Elsa's parents arrived the next weekend. Harry was not as tense to meet them, yet he was still a bit apprehensive.
He didn't need to worry. Both parents hugged him and Hermione just as they hugged their daughter and were then eager to go into the cabin and remove their clothing. Hermione still blushed at seeing Gerard naked.
"I thought you've been spending your vacations with your parents at nude beaches," Elsa teased her.
"I did, but not since I started puberty," Hermione explained.
"Well, you should get used to this. Dad doesn't like staying clothed any more than I do, and we're going to spend at least a week at the nudist resort."
Hermione smiled nervously.
Gerard had other problems in mind, though. "Are you a Veela, dear?"
Hermione shrugged. "I'm muggle-born. How can I know?"
"Dad, she likes staying in the water for very long times, yet she can see halos and neither she nor her mother has any brothers. She certainly isn't a normal Veela, if she is one at all."
"That's interesting. I assume we shall have to see what your other attributes are. Do you have Allure?"
Hermione shrugged. "I don't even know what it is. I may be able to produce it after I know what to do."
Elouise finally spoke. "You have an Allure, but it is so well controlled that it is practically non-existent. I'll teach you how to use it during the summer."
She didn't know at the time, but that promise was the safest way to assure that Hermione would like to visit the DuValais home for the summer.
\/\/\/
Beth was not satisfied with just giving her maidenhood to Harry. She wanted to have much more of him, to enjoy his attention many more times. She also wanted to try sharing him with Anna, as already promised. After having shagged two more times with Harry, as did Anna, both girls decided it was time to try sharing.
They invited Harry to join them soon after dinner. They closed the cabin's shutters and tied them shut, so nobody would be able to open them from outside. They then moved their mattresses to the floor and joined them, creating a wide enough place for three. With these preparations done, both quickly removed their clothes and then tackled Harry, taking turns in undressing him, until he was left just as naked.
Harry did his best to satisfy them both.
\/\/\/
Gerard collected them on the last day of camp. He had already booked rooms for the night at the Leaky Cauldron, to be used after having done their school shopping. Although Elsa was not yet a Hogwarts student, she bought her stuff as if she was. Gerard noticed many more Aurors roaming the area. While the teens were busy shopping, he made some inquiries and bought the daily newspaper.
They also visited Gringotts, both girls accompanying Harry.
"Welcome, Lord Potter, Lady, and Lady," Sharpclaw greeted them. He then turned to Harry. "Have you decided which position each of your wives should hold?"
"I'm not sure I understand," Harry admitted. "What positions can they hold?"
"Well, there's Lady Potter, first of all. Then, you can assign any of them the titles of Lady Gryffindor, Lady Peverell, Lady Evans or Lady Slytherin."
"Slytherin?" Both Harry and Hermione gasped.
"Of course! According to the inheritance test done last summer, you are a direct descendant of Slytherin, unlike the Gaunt, who have several discontinuities in the line. This makes you the heir to that noble line. You can also claim the Gaunt lordship, as you've defeated its last scion when you were merely a year old."
"So – I'm Slytherin's heir, you say?"
"Of course, Lord Potter. It's a well-known fact, although your father and your grandfather didn't like it mentioned."
This put some of the events of the previous year in a new perspective.
Sharpclaw had another suggestion. "As Lady Potter is muggle-born, it is highly recommended that she takes an inheritance test as well. It's quite common for muggles to have magical ancestors and vice-versa. This test may give you some better insight into your origins."
Hermione shrugged. Ancestry was not as important to her as to the pure-blood conservatives, yet it could be interesting to have a glimpse at her origins.
A few minutes later, she became much more interested. "Well, my lady, it looks like you can claim the Ravenclaw lordship, or rather – Ladyship. The magical community is only aware of one daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw, whose ghost still roams at Hogwarts, but she also had another daughter, one who had no magic. As the Ravenclaw line goes from mother to daughter, you are the only magical descendant of that line, Lady Ravenclaw."
Hermione felt overwhelmed. It took her a few minutes to fully comprehend the meaning of this. The goblin kept talking, though. "The wizarding community preferred to hide the fact that Rowena Ravenclaw was a Veela. There are songs describing her beauty and her wit, but her origins are never mentioned."
"I'm a Veela?" Hermione finally asked.
"Not necessarily," Sharpclaw said. "Once a Veela line squibs out, some of its traits may be lost, and your line was hidden for almost a thousand years. This probably means that your abilities are different from the usual Veela abilities, although you may need to take a special test to find out. We can do it now, if you wish."
Hermione gave it a thought. "No, I'd rather wait until I understand what it all means for me."
She refused to take either Potter or Ravenclaw rings until she was sure she understood what each title meant for her, but eventually allowed Harry to give her the Potter ring. Elsa accepted the Peverell ring.
Hermione stayed quite pensive until they arrived at the bookstore. Seeing the magnificent Lady ring on her finger didn't elicit a reaction even close to what being surrounded by books did. Hermione became excited as she entered the store, yet Elsa seemed just as excited, preventing Harry from laughing at any of them. He just chuckled internally, and even that gained him a momentary stare from Hermione.
