Chapter One: A Dream

It was dark. So dark it was difficult seeing. The young boy walked carefully through the corridor, terrified that he might make any noise. Yet strangely, as old as the wooden floor seemed, the child felt like he was hovering over it without effort. An odd sound was drawing him to a door where the faintest glimmer of light could be seen through a small opening.

The boy went right through it.

The room was spacious, dimly lit by a dying fire. Even though the fire covered part of the room in an orange hale, the weather outside made the grand space seem dark green and depressing. Comfortable looking armchairs were positioned in various corners, though one seemed out of place, as it was set up in front of a large window, overlooking the garden and a thundering rainstorm. A dusty rug covered most of the floor. In the middle of it stood a tall woman, cradling a small baby. She was humming a lullaby to it, but she did not look motherly at all. It was more like she feared if she stopped; the softly sleeping infant in her arms would wake up. The boy approached her, wanting to ask where he was. No sound came out of his voice and he realized that the woman did not notice him. Am I invisible? He asked himself.

"Stop humming!" hissed a voice coming from the chair near the window. The boy, who had been fascinated by the little one now spun around towards the voice. The woman froze and put the child in a small cradle a few meters from the fireplace.

"I'm sorry, my lord. I was just afraid the baby might wake up." She apologized in a soft, scared voice.

"I do not care. Your singing gives me headaches."

The woman didn't respond.

"How is it?" the voice asked again in its strange, soft hiss. The boy realized it was talking about the small child.

"She seems quite sturdy for her age. Eats a lot, but wont sleep easily."

"She" he -it seemed to be a man- said it like it was a disease "will need to be strong for the role that awaits her. Plan B's require material"

"Nothing will ever happen to you, my lord! You will crush the Potter boy."

The boy winced at the name. These people were obviously planning an attack. And they were on the bad side.

"Of course!" he hissed again "but even so, the child will only be good if something were to happen to anyone of us."

"Our daughter will be very strong, I assure you, my lord. When she is old enough to help, she will be there."

So these people are the child's parents. Neither of them seem very parental though. Especially the father. The boy was thinking to himself. He was still wondering who the man was.

Suddenly, a tall figure rose from the chair. He was hooded, and his face was hard to see.

"Our daughter." He mocked. "That child is nothing but a creation, destined to fight and kill if needed! She is most certainly not my daughter." He sounded disgusted.

"Yes, of course. I beg you pardon, my lord. I did not mean any disrespect." She obviously feared him.

The man walked over to her side. He bent down slightly to take a look at the resting toddler. The woman repeated the movement.

"I expect great things from her. I am sure you know that"

"Yes" she whispered.

The father extended his hand towards the baby's head and softly touched her forhead with his index finger.

"Great things…" he repeated in the same soft hiss. The baby woke up calmly, slightly opening her eyes. Her father took off his hood.

The boy froze in shock. He would have recognized that face anywhere. The pale green translucent skin, the snake like nose and those terrifying red eyes could only belong to one. Yes, he had no doubt about it. In front of him, holding a small girl stood Voldemort.

Albus Severus Potter woke up screaming in his Gryffindor dorm room.

Chapter Two: Waking Up

"Al! Al! What's wrong?"

People flocked around him as he sat, sweating, and looking around the dorm, confused.

"Al? Al, are you okay?" Scorpius stood next to him, looked slightly worried, while James was completely frantic. Albus' cry had alerted even the other dorms of the Gryffindor household. Some girls stood by his bed, including his cousin Rose.

"I…I don't know. I thought…I was somewhere else."

"Did you eat something bad?" asked James.

"I don't think so."

"Nightmare?" inquired Scorpius, who seemed a bit mocking now that he knew Albus was okay.

"Yeah, I think so." Albus was shaking. Rose leaned over to ask of he wanted something to drink.

"No, thanks, I'll be fine." Though he tried to think so himself, he wasn't entirely sure. "Just air maybe." he scoffed and everyone moved a bit further from him. Some went back to bed, and all girls but Rose left the boy's dorm.

"You guys should sleep. I'm okay, really."

Scorpius looked at him and asked what he'd dreamed about.

"I don't remember…it was a bit fuzzy. Just a woman and a baby…" he lied.

"That's what you freaked about?" mocked James "Girls and babies?"

"I…" He paused.

"Al, if there's something else, you have to tell us!" worried Rose

"No, it's nothing. Just a silly dream. It doesn't matter."

"Al, come on."

"No, really! Go back to bed." With that he fell back on his pillow.

