Ancestry 26 - Parental Conduct. by Voracity2

Ancestry 26 - Parental Conduct.

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Ancestry 26 - Parental Conduct.

Millie sat down in front of the house's calling floo. She hadn't slept yet and she looked like death warmed over but it needed to be done today. "Gringotts." A head popped up. "I'm Millicent Bulstrode and I found out I have a marriage contract that was just signed. Who do I talk to about seeing a copy of it? I haven't signed it."

"We may have a copy, Miss Bulstrode. Let me get you to contracts." The face disappeared and a swirly hold color came up for a few seconds. Then a human head. "Miss Bulstrode?"

"I am, Millicent Bulstrode. I found out thanks to a classmate who saw it in the paper."

"You're not the first I've seen who had that complaint. We do have a copy."

"I never signed it."

"It's due to go off before you're a legal adult."

"I'm already seventeen."

"Oh, you are? Your mother said you were fourteen."

"No. I'm a seventh year." He handed her the papers. She stared at it then stiffened up before she started to cry again. "My mother did that to me." She sighed. "No, I do not want this. How do I stop it?"

"You can argue it's not legally binding as they lied about your age."

"Would the penalties happen?"

"Probably. If the judge allowed it."

She read it over again. "Can I keep this? I need someone mean and nasty to find me some help."

"Go right ahead, young lady." He smiled. "Good luck. You're not the only one filed this week that we stared at oddly. Do you have a classmate named Parkinson?"

"Yeah. Pansy!" she bellowed. She came down the stairs. "They've got one with your name."

"I knew I had a marriage contract coming up. It was signed when I was younger and I've been at his house a few times each summer."

The banker handed it over. "Have you read it? We all gave that scroll a very dark look on your behalf."

She looked and blinked at the clauses. The second one was a fealty or death if cheating clause. "Excuse me? What if he cheats?"

"He has to give you jewelry." The human banker looked at her. "I thought you may not know. It's got to be ratified this year."

"It'll be changed. May I keep this? I need a nasty minded person to help me."

"Gladly, young lady. Thank you for alerting us to her dishonesty, Miss Bulstrode, and good luck." He hung up.

Pansy took hers to look at. "Eww, Flint?" she demanded. Then she kept reading. "Oh hell no." She handed it back. "We need Malfoy level of evils if not Potter levels." Millicent sighed and nodded, following her. They walked into the Great Hall. "Malfoy, we need your most evil minded bullshit to help us." She put both contracts in front of him.

He read them then blinked at them. "Wow, your parents hate you more than mine does."

"Apparently," Milli sighed, sitting down. "Mine lied, said I was fourteen."

"That won't work. You can contest that. You're seventeen, nearly eighteen." Pansy sat down with a sigh. "You have time to renegotiate."

She nodded. "Yes I will be. I'm not going to be his little sex slave. Read the fourth clause," she said a bit shrilly.

He did and blinked. "Oh, that's disgusting. Yes, it can be broken as that violates the fealty clause. Even if he demands it that violates it." She sighed in pleasure. "We may need someone truly evil to help though. Someone with a sharp, healthy mind and an evil streak."

Harry walked over a letter as he walked in. "She wants you to marry someone she likes."

"Hell no," he muttered, looking at it. "We need a lawyer. She cannot force anything on me."

Harry tapped him on shoulder, grinning at him. "I can banish her from the family's properties. She's not living in them now but I can rescind her permission."

"That could make her unsafe. I don't want her dead, yet. I'll think on that. Is Granger good at getting out of legal arguments?"

"Not fully but she's good enough to tell you to go ask the Professor."

"Oh, him," he said with a nod. "Yes he may know someone who can help us all. He's very old, but very experienced in the ways that people are screwed up messes."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, he even understands Xander and all the anger." He went to his own table.

"Headmaster, we need to run to town to talk to the man who's doing some tutoring," Draco called. "Later today sometime please. He's not a morning person."

"Please do so I don't have to hear more swearing, Mr. Malfoy. How bad is it?" Millicent brought up the contracts. He looked them over. "That's foul for a parent to do to their only child," he said, handing them back. "Go see him sooner. The best way to fight anything is early on."

"Yes, sir." She went to get the other two, their school bags with stuff they may need, and head to town. The Professor wouldn't be too mad to be woken up at nine. They hoped. The house elf that let them in glared at them. Millicent stared at it. "It's really important. Our parents are horrible and we need someone with a good mind to screw them back."

The house elf went to wake up her master and tell him that. He came down tying his robe with a cup of coffee, his second one in five minutes. "Please, sir, help us screw them back?" She handed them over. "Mine, Pansy's, and the one Narcissa sent at Draco through Harry. Please?"

He sat down, reading Pansy's. "That's most disturbing and I know of that family. He's not kept a wife for more than a year. They've all disappeared for some reason." He turned to Draco's and snorted. "What the hell is that? He's not even a magical. He's annoying." He read through it and grimaced. "Your mother is warped, Mr. Malfoy."

"I knew that." He sat down. "Mine's just proposed. I need to swear at her. Theirs are important. Millie's got signed without her permission and they lied about her age."

He read that one, grimacing as his cup got refilled by the house elf. "That's going to be a problem. They wrote in penalties if the contract was voided for any reason, even a legal one." He looked at her. "You have a brother?"

"No. I'm the only heir. I'm expected to have a son to carry on each of our names."

"Flint's not fertile," Draco said. "He took a bludger to the balls my second year on the team and it popped one. They couldn't regrow it. The other's damaged from what he complained while icing it one night. Something about too much ice, so he got frostbite or something on it."

Methos smiled. "Some people do deserve such treatments." He nodded. "Let me get dressed and I'll escort you to go start that process." He looked at Millicent. "They may still impose that fine."

"My father can live in a tent in the woods with Hagrid for all I care at the moment."

"Excellent." He went up to get dressed, have more coffee so he was better spoken, then came down dressed. "All right, children. Let's go." He opened the door and found a problem standing there about to knock. "Oh, it's you. Well, not right now, McLeod. I've got to help these poor children from being sold into marital slavery. We'll talk later. Poppy, do take care of this one." He took the kids with him, creating a portkey. They disappeared. He led them into the Ministry's present office. "Judges?" he asked.

