in. Are there others who would want to take him?” Silverclaw asked.
Nobody said anything for a while but then Narcissa said: “I could but I have my hands full of Draco. I could help Andromeda if she needs me to.”
“I think I could use some help even though Nymphadora is already graduating in two years.”
Nobody else had anything to say to that and it was decided that the boy would go to Andromeda and Ted Tonks.
“We are going to possibly need help from all of you on teaching the boy if you are willing”, said Ragnok. “We are going to tell you some confidential information about the boy that won’t be available in years to come. You need to know it before we can continue.”
Everyone sat there waiting to hear what was making the goblins so happy but worried at the same time.
“The boy is the blood of The Reynes.”
Everyone sat there in stunned silence. Nobody knew what to say. They knew what that meant.
Then all Hell broke loose.
“What do you mean he is the blood of Reynes?”
“They are all dead!”
“The Reynes?”
Nobody knew what to make of this piece of news.
“There is more than that”, said Ragnok, making everyone freeze.
“The boy’s name is Harry James Potter.”
Nobody had ever seen the Blacks act like this. They were so emotional that it was even scarier than the silence from before.
“Are you saying that James Potter isn’t the child’s real father?” Narcissa inquired.
“No. James is the real father but Sirius blood adopted him during the ritual to become a godparent. For extra safety I assume but we can’t be sure without nobody here to tell us”, Ironblade said. “Harry is also Heir Black at the moment.”
That was met with shocked eyes from everyone but Arcturus Black. Everyone looked at Arcturus expectantly.
“I never saw a reason to disinherit him. But if Harry is Heir and not Lord does that mean that Sirius is still the Lord Black? If he is, then he didn’t have a trial because going to jail with trial will strip him of the Lordship but without the chambers’ Magic Lordships stays even if you went to jail. But nobody noticed this because they thought that Sirius had been inherited and thought the Lordship had gone to someone else after Orion’s death. I thought he had been stripped of the Lordship and it had gone to some child of Sirius which I didn’t know about since it never went dormant.”
Everyone looked stunned at first but then the anger started to show through.
“We need to get him out of there!” Andromeda said. “He should be able to educate his child but he won’t be granted guardianship because of his stay in Azkaban. I can still take Harry in.”
“We could introduce Harry as the child of Sirius who had been found”, Narcissa suggested.