Veratia Takes the Upper Hand

Veratia stood in the doorway, looking at the three people huddled together on the bed, and smiled mischievously.

Looks like it'll be lively here tonight.

Harry looked at her and said helplessly, "You're here to join in the fun too?"

Veratia walked in as if it were perfectly normal, and closed the door behind her.

"Of course, not joining in the fun isn't my style. Besides—" she glanced at the three of them, "With this setup, aren't you just missing me?"

She glanced at the bed; Anne was nestled in Harry's arms, fast asleep, breathing evenly, a satisfied smile on her face.

Cassandra leaned on Harry's shoulder, her eyes closed, but she was clearly not asleep; the upturned corners of her lips betrayed her, and her eyelashes trembled slightly.

"It seems like there aren't enough seats." Veratia tilted her head, pretending to think seriously.

Harry looked around; Anne was on his left, Cassandra on his right, and he was holding another child in his arms. There was really no room left.

He opened his mouth, about to say that he should sleep in the guest room, but Veratia raised her hand to interrupt him.

"Simple." Veratia walked to the bedside, lay down next to Cassandra, and then rolled over, pinning Cassandra down on top of her.

Cassandra suddenly opened her eyes, her pupils dilating in shock.

She never expected that this woman would actually—

Shameless!

"Grindelwald!"

"What?" Veratia lay on top of her, looking at her with a smile, and even winked deliberately. "There aren't enough beds, so isn't it perfect to sleep folded up? It's environmentally friendly and saves space."

Cassandra took a deep breath, trying to remain calm, but the veins on her forehead began to bulge.

"You—get off here."

"No." Veratia buried her face in the crook of her neck, nuzzled against her, and took a deep breath. "Cass smells so good, what shower gel did she use? Or is it—her natural scent?"

Cassandra's face flushed red at a visible speed, burning from her ears all the way to her cheeks.

"You—you bastard—"

"What's this?" Veratia looked up at her with a sly smile, her eyes full of mischief.

Cassandra gritted her teeth, and after a long pause, finally managed to utter, "You philandering cat!"

Veratia laughed, a laugh like a cat that had stolen a fish, her eyes curving into crescent moons.

"Who did I steal from? You tell me!"

Cassandra opened her mouth, but was speechless.

Steal from whom? Harry? But wasn't she right next to Harry? How does that make sense?

Harry, watching from the side, couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"What are you laughing at!" Cassandra glared at him; if looks could kill, Harry would be lying in St. Mungo's's by now.

"No, no, I wasn't laughing." Harry quickly waved his hand, but his shoulders were still shaking.

Anne was woken up by the noise. She opened her eyes groggily and saw Veratia lying on top of Cassandra, Cassandra face was as red as a boiled shrimp. Harry was struggling to hold back his laughter.

"What's wrong?" She rubbed her eyes, her voice soft and sweet. "What are you playing? Jenga?"

"I didn't play anything," Veratia said casually. "I was exchanging pleasantries with Cass."

Cassandra rolled her eyes so hard they almost reached the back of her head.

"Is this what you call exchanging feelings?"

"What's that called? In-depth exchange?" Veratia asked with a mischievous grin.

Cassandra took a deep breath, then suddenly smiled.

It's dangerous and eerie.

The next second, Cassandra flipped over and pinned Veratia down.

"That's what it means to connect emotionally."

Veratia lay beneath her, raising an eyebrow. Far from being alarmed, she showed an even more interested expression.

"Oh, a counterattack? Interesting."

"Of course." Cassandra looked down at her, one hand propped on the side of her head. "You think I'm just going to take a beating? Grindelwald, you underestimate me."

Veratia smiled, reached out and put her arm around her waist, pulling her close.

"So now? Who's on top?"

Cassandra: "----"

The distance between them instantly closed, close enough that they could feel each other's breath.

Cassandra's face flushed again, but this time she gritted her teeth and held on, not looking away.

Anne watched with great interest, her eyes lighting up. She whispered to Harry, "Do they always do this?"

Like—like that, Tom and Jerry? Tom and Jerry— "

Harry nodded, a look of seasoned composure on his face. "You'll get used to it. It's part of the daily routine; it happens at least three times a day."

Anne nodded thoughtfully, then yawned and snuggled back into Harry's arms, finding a comfortable position.

