Harry spent the whole morning there, and only left the carriage by lunchtime, not wanting to attract any more attention by his absence. Hermione was at his side, as usual, while Fleur, looking as haughty as ever, chose a different route to reach the great hall.
"Harry, where have you been?" Ron asked, as soon as Harry sat at his side, while Hermione sat at Harry's other side.
"I've been just talking with Hermione," Harry said, thinking that he wasn't really lying. He was only omitting to mention the other people present at that conversation.
"I've been looking for you. I even asked Dumbledore if he knew where you were."
Harry didn't like that. He knew that Dumbledore would try to find everything about his whereabouts during the morning hours. He wasn't sure he wanted even Dumbledore to know what had happened, yet he was not sure it could be hidden for long, especially from Dumbledore.
"Well, I'm here now, and you can see that neither I nor Hermione are any worse," he said, a bit impatiently.
Ron just nodded, as his mouth was too full of food to even try talking. Harry looked at Hermione and found her smiling at him as she pressed his hand under the table.
He was still busy with his lunch when Professor McGonagall stopped near him. "The headmaster is asking to see you as soon as you finish lunch," she informed him.
"I'll be there in a few minutes," Harry promised, although he didn't like the idea.
Fleur was standing up from the Ravenclaw table now. She looked at Hermione and signaled with her head towards the doors. Hermione nodded her acknowledgment.
"Harry, we need to talk with Fleur before meeting the headmaster," she whispered in his ear.
Harry didn't respond. He stood up, holding Hermione's hand in his, and started walking to the doors.
"Hey, wait for me!" Ron called after them with his mouth still full.
"We're only going to the headmaster's office," Harry said. "You don't need to come along."
"Then why is Hermione coming?" Ron asked.
"He wants to know what I've been doing this morning. I've been with Hermione, so it's natural for her to come as well."
Ron nodded and returned to his food.
Fleur was already waiting in the corridor. Without a word, she motioned at a nearby door of an unused room – the one only used by the young students before sorting. She walked in immediately. Harry looked around, making sure that nobody was paying him attention and followed her in with Hermione.
Fleur cast some locking and silencing charms on both doors before saying anything.
"Is there any problem?" she asked.
"The headmaster wants to see me, probably to learn where I've spent this morning."
Fleur seemed to have expected it. "Dad said it would probably happen soon. He said that Dumbledore likes to always know everything, although he rarely shares what he knows."
"What should I tell him?"
Fleur thought for a moment. "Well, I think we should rather tell him the truth. Even though he's not always right, he's still the most powerful ally that we have. We should rather keep him an ally."
"Do you want to come as well?"
"I'm your wife now! I need to go with you."
"And Hermione?"
"She's your love." Harry could sense a bit of jealousy in her voice. He knew he would have to make it disappear, but it was not yet the time.
"We should finish our business with the headmaster as soon as possible and then go visit Gringotts. You've seen their owl message already," Fleur reminded them.
"Yes..." he sighed. "I need to ask the Headmaster's permission for that as well."
"No, Harry. You're Lord Potter and probably Lord Peverell as well and you may have even more titles. You can inform him that you're going, but you don't need anybody's approval," Fleur said, as if reminding him.
"It will take me some time to start thinking that way," he chuckled.
"Let's go. We don't want to seem rude," Hermione urged them.
Dumbledore looked quite annoyed when he saw the two girls accompanying Harry. "I only asked to speak with you, Harry," he said sternly.
"I know, sir, but whatever I need to say concerns these two ladies as well."
The headmaster didn't look pleased, but he waved his hand, inviting the three to sit on the chairs in front of him. They sat in the same formation again: Harry sat in the middle, Hermione sat at his right, grabbing his hand tightly, and Fleur sat at his left, holding his arm lightly. Dumbledore seemed to sense something, but he waited for them to sit before he addressed Harry again. "I've been very worried about you, my boy. You've left the hospital wing before breakfast and seemed to just disappear until lunch. Your friend Ron even asked me if I knew where you were. Can you enlighten me, please?"
Despite the pleading tone, this was an order, yet Harry didn't mind. He already knew what he wanted to tell.
