Chapter 1
I quickly grabbed my robes and my mask and rushed out of my office. As I made my way through the hallways of my home, I could hear the floo roar to life as my husband disappeared through the fire ahead of me. I paused before grabbing the floo powder myself, to give him time to move before I came through. I wish we could reveal our relationship, but times are just too dangerous to reveal ourselves and our unborn child. As I pull my robes on and place the mask over my face, I cast my concealment charm over my pregnant body and grabbed a handful of floo powder. As I threw it into the fire I called out my destination "Lestrange Manor!"
I stepped out of the fire to see to find myself surrounded by my fellow death eaters. I carefully survey the room looking for my adoptive family, finally spotting the unstable sister first. I made my way across the floor and paused just behind her. "Bellatrix, dear sister, how nice to see you." I spoke softly as I placed myself with my back to the wall so that no one could step up behind me. As she turned to look at me I could almost feel the ice from her glare. "Don't bother with the niceties 'sister'. You're only here because our lord demanded I allow you entry." She sneered at me as she walked away. She and I have never really gotten along, not that I ever cared. I scanned the room again, waiting for our lord to arrive and for this meeting to be over with. I just wanted to return to Spinner's End with my husband.
The door at the front end of the room slammed open and we all fell down to one knee with our heads bowed. I felt the temperature in the room drop a few degrees almost instantly. I risked lifting my head just enough to see where our lord was standing, only to find him having stopped directly in front of me. I gasped as I stared into his scarlett eyes and froze. I could feel him forcing his way into my mind, but thankfully I was a skilled occlumens. I hid away all memories of my husband into the void in my mind. It would not do for Lord Voldemort to learn that his most 'faithful' servant had married without his approval. I felt his presence in my mind, tearing through every defense he came across, and I ground my teeth as I felt the pain of his force taking its toll. After what felt like hours, but could only have been minutes, I felt him withdraw from my mind.
I sighed in relief, grateful to have my mind to myself again, until I risked a look into his eyes again and felt my blood run cold. He had this knowing gaze in his eyes and a smirk that could only promise the most diabolical things. He moved away from me, making his way through the room and only stopped briefly once more, in front of Bellatrix before finishing his path to the throne that Bellatrix had placed in her home for him. "My loyal followers, thank you for joining me tonight." he spoke as he slowly moved into his throne. "Rise, and remove your masks so that I may see all of you." He ordered, as we were all still kneeled, most of us with head still bowed. At his words we all rose as one, and we each removed our masks and placed them inside our robes.
With our masks removed, I could clearly see my husband standing to the left of our lord's throne. His sallow skin stood out among the other death eaters, making his hair look greasy as though he hadn't bothered to wash it, although I knew it was simply all the time he spent brewing potions. His obsidian eyes met with my emerald ones and I could feel his presence in my mind, however instead of the forceful intrusion like with our lord, when Severus entered my mind, I felt nothing but love and pride and a touch of concern seep through. I sent back all the feelings of love I could muster, but held back on my worry of what our lord may have found in my mind. I could only hope that he hadn't learned I was pregnant, or merlin forbid he learned Severus and I were married and in love.
Chapter 2
"Now that I can see all of you, it is time that we make our move. One of my most trusted, Severus, has brought some intriguing developments to my attention. It appears as though a prophecy has been made, one that predicts my downfall, at the hands of a child." Our lord proceeded to tell us. I stared at my husband in absolute shock. I couldn't believe he had learned something and not shared it with me. I turned my attention back to our lord as he stood up with his arms fanned out. " I know who this child who will supposedly be downfall is, however as of yet the child is unborn, barely even conceived in their mothers womb." as our lord continued to speak, my mind was racing a million miles an hour. Once again I stared at my husband, confusion clear on my face. He refused to meet my gaze and I knew then exactly who the mother of this child was.
Lily Potter, Severus' childhood best friend and first love. The woman who had broke his heart all those years ago, and married the person who made his life a living hell while we were at school. I could not believe that he had given up the news of her pregnancy so easily. Lily was barely 2 weeks pregnant, and here he was giving her up to our lord as though he had never cared for her before. I could only wonder if he would have done the same if it had been our child that had been destined to be our lord's downfall. Would he give me up without a second thought? Would he give up our unborn child the way he had the Potters?