"I'm going to sleep now. You guys continue, don't worry about me."

As soon as she finished speaking, she really fell asleep, and her breathing quickly became even.

These sisters have such a carefree attitude, and they sleep very well.

Cassandra and Veratia were still rolling around on the bed, taking turns pinning each other down, neither willing to give in.

The sheets were all crumpled, and the pillow had fallen to the floor sometime during the night.

"Are you admitting defeat?" Veratia asked.

"You're dreaming," Cassandra gritted her teeth.

"Shall we continue?"

"Let's continue!"

Harry looked at them and shook his head helplessly.

"You two—would you like to fight in the Living Room? It's spacious there."

"No need," they both said in unison, a rare moment of perfect understanding, "It's right here."

Harry sighed and gave up on trying to persuade him.

He had long understood that this was just how the two of them got along—they argued fiercely on the surface, but who could really say for sure what was going on?

He held Anne tighter, closed his eyes, and decided to ignore the battle raging around him; they would stop when they got tired anyway.

After what seemed like an eternity, the surroundings finally quieted down.

He opened his eyes and saw that Veratia and Cassandra had finally stopped fighting.

But here's the problem: although the two have temporarily ceased hostilities, they seem to have turned their attention to Harry.

"No, you guys—" Before Harry could say anything more, he was restrained by the two women.

Next, of course, I'll happily omit 20,000 words.

The next morning, Harry felt refreshed when he opened his eyes.

He now has Anne on his left, Veratia on his right, and Cassandra— Veratia somehow, Cassandra has rolled over there and is now clinging to Veratia like an octopus.

Four people squeezed into one bed; it was a bit cramped, but very warm.

He sat up gently without waking them.

As he got out of bed, he glanced at them—each of the three sleeping in their own unique way: Anne was curled up like a kitten, Veratia was lying on her back, and Cassandra was much more elegant, though she looked just like an octopus.

After going downstairs, he found someone in the Living Room.

It was Sirius. He sat on the sofa, holding a cup of tea, looking as relaxed as if he were at home.

Of course, the home where he raised his children can also be considered his home, if you round it up.

Upon seeing Harry, he raised an eyebrow and gave a meaningful smile.

"Oh, you're finally awake? I thought you were going to sleep until noon."

"Sirius?! What brings you here?" Harry greeted him with a smile. "Good morning."

"I've come to see you." Sirius stood up, walked over to him, looked him up and down, his eyes full of concern. "You must have suffered a lot in South America, right?"

Harry shook his head and smiled, "It's alright, consider it exercise."

Sirius reached out and ruffled his hair—just like he used to ruffle James's.

"You brat, stop being so polite with me. 'Exercise'? You call that exercise? You've clearly worked a lot. I'll get you a Order of Merlin."

Harry smiled, feeling a warm glow inside.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door.

It was Phally —or rather, Mrs. Black— who walked in.

She wore a light blue long dress, her golden hair was loosely tied back, and she had a gentle smile on her face, making her look elegant and approachable.

It seems that her time as the First Lady of the Magical World has changed her demeanor considerably.

"Harry." She came over and gave him a gentle hug. "Long time no see."

"Gemma." Harry hugged her back and smiled. "You're here too. I thought you were busy managing Sirius."

"Of course," Gemma said with a smile, glancing at Sirius. "Sirius said he wanted to come see you, how could I not come? Besides, we all miss you."

The two sat down on the sofa. Ruby peeked out from the Kitchen, saw Sirius and Gemma, and immediately brought out hot tea and snacks before retreating back into the Kitchen to continue her work.

"How have you been lately?" Sirius asked, taking a sip of his tea. "I heard you finally took care of Voldemort?"

I've heard about it at the Ministry of Magic; it's all been talked about like it's some kind of myth.

Harry nodded. "I guess so. Anyway, he's completely gone now, not even a trace left."

"What do you mean by 'consider'?" Sirius raised an eyebrow, looking displeased. "Dead is dead, and alive is alive. There's no room for ambiguity in these matters."

"This time he's really dead," Harry said with certainty. "Completely gone. I saw it with my own eyes."

Sirius looked at him, a hint of relief and pride in his eyes.

"Well done, kid. Your parents will be so proud when they see this."

Harry smiled and looked down to touch the cup.

