Disclaimer: Boil Cure Potion was retired from www.hp-lexicon.com and Harry Potter's universe belongs to J.K. Rowling. Well, I wouldn't mind if I had her talent, but hey, I'm trying to write the best I can.
Chapter Thirteen - Plotting
"Milady? Wake up." A female voice called, while a small hand gently shook Ginevra's arm, trying to wake her up.
"Yes, Parvati?" the sleepy young woman mumbled, throwing a warm arm over her sensitive eyes, to protect them from the bright sunlight bathing the room.
"Prince Draco ordered me to bring you breakfast in bed. He said you'd be too tired to go downstairs…" the maid explained with good humour.
Ginevra could hear her friend walking around the room, picking up the clothes she and her husband had thrown, carelessly, on the floor, the previous night. She was surprised that he wasn't still in bed with her, but surely he had other duties to attend, and in truth, so had she.
Last night had been exciting and emotionally draining.
While the old Headmaster showed her around the school, on several occasions Ginevra found herself imagining her brothers running around those hallways, laughing or even yelling with their friends, as they went to their next class. The moving staircases had made her laugh and the moving portraits had all bowed at her passage. Somehow, they had recognized her as a Princess.
Soon after they began their visit to the castle's hallways, the Headmaster took her to a big room that was immersed in darkness. The only light in the room was very weak one, coming from a fire lit in a large marble mantelpiece. Headmaster Dumbledore waved his wand and the fire became stronger, lightening up the whole room and Ginevra recognized it for what it was… The Library.
Ginevra's eyes welled with tears. The eerie glow of the flames made the Library look sacred, inviting and secretive. This was the perfect place to have her conversation with the Headmaster and, soon, they were both sitting among tall bookshelves, filled with precious tomes, talking about something that could be considered treason. At least, to Birmingham's kingdom.
"Milady, your breakfast is getting cold." Parvati warned, gently removing Ginevra's arm from her eyes and fluffed her pillows, to help her Princess sit against the headboard. Realising her mistress' nakedness, the maid helped her put on a nightgown and only then did she place the tray over the Princess' lap.
"Did Prince Draco say if he would spend the day in the Palace?" Ginevra asked as she studied her breakfast tray. There were ginger cookies, orange juice, milk, toast and fruit. Too much food for only one person…
"I believe he has left the Palace with the King, milady. Prince Draco only told me to bring you some food…" Parvati smiled, watching Ginevra munch on a cookie. "Milady, may I be impertinent?"
"Parvati, you should have realised, by now, that I consider you my friend. You can ask me whatever you want…" Ginevra chuckled, offering the cookies' plate to her maid and she shyly accepted one.
"Is Hogwarts as beautiful as the guards say it is?" the young woman asked, eagerly.
"No man or woman will ever be able to describe Hogwarts to its full glory, Parvati. It's one of those situations when you have to see it to believe it." Ginevra replied enthusiastically. "I guarantee you that I cried with its grandiosity…"
"Oh, it sounds so… fantastic!" Parvati replied with a dreamy look on her face, wondering about a big castle, surrounded by a forest and a lake.
"Why don't you ask my brother to take you there? I'm sure he would be delighted to be your guide around the place." Ginevra proposed with a sly smirk and laughed when Parvati blushed all over.
"Milady, you shouldn't say things like that…" the girl mumbled, ashamedly.
"Parvati, there's no reason for you to feel shy or ashamed. It's so good to see two persons falling for each other, naturally, without a loveless marriage being forced on both of you. I'm sure my brother is very interested in you, and you are taken with him, as well, or you wouldn't have authorized him to court you." Ginevra reasoned out, holding her maid's hand between her own. "Allow yourself to have some happiness, my friend. I promise you the Weasleys are a very loyal and loving lot."
"But the castle, unless I'm in your presence, Milady!" Parvati replied, a bright shine in her eyes showing how excited she was with the prospect of a visit to Hogwarts, in the company of the pleasant and gorgeous looking Mr. Ronald Weasley.
"Well, I believe I could give you a day off from your duties… After all, you might be coming down with a cold and I don't want you to pass it on to me." Ginevra grinned mischievously and sipped her orange juice.
"Milady, I've never met someone so mischievous as you are!" Parvati giggled happily. "I'll do my best to sneeze, whenever possible, and preferably, in front of the right people."
"Good girl… Don't forget to owl my brother, telling him to spend the day with you, tomorrow." She replied and got up from the bed with a relaxed sigh. "I'd better get ready for my day… It's going to be a long one."