I stopped my train of thought and shook my head and scolded myself. Severus loves me and our unborn son. He would never give us up without a fight, I know this. Why should I care if he gave up Lily's child. He married me and is happy with me. We are perfect together. I turned my attention back to our lord and tried to pay attention. He explained to us that he would not attempt to take the child out until after they were born, as a message to the whole wizarding world. He would show the world that no matter what they through in his path, he would not back down. As our lord started to sit back down in the throne he waved his hand in dismissal, letting everyone know he was finished with us for the time being. As I turned to make my way back to the fireplace to floo home, I heard his sinister drawl call out. "Evanna, stay behind. I would like a private word with you."
I felt my blood run cold once again. This was it. He was either going to kill me, initiate me into his inner circle, or I would learn what he found inside my head to make him appear almost gleeful. I nodded my head in acknowledgement and moved to stand in front of his throne and fell down to one knee. I could feel my husband eyes on me as he left the room, could feel his worry as he entered my mind one last time. I could hear his velvet smooth voice in my head even though I could no longer see him. "Be on your guard my love. I'll be waiting for you at home. Always"
Chapter 3
I stayed knelt down in front of my lord, too scared to move. I heard him stand up from his throne and had to fight the urge to jump as I felt his bony, frozen hand on my shoulder, pulling me to stand. As I rose, I glance into his scarlett eyes and froze once more. Yet again I could see that gleeful knowing look in his eyes and it truly scared me. "My lord, how can I be of service?" I asked him, keeping my voice as calm as I could. He chuckled slightly and placed a boney finger underneath my chin. "Oh my dear Evanna, did you really think you could keep your pregnancy a secret from me forever?"
My heart stopped beating in my chest. My eyes widened and my breath caught in my throat. I was caught. He knew I was pregnant. Did he know who the father was? Did he know who I was married to? My train of thought was broken as he chuckled once again. "Don't fret Evanna. A woman with your...assets...it's no surprise that you would have found someone to spend your time with. But why would you hide this from your lord? Do you not find your partner fulfilling?" He asked me. I forced a blush and looked down briefly. "Im sorry my lord. It's not that i don't find him fulfilling. He more then takes care of me. I just enjoy my privacy in my private life. I'm not like these other pureblood women always fighting over who has more money or who has nicer things." I tried to placate him, hoping it would work to keep us out of trouble.
"Evanna, the fact that you are so different from the pureblood harpies is part of the reason I brought you into my death eaters to begin with. It is always enjoyable when you and Bellatrix duel and I quite enjoy watching you knock her down a few pegs. However, knowing now as I do of your predicament, I can not simply allow you and your significant other to continue on as you have been. I must know who the father of your unborn child is, as this child will be the first child among my death eaters. Tell me, who sired this child." He commanded of me. I knew I had no choice but to tell him, unless I wanted me and my baby boy to die right here. I glanced up at him slightly and took a deep breath. "Severus."
I watched as Lord Voldemort's eyes narrowed and he retreated into his thoughts. I stood as still as I could, but i could feel beads of sweat rolling down the back of my neck as I waited for him to respond. He turned his back to me and took a few steps before pulling out his wand and turning back to face me. "Hold out your arm" he demanded. I winced internally as I rolled up my left sleeve, revealing my dark mark to him and awaiting the pain that I knew was to come. I could only hope that he would spare Severus and I. Lord Voldemort approached me and placed the tip of his wand against my dark mark, and instantly I was overcome by unmeasurable pain and my mark darked and the snake in the design started to move.
Not even 3 minutes later, the doors to the room swung back open, and my Severus came into the room and bowed before Our Lord. "You summoned me my Lord?" He asked, as calmly as he could without sparing me a glance. Our lord approached him and held his wand against my husband neck. "Did you really think I would not find out? That you could hide not only a relationship, but a wife, a child, from me?" He snarled into Severus face. I wince as I knew how much Severus detested being snarled at, and I could only hope he would control his temper.
