Dueling Hearts Ch. 32 (Patreon)

Bellatrix’s outburst had been bold, and it had definitely lifted a cloud up from over them. There was no more need to scurry about and hide their relationships, it was all out in the open now.

Of course, especially after Draco’s speech, there were many people in the school that looked at them with fear and distrust, even people that Harry would have considered friends, as he found out that night in the Gryffindor common room.

“Oy! Alicia, Katie, wanna join up with us? We can make a sub-coven!” Fred called out after the girls.

“Why’d you have to go for Harry, Angelina? Imagine how good we’d be next year if the chasers and the beaters are all playing hide the broom with each other?.”

Angelina rolled her eyes from her place cuddled up next to Harry, who was quite amused by the twins' attempt to lighten the mood.

Then, Seamus had to come and ruin all of their efforts.

“I, for one, think it's disgusting, Potter.” The Irish boy said, arms crossed in front of him. “Really, fucking your own mother? Not to mention that deranged psychopath Black.”

“Hey, Seamus, cool it.” Dean tried to put an arm around his roommate's shoulder but Seamus shrugged it off.

“No! Malfoy had a point. And Bones is the Heiress of Hufflepuff?!” Seamus looked around the common room, where everyone was completely quiet, “And you guys are being all calm? What’s stopping them from sacrificing all of us in our sleep for some weird ritual? Or making us drink period blood or something!”

“Where the hell did you get that from?” Harry asked, more in surprise than anger.

Lavender of all people spoke up in their defence. “What are you on, Seamus? Everyone knows covens did good deeds! They’d go around saving little muggle kids that fell down wells.” Lavender turned to wink at Harry. “I’m up for that last spot, by the way.”

Harry blushed, Lavender would have definitely made a good candidate, but she couldn’t beat Fleur.

“You believed all those fairy tales?” Seamus yelled back. “My mum always told me that covens kidnapped babies and made ointments out of their skin. One of them even cast a blight on me great-great-great granda’s potatoes, killed off half my family back then!”

There was a rumble building as battle lines were drawn in the Gryffindor common room, and Harry really did not want to deal with it. Sharing a look with Angelina, they hopped off the couch, making a hasty retreat through the portrait hole.

…

“You guys have issues too?” Harry asked as they ran into Daphne and Susan on their way to Lily’s quarters.

Daphne huffed. “Besides Tracey, my entire house thinks I’m degrading traditional wizarding values, whatever the hell that even means! I didn’t even know ‘Wizard Values’ were a thing before Malfoy started mouthing off about them.”

Susan sighed. “I think everyone in my common room is afraid I’ll make them my love slave,” she paused, “And I think some of them are really eager for that to happen. Hannah supports me, but I just couldn’t stand the tension in there.”

“We really need to find a place for all of us, I don’t think the common rooms are going to be hospitable for much longer.” Angelina said.

The door to Lily’s office slid open, and out walked Lily, Bellatrix and Tonks.

“Nice! It’s like we’re all seeking each other out.” The metamorphmagus said as she took them in.

“Or, we all came to the same obvious conclusion.” Bellatrix chirped.

“Well, you haven’t exactly made life easy for us, Bella.” Harry retorted.

“We should focus on the task at hand.” Lily cut in. “We need to find a place to stay.”

“This castle is like seven floors and a bunch of towers! That’s going to take forever.” Nymphadora whined. “Who wants to ditch and listen to my Weird Sisters mix? I have a bunch of unreleased tracks, and the original version of ‘Curse on Sight’ where Broomhilda says Avada Kedavra!”

There was a deep silence as everyone’s eyes reflected the same sentiment.

“Not it!”

“Fuck!” Harry snapped, as he’d clearly been late by almost a full second.

“I hope you enjoy your listening party, dear.” Lily said as Daphne and Susan patted him on the back.

“Well, let's get on with this show, shall we? Might as well go up to the seventh floor and work our way down.” Bellatrix said as she rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck.

