What Voldemort Left Behind

Chapter 40 - Quidditch and Worries

AUTHORS NOTE: First of all thank you so much to slipperyslytherin on instagram for helping me write her character Ariana Martens, she co wrote part of this chapter, if you want more of Ariana Martens then go read Curses and Spells on Wattpad, Ari's story it's amazing. Anyway this chapter took me an entire week and it's a bit longer than normal, usually i only spend a day on a chapter. I hope you guys like this cause i tried pretty hard with it and i found it fun to write.

Penny practically sprinted to the staff room, still completely shocked. With relief she found her best friend Ariana waiting for her.

"I need to talk to you... It's very important, Headmistress McGonagall came into my office and then I was asked... I'm not allowed to mention it outside this castle, top secret. I can't even tell Ben..." Penny felt horrible keeping something from her husband, all she was allowed to tell him was that it was a potions related project and the amount she was being paid to do it, she couldn't even tell him who it was for. "Ari, I really need your help, I don't know what to do," Penny begged.

"Let's go somewhere more private so you can tell me, alright?" Ariana walked towards the door. "I'll do anything I can to help."

Penny sat down in Ari's office, which was closer than her own. She kept replaying the morning's events in her head, still quite shocked at any of this had happened.

"She brought Harry Potter with her. I'm supposed to make a potion for him."

"Oh Merlin, HARRY POTTER? Why? Is he okay?"

"He looked very ill... They explained it was because his connection to V-Voldemort was, was killing him... He didn't even seem to care much, not, not until he mentioned his kids, when talking about them he was very upset. They were desperate, Harry and his wife... he said that this potion is the last hope he's got. His, his scar, it kept hurting him and his wife, I think her name was Ginny, she looked so scared every time it happened. Oh I feel terrible for James and his little brother and sister, no wonder he didn't seem himself in class."

"Oh, Merlin... I- I can't believe it, Harry Potter, oh goodness. And his wife.. and his kids, how they must be feeling... Losing a loved one is- it's the worst thing, the worst. Oh, Merlin."

Penny remembered the potion she'd given to the famous wizard. It was the strongest painkiller she could brew, he'd seemed shocked whenever it worked. She was terrified that she'd mess up or fail to brew the new potion at all, no, she couldn't, there was no way. She would give it to him perfectly complete and in time to do him some good. James's sad face in class this morning kept coming back to her, maybe this was why the usually cheerful seventh year had come into class so annoyed, she knew teachers weren't supposed to have favorites but she couldn't lie, he was hers, she couldn't stand the thought of not helping his father in time.
She was shocked when Harry had walked into her office, mostly because it was Harry Potter but also how he'd changed from the man who she'd seen from a distance just after Christmas time when he came to assist with Defense in front of the whole school. Penny thought they must have done a very good job of hiding his illness from the papers, he looked very different to how she remembered and no newspaper had printed a photo of him looking like.... that.
Penny was worried, positively terrified, what if she accidentally caused his death through the potion failing? He was the world's savior, as well as being the father of three of her students, she couldn't let him down but in the back of her mind the fear stayed.

"Penny? Sure you're alright?"

"How do they trust me? I mean... this is so important and they barely even know me, what if I hurt him? What if I do this wrong?"

-

Ginny entered the guest room at Hogwarts that she and Harry were sharing after Minerva had arranged more meetings for the next day to discuss the potion as well as their children's safety while at school this term. Ginny had just returned from the Head's office and her suspicions had been right why Minerva had only asked for Ginny, Minerva knew Harry was drained and couldn't take much more. Harry never told anyone when he was feeling worse if he could help it, so those close to him had learned to guess, usually accurately. Over the past few days, he had definitely taken a turn for the worse.
Harry was half asleep over the desk when she returned but sat up with a start as Ginny walked in, his wand in his hand, he pushed himself to his feet, leaning one hand against the chair.