Ghosts Of The Potter Manor

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After Jenny spent her last night in her cottage in Hogsmeade, the group got back on the Hogwarts Express and returned to the Potter Manor.
It had been several weeks since anyone had been there, and there was a thin layer of dust that had settled there.
"Every time I come here, I forget how grand it is" admitted Harry, when they arrived at the manor that evening.
"That's one of the downsides of growing up here, it doesn't look special to me, it just seems normal" replied Jenny quietly.
The travelling had tired her greatly, and the others could tell.
"Let's get you settled upstairs" suggested Charlie, as he placed his arm around Jenny's shoulders.

"I've got to make dinner for us all, otherwise we won't have had hardly anything to eat all day" reminded Jenny.
"Don't worry about that. I'll cook" replied Charlie.
"But we haven't got any ingredients to cook with, since we didn't plan on coming back here until Christmas"
"Then I'll pop out and get some things. I won't be long".
Charlie kissed Jenny's head softly, before Apparating, leaving Harry and Jenny alone.

"Let's go upstairs. You can have a short nap before Charlie gets back, as it will take him a while to get all the food he needs, and it will take even longer for him to make dinner" said Harry, as he took hold of Jenny's arm and began to lead her upstairs.
"It's at times like this that I miss Sady" sighed Jenny.
"Who?" Questioned Harry.
"My house-elf"
"Oh yes. I remember her"
"She died many years ago. But she was a loyal servant, and a good friend in the dark times. Not to mention an excellent chef"
"How is Charlie when it comes to cooking?"
"He's actually surprisingly good"
"That's releaving to know".

Once they were upstairs, Jenny flopped down on her bed with a loud sigh.
"That's nice" she admitted.
"Do you want me to go, and leave you in peace for a bit?" Asked Harry.
"No. Stay with me" pleaded Jenny.
Harry nodded his head and came over to perch on the edge of the bed.
"This is a nice room" he commented.
"Thanks. It used to just be an ordinairy guest room, until I made it mine and Charlie's. I didn't want to take the master room, as that room belonged to my parents, and still contains a lot of their things" replied Jenny.
"Why didn't you just stay in your own room?"
"I wanted my childhood bedroom to stay separate from the one that I share with my husband. I shouldn't need to explain why... There are also a lot of ghosts in that room from my past".

"I'm surprised you wanted to come back here, for that very reason. Isn't this place filled with ghosts for you?" Harry questioned.
"There are some rooms that are worse than others. This room holds no ghosts from my life, as I never spent any time in here with the Marauders or my parents. Some rooms, like James's bedroom for example, hold so many memories, that even now it would be dangerous for my mental health for me to go in there alone" revealed Jenny.
"So you're O.K now, in here?"
"Yes. This room is just mine and Charlie's, there are no painful memories here, only happy ones"
"That's good to know".

"The Potter Manor contains many memories, and not just from my life. This building is hundreds of years old, and has been owned by many Potters over the years. When I'm gone, this place, and its all history, falls to you. It will be your job to look after this place" instructed Jenny.
"And Charlie, he'll help me keep it looking nice I hope" added Harry.
"No. The job will be yours alone. I wrote a will several years ago, and in it I left you the mansion" revealed Jenny.
"What! Why didn't you leave it to Charlie?"
"Because I expected him to die before me, like most men do. Statistics show that wives usually outlive their husbands, which is why I left the place to you".

"But what about Sky?" Quizzed Harry.
"I love her with all my heart, like any mother loves their daughter, even though I did not give birth to her. I left her our house in Hogsmeade, since she spent more time there than she did here... Since I adopted her, we don't share a bloodline, and I wanted to leave the Potter mansion, to a true Potter. She should be a Weasley afterall, and would've been, if I hadn't insisted on keeping my maiden name. If my parents had left this place to your father instead of me, it would be yours right now anyway. But once I'm dead I would appriciate it if you allowed Charlie and Sky to continue living here" admitted Jenny.

"Of course I'll let them stay here, this is their home after all... Are you sure that you really want me to have it?" Asked Harry.
"Yes. It belongs to you. And there's a copy of my will at the Ministry that says so too" answered Jenny.
"Have you told Charlie and Sky about this?"
"No, I wanted the contents of my will to be kept a secret until I died. But I just thought that you should know that you're going to be in charge of looking after my house. And I'll be watching over you closely from the next life, to make sure that you do"
"So no pressure then".

"You'll be fine" yawned Jenny.
"You're tired. I'll let you rest and I'll come and get you once Charlie has finished cooking whatever he's decided to make" replied Harry as he stood to his feet.
"You can take any of the spare guest rooms, to sleep in, while you're staying here"
"Thanks. I guess I'll have a little look around, and choose my favourite one"
"Have fun".
Harry smiled and left the room, leaving the door behind him slightly adjar.
Jenny closed her eyes and allowed her mind to wander, taking her out of the present.
But even with Harry gone, she was never alone, as she was wrong about one thing. All the rooms in manor contained their own ghosts, even the one she was in now.

'High in the halls of the kings who are gone,
Jenny would dance with her ghosts,
The ones she had lost and the ones she had found,
And the ones who had loved her the most.

The ones who'd been gone for so very long,
She couldn't remember their names,
They spun her around on the damp cold stone,
Spun away all her sorrow and pain.

And she never wanted to leave,
Never wanted to leave,
Never wanted to leave,
Never wanted to leave.

They danced through the day and into the night,
Till the snow did sweep through the halls,
From winter to summer and winter again,
Till the walls did crumble and fall.

And she never wanted to leave,
Never wanted to leave,
Never wanted to leave,
Never wanted to leave.

High in the halls of the kings who are gone,
Jenny would dance with her ghosts,
The ones she had lost and the ones she had found,
And the ones who had loved her the most...'





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This extract at the end, is a song from series 8 of Game of Thrones called Jenny of Oldstone. Ever since I heard it I wanted to put it in my book, as my character was called Jenny as well, but I was never quite sure where it fitted best. So I decided to put it here. I hope you like it. And I highly recommend listening to it even if you have never watched Game of Thrones.

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