343Chapter 7: Twenty Years Later
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Well, this is the end. It started as a one-shot and worked its way to a short story. It's a happily ever after story, so there wasn't much drama.
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Twenty years later, Harry Potter was standing in Diagon Alley with Sirius Black. It was a sad place with only five stores open, and no street vendors. That included Knockturn Alley as well. Even the darker wizards had left for more fertile places. They went to where they could find brides or husbands. There was none to be found here. The half-bloods left when the pressure got too much, and the laws got too strict. They went to the muggle world and shopped in the split stores. These Alleys were practically ghost towns.
"I can't believe there's less than two hundred people left in this side of the alley," said Harry as he looked around. Only the bookstore, the clothing store, the junk shop, the potions shop and the broom store were open. The rest were boarded up or just left abandoned. Gringotts didn't count as a store, and it was open for business as usual. There were fewer than twenty people shopping in the Alleys right now.
"I can, but I don't think they've bred themselves out this fast. I'm pretty sure most of them have left," said Sirius as he too looked around. He noted that the wand shop was closed and scratched his head trying to figure out how the purebloods were getting their wands. Ollivander must have died; he never would have abandoned his store.
"I know a lot of the blood-traitors ran to the muggle world," the younger man stated, thinking of Ron who stayed with his parents here in this world. The boy was always so stubborn. That and he blamed Harry for leaving him here and abandoning him. Even when the rest of the Weasley kids left, Ron stayed.
"I know that most of the Weasley kids did," Sirius said as if reading his thoughts. "I hear that the twins had to open a shop that catered to both sides. Charlie runs a Safari group. Bill still works for Gringotts, and Ginny got married and is expecting her fifth child. She's taking after her mum," he finished with a chuckle.
"Yeah, you're right, a bunch of the so-called blood-traitors did that," Harry said, glad that the Weasley kids worked it out. They couldn't go through the law firm and had to struggle it out on their own. He and Hermione helped wherever they could, but they mostly learned by example.
The two of them wandered down the street and continued talking. "So how are things going with you and Jasmin?" Sirius asked, changing the subject as they still took in the devastation of what was once a prosperous street. There was some graffiti, that stated that muggleborn weren't welcome, which must have been done by some of the teenagers. Sirius wouldn't have thought that they would have lowered themselves to such pettiness, but kids would be kids.
"They are going great. Thank you for asking. She is expecting our third child," the proud papa stated. He and his French wife were going on their tenth year of marriage. They had held off on having children for their careers. He was teaching, while she ran her mother's clothing store.
"Are you going to be naming Hermione the godmother again?" his godfather asked, not at all put out that he was not the godfather of the children. He was working on his own business, which was a pub that catered to both muggles and wizards. That was tricky, but he worked it out.
"Of course, she deserves the honor," Harry said, watching a piece of parchment fly by. It was a piece of government propaganda that promoted everything was going well and to not panic. It was a dull grey and it was years old judging by the deterioration and weathering.
Sirius bent to pick up the flyer and read it. He laughed at it and then tossed it in the nearest trashcan and asked, "How are things going with her and Viktor?" Those two had been married for the last five years.
Harry beamed at that question. He liked Hermione's husband. He had never thought in a thousand years that Viktor Krum would come and live in England and give up the limelight for his lady love. "Things are doing well. He's adapted pretty well to the muggle world. He is talking about trying out for rugby," he said, though he wasn't sure if the man would or not. It wasn't the same as Quidditch.
"That's great to hear," Sirius said, looking at the bank and seeing that there were a few magicals doing some business there.
"How are things going between you and Samantha?" his godson asked, hoping this one would be the one for his godfather. She had had him on the hook for over a year now. There were no children as of yet, and his godfather was getting on in years.
Now it was Sirius's turn to look uncomfortable. They were still walking down the cobblestone street, passing Knockturn Alley now. It was doing just as badly as Diagon Alley. "Things are going as well as can be expected. I'm not one to settle down, but I'm getting there," he said, looking everywhere but at the young man next to him. He was actually thinking about popping the question, but he didn't want to say anything in case the lady in question said no.
Harry just good-naturedly ribbed him with his arm. "Well, she's got to be a saint to put up with your sorry arse," he said, nudging him again. He really liked Sammy, as she preferred to be called. She was a muggle in the know. She made Sirius laugh and was a strict person, that knew how to have a good time. She knew how to keep Sirius in line without making him a dull person.
"Isn't that the truth," Sirius stated, he knew his family was all turning in their collective dark graves. Only Andromeda was still alive. Even Narcissa was dead now, killed by her husband when she declared that Harry had been right about the mistreatment of the muggleborn. Bellatrix died in Azkaban last year.