Harry wanted to protest, to ask for a redo, but all he got was a quick peck on the cheek from Daphne and a pinch on his butt from either Bella or Angelina (maybe both?) before the girls left him alone with his cousin.

“Bah! What do they know, right Harry?”

Harry thought about how he could worm his way out of this, and he realized very quickly that Tonks could actually become an asset in his mission of bringing Fleur into the coven.

“Nym, before we listen to your mix, wanna meet up with a hot chick?”

Tonks perked up immediately. “Oooh, Is that the girl you said you had in mind as the final member?”

Harry grinned. “One and the same. Whaddya think? Up for it?”

Tonks clapped her cousin on the shoulder, “With my newfound confidence and skills, I’m an unstoppable force. She won’t know what hit her!”

…

“This is useless.” Daphne said as they opened up yet another door to what was an empty classroom.

“Susan, you’re the Heiress of Hufflepuff, aren't there any secrets of the castle that only you know of?” Angelina asked the redhead.

Susan shook her head as she peeked into a broom closet. “Besides the Boudoir, the only other secret I know is that Godric Gryffindor liked to be pegged.”

“What? Holy shit!” Daphne and Bellatrix both burst out laughing.

“This is great fucking material.” Bellatrix said, shooting Angelina and Lily an evil grin.

“Revelio.” Lily cast, sending out a small pulse of magic that came back without a response. “Maybe you guys should stop being so immature, and you could help me out. Casting this thing every three feet is getting annoying.”

As if to highlight her point, Lily cast revelio again after only a few seconds, getting no response. It was really a fruitless endeavor, since most of the castle’s secrets wouldn’t be revealed by such a basic spell.

Bellatrix stopped across from the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy teaching trolls how to ballet. She placed her under her chin in contemplation. “If only there was a way for us to make this search more targeted, instead of just poking around blindly.”

“We could ask the elves.” Angelina offered.

Bellatrix began to pace in front of the empty stretch of wall, wishing for a place that the coven could call home.

“Honestly, it doesn't sound like a bad idea. No one explores the castle more than the House Elves.” Susan said.

Bellatrix doubted the elves would actually know of any such place. She was pacing, racking her brain for the solution. They needed to find a place, some sort of suite that could fit all of them.

She was just about to make her third pass in front of the wall when a wizened voice stopped her in her tracks.

“Ah! Just the people I wanted to see. Well, five-sevenths of them.”

Headmaster Dumbledore was making his way over to them, and the girls all stiffened, including Lily. What would the dignified Headmaster have to say about their debauched, incestuous union?

Bella was the only one who was completely relaxed.

“Albus! What can we do for you?” Lily asked nervously.

“First of all, I’d like to congratulate you, Miss Bones.” Susan immediately blushed crimson as the Headmaster’s attention centered on her. “To have a founder’s heir walk our halls after so many centuries… truly a wonderful thing.”

“T-T-Thank you, Professor.”

“I do hope Nicodemus is still alive and healthy.”

“Nicodemus?” Susan frowned, “Do you mean Mortimer?”

“Ahh, you’ve rechristened him.” Albus nodded wisely. “A magnificent name, if I do say so myself.”

“Headmaster, I assume you’re not here just to talk to Susan about terrible names.” Bellatrix interjected.

“Ah, yes, yes, indeed.” Dumbledore smiled, removing his glasses to rub at his eyes before putting them back on. “You see, your little outburst during lunch has caused quite a conundrum. Your ministry-appointed supervisor is especially hysterical, I think she believes you’re about to open a portal to the demon realm.”

“Of course she does.” Bellatrix scoffed, already despising the woman after only a few interactions.

“You will all be happy to know that I support all forms of love in my school. And if you are planning on summoning a world-devouring demon… Well, wouldn’t that be an exciting way to spend a Wednesday evening?”

Dumbledore didn’t seem to notice the incredulous looks on the girl’s faces.

