39

Chapter 39

It had been a great holiday the days leading up to Christmas Eve.  Harry had been mulling over the words his mother had spoken to him during their first duels upon returning to Potter Manor and they seemed to resonate with him more and more.  Elaina had been great the last few days.  She meshed well with his family and she had been working very hard in their training.  Harry had little doubt the girl would be great on the dueling circuits.  She was an incredibly hard worker and the two had been discussing magic with his family that had significantly expanded their repertoires.

Christmas Eve had arrived at Potter Manor and Harry was really feeling the holiday spirit for perhaps the first time in his life.  The Potter's plus Elaina were lounging in the sitting room decorating the tree with the nervous eyes of Mipsy on them.  Charlus and Dorea had told Harry that they had not decorated the tree since Henry had passed, and he admitted in return that the only tree he had ever decorated was in his 5th year with Sirius.  It was decided from there that the family would happily be decorating the tree together the night before Christmas.

The festivities had started that morning after training when Charlus and Harry were tasked with apparating to Ivy Cottage Tree Farm in western England to pick out a live tree that could be placed in the sitting room.  That left Elaina and Dorea to go hunting through Potter Manor for old Christmas decorations that had not seen the light of day in years.  Mipsy was even given the task of preparing dinner for the family, which she was invited to join them for, something that brought tears to the old house elves' eyes.

Dorea was in the highest spirits Harry could remember as the wireless played in the background and she lifted a beautiful star onto the top of the tree with the levitation charm.  Celestina Warbeck was on in the background, and Harry briefly pondered just how long the Weasleys had been listening to the woman's music for.  Regardless Harry recognized a few tunes and reached out to grab his mother's hand to dance around the room to a more upbeat tune.  The woman had laughed joyously as Harry spun her around off-beat.

Charlus and Elaina both clapped for the two and the dark-haired girl even whistled while laughing at Harry's ridiculous dance moves.  When the song ended the pair went back to decorating the tree and Charlus had ended up having a camera forced into his hands by his wife so he could take pictures of the woman and her son decorating.  This led to a series of photos taken with Harry and each parent, a photo of Charlus and Dorea together, and then a picture of Harry and Elaina.

Elaina approached him with a shy smile as he put his arm around her, a smile unable to fall off of his face.  Dorea had taken the picture and then demanded they wait for a moment as she passed the camera to Mipsy who took a photo of all of them.

Harry stood with his arm around Dorea and Elaina while he felt a hand from Charlus reach over his wife to his son's shoulder.  It was a moment Harry would remember forever and when the picture was taken a new song came on the wireless.  A fast-paced song followed the end of their picture taking and Charlus was spinning Dorea around the room before the teens could move away.

Offering Elaina a grin Harry offered her his hand and she looked at him with red cheeks saying, "I don't know how to dance, Harry."

Laughing, he took the girl's hand, "You saw mum and I earlier, do you really think I know how?"

With that, he spun the girl around and took both her hands stepping back and forth with hardly a rhyme or reason much less a rhythm.  The two were laughing as Harry spun the girl into his arms, and spun her around like a ballerina right out of it.  He looked over to see his mum and dad smiling largely at the pair as they swayed around the room a little slower as the song changed.

The next song was a smooth soft tone, and Harry slowed the two down swaying together softly.  Elaina sighed in contentment in his arms and whispered, "Thank you for this, Harry."

He said nothing in return but offered her a nod.  This was a far cry from his last Christmas.  A dark thought reminded him that Hermione was leading him through the cemetery at Godric's Hollow last time, and then they were nearly killed by Nagini.  It was the night he had broken his wand, and the night he felt the most lost in what to do next.  It was a horrible time in his life, and he could only be thankful he had someone to stand beside him at that moment.

Not a day passed since he didn't miss Hermione and Ron.  Not a day passed that he didn't think about what he lost.  Standing there in Potter Manor though holding the beautiful muggle-born girl in his arms, with the eyes of people called family on him, he knew he had been blessed to be in this moment.  He also knew that he couldn't keep living the lie.  Not with the people that mattered most.  Elaina seemed to know something wasn't quite right today.  She seemed to realize there were no traditions for the family.  She had said nothing, but a few times the girl had been wearing her thoughts on her sleeve, and Harry knew it was unfair.