Passing the dark alley, Harry had to ask, "How are things going with the committee?" He was speaking of the committee to find and recruit the muggleborn children when they first exhibit magic.
"It's still a work in progress, even after all this time. We're finding more and more muggleborns every day. As soon as they show any sign of magic, we go to their house and tell them about the tutors and introduce them to the magical world and let them know that they have the option of the tutors or to go to Hogwarts," Sirius said, like Harry didn't already know that.
Hogwarts still was the number one school in Britain. It schooled most of the purebloods and half-bloods, no matter where they lived. Only a few of the muggleborn still went there, and the numbers grew every year now that Dumbledore was not there, and the standards of teaching had changed.
"I know that already, but what if they don't agree?" Harry asked, having always been fuzzy on that part.
"They have the choice of signing a nondisclosure agreement, which will magically make them not tell, or a mindwipe until Hogwarts comes for them," Sirius said with disgust. Even if it was their choice, he still hated that option.
Harry's face conveyed that he felt the same way. "Now that Hogwarts has cleaned up its act a little bit, I don't mind sending them there. I know I won't send my children, but still, it's a viable option. I hate that mindwipe is an option to, but the Statute of Secrecy is still a thing," he said with a wrinkled nose. They were now at the end of Diagon Alley and were turning around. There was nothing but empty shops down here.
"Why won't you send your children there? Now that Dumbledore is gone, it's actually not a bad school," Sirius asked, looking at his godson curiously. He had heard that most of the bullying was gone, and they were teaching up to standard now.
"Too many bad memories. I remember when I first wanted to go there, my mind was so open to the wonderous world of magic," he said, making wide gestures with his arms and his face was a picture of awesomeness, "and I was so disappointed after my first week. If I had known that tutors were going to be available, I would have left there ages before." He got a lost look on his face as he remembered how Snape had ruined his entire viewpoint of learning in that school. Well, that's not fair, that bastard was the straw that broke his back though.
"I know, you told me your stories, and I don't blame you. But Harry, you have to realize your experiences were not normal," the older wizard stated, looking at his godson with an earnest face.
"I know, it was because I was the Boy-Who-Lived," Harry spat with disgust. He really hated that name and all it stood for. It had been his parents that had killed the Dark Lord that night, he was sure of it. Something his mother did, or something they cooked up together. He was positive he did not survive a Killing Curse. They had to be wrong, it was impossible.
"That and Dumbledore had a very strange obsession with you," Sirius said with all seriousness.
"That he did."
"How are Dobby and Winky's housekeeping business working out?" the dogman asked, changing the subject to something a bit more cheerful.
"They're thriving. They have more business than they can handle. With the contracts the solicitor's have them sign, they do a good job of it," the younger man stated, knowing that the house elves had a great life now in the muggle world. They even had glamors that they could do muggle homes. As long as they kept the Statute, they could do what they wanted. They were making money hand over foot.
"To change the subject. Remus's village is going really well. They haven't had any new werewolves in a while, which is supposably good news. Though they did have a couple of new births. None of them were werewolves, so that's also good news. They're hoping to eradicate the virus. At least here in Britain," the older man said, bouncing like a child with a great school report card.
"Did they ever get rid of Greyback?" Harry asked with a shudder. He never liked the thought of that werewolf.
"I think he was brought down by the muggles. I'm not sure though, I'll have to ask Remus about that. He's been pretty tight lipped about it," Sirius said, getting a thoughtful look in his eyes. He was sure that Remus himself brought the man down and wasn't talking.
It was Harry's turn to get thoughtful as he remembered where he heard the name. "Isn't Greyback the one who turned him?" he asked, looking at the empty clothing store. It was open, but there was no one there at the moment. Twilfitt and Tattings weren't doing much business, however they drove Madam Malkin's out. The purebloods like their finery.
"Yes, it was very traumatizing for him, so he doesn't like to talk about him," Sirius said, solemnly. It was always a bone of contention between the friends. Sirius always thought Remus should just except his wolfiness, while Remus always rejected it.
"They're hoping that this is the last village of the werewolves in Britain?" Harry asked, a bit puzzled.
"Yes, they're hoping to have it die out with them," Sirius said, some bitterness underlaying his tone.
"I'm not sure if I'm happy or sad to hear that. I mean, it's a bad virus, but… it's a culture."
"Believe me, it's a good thing. It is not a good virus. And the werewolves will be happy to see it go," Sirius stated, happy for the wolves, but he, like Harry, hated to see a magical creature die out.