"Milady, don't forget about your Potions lesson, after lunch."
"Oh no, I had forgotten! I had so many plans for today…" Ginevra complained, entering the bathroom with a small pout on her lips.
After taking a warm bath and having Parvati's help to get dressed, Ginevra caught her wavy hair in a long braid, which she proceeded to role on itself, at the back of her head. Finally ready, she went in search of the Queen, while Parvati cleaned her bedroom.
Ginevra found the Queen in her private office, taking care of her official correspondence and talking with Lady Sarah.
"Mother, may I interrupt your work for a few moments?" she asked at the door.
"Good morning, my darling! It's always a pleasure to spend time with you. Come in and have a seat…" the Queen offered and pulled her daughter-in-law for a gentle hug.
Ginevra sat in a comfortable armchair and looked around her. The room was decorated in aqua green wallpaper, with white curtains on the windows and dark tapestry on the floor. The Queen sat behind an elegant desk full of neatly ordered piles of parchment, beautiful quills and several bottles of differently coloured ink.
"What is it that you need to speak with me?" the Queen enquired, her blue eyes shining with curiosity.
"It's a private matter. I would prefer to have this conversation, with you, alone." Ginevra explained, slightly nervous, looking at Lady Sarah. "I have nothing against you, Lady Sarah, but it is a very important matter."
The woman just smiled and quickly left the room, leaving both women alone, at last.
"Well, here it goes… I'm putting a few ideas into action, with a few persons' help. My ideas won't make the King happy… In fact, many people will oppose to my plans, but they must carry on. They might even fail, but our kingdom will feel, if even for a short while, that it is possible to change things and make them better." Ginevra said excitedly and apprehensively, at the same time.
"Ginevra, dear, calm down. You're not making sense! What are you talking about?" the Queen asked, getting suspicious.
"I want to gather a group of high-class women to secretly teach them basic spells, charms and potions, for the duration of one month. I wanted to let you know and invite you to join us, as well. We must help these women protect themselves. I thought about starting with the high-class women and go down the social ladder, until we change the Kingdom's view on the matter and women can finally attend magical schools." Ginevra said, pacing the room in front of the desk.
Breaking her speech, Ginevra looked at the Queen, waiting for some kind of response, and she got it. Right there, in the Queen's face, was possible to identify apprehension, fear, excitement, admiration, …
"My dear, you'll only get yourself in trouble. You are plotting against the king… Your father-in-law, at that! That's why I must say I cannot join you in your fight… I would be removing the credibility from my husband's authority, and although I support your beliefs, I cannot help." Queen Narcissa explained gently. "Tell me nothing of your plans, for your sake and, please, be careful… I'm sure you'll succeed."
"I hope so, Mother. I'm sad I won't have you by my side, but at least I have your silent support… Thank you." Ginevra whispered sadly, hugging the Queen once again. "I'll see you at lunch."
As she walked away from the Queen's office, Ginevra couldn't help but be sad. She had truly hoped to have her support, but she understood her reasons.
Still, the fight had to go on, no matter what.
After lunch, Ginevra went to the sitting room, to read for a while, before her lesson with Mr. Snape, when two male voices distracted her. Unconsciously, a big smile spread over her face. Her husband and Mr. Snape were coming her way, pleasantly talking about some potion ingredient.
Ginevra quickly straightened her back and smoothed her dress, just as both men entered the room. One beside the other, one dark the other light, but both were elegant in their movements and both had beautiful hands.
"Milady, it's a pleasure to see you, as always. How are you?" Mr. Snape enquired in his deep tone of voice, but his face showed no emotion.
"I'm very well, Mr. Snape, thank you for asking." She smiled and then focused on her husband. He was standing against the mantelpiece, hands on his pockets and his silver grey eyes studying her closely. "I didn't know you were in the Palace… Have you had lunch?"
"Yes, mother." Prince Draco grinned, waving off her concern. "Professor Snape allowed me to assist to your class, today. Do you mind?"
"Of course not!" she replied with surprise etched on her face. She had never expected him to show so much interest in her activities. Apparently, Mr. Snape had a great influence on the young man. "Shall we go to the classroom?"
Elegantly, Ginevra stood from her seat and took Prince Draco's arm. In silence, the three of them walked down the corridor, side by side, until they reached the Prince's old tutoring room.
"Milady, please take your seat and proceed to ignore your husband for the rest of the class." Mr. Snape ordered with a smirk on his thin lips. Prince Draco just rolled his eyes, playfully, and sat on the window seat. From there he could easily watch his wife, as she worked. "Today we'll work on the Boil Cure Potion. What can you tell me about it?"
