From a Cradle to a Grave

Chapter 25

Hayley's Pov

"I said I'm fine, Hayley," Klaus says in a dreary voice.

"Your leg got chopped off!" I shout.

"And then I reattached it," he says. "It's been two weeks, give it a rest. Believe it or not, this wasn't the first time one of my limbs have been severed from my body."

"Sixteenth century. Rebekah," Klaus says in explanation, when I stare at him in alarm.

Klaus and I have been sitting in an inn called the Three Broomsticks for the past half hour now. Freya told us that she'd meet us here, once the first task of the magic tournament was finished. She's going to fill us in on what happened.

We arrived on the outskirts of this town ten days ago, after a lot of asking around. The humans we compelled for answers had never even heard of Hogsmeade, so we had to spend two whole days knocking on doors and wandering from place to place.

We haven't seen Freya in person yet, but she checks in on us daily with her astral projection visits. Klaus managed to get ahold of one of his old contacts- A London witch he met in the 1950s, who, apparently, is a part of this particular magical community. Margaret Bones is over ninety years old now, but she remembers Klaus quite well. At his request, she traveled to us on our third day in Hogsmeade, and she has been filling us in on what exactly the 'Wizarding World' is ever since.

"Still can't believe Klaus was actually nice to you, back in the 50s," I say to Margaret, who's sitting on the seat in front of us. "Wasn't Klaus's motto 'torture first, ask favors later'?"

"I was in hiding during most of the twentieth century," Klaus answers. "I needed a powerful witch who could cast multiple cloaking spells for me, and I felt as though 'asking nicely' would attract much less attention from the supernatural community than 'threatening to kill'."

I grin at his stupid answer, which he delivers in a very serious manner.

"So he asked nicely, and you just obliged?" I ask Margaret.

Margaret is a very sweet old lady, like someone who could be a kid's kind grandmother in a disney movie. Instead of answering, she just smiles at me and pats my hand. She doesn't engage in conversations much; She only talks when giving me and Klaus detailed speeches about the Wizarding World.

"She demanded gold," Klaus answers for Margaret. "A lot of it, too. I had to entirely drain one of my vaults in London for her to agree."

Margaret continues to smile at me innocently, causing Klaus to give a scoff of disbelief. "What did you do with all that money, anyway?" he asks.

In response, Margaret pulls out a neatly folded newspaper clipping from her purse. It seems she carries around that particular newspaper clipping everywhere. She places it on the table, and taps her finger on the moving picture of a formidable looking woman.

'Amelia Bones, made Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement,' the caption reads.

"Is that your granddaughter?" I ask.

Margaret nods, and I smile. She's living in my fantasy dream world. I want that one day, to be able to fund my grandchildren's education and see them grow up. Considering the fact that I'm a part of the Mikaelson family, however, that dream can only remain a fantasy. I sincerely doubt Klaus's enemies are going to just let me be in peace, after all.

"Another butterbeer," Madam Rosmerta, the woman in charge of the Three Broomsticks, places a full glass in front of me.

"You're getting addicted," Klaus points out. "That's the fifth one you've ordered this week alone."