"I am sorry my lord. But my wife wished to keep things underwraps. We simply wanted to enjoy our time together without the vultures lurking, waiting for us to fall apart." Severus responded calmly. I held my breath as I waited for our lord's response. "The two of you should consider yourselves extremely lucky that I am in a good mood. I do not wish to harm either or you, or your unborn child. I'm sure this offspring will be the first of many, and he will make for an excellent protege. I will allow you to continue as you have been, concealing your relationship from the others. However, I expect you to keep me informed from now on. No more surprises, or you both pay the price." He told us, casting his icy glare onto both of us before turning his back and waving his hand dismissing us both.
Chapter 4
As Severus and I both returned home, I immediately turned into his open arms. "Sev, what are we going to do!" I cried into his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around me and placed his lips next to my ear, whispering to me as he rubbed small circles onto my back. "Hush my love. Things will be ok. I won't let him have control of our son. We will leave England if we must." He told me, tightening his hold on me and moving us towards the couch. I continued to cry as he held me and just let everything out. He rocked me back and forth and whispered into my ear, telling me everything would be alright. I finally calmed down and just sat there in his arms until we both fell asleep.
I bolted up with a hand over my stomach screaming in pain. Severus jumped up with his wand raised searching the room for anyone that could be attacking us. I snatched the wand away from him and glared at him. "Put that away. No ones hurting me, well no one except your son!" I snarled as a very strong contraction hit me. I doubled over in pain and tried to catch my breath. "Sev, we have to get me to st. mungo's now! I will not have my son be born in our living room!" I demanded as I tried to stand back up.
Severus quickly grabbed me and threw floor powder into the fire place. "St. Mungo's!" He shouted, pulling me into the flames with him. No sooner had we appeared on the other side of the floor then I was shoved into a wheelchair and rushed me towards the check in. I groaned in pain as I felt another contraction hit. One of the nurses came running around the counter as soon as she saw us. "How far apart are your contractions? How long have you been having them?" She asked me as she took the chair away from Severus. I looked up at her and attempted a smile. "The contractions are around 5 minutes apart, I've been in labor since late yesterday, but the contraction did not become painful until about 20 minutes ago." I explained to her. I felt my husband eyes fall onto me. "Why didn't you tell me yesterday!?" He asked me. I offered him a shy smile and looked down at my hands. "We had so much going on that I just wanted to wait and make sure it was actual labor, and not false labor pains. Im sorry my love." I told him. He grabbed one of my hands in his and gently squeezed. "It's ok, just next time, tell me." He whispered as he kissed my forehead.
The nurse then started pushing my chair down the hall and immediately pushed me into a room. I lost track of the time as everything happened so fast and before I knew it, my doctor was coming in telling me it's time to welcome my son to the world. I glanced once more at Severus and I could tell he was just as nervous as I was. From the day we learned I was pregnant, he had been worried he would end up being just like his father. Something I told him repeatedly wouldn't happen. He already loved his son too much to ever consider raising his hand to harm him. The doctor closed the door behind him and helped me to get read on the bed.
The next few hours went by so quickly, I couldn't even tell you what happened. All I could remember is being in such immeasurable pain for what felt like forever. I couldn't believe that one little child could be so painful to deliver, but I'd done it. I could feel the doctor magically stitching me back up and vanishing all traces of birth from the room. I opened my eyes and tried to find Severus in the room and gasped when I saw him. Standing there, leaning against the wall with his hair falling slightly into his face, he held not one, but two bundles of joy in his arms. We had twins!
"Sev?" I called out to him gently. His head snapped up and I could see unshed tears in his eyes as he made his way over to me. "Eva, my love. I love you so much. Not only have you given me a family, one I never thought I'd have, but you've given me a prince, and a princess." He whispered to me, his voice filled with emotion. He placed one of the bundles in my arms, and I looked down to see my husbands eyes staring back at me. My baby boy looked so much like his father already. My heart swelled with love as I looked at him. "Hello my lovely. I've been waiting so long to meet you." I whispered as I gently placed a kiss on his face. I looked back to my husband to see him holding our little surprise. I couldn't believe that I had been carrying two children all this time. "Sev, let me see her." I whispered, ready to hold my baby girl. He placed her in my arms and we watched as her and her brother immediately shifted to cuddle together.