"Well, it's a Healing Potion used on people who have been hexed with the Furnunculus Spell. Its ingredients are dried nettles, crushed snake fangs, stewed horned slugs and after the potion becomes light blue, we remove the cauldron from the fire and add porcupine quills." Ginevra explained calmly, trying to say everything she knew without making a mistake. "If we add the last ingredient before the cauldron is taken off the fire, the potion will become a strong acid and destroy everything it touches, including the cauldron, the table, the floor… Everything."
Mr. Snape remained silent, his face set in a scowl as he looked at her, making Ginevra feel very insecure of her self. Both men were staring at her, saying nothing and she felt ridiculous. At least they could tell her what she had said wrong, right?
"That is correct." Mr. Snape replied at last, smirking when he heard Ginevra's loud sigh of relief. "Proceed to brew the potion. And be careful! I will not have cauldrons melting in this room…"
Ginevra forgot the world for the next few hours, concentrating only in preparing the ingredients and adding them to the potion, as needed. She never noticed the surprised, yet proud, looks her husband gave her, as he talked with Mr. Snape.
"Do you realise, now, why I couldn't allow you to forbid these lessons, Draco?" the Potions Master said in a low murmur, so that only the Prince could listen. "Look at her! I've taught each class of dunderheads for seven years and very few showed her talent and her easiness in brewing. With the proper education she could become a good Potions Mistress."
Draco just nodded his head in understanding, returning his gaze to studying his wife's concentrated face and delicate, capable hands.
"She's quite a woman, isn't she? Always full of new ideas to improve the Kingdom, always trying to make a difference…" the Prince smiled, lost in thought. "On several occasions I've found myself wondering if she's right. Would it really be better for everyone if women were allowed to learn magic? Would it be safer? Would there be more progress? I don't know what to think anymore…"
"Well, I can only advise you to seek the answers to your questions, by yourself. You are a Prince, are you not? Then, speak with your people, gather opinions, evaluate them and decide what you truly believe." Mr. Snape replied calmly, yet forcefully. "Don't make the same mistakes of your ancestors. They have accepted the laws without ever questioning their validity. Prove that you have a brain, boy! Prove that you can be a better King, than all of the previous Malfoys."
Prince Draco nodded with determination in his eyes and shook his ex-teacher's hand. With careful steps, he stood behind his wife and kissed her neck lightly, causing her to gasp in surprise. She had been too immersed in her work to notice someone creeping up on her. Prince Draco just kissed her neck, once again, and whispered a `See you later' before leaving the room. He had a lot to think about, at the moment.
Ginevra's potion turned light blue, soon after her husband left. Carefully, she removed the cauldron from the flame and stirring slowly, added the porcupine quills.
`Perfect!' she smiled happily, seeing the liquid become darker.
As soon as Mr. Snape left the Palace, giving her a small compliment on her work, Ginevra found that she still had a few hours before dinner. Just enough time to have a last meeting for the day. In half an hour she was inside of a carriage, accompanied by Parvati, and heading towards Potter Manor.
After a short ride, the carriage stopped in front of a large house, made of light grey stone, with several balconies full of flowerbeds that gave the house a romantic look.
`That must have been Hermione's idea.' Ginevra smiled, amusedly.
There was a simple, yet gorgeous garden, surrounding the house and a path, made of stone that led to the white entrance door. Soon after Ginevra knocked on the door, a maid opened it with a curtsy.
"Good afternoon. Is Mrs. Potter at home?" Ginevra asked, feeling uncomfortable with the situation. The maid still hadn't straightened up from her bow, and apparently, wouldn't be doing so, any time soon.
"Yes, My Princess… Please, come in and wait while I inform Mrs. Potter of your presence." The maid said in a shaky voice, finally straightening up her back to allow entrance to the guests.
As soon as the maid disappeared behind a door, Ginevra looked at Parvati with a nervous glance.
"Must she act so strangely? One would think I was about to eat her, or something!" Ginevra mumbled.
"Its protocol, Milady. You are our Princess, our superior, and we must act in accord to your position. That is why she bowed so low, for such a length of time…" Parvati explained quickly, with a small smile on her lips.
"Oh, alright then." Ginevra sighed, but she still felt uncomfortable. Looking around her, she admired the high-ceiled hall, made of sculpted white marble.
"Ginevra, what a surprise!" she heard Mrs. Potter say in excited tones, and turned around to greet her with a smile.
