Chapter 218: Entitlement
21st March 2012, Potter Cottage, Godric's Hollow
(Lily Potter POV)
Jasmine gave her a warm smile, “From what I could see, you were wonderful parents to Rose and Nathan and for that you have my respect. Perhaps if your family hadn’t been in the middle of Riddle’s and Dumbledore’s vendetta, things would have been different, but it does not do well to dwell on possibilities of what could have been and forget to live. The past is the past. It is immutable, unchangeable. You just have to live for what you have left. If it’s any consolation, for all the pain your actions produced, all the suffering I got through, I am glad for it. I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without it. And for that, I forgive you for any pain you caused me.”
Jasmine turned around, calmly went through the door and disappeared, leaving Rose, Lily and James alone in the living room. For the first time in decades, Lily Potter’s eyes weren’t so dim, she didn’t feel heartbroken. I guess this is what it meant to have closure.
The three Potters just stayed there, without moving even slightly. After a short while, Lily turned towards her daughter with a strange look on her face, “You knew? This whole time, you watched as your father and I were heartbroken. Did you spend all this time with her teaching you?”
Rose looked a tad uncomfortable, “Not really. I found out that she was alive after the funeral. She had left me a letter telling me that she was alive and not to tell anyone.”
“And the magic?” James asked.
“She just left me a portrait to continue my education. Although after a few years she refused to teach me anything, said that I already had the tools to continue my magical education on my own.”
Lily sighed, “So, you didn’t see her?”
The younger woman shook her head, “The first time I spoke to her ever since the funeral was in New York a few days ago. We were fighting the one responsible, Loki, and she helped us out.”
“I heard about that. MACUSA was up in arms, and they’re still dealing with the fallout. Thankfully, not a single wizard or witch died, and none of the magical streets were hit. The people are still scared over there though. Was she involved in the invasion?” James interjected
“Yeah, she pretty much stopped it by herself. You probably didn’t recognize her; she was wearing her battle outfit. The news ended up calling her the Morrigan.”
James snorted, “Well, it seems that faking her death is a trend.”
Rose sighed, exasperated, “I’m sorry for not telling you about her, but she trusted me with this secret, and I wasn’t going to betray her. She didn’t say it, but I know that she was disappointed with Nathan’s behavior when she arrived in Hogwarts. Choosing to fake her death was her choice and I wasn’t going to take it from her.”
“Maybe, but you still watched us suffer and did nothing. And you saw her, she didn’t care at all.”
Rose shook her head, “It’s not that she doesn’t care, because she does. You have to understand, she might look like a normal witch, but she isn’t. She’s barely even human. We, mortals, don’t live that long, we shouldn’t live that long. And when someone does, it changes them in fundamental ways. The way they start caring, the way they express their feelings, their love for someone, the way they express their anger or hate. She’s lived for so long, lost so many friends and people. She became very selective of the people she would care about. You have to understand that she lived for hundreds of lifetimes. Every single mortal lifetime for her, would be like a year for us. Imagine if every friend you made would die less than a year after you meet them. It’s such a cruel fate that I wouldn’t wish on anyone. People keep trying to achieve immortality without even thinking about what happens afterwards.”
Lily had tears in her eyes. She never expected something like this. She never wanted her baby to suffer so much, to lose her humanity like this, “I didn’t know, I didn’t understand…”
“Of course, you didn’t. Who would? You need to stop thinking about her as your daughter, because she isn’t, not anymore. Jasmine Potter died a very long time ago. She doesn’t hate you because what you did to her was so long ago, that she barely remembers it. The woman you met, the woman I befriended, the woman who calls me her sister, looked at you as if you were strangers. She tried to see if you were worth being in her life and found you wanting. She decided to ignore you, like she did the majority of the population. She saw your actions and decided that you would be too troublesome to have in her life. That’s all there was to it. Nothing more, nothing less.”
James was obviously getting enraged, “So, we just have to let it go, to just accept the fact that our own daughter, our flesh and blood deemed that forming any kind of relationship with us to be too troublesome?”
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
“Yes. As far as you’re concerned, you’ve barely done anything for her other than conceiving her. She was never going to accept you as her parents, no matter how much you try; she’s a lot older and a lot more experienced than either of you. The two of you acting like her parents would be ridiculous.”
Lily whined at her, “But it isn’t fair.”
“Of course, it isn’t fair. It isn’t fair to you or to her, but life seldom is. I asked her to come here not expecting you to suddenly become friends, or family. I asked her to come here to give you closure, so that you could finally move on with your life, instead of wallowing in your own misery like you are today. You’re not even fifty years old yet, in wizarding years you still have a lot ahead of you. And what have you done? You’re both retired and the only thing you’ve done so far is write a few books where I made most of the contributions, and a short career in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, where you barely got up from your desk. You need to start living again, to enjoy life. Go traveling, have fun with friends. Do something other than wallowing for hypothetical scenarios in your home.”