"Second floor," the auror said with a point. "Big problems? The aurors on the other end of that floor if you need to file charges."

"I'll remember that if I have to kill someone," Pansy said dryly. "My mother may even be able to come tell them herself." The auror winced but got out of their way. They went up to file against those contracts. Draco used his attempted one to send a cease and desist order to his mother. The judge looked at Pansy's and looked disgusted. "I had no idea what was in it. That is not the contract I would agree to."

He looked at her. "You're how old?"

"Seventeen, I took three NEWTS last month. Creatures, History, and Herbology."

"Good job, young lady. It's not a formal one until you're eighteen. It's good they didn't put it as adult status."

"I will be willing to renegotiate but I'm not going to him with that contract."

"He's not kept any of his six former wives for more than a year," Methos said.

"We can definitely look into that." He looked at the other contract. "Oh." He looked at her. "You're how old?"

"Seventeen and I took two NEWTS, I got an underwhelming one on one test. Just a few points low my notes said. But the banker said they lied and said I was fourteen." She looked hopeful.

"That's against the law and makes the contract void. That does leave that breaking penalty." He looked at her.

"Frankly, my father can go live in a tent in the woods but we have two maiden aunts who live with us."

He sighed. "I can push that aside. It's stated twice and the contract was filed under false pretenses."

"I didn't know about it until someone noted it was in the paper and told Greg Goyle, sir."

"Good classmate to warn you." He nodded. "We can fix that one as well. Would you still marry that man?"

"No. And he's not fertile I'm told."

"One of his balls was torn open by a bludger in my third year," Draco told him. "The other got frostbite."

"Eww. That's nasty." He nodded. "Is that what he said?"

"Yes. That's the story he told us all about why we wear cups during all games and practices."

"Good idea." He nodded. "I'm going to void them both, ladies." They sighed in pleasure. "That doesn't mean your parents aren't going to force you to sign a new one."

"Not with that clause in there," Pansy said. "Does the fourth violate the second one?"

He looked at it again, nodding. "Yes it would. Which is probably why he hasn't kept a wife since that allowed him to kill them if they ended up pregnant." He hummed. "Yes, I believe those are rotten contracts done by horrible beings." He smiled at them. They relaxed again. "I'll call the parties in to talk about it this afternoon. Should you be expelled for skipping that may look bad."

"The headmaster said we could come wake up former Professor Methos," Draco said. "He tutors a few of us."

"I do," Methos agreed. "They needed a chaperone."

"Good." He smiled at him. "Excellent even. Let me call them down."

"I'll stay to support the girls," Draco offered. "I'll call the headmaster first though." He went to call Snape. "We found great amounts of dirty pool in the contracts for Milli and Pansy," he said quietly. "We're in the Ministry with a judge and Professor Methos."

"Excellent. I won't count you as skipping then, Mr. Malfoy."

"Thank you, sir. Tell the headmaster?"

"I can do that."

Draco smiled. "Can you see if he's possessed?"

"I can do that as well," he decided. "What makes you think that?"

"His energy feels different and so does your, sir. You feel more like you did our first year." He hung up and went back to that office. "Snape will tell them," he told the girls, getting hugged. "Thank you." He looked at the professor. "Should we avoid that one who was going to knock?"

"McLeod is a *hero*," he said dryly. "A sobbing novel sort of hero." Both girls grimaced at that. "It should be fine. He'll wander away soon." He sat down. The girls sat down as well since parents were coming in complaining.

Millicent looked at her mother. "I'm going to paste you with my beater bat for that!" She pointed at the desk. "How dare you do that to me! I'm your only child! I hope you do have to go live in a tent in the woods with Father!"

"Dear," her mother said firmly.

"Hell no. You lied about my age too. I asked the bank." Her mother glared. She stared back. "I'm not a house elf!" She sat down again.

"Sometimes the needs of the family outweigh a girl's choices," she said.

"Not this girl's," she said firmly, staring at her father, who looked pissed off. She stared back. "You raised me to be strong, Father, so I am." Her father glared at the judge.

"I did talk to the bank, they did state you noted she was fourteen. She's a seventh year according to the Deputy Headmistress, and not a genius so she's not skipped years." The judge smiled at him. "I've seen many panicking young women. These are two of the worst contracts I have ever seen." The parents backed down at that. "Mr. Flint, are you indeed fertile?" he asked.

"I'm a man," he said.

"Lawey, get a healer for me please," he called. "I need someone checked for fertility." A house elf showed in a healer a few minutes later. "That one," he said with a point.

She waved her wand at him. "He is not fertile. One of his balls is non-working and the other's missing." She looked him over again. "I also see a banned substance being used. Hmm. Interesting, sir." She made a sworn statement for the judge, looking at the pissed looking girls. "You missed a huge problem there, ladies."

"Thankfully," Millicent said. She looked at him. "Can you check me very fast for compulsion potions?"

"Yes. It would tell for the last four months." She did that and found one. "Oh, I do see one." She added that to her other statement and handed it to the judge. "Good luck, ladies." She left them to argue about their futures.

The judge looked at that, nodding. "Someone tried but it's not activated."

"Good. I'll make sure I can be flushed of it later," she sighed, rubbing her forehead. Draco patted her on the hand. "Thank you for being here for me, Draco."

"We support ourselves and our housemates," he said quietly. He looked at her parents. "Don't get your hopes up. I'd kill her in bed." He looked at the staring judge. "Like my mother...."

"I remember seeing hers and hearing about your...issues."

"Exactly. Plus there's the lovely monogamy family curse."

"Good luck with that, Mr. Malfoy." He nodded, leaving them with the girls. "So," he said, smiling at Millicent's parents. "She has asked that I waive the penalty clause as you lied to get the contract signed."

"She's fourteen," Marcus Flint's father complained.

"I'm a seventh year," she said bluntly. "Flint saw me my first year. He knew I'm not fourteen. Do I look fourteen?"

"You have no breasts."

"I do, the sweater hides them. I'm not going got strip to show them off though."

"The Deputy Headmistress said she is in fact seventeen by her records," the judge said, smiling at him. "She's not underage. She's taken two NEWTS out of the three she tried." Flint's father winced at that. "I believe we seem to have a problem here with how her parents are expecting her to be mistreated?"

