Aftermath (November 1981)
“Why the fuck shouldn’t I kill her right now?”
Sirius, Edmure observed from his position as far as possible from the angry wizard, was not entirely rational right now.
“Because Ashara Dayne is far more skilled at knowing what will cause the maximum amount of pain with little lasting damage,” Catelyn said dryly. Sirius almost seemed to be calm at that.
“So who is with Rhaenys right now?” he asked.
“Arya,” Catelyn answered evenly. “She’s fond of her, what with her help when Bran was hurt, and she’s stable now.”
Sirius seemed to collapse against the wall, seemingly vulnerable. (Edmure never believed Sirius- or any of the Marauders, save maybe Remus- could be vulnerable. Academically he knew that was impossible, but in practice…)
“She was pregnant,” Sirius wasn’t asking so much as turning the idea over. “Really?”
“Really,” Catelyn said, sympathy clear now he was behaving a bit less dangerously.
“She didn’t tell me,” Sirius was a bit put out at that fact.
“It was an extremely high risk pregnancy, and Rhaenys knew she was unlikely to carry to term.” Catelyn put a hand on his shoulder. “She was hopeful, from what I could see. She would likely have told you in a month if it continued.”
“Why did Melisandre poison her, though?” Edmure asked. It made no sense that he could see.
“She said that it needed to be done, and that only death could pay for life,” his sister answered, half-collapsing on the chair. That showed how tired his prim and proper sister was, almost more than her red eyes. (He’d thought she would break when Robert Baratheon had told her about Ned, but Cat had steel in her spine and had asked to speak to Sirius privately. She’d probably gather her children and keep them close for the next few days, but she’d survive.) “Other than that, I really don’t know, Edmure. Lyanna went to get a writ for veritaserum, as we suspect she was acting on a vision she refused to share with us.”
“No creepy priestess magic to keep it from working on her?” Edmure hoped not. He didn’t think that the Martells would be content to have Melisandre arrested with no answers. Even Viserys would try to kill her for this.
“None that Benjen knows of, but he went to check,” Catelyn said. She turned to Sirius. “She won’t wake for another hour or so- the dose of the moon tea was wrong, I suspect, and she bled far more than she ought, but she will probably need to see you as soon as possible. Her mother is here, as well.”
Sirius ran his hand through his hair, drawing in a breath. “I think… yeah, I’ll need to be here. I was going to check on Peter- he’s been nervous, and I planned on going to let him know how everything turned out, and James.”
“Lannister can go talk to Pettigrew,” Edmure suggested. “He’s been doing nothing but driving us crazy, anyway. And one hand or two, he’s still a good duelist. And Lily would kill you if you left Rhaenys alone right now, if Elia didn’t beat you to it.”It was cruel to bring up Elia, he knew, who had suffered for her husband not being there. But Sirius knew Rhaenys’ scars, just like she knew his. They had to work around them when they could.
Sirius nodded, reluctant but accepting it anyway. “That seems like a good plan… you’re sure she’ll be alright?”
Catelyn nodded. “Go.”
Edmure watched his sister follow Sirius out the door, and went to go find Rickon. His youngest nephew had been trying to con sweets out of the House Elf again, but he’d probably be better off with his mother right now, before he heard about his father’s death in the worst possible way.
~
Elia stifled the reflexive smile when she came into her daughter’s room the first morning of November. Trys and Little Elia had taken up the two armchairs someone had brought in, red velvet monstrosities with blue fringe. Trys’ wand was dangling out of his hand like he’d fallen asleep holding it, and Elia snoring softly.
Her daughter was sleeping peacefully on her back, a bit pale and with massive circles under her eyes, her fiancé curled around one side and hiding his face in her hair.
She’d let them sleep- Jaime and Arthur had just come in, full of strange news stories and rumors. If any of them were true, neither would be getting any rest after this.
She sat on the deep windowsill, watching them all rest for a few moments.
Little Elia stirred first, responding to the heavy footfalls and voices in the hallway. Sirius sat up, pulling his wand from under a pillow as Trys’ fell to the floor. “Is that Crouch?” Sirius asked the room, rubbing his eyes. “I could swear it was Crouch…”
Rhaenys sat up, leaning heavily against Sirius. “What’s going on?”
“I don’t know- maybe they want your statement against Melisandre?” Sirius couldn’t bring himself to sound convincing. “Or… how much do you think we infuriated Voldemort when we cleared out the Isle?”
“Bit quick for him to be pulling together a revenge plot,” Rhaenys said thoughtfully.