“But, to keep the peace, I’m afraid you will no longer be allowed to remain in the castle.”

“What?”

“Are you serious?”

“Can you make sure Mortimer takes his pills?”

Dumbledore put a hand up. “I may have purposefully made that statement misleading for dramatic effect. I’m sorry, old habits die hard, I hope you understand. You’ll all still be studying and teaching, it’s just that you’ll need to stay out in the grounds.”

“Like, in a tent?” Lily asked. That was actually a very workable solution. Wizarding tents could be massive, and she already owned one that had a pool.

Dumbledore shook his head. “No, no, that would look too much like a refugee camp. No, There is actually an old building that has fallen out of use. It requires some fixing up, but you can make it your first coven project. I’d like to show it to you once you’re all gathered up, perhaps tomorrow during lunch hours?”

“Sure, Headmaster, sounds great.” Lily was the only one able to find her voice.

Dumbledore chuckled. “Splendid! Well, have fun. And if you need any tomes on forbidden summonings, well, the cabinet to my study might have a faulty lock from now on.” With a final wink, the Headmaster swept away, leaving five flabbergasted women in his wake.

“Oh fuck.” Lily groaned.

“What is it?” Bella asked.

“I know the place he’s talking about. It’s where Remus used to spend the full moons, we’re going to move into the shrieking shack.”

Most of them grumbled along with her, knowing that the supposedly haunted building was going to require major improvements to become livable.

Daphne, on the other hand, just giggled. “Well, it's definitely going to live up to its name.”

…

Harry and Tonks were waiting in the little lounge room. Harry had given Fleur a charmed coin so that they could set up meetings. He’d sent her a message through the coin and she’d responded, and now the coin was humming lightly, letting him know she was close by.

“Come on, Harry, who is it? What house is she in?” Tonks asked impatiently as she tried and failed to juggle some gobstones.

“You graduated three years ago, Nym, do you even know anyone?”

“I know your friends. Is it tiny Weasley? Or Daphne’s friend?”

Harry shook his head. “They declined the offer.”

Tonks gasped. “They said no?! What the hell’s wrong with them?”

Harry shook his head. “This isn’t for everyone, Tonksie. Anyways, she just got here. You can come in.”

Fleur stepped in through the door and Tonks’ heart stopped completely. Her jaw dropped as she once again saw the tattooed beauty that had slipped through her fingers the previous day.

“I wasn’t expecting another meeting so soon, Harry. I thought you’d have to deal with the fallout of your mentor's rant.”

“I hope that didn’t scare you off.”

Fleur shook her head. “Do you seriously believe that I, of all people, would care?” She cast a questioning look over at Tonks. “And you are?”

Tonks felt a bit of indignation that Miss Sexbomb didn’t remember her, but then she realized that she’d drastically altered her skin tone, and probably shifted a few other things around in between as well, so blondie didn’t even recognize her. She had a second chance!

“Wait,” Fleur’s eyes narrowed as a small rune on her arm lit up, “You’re that creepy girl, from earlier.”

“So you’ve met my cousin Nymphadora then?” Harry asked, unable to keep the amused smile from his face.

“You cousin?” Fleur let out an exasperated sigh. “I am no longer surprised. Next, your goldfish will try to jump my bones.”

“Hey! My mum hasn’t been drooling over you.” Harry protested.

Fleur rolled her eyes. “That’s just because I haven’t been near her. Give me thirty seconds and I’ll have her begging.”

Tonks was hyperventilating. “H-Hey… did you know I got fifth place in last year’s Auror games? I didn’t get a medal but they gave me a little certificate for participation.”

Harry frowned, “Tonks, this is Fleur Delacour, from Durmstrang.”

“You’re not french?”

“Harry, why exactly did you bring her along?”

“Well, first of all, she’s a part of the coven.”

Fleur blinked several times, eying Tonks warily as the metamorph tried to lean casually on a cabinet, only to yelp in pain when a stray chess piece dug into her elbow.

