Chapter Text
Chapter One
The Ultimate Sacrifice
The summer day started as many before it, with an overcast sky, owls settling in to sleep the day away, neighbors bustling about to get to their cars for work. Muriel nursed a mug of warm tea at the table in her dining room, taking the morning slow as she so often did. Muriel had chosen to spend her life in the muggle world after leaving school, preferring the calm and quiet to the danger and chaos that followed magic like a magnet.
If Muriel could have had her way, she would have spent every day of her life like that, enjoying the breeze and weather. Her routine went on without resistance, flitting through the house and garden, tending to plants, her cat, and a potion that sat in her cauldron, bubbling away. It wasn’t until late in the evening when her routine deviated from the normal.
There was a knock at the front door. Only moments from tucking in for bed, Muriel was surprised, and took her time to approach the door. There was a second knock as she neared and reached for the handle, pulling it open. She took a step back and stared as a woman her age entered the cottage, a basket in her hand, holding a bundle of blankets.
“Sally?” Muriel asked, “What are you doing here? I thought you were in America-”
“There’s no time,” Sally whispered, setting the basket on the floor and shutting the door. She drew her wand and waved it in the air. Through the front window, Muriel saw a faint, shimmering blue shield enclose the home. “I need your help.”
“Is it-”
“Yes.” Sally cut her off, picking the basket up again and setting it on the couch. “He’s sent them looking for us. He’s not safe with me anymore.”
“Whose not-” Muriel began, but her words fell short as she saw what lay in the depths of the blanket bundle. A baby. Light, curly blonde hair adorned his head, big blue-green eyes staring up curiously at Muriel and Sally. “You have a son? How old is he?”
“He’s almost 2…” Sally stroked the baby’s cheek adoringly, “His name is Perseus…” She withdrew her hand and pulled out a bundle of letters from her pocket. “It’s a long story, one I don’t have time to share-” Muriel watched Sally go rigid, staring out the front window of the house.“They’re coming. Please, Muriel, will you-”
“I’ll take care of him.” Muriel nodded. Although she’d never wanted children, Sally Jackson was like a sister to her. They’d spent most of their years at Hogwarts together attached at the hip. They were partners in crime, best friends, the family they found when they had none at home. She reached out and took the letters, setting them aside. “I won’t let anyone from our world hurt him.”
It was a heavy promise, but one she intended to keep. Until the day his Hogwarts letter arrived, Muriel would protect him with her life, and then she would do everything in her power to make sure he could take care of himself when she was gone.
“Thank you.” Sally gripped Muriel’s shoulders, “I- I don’t think I’ll survive the night. When he asks, because he will, tell him I loved him. That, if I had it my way…”
“I know.” Muriel squeezed Sally’s arms, “Go. He’ll be safe with me. I swear it.”
Sally nodded, closed her eyes and took in a heavy breath. She turned to the baby and leaned over the basket, pressing a short kiss to his forehead.
“Hold fast, Perseus…” She whispered as she leaned back and stepped back towards the door. “Don’t give him false hope. Tell him the truth, please, I- I don’t want him to wait around for someone who won’t come back.”
“Okay.” Muriel choked, watching her best friend whirl around and leave the house. She walked to the window and watched Sally leave the edge of the translucent blue shield.
Sally marched down the street, lowering her hood as she spotted 6 figures at the end of the road. They were waiting for her, and she knew it. She could feel it deep in her bones. The leader lowered his own hood, revealing white blonde hair and a grim, stony expression, one she knew too well.
“Come and get me, Lucius!”
“Where’s the child?” He called back. “If you give him to us, we’ll let you go.”
“Over my dead body.” Sally muttered under her breath. She turned towards a side street and began running. Footsteps thundered after her as she learned them away, away, away.
All Muriel could see from her window, after a few long moments of bated silence, was a bright green flash in the distance. She reached up and clutched at her chest. Perseus began to cry behind her and she turned to face him, reaching out to pick him up and hold him close.
“It’s okay, love,” She whispered, bouncing the baby to try and soothe his cries. “You’re safe… I’m going to take very good care of you, darling…”