I smiled tiredly at my husband as I held our children. "My love, we only ever discussed a name for our son." I told him as I once again looked down at our daughter. I had always wanted a girl, and now, here she was, staring up at me with her emerald colored eyes. I smiled as I realized that she had gotten my eye color where as her brother had gotten their fathers. I shifted my gaze back onto my husband as he held our son close to his heart. "Sev, how about Jarrod Tobias and Emerald Fade?" I asked him with a smile. I watched as he thought over the names and stared at our beautiful twins. "I love them. Jarrod and Emerald. It suits them." He said as he placed a kiss on each of their foreheads.
Chapter 5
It has been two weeks since we brought our wonderful children home, and still we have not introduced them to anyone. I knew our lord would come asking soon to meet our son, but how were we to hide the fact that our son has a sister? Not only that, but she was the first born. I couldn't bear it if our lord tried to force us to follow tradition. It didn't matter to me or to Severus who was born first, but our society was adamant that women could not be named as heir, however the first born is always named as such. Especially in the case of twins, if the female was born first, they would be killed and labeled as a still born so that the male child could carry the mantle of heir. I couldn't see that happen to my baby girl. Emerald was everything I'd ever wanted in a daughter. She was perfect.
Severus walked into the living room where I was sitting in the floor with both Emerald and Jarrod letting them sleep in their cots on the floor. "Evanna, my dear, we need to talk." He said as he sat on the couch behind me. I turned to look at him and could see the dread in his eyes. "He's asked to meet Jarrod now, hasn't he?" I asked, already sure of what was going on. He sighed and closed his eyes, and that told me all I needed to know. "Evanna, you already know what he will say when he finds out about Emerald. Our only chance at keeping her alive, is to lie and convince him the Jarrod is the first born." I nodded my head in agreement. He was right, if we could convince Voldemort that Jarrod was the first born, he would not force us into doing anything with Emerald, and she could live and be happy with her family.
"You're right. If we can convince him that Jarrod was born first, then Emerald will be safe." I told him as I picked up both of our children and hugged them close. I took a deep breath and turned to look at Severus. "Let us go now, before it gets too much later." I told him as I passed Jarrod off to him. I bent back down to grab the children's blankets and a bag for their diapers before standing back up and turning to face the fire place. Severus placed an arm around me and grabbed some floor powder. As he through it into the fire place, he called out "Riddle Manor" and we stepped into the flame.
We walked out of the fire place to find our lord standing directly in front of us. We both immediately knelt down, careful not to jostle the kids too much. "Ahhh Severus, Evanna, thank you for coming so quickly." we heard our lord say softly, as he moved to sit down on the couch behind him. We stayed knelt down until he waved his hand at us signalling we could stand. "My lord, let us introduce you to my son and heir, Jarrod Tobias Snape." Severus said quickly as he stepped forward with my baby boy. Our lord extended his hands so that he could look at Jarrod more closely, when Emerald decided she didn't like her brother getting all the attention.
Our lord's head spun instantly at Emeralds cries and his eyes narrowed. "Twins?" He asked as he looked between Emerald and Jarrod. "Yes my lord. It was quite a surprise for us. After Jarrod was born, the medi wizard informed us that there was another child, and well, now we have Emerald Fade Snape as well." I told him, keeping my emotions and voice as calm as possible. The last thing we needed right now was for him to catch us in a lie. Our lord turned his attention back to Jarrod and then looked at both me and Severus. I watched my husband tense up and just knew that our lord was reading his mind, trying to decipher if we were being truthful with him. Luckily Severus was even more skilled in occlumency then our lord so when I saw my husband relax, I knew we were at least safe for now.