"We expected her to fight off any mistreatment," her mother said, staring at her daughter. "Then she'd be a widow and free of everything."

"I can kill him now for her," Pansy offered. "Because I've heard plenty about Flint and him blackmailing his last girlfriend into sleeping with a teacher for his grades." Flint glared, his mother spluttered.

Methos looked at the boy. "If it was about his grades he should've done it himself, not blackmailed a girlfriend. Always do your own dirty work, not expect a minion to do it properly for you." Flint glared at him. "Little boy, I'm much better than you are and I've been around for a very long time as a defense teacher."

The guy backed down at that. Methos smirked. "I'm former Professor Methos." His mother whined, looking scared. "Exactly. Mr. Flint should be doing his own dirty work, not having minions. Even Malfoy does his own without his minions helping."

The judge smiled at that. "Very true. Minions are for paperwork and other drudgery, not for dirty work." He looked at them. "The contract is voided without penalty on the young woman. Unfortunately I can't punish her family without punishing her. In this case I will also announce Miss Bulstrode is now an emancipated minor who can file her own contracts if she wishes.

"I'll make sure the contract office knows that she has to personally sign them in front of them if she wishes to file one." The parents tried to complain. "Oh well. You broke the law. I could throw you in jail." They piped down and fled before he changed his mind. "Miss Parkinson." He smiled at her mother, who was an oily snake. "Did you actually read the contract?"

"Of course."

"Did you know that he's not kept a wife over a year, out of six of them?"

"Yes."

"I'm not going to be killed so you can go designer clothes shopping, Mother," Pansy said. "The contract's got built in violations already as it contradicts itself."

"You'll have to find a job then, daughter."

She looked at her. "I can find a better marriage partner by standing on a street corner and summoning one." She stared at her. "There won't be any further in our vaunted, long bloodline."

"When you get pregnant we can transfer it into another mother. Let her bear it."

"That has to be done the moment of pregnancy," Millicent said. "I did a paper on it for a class."

The judge nodded. "That it does so her mother would have to be there in the room when it was done and as it's best done to a relative she'd end up carrying it herself. If she was that desperate for another child, she can go adopt one of the ones that got made unfortunately recently."

"Who knows who they're from," Pansy's mother sneered.

"Bellatrix Lestrange, Mother." Pansy's mother flinched. She stared at her. "I'll be damned if you're going to use me that way. If you want another child, have one. I'll be around to warn them about you."

"I can remove you from the family, Pansy."

"I'm already listed as an adult, Mother. I'm over seventeen, have three NEWTs already." She smirked at the horrified woman. "You can't find me disabled and unable to handle my own affairs as I handle mine and yours at home." She shrugged. "I'm not your pawn. Or your ticket to being more wealthy. Go shack up with Narcissa Malfoy, be widows together."

She stared at her. "By law, as I did that, and I did check with our barrister, all the family's assets are now mine thanks to Grandmother's will anyway." Her mother tried to hit her but Millicent froze her for her. "Thanks, Milli. If you were a guy I'd date you."

Milli snorted. "You're too delicate to handle me, Pansy. She looked at the judge. "Sorry I pulled my wand."

"I'm rather glad you did since I didn't have to pull mine." He looked at Pansy. "How long have you been seventeen?"

"Five weeks."

"Have you slept with this man?"

"Not sexually or in the same bed. He said the first time he has me will be in our marriage bed. I'm checked each time I go to his house by his mother." She sighed. "I've managed to stay pure."

"Good job. Yes, I'm going to void this contract." Pansy's mother shrieked. "It's illegal to enter into a contract to get your daughter killed, madam. Whether you hire them or they pay you, it's still illegal." He stared at her. "I believe I'll check into the status of her being the head of her family today. And if so, she can evict you to live in a tent in the woods. Millicent's family apparently can use the practice to put one up."

Harry barged in and took the judge's wand, turning on the security system. "We just got word in an hour there's going to be another attack in a bit. Time turners," he quipped to Millicent. Who nodded at that. "Go back to the school with the paperwork he'll need to sign."

"Let me do that right now, Mr. Potter. Why did you come back?"

"Ron's father is downstairs and I saw Draco up here getting a drink." He signed both papers and handed them over. "Okay, ladies, use the camp moving spells. It'll get you past Ministry wards I think." They did that and ended up in the headmaster's office. He was face down on the desk but moaning. Harry grinned.

"If I hadn't burst in that way you would've been caught up here." He nodded, getting the angry mother into the hallway and leaving with what he'd need to get home. Draco left behind him and the others. Harry went to help the aurors do the clearing of the alley. Harry stepped into the bank, leaning over. "In about forty minutes, Voldie's going to hit the Ministry again," he told a guard.

"I'm time turned." That got a nod and he called that out to get more guards up there so they could defend the bank. Harry went to talk to Madam Malkin, who he liked, then the ice cream shop guy, who he adored. Then the twins. "Incoming," he said as he leaned in. "Thirty minutes."

"Shite," George said.

"Did you get the vision Ron saw happen last night?" They shook their heads. "You need to see it. One of you died at Bill's wedding this summer."

"Did Mum sacrifice us to bring him a wife?"

"Fleur." He grinned. "Just...be damn careful." They nodded at that. "I've got to go back. Just in case he splits it again." He disappeared.

The twins moved to protect the shop and any kids in the alley. There were a few families. George went to shoo them inside when the panic started. "We have a floo," he ordered, giving one mother with a daughter a shove. "Use it. That's an attack."

"It can't be!" Then the screaming started so she did hurry to do that. George nearly got hit by a curse but he did get the kids in the ice cream shop into his shop, it had better wards and was less open. "Mum," he called over the floo. "Guard them." He sent them through before someone could open the door. Not a parent with that robe. He turned to fire on them. "Fred, go."

"Like hell." He fired on them, making them scream. He sent out the first deadly prank they had made and it ate the death eater. George stared for a moment then nodded and moved to defend the shop, turning off the floo. They could apparate if they got broken into too hard.

They saw the ice cream shop get attacked and the owner go down, wincing at that nice man dying. Fred fired on those death eaters, making them fall down screaming while George worked on the nearer ones. Finally aurors showed up to gather the ones they were battling. One ran for the Leaky's entrance and didn't make it. The pet shop had some deadly models out to guard it. Big teeth won over wizards most of the time.

