Harry was currently holding Gabrielle in his arms on her bed while she slept that night.
While he absently petted her hair his mind was still far too busy thinking to sleep.
He was going to be a father. While it was indeed true that he was definitely scared about that, he had plenty of things to comfort him. First of all, he had the other girls to help him and Gabby, not he was financially well off enough to support a child, so he'd be able to get all the help he needed. As for experience, well he did have some with Narcissa's children, and he'd likely get a lot more with Amelia's so it wouldn't be like he'd be going into it without knowing anything.
At least that was what he tried to tell himself and Gabby. He needed to be strong for her - as worried as she was, especially considering her mother's reaction earlier that night.
He tried to help her feel a bit excited about it as well, as they should be. They were going to be parents! She was going to be a mother to a beautiful little girl and he was confident that they would love her to tears. He'd always wanted a big family, not that it could be helped with all the wives he would one day have, but he supposed he was just getting an early start on it.
Sirius would sometimes say that the biggest regret that he had had being incarcerated for so long was lacking the opportunity to start a family when he was younger. He'd even say he wanted a Quidditch team worth of kids before he was done.
Fortunately due to his wives sharing a similar desire to have children (as well as a bit of luck on Amelia's part for having triplets) he was well on his way to that goal, although he wasn't sure if he was going to make it. Amelia had only wanted one in the first place, so she definitely wasn't going to have anymore and Narcissa wasn't about to have anymore anytime soon with now 5 babies in the house.
Still, accidents could happen - as he now knew all too well.
Giselle had graciously went to the library and gotten them information on the contraception spell they had been using. In addition to the spell simply not being cast correctly, as sometimes happened, they also found out that very rarely - about 1 in every 10,000 uses - would fail to work properly.
That was certainly a relief admittedly, he was worried he was going to have to swear off sex (an impossibility, with his own massive libido combined with the matching ones of his girls) but evidently Gabrielle getting pregnant was just a fluke.
Besides, he'd had sex many times before then, with Gabby and with each of the other girls. So in addition to the benefit of him not having to take a temporary vow of celibacy or something, he could try and accept it as more of a miracle. Whenever children were born, he still considered them to be miracles, especially now that he would be having one of his own.
His own, he thought to himself. A child of his own.
The warm feeling put goosebumps on his arms.
His biggest worry however was still Gabby, which sobered him up a bit. She had decided to keep the baby and raise her herself, but just how she would juggle school and a new baby he really wasn't sure.
Perhaps he could try and maybe work out a schedule with her and the other girls so that one of them was always taking care of the baby while the others were in classes or something?
Just as he was thinking this however, he heard Fleur ask, "Are you still awake Harry?"
"You know I am." He admitted, wondering what she wanted.
If it was for sex, he just wasn't in the mood tonight.
...Wow, a guy not in the mood for sex with a gorgeous Veela he was in a loving and happy relationship with, that was probably a first, he thought.
"I know it will be hard, but I think Gabby made the right decision, deciding to keep her baby like she did." Fleur told him boldly.
At least Gabrielle (and himself) were getting the support she needed all ready, he figured.
"So am I," He answered, "I mean your mom and Giselle probably would have done a good job raising her, and I think I would have agreed if Gabby had insisted on giving her up... but I think she would have eventually regretted it if she had. I just feel like the baby needs to stay with her mom."
"And her father." Fleur added.
"Me as well," He agreed.
There was a pause before Fleur spoke again.
"I still feel bad for poor Giselle though." Fleur commented, "I mean this just might have been the only way she could have a baby on her own and to be denied that...well that must be so hard. I can't even imagine."
He had to agree on that account. Giselle must be really hurting right about now if she was trying hard not to show it.
"Then there is the fact that she's been trying so hard to be understanding about it too." He pointed out, "She even went and got us that Contraception Charm information we needed, that couldn't have been easy."
"We should really find a way to thank her." Fleur replied before slowly suggesting, "...Or maybe you should."
It took a second before he realized just what she might be insinuating.
His eyes grew wide at that. Surely she could not be saying what he thought she was saying?
"Fleur you're not seriously suggesting...?" He inquired, "Just after we discovered I'm already having a baby?"
She seemed a bit cowed by this before admitting, "I'm only throwing out an idea. I know it sounds crazy and it is, I just...well I think Giselle deserves to have a baby."
"So you think she should have mine?" He demanded, just coming right out and saying it.