When the song stopped he felt a soft pair of lips on his cheek and he smiled at his muggle-born friend who was dangerously close to him.  He didn't step away, instead, he was frozen by the blue and green eye that had him locked in place.  Instead of doing anything, Charlus cleared his voice making the two snap their heads toward him.  The man was looking at him with a grin, "Don't mind us.  The tree is done though, and we are going to head to bed.  Tomorrow is a big day."

Dorea was smiling ear to ear and approached the two throwing her arms around them both.  Kissing Harry on the cheek Elaina had missed squeezing them both tight, "Happy Christmas you two.  We will see you both in the morning.  Do not stay up too late."

Elaina and Harry both embraced the small woman redder than either would like to admit.  Charlus just offered them both knowing smiles as he followed his wife out of the room.  The two were still close and Harry turned slightly, offering his arm, "Let's go for a walk on the grounds."

In acceptance, the girl silently placed her hand through his arm and followed his lead towards the nearest door that would take them outside.

Snow covered the grounds of Potter Manor, and when they stepped outside there was a very cold chill in the air.  With grace Harry pulled his wand out and cast two small blue flames that provided minimal light, but enough warmth to keep the discomfort of the cold away.  Warming charms were slowly weaved through both of them as well as Harry walked Elaina towards a frozen pond that sat a little way from the house.

The skies were clear making it a beautiful Christmas Eve, and the moon along with the stars were brighter than ever.  Taking a deep breath Harry thought about what should come next.  What secrets should he start with?  What could he tell her to make her understand him the most?

"This has been the best Christmas I've ever had." Elaina said quietly, beating him to the start of a conversation.

"You and your dad didn't celebrate?" Harry asked, assuming out of things she had implied in the past.

Shaking her head she bit her lip, "He was usually passed out on the floor drunk on Christmas.  Bemoaning the fact that my mother had left him.  Any number of horrible things could have happened to her, but all he cared about was that she was no longer there with him.  I understand in some ways, but in others it made me angry."

A drunk that despised magic.  The horrible thoughts that Harry had about her father seemed all but confirmed at that moment.  He wouldn't pry to understand, in fact just in the way she spoke he seemed to comprehend more than she wanted him to.

"It's not like I wasn't used to seeing him drunk anyways.  He never wanted to talk to me even when I was younger.  He knew I had these abilities and truthfully I think it terrified him.  I think he drank to forget that he had a freak of a daughter" Elaina said with a clenched fist.

At the word freak Harry felt a surge of anger course through him and he said, "You're not a freak, Elaina."

The girl seemed surprised by his outburst, and he continued, "Your father couldn't understand how special you were.  He may have been jealous of what your potential was.  A potential he never could have imagined.  Your mum obviously loved you, and she may have left because of his drinking, but I am sure if she was able to, she would've come back for you."

A long silence fell between the two, and then, Elaina said,  "I wouldn't have blamed my mom if that was the reason she left.  I just wish if that was the case she would've taken me with her."

This last part was said so quietly Harry barely heard her.  His heart hurt for his friend, but mostly because he understood her.  He knew the feeling of being unloved by your family.  The only ones you have left.

"You want to know the real reason I didn't run away, Harry?" Elaina asked softly.  Her voice sounded weak as if she was about to admit something out loud that she had never admitted to even herself, "I just always hoped she would come back.  If I left then she would never have been able to find me again.  I just wanted a chance to be loved by my mom again."

Harry didn't even think as he pulled the girl into his arms and she choked out a sob.  Rubbing circles into the girl's back Harry whispered, "We are going to find out what happened to your mum, Elaina.  That's a promise."

The girl needed her closure and she shook her head pushing him away gently, "I don't know how I would face her.  I don't know how I would admit to what I have done."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked warily.  Was this going to be her confession into digging into dark magic?  Would this be the moment he discovered how she became so powerful?

Elaina swallowed hard before saying, "My dad was really horrible to me my first two summers when I came back from Hogwarts.  It started as just words.  Cruel things said in the heat of an alcohol-induced stupor.  I dismissed most of them and just carried on with my life trying to ignore him.  In my third year, I became a little more defensive of my abilities and… he tried to hit me, and I cursed him."

Harry's eyes widened, but he immediately shook his head, "The Ministry didn't come after you, because it was self-defense?"