Rose, James and Scorpius looked at each other once again, and separated. A few minutes later, everything was quiet again and all lights were off.

Albus did not fall asleep again that night, haunted by the memory of those burning crimson eyes.

Chapter 3: Arrival

The next morning was a Saturday. Scorpius and Albus woke up late and went for breakfast, joining Rose and James at the Gryffindor table. They had been going to Hogwarts for a few weeks now, but the magically appearing all-you-can-eat buffet still amazed the three youngest ones. Scorpius and James immediately lounged over to get as much food on their plates as possible while Rose looked at them in disgust.

"Did you manage to fall back asleep?" she asked Albus.

"Um….yeah, for a while."

"Any nightmares?" asked Scorpius, still making fun of him.

"No, I…" he stopped short. There, at the Slitherin table sat a girl who seemed to be about his cousin Victoire's age. She had long black hair and very pale skin. She was gawking at him in an arrogant way. Albus shivered. Oh, come on Albus. It was just a nightmare…just a nightmare. That girl is way too young to be the baby. Voldemort died nineteen years ago. That baby girl would be at least that old. But he still wondered if maybe, just maybe…

"Hey, Rose? Are there any spells that can make you younger?" he asked, feeling stupid.

"Why would you want to know? You're already pretty short."

Scorpius laughed. Albus shot him a death look. It was true that for an eleven year old, Albus was a whole head shorter than his fourteen year old brother and he was very skinny.

"Curiosity."

"Well, there are a few to make you look younger, and most are potions, but I can't think of any to make you younger. Of course you could always use confusion spells to make people think you aren't your age while you use the other spells to look younger and…"

"Whoa, whoa, Rose! Just make it a 'yes or no' answer!"

She sighed. "No. Not that I know of"

"All right then. I think my brain was about to explode."

"Ditto." said Scorpius, mouth full.

Albus looked at the girl again. Obviously he had been wrong. She was too young, only about sixteen or seventeen. Scorpius noticed Albus' interest in the girl and said:

"Her name's Audra. She's in her fifth year. She's the daughter of my dad's high school girlfriend. You know, Pansy Parkinson? She hates your dad's guts."

"Thanks, Scorpius. I remember." The encounter in Diagon Alley between the Potters, the Weasleys and Pansy had not been a very friendly one. Suddenly, the Hogwarts principal, Minerva McGonagall, stood up to make an announcement.

"Students, I would like you to meet our new addition to the school. Her name is Ms. Belinda Didler. She will replace our dear caretaker, Argus Filch, who retired this year. I trust you will welcome her warmly. Ms. Didler," she added, eyeing an odd figure emerging from the teacher's table "perhaps you would like to show yourself to the students?"

"Oh! Yesrightsureofcourse!" it stuttered.

With that, the strange outline stood, or stumbled from its chair, into view. It was a young woman. She was wearing the usual teacher's attire; however she had clearly been in too much of a hurry to put it on very well. It was wrinkled, even torn at some pieces at the bottom, the belt was looped to the side and looked like it would fall off any moment, the top was badly put, which made the left sleeve look longer than the right one. Her long, silky, very dark brown hair was tied in a messy ponytail, and her bangs were just as disorganized as the rest of her curls. She was chaotic, but beautiful. Her deep green eyes stood out of her heart shaped, smiling, embarrassed face. She was very pale and looked like she hadn't slept very well. She staggered up to the front of the table, looked worriedly at McGonagall and spoke in a soft voice.

"Hello to all of you. I'm sorry for coming later into the school year than supposed. I got…delayed. I hope I'll do a great job here at Hogwarts, and look forward to meeting all of you." She started to walk back to the table, but turned around and said"

"Oh, right. Thank you for listening". She sat back down. She was so uncomfortable it was both funny and adorable to watch. However, some did not notice her self-consciousness at all.

"Bloody hell…that is one attractive woman" murmured James.

"James! That's disgusting! She must be seven years older than you!" shouted Rose.

James, Albus and Scorpius laughed. Albus looked back to the Slitherin table. Audra was no longer looking at him, but instead seemed fascinated by the new caretaker. Albus followed her gaze, and saw that Belinda was looking right at him, as if examining him. She met his glance and immediately looked away, blushing.

But at that single second when Albus had stared into the clear eyes of the young woman, he had had the strangest feeling.

Like they had met before, a long time ago, perhaps when he was younger...

Much younger.

Chapter 4: Fire

"Al? What are you doing?"