“There were Auror operations across the island,” Elia found herself pointing out. Sirius blushed from the throat up, she observed with amusement. “Someone could have been hurt…”
“Crouch wouldn’t come out for that,” Sirius said as the door opened. “That’s Seaworth…”
“Sirius Black, you are under arrest,” Crouch said, with four Aurors flanking him. A bit much for one sleepy wizard, Elia thought wryly.
Trys tilted his head, and Elia stifled a grin at the very cross looking Baratheon twins behind the Aurors, with the dark-haired one- Shireen, Elia thought- heading towards the rooms the resting Aurors were staying at.
“Er…” Sirius looked at the others. “Does anyone know what I did?” He looked rather lacking in danger compared to the previous night, Elia admitted, after Sansa had levitated him into a bathtub to clear off the blood and muck. Not to mention the sleep tousled hair and lack of a shirt.
“I think you want Melisandre, the nice lady who poisoned me,” Rhaenys said dryly. “Unless platonic bed sharing is now illegal?”
“Shouldn’t you be arrested, then?” Little Elia asked. Trys nudged her.
“I was bleeding out, that doesn’t count,” Rhaenys grumbled.
“For the disappearance of Peter Pettigrew and accessory to the murders of Lily and James Potter,” Crouch said, and Sirius went as still as a statue as everyone else looked horrified.
“They’re dead?” Sirius sounded like a lost little boy, and Elia wondered which of the pair was holding the other up. “How?”
The auror behind Crouch- a blonde girl taller than Obara, with a look of doubt like a cloak, answered. “He found the Potter’s home in Godric’s Hollow, and they fought- Lily must have done something, because…”
“Silence, Tarth,” Crouch said, just as Oberyn and Stannis Baratheon came in, Arthur following with a look that didn’t bode well for anyone involved. Jaime Lannister was following with a look that mixed amusement and that absent sort of cruelty that made her distrust his twin.
“Voldemort’s dead, from what we can tell, and no one wants to admit a genius muggleborn did it,” Oberyn told the room.
Elia didn’t miss the tiny flicker of something on her daughter’s face.
“She managed the impossible, then,” said Jaime. “How long before we manage to forget her completely?”
Sirius growled at that, and Elia doubted the sudden tired listing of her daughter was entirely genuine. The boy couldn’t launch himself at Jaime, at least.
“So why do you want to arrest Sirius?” Rhaenys sounded very even at that, if slightly softer in volume than her normal tone. Elia was suddenly, sharply reminded of Rhaegar at that, the slight arch of her eyebrows and promise of cold fury in her eyes.
Someone was going to be broken by this, and it wouldn’t be her daughter.
“We suspect,” someone who Elia vaguely recognized, a boy Arianne’s age with curly brown hair and a spaniel expression, started, “that Black was the one who betrayed the Potters and gave up their location.” It took her a moment to place him- he’d been taken to a smaller family dinner or two by Arianne before she left Hogwarts.
“So he’s coming with us,” Crouch said, trying to hurry them along.
“Do you have any evidence, Mister Crouch?” Elia asked as sweetly as she could. Crouch drew his eyebrows together, clearly ready to insult her.
“I do not take orders from half…” he began, and a very irritated Shireen interrupted.
“Yes, Mister Crouch, after all, Miss Targaryen isn’t feeling well,” she said, and Jaime hid a smile as his niece continued, “and Mister Black was at the Isle of Faces all day yesterday, so he probably should be resting anyway.”
“Yes, Crouch, I think we should hear this evidence,” Stannis Baratheon looked well and truly furious. “After all, you clearly decided that I should not be bothered by any of this. How very lucky that my wife was able to let me know the good news, or else I should have missed all of it.”
The blonde auror- Tarth- was very bad at hiding her expressions, Elia noticed with amusement. Jaime Lannister seemed to notice it as well, because his amused look was turned directly on her.
“It has been confirmed that Black was the only one who knew the Potter’s location, thanks to some spell that Dumbledore managed to unearth,” Crouch started.
“Ah, yes, the most impossible tricksters I have ever met- and I include both my siblings in that statement, I might add- did something that blatantly obvious,” Oberyn grinned at her, and Elia stuck out her tongue, childish as it might have been.
He’d deserved most of it, anyway.
Elia sighed at the sound of even more people, including what sounded like a cane. Moody must be coming along, with Merlin knew who else.
“He wasn’t the Secret Keeper anyway,” Rhaenys said, meeting Crouch’s eyes. “Anyone could have guessed it was Sirius, after all, and he didn’t want to risk betraying them under torture.”
“The girl’s right,” Moody pointed out from behind everyone. “Black was the obvious choice, and I can’t see him or Potter not knowing that.”