"I woke up, finding Fleur at my bedside. She then told me that she owed me a life debt, as I saved her during the task."
"You don't plan to make her pay her debt, do you?" Dumbledore asked sternly.
"Of course not! I told her so. She then explained that due to her Veela ancestry, her magic requires her to become my property."
The headmaster frowned, yet he noticed that Hermione was sitting calmly. 'She already knows,' he thought.
"I didn't want her to be my property. I told her that if we need to be together then it would be as equals, as husband and wife."
"Do you remember the exact words you used?"
"He said, 'You can't be my slave, but I'll accept you as my wife'," Fleur said.
Dumbledore's frown deepened. "What happened next?"
"This!" Both Harry and Fleur showed him their hands with the wedding rings clearly visible.
"There was also a bright flash," Harry added.
Dumbledore could barely keep his face from showing his surprise. He knew about life debts. There were quite a few people owing their lives to Harry: Hermione, Ginny, Peter, Sirius and probably some more. Yet Harry had never even acknowledged these debts. It was quite alright for the headmaster this way. He didn't think that Harry should know the full extent of his powers before becoming adult. He planned to give Harry the full information once he reached adulthood, at seventeen, but not a day earlier.
It looked like he had to rethink his plans...
"That explains her presence," he said. "I still don't see why Miss Granger should be here."
Harry looked at Hermione with a smile that lighted the room. "I've finally understood that Hermione is the love of my life, that I need her to always be with me for as long as we live."
"But you're already married to Miss Delacour!"
"That's Mrs. Potter, headmaster," Fleur corrected him. "You see, my husband has more than one lordship. He needs at least one wife for each. That's how he can be married with me and still seek love with another. Besides, our bond, based on a life debt, is inferior to any bond he may form, based on love."
Dumbledore was nodding, as if recognizing the truth in her words.
"I see... Now, would you care to tell me where you were throughout the morning?"
"Once Madam Pomfrey let me go, I accompanied Fleur to the Beauxbatons carriage and met her parents. Hermione came with us."
"So, you skipped breakfast?"
Harry smiled. "What they served me there was more than adequate replacement."
Dumbledore said nothing. He only looked expectantly at Harry, urging him to tell more. It was actually Fleur who started talking. "After getting to know each-other, my Dad told Harry all he knew about his ancestry and his inheritance. Then a Gringotts owl brought my husband an invitation to take control of his assets as soon as possible. We intend to go there after we leave here."
The headmaster didn't like the tone of her words. Although polite, she was actually telling him that they didn't really need his approval. She was merely informing him of their decision and he could do absolutely nothing about it, as Harry was really Lord Potter, whether he told him so or not.
"What about Miss Granger? I still don't see how she fits in."
Hermione smiled. "Harry proposed to me as soon as he understood that he could. I accepted, after we confessed our love to each other."
"Do your parents know?"
The smile didn't leave her face. "They know I had a crush on Harry and that it turned into deep love. I'll call them from London and tell them. Maybe we can even visit them before returning to school."
Dumbledore sighed. Hermione was perfect for Harry, but only in a few years. He wanted Harry to still court a few girls, maybe even snog a few or... Well, he shouldn't think of THAT! Harry was still so young! Why couldn't he live a normal teenage life? He had to remind himself that Harry had never had normal life at any age since that fateful Halloween. Well, maybe having two sets of in-laws would give him the love that he lacked so badly?
Harry spoke now. "Headmaster, everything that we've told you now is strictly confidential and is protected by the Potter House magic. You may only tell this to Professor McGonagal and nobody else besides her. I hope that is clear."
Dumbledore knew what it meant even better than Harry probably did. A protected House secret could not be revealed. Doing it without the approval of the Lord of that house could cost the offender his magic. He nodded his understanding before turning to Fleur. "If your parents are still here, do you think they'll accept an invitation to dine with me tonight?"
Fleur smiled internally, keeping her stoic outward expression. "Dad needs to return to the French Ministry by tomorrow morning, but I think they'll be able to stay for dinner."
Dumbledore took a parchment from his desk and wrote a formal invitation. "I'll send it with one of the house elves. Just let your parents know about it before you leave, if you don't mind."
