A/N:
This is just a long-ish explanation on why I choose the surname Fortescue for the main character Clara Fortescue.

The following article was written by Felicity on hp-lexicon.org, I have simply added some dates and more information to it.

Also thanks to all of you who have been reading, voting and commenting on this story!

I didn't expect for two chapters to get this many reads in such a short amount of time.

Since you all have been reading and commenting this much, I will upload the next chapter on the 31st of October 2015.
I know that that's still a long time away, but I'm currently writing on 'The Serpent's series' (which you should take a look at if you enjoy Tom Riddle stories) and therefore can't continue on this story untill sometime next year.

The Serpent's series will be a series of five books- with two of them already having a few chapters up, and I'm currently writing on the last two books, revolving around the life of Tom Marvolo Riddle, starting from Merope Gaunt's life and ending with Voldemort's death at the final Hogwarts battle.

I hope that some of you find the following article interesting.

Enjoy
Much love
Jamz
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The Fortescue/ Ravenclaw Connection

The majority of portraits of dead headmasters and headmistresses in Dumbledore’s office hardly ever speak and only a few are described in any detail.

I've skimmed the books looking for passages involving theseportraits, and mostly they are noted as snoozing or snoring with no other details given. Unless a portrait has a plot function, Rowling doesn’t zoom in on them, and the more important they are, the more fully they are described. 
 
In the scene following Harry’s dream of the snake attack on Arthur in OP22, Dumbledore wanted  Phineas Black to ask Sirius if the Weasley children could stay at 12 Grimmauld Place, but Phineas Black first pretended to be asleep and then balked at running the errand.

Several portraits spoke in that scene:

Harry recognized Armando Dippet from the diary memory; Dippet was described in this scene as a frail-looking wizard who reminded Phineas Black that portraits are honor-bound to serve the present headmaster.
He was spotted once more.
 
An unnamed gimlet-eyed witch holding a wand similar to a birch rod asked Dumbledore if he wanted her to persuade Phineas Black.
(OP22)

Phineas Black was described as a clever-looking wizard with a pointed beard who was painted wearing the Slytherin colors of green and silver standing behind a Slytherin banner. 
Harry recognized his voice as being the same one that spoke to him at the beginning of OP from the empty portrait in his bedroom at 12 Grimmauld Place.
Phineas Black made snarky comments in other scenes in OP and snorted in disrespect when Dumbledore agreed to take Harry to the cave in HBP.
 
Everard was described as a sallow-faced wizard with short, black bangs who was painted in front of a velvet backdrop; he went to his other portrait in the Ministry of Magic to sound the alarm for Arthur. He made a return appearance at the end of HBP to tell McGonagall that the MoM had received the news of Dumbledore’s death and would be arriving shortly.
 
Derwent Dilys 
St. Mungo's Healer 1722- 1741 (OP22). 
Headmistress of Hogwarts 1741- 1768 (OP22)
Was described as an elderly witch with long silver ringlets who was painted on a handsome leather armchair; she went to her other portrait at St. Mungo’s to see Arthur being taken in, weak but alive. She later winked at Harry from her portrait at St. Mungo’s and appeared to be counting the Weasley children as they walked past on their way to visit Arthur.
 
One additional portrait was highlighted in this scene.
The wizard in the portrait isn’t named in this scene, but the “corpulent, red-nosed” wizard was highlighted three times in OP and once in HBP.
It appears that the corpulent, red-nosed wizard in all of the scenes is Headmaster Fortescue.
 
In OP, when Phineas Black appeared reluctant to visit Sirius to ask if the Weasleys could stay with him to be near St. Mungo’s:

“Insubordination, Sir!” roared a corpulent, red-nosed wizard, brandishing his fists. “Dereliction of duty!” (OP22)

In OP, when Harry was being confronted in Dumbledore’s office after the DA’s meeting had been raided, it was learned that Willy Widdershins overheard the first Dumbledore’s Army meeting at the Hog’s Head and reported it to Umbridge to avoid being prosecuted for causing toilets to regurgitate:

“Blatant corruption!” roared the portrait of the corpulent, red-nosed wizard on the wall behind Dumbledore's desk.
“The ministry did not cut deals with petty criminals in my day, no sir, they did not!”