“So who was the Secret Keeper?”Arthur asked, close enough that his words should ruffle Crouch’s hair, if it were any longer.
“Peter,” Sirius croaked. “No one would guess, you see, and we all thought we were being so clever, not telling anyone.” Rhaenys nudged him. “Well, Rhaenys guessed, but she doesn’t count. She lives with me.”
“He’s horrible at hiding things, anyway,” Rhaenys added, words a bit less crisp. “I know all my presents early, ‘less he picks it up the day of. Heart on his sleeve.”
“This is only hearsay,” Crouch scowled. “You are trying to cover your own guilt.”
“Well, I did suggest Peter, but only because we all thought him too much a coward to be a spy that long,” Sirius said, hands in loose fists.
“The Order had a spy for over a year, from what Dumbledore has said,” Stannis added, with a pleased look at the whole mess. “Was Pettigrew a member?”
Sirius nodded.
“And by all reports, so was Black,” Crouch persisted. “Just because he is well connected does not mean he can circumvent justice.”
“And the Exchange only had one bad moment, when we were getting set up,” Rhaenys said, “And I suspect that Sybell Spicer was more to blame for that than anything else. Peter wasn’t involved in that- it was mostly Lily and Sirius when it came to overlap.”
“Just makes a better headline to arrest a Black than a tagalong like Pettigrew?” Arthur was glaring down at Crouch. “Ignoring most of the facts at hand, and constructing theories from circumstances you do like? Black has an alibi from almost immediately after the Fidelious was cast to right now- unless you think he got around myself, Moody, Rhaenys, Oberyn Martell, Ned Stark, and Elia?”
“How do we know they are all honest?” Crouch asked, stepping right back on the pressure rune. “The girl is clearly in love with him, and Elia Targaryen is a werewolf, and less…”
“Uncle Arthur,” Rhaenys sounded remarkably like Oberyn at that moment, Elia thought dazedly, “you probably shouldn’t be holding a wand on the Deputy Director of the DMLE. You don’t know where he’s been, after all.” She tossed her mother an amused look, and Elia wondered why she even bothered being subtle.
Possibly for Aegon. He was very naïve at times.
“Former Deputy Director for this cock-up,” Jaime suggested lazily, and Elia was reminded that Crouch was a very uncomfortable man to work for, and Jaime had run into issues with Crouch before. Also, that he was Stannis’ brother in law.
“In addition to others,” Stannis agreed. “We’ve taken heavy criticism for some of Crouch’s directives before.”
And if Stannis cared about public opinion one jot, Elia would eat the Sorting Hat. He was, however, very attached to his job.
So this was what a failed coup looked like, Elia thought bemusedly. The Tarth girl was heading over to the bed, sympathy plain, while Moody was reaming out one of the others who followed Crouch. Trys and Little Elia hadn’t let go of their wands, and were watching Tarth carefully.
“I’m sorry about Lily and James,” she said quietly. “Lily was my friend, even if we weren’t as close as you and James. Renly is trying to find out what happened to Harry- he’s alive, Dumbledore said, but he hid him somewhere.”
“Thanks,” Sirius said, resting his head on Rhaenys. “You were trying to be the voice of reason back there, Brienne.”
Brienne shrugged. “I should have known better- Ronnet Connington told me we were going to get the Death Eater who helped kill the Potters, and when I found out it was you…” She snorted. “I said it wasn’t very likely, but no one listens to me.”
“You’d think with how good you are, people would admit you know what you’re doing,” Rhaenys said, eyes closing.
“I keep trying to knock sense in them, but wizards have very hard heads,” Brienne agreed. “I suppose I just have to keep trying.”
“Why am I firing you?” Stannis shouted, causing Trys to jump. “Because you are a high handed fool who puts his own advancement in front of the truth, and you’ve caused far more damage than you’ve prevented! You followed Baelish’s intelligence without thinking, you set up those damn private courts for anyone who can’t bribe their way out of Azkaban-”
“I don’t take bribes,” Crouch said firmly.
“I know that, you’d be in Azkaban yourself if you were, but you aren’t doing any good, and you overreached this time,” Stannis met his gaze. “You would have let a spy walk away without a second thought because of your own blind avarice.”
“We’ve been losing this war because of you,” Crouch snarled.
“We won, now,” Jon Connington’s… nephew, Elia thought, pointed out. “You Know Who’s dead.”
“But the Death Eaters are all still out there,” Crouch pointed out.
“And we’ll lose half of them,” Stannis ground out. “Due to petty power grabs such as this one. If it’s done properly…”
Rhaenys had fallen back asleep, Elia noticed, or perhaps collapsed would be a better word for it. Sirius was hiding his face in her hair, short harsh sobs coming from him. Brienne was awkwardly sitting near the children, answering Little Elia’s questions.