"You're soul bound. She sensed your amusement, just as you sensed her excitement," Elsa whispered in his ear, a moment later.
Harry nodded, hoping he really understood.
\/\/\/
They took a plane to Nice this time, preferring the shorter ride, despite the time wasted at the airport. It was a new experience for Harry, who also enjoyed buying some presents for his wives at the Duty-Free shops. Gerard seemed very pensive, though. Harry wondered for a moment what caused this, but was too preoccupied with the girls to give it more than a fleeting thought.
Elsa's mother was waiting for them at the airport. After hugging her daughter, she also hugged Harry and Hermione just as tightly. "My nieces came for a few days," she then told them. "I think you'll find Fleur and Gabby quite nice, although Fleur is older than you – she's in Clo's class, and Gabby is younger than Emma. They'll also join us for a few days at the resort."
Harry didn't mind, especially as they were not close to his age. All four girls were waiting near the pool. Emmanuelle ran to greet her sister and hug them all. Clo approached in a more dignified walk and hugged them all as well. Harry noticed some mischief in her eye. She seemed to be engulfed in a slight pink glow for a moment.
"What was that pink glow?" he asked her.
"You've seen it?" she wondered.
"Would I ask otherwise?"
Clo blushed. She also seemed to get excited, judging by the way her nipples hardened. "I've pushed my allure at you and Hermione, trying to see if any of you would respond to it. I thought you may have been too young to be affected last summer."
"So?"
"You're both immune. I wonder if it is your love for each other or your inherent quality."
"I'm also a Veela, to some extent," Hermione noted.
"You are? Then that explains some of what Elsa told us." Clo shook her head. "Well, I almost forgot to introduce our other guests. These are Fleur and Gabrielle Delacour. Their mother and ours are sisters."
Harry took a first look at the two girls. The younger one was still too young to interest him, although he could see she would become a beauty in a few years. Fleur was already a very attractive young woman and was hiding nothing of her enticing body, as was the norm at the manor. 'Just a few weeks earlier I would have found her irresistible,' he thought, 'and now I only admire her, yet find her lacking, compared to my wives.'
Fleur also glowed pink for a moment, even brighter than Clo. Harry kissed her offered hand politely. "Enchanté," he said, smiling at her.
"You really are immune," she noted. "When I use the allure at its maximum, even my father is somewhat affected."
Harry shrugged. "Being married to these two seems to make me immune to other women, no matter how enticing they are."
Fleur smiled at him. "They don't know how lucky they are."
\/\/\/
Gerard asked the Potters to come to his study after dinner. When they all sat down, he put the Daily Prophet on the table. "While you were shopping, I came across some disturbing news that might concern you."
He pointed at the title, "Sirius Black escaped Azkaban!"
"This man, Black, was supposed to be your parents' secret keeper. After the attack, he was found duelling with another of your parents' close friends – Peter Pettigrew. Before the Aurors arrived, Peter disappeared, leaving only a finger behind, The whole street was also blasted, killing several muggles. Black was found mumbling 'It's all my fault.' He was sent to Azkaban without trial. Before he escaped, some guards heard him say 'He's at Hogwarts.' What the ministry assumes is that Black is after you, Harry. They have already sent Dementors to search for him and I can safely assume they will station some near Hogwarts as well. That is one of the stupidest plans ever, as Dementors are very difficult to control and extremely dangerous even to well-trained wizards."
"Who is this Black guy?" Harry asked.
"I don't know him personally," Gerard said, "but I visited your grandparents' manor once, when your dad was about sixteen. Sirius was there, as his family had disowned him and your grandparents accepted him, giving him a surrogate family. He and James were as close as brothers. Both were full of mischief and both loathed the pure-blood bigotry of some families, especially the Black one. I don't believe that Sirius was the one to betray your parents. The fact that he didn't even get a proper trial only makes me wonder if there were not some other interests served at the time."
"Do you think he wants to hurt Harry, maybe even to kill him?" Hermione asked with fire in her eyes.
"No. The ministry thinks that way, but I think that something made him realize that Harry is in danger. I know he was named your godfather, Harry, and I believe he feels responsible, especially after not being able to help you since that fateful night."
"What should we do, then?" Harry asked. He didn't feel like he could deal with the whole complication. He just wanted to get practical.
"I believe that the main danger is the presence of Dementors. There's only one spell that can protect you from them and I want you all to master it before going to school, although most consider it very difficult even for accomplished witches and wizards."
"How can we master it, then?" Hermione asked.
"I know Elsa is very powerful for her age. She's more powerful magically than either me or my wife. She told me that both you and Harry are much more powerful, at least judging by your magical halo. I intend to check it tomorrow, with your permission."
"Why not now?" Harry asked.
Gerard smiled at him. "The regular spell used for this is unsuitable for you. It's barely suitable for Elsa. The spell I found for checking the extremely powerful is quite complex, and I'd rather not try it after such a long and tiring day. Tomorrow, shortly after breakfast, seems right to me."