Harry Potter: Another Chance

Disclaimer:

Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

I own nothing but the original characters I create.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

Chapter 393: The Victims

Several days later, after things had calmed down a bit, the three families were gathered in the Potter Manor living room, discussing what to do next.

"What do you mean by that? We can't go back to Hogwarts?" Daphne looked very upset.

"I said you shouldn't go back. A lot of people will be looking for you, and…" Harry glanced at Ginny and her family members, who were sitting nearby.

"I'm okay with not going back to school for a while," Ron said hurriedly.

"Of course you are…" Fred rolled his eyes.

"Are we still in danger?" Ginny asked.

Molly hugged her daughter. "You're safe here, my dear. I won't let anyone hurt you again."

"Daphne…" Sebastian Greengrass called.

"Father?" Daphne turned to look at him.

"Harry is correct. The Dark Lord does not take losses lightly. Now that the illusion of neutrality has been shattered, we have openly become his enemies. He will most definitely try again."

"I understand that, but…" Arthur glanced at his family. "The children will need to finish their education. Are you suggesting sending them to a different school?"

"Like Beauxbatons?" Ginny asked.

"The one where Fleur Delacroix goes?" Ron asked with mild excitement. As much as he disliked school, he wasn't entirely opposed to the idea.

"We can't afford that school. You know that, Arthur," Molly said.

"I wasn't suggesting that one."

"That won't be necessary. As I told Lord Greengrass, this conflict won't last that long," Harry said.

"You seem very sure about that," Selene commented. "But you haven't shared any details in that regard."

"Mother, you know he can't," Daphne told her.

"Why not? Harry… what's going on?" Ginny became more curious. Harry had always been secretive, and she knew he was hiding something big. But even Lyra wouldn't talk about it.

"Ginny, that's enough," Molly said in a firm tone. "Some things are too dangerous to know."

"I already said this before," Lily spoke. "But you are all more than welcome to stay as long as necessary."

"And you don't have to worry about the kids' education. My wife is qualified to teach them for a while," James said. "This manor is also well-equipped with a library, a spellcasting area, and even a Quidditch field."

"We can play Quidditch here?" Ron was getting excited.

Harry looked at Daphne. He knew she was not happy with this arrangement at all. "It won't be long. I promise," he said softly.

Daphne frowned. "That just means you're going to put yourself in more danger, isn't it?" she whispered.

Ginny's eyes moved to observe the two of them. She hadn't missed how close they seemed.

"Do we know if any other families were attacked that night?" Selene asked.

"We do…" James pulled out a letter. "I received this from Dumbledore just yesterday. Two other houses were targeted."

"Well?" Sebastian urged him to continue.

"The Abbotts," James said.

Ginny gasped. "Hannah's family? What happened to them?" She wasn't close to the Hufflepuff girl, but they at least knew each other.

James shook his head. "No survivors…"

"Oh no…" Ginny cried.

"And who else?" Daphne asked, a terrible feeling creeping over her.

"The Davises."

Daphne's face turned pale. "Tracey's family?!"

"Lord Davis is still alive, but his father and Lady Davis were killed," James added.

Harry remained quiet and just held Daphne's hand. He had learned about this last night but hadn't had the chance to tell her. He also knew that Snape had been the one who killed Tracey's mother, but he wasn't ready to share that.

"No… Tracey…" Tears began to stream down Daphne's face.

Harry pulled her closer and hugged her tightly as she cried.

The room remained silent for a while.

When Daphne calmed down a bit, she spoke again. "Wait, but Tracey is at Hogwarts. Does she know?"

"She does." James nodded. "The Headmaster informed her. I assume she's with her father at the moment."

"I need to send her a letter, at least. I need to know how she is," Daphne said.

"I don't think it's a good idea to contact her right now," Harry said.

"What are you saying? She just lost her mother! I just want her to know that—"

"I know, but… think about it," Harry interrupted.

"Daphne, dear," Selene called softly.

"Why do you think her father is still alive?" Sebastian asked.

"Ah…" Daphne's eyes widened in realization.

To survive, Lord Davis must have sworn loyalty to the Dark Lord.

"If she receives a letter from our family right now…" Selene began.

"I'll get her in trouble," Daphne finished. She understood now.

Voldemort would want to know their location. If he thought he could use Tracey to get that information, she would be in grave danger.

Daphne stood up. "I… won't send a letter, but I need to be alone for a bit," she said before leaving the dining hall.

Harry stood up a few minutes later. "If anyone needs me, I'll be in the basement." He needed to blow off some steam.

Ginny saw him leaving the room and stood up. "Excuse me for a moment," she said, hurrying to catch up with him.

She left the hall and saw Harry turning a corner. Ginny wanted to ask him something important...or at least it felt important to her.

She moved faster until she saw his figure again.

Ginny raised her hand and was about to call for him, but something stopped her. She couldn't bring herself to call out.

'Do I even want to know?' she wondered. After what she had seen in the hall, she was almost certain there was something between him and Daphne.

All she had to do was ask, and Harry would tell her the truth. But she hesitated.

When she looked up again, Harry was nowhere to be seen.

"Are you lost, redhead?"

Ginny turned to the voice and found herself staring into familiar piercing green eyes, but they didn't belong to Harry.

Instead, she was looking at a beautiful girl with long black hair and elegant robes.

"You're…" Ginny was sure she had seen her before.

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