Fleur however did not seem deterred just yet as she countered, "Well how else is she supposed to get pregnant? Evidence suggests the chance of her getting pregnant with the potion is either incredibly low or outright impossible, and the city isn't exactly overflowing with men capable of giving her the potent seed she needs for the natural method to work."
He supposed that was true, even if it was a bit out there of an idea. Or was it?
First of all, sperm donation certainly existed and was used commonly in the Muggle world.
Then again to Fleur, having him impregnate another woman wasn't as alien to her as some people might. First of all she was a Veela so she was probably more open to something like that to begin with and to add to that she was also member of a future harem of girls who each planned on having children with him, so him knocking up other girls besides her, including her own sister, was something that she should be pretty much expecting by now.
What she was suggesting he do for Giselle may not seem to be too much of a stretch for her.
The other girls might not like it though and he couldn't exactly ask them at the moment, 'Hey do you mind if I sleep with some girl you don't really know just so I can get her pregnant?'
That would go over real well, he thought sarcastically.
Still, knowing them they would probably agree if he really wanted to... or asked for forgiveness if he had already done it.
Yeah, let's try not to think about that at the moment, he told himself. One pregnancy at a time. Had he not just hours ago learned he had got a girl pregnant, and now he was contemplating doing so again?
That was just seriously messed up.
Finally he answered by saying, "I'll think about it."
"Alright, it was just a thought." Fleur demurred, "Although I would like to get your opinion on another thought I had. How do you think you would feel if I decided to ask Gabby to carry her baby for her?"
Talk about hard question to hard question. He was starting to wonder if perhaps Fleur was on some drug for all the crazy stuff going through her head right now.
"I suppose it would depend on how Gabby felt." Harry told her evenly, not sure how to stand on the issue yet.
"It's just I can't help thinking that it should have been me to be the one to get pregnant, not her." Fleur confessed, "And realistically it would be a lot easier on me than it would for her. I'm older and I graduate this next school year anyway. I might have to take my NEWTs just a bit early but after that I'd have the time and ability to raise a child and it wouldn't be like Gabby wouldn't ever see her since we're both marrying you."
It did admittedly make a lot of sense, he concluded.
"The only problem is I don't see Gabby going for it." Harry answered her, "She's just like you in that regard. She's always the one to try and make the sacrifice."
Fleur seemed to take that in before concluding with a sigh, "You're probably right."
There was a long pause, almost as if Fleur was trying to get back to sleep before saying, "Just so you know, there's nothing I wouldn't do for either you or Gabby."
"I know," He told her, managing to find her lips in the dark as he kissed her, "and I appreciate and love you for it."
After that ending note, he tried to get some sleep while still with babies on constantly on his mind.
DUELDUELDUEL
The next morning, they were summoned to the Queen's throne room.
He really wasn't looking forward to this meeting. There was a chance, however small, that she might just decide to banish them right then and there. They had even packed up all of their stuff just in case, though they were hoping that it wouldn't come to that.
The Queen appeared to still be a bit upset, but she appeared to have certainly calmed down since yesterday.
"I've given the situation a lot of thought, and even consulted the Oracle." The Queen admitted.
The Oracle, he'd learned in his Veela Studies over the past several weeks, was essentially a future scrying device, sometimes showing just words and sometimes showing complete visions.
In either the case, the current Veela Queen was the only one allowed or even capable of using it.
"What did you learn or decide?" He asked.
She looked at Gabrielle for a long moment before saying, "What I learned from the Oracle was quite...interesting. While I did not immediately wish it, I do believe that the child should stay with you. It will still mean a sacrifice on all our parts. Since Gabrielle has decided to keep the baby, then she must at least return after the child is born every summer until her daughter comes of age."
While that was certainly a better ruling than she had originally given them, it would be hard on him not having Gabrielle with him each summer.
However just looking at the Queen, he felt like there would be no dissuading her this time.
Instead of getting angry, Gabrielle managed to calmly ask, "Why is that mother?"
"I have my reasons," The Queen would only say.
As he looked at both Fleur and Gabrielle neither of them seemed to like the decision much either, a small but visible confused frown on both their faces, but they didn't at least openly argue with it.
Besides, he suspected that whether they would admit it or not, they had enjoyed the time they had had to spend with their mother and in the city.
Perhaps that was the reason why the Queen had made such a decision. She clearly regretted not having the opportunity to see much of her daughters' childhoods, she might have just wanted to not have the same problem with her eldest granddaughter.
Finally each of them bowed and thanked her before leaving, although he was pretty sure he'd find out what the girls were really thinking right after.