Fred waved at Tonks as she stomped past. "We're good," he called. "Safe." She nodded, going to gather the remains the animals had left. He looked at his twin. "You okay?" he asked quietly.

"I hate this war and I hate Voldemort," he said, looking at him.

"Then we've got to win faster, twin of mine."

"True, we do." He stiffened up as Tipsy appeared. "We're good."

"The wards on the windows held," the other said. He caught his breath, hugging her. "We sent free roaming kids to Mum."

"That's fine. She can protect them," she soothed, letting them calm down by hugging her. "It's all right, boys. I promise." She looked. "It looks like you've got a broken window." She frowned. "Oh, no, Florian." They nodded. "Damn it."

Someone knocked then leaned in. "Boys?" an auror said, looking at Tipsy.

"They're calming down," she said.

"That's fine, ma'am. Any injuries?"

"No," Fred said, looking at him. "We saw some free kids so we sent them to our Mum through the floo."

"Good enough. We can go rescue 'em from your mother fussing, boys." George looked up then stiffened and pulled. Time seemed to slow. Tipsy was faster and got the damn death eater while the twins shielded him. The auror sighed in relief. "Thank you, ma'am."

"Tipsy Ramvette."

"You own that other joke shop. Thank you." He smiled at her. "Have a good partnership or whatever with the twins, ma'am." He went to gather that one and call in that one had escaped someone. Bones came stomping up the alley, disheveled and her hair down and messy. She looked like she had been in a battle. "Ma'am, the twins guarded me while Miss Ramvette got this one."

"Excellent of her. I hope she's teaching the twins more dirty tricks. She had plenty in school." She hauled that one up. "Good, you'll live to die for this." She hauled him off. "Cover the bodies, people. Get any civilians out of the way. Let the shopkeepers assess the damages." They nodded following that order. She nodded at the bank's warriors who were on the stairs. "Did any get near you?"

"No. They knew not to," one quipped. "The war wards kept them off the stairs. We have a few civilians inside."

"Let them go home through the floo if you can. If not, get them to a public point and let them go. The alley's closed for the day." That got a nod and one of them went to tell the guardians inside. Bones handed over that one. "Got past Jenkins. He's injured but not critical. The Ministry?"

"Standing, barely," Tonks noted as she followed her boss up with a few idiots who were still alive. "Under Minister Alberts ran past me so I asked."

"Excellent. Thank Potter for the time turnering." She pointed. "Jail cells. They can kill themselves before their trials by chewing open a vein. Or after their trials by our hands." She went inside to check on the department and others. The judges were mostly together outside. They had been a focus of the raid.

They ran a check for explosives and found a few. "What the hell," she said, looking at one. No timer at least. "Get me a muggle bomb squad person," she bellowed. "Clear the damn building! We have explosives!" She backed away carefully. An auror called that in and they got one of the London teams in to do the building search for them and disarm things. She pointed. "Second office on the right," she reported. "On the desk." An officer went that way and came back with it disarmed a minute later. "Thank you."

"Welcome, ma'am. We're clearing the rest of the building carefully." She nodded. "And we were warned this isn't stuff we should talk on."

"Thank you." She shook his hand. "Have my aurors help if you can. They're our security team."

"Can do." He grinned. "I saw the books."

She winced. "We hate those things and if I find that author I'm going to punch her in the face."

"She put her address online." He grinned. "It's a tourist thing now."

"I'll have to find that. Thank you." She let him go do his job while she seethed. She had to get to that author before Potter, Dumass, or Voldemort. Though only one was probably going to look online for their address.

***

Harry flopped down when the small battle force was done with, staring at the field. "Fuck this," he muttered, looking over at Ron and Neville, who nodded. "Just creatures?"

"Three humans," Neville reported. "Back entry to get to Snape. He's still here and they're down. Hermione said he downed them brutally and they're probably dead. One's got pieces."

"Great." Ron nodded. "Good for him." He looked around. "Okay. Some of those are from the woods. What do we do, Harry?"

"Have Hagrid go ask?" He looked behind him at the headmaster. "Can Hagrid handle that?"

"I'd hope so but I haven't seen him yet."

Harry got up, going to hike down to Hagrid's hut. "Let me check on him and the barn then. Just in case." Hagrid was injured, in the barn, but trying to help the mare clean her hooves and the stallion's horn. "Hey," he said, coming over to help Hagrid up. "Can I help? What happened?"

"They tried for the foal," he said with a nod at it. It was gone. "Damn bastards."

"Yeah, they are." He patted the stallion on the shoulder. "I can get a girl to come clean that for you," he offered. He sent Hermione a note and she sent down one of the fourth year girls in Hufflepuff. "Hey, can you help Hagrid clean them up. They tried to defend the foal."

"Of course I can. I do a lot of their brushing." She spotted the foal and teared up. "Oh, no."

Harry gave her a hug. "Voldemort's evil, Sissy. He's killed a few of them. That's why we warded the barn." She nodded, crying on his shoulder then coming over to cry on the unicorns while she helped them bathe off the blood. Hagrid tried to pick up the foal but Harry did it for him and took it outside to bury it for him. The other mare followed, nosing him when he did that for her.

"I'm sorry you lost him," he told her quietly. She nosed him again then went back inside to her herd. Harry covered the grave then made Hagrid go up to the infirmary. With Fang since he was injured too. He had taken a chunk out of someone. He was still caught on the cloth.

Harry got it free for him and let Hagrid walk up there himself. He stayed down to help Sissy until she was ready to feed then helped her. They went up to the school together, running into McGonagall. "She cleaned up the blood on the unicorns. I buried the foal for Hagrid. We fed everyone."

"Thank you, Mr. Potter and Miss Salvarny." She nodded, going inside. "We're in houses for safety reasons tonight. Go hug someone." The girl jogged off. She looked at Harry. "You as well. We'll call if there's another one."

He nodded. "There'd better not be. I'm very sick of this twisted sicko's doings." He walked off to go check on his people and then go swear in an upper, closed room. Xander showed up to give him the hug he wanted. "Why can't they just blow themselves up?" he demanded quietly.