Chapter 6
It has been 5 months since our little ones were born, and I could not be happier. Emerald and Jarrod are growing so fast. Emerald started crawling just two days ago and her brother Jarrod started trying to just this morning. I stood in the kitchen, watching them play in the living room with their blocks and the animals that Severus had enchanted for them. Emeralds panther is running around the room while Jarrods dragon is flying around his head. While they were occupied I turned to the cupboard so that I could cook dinner for when Severus came home. These past few weeks had been great, Severus would go to the apothecary and brew some potions during the day, go to meetings with our lord when needed, and then he would spend the nights with us. Our lord had been very lenient, allowing Severus more time at home to bond with his children.
I heard he front door open and grinned as I put the last of the food on the table. "Severus my love, we're in the dining room!" I called out. Severus walked around the corner and my smile dropped. I could see it on his face, the worry lines etched across his face and the intense look in his eyes. I was not going to like hearing what he had to say. "Sev, what's wrong?" I asked him, walking around the table to stand in front of him. He looked me in the eyes and sighed. "He knows" was the only thing he said. I gasped and took a step back. It was impossible. We had been so careful, we changed the documents, we altered memories, we took care of everything. How on earth did he figure out that Emerald was born first?
I ran over to my children and scooped Emerald up. "I won't let him hurt her Severus. I won't. I'll die first." I told him as I held my baby girl close to me. I could feel the tears pooling behind my eyes. I couldn't lose my precious girl. I just couldn't. I felt Severus come up behind me and wrap his arms around us. " I promise, I will figure out a way to keep us all safe and together. I will not let any harm come to my family." He whispered into my ear as he held us tightly. I nodded my head and just stood there, wondering how on earth it had come to this. I lifted my head to look at him. "How did he find out? What happened? I thought we took care of everything so that he would never know." I asked him dying to know just how it came about that my daughter was in danger all over again.
Severus sighed and looked at me with an apologetic look. "Apparently the nurse that assisted us when we first got to the hospital had told her brother all about us. What we didnt know before we wiped her memory, is that she suffers from memory loss, and at the time couldn't even remember that she had told her brother anything. I guess our lord still suspected us of not being truthful and had someone do some digging." He told me as he pulled away from me slightly. I shook my head and took a few steps back. "I have to do something Severus. I can't just let Emerald remain in danger. If he knows, there's no telling when he will come for us. We have to be prepared no matter what."
Chapter 7
It's been 2 months since Severus informed me of our lord learning the truth about our children's birth, and still nothing had been done. We were constantly watching over our shoulders, waiting for something to happen. I was getting tired of always having to wonder when the hammer would fall. I knew our lord would take his revenge for our dishonesty, and I knew he would do it soon. I had to take precautions to make sure my family would be kept safe. I would not let him harm my children.
I knew it was wrong to, but I kept all of my plans a secret from Severus. It was too risky. I knew, no matter what, that Jarrod would be kept safe as he would be named heir to the Snape line. Voldemort wouldn't want to mess with that. I just had to keep Emerald safe. To do that, I found the perfect plan. My cousin Meg and her partner Lizzie had always wanted a child. If anything were to happen, I knew Meg would take Emerald in and keep her safe. I had already written out a letter for Meg and Lizzie, and one for Emerald to read once she gets older. The letter I wrote to Meg simply told them that due to circumstances of my marriage to the child's father, she is unsafe and I need someone I can trust to raise her. The letter I've written for my darling daughter however, explains just a little bit of things for her to understand why I couldn't be with her.
My darling Emerald,
If you are reading this, then I am sad to say that my worst fears have come to life and you have had to live with your Aunt Meg and Aunt Lizzie. I am so sorry darling. I wish things had been different, but know that you are loved dearly.
I can't explain everything to you, but I can tell you that your father and I love you with all of our hearts. I didn't want to give you up, but I fear if I didn't, then you would no longer be alive. I can't go into much detail about the situation, but because you were the first born there was a target on your back from day one. You have a twin brother, though you are not identical. You are older than him by a few minutes, but that never mattered to your father and I. We love you and your brother equally, and I hope that one day we can be reunited.
I know things will not be easy but I hope you can forgive me one day.