"Hello, Hermione! I'm sorry I came here without previous warning, but I couldn't hold this conversation until tomorrow." Ginevra explained, giving a small hug to her friend. "Are you busy or can we talk?"
"I'm never busy for you. Come, Harry and I were reading a little, before the evening meal." Mrs. Potter explained excitedly, pulling Ginevra by the hand, towards a door near the entrance hall.
"Milady, do you need me?" Parvati asked, unsure of what was expected of her. "My cousin works here and I haven't seen her for a while…"
"Then go ahead and have a good conversation with her... I won't need you, for now." Ginevra replied with a smile and followed her friend inside of a beautiful sitting room.
"Milady, it's a pleasure to receive your visit at our home…" Mr. Potter greeted, kissing her hand and leading her to a sofa.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter… Harry. I'm sorry for interrupting your reading, but I needed to talk with Hermione." Ginevra explained, looking nervous, now that she was here.
"I believe I'll leave you both alone, then." Mr. Potter said with a bright smile that reached his green eyes and prepared to leave the room.
"Harry, please, could you stay? I'm not sure of what your reaction will be, but I need your help, if you'll accept to give it to me." Ginevra said quickly and relaxed when he took a seat next to his wife, both their faces looking curious.
"Ginevra, what's going on?" Mrs. Potter enquired gently.
"I'm trying to gather several women from the high-class to form a class. For the duration of one month they would learn basic spells, charms and potions. By the end of that time, if they were successful in their learning, we would then try to teach lower-class women. If they were successful as well, then we could try to fight the law that stops women from having a magical education. We would have proofs that women are magical people, as well! When other women started seeing the ones we taught truly had powers, they would start fighting for the same rights… A whole revolution would take place, and the law would have to be changed!" Ginevra explained quickly, ignoring her listeners' shocked faces. "I came here asking for your help. Hermione, I need your help because you're a very intelligent woman and you know more people from high-class, than I do. Harry, I wanted you to help us teach those women…"
Mr. and Mrs. Potter stared at each other and remained speechless. Finally, Mr. Potter snapped out of his trance and focused on Ginevra, with a serious look on his face.
"Milady, are you sure you want to do that? It is treason! How can you cause a revolution against your own husband's father?" he asked gravely.
"We should worry about the well-being of our Kingdom's inhabitants and not about our King's feelings! Think about the good it would bring our Kingdom if women were allowed to be what they are… witches! Women could start working on better jobs, guaranteeing better income to their families, they could produce better work with their wands, they could protect themselves from violence, they could brew their own healing potions, they could bring new ideas to our Kingdom and help it go further. There's so much women can do, but they are not allowed!" Ginevra said fervently, pacing the room as she revealed her ideas. "They are worried about women being rapped… They would be able to prevent it if they could hex the attacker! When a child is sick and the husband isn't at home, women often have to leave their child alone and go in search of a Healer… If they could Apparate, they would immediately take their child to a Healer! Hell, we even need a better Health System! There aren't enough Healers for such a large Kingdom and the ones we have usually don't attend lower class families, because they can't afford the medical services…"
"Ginevra, calm down, you're getting too nervous… Take a deep breath." Mrs. Potter gently placed a soothing hand on her friend's shoulder, leading her back to the sofa.
"I've seen several children in my neighbourhood disappear, Hermione. One day we would be playing around in the dirt and the next day, they would disappear. Several times, I asked my mother what had happened to them and she always told me `They went to a magical place, Ginny.'" Ginevra whispered, trying her best not to sob. Her emotions were too out of control at the moment and before she knew it, there were tears running down her face. "So many times I whished I could go to that magical place, as well… Until the day I finally understood what had happened to them. They died, Hermione… They died because their families couldn't afford a Healer. Thankfully, no one in my family ever had a serious disease, or we would all be dead by now…"
Mr. Potter rose from his seat and came to sit next to Ginevra, placing his hand on one of hers. He took a deep breath and met his wife's sad eyes, knowing what he had to do.
"We will do everything we can to change that situation, Ginevra… Let's begin the biggest revolution that Birmingham's Kingdom has ever seen." Mr. Potter said in a gentle voice, causing Ginevra to start crying, once again. This time, they were happy tears. There was still a chance of changing this kingdom's unfair laws and she would have Mr. and Mrs. Potter by her side.
"Have you told Draco?" Mrs. Potter carefully asked, already knowing the answer to that question.