"They're too stupid to do it," he assured him. "Most bad guys don't think they're that bad but some revel in their bad levels. This one's just psycho so he enjoys it." Harry nodded, letting himself be comforted. "It'll be okay. It'll be over with soon, Harry, and you're a normal guy again."

"Can it be sooner?" he asked, looking up.

"Yeah, it can be. We're working on it. By the time you graduate." Harry grinned at that, nodding some. "Now, go to the house, appear calm even if you're not. Don't vent on anyone. They were probably scared. I'll take over patrol of the school for a bit."

"The teachers said they were."

"That's fine. I can help." Harry nodded so Xander walked him back to let him go back to Gryffindor. He walked down the stairs, staring at McGonagall. "Where do you want me? I've got at least three hours before patrol. I'd stay longer but we've got a huge demon problem tonight to solve."

"Take the doorway to the forest," she said with a point. "I'm not sure if they're going to try again, Xander."

"I'll try." He went to handle that area, sending the kids back inside. "I've got it for a few hours, kids. Go rest. Harry's back inside too." They checked in then went upstairs.

Hermione came over to talk to him. "Is it wrong to want muggle artillery right now to blow them up?"

"No. I could probably play some poker for some," he admitted. "I think a nice LANS into their house would help matters a lot." She snorted, but nodded, leaning on his arm. He gave her a hug too. "I know, you're tired of the battles. It sucks that they're picking on kids."

"It's been a long fight for some of us," she said, pulling back. "I'm so tired."

"Then go rest, Hermione. If they come back before I go home, I'll solve a bitch and call on some demonic poker debts." She snorted but looked amused. "Who said I'm kidding? I do have two poker debts and one's got a few others he owes. He can use them to feed on the idiots." She walked off shaking her head. "Go rest."

"Yes, Xander." She went up to the house to do that. The teachers could fill in for a bit. She hoped. She flopped down beside Harry, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm so tired."

"Me too," he admitted. "We all are, Hermione. Soon."

She looked up at him. "Can we go play kitten poker with Xander to get artillery?"

"I'm not any good at it or I might." She looked amused and put her head back down. "You rest." She nodded. "You guys all go rest. Put shields on the dorm doors." They went to do that. Neville stayed up. "I've got the doorway, Nev."

"I can sit up. You two are exhausted. I'm not quite that far gone yet. I'll wake up Ron when I start to drowse, Harry. You two need to sleep. You're taking the heavy fire." Harry gave him a grateful smile, carrying Hermione up to her room then going to his own to sleep. Neville stared at the doorway, wand in his hand. McGonagall was nearly hexed as she came in but she smiled him for that. "I'm up, ma'am."

"Good boy, Longbottom. Get a backup in case." He yawned and nodded, sending something at Ron to wake him up. Seamus came down instead. "Thank you, Seamus."

"Welcome, Professor. Harry's deeply asleep and so is Ron. I can stand guard for now." He yawned.

"I'll stay with you," Neville said. "All noses accounted for, Professor."

"Good boys." She went to report that to the headmaster. "All mine are in." She got a sent note from Xander saying he had to go home so she sent a teacher to guard that entrance. She looked at him. "Not exactly the posting you were expecting."

"No, not in the least." He stared at her. "Who was it that was possessing me?"

"Probably Dumbledore," she admitted. "The man hated giving up control."

He smiled. "I can tell. He wanted to check on his wand."

"Potter has it."

"Even better." He rubbed his forehead. "I need to make sure he can't do that again."

"There's protections. I'll talk to someone about getting them done for you." She sent off an owl to someone she knew could and was nearby. She had caught them in the pub when she had went to gather Mr. Goyle from sneaking off. Though she had missed his sneaking back.

***

Buffy looked at Giles later that night, looking exhausted. "Can't you just magic the demons gone?"

"No, I'm afraid that would get the peaceful ones as well."

"Can we scare the rest off?"

"I have no idea how." He looked at her. "You should go rest."

"I should but Mom's having nightmares recently. It's kept me up."

"You could go stay in your room at the college."

"Then I'm interrupting Willow and Tara."

Xander walked in shaking his head. "We've got huge problems. I hate visions."

"Did you have one?" Giles asked with a smirk.

"No, but Dru did. She left me a voicemail." He let his phone run the recording of it.

Buffy nodded once. She went into slayer battle mode to keep herself from sobbing. "Hell no. I...how do I stop that?"

"Get your mom to a doctor, a good one, today," Xander said. "We take down the hell goddess before she goes after those monks." He looked at Giles, who nodded at that, taking off his glasses to clean them.

"Can you make the vampires go away for a bit?"

"No. Sorry. If I could I would. I'm still really pissed at Dru." She sighed. "Want me to take your mother?"

"Please. She'll think I'm panicking and tell me to calm down."

"Okay. I'm calling off work tomorrow." He walked off to drive over to Buffy's house. He did call his boss. "I'm having to take Buffy's mom to a doc in LA tonight as an emergency. I don't think I can come in today, boss. Sorry but it's too serious not to haul her down there." He hung up and parked, closing the door but not locking it.

He stared at the staring vampire. "Her mom's got cancer. You interrupt me and I'm going to blow up your whole enclave. Got it?" The vampire ran off. "Thank you." He walked into the house without knocking and hauled Joyce up then over his shoulder, making her shriek. "I don't give a damn. Dru had a vision about your health. Sucks but we're going to LA tonight."

"We are not!" Joyce ordered.

"Bullshit."

"I know what it is, Xander."

"So do I. Her vision showed you dying of a brain tumor." She stiffened. "So yeah, we're going to LA tonight." He walked her out to the car and locked her in then went to lock her front door and come back to knock her out and drive her off. By the time she woke up they were nearly out of town. "You fight me and I'm making you take a kiddy car nap." He shot a look at her then sped up once they were outside of town. "I can't make a golem to take your place for her. So you're going to get treated."

"I'm seeing a nice doctor this week in town."

"Who's hiding a hell goddess. Which is probably why you'll be dying, Joyce."

"To get Buffy?"

"No, she's just generally hiding and attached to him."

"Oh." She slumped. "We don't have to."

"Bullshit. Think about how soon your daughter will die if you do. Plus Giles and the other daughter that hell goddess is going to prompt into being."

"I'm pregnant?"

"No."

"Oh no."