“And second of all, I thought she could help us out on our little project.”

That was a bold-faced lie. Tonks was not needed at all to stitch-together a memory-film, but if it kept his cousin from playing music while she babbled on about production notes, he would gladly let her chip in.

Tonks’ hair turned a bright pink at Harry's words, perking up at the chance to help out blondie in any type of project. Fleur took note of the change in hair color, and Tonks caught her looking, grinning as she cycled her hair through a myriad of colours, going from red to green to blue to purple before settling on pure white. She wriggled her eyebrows at Fleur. “And I can make the carpet match the drapes too.”

Fleur sighed. The currently white haired, light brown-skinned girl did look rather fetching, and she had already committed to becoming a part of this coven. But, she didn’t know if she could handle any more awkward pick-up lines and attempts to impress her.

There was a solution to that, of course.

Fleur walked up to Tonks, who stiffened as the heavily tattooed blonde put both hands on her shoulder and quickly claimed her lips in a searing kiss.

Tonks’ knees went wobbly as Harry looked on eagerly as the two sexy women snogged. The metamorph and the veela, both rocking that alternative, punk aesthetic, moulded their bodies onto each other, seeming to be a perfect fit.

Tonks moaned, her hands racing down to get a very good squeeze of Fleur’s ass. Her hands sank into the soft jelly, the blonde's mouth tasting like caramel and strawberries. She could feel her spirit wanting to lift off her body, euphoria washing over her.

Then the french girl pulled back. Tonks stared into her icy blue eyes, her gorgeous face that somehow looked that much more beautiful with the small tattoos that littered it, striking the right balance between being unique and also leaving enough room for her perfect porcelain skin to shine through.

Fleur had been looking into her eyes, and whatever she'd been searching for, she found, because she nodded in approval. Though, to both Tonks and Harry’s disappointment, she pushed away from the girl. “Don’t spout any more dreadful pick-up lines, and there’ll be more where that came from.”

Tonks perked up, and her hair instantly jumped to a light pink once more. “Yes ma’am!” She glanced between her and Harry. “What are we doing, exactly?”

“We’re making a movie.” Harry said plainly, before taking one glance at Tonks’ face, “Not that kind of movie!”

“Are you sure? Because I guarantee it would sell very well.” Tonks said, eying Fleur up and down.

“We are making a film about my life, to convince Daphne that I am not a terrible person.”

“Oh, got in Daphne’s doghouse too? Believe me, it’s not a pleasant place to be.” Tonks smirked, finally feeling like she had a leg up on the blonde. “Though the kiss and make up is spectacular.”

“Anyways, we're going to sort through Fleur's memories, maybe add a few color filters-”

“Suspenseful music.” The metamorph tacked on.

“That too.” Harry nodded along. “Man, I just realized that's going to be a hell of a lot of work for this cramped little room.”

“If only there was a room that could turn into anything you wanted it to, that would solve all of our problems.” Tonks mused.

“That sounds impossible, Nymphadora.” Fleur said, and Tonks instantly decided the blonde could say her full name any day of the week. “The sheer amount of magic needed for such a feat… I am doubt even Hogwarts could contain it.”

Harry snapped his fingers. “I think I got it figured out. You two, tomorrow night, we’re going to go to the Ballroom where the art project used to meet. That should be spacious enough!” Harry’s triumphant smile fell slightly as he shot Fleur a worried look.

“I… err….should have probably asked before, but are you going to be fine, reliving those memories?”

Fleur waved him off. “I have spent a lifetime wallowing in the terrors of my past, this will be no different.”

Tonks squealed. “Merlin, you sound so damn cool.”

“I know, right? That's what I keep telling her!”

…

Deep in the recesses of the ship the Durmstrang students called home, Headmaster Severus Snape was letting off some steam.

He had locked the training room, meaning Viktor wouldn’t be able to enter. Delacour barely even entered the ship if it wasn’t to sleep, so he had discarded the girl from his mind. She’d already served her purpose anyways, let her flounder about doing whatever it is she was in the castle.

