"Dumbledore, you're here, I was getting so worr – goodness! Is she alive?" Mrs Weasley gasped, staring at the limp body in Dumbledore's arms as he strode quickly over the threshold of the Burrow.
"Yes," Dumbledore replied calmly. "Very ill, but alive."
Everyone at the table had stood at his arrival, their eyes darting back and forth between Dumbledore and the girl he was cradling. Harry glanced sideways at his godfather but Sirius' expression was unreadable. Mrs Weasley led Dumbledore to the foot of the stairs.
"I've arranged Ginny's room for her, there's fresh sheets on the bed –"
"Of which I am most appreciative, thank you, Molly," Dumbledore said curtly, sweeping past her.
"The first room that you'll see on your way up," Mrs Weasley called up to him, turning back around to face the table and wringing her hands nervously as she resumed her seat next to her husband.
Slowly, the others followed suit and sat back down, though not a word was uttered between anyone. Mad-Eye Moody's magical eye was fixed on the ceiling but no-one dared ask what he could see. Even Fred and George were unusually quiet, though they exchanged a few worried glances.
Before long, Dumbledore's footsteps were heard coming back down the stairs and he swiftly sat down at the head of the table, his face stony.
"Is it true, Albus?" Lupin asked quietly, breaking the icy silence. "Is it her?"
"I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that it is true, Remus," Dumbledore replied. "It is, most definitely, her."
The silence continued for another few minutes as the members of the Order, who understood the girl's identity, processed this information, having endured months of speculation from Dumbledore about her existence.
"Perhaps we ought to tell the children?" Mrs Weasley asked cautiously, and Sirius nodded in agreement.
"Indeed we should," Dumbledore answered slowly, pushing his glasses further up his crooked nose. "Years ago," he began, addressing the younger ears at the table, "I came to understand that Lord Voldemort had once been intrigued by a rather intricate, very rarely experimented, piece of Dark Magic. He had elaborated on the work of other wizards who, like him, delved heavily in the Dark Arts, who had started procuring the foundation for what has come to be known as the Draught of Life. Voldemort is, to my knowledge, the only wizard that has been successful in mastering this most complex potion; a potion which allows the maker to conceive a child completely by means of magic."
"WHAT!" Fred and George yelled in unison.
"Voldemort has a child?" Harry said indignantly.
Dumbledore nodded once. "A daughter, in fact, who is now sound asleep upstairs."
"I don't understand, Professor," Hermione stammered.
"Nor do I expect you to," Dumbledore said gently. "It would be unwise for me to pretend that I completely understand it myself, however I will attempt to answer any questions that you might have."
"This potion …" Hermione began again, and all eyes turned to her. "Does it allow for the maker to be the sole biological parent?"
"Of that, I am unsure. Perhaps the child has a mother, yes … or perhaps Voldemort is the sole biological parent, the latter I am more inclined to believe."
There was another stiff silence, Hermione struggling to accept that a child born of one parent was possible.
"Do you know how old she is, sir?" Harry asked.
"Not to the exact day, no," Dumbledore replied. "Though she was conceived, that is to say born, shortly before you, Harry."
"But if You-Know-Who lost power," Ron piped up, looking fearful at his own daring, "then what happened to her? You-Know-Who doesn't have any living relatives, does he?"
"You are quite correct, Ronald," Dumbledore said, inclining his head at him. "Voldemort does not have any living relatives. Again, this is mostly guesswork, as I have not had the opportunity to console the child and ask her these things myself. She was raised and spent a large part of her childhood in an orphanage; this I know because I have spoken to the women who looked after her there. They told me that she displayed very unusual behaviour and didn't seem to be able to form friendships with the other children. Though numerous people fostered her over the years, she never remained with a family for more than six months and no-one considered adopting her. The orphanage had her transferred to a mental asylum once they too became incapable of caring for her. She stayed at this asylum for a year, which I know because I have spoken with the doctors who treated her. She did not respond well to any methods of treatment and escaped the asylum. It is my knowledge that she remained homeless after this."
"How did you find her, Professor?" Ginny asked quietly.
"Well, actually, she found us. The girl walked into the Leaky Cauldron, which, of course, does not appear as it is to Muggles. As it happens, Cornelius Fudge was in the pub at the time, and observed the girl for a few minutes. It was apparent that she had never stepped foot in the Leaky Cauldron previously. He told me that there was no possibility that she was a Muggle for she didn't seem the slightest bit perturbed by the small amounts of magic that she observed there. He approached her, not knowing her true identity, as I was not foolish enough to divulge to him what I had learned. She, of course, did not know that he is the Minister of Magic, and ran from the Leaky Cauldron after he began to ask her some tricky questions. He immediately contacted me to tell me that an underage and unknown witch had just fled from the Leaky Cauldron. I knew at once that this must be the daughter Voldemort had created many years before as hers is the only wizarding birth unrecorded by the Ministry. I found her three nights later wandering the streets of London in search for something to eat. I approached her carefully, offering food and water, but she was very untrusting, understandably. It took three meetings before she would accept anything I brought her. She drunk a small amount of The Draught of Living Death which I had disguised as water. Once she had fallen asleep, I brought her here."
Another silence ensued.
"What happens now?" Sirius asked, running a hand through his hair.
"It is my wish that she begins her education at Hogwarts this year." Dumbledore answered. "She undoubtedly has magical ability, albeit a lot of catching up to do. I hope," he continued, his eyes now resting on Mr and Mrs Weasley, "that you will be kind enough to let her stay here at the Burrow until school resumes."
Mrs Weasley nodded emphatically. "Of course, she can, of course."
"I will be visiting regularly to check up on her. For now, I have other business to attend to, but please notify me at once when the girl awakes." Dumbledore stood up, making his way to the door.
"Sir," Harry started, and Dumbledore turned back to face him. "You haven't told us her name."
He smiled. "No, Harry, I haven't. She changes her name frequently, I believe to avoid being tracked, and I was never able to find out what Voldemort had christened her, or whether he'd named her at all. You see, now, why it has taken me so long to find her."
Harry nodded.
"I'm sure she'll have fashioned herself a new name when you meet her. Until then, goodnight to all."
With that, Dumbledore turned on his heel and vanished, leaving the others to stare blankly at the spot where he'd Disapparated, comprehending everything that had been discussed, and trying to stay calm at the idea that the daughter of the most feared Dark Wizard the world has ever known was now sleeping only metres above them.