Shaking her head she bit her lip before saying, "They didn't know…"

At first, Harry was confused but then she continued, "I always thought it was an inevitable outcome that my father would result to violence with me.  I also knew that if I cursed him then there was a chance the Ministry would come for me self-defense or not.  So I went to Diagon Alley after returning home from my 2nd year, and I stole a wand from a man in Knockturn Alley.  I had worried about my dad losing his cool for years, and…I needed a way to protect myself."

"You did what you had to." Harry consoled in understanding.  He remembered when he had pulled his wand on Vernon after he blew up Marge.  There had been a fierce intensity in his eyes that night, and Harry had no doubt that had he not put his wand on the man's face he would've seriously hurt him.

Wiping at her eyes and getting the tears out she said, "It was just a knockback jinx, but I was so scared it came out a lot stronger than it should have. He hit the wall hard, and was unconscious. I knew when he woke up he would be out to get me, so I…started using the Confundus charm on him.  Everyday.  For weeks at a time.  I had to keep him under the spell or I knew he would hurt me.  You see now why the situation became better over time, but far from perfect."

Realizing he now had a chance to ask her a question that had been on his mind since he first felt her power he felt a sense of dream creep into his chest as he asked, "Elaina…I know you were scared of living at home, and I understand why.  You were scared of what the other Slytherins would do to you if you weren't strong enough, which is why you pushed yourself so hard in your studies, I understand that too.  What I have to know now is did you take any measures to make sure you were strong enough to stand against your father and the others?"

Confusion flickered across her features as she shook her head, "I just trained and studied hard, Harry.  What do you mean?"

"There are certain rituals, things that could be viewed as dark by the ministry, but aren't necessarily so.  Have you ever tried one?"  Harry asked carefully, trying not to sound accusing.

Immediately she answered, "I came across things over the years, but I was always afraid I would mess it up.  I never dabbled in ritualistic magic."

Harry released a breath he wasn't sure how long he had been holding.  A small weight lifted off his shoulders as he often pondered whether his friends' abilities stemmed from ancient or dark magic.  Knowing now that she was okay he spoke confidently.

"You're never going back there." Harry said, taking both her hands in his, "When we graduate we will go find out what happened to your mum.  If she really did leave because of your dad's drinking problem, then she will understand.  Was there no other family you could go to?"

Elaina shrugged as she turned to face the water, the moonlight making her eyes burn brighter than usual, "I don't know.  My dad didn't speak of his family, and mum told me that her mother died giving birth.  Her father was never in the picture.  No siblings that I knew of.  There was nowhere to go."

Swallowing hard, Harry knew he truly did understand better than anyone, and he had to show her just how much, "Come with me."

Grabbing her by the hand he led her back to the house in silence.  With each step flashes of horrible memories went through his mind about his childhood with the Dursleys.  He didn't know where to start.  He didn't know what memory would show her the truth in a way she could see that he was just like her.

Entering Potter Manor Harry gently dragged her to the library and pushed open the double doors gently.  Tall bookshelves lined the walls of the room, but the stone basin in the middle that had a circular device resting on it was what Harry was looking for.  Taking a deep breath Harry spoke softly, trying not to remember the fear he felt during the days of the memory he planned to show her, "Remember I told you that my family viewed your memory of being attacked in the Pensieve, this is it.  I am going to show you something that is going to be difficult to understand, but somehow I am going to explain it to you.  I just need you to trust me, okay?"

"I do trust you, Harry." Elaina said with a tone of confusion in her voice.

Sighing Harry just held his eyes on the basin pulling his wand to his head and dropping a memory in the small pool of mist, "We just have to put our faces in the basin, and we will enter my memory."

Elaina nodded but looked at the bowl in trepidation.  Deciding to go first Harry placed his face in it, and felt himself get dragged into the memory.

The memory started at the zoo in the reptile exhibit area.  Harry stood by himself for only a moment until Elaina joined him.  Quickly she looked around in surprise asking, "Are we at the London Zoo?"

Harry just nodded his head and pointed his head towards the exhibit of a Boa Constrictor that ten-year-old Harry was examining with interest.  Stepping to be closer to his younger self he said, "This was the day I discovered I was a parselmouth, but I had no idea what it meant at the time."

"Wow Harry, you were tiny.  Those glasses are awful." Elaina teased.

The teasing tone died when Dudley charged up and knocked Harry to the ground leaning up against the glass in excitement now that the Boa was reared up talking to Harry.  Elaina said nothing, but watched as the glass disappeared and his cousin toppled into the exhibit.  The dark-haired girl's jaw dropped as the snake escaped its exhibit, and she asked, "What did he say to you?"