She put up some privacy charms around the bed. Sirius should be able to grieve in private, she thought. For all of her family’s worry, Elia had relished that privilege, when Rhaegar died.
~
“Is Dumbledore really saying that neither of you should be raising Harry?” Arianne looked at her cousin and Sirius in amusement. “…Well, Tyene, I do love you dearly, but you do tend to leave dangerous materials lying about.”
“I’m apparently too immature to be raising a child,” Sirius said. “I did practically bait him into saying it, but Professor Martell heard it.”
“And Rhaenys pounced,” Tyene smiled at Rhaenys. “Pointing out that James and Lily were the same age- Sirius is actually a bit older than James, if I remember.”
“And then Dumbledore tried to bring up the miscarriage,” Rhaenys said, face a blank, pretty mask. “Suggesting it would be cruel to have me take on someone else’s child so soon.”
“I honestly thought you were about to hit him,” Sirius patted his wife- much like Sansa and Willas, there had been very little fanfare, with Elia, Aegon, and Remus as the only planned guests. (Arianne had come along anyway, and Remus had been charmingly sheepish about it all.) “Then he suggested that we would be unable to deal with any Death Eaters or supporters who want revenge and refuse to admit that Voldemort got beaten by Lily.”
Jaime Lannister, from Trys’ report of the conversation, had been right. People were toasting Harry Potter, the “Boy Who Lived”, without taking into consideration that Lily had been the one to set up the protection.
“Why does no one remember how bloody difficult it is to get into Dragonstone without my permission?” Rhaenys asked plaintively. Arianne gave a rueful look at the pretty orange glass vase near her cousin- the rare times Rhaenys exploded, something broke.
“Then he finally deigned to admit that Sarella’s guess was right- Lily’s plan had a side-effect tied to her bloodline, where Harry would have protection against Voldemort as long as he had a home with his relatives,” Tyene was glaring. “I picked up enough from Lily- her sister is horrible, from what she let slip over the years. I can’t see blood wards triggered by a loving sacrifice as being all that strong, or lasting against opponents who aren’t Voldemort. Or aren’t using a wand.”
Sirius nodded. “She hates magic- I think it might have been jealousy. Lily was, well, Lily, and then adding magic to it? Imagine your little sister being that special, compared to you.”
Tyene nodded slowly. “I think you’re right, Black. And he thinks placing a magical infant there is a good idea.”
“Can we protest through the courts?” Rhaenys asked, then shook her head, loose twist starting to come undone. “No, stupid question, that cannot end well.”
“Exposing that Harry’s unprotected?” Arianne snorted. “He won’t last the week, if you do that. Dumbledore’s just counting on the lack of knowledge most wizards have about the muggle world and hoping it holds for ten years. I don’t know how well that will work out- a lot of the Death Eaters are more embittered than useless, right now, and they still have money.”
“And what about the embittered muggleborns?” Sansa Tyrell asked quietly from her position in the corner of the room. Tysha Crofter’s name went unsaid, but she’d left Tyrion- and Britain- a few days before Halloween, claiming that she couldn’t love him and live in that world anymore.
It had come uncomfortably close to the things Arianne’s mother had said, when she left after Quentyn went to Hogwarts. Her mother had been nonmagical, but the same sentiments were there.
“Mmm, some of them might want to have revenge on the world, just like a lot of the people left at loose ends because of the war.” Rhaenys agreed, remembering how very angry Tysha had been at everyone. “Still more worried about people like Malfoy walking around free. They can bind up in legalese what would get anyone else chucked in Azkaban for trying.”
“So we still have work left to do,” Arianne gave a stage smile that made Rhaenys shake her head and Sansa look at her with wide blue eyes.
“On to the next battle,” Sirius said, tone dark and unhappy.
“We’ll have to keep pushing,” Rhaenys said softly. “But we can do this- the law is on our side, and worst case scenario, we can get help. Remember, Arianne and I have a very large family with eclectic strengths.”
“So, goal one, get custody of Harry,” Sansa said firmly. “Goal two…”
“Neutralize as many of the political Death Eaters as possible,” Arianne smiled as wickedly as she could. “That will primarily be my job.”
“Goal three, change the laws, so Arianne, you take that third goal and I’ll see how many Potions Exchange connections we can use for goal two instead,” Rhaenys corrected. “Sansa, you can try and work out who we can use for what ends.”
Arianne pouted, and Tyene pulled out a sheet of parchment and one of Lily’s muggle pens, and they set out for their next great adventure.