“Thank you, Fortescue, that will do,” said Dumbledore. (OP27)

At the end of OP, when Dumbledore sent Harry back to his office alone using a portkey, the wizard spoke to him again:

“I hope this means,” said the corpulent, red-nosed wizard who hung on the wall behind Dumbledore's desk, “that Dumbledore will soon be back with us?”

Harry turned.
The wizard was surveying him with great interest.
Harry nodded. . . .

“Oh good,” said the wizard.
“It has been very dull without him, very dull indeed.”

He settled himself on the thronelike chair on which he had been painted and smiled benignly upon Harry.

“Dumbledore thinks very highly of you, as I am sure you know,” he said comfortably. “Oh yes. Holds you in great esteem.” (OP37)

In HBP, after Harry and Dumbledore 
reviewed the Horcrux memory 
Harry had just obtained from Slughorn,  the wizard was again highlighted trying to hear their very interesting conversation about Horcruxes:

“Harry suddenly noticed that every single one of the old headmasters and headmistresses in the portraits around the walls was awake and listening in on their conversation. A corpulent, red-nosed wizard had actually taken out an ear trumpet.” (HBP23)

This portrait of Headmaster Fortescue interests me for several reasons:

Rowling doesn’t describe the appearance of a particular headmaster or headmistress or throw the spotlight on them more than once in any meaningful way unless they have a function in the story. 
Phineas, Dilys, and Everard are minor characters but they provided important information as errand-runners during critical moments. 
Headmaster Fortescue has been mentioned four times, yet he doesn’t have an obvious purpose in the story relative to the attention Rowling has given him.

Fortescue is described as corpulent and red-nosed, a description close to the “corpulent, red-cheeked” complexion and body type associated in the medieval theory of humours with the element of air.
Rowling assigned the element of air to Ravenclaw.
According to one website, the personality traits associated with this humour are amorous, happy, generous, optimistic, and courageous, which fits with the characters of the Headmaster Fortescue and his probable descendant Florean Fortescue, owner of the Diagon Alley ice cream parlor.

Fortescue is a surname with a known date of origin.
Sir Richard Le Forte was a leader in the Norman army at Hastings.
He protected Duke William (“the Conqueror”) by holding a large shield or escu in front of him.
When William prevailed, Sir Richard changed his surname to Richard Fort Escu, which means “strong shield.” Richard’s son was granted lands in Devon by a grateful William for the family’s distinguished service to him, making the family instant landed aristocracy in England.
The year (1066) was fewer than 100 years after the founding of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Headmaster Fortescue was painted sitting on a “thronelike chair,” which seems to hint that he was a member of a noble family.
I can’t help but think of the Noble House of Gaunt, which referred to Slytherin’s line.

Assuming the Fortescues are in Ravenclaw’s direct bloodline, we see that Ravenclaw’s line didn’t descend into the psychopathic squalor of Slytherin’s, but Florean Fortescue is a small business owner, not a member of the aristocracy.
And true to Ravenclaw House’s reputation for having the most intelligent students, Florean is a scholar even though he made ice cream for a living.

Florean Fortescue helped Harry with his History of Magic homework at the beginning of Prizoner of Azkaban when Harry was staying at the Leaky Cauldron. 
Florean knew a great deal about medieval witch hunts and burnings and also gave Harry free ice cream sundaes every 30 minutes. Early in Half-Blood Prince, Bill Weasley reported that Florean had been dragged off by Death Eaters from the look of his ice cream place. 
Florean was described as a good man who must have done something to upset them.

The portrait of Headmaster Fortescue is directly behind Dumbledore’s desk. On a shelf above Dumbledore’s desk is the Sorting Hat, and next to the Sorting Hat is a glass case holding Godric Gryffindor’s sword.
These are the only two known Gryffindor relics, and Horcruxes are largely about relics of the four founders of Hogwarts.
In the HBP chapter in which Harry and Dumbledore reviewed Slughorn’s true Horcrux memory, Rowling focused on only one portrait; Headmaster Fortescue- who pulled out an ear trumpet to better hear their interesting conversation.

I believe the placement of the Fortescue portrait near the Gryffindor relics, the physical description of Headmaster Fortescue linking him to the element of air, and the thronelike chair on which Headmaster Fortescue was painted are hints that the Fortescues are in Rowena Ravenclaw’s bloodline.