"Thanks." Harry answered simply.

They watched with mild humor as the glass reappeared and the parents of the child panicked about not being able to help the large boy escape.  All humor was gone however when the large man turned his narrowed eyes to the young Harry with malevolence in his eyes.

The scene shifted to the arrival of the family at Privet Drive #4, and the woman had a towel and blanket wrapped around her son, while Harry removed himself from the car with trepidation.  The cookie-cutter houses on Privet Drive were enough to turn Harry's stomach as he realized his grateful attitude to never having to return to his own personal hell.  Elaina voiced the question as they followed young Harry to the house, "Who are these people, Harry?"

"My aunt Petunia, uncle Vernon, and my cousin Dudley." Harry answered quietly as they entered the house.

Elaina shook her head, "Harry, I don't under-"

Before she could finish her question young Harry was thrown against the wall and grabbed by the hair before he could fall as Vernon was in his face shouting, "What happened?"

"I don't know!" Younger Harry cried out in pain, "One second the glass was there, then it was gone, it was like magic!"

The hand that swiped young Harry across the face came so fast that Elaina didn't have time to attempt to intervene.  Instead, she looked at the down boy who was grabbed by the back of his shirt in horror, her hand shooting to his wrist.  The younger version of himself had a red handprint on his face as Vernon gathered him up and tossed him into a cupboard underneath the stare roaring out, "There is no such thing as magic!"

Vernon stormed off and Harry shook his head, "Come on, let's go.  There is nothing else to see here."

Elaina said nothing as she exited the pensieve first followed immediately by Harry.  When they arrived back in the library the girl's hand clenched in a fist, "Your uncle?  He is dead I presume?  Your mother or father killed him?"

Shaking his head Harry offered a forced smile, "Not exactly."

Shaking her head she sat down on a couch nearby and put her face in her hands.  Harry for his part merely watched as she came to terms with the memory she just watched, "Harry, I don't understand."

"I grew up with muggle relatives." Harry said softly.

Elaina's head whipped towards him, "What?"

"It's hard to explain, but I grew up with my aunt and uncle.  Muggles." Harry stated.

"Hard to explain?  Harry, that doesn't make sense at all." Elaina said with what sounded like irritation in her voice.

"I can't tell you everything, not yet, but this is what I can tell you." Taking a moment to compose himself Harry sat down across from her, "Charlus and Dorea are not my birth parents.  They are my parents now in every way that counts, but they did not bring me into this world.  I am Potter, and I am not a bastard, but my circumstance of birth is a very closely guarded secret in my family.  Even James does not know yet.  I met Charlus and Dorea over the Summer and they took me in, while also creating the lie the world is being told now."

Elaina's mouth was practically on the floor, and long moments passed before she said, "I have so many questions."

"Before you ask them, let me explain a little more." Harry offered, "My parents were killed by Purebloods, followers of the man we met in Godric's Hollow."

"Voldemort." Elaina said with a frown on her face.

Nodding Harry continued, "Yes.  There was a prophecy made when I was born.  A prophecy that said I would have the power to vanquish a dark lord.  Born to those who had thrice defied him.  My parents defied this man three times before he killed them.  My father was a powerful Pureblood that Voldemort wanted to recruit.  My father however knew what they would do to my mum, and he wasn't a bigot so he stood against him."

"You're a half-blood." Elaina said as if it were the only earth-shattering thing that mattered in that moment.

"I hope me being a Pureblood wasn't the only reason you spent time with me." Harry said jokingly.

Immediately she shot him a dirty look and stood to her feet pacing around the room.  Her mind was clearly spinning in anticipation of what her next question should be.  Her eyes were now darker than he had ever seen them, and he knew she was trying to piece together missing pieces of the puzzle that she didn't have.

"So you were in hiding for all these years?  With your muggle relatives?  And none of those other Potters knew you existed?"  She questioned harshly.

In confirmation, Harry just grunted, "I was attending a magical school from the time I turned eleven.  For now, I can't tell you where.  What I can tell you is that I met followers of Voldemort along the way.  Some of them discovered who I was, and I fought some of them.  My friends and I.  We fought them."

"Did they know who you were?" Elaina asked quietly.

"Yes." Harry admitted, "Hermione, my best friend stood beside me through it all.  We had another friend named Ron who was beside me through it all."