Gemma whispered from the side, "Sirius has been wanting to come, but he's too busy with things at the Ministry of Magic. He talks about you every day, saying he doesn't know if you're eating or sleeping well."

"I know," Harry said, looking at Sirius. "The Minister, he must be busy, approving all those documents every day, he must be losing a lot of hair, right?"

Sirius waved his hand, looking utterly miserable. "Don't even mention it. Those documents gave me a headache. A bunch of nonsense, and you had to write three pages of explanations just to sign something. If it weren't for Gemma, I probably wouldn't have been able to keep going. I really want to call them in and ask them who invented all these procedures."

"So, what brings you here today?" Harry asked.

"It's the weekend," Sirius said matter-of-factly. "And I've decided that no matter how busy I am, I have to make time to see you, otherwise I'd be a terrible Godfather. Work can take a break, but you're my godson."

Harry felt a warmth in his heart; the feeling of being cared for by his family was more reassuring than any magic.

Just then, footsteps sounded on the stairs again.

Veratia, Cassandra, and Anne walked down together.

The three had clearly just woken up, but they were all in good spirits. Veratia was radiant, Cassandra was as elegant as ever, and Anne was rubbing her eyes, looking a little dazed.

They were all taken aback when they saw the people in the Living Room.

Sirius looked at them, then at Harry, and then whistled at Harry in a very unserious manner.

"Wow, everyone's here. Is this a shared accommodation?"

Veratia was the first to react; he went over and sat down next to Harry.

"Godfather, what brings you here?"

"Come see Harry." Sirius nodded. "Are you done with the Confederation? I thought you were still in a meeting."

"That's all for now," Veratia said, smoothing her hair. "I'll come see Harry when I have some free time. What's more important than work?"

Cassandra and Anne also came over and sat down on the sofa.

Cassandra sat to Harry's left, Anne sat next to Veratia; the four of them filled the entire sofa.

Gemma's expression was somewhat strange.

"You guys get along pretty well?"

"It's alright," Cassandra said, her tone flat.

"It's great," Anne said, nodding earnestly. "They're all very kind to me."

At breakfast time, the tables were full of people.

The Weasley family today; they were busy preparing for School Opening at the Burrow. Ruby herself, bringing out plate after plate of food, her steps light as if she were dancing.

Sirius looked at the table full of food and exclaimed, "Ruby, your cooking skills are even better than the House Elf at Hogwarts! How about you consider becoming the head chef at the Ministry of Magic?"

Ruby blushed and waved her hands repeatedly, "Ruby was just trying her best! Just trying her best!"

Gemma laughed and said, "Don't be modest, it's really delicious, even better than the France meals I've had."

Ruby more embarrassed, covered her face, and shrank back into the Kitchen to continue her work.

At the dinner table, Sirius and Veratia chatted about some matters concerning the Confederation and the Ministry of Magic —things like the International Wizarding Cooperation Act and the Magical Creature Rights Protection Ordinance —which left everyone's heads spinning.

Cassandra occasionally chimed in with sharp and insightful comments.

Anne ate her breakfast quietly, occasionally putting some food on Harry's plate.

Gemma listened from the side, nodding occasionally and adding a comment now and then.

After dinner, everyone moved to the Living Room.

"Oh, right," Sirius suddenly said, his gaze sweeping over the four of them, "you guys really are just—uh—"

He searched for a long time for an adjective, but couldn't find a suitable one.

Harry paused for a moment, unsure of what to say; no answer seemed quite right.

Veratia spoke directly, her tone frank. "You mean our relationship with Harry?"

Sirius nodded, his eyes filled with curiosity.

Veratia smiled and looked at Harry.

"You'll have to ask him; it's not up to us."

Harry gave her a helpless look, then said to Sirius, "It's just like you see, the four of us, plus Pabbie, we're all together."

Sirius looked at him and shook his head with a touch of emotion.

"You're much better than I was back then, and you're very responsible," he said. "Back then, I struggled to even pursue one girl."

Harry blushed slightly.

Gemma laughed beside her, "You weren't bad back then either. Who doesn't know that the young master of the Black family home is dashing and charming? I've heard that back then, girls lined up from Gryffindor to Slytherin to pursue you. Even those girls from Pure-blood families were all captivated by you, this Pure-blood traitor."

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