"I guess I understand."
"So, whatever happened to the rest of your friends like Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom?" Sirius asked, stopping at the entrance and looking around at the few shoppers that were hurrying about their business.
Harry got a nostalgic look on his face. He had met Luna via the mail when he left the wizarding world. She was one of the more persistent press correspondents. He liked her post and decided to strike up a pen pal relationship with her. "Oh, Luna ran off to France with her father. They opened the Quibbler there and found a couple of their creatures that they were looking for, but they never found the Crumpled Horn Snorkack," he said, chuckling.
"Oh, those quirky Lovegoods. They'll always go looking for those weird creatures," Sirius said, only knowing them via the Quibbler.
"Isn't that the truth. As for Neville, well he took his parents and ran to the United States of America and from what I understand they cured his parents there. And let me tell you, that was one very mad young man when he found out that St. Mungo's has just been basically keeping his parents drugged all this time. He was ready to come back and sue them for years of malpractice," Harry said, mad for his friend. He'd be pissed too, if it were him.
"I'll bet you Frank wasn't happy either," Sirius said, wondering if he should write to his friend. They had been good mates in school.
Harry waved to one of the purebloods who was glaring at them. "No, you're right there. Mr. Longbottom was hopping mad too. He's also very upset with his mother about her treatment of Neville. From what I understand, she was not a very good guardian," he said, shaking his head. He had learned that Neville had been using his father's wand, and that was what had been keeping him back in school.
Sirius was also waving to the woman who sniffed at them and walked off. "I'm sure. Old Augusta was a mean old woman when I was a kid. I'm sure she was not a very nice lady to raise Neville."
"No, she was not."
"Anyway, I don't see a reason to hang around here anymore. There are less than three stores open, very few people, and I'm sure the government is in more shambles than it was when we left," Sirius stated, moving towards the portal that would lead them to the Leaky Cauldron.
"Have you heard what happened to the Wizengamot?" Harry wanted to know as they stepped into the courtyard to the pub.
"There's only a few people on it."
"I heard the Prime Minister shut it down."
"Well, he couldn't shut it down per se. It's more like he said that they had to go through him before they can vote on anything. As for Old Fudge, well, he's been gone for a while, and they have a new Minister for Magic that was appointed by the Prime Minister," Sirius explained, going out to London proper. They walked to the nearest Tube station.
"You mean the Minister of Magic is no longer going to be appointed by the people?" Harry asked, with a bit of wonder. That was not the way the magical world worked when he was there. It had always been appointed by the Wizengamot via the public, which was heavily influenced by the purebloods.
"No."
Harry stopped where he was and started laughing loudly. He bent over for a moment and caught his breath, then he said, "I'll bet you that's got the pure bloods up-in-arms."
"Too bad, so sad for them," said Sirius, letting the younger man get it all out.
"I'm sure they hate taking orders from an uppity muggle," Harry said, with a huge smile on his face. To him this was a huge thing and funny as hell.
"They should have listened to us a long time ago. Now they must pay the piper," his godfather stated, with much gravity.
"How is he getting that done and not getting mind whammied?" Harry asked, worried that the purebloods would just put the PM under the Imperius. It would be so simple.
"He's got some muggleborn bodyguards," Sirius answered with a wicked grin.
"Hey, whatever happened to that Umbridge woman?" Harry asked, he had never met the woman but had heard about her from Remus and Sirius. According to them she was a piece of work.
Now it was time for Sirius to laugh and when he was done, he explained, "Well after the werewolves left, she had nothing left to suppress anymore, so she tried to take it out on the poorer purebloods, but the upper-class purebloods wouldn't have anything to do with that. So, they arrested her and threw her in Azkaban. They found out that she was a half-blood. So that didn't work out well for her."
"Couldn't happen to a nicer woman, I'm sure," Harry said, really happy that he had never crossed paths with her.
"Well, we got the society we wanted, and they got the society they wanted, and we worked out better in the end. I've got my nice little house and pub, and you've got your nice little woman," Sirius said, as they went down into the Tube station.
"I, for one, couldn't be happier with Jasmin. She is the light of my life, along with our two children and the one on the way," Harry said, as he paid the fee.
"Did you think all of this would happen when you started with those flyers?" Sirius asked, looking at his godson.
Harry got contemplative for a moment and said, "No, I thought I would just get away from Dumbledore and sit alone at the Dursleys and just hide from everybody. I just wanted everyone to leave me the hell alone."
"Well then, I'm glad it all worked out for you in the end," Sirius said, sincerely.
"Me too, Sirius, me too."