Hi, just wanted to get a few things out of the way. First, in no way do I own any of the Harry Potter characters, aside from Cora. Nor am I making any money off of this, it was written and posted for enjoyment only. Second, while I have written other fanfic's this is my first Harry Potter fic, so please review and tell me what you think, be honest, and if you don't like please let me know why.
Summary: Snape's niece, assumed dead for eight years, is found alive, but she has gone through a horrible ordeal. Snape does what he can to help her get through it. I realize that Snape is a little out of character, but please bear with me. There might be a little romance in later chapters. The story takes place in Harry's seventh year; and Voldemort was defeated the spring before. Ugh! I am no good at summaries. Please read, review and enjoy.
A New Dawn
Chapter one
His footsteps echoed strangely in the dark dungeons; glancing around he shivered, wishing it were September. Hogwarts was a quiet place during the summer, Dumbledore had always though that the children were the very soul of this place, and he had never quite gotten used to the emptiness of it when they were gone. Turning a corner he shook his head, it was best to think of the task at hand, he had something important to do.
Coming to blank stonewall, Dumbledore stopped and knocked. Moments later, Severus Snape opened the "door" with a surprised look on his face, for he rarely got visitors while in his personal rooms.
"I am sorry to disturb you Severus, but I have just received some information from the Ministry of Magic that concerns you." Dumbledore said with a slightly worried look on his face.
"It is no problem Albus, I was just surprised to see you. Please, come in and make your self comfortable." Pulling open the door so Dumbledore could pass, Severus could not help but wonder what was so important that the Headmaster could not wait until the next meal. Closing the door quietly, he follow the elderly man into his small, but cozy sitting room, and sat down on a leather chair. "So, what is it Albus?"
Shifting his weight uncomfortably, Albus cleared his throat and looked Severus straight in the eye. "The Aurors made a raid today on one of the suspected Death Eaters, Old Lord Byron." He fell silent for a moment, waiting.
"I am hardly surprised by that, Albus, nor do I see where this concerns me. The Aurors have been taking out Death Eaters almost daily since You-know-who's' defeat; and Byron always did seem the type."
"I know that Severus, but I wasn't finished yet. Lord Byron was killed in the attack, refusing to come peacefully, it ended rather gruesomely as I understand. That is not the worse part, after dealing with Byron they searched the house. What they found was absolutely sickening, he experimented, Severus, with magic, on animals, and people. From his records, they were mostly Muggles, but not all, not that it makes a difference. He actually kept records of what he did to them and what the result was." Albus paused for a moment to take a breath and to see what Severus reaction to this was.
"That is disgusting, but I am confused, I still don't see why you have to tell this to me personally."
"That is not the worst of it, I just wanted to you to understand the severity of this situation. You see all of the people who he experimented on died, sure some lasted longer then others, but they all died, all except one. Somehow, despite the experiments, one young girl managed to survive, she was there for a long time Severus, eight years she lived through that torture." Severus swallowed hard, but kept silent. "When the Aurors found her she was hardly recognizable as human, and she was scared to death of them. The Ministry can't fix her, she is fighting them every step of the way, and Byron didn't bother to figure out how to undo what he did to his victims, so everything they try is a shot in the dark."
"So they want me to help figure out how to reverse what was done to her? I don't see a problem with that, especially if I could see his records." Severus stated, finally understanding why this was being brought to him.
"That is part of it, but not all. They managed to find out who she is, and it was a shock considering that she was assumed dead. You see her parents were killed eight years ago, the same night she was taken, she was assumed dead as well, but they never found a body."
Severus felt himself go stiff as he listened, it can't be.
Dumbledore continued, ignoring Severus's tense look. "Her name is Cora Thomson, her parents were Susan and Ethan Thomson." Severus let out a strangled breath.
"Cora's alive? It can't be; Albus, Cora's my niece!"
"Yes, I realize that. Now you understand why I needed to tell you this in private, and why you needed to understand what had happened. Cora is not the same nine year old you remember, Severus, those years of captivity and torture changed her. She is seventeen now, and physically she will never be the same again, I am not sure of what she looks like now, but I want you to be prepared for the worst."
"When can we go get her? I want her safe, Albus; I want her to feel safe, because I am never going to let anything happen to her again."
Dumbledore smiled at Severus' fiercely protective display, then led the way to the door. "Well, get ready then, Severus. We leave in the morning."
Severus watched as Dumbledore walked swiftly away down the hallway and turn a corner. His mind was in chaos, for eight years he had thought that Susan and Cora were both dead. Pain squeezed his heart, he had forced himself not to think of Susan for years, never really able to deal with the grief of having his twin dead. Thinking that Cora, his precious niece, was dead as well, nearly killed him. Now after eight years, to find out that she was alive was more than a little shocking. Going back inside his quarters, felt the tears fill his eyes as he thought about all that Dumbledore had said. God, she has gone through hell, will she even remember her Uncle Sev? How am I going to cope with this? The tears slipped silently out of dark eyes as he headed to his bed and slipped into it. As he drifted off to sleep, the memories of that awful night came flooding back to him.
"Severus, wake up!"
He woke to a rough shaking and looked up into the dark, tearful eyes of his mother. "What are you doing here, Mother? What's wrong?" His voice tight as a desperate fear gripped his heart; somehow he knew it had something to do with Susan.
Mrs. Snape's voice broke when she tried to speak, tears slipping down her cheeks.
Finally, she found her voice and spoke in a low wavering tone, "Susan and Ethan were attacked, Sev." She broke down completely, pulling Severus into a death grip of a hug. He could barely make out her next few words through all the tears. "They're dead, someone killed my baby girl!"
He felt as if he had been kicked by a mule, all of his breath left his body in a strangled moan. No, she can't be dead, he thought to himself, not my twin. Shock kept him silent as he held his trembling mother, and then memories of a small auburn haired girl entered his mind. What about Cora!
"What about Cora, Mother, is she alright?" He prayed as he waited for her respond, but his heart told him not to get his hopes up. His heart was right.
"No, they can't find a trace of her, the house burnt down and she was inside." Severus closed his eyes as the first tears began to make their way down his cheeks. His beloved sister and niece were gone, it seemed like a nightmare that he might wake up from any minute now.
He stayed that way for hours, holding his sobbing mother until she fell asleep in his arms. Tears still streaming down his face, he carried her to his guest bedroom and tucked her in. Then he made his way down to his study and pulled out a bottle of muggle whiskey, and set out to drown his tears and the pain in oblivion.
The next afternoon, Severus stood in front of the remains of his sister's house. There was nothing left but a pile of ashes; the Ministry was milling around looking for anything that could identify the killer. He knew that they would never find anything; they couldn't even find the remains of his young niece. However, despite their inability, he found himself volunteering to help in anyway possible way. He looked at the blackened ground just a few feet in front of the house; it was the place where she had died.
Burying his grief deep inside, he turned and walked away.
Severus woke up with tears streaming down his face. She hadn't been in that rubble, she had been alive. Cora had been out there all that time, and he had never suspected. Guilt swept over him, why hadn't he thought of it then, why hadn't he searched for her? Logically, he knew there was no way of knowing that she could have been alive, but that part of him that knew something had happened to Susan told him that he should have known.
Glancing out the window Severus noticed that it was dawn, time to go. For the first time in eight years, he was going to see his precious niece again.
So, what do you think? I am going to try to get the next chapter out next week.