As he walked out however he couldn't help but stare at Giselle, who had a rather saddened look on her face and he couldn't help but feel guilty.
Shaking his head, he tried to tell himself he had enough problems of his own to worry about that. She'd just have to get a child another way.
DUELDUELDUEL
Su currently sat in the school library thinking over what happened, Pansy right at her side.
She'd managed to get herself as well as others into trouble before with her attitude, but never before had it led to someone getting killed.
How she hadn't learned her lesson by now she wasn't sure, nor could she make excuses.
In short she felt horrible. Jason might still be alive if she hadn't...
Well she was still trying not to think that way.
To make matters worse about the whole situation they hadn't had a chance to talk to Tonks yet about it.
Amber had come back into their room and found him lying there dead and what do you think happened?
Suddenly everyone was in their dorm room wanting to know what was going on.
The Muggle doctors (paramedics she thought they were called) had been called in and gotten the body soon after and the Muggle Aurors (policemen) had gotten statements from them as well as the school principal.
Fortunately neither of them seemed to be in any trouble, the paramedics almost immediately declaring the cause of death as a heart attack if you can believe that.
After all, Jason was a runner, ate well, exercised and was only 15. He should have had an excellent heart.
Magic was at work here, she concluded, it was the only possible explanation, despite what the Muggle doctors might think of to try and explain it.
Perhaps she could do a bit of investigating, but since her room was still technically a possible crime scene and people still crowded around outside of it, she couldn't exactly check there for awhile.
Jason, while annoying, certainly didn't deserve to die. He was totally harmless and she had promised herself that she would get to the bottom of the real reason he had died.
Once she had crossed off her own involvement in killing him - sure she had kneed him in the crotch, but she hadn't hit that hard... just enough to make sure he never wanted to bother her again - she turned her mind to the more likely causes of death.
Jason had been using magic, but magic almost never killed its own caster unless you were trying some pretty dangerous stuff, spells that no ordinary Muggleborn using accidental magic could have done.
That made Hazel all the more interesting.
She rather regretted being mean to her now. She was likely frightened and freaked out and Su treating her in such a capacity certainly hadn't helped.
In truth she had been just as freaked out this entire time she had been here, feeling totally out of her element. Still that was no excuse.
So that was another person to add to her list of people that her poor attitude had affected.
However if Hazel and Jason were both wizards... well there was always the chance it was just a mere coincidence, a trillion to one coincidence but still a possibility.
Or as she suspected, something fishy was going on at this school, and there was only one person who could have done it.
Simmons.
Their target was clearly smart and playing it safe if he hadn't made any slip-ups by now, but it didn't mean that he wasn't immune to everything.
One thing she had learned while growing up in China was the art of extracting information. It sometimes involved unpleasant things, but she also had been forced to recognize that it did occasionally have its applications.
Such as perhaps now.
"I think we should have a little talk with Simmons." Su suggested to Pansy.
Pansy's eyes grew wide as she insisted, already shaking her head, "That's way too risky Su. We've spent weeks here on this assignment and you want to go potentially messing it all up just because you're impatient?"
"People are dying!" Su answered vehemently, "What if whatever happened to Jason starts happening to other kids? Someone is trying to tamper with Muggles and magic and that someone is Simmons. It's the only possible explanation and I'm going to find out why and how. I'm not going to simply let anyone else die because of me."
"Because of you?" Pansy queried, "What happened to Jason was not your fault."
"If it wasn't me then it was Simmons and I can't just sit here watching and hoping that I get something on him." Su replied as she got up, "Which means I've got to ask you if you're coming or not."
"This is a bad idea." Pansy claimed, nevertheless standing up.
Perhaps Pansy was right and it was a poor decision, she thought. However she'd never felt more sure of what she needed to do in her life as right now.
She couldn't explain it, but she did know to trust her instincts in making important decisions.
Twice before in her life she had had to make big decisions and big changes in how she acted. Once had been in coming to live in Britain from China, and the second had been halfway through her first year when they had faced Quirrell and nearly died in a cave in.
Now was her third time, and she knew that if she didn't do this now, she would regret it for as long as she lived.
She didn't have a weapon, not having her wand, so they stopped by the school kitchen as they picked up a few large kitchen knives.
Pansy nearly refused taking one before she finally capitulated, putting one into her hands.
If they were spotted holding large kitchen knives, it probably wouldn't have been good so they tried to keep them hidden as best they could.
However they managed to get to Simmons' classroom unimpeded.