"Did they know how horrible your muggle relatives were?"  She asked with a tint of anger in her voice.

"I think they both suspected, but never confronted me about it.  My friend Ron's family took me in for large parts of my Summer while we weren't at school.  Those were the only highlights of my Summers." Harry confirmed.

"And the memory you showed me where your uncle hit you?  Is that-"

"Only one of dozens." Harry interrupted, "They shaped me into who I am.  I hated them for what they did to me at times, but in the end, I helped them flee before I came to the Potters and returned to our community of Wizarding Britain."

"Why did you return?" She asked, looking him in the eyes.

"To protect my family." Harry said as he clenched his fist, "To put an end to this bastard before he hurts anyone else I care about.  If the prophecy says I will have the power to defeat him then I will do everything I can to live up to that.  My parents sacrificed themselves all those years ago to give me a chance at life.  As you can see I have not wasted that.  Someday soon the other Potters, and I will wage war against this man.  We are going to make him regret what he did to my parents, and we are going to fight him for all the people who aren't strong enough to stand up for themselves."

Elaina looked at him with an even expression for a long moment, before her eyes softened, "I don't completely understand.  How are you sure this prophecy spoke of you?"

"He doesn't know its entire contents.  Only a few people in the world do, but one part of it is very important that makes us believe I am the one." Harry said softly as he pushed aside the hair that covered his lightning bolt scar that anyone from his previous world would've recognized in an instant, "I survived a very dark curse that left me with this mark.  When he cast the spell on me it rebounded due to my mother's sacrifice and protection.  In a way it was a moment that marked me as his equal."

Elaina shook her head grasping for understanding desperately, "There's more to it?"

"There is." Harry confirmed, "But for now just know you are more informed than anyone outside of my family.  I trust you, Elaina.  I also needed you to understand me.  I wanted you to know that I can also understand you.  That I wasn't some spoiled rich kid that was handed everything, because I can see how it may look that way.  I love Charlus and Dorea, and I will call them mum and dad forever, but it wasn't always that way.  We came together like three kindred souls, and hearing your story I see how you have to get along with us so easily."

"Why did it matter to you so much? Why did it matter if I understood or not?" Elaina asked as she stepped closer to him, "I'm nothing."

"Not to me you're not." Harry said softly, "You remind me so much of myself.  Your drive is what brought us together.  You protected me, you fought for my family, and I have paid back that to you in blood."

"You have." She answered quietly.

A long silence filled the room as they both contemplated what they learned tonight.  Harry broke the silence, "Elaina, being close to me, it's going to get dangerous.  You know what Voldemort has taken from me.  I will stop at nothing to beat him.  My family and I will put an end to him and his followers, but this is war, and there could be a price to pay."

"His followers have already tried to kill me, Harry." Elaina said tenderly, "I have embarrassed several of them as well.  They are going to come for me one way or another.  The way I see it, the closer I am to you, and your family, the safer I will be.  If Voldemort and his followers want to kill you, they are going to have to kill me too."

Harry's heart began to thump in his chest as he swallowed hard.  Hermione had said something very similar to Sirius in his time when they thought he was a Death Eater.  The similarities between the two were immense, but in the end, it was their differences that drew him closer to Elaina.  She didn't nag at him, she never pushed him for information, even now when she had to have 100s of questions for him.  She merely allowed it to come in its own time, and for that reason, he felt Dorea was right that the time to confide in her was now.  He wondered how much his parents knew of the girl that was standing a mere less than a meter away from him.

Those thoughts washed away though as her eyes shifted above them where mistletoe was hanging above them.  He didn't realize when they had stepped under it, and he partially pondered whether Mipsy or his parents had planned the moment, but it didn't matter.  Her eyes glanced down to his lips, and somehow that seemed like enough of an invitation for him to reach a hand out to her hip and bring her in gently for a soft kiss.

It was perhaps the most tender kiss he had ever shared with a girl.  Their lips met and slowly moved together in brief harmony.  The clock chimed in the back of the room and the two slowly slid apart looking towards the clock that now read midnight.  Glancing back at her, Harry offered her quiet words, "Happy Christmas, Elaina."

"Happy Christmas, Harry."

Without prompting she leaned her head into his shoulder and whispered, "Promise me one day there will be no secrets."

It was hard to contain the feeling of butterflies in his stomach.  The slight surge of euphoria he felt from the kiss they had just shared, and he calmly said back, "One day there will be no secrets.