Prologue: Different Beginnings
6 May, 1980
Bellatrix Lestrange stared down at her sleeping daughter and smiled.
"So what will you and Rolo name her?"
She glanced up to see her brother-in-law, Rabastan, standing in the door way as he smirked.
"We have named her Aquila Druella Lestrange."
"A beautiful name from a beautiful girl." He walked up beside her and pushed Aquila's hair from her face. "What will you tell the Dark Lord?"
She looked at her daughter and thought of what she knew. While she had been out of commission since finding out about being pregnant both Rodolphus and Rabastan had informed her of how the Dark Lord planned to make her child a warrior for him. Once upon a time such words would make her proud but now, looking at the innocent life she'd created, the idea made her feel hallow inside.
"I will tell the Dark Lord that outside of you, me and Rodolphus no one will know of any children I give birth to until they are older and can adequately defend themselves. After all it would not do for them to be used as a hostage."
There was silence and then, "That can be called treason."
Bella looked up into hazel eyes and spoke words she never thought she'd say in this context.
"I don't care."
31 October, 1981
Lord Voldemort stepped over the dead body of Lily Potter and looked at her child. The black-haired boy looked at him, emerald green eyes wide.
Vodemort pulled out his wand, ready to ensure his ruling as he casted his killing curse.
The green light shot towards the boy only to rebound into the face of the caster. There was a scream of pain has the house began to crumble around them.
Dumbledore turned and walked back down the street. On the corner he stopped and took out the silver Put-Outer. He clicked it once, and twelve balls of light sped back to their street lamps so that Privet Drive glowed suddenly orange and he could make out a tabby cat slinking around the corner at the other end of the street. He could just see the bundle of blankets on the step of the number four.
"Good luck, Harry," he murmured, He turned on his heel and with a switch of his cloak, he was gone.
A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up.
One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing that he would be woken in a few hours' time by Mrs. Dursley's scream as she opened the door to put out the milk bottles, nor that he would be spending the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Duddley...
He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: "To Harry Potter — the boy who lived!"
Rodolphus, Rabastan, and Bellatrix gathered around little Aquila as Rodolphus said good-bye.
"Couch will be here soon." He said.
Rabastan seemed uncomfortable. "And if the Dark Lord is really gone? What will we do then?"
"We will buy our way out of Azkaban," Bella replied, "and raise Aquila in secret."
The girl in question made a happy gargling sound as she clapped her hands together just as a voice drifted from the entertainment room.
"I should be going then." Rodolphus sighed, leaning down and placing a kiss Bella's cheek and Aquila's forehead.
The girl giggled, and lifted her hands to open and close them. "Bye-bye Papa."
"Good-bye, sweetheart." He glanced at his brother. "Keep them safe."
Rabastan made as face as though he was wounded. "Of course I'll keep them safe. What do you take me for?"
"An idiot." He deadpanned.
Rabastan opened his mouth to retort as Couch let out a shout. Bella lips compressed into a thin line of disapproval as Rodolphus made his way to Couch.
"Don't worry Bella," Rabastan placated, "Rodolphus will be back in no time."
Bella nodded her head but the feeling in her gut that this wouldn't turn out well.
1985
Rodolphus, along with Couch, had been sentenced to life in prison for the torture of the two Auror Longbottom.
Bellatrix and Rabastan had both been able to by their way out of Azkaban rather easily with the flimsy excuse of the imperius curse. They had both had gone into hiding with Aquila soon after.
No one, not even Bella's sister Narcissa, knew where they were or who her child was. And after a group of light wizards had accosted Aquila for the strong resemblance she had with her mother both Bella and Rabastan realized what a good idea this had been.
If it hadn't been for a magic backlash from the stress the incident put on Aquila she likely would have been raped. As it was she had emotional scars from how close it had come and the men in question were dead.
Both adults decided that it would be best to wait for the girl to turn seven before introducing her to other pure-blood heirs.
29 March, 1987
Harry Potter stood in front of a hedge and used trimmers to shape the bush the way his aunt wanted it. When he was finish he was supposed to go down to park and stay out the way.
For young Harry this meant avoiding his cousin Dudley and his 'Harry Hunting'.
He was almost finish when there was a rustle from under the hedge and, expecting an animal, Harry bent down to the noise planning to scare it way.
Instead he was met with a girl that looked his age.
She had dark brown, heavy lidded eyes, with sleek black hair and aristocratic features that made Harry think of royalty.
"Who are you?" Harry asked, not moving from his position.
The girl gave him a searching look before holding out her hand to shake. "Aquila Lestrange. And you are?"
He reached out his hand as he responded.
"Harry Potter."
A/N:
Hello readers.
I will call this a UA (Universe Alteration) and not an AU (Alternate Universe) because it's still the HP universe but I've changed a few things in it.
Now Warnings:
There will be
Dumbledore bashing (which, quite honestly, is a given in any HP story I write),
Manipulative Dumbledore (which, quite honestly, is also given in any HP story I write),
Bella, the Malfoys and the Lestrange brothers are OOC (having kids changes people…sometimes),
And a 'Dark is not Evil' point of view.
Pairings:
Eventual!Harry/Aquila.
Draco will probably end up with Hermione.
Reviews are like food and greatly appreciated.