The young boy was looking franticly around his bed, as if searching for something. Scorpius was beginning to look worried. Albus only grumbled. It was pretty late at night, and most of the boys were asleep, but Scorpius stayed awake, rummaging around.

"I can't find the picture of my parents." he sounded embarrassed.

"Why's that a big deal? I wouldn't care if I lost a few pictures of my parents. My dad nearly popped a blood vessel when I got into Gryffindor."

Albus chuckled. From what he remembered, Draco Malfoy did not look like a very warm person.

"Look for it tomorrow and sleep. Your light is bothering me."

"Yeah, okay." He sounded disappointed, but flicked off his bedside light.

That night, he dreamed again.

It was sunny this time, and he was outside. In the distance, he could see a child on a swing, bending slightly over, reading something. It had long hair, so Albus assumed it to be a girl. She was humming. Albus then realized who she was.

She was humming that same melody her mother has years ago.

That girl was Voldemort's Plan B. It had obviously been a few years since her father's death. She seemed about seven. It was only then that he saw the snakes that were circled around the calm youngster. Albus went around the swing, hoping to see the girl's face. She raised her head, as if reading his mind. Albus petrified as he looked into the small girl's gaze.

It was as if her father's eyes had been copied exactly on her little round features.

It started raining. The girl looked up to the sky and hissed something. Immediately, a shield rose around her and protected her from the water. She did not look surprised at all, and went back to reading. Albus recovered from his shock and looked at the girl's book.

Is that a…spell book? The child went over a line with her small finger, and whispered something.

She got off the swing, stood upright and looked at a tree standing in front of her. She shouted a spell Albus had never heard before.

"FIRENDA!"

The tree caught fire. Albus stared in disbelief. That kid isn't even using a wand! He turned back to her. Her expression was triumphant, her red eyes glowing with pride at she watched the flames devour the tree. She snapped her fingers.

The blaze stopped. The tree was completely destroyed, yet the child seemed very happy with herself. Someone called in the distance. The little girl shut the book, threw it into the air and hissed in a strange language. The book disappeared. She clapped her hands and the protective bubble vanished. She skipped back to a house that stood out in the storm, the snakes following her.

Then everything went black, with the exception of a dim image of the fiery scarlet eyes.

Chapter 5: Confessing

When Albus woke up, it was bright morning. Scorpius stood next to him.

"You're shaking. What was the dream about this time?" He didn't sound worried, but interested.

"Did I scream?" Albus was looking around, disoriented.

Scorpius chortled. "Naw. But you were moving like crazy in your bed."

"Oh. Sorry, I guess I got a bit worked up."

"What was the dream about?" Scorpius was sarcastic now.

"Just a girl. A small, creepy, more sodding talented girl than Rose, you and me put together and mixed with Merlin, who lights trees on fire and attracts snakes."

"Whoa. Do you want to speak to someone?"

"She had red eyes." Albus was staring at his feet.

"What? Are you okay?"

"The kid had these really intense blood red eyes. I've only heard of one person with eyes like that…"

"Who?" Scorpius looked a bit worried now. But before Albus could answer, Scorpius exclaimed:

"Wait, you're not saying you dreamed about a girl version of…him? You know…Voldemort?"

"No, but you're close enough." Albus sighed and told him in detail about both dreams. Afterwards, Scorpius kept silent for a while. All of a sudden, he spoke rapidly.

"Do you think they're real? Or that you're just having nightmares? I've never heard of him having an heir. And that woman…who was she?"

"I don't know. She was very skinny, with black hair. Must have been a bit loopy to have agreed to have a kid with him, but she seemed to fear and respect him, like he completely owned her. He never said her name."

Scorpius thought for a moment. "This is a long shot, but by the way you describe her, it sounds a bit like my great-aunt." Albus stared at Scorpius like he'd lost his mind.

"Ted's mom? Do you honestly believe in couples like Andromeda Tonks and Voldemort?"

"No! And don't get that image into my head! I'm talking about Bellatrix Lestrange."

Albus considered it for a moment. His image of Bellatrix fit the description he'd been given by his parents' stories.

"You need to tell someone. Maybe McGonagall, your father, or any adult who can help us."

"What if they're just nightmares?" Albus did not like the idea of being known as a whiny little boy.

"What if they're not? What if there really is a girl? What if…she activates 'plan B', whatever that is?"

The two boys remained silent. Finally, Albus spoke.

"I'll write my dad a letter. If he says it's not worth worrying, then we stop asking questions."