"Oh, Hermione, so many things happened since I got married… There were a few problems, but now we are on the right path. He's starting to accept me and I'm doing my best not to make him feel uncomfortable." Ginevra explained with a small smile. "He's starting to accept my ideas, but he's not ready yet to start plotting against his father. In fact, I believe he would never do that, no matter what his beliefs were… Can we keep this a secret?"
Both Potters nodded their heads in silent agreement and Ginevra smiled.
"Queen Narcissa is supporting us, but not openly, due to her high position… I'm going to request Mr. Zabini's help, tomorrow. Yes, I know he's my husband's best friend, but I'm sure I can trust him… If he accepts, he'll help Harry teach our ladies." Ginevra explained, taking a deep tired breath. "Another plan is already in motion, but no one will know about that one, besides me and another person."
"Ginevra, what other plan is this?" Mrs. Potter asked with worry and suspicion in her voice, her eyes slightly narrowed.
"Soon you'll know, dear friend. Don't worry about it, it's perfectly safe…" Ginevra replied with a mischievous grin.
"Be careful, Ginevra, you're playing with a very dangerous fire… Make sure you don't get yourself burnt." Mr. Potter warned with worried green eyes. "I admire your determination and your ideals, but make sure you don't sacrifice everything that you have, for the greater good of the whole kingdom."
"Thank you for your concern, Harry…" Ginevra replied gently. "Could you make a list of the women we could easily approach at a social tea party, Hermione? And we need to find a way to silence the women, making sure they won't tell anyone about what we had said at that gathering…"
"I have the perfect spell, Ginevra, don't you worry about it." Mr. Potter said with a big laugh. "We'll make a list of everyone you can easily approach."
"Thank you, once more, for your care and help. I'm sure we'll succeed." Ginevra sighed, standing up and preparing to go back to the Palace.
"Goodbye, my friend, make sure you don't get yourself in too much trouble. I'll visit you at the Palace, tomorrow, to start planning. When I get home I'll tell everything to Harry, so that people won't get suspicious of our meetings." Mrs. Potter explained, leading her friend to the entrance hall, where Parvati was already waiting for her.
"Goodbye, Hermione and Harry. Have a rest of a good evening and make sure to take good care of that baby…" Ginevra chuckled as she left the house and quickly entered the carriage.
Seeing that her mistress was unusually quiet, Parvati made no comments and asked no questions. Soon enough they were back at the Palace and Ginevra went to bed without having dinner.
After having had a Potions Lesson for two hours and having had an emotionally draining meeting with the Potters, she was ready to fall asleep. Parvati quickly helped her remove her clothing and then to dress her nightgown.
Soon enough, Ginevra was inside her bedcovers, in a deep peaceful sleep. Still, she woke up when she felt the bed shift under another person's weight and opened her eyes to watch her husband struggle with the bedcovers. When he finally won the fight and laid his head on the pillow, he found a pair of gorgeous brown eyes studying him.
"Hello, there. I thought you were asleep… Are you feeling well? Parvati said you wouldn't be coming down for dinner." Prince Draco asked with concern in his voice, as he laid on his side, to face his wife.
"I was feeling tired, that's why I came to bed early. Did you have a nice day?" she asked gently, not sure of what to say to him at the moment.
"Yes, it was fine, but I'm tired and tomorrow I have to get up early to meet the Head of the Royal Guards…" he replied with a sigh, placing an arm around her waist to draw her closer to his chest. Ginevra snuggled closer to his warm body, burying her face against the hollow of his neck and placed a kiss right bellow his ear, making him moan softly.
"Goodnight…" she mumbled, before falling back asleep, surrounded by his familiar and pleasant scent.
Prince Draco remained awake for a little while longer, feeling his wife's soft breath brushing his neck and caressed her back with his free hand. She had occupied his thoughts for the whole afternoon… He still hadn't found all the answers he was looking for, but he was on the right path.
`How have you done it, my wife? You've got me daydreaming about you, questioning my kingdom's laws and admiring your intelligence, all at the same time.' He thought, kissing the top of her red head, before finally falling asleep, as well. He still had hundreds of people to talk to, around the kingdom, if he wanted to find out what was best for everyone.
*********
Ugh, I'm tired… I've been writing this chapter for the last 3 hours and, finally, it's ready.
The plot is thickening, ah ah!!! Can you tell what the other plan and who the other person is? I'll be waiting for your guesses…
Second Semester at school started yesterday and already I have 6 school works to make… Merlin help me survive two more years at University.
I'll try to update very soon, alright? Until then,
Love, Carina
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