"Yup. To be protected. So you're going to a real hospital with a real doctor that isn't a hidden demon. They may be a demon but not a hiding one." He shot her a grin and slowed down when a set of rotating lights came on behind him. The officer pulled him over so he stopped and rolled down the window. He smiled at the officer.

"Sorry if I was going a bit fast, Officer. She's like my mom and being poisoned by her doctor in Sunnydale for her brain cancer. I'm taking her to a *real* doctor. Before I have to bury her and use the ashes to make fireworks." He shot Joyce a look, getting a snort for that. He smiled and took the warning. "Sorry."

"Be more careful."

"Yes, sir." The officer went back to his car to go back on patrol. The young guy drove off. He felt weird about him but he had mentioned Sunnydale and weird things came from up there.

Xander let Joyce hear the vision Dru had left. Joyce slumped down, shaking her head but holding her forehead. "So we're going to Mt. Green."

"What's that?"

"Healers." He shot her a smirk and had to swerve. "Damn vampires." He kept going. The cop behind him stopped to get the guy off the street. Xander slowed down to pay attention. The vampire tried to attack so Xander pulled over and got a flare gun out, firing at the idiot vampire, making him flinch and let the officer go.

"Really? I'm right the fuck here, Vampire." The man ran off. "You okay, Officer?" He grinned and waved. "Have a better night." He got back into the car and drove off again, turning on the music. Joyce rolled her eyes but he was used to that from her.

He got her to the right demon hospital and parked, getting out and walking around to help her out. She got stubborn so he hauled her out and over his shoulder again, kicking the door shut. He smiled at the demon guard. "Hi." The guard stared at him.

He shrugged but walked in. He put Joyce on her feet in front of the sign in desk. "This is Buffy's mother. Druscila said that she's got brain cancer. Her doctor in Sunnydale is a demon hellgod. Can we get her seen by someone who has some skills of any kind please?"

"We are peaceful, Hunter."

"I know that! I'm Xander by the way." He grinned again. "Super overprotective and fussy."

"You seem to be. We can have her seen. We do require insurance like a normal hospital." Xander handed Joyce her purse so she could dig it out with a huff. She took it to run and got her checked in. "It won't take long."

"Thank you," Xander said with a smile. "We have to make sure Joyce survives to nag her daughter into wearing bigger skirts again." Joyce glared at him. "You do! She was wearing hip hugger jeans tonight and she doesn't have hips."

Joyce rolled her eyes. "He's frantic."

"It's a nice thing for a family member to do," the check in nurse assured her. "Go ahead and wait." She pointed. They went to do that.

The head nurse came out to look at them. "We are peaceful."

"Buffy and I have never touched a peaceful being in our lives that we know of," he pointed out. Then he smiled. "Really. We don't."

"True, you have not. What's going on?" He let her hear Dru's voicemail. "Oh, dear."

"We're going after the hell goddess soon. But we don't want to lose Joyce. We don't trust the hospital in Sunnydale. It's crappy."

"It is," she agreed, leading them back to a room. They got her scans sent down from up there and looked them over.

Xander leaned against the wall. "Potions, meds? Chemo, rad?" he asked when they agreed it was an aggressive cancer.

"Removal," the nurse said. "We've seen a few of these."

"Military boys caused?" he asked more calmly and quietly. She nodded, biting her lip. "If I find them they're dead then. No one deserves this. Not even Wolfram and Hart. Hell, not even Angel." Joyce swatted him. "You can't tell me you like that guy."

"No but he's the best thing she's dated."

"You do need to buy her a husband," Xander quipped. The nurse laughed. "Can we treat her here or can you guys refer her to a better doc? I don't want her in Sunnydale and Buffy won't after she ended up killing the child killing demon when she had the flu."

"She did what now?" Joyce demanded.

"When the whole town had flu? There was a Kinderstaad demon killing kids in the hospital. She could see it because of the fever so she killed it."

Joyce sighed. "I'm glad I hadn't heard that before."

He shrugged but grinned. "I faced down Angelus. Totally told him I'd be there when he died."

Joyce patted him on the arm. "Forgive him being bouncy. He feels like he can't do anything so he's frustrated."

"We've seen many family members like that. Let me get our oncologist. It'll be a bit. He's probably at home."

"That's fine. I called off work tomorrow," Xander said with a grin. "Thank you."

"Welcome, Harris. Why do you smell that way?"

"Like the mermaid taint's trying to grow again or the hellmouth or what?"

"You smell of herbs."

He sniffed himself then shook his head. "I shouldn't. I'm crap at potions." He grinned at her. "If I find a reason I'll stop her redheaded ass."

"Thank you." She went to tell the doctor so he knew what was going on. Their oncologist was good but not the best with human brains. They could refer her on to someone better.

***

Xander showed up to Giles the next afternoon, staring at him. Then he put down the card in front of him. "She went into immediate surgery. She'll be out by six. She'll be awake by nine. They're expecting you and Buffy there by then." Giles took the card, going to his car to find Buffy. "She's at home," he called after him. "I warned her you were coming to pick her up so she's packing Joyce a bag." He sighed in pleasure. He looked at Anya, who was shaking her head. "Buffy's mom's brain tumor."

"I heard the voicemail. The hell goddess?"

"Have to kill her host."

"Can we find the host?"

"Yeah, I can find the host. It's a doctor who was treating Joyce." She winced at that. "Which means it's my job instead of hers."

"I'll hate that for you."

He shrugged. "Not the first bad human we've had here."

"True. I forgot about that. How's Harry doing?"

"Not great but it's been a bit since the last attack." She nodded, going to the cash register to count the money. "Anya," he warned when he saw her fondling it. "That comes out of your paycheck." She scowled at him. He stared back. "I'm not wealthy that way."

"You could sell some of the books or artifacts."

"No I can't sell cursed artifacts. I have ethics."

"You could fix it then sell it."

"I've done a few of those. Still not making up for shortages in the store's pay."

"You could help me sell things."

He snorted. "No. I work construction. We live on a construction worker's salary and yours too. It's a dual income family." She pouted worse. "That means that some of your check has to go to help pay your bills if you keep living with me."

"There's no rent payment."

"There's insurance, land taxes, utilities. Cable." She stomped off. He closed the register's drawer and locked it again.

She came back out. "Women should be taken care of."