I can not tell you much about my family or your father's family, but if you are anything like your father and I, you enjoy a nice mystery. I was adopted into the Black family line when I was about 2 years old, so you are considered a part of the Black family. You're father is descended from the Prince family. I know when I was younger there was never much on the family, so I hope you have an easier time then I did researching them. Maybe, just maybe, you'll figure out who your father is before we meet again.
I have enclosed with this letter a picture of myself and a necklace that I would very much like for you to wear. It is a simple black crystal, however it is enchanted and linked to my life. If I shall die before we are reunited, the crystal will turn green. As long as it remains black, know that I am still alive and I am merely waiting to be able to reunite with you again.
I love you my darling Emerald, never forget that.
Your loving mother,
Evanna
Chapter 8
Emerald and Jarrod were now 9 months old. They both had started walking and were eating more food than they were drinking formula. I couldn't believe how quickly the time had past. It felt like they were just born last week. As I watched the two of them play together, I could only feel the slight sadness that Severus had been missing so much of his children growing up lately. More and more he had been coming home late from missions our lord had sent him on. I could only hope it would all change soon.
I heard the front door open and assumed it was Severus coming in from a long day with our lord. I turned to greet him and froze when I saw none of than Bellatrix standing there twiddling her wand between her fingers. My eyes darted towards the twins. I was ready to fight for my children's lives, but before I could even move Bella had cast petrificus totalus on me and I fell to the floor, completely helpless. "dear dear sister, did you really think you could fool The Dark Lord? You think he couldn't learn you're little secret? That he wouldn't retaliate" she taunted, as she stalked closer to me spinning her wand in between her fingers.
The only thing I could do is plead with my eyes as I watched her turn her attention to my twins. Emerald, already sensing that there was something wrong had put her toys down and had her eyes trained on Bellatrix. Emerald had moved herself to being slightly in front of her brother, clearly wanting to protect him. Internally I was screaming, pleading, begging for Bellatrix not to harm my children, but the only thing anyone could see was the tears rolling down my face as I lay there helplessly. I watched as Bellatrix raised her wand and trained it on my beautiful baby girl and I felt my heart shatter when she muttered the words "Avada Kedavra". I watched my little girl's eyes dim and turn hollow as her little body slumped to the side, completely lifeless.
The second Emeralds body collapsed, Bellatrix released her spell on me and I immediately ran to my children and scooped up my precious baby girls body, already consumed with grief. I clung to her lifeless body and cried my heart out, all the while Bellatrix stood there with this malicious grin on her face and a laugh in her lips. "If I were you dear sister, I would take the best you have left, and run. Disappear where no one can find you. I'll leave you with this little bit of kindness and leave your son alone. But if you ever show your face near My Lord again, not only will so kill your son, I'll imperio you to do it yourself, and throw you in a dungeon to realize the moment over and over again." She gave me one last look before disapparating away.
I took a deep breath the moment she was gone to collect myself. I couldn't believe it had actually worked. As I stood up, the body of my daughter and my son both vanished. I quickly raced up the stairs and into the hidden attic so had prepared months ago. There in the center of the room, sat my two wonderfully alive and perfectly healthy children. I knew when so woke up that morning that something was off. Something was going to happen today, and I just knew so had to protect my children. So I created a golem of both of them, and awarded the attic so that no one but myself could access it. If anything had happened to me, the house elf that I had acquired, without Severus' knowledge, had instructions to take my children to my cousin Meg.
I picked up both of my children and kissed them both on the top of their heads. What I had to do next would be the hardest thing I'd ever had to do. Bellatrix believed my daughter to be dead. I had to leave or we would all be in constant danger. But traveling alone , with two 9 month old babies was going to be more than I could handle. Severed still hadn't returned home, and so I could only fear the worst. I had to do what was best for the family I had left. I quickly grabbed the letters so had written for Meg and Emerald and called out for my house elf. "Mipsy!" the little elf immediately appeared in front of me, and I knew at that moment she had already known what I was calling her for. She had a bag of Emeralds things already on her shoulder with a sad, teary expression on her face " Worry not mistress. Mipsy will watch over the little misses. You will one day find each other