Madison Potter: After the War

Chapter 15: Spilling the Tea Over Lasagna

"Listen... I don't know where the key is," I said with an awkward laugh. My elbow was on the counter and I quickly removed it at once I saw one of the goblins next to the one I was talking to give me a patronizing look.

"No key, no entry."

"Okay, uhm... Ragnok, I don't know who has the key to the vault. I don't know where it is, actually," I said, wincing after I said it. "But really, it's your own fault for only having one key per vault."

Ragnok looked directly into my eyes and raised his brows at my statement. I winced again. "Sorry, that was rude. What I meant was... I don't know where the key is. And Harry doesn't know where it is either. I think... actually, do we even have a key?"

Ragnok let out a huff. I could tell he was tired of me, and that was completely fair, because not only been pestering him for the past five minutes, but also because I shared a last name with the guy who broke into Gringotts and stole a dragon.

"I'd be careful with your tone, Potter. After the escapades of your brother I'm surprised you even have the guts to waltz in here," a snooty, high pitched female voice came from behind me.

I turned around and much to my chagrin I came face-to-face with Pansy Parkinson, who looked as pig faced as ever. I rolled my eyes. "I'd be careful waltzing around after the stunt you pulled against my brother and I at Hogwarts, Pansy."

Pansy snorted and looked at me with disgust. Her nose shriveled up, almost as if there was a garbage dump right in front of her.

Pansy glided right past me and pulled out a golden key from her purple petticoat, meeting my eye and giving me a smirk. "Don't have your key on you? Pity," she remarked before turning towards Ragnok, "you should really be careful about which... types of witches and wizards you allow in here."

I got the message she was sending loud and clear. "My mother was more of a witch than you could ever be. And besides, at least I'm not a product of generations of inbreeding. Genetic variation is necessary for long-term survival."

Pansy looked at me as if I had spoken some sort of language from a planet in a far away galaxy. It crossed my mind that she probably didn't know what genetic variation was. Maybe I would have made some school yard taunt, but I didn't. Instead, my eyes caught the sight of a young boy probably around the age of 8 with who I assumed was his mother based off the similar features behind him at the counter. The mother gave the boy her wand, and he gleefully handed it to the goblin. The goblin in turn gave the boy the key.

"Wait a second Ragnok," I said, narrowing my eyes. "If I were to provide you with my wand, would I get the key to my vault?"

Ragnok nodded, causing me to roll my eyes and hand him my wand in exchange for a key. "Vault 687, Miss Potter."

"Thanks!" I replied as I made my way to the elevator that would take me to the cart that would lead me to the Potter family vault.

Ragnok was annoyed with me, that much was clear. And when I came back to ask him if I could convert the currency into pounds, he gave me a look of annoyance and ushered me off to a different goblin after giving me back my wand.

"He's just lucky that I didn't report him for confounding the Muggles. He's also lucky that I'm rich, and lucky that I'm smart enough to do a currency exchange, and smart enough to get him checked into a addiction center for wizards and witches," I grumbled as I sat down at the table in the house George and I now owned.

"You didn't have to, you know. If it were me, I would have let Charlie stay in the slammer til he learned his lesson," George said as he got two mugs out for hot coco.

"Yeah, well, I know what it's like to be locked up with a cell mate. Especially if it's under the stairs," I said with little emotion as George came over and sat across from me. He put the mugs, which were full of coco, down and put a can of whipped cream in my hands.

George took my hand and rubbed circles with his thumb on my skin. "You're too good, Madison. The world needs more people like you in it."

I gave a soft smile as I shook the can of whipped cream and layered it onto the coco. "If the world had more people like me in it, we'd be doomed."

"Hmm... you're right, I can't believe I would suggest such a thing. Just one of you makes us doomed enough!" George said as I drank from my mug.

I snorted, and nearly choked on my drink. My insides felt warm and fuzzy, and I let out a laugh that echoed throughout the house.

I walked into the break room at work and made my way straight to the crockpot at a table in the back. Yesterday there was a potluck in honor of ringing in the New Year, and thankfully there was still some food left over from yesterday. I lobbed lasagna onto my plate, grabbed a fork and a napkin, a bottle of water and made my way over to where Parvati was sitting.

One thing I was glad for the past few months was how close I had gotten with Parvati. We weren't exactly close at school, which now that I look back at was upsetting, but I was grateful for our friendship now. Hermione and I were closer, and so were Ginny and I, but Parvati and I were close enough that we've gone out for drinks with Seamus— and sometimes Draco tagged along depending on how Seamus was feeling— and we would crash at each other's places. Hermione was like my sister, and so was Ginny, but Parvati was like a college roommate that you never loose contact with.

"Madison, did you hear about Neville and Luna?" Parvati asked me, in total shock.

"They're dating, aren't they?" I asked in between mouthfuls of lasagna.

Parvati shook her head. "Not anymore. According to Padma, who went back this year, they broke up."

I quickly swallowed before letting my mouth hang open like a tunnel in surprise. "What? What on Earth happened?"

Parvati shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not quite sure, but according to Padma, who heard this from Anthony Goldstein, they had some sort of falling out."

"Huh. I'll see if I can get any information out of Hermione and Ginny next time I see them."

Parvati began to tell me about a recent date she went on, and it reminded me of something. Once she finished and I asked her if there was goin to be a second date— which she replied with a yes— I fished something out of the backpack I had brought with me.

"Here, this is for you and Padma," I said as I handed her a white envelope. "I was going to send it by owl but I knew I would see you today so I figured I'd just give it to you. Go ahead and open it."

Inside the envelope was an invitation to my wedding. The invitation itself was white, and my name and George's were on there in black cursive script, along with information about when and where the wedding will be.

"It's on June 9th, and I was also wondering if you would like to be a bridesmaid?" I asked, bracing my ears for the inevitable squeal.

"I would love to! Oh my gosh, this is going to be great! Do you have a color scheme planned out?" Parvati squealed.

I grinned and the rest of our lunch was spent discussing the wedding.

"I gave Parvati the invitation for her and Padma today, and she also said yes to being a bridesmaid," I told George as I stripped out of my work clothes and changed into pajamas.

"Wait, I thought you delivered the invitations by owl?" George said, looking up from his notes on new products for the shop. He placed the notebook on the nightstand as I came and flopped onto the bed.

"Well, some yes. I knew I'd see Parvati today and I wanted to ask her about the bridesmaid thing."

"Who are you hand delivering the invites to?" George asked as he turned on his side and tucked a piece of my hair behind my ears.

"Well... I talked to Harry and I've decided to go deliver an invitation to Dudley."

George's eyebrows jumped so high they could have disappeared into his hair line. "Really? You're going to invite him?"

I nodded. "Harry and I have talked to Dudley a little bit, and I think the three of us want a fresh start."

"Really?" George asked as if he had just heard me say that I was going to get on a broom and fly to Pluto.

"He'a my cousin, and he's kind of the only blood relative I have left. And I would like him to be there, if that's okay with you," I said.

"If you want him there, then I'm fine with that."

"That's great, and I'm going to assume that that sentiment will apply for the other person I'm handing an invitation to tomorrow at work," I said, rolling over and praying he didn't ask who it would be.

"Wait a minute— Madison, who is this other person?"

I turned back around and looked him in the eye.

"Draco Malfoy and his mother."

This is kind of a filler chapter. Next chapter will be out soon! : )