She smiled at the old man. It was evident that he was really trying, yet old habits are hard to change. "We'll do it," she promised.
The three took different routes to the carriage again. This time, Harry walked alone while the two girls walked together, chatting in French, as Hermione was eager to improve her control of the language.
Harry didn't meet anyone on his way. The few students who noticed him, kept their distance. He didn't know exactly why, but he assumed that what had happened less than a day before was cause enough not to go close to him. He was reminding them all of their deepest fears. It wasn't very pleasant.
Fleur was already telling her parents about the meeting with Dumbledore when he arrived. She then went to her room to change into more casual clothing which would not stand out among the British. As soon as she returned, they walked to the gate, touched the Gringotts letter and Harry tapped it with his wand.
They arrived into a room reserved for portkey traffic and were escorted immediately to a side room, where an older goblin, wearing richly decorated clothing, welcomed them, that is – he grunted at them in a non-threatening way and moved his hand, inviting them to sit down.
Once they were all seated, the goblin spoke in a surprisingly polite tone. "Lord Potter, ladies, how may Gringotts be of help to you?"
Harry took the letter and pushed it towards the goblin.
"Ah, yes. Your taking control of your assets. We shall need you to take an inheritance test first. It's just a formality, so we can ascertain that you are who you say you are."
Harry let a drop of blood fall onto the parchment he was handed and watched as it was starting to turn into text on that parchment.
Name: Harry James Potter
Ancestry: Potter (sole heir), Peverell (sole heir), Gryffindor (sole heir), Hufflepuff, Ravencalw (sole heir).
Married to: Fleur, née Delacour.
Betrothed to: Hermione Jean Granger
Pending contracts (not approved): Ginevra Molly Weasley (via Albus Dumbledore), Daphne Aurora Greengrass (via Sirius Black).
Major Assets: Potter Manor (unplotable), Potter rural house (Godric Hollow, partly ruined), Potter Town-house (central London), Potter Vila (French Riviera), Potter beach-house (Brighton), Potter resort (Ibizia).
There was more on that parchment, but Harry felt already overwhelmed. "Can you explain this to me?" he asked, almost pleadingly.
"Most of it appears in the annual report that we send to you each summer as well as the quarterly reports. Haven't you noticed?"
"I've never seen any such report. Where do you send it?"
"They're sent to your guardian, of course."
"The Dursleys?" He would never see any of this if his uncle had any say in it.
"No, your magical guardian, professor Dumbledore."
"He has never shown me anything!" Harry was really angry. Although Dumbledore seemed to care for him, this didn't mean that he could fully trust the headmaster, and now he found even more reasons not to trust the man.
"Well, Lord Potter, I'll make sure all reports will be sent to you directly."
"How come you call me 'Lord Potter' and the previous times I've been here I was addressed just as Mr. Potter?"
The goblin looked at him with undecipherable gaze. "The previous times you were still considered a child. Now, as a married man, you're eligible to the title whenever you decide to take the responsibility."
Harry had heard Alain explaining some of this only a few hours earlier. He nodded understandingly. "I'd like to claim my position as soon as possible," he said.
"For that, Lord Potter, I'm afraid you'll need to go to your vault first and take the Head of House ring. You may also take one of the Lady's rings and give it to your chosen lady."
"Chosen Lady?" Harry wondered.
"Well you evidently have two wives, although you're formally married to one only at this moment. They may both be referred to as Mrs. Potter, but only one would be Lady Potter. The other can be Lady Gryffindor, Ravenclaw or Peverell."
Harry looked at the girls questioningly. Fleur shrugged, indicating that she didn't really care. She was already getting more than she could have ever hoped for after discovering her debt.
"I've always known you as Potter," Hermione said. "It may not be as legendary as the others, but I'd like to be Lady Potter once we are married."
Harry smiled at her. "As you wish, Lady Potter!"
He turned to Fleur. "Do you have any preferences?"
"No. I also think it may be too early for me to know. For the time being I'm just happy to know I'm your wife. We shall have time to decide later."
"Very well. I'll only bring you a ring for you to wear as if it's an engagement ring. I'm not sure it's safe to advertize our relationship at this time."