"Not in this day and age," he said dryly. "You're expected to take just as much care as we are. And women have always worked, Anya. Some poorer women have worked outside the house but taking care of the family is a lot of work. You could be doing all the housework, all the cleaning, all the laundry."

"We have Library."

"I have Library. She's part of my family, and I heard how you talked to her last night so you'd better never do that again." He stared at her. She huffed off again. "Sorry but there's rules in this family. Very strong rules. Don't believe me, go talk to Grandma Des' ghost. Or my mother." He smirked at her. "I'm sure you met Alamanda." She looked horrified. "They caught her having a fight with my father. I'd call her here to talk to you but she can't come to town."

She blinked. "She's a strong vengeance demon."

"I know. I get it from her."

"Oh." She considered that. "So you knew about me?"

"No, I hardly ever see my mother. She never talks about her work stuff."

"I guess that's reasonable." She tipped her head down. "But I'd be taken care of."

"No, you'd be the matriarch of the family. Which means taking care of everything, including the unicorns if we start letting them have safe areas again. Which means keeping track of the foals and where they came from, milking and brushing duties. Protecting them from idiots. All that stuff.

"Keeping track of all the indexes of stuff the family owns and helping me find the things that're still missing. Plus we'd have to carry on the family name, at least twice. You'd have to go on digs with me if I go back to work or sit at home and wait on me while handling things all by yourself."

"But Library," she said.

He shook his head with a grin. "Her job is to cook, clean, that stuff. Not to handle the matriarch duties." She slumped, staring at him. "You've been pushing for a ring, Anya. You need to know what that entails. It's a lot of paperwork type things. It's a lot of fussing at things.

"We may even have to hold family events since we'll have to host Harry's wedding some day and all those things are done at the castle." She whined. "Sorry but that's reality. I'm fun, and I enjoy the fun, but marrying me means that you've got to handle responsibilities. Including the unicorn herd."

"Harry could live with the unicorns."

"By law, unicorns are allowed to live wherever they want."

"Oh." She frowned. "That's a lot of work."

"Yes it is. I remember doing a lot of taking care of unicorns. Feeding the orphans. Bringing them to nap in my room beside my bed so I could get up to feed them. I can't guarantee that it won't happen again, or that I won't have to go out on an assignment or just to go find neat things."

She nodded. "That's very weird."

"Oh well." He grinned. "This is stuff you have to think about, Anya."

She nodded. "It's not good for me."

"It takes a special, strong woman to be a clan matriarch. You should ask my mom. She didn't do it on her own, Des was still around so she handled a lot with Aunt Anacordina. Who was really over the unicorns because she could still pet them." She looked more hopeful. "There's no older aunts, Anya. You'd be the only one in charge."

She pouted again, going to call Hallie to see if she could find that other demon to talk to her. "Tell Mom I said hi." He handled the shop for her since she was pouting in the back. Willow came in and looked confused. "Anya's talking to someone in the back about what being a wife really means."

"Oh. I guess that's important if you guys go farther."

"It would be. There's a lot of things she'll have to help me handle." He shrugged. "What about you and Tara?"

"I have no idea." She blushed. "It's not legal to marry her."

Xander stared at her. "You're Wicca, they have commitment ceremonies. Including with lesbian witches."

"I didn't think about that," she said quietly, wandering out again. Then she came back. "Buffy and Giles? I saw them driving off."

"Joyce is supposed to come out of surgery at about sixish."

"She's in surgery?"

"Yeah, I drove her to a real hospital last night to have the brain tumor checked by a good doctor." She went pale, shaking her head again. He nodded. "She's been in treatment at our rotten hole of feeding." He leaned on the counter. "Speaking of, the reason for those insane ones? It's a hell goddess who's attached to a host body, who happens to be a doc up there. An oncologist."

"Hers?"

"Yup, which is why I carried her to the car to make her see someone good."

"That's a good idea. I would've floated her since I couldn't lift her." She walked off again. "We'll look her up later."

"You have to take out her host." She winced. He waved a hand. "I'm working on that now." She nodded, leaving it at his feet now. She'd butt into it later.

Xander shook his head, then decided to do something. "Happy?" he called quietly. The young house elf appeared. He leaned down next to her. "We have a sweet, gentle witch among us as the redheaded tornado's girlfriend," he said quietly. "I love that girl like she should've been my sister. Katya would've babied her greatly." He grinned. "You are to protect Tara."

"Happy will protect the new sister," she agreed. "Will ask Dobby for help?"

"If he can and she needs it, and he doesn't need to help Harry, he can help you. Try not to freak her out. She doesn't know a thing about you guys."

"Happy can do." She kissed his ring hand then disappeared because she heard another person coming.

Anya came out of the back. "You're protecting Tara?"

"Yeah, I have a bad feeling about Tara being hurt."

"Oh, okay. Is Happy like Library?"

"Her youngest sister's kid. I'm more used to Library because I spent a whole lot of time in our library."

"Oh." She nodded, going back to talking to Hallie, who was concerned about that new demand from Xander. Then Xander's mother took them both to talk to them. Anya stared at the older woman. "You're his mother." Xander looked like her.

"I am. My poor boy is such an idiot sometimes," she sighed. "Thinks he's not the same Alexander he used to be."

"Life's changed him," Hallie said. "We all saw it."

"Yes but he was just as wild before. He's been more injured, emotionally injured, but he's still my little boy. I really do need to make him some cookies." She looked at Anya. "I saw what you heard. He's right. It was hard enough to be the family's matriarch with Des staring over my shoulder and overruling me sometimes. The other aunts did a lot of the work.

"Things are easier now since we have modern appliances but you can't use them when you're making unicorn mash. We can talk about what that sort of life really means, Anyanka. It's important you understand before you make a choice of staying with my son. Because he's going to have to start taking up some of those duties sooner instead of later. Especially since Harry's got that damnable war. We really can't let the family die off."

"He's not fertile thanks to the mermaid taint."

"He can correct that, it's just going to take some work." She led them off. "Though I know my son hates children so it's an uphill battle coming. Just remember, all children have to be created on a bed that's tainted by the family's bed in the castle or they'll go dark like Justinius. I created him in a carriage and didn't realize. And his younger sister in the unicorn barn." She sighed. "They're alive but a problem that my poor Alex will have to handle someday. Thankfully he carried a charm with that on it."

