Riddle And Grindelwald (Book 3)

38. Riddle Me This

"Where are we?" Questioned Hannah, as the three of them looked around at their new location.
They were stood in the ruined bedroom of an old manor house.
"The Riddle mansion" answered Mathilde, before Genevieve could speak.
"Yes, you're right. I'm suprised you recognised it though" admitted Genevieve.
"Father used to take me here sometimes. And I'd recognise this view anywhere" revealed Mathilde, as she peered out of the window.

"That makes sense, since it was his family home, and rightfully belongs to him, even if doesn't legally. He probably took you all here, to show you what you inherited by being his child" sighed Genevieve.
Hannah still looked confused, so Genevieve realised she would need to explain more about the Riddle Manor.
"This house belonged to Mathilde's Muggle grandfather; Tom Riddle. The Riddle family owned this house and the grounds for years. My husband killed his father and his grandparents, making him the heir to this place" continued Genevieve.

"That doesn't explain what we are doing here now" said Hannah.
Genevieve shrugged, "I needed somewhere off the grid, where we could lie low until I came up with a plan. And this was the first place that popped into my head".
"I keep expecting father to walk through the door any second" admitted Mathilde, as she shudded involuntarily.
"Well, he won't. Neither your father nor I, have been back here in years. The last time he was here, was before he rose from the dead, in the graveyard down town. We have no desire to visit these ruins anymore, when we have plenty of other places to hold our death eater meetings" replied Genevieve.

"I know he has no reason to come here, but I'm still worried that he will" Mathilde said quietly.
"Your father is somewhere in Bulgaria right now, so you don't need to worry about him turning up unexpectedly, I promise" reassured Genevieve.
"Why is he in Bulgaria?" Asked Hannah curiously.
"He is looking for someone, who he thinks will give him what he has been searching for" answered Genevieve.
"What's he after then?"
"Something which I am not going to discuss with you. It is none of your business what he gets up to, or what magical items he goes after"
"It is my business if he is going to use this item to hurt my people!"
"My husband has more important things on his mind right now, than oppressing Muggle-borns!".

"O.K, let's just take it all down a notch. Mother, thank you for coming to save Hannah. If you hadn't turned up, I would've gone to work, and Hannah would have been arrested. I might never have seen her again. So, thanks for getting us out of there" said Mathilde gratefully.
"You're welcome. I know how upset you would be if anything happened to her. So, as soon as I saw her name on that list, I came to find you, to warn you that she was in danger... I'm not usually one to say I told you so, but I did tell you that bad things were going to happen. Which is why I wanted you to leave before Thicknesse became Minister for Magic and started hunting down Muggle-borns" admitted Genevieve.
"There's no need to be so smug, just because you were right" mumbled Hannah.

"What the Daily Prophet has been saying about Harry Potter is fake news right? Harry didn't really kill Dumbledore did he?" Questioned Mathilde.
"Of course he didn't. We have death eaters working at the Daily Prophet, to make sure that they are only printing stories that show us in a positive light. By claiming that Harry had something to do with Dumbledore's death, we put people off rallying around him. Harry being wanted for questioning is a lie of course, he hasn't committed any crimes, Vee just wants to kill him as soon as possible" answered Genevieve.

"I just can't believe that this is happening, with little to no resistance" admitted Mathilde.
"People whisper about the changes at the Ministry, but they are afraid to do more than whisper. They know that if they speak out, their families and loved ones will be targeted" replied Genevieve.
"I never thought that father would really succeed in taking over"
"Truth be told, neither did I. We spent our entire lives planning for this, but a part of me never thought that we would get this far. And it's sad to see the wizarding world, and the life we knew, crumbling around us".

"You didn't have to take a job at the Ministry, and be a part of the terrible things that are happening"  reminded Hannah.
"No, I could have stayed at home, and sat and watched while others suffered, like I used to do. But I was done being a bystander. I thought that if I was at the Ministry, I might be able to do some good. Or at least save some lives. You're lucky Dolores came to me before looking for you, otherwise you would be in custody right now" replied Genevieve.
"I am thankful that you chose to help me" mumbled Hannah.

"What's the plan next, mother? What do we do now?" Quizzed Mathilde.
"You are both going to stay here, while I return to work" answered Genevieve.
"You can't just leave us here to fend for ourselves" insisted Mathilde.
"I'm not going to. But I've got to return to the Ministry, so that I can create a bunch of fake identities for you both. Once that's done I will make a Portkey and send you to France. I'll give you a list of safe houses you can use, but it's probably best if you don't tell me which one you use. I might need to swear at some point, that I don't know where you are. Which is why I don't want to know where you are going".

"But if you don't know where we are, how will you visit us?" Asked Mathilde.
"I won't. You told me that you didn't want to see me, while I was still married to your father, remember" replied Genevieve.
"Yeah, but I-"
"Nothing has changed. I am still working for people you detest. Which is why I won't visit you in your new home... I suggest you choose somewhere in the West of Europe though, since your father is currently searching the East for Gregorovitch, and you don't want to bump into him while hiding from the Ministry" interupted Genevieve.

"Who's Gregorovitch?" Questioned Mathilde.
"Never you mind. Just stay here and don't go anywhere. I will return with food and some of your belongings later. But until then, don't go outside, and don't communicate with anyone" instructed Genevieve, as she turned to go.
"Mother wait, I just wanted to say, thank you for doing this" replied Mathilde.
"You're welcome. Now, stay safe, and I will see you later".