Win The War: Consanguinity

Chapter 16: 12 Grimmauld Place

I would like to thank Chantale and Vivid Murk for beta reading this chapter, and also Jasmin Kain - my Polish beta.

Harry followed the Weasley teens and Hermione into a gloomy room furnished with a desk, a wardrobe and two single beds. Hermione quickly pulled him over to sit on one of them. He put his breakfast plate on the nightstand.

"Oh, Harry, how are you? Have you been furious with us? I bet you have. I know our letters were useless. And we couldn't write more often. We couldn't tell you anything. Dumbledore made us swear we wouldn't, oh, we've got so much to tell you, and you've got to tell us about your Ministry hearing! I've looked it all up! They couldn't expel you. They just couldn't; there's a provision in the Decree for the Restriction of Underage Sorcery for the use of magic in life-threatening situations. But it's still outrageous that they treated you the same way they do criminals. And your uncle! How do you feel about it? Why didn't you tell us anything?" Hermione spat the words out at the speed of a machine gun. "And what about moving out from..."

"Hermione! Slow down a little. Let him answer at least one question!" Ron interrupted the girl, sitting down on the bed across from his two best friends. The twins and Ginny sat next to their brother, looking expectantly at Harry.

"Oh, sorry."

"No, go ahead, Hermione. Don't bother with Harry's answers," said Fred. The girl threw him a dirty look, then focused on her best friend.

Harry wasn't sure if he was allowed to tell them that Tobias was his father. In June, Dumbledore wrote to him in a letter that he had taken certain measures to prevent the names of his biological parents from being revealed. However, it was one of the significant changes in Harry's life, right next to the one when he turned out to be a wizard. He felt that the Headmaster had no right to forbid him to share the information with those closest to him.

Even though he felt a slight fear of being rejected when he told them who his biological father was, and therefore his brother, he decided not to hide it. If they were his true friends—and he knew they were—sooner or later, they would accept the truth. As for security reasons, he would ask them for the Sine Nuntis Oath just in case. Not because he didn't trust them, Merlin forbid. It's just that no one will force them to reveal it this way.

So he told them the whole story, apart from some details, of course, such as the Dursleys' joy when they got rid of him and the fact that he had been staying at the Potions Master's house for several days. He didn't even mention Theo at all because he couldn't take such a huge responsibility.

"But how can you play a game with only one ball for twenty-two players? You've gone crazy like Seamus." Harry grinned broadly at his best friend, and Hermione slapped the redhead on the head. "What?" He turned to the girl. "What was I supposed to say? That I'm glad, Harry is finally free from the Dursleys? Or that I am horrified that he really is Snape's little brother? No, no, no... I can't deal with that."

" That's exactly what you should say. And it's not about you. It's about Harry." She turned to the boy again.

"Wait, have you already known about that?" Harry looked at Ron, slightly surprised.

"Extendable Ears. Thanks to them, we know at least a little what's going on. But why didn't you tell us?" George asked.

"Well, at first, I was not entirely sure myself if it was true. And then... Well... I guess I preferred to tell you in person."

"And now you've got that oversized bat breathing down your neck even more, focused on you." Ron looked at him sympathetically. "I'm sure he's about to begin really tormenting you."