"Don't tempt me," Xander called over the air. "Really, just don't tempt me, Mother!"

She giggled. "Those two never got along. Justy was so jealous of Alex when he was born. He only likes Melanorma because she's the only one that put up with his moodiness." She created a tea set and table so they could sit down and talk. She could wax poetic about how to be a Dumass matriarch. Anya hated all the work it'd become and the wealth was the full family's, not just hers.

There wasn't a lot of options about being in high society events. It was a lot of work. The unicorns could be annoying. They invited themselves to all sorts of family events and dinners. The orphans needed to be fed every two hours. The farm that would need to be restarted would need a lot of work with the cows and chickens to make sure the house was self supporting for the most part.

Anya had been a simple village girl before. Her family hadn't been farmers, they had been more craftspeople. She hadn't seen how much work being more than a normal wife would take. Being a farmer's wife was a lot more demanding, even if they were just letting unicorns roam around the property.

She took both ladies to show them what it had been like in her daily life, an easy day so she didn't scare the poor one off. Anya could do as a daughter-in-law if she wanted to. Hallie was nodding at some of what she saw, she had human parents who had been farmers so she understood. Anya was upset about all the doing and making and work instead of buying things and having a house elf do it.

Xander's mother patted her on the cheek with a smile. "If you decide on my son, it'll be fine. I'll mentor you, Anya. If not, perhaps you can find someone like a male veela consort. Not Draco, he needs someone who will put up with him." She patted her on the cheek again. "You'll do fine if you decide to stay with my son." She smiled at Hallie. "She'll do fine if she chooses to."

"Probably. It's not an easy life."

Anya sighed but nodded. "It's not how I'm used to being a wife should go. It's a lot more work."

Xander's mother smiled and nodded. "It is. It was before too but you didn't have a lot of it because you didn't have children. I'll be looking forward to at least two grandchildren now though, because the family has to carry on." She smirked a bit. "I had seven. Only two boys survived out of my three boys. The last baby, Alex was so worried he made her fly out while I was in labor.

"I was having problems so his four-year-old, if I remember right, self snuck in to talk to her about coming out and his magic made her come flying out across the room to the healer." Anya shuddered. "It helped her come out in time but ....the family can't die off, Anya."

"They wanted him to have a harem."

"I saw that." She smiled. "They'd do good as his mates, though not Harry. One should not covet their grandson in their bedroom. Harry needs to have a few as well for his families. Ours needs some. Draco would make a good matriarch for the family but he'd hate to be called that. His skills with potions are a good foil to Alex's since he's got the family's inability to do potions.

"They're needed in the field very often." She winked. "Now, go think and talk to my baby boy. Tell him to expect cookies soon. Tell him I'm going to check on Harry to point in him a good direction for that final battle and the spells he'll need." She disappeared. The girls shared a look and went to talk about it. It was a lot of work. Alex's mother appeared in front of Harry in his history class, smiling at him. "Harry, sweetheart."

"Ma'am?" he asked. "Are you a relative?"

"Of Alex. I'm his mother, dear." She kissed him on the forehead. She created a picture to hand him. "You need that book for your last battle." She stared at him. "It's in the forbidden section of the family library so you'll have to go dig it out of a box yourself probably. Alex knows it fairly well. Library and the house elves can't get into that area at all. It's in the floor between the library's levels."

"Thank you." He grinned. "That's really helpful."

"You're welcome. That book is an *advanced* study. You need to read the whole of the Dian defense series before you get there."

"I'm on book two. I can read faster. It's covering a lot of stuff I've never seen before."

"Good boy. Be careful. Call him out. And our boss said that he doesn't like that bastard either." She flashed into demon face and winked before disappearing.

Harry sighed in pleasure, sending a thought at Xander, then tipping his head back. That picture went into his bag. "I'll get it this weekend when I get the third book. There's only four." Ron stared at him. "That scarlet book, Ron."

"Oh, okay. That is a really hard, heavy book, Harry."

"But useful and going over a lot of stuff we never covered. Even the first one had stuff we never studied to this point." He grinned at him. "It's handy and I can hit someone with it." Ron nodded at that, going back to his notes. The teacher was staring at him. "Sorry for the interruption, sir."

"Who was that?"

"The mother of Alexander Dumass."

"She was alive."

"She was a vengeance demon. Xander said they asked her during an argument with her husband."

"Oh. That's interesting. Go see if you can get it sooner."

"I have permission to go up Saturday to get the next book in the series. It'll take me hours to find it. It's in a box. There's thousand of boxes."

He grimaced. "Take someone like Miss Granger?"

"She may help but she might drool on the library." Ron swatted him. "It's a huge library, Ron."

"I'm telling her you said that."

"She agreed the one time she saw a bit of it."

Ron rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Have fun."

"Hopefully." He went back to his notes. Now he had three books he had to find. And to duck Hermione swatting him at dinner.

***

Malfoy looked over after class when they were in the halls. "Why are there still boxes?"

"They're from the house that got burned. And stuff that they hadn't had room to put up before. The cursebreakers in the family had every book they ran into copied and then translated so they have the original copy."

Draco nodded. "That makes sense but the one day I spent in there showed the library had thousands of books."

"That's only half the collection," Harry said with a grimace. "The restricted section is between the floors of the library's tower." Draco winced. "It's a lot that needs to get settled. Library's almost done cleaning it up."

He nodded. "She could use some help."

"There's only so many elves in the family. Especially ones who can handle the library. She banished Dobby because he was trying to float some and they were spelled."

"So some are artifacts?" he asked.

"Yeah, some are." He grinned. "I ran into a charms text that taught me all the charms in it. Over a very long week."

Draco just nodded. "Are those put up?"

"No. It's marked on the card in the card catalog."

"Ah." He nodded. "He needs a librarian for a bit." He walked off.

"That's probably the head wife of the family's job," Harry said.

"Yes, it would've been my mother's if my father had wanted her to do it." He considered that. Xander really did need to set up a few things. He was still lost over there. If it wasn't set up, Harry wouldn't know what to do when he had to inherit it because Xander had died during something.

A good, practical spouse was hard to find. Especially when you dated a vengeance demon.

***

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