The Potter lady could see her daughter’s point. She hadn’t really done anything ever since her daughter left the country, being harassed by that Granger girl. Why Nathan still trusts that woman is something that Lily will never understand, especially with how she is actively targeting Nathan’s own sister. She will admit that traveling seemed to have a positive effect on Rose. She seemed lighter, freer ever since she left the country. Perhaps another trip could help them start living again.
James seemed to have come to the same realization, “It has been a while since I went out with Sirius and Remus. I guess we really haven’t been doing well in the last few years.”
Rose snorted, “Not doing well? The two of you spent days barely moving from the couch. Even Nathan noticed, and you know how dense he is when it comes to stuff like this. It’s why he keeps leaving his kids here because they’re the only thing that cheer you up anymore. It’s the only time you feel alive again. For Merlin’s sake, Mum, Dad, even Jasmine has a wife and a daughter.”
Well, Nathan’s weekly visits, even when he’s busy, are making sense now. Wait a minute, did she say, “Wife? Jasmine has a wife? and a daughter? I have another grandchild?”
Rose chuckled, “Not really. Wanda is adopted and one of the most powerful witches I’ve met since Jasmine herself. She’s a bit limited since her magic is unique to her and Jasmine who has been away for a few years because of some accident. She didn’t have anyone to teach her and has been figuring things out on her own.”
Lily smiled warmly, “So, you’re friends with your niece. Does she know who you are to her?”
“Yeah, she knows that Jasmine is my sister, but because we’re a lot closer in age, we’re just friends. And trust me, she doesn’t want anything to do with you when I told her what happened between you and Jasmine. She doesn’t even acknowledge me as her aunt, just a friend she made.”
Lily’s smile dimmed, “What about her wife?”
“Well, she’s another immortal. She’s a lot prickier than Jasmine, and definitely a lot more distant, but she obviously loves Jasmine and is loved back in return. They’re very comfortable together, but they don’t mind staying years apart if they’re busy. It’s like us going on a weekend apart to be honest. It’s not that daunting for them. If I’m being honest, I think she’s the main reason why Jasmine still has a shred of humanity left. Having a companionship like that, while the rest of the world withers and dies, has helped her a lot.”
Lily tried not to think too much about the fact that Jasmine was married to another woman. It was a bit weird to her. She grew up in a Christian home and such things weren’t even considered. Add in the fact that the wizarding world, while it allows for certain dalliances, is very strict with the continuation of bloodlines, the idea of a noble woman marrying another one, hence depriving the world of her offspring, was very taboo. Well, as long as she’s happy, who was Lily to judge her actions.
She could look at James and see how uncomfortable he is with the idea. But after a small glare, he shied away, understanding her implicit threat. Before they could do anything, they heard the telltale signs of apparition and turned around to see Nathan, his wife, Tracy, and his children who were running at her with their arms wide, “Grandma!!”
Lily forced a grin on her face and gave them a hug, “I missed you so much. You know what, there’s candy in the kitchen, why don’t you go there while me and your parents have a little grown-up talk.”
They both whined, “But…”
Tracy interrupted them with a stern tone, “No buts. Listen to you grandmother. We’ll be right back.”
Nathan looked at his sister, “Rose, I didn’t know you were back.”
She nodded, “Yeah, I’m not staying for long. I just wanted to talk with Mum and Dad about something.”
Nathan shrugged, “Anything important?”
Rose just shrugged and James murmured in anger, “Yeah, like the fact that her sister is still alive isn’t important.”
“Wait, what? Jasmine is still alive?” Nathan asked out loud.
Tracy gasped when no one answered his question, taking it as a confirmation. Lily just glared at her husband, “Are you happy?”
He shook his head, “Sorry, it just came out.”
Rose shrugged, “It’s fine. She doesn’t care about her anonymity too much anymore. Her goals in magical Britain are done. As long as you don’t tell the press or something, I doubt she’ll make a big deal out of it.”
Nathan just looked at them, flabbergasted and pointed at Rose, “Wait, you knew? All this time, you knew that she was alive, that I didn’t cause my sister’s death by listening to Dumbledore?”
Rose nodded, “She didn’t want anyone to know. She didn’t want any of you to be held back and for you to grow on your own. She told me that she was proud of you, by the way.”
“Are you kidding? That’s her reason for not… wait a minute, she said that she was proud of me?”
Lily stifled a chuckle as Rose answered, “Yes. She said that you made great changes in the country and that it’s prospering because of you.”
While Nathan had a goofy smile on his face, Tracy had a very calculating look, and turned towards Rose, “Explain everything…”
Rose sighed in defeat and nodded, “Alright, but it’s a long story.”