Severus didn’t care one bit if his students lost every single event. He had more important things to worry about, more important things to be absolutely livid about.

“Sectumsempra!” ‘

The blood red spell sliced through yet another training dummy, which Severus had charmed to spill blood and guts and even scream in agony, just like a living, breathing person would.

This dummy wore the face of Bellatrix Black. He had decided to split the difference, half the dummies wore that deranged bitch’s face, the other half wore the face of his new greatest enemy.

Harry Potter.

He was just like his father. Arrogant. Self-serving, thinking the entire world revolved around him. Snape despised him from the moment he saw him, but none of that compared to the all-encompassing hatred he felt when the brat’s absolute depravity, egged on by Black, was revealed.

He had soiled his perfect Lily, he was violating the pure body of his Lily.

Snape was an understanding man. He’d forgive Lily for rejecting his advances, he had forgiven her for marrying that idiot Potter and giving away her purity (Severus had potions that could reverse that.), he was even willing to let her brat of a son live once he and Lily got married.

But for her to allow yet another man into her sacred meadow? When it was clearly meant only for Severus?

Well, of course he could forgive it. She was Lily, after all, he could forgive anything.

But that insipid brat? And that hateful bitch? No, once he had his Lily, he could not suffer allowing them to breathe air even a second longer.

Another dummy crumpled to the floor in agony, this one wearing the face of that insipid brat.

Everything he'd been through, pulling the strings of Big Potion, expanding his business, spreading his tendrils throughout all of Europe. It all led to this very moment.

Severus would have his final victory, and it would be glorious.

…

“It has no running water, terrible ventilation, and the structure is liable to fail catastrophically at any moment.” Dumbledore read off these features as the seven coven members stood around in the tattered living room of the Shrieking Shack.

“Really sold it to us there, Dumbledore.” Bellatrix grumbled as she swiped at a cobweb.

“This could be a good project. Do we have your permission to perform complex enchantments on the place, Albus?” Lily asked.

Dumbledore smiled. “Of course, of course, enchantments, sacrifices, summonings, be my guest.”

“It is pretty spacious, and we have magic, it’s not like we have to fix this place up the muggle way.” Angelina said.

“What about the entrance? I don’t want to have to crawl under the Whomping Willow every time I forget my Potions essay.” Daphne said.

“We can set up a little trapdoor near Hagrid’s hut.” Albus assured them. “Well, I am glad that you are well situated, I will take my leave and let you get settled.”

Dumbledore summoned Fawkes, who flamed the headmaster away and left the coven to survey their new home.

“I’ll get to work on the basic enchantments, this room looks like it could cave in any second now.” Lily murmured as she eyed some of the load-bearing beams wearily.

Bella had her hands at her hips, “The rest of us should start working on the pipe system. Half of us conjure up the pipes, the other half gouge out the space.”

“I thought conjured items disappeared after a few days?” Susan questioned.

Bella snorted. “That’s what those bastards at Big Potion want you to think.”

“Why would ‘Big Potion’ care about conjured items?” Angelina asked.

“I’ll add a permanence array to the whole thing before you guys finish it off, just to be safe.” Lily said.

Bella’s eyes narrowed, and it looked like she wanted to argue the point, but to everyone’s surprise, she let it go, “Sure, if it makes you feel more secure, Lily.”

And so, the coven began work on their new home. Harry just hoped that it wouldn't take them too long to get this work done.

He, Tonks and Fleur had a movie to make!

‘Damn.’ Harry snapped in his mind as his thoughts turned lewd. ‘When I phrase it like that, it does sound like a good idea.’

Next chapter, we'll have the return of smut. Also, as a heads up since it'll be a little jarring, Fleur's backstory (which should be coming in a few chapters) is going to be tragic. I know that might be a bit of whiplash considering the goofy tone of the rest of the fic, but I wanted it to be impactful.