Fathers Daughter

Part 1: Chapter 6

WHICH HOUSE WILL IT BE?

Minerva removed her glasses, set her quill down, and rubbed her eyes, sighing. The day before Term started was always insane. All the last minute details to take care of: making sure the professors were ready to go, seeing to it that the dorms were in order and ready, giving the house elves last minute instructions. And she was getting old...she could feel it. Each year it became more difficult to recover from the strain of start of Term.

Although this Term might prove to be more interesting than usual, with the arrival of another Potter, another Weasley, a new Malfoy...and the daughter of Bellatrix and Severus. The first two she was looking forward to. The second two, not as much. The child, Arabella, did seem well behaved and polite, and Minerva hadn't detected anything evil about her. But then, her encounter with the child had been brief. Once she got to school, who knew what would happen. And if people really were looking for the child...

Before her mind could run very far along that line of thought, she became aware of an incessant tapping sound. Glancing up at the window, she noticed an owl trying to get her attention. Opening the window, she took the parchment the owl was carrying. It flew away, and after closing the window, Minerva sat back down at the desk, frowning at the letter she held. Who in the world would be owling her?

Tearing the envelope open, she read the beautiful, flowing script that began with:

Dear Headmistress...I trust this letter finds you in good health, and looking forward with happy expectation to the new Term. I am writing to you on behalf of my cousin, Miss Arabella Greengrass."

Minerva read that line again. Cousin? Whom did Arabella have for a cousin? Or a cousin that knew about her at any rate. And since when was her last name "Greengrass"? Were they using Eleanor's mother's maiden name for the child?

Her eyes returned to the letter:

My aunt has told me you are aware of Arabella's true parentage, and that you can be trusted to keep that knowledge to yourself. I wish to inform you that, for rather obvious reasons, my aunt and uncle will not be able to attend the child as they would wish while she is at Hogwarts. Therefore, I will be assuming the role of legal guardian for Arabella. Should any issues involving Arabella come up, please do not hesitate to inform me at once. I will be checking in frequently to see how she is adjusting.

As we are certain that questions are bound to arise concerning poor Arabella, especially since my nephew Scorpius will be in her year, my uncle has decided the official story will be that Arabella is an orphan from an overseas branch of the Greengrass family, who has recently been placed under my guardianship. None of which, you will note, is explicitly a lie. You, as Headmistress, may use whatever level of knowledge or feigned ignorance you see fit, provided, of course, that you divulge the actual truth to NO ONE. Our family does not wish to have you implicated in any trouble with the Ministry should things go bad at some point in the future.

I do hope the term goes well for you, the professors, and especially the children.

Sincerely,

Daphne Greengrass

Minerva pursed her lips. Of course Eleanor would have been in touch with Daphne. The Greengrasses had come through the war and its aftermath mostly undamaged, and now found themselves at the pinnacle of the Pureblood aristocracy. Since none of them had ever officially been Deatheaters, even though in sympathy with them, they had been able to maintain their place at the top of wizarding society.

Daphne had always been the shrewdest of the lot. She was a perfect Slytherin: Careful, meticulous, and calculating, she knew the value of well placed allies. And being that she was Eleanor's great-niece, it made sense for her to align herself with Augustus and his merry band of outlaws.