Having already decided that quickly and forcefully was the best option, she found Simmons behind his desk grading papers before she grabbed him and slammed him against the wall where a poster displaying a human heart was hung up.
She then pointed her knife at his throat in case he tried anything.
Simmons looked fearfully at her as he said, "Look if this is about the grade that you got on your last test..."
"Don't play dumb with me," Su insisted angrily, "what are you doing to those kids?"
At 5 foot nothing, she wasn't all that intimidating in size, but she tried to make it up in ferociousness as her eyes tried to convey destruction and pain.
"If you'll release me," Simmons answered, "I'll tell you."
Reluctantly she did so, even though she still held a knife to his throat just in case.
After brushing off his clothes a bit as if unconcerned by the knife he said, "For the record I knew immediately who you were the instant you entered my classroom, even though I'll admit I was a bit surprised by your ages."
He held up his glasses as he admitted, "Special magical glasses, they let me see magical auras. With both of you as witches it was pretty easy."
Her heart sank a bit at that.
Despite all their precautions and trying to be sneaky, it had effectively been for naught. They should have suspected the glasses despite them looking ordinary, but to look on the bright side, at least she had evidently made the right choice in confronting him if he already knew they were witches to begin with.
It did elicit a question however.
"Why didn't you try and stop us or flee then if you knew what we were up to?" She demanded.
Again, Simmons appeared unruffled, seeming to have no problem answering questions.
"That would assume that I was afraid of getting caught." Simmons replied.
He didn't mind getting caught? What was this? A sadistic desire to take credit for his crimes?
"Wait a minute," Su asked, her mind reeling, "you mean you wanted us to find you?"
"Well eventually I wanted my findings to be discovered by the general public." He explained, "Besides, I didn't want either of you to get hurt and I saw no reason to leave as long as you seemed intent on just watching me."
"Didn't want us to get hurt?" Pansy asked incredulously, "aren't you a Death Eater?"
"Was a Death Eater," He clarified, "I fell in with the Dark Lord really only because of family pressures, I never really believed in their ideal system. The Dark Lord paid me really well for my research, which definitely made me more pliant. He wanted me to figure out just how Muggleborns were supposedly stealing magic, as he believed. At first I was reluctant but eventually I decided to agree, through some shall we say... persuasion. However, when my studies in Muggle science proved that they had nowhere near such capabilities and I brought them to him, I was worried he might reject my findings and kill me. I thought by then that he was hoping to learn how to steal magic for himself, but unfortunately he had a much more sinister objective."
"Such as?" Su prodded with her knife.
"Would you mind putting that away?" He asked of her with her knife, "I promise I'll answer your questions and explain what I'm up to to the best of my abilities and then let you decide what to do. Sound fair?"
While she felt a bit safer having a weapon so close to him, she finally decided to sheath the blade between her belt and pants so he could continue.
At least he was being very cooperative.
"Thank you," He told her, "now as I was saying, the Dark Lord had originally been convinced that Muggles were stealing magic, not so much so he could get some of his own, but what would happen if the Muggles started stealing it more widespread. He couldn't risk say, all of his Death Eaters and himself or wizards in general suddenly being stripped of their powers. Can you imagine what would happen then?"
Su thought about it for a moment. While Voldemort being totally magicless was a good thought, as far as wizards as a whole would be concerned, it would be a different story. She wasn't sure if they could even survive without magic as dependent as they were on it...nor would they have allowed it being taken from them.
While Voldemort was insane, with a concern like that she could see why he would want to find out if that was really happening or not.
"So at first he seemed pleased that that wasn't going on and I figured that he might lay off the Muggles and Muggleborns so much after that," Simmons explained, "But it proved to be a vain hope. Even if they weren't stealing magic, he still considered them to be too much of a risk, what with their far superior numbers and weaponry. So he had decided to try and eliminate the risk altogether. He wanted me to create a disease that would only kill Muggles."
"That's what we've been after." Pansy decided to admit, "The package you were apparently sent trying to do that."
"Is that what you girls have been after?" Simmons asked, sounding amused, "Well you'll be pleased to know that I've been trying to save the Muggles and the world, not kill them."
That certainly caught them both by surprise.
"How so?" Pansy asked curiously as well as cautiously.
"Just think of that disease the Dark Lord wanted me to create." He recommended, "That would be just one way in which someone has gotten it into their heads to try and destroy the world in the insane belief that they might be saving it."
Dumbledore, Su immediately thought... or Grindelwald, she supposed.
