Chapter 26

Jude dully stared at the blurry ceiling. His body ached as it lay in the small bed given to him in St. Mungo's. He didn't know how long he had been there, only that the moment he woke up, the nurse that walked in quickly left to inform the doctors of his new status. In that time, he thought back to his fight with Lazarus.

Knowing that his mother was alive the entire time he was living with Piers made his heart break in his hollow chest. McGonagall told him that she didn't want him that much he understood, but for her to leave him and never try to find him hurt more than any injury he ever suffered from either Piers or Lazarus.

A part of him thought that maybe she thought he died in the fire with his father, like he had thought she did, but even McGonagall said it felt wrong. She knew that Daniel was impervious to fire. There was no way someone who was close friends with his father didn't know that. She had to have known that something was wrong. She must've wanted to reach out to find out who had died; him or his father.

"Jude Porter, you are in so much trouble!"

Jude slid his eyes to the door where Hannah appeared, his stomach twisting at her wavering voice. He glanced over her head, finding Neville's blurry figure. He stared at them for a long minute before simply shifting his head back to its previous position, his eyes towards the ceiling.

Neville and Hannah exchanged worried looks. Neville lead Hannah in, a concerned frown on his lips, "Jude, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Jude mumbled, his voice devoid of any emotion.

Hannah reached forward, grasping his limp hand. She tried catching his eyes so she could show the love she had for him. She squeezed his hand tightly. "Jude, whatever's wrong, you can tell us. We may be upset right now but we'll never stop loving you."

Her words seemed to hit home. Jude's chin trembled as tears escaped his eyes. He swallowed, squeezing his surrogate mother's hand back, "My mum isn't dead."

His parents started, eyes wide with shock. Neville inhaled sharply, "What are you talking about, son? How did you find this out?"

"Lazarus told me," Jude replied hoarsely. "He never touched her. She wasn't in the house to begin with. She never loved my father and she didn't love me; not even enough to save me from Piers."

"And you believe him?" Hannah asked incredulously.

"McGonagall said the same thing," Jude answered. "I should've realized that when she was telling me about my father, she never once mentioned my mother dying in the fire." He lifted his free hand to wipe his eyes. He shook his head slowly, "Her name is Bonnie Wesley. She never loved me. She didn't even want to keep me."

Neville rubbed his face, contemplating, "So what are you going to do?" He lifted his hand before the younger male could respond. "Just know that you are grounded, so that means no seeing James or Emma, and no practicing for quidditch."

"That's fine," Jude rasped. He took his hands from his mother's and shifted on the bed, sitting up. He ignored his parents' protests and his aching muscles. He grunted, reaching over to grab his glasses.

Once they were on, he focused his gaze on them. "I want to open the vault my father left me, and then after that, I want to work on my old house over the summer. The muggle way."

"Jude, why-"

"It's my house. Even after the fire, it was still there. It doesn't belong to anyone else, so when I'm older, I want to live in that house," He explained. He smiled gratefully at the two, "I love you both so much and am so thankful that you've taken care of me and have loved me after all these years. I don't ask for much. I just want this."

The two pondered over his words for a moment. He watched their silent conversation, watched how they knew what the other was saying just by looking into their eyes. He wished that one day he could meet someone where they only needed a look shared to know what the other was thinking.

Finally, Neville placed his hands on hips as he turned his gaze back to him. He nodded firmly at the young man, "Okay, we'll let you work on the house, but if you ever need us, we're not far."

"I'll always need you guys," Jude stated. He accepted the emotional, tight hug his parents gave him, hugging them back just as tightly.

When they pulled away, Hannah ran her hands through Jude's hair, smiling softly, "Your friends are here waiting. Are you well enough for another visit?"

"Of course," Jude smiled back.

The two adults watched as the teens came in, each worried and concerned for their friend in the hospital bed. A part of them wondered why Jude excluded anything about his mother when he relayed the information he received while fighting Lazarus. James, Jude, and Emma were as close as friends could be; why would there be something Jude wasn't telling them? Especially something this big.

"You ready?" Neville asked as he and Jude walked into Gringotts.

"Even if I wasn't, I know I'd have to go in sooner or later," Jude replied.

Giving his son a nod, Neville then went to one of the employees. Soon, they were put on a small cart and taken to where the vault was in the giant building. Jude congratulated himself for being able to hold his breakfast in throughout the whirlwind of a ride.

The worker gestured to the grand vault in front of them. "Here you are." He gave the key to Neville.

"Thank you," Neville said as his son walked numbly over to the vault. He placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, smiling slightly, "You alright, Jude?"

"I will be," Jude swallowed, nodding back. He took his father's hand into his own tightly as he was handed the key. His hand shook as he unlocked the vault.

The vault was filled with gold and silver. Jude had never seen so much in his life, and he was friends with James, the eldest son of the ever famous Boy-Who-Lived Harry Potter. Seeing this much made him think that his father and his fathers before him were much more famous than Harry Potter could've ever been.

What were they?

"I'm just as shocked as you are, Jude," Neville chuckled in disbelief.

Jude exhaled as he shook his head, "I don't think you can really comprehend how shocked I am, Dad."

His eyes fell on the only non-shiny thing in the vault. He furrowed his brow as he picked up the letter. His breath hitched in his chest when he realized that the handwriting was his father's. He carefully opened it, his chin trembling as he read it over.

Dear Jude,

If you're reading this now, it means I am dead. I'm so sorry, son. Knowing the people who are after our name, I can only imagine what they did to finally get me. My only wish was that you were safe and alive. I don't care about what happens to me as long as you are still alive in this world.

My parents died when I was a child, and, while I was ecstatic when you were born, I always knew I wasn't going to be by your side that long. I began writing this letter on your 1st birthday because I don't know how long I have.

You're getting fussy right now, so I don't have long. All I want to say is this, Jude; no matter what happens, I will always love you. I always wanted you. You are the greatest thing to come into my life and I don't want you to ever forget that. On your hardest days, I want you to remember how much I love you and will always love you, even in death.

Love,

Your father, Daniel.

Tears dripped onto the parchment. Jude slowly fell to the ground, broken sobs slipping out of his mouth. Neville wrapped his arms around him, silently consoling the boy as his own tears fell from his eyes.

Jude clutched the letter in one hand while clutching Neville's sleeve in his free one. In this moment, with his late father's words and his father's arms around him, he felt loved and safe.

But why did he still feel so empty?