"Muggle atomic weapons," Simmons pointed out, "various highly infectious diseases, other things you haven't even heard about but I guarantee you exist. All it would take would be just one person to decide to go through with it and unfortunately no matter how destructive Muggles can be, they aren't as desperate as wizards are getting. Even despite our ignorance of Muggle things for many of us, we still can't ignore just what kind of a growing threat they are and what they could do if they ever became aware of us. Even the Dark Lord had to acknowledge that and he decided that the best solution was to simply eliminate the threat all together and kill them all."
"Is that what you want as well?" Pansy asked of him.
"Oh no," He argued, "I managed to stall on that project long enough for the Dark Lord to be conveniently defeated. I was arrested after that of course, but given the alternative I'll admit to being relieved. Also while in prison I dwelled on the value of being able to integrate both magic and technology and just how much better the quality of life would improve if they were combined. Diseases could be wiped out on either side, things like cars would become obsolete with instantaneous travel using apparition, life expectancies could be extended, the list goes on and on. It would be the single greatest advancement in human history."
Su thought about that for a moment. While she'd only spent a few weeks in the Muggle world, with what she had learned, he did seem to have a point.
Narcissa was even trying to do that very same thing and it was something that she agreed with her on.
"I suppose I can agree with that," Pansy told him slowly, "however it appears you're taking it further than that."
"You are quite right," He admitted, "while I'd like to believe that someday and in some way that Muggles and Wizards would be able to come together and cooperate while still an uphill battle, I also have to conclude that at first once we are discovered and believe me it will one day happen, there will be a great deal of distrust on both sides which could easily lead to violence. If that happened I'm sorry to say that it would result in a lot of bloodshed with the Muggles overpowering us and us getting just desperate enough to maybe try something rather regrettable. If I can, I'm trying to avoid all that so that it becomes a much more peaceful union.
They both let this new information digest for a minute.
"You're trying to give magic to Muggles," She stated boldly.
He nodded and confessed, "Correct. I like to think of it as a peace offering. Give it to Muggle scientists for them to conduct their own experiments on instead of studying us, and even give people the opportunity to choose if they would like to be wizards as well."
"Wizards won't like that." Pansy observed.
"Yes, but they really won't have a choice." Simmons declared grimly, "For too long we've hoarded magic and many things that could be used to improve the world. Such things should be shared with everyone, not merely the few million wizards out there. Similarly Muggles can provide many things to us as well and they I'm sure would be willing to compensate us somewhat for teaching them magic. In the end I believe it will be very mutually beneficial in improving both our cultures."
"I'm guessing that you've figured out a way to turn Muggles into wizards and been testing it on some of the students at the school, but how?" Pansy asked, "We didn't detect anything in the candy you've been giving out or anything else we could think of."
"That would seem like the logical choice," Simmons admitted, "I tested that but soon found that using food didn't work so well. Water on the other hand was a different story. Fortunately this school still uses its own well water from an underground cistern, meaning all the water it uses comes from the same source. Once I started dumping my potion into it, well..."
"It started working." Pansy finished for him.
It occurred to her just why Jason and Hazel would be the ones to get magic first. As a runner, he was constantly needing to drink water, and Hazel just seemed to enjoy taking her time at the water fountain.
"Not exactly," He corrected her, "the potion is only a catalyst. Just with it, it won't do anything. Expose the person through human contact to a witch or wizard however..."
"So I did cause Jason's death..." Su said, now rather upset with herself, "If he hadn't kissed me then..."
"Wait, somebody died?" Simmons asked, rather worriedly.
"Yeah, Jason, that's why we came over here, because we thought you were deliberately killing kids." Pansy explained.
He certainly looked troubled as he pondered this new development before saying, "Well that's certainly a tragedy, but I suppose there are risks with every experiment."
After talking with Simmons, she was currently feeling better at having learned what he was really up to but she still demanded, "How can you justify kids dying?"
"I'm not justifying it at all." He claimed, "You have to realize that with every technological advancement there will be casualties because of it. Automobiles, for example, have been a great benefit to Muggle society, but people also die in them every day. With what I'm trying to accomplish and the lives it could potentially save as well as the increased quality of life, I'd imagine it would be no different. I promise however I'll look into it and try to avoid it ever happening again, if you'll just give me a chance. I think that I've been more than fair in telling you both my entire plan, but I'm still going to have to ask you to let me correct this on my own before you go telling whoever it is you report to. It should only be another few more days. So let me ask you: are you willing to help me bring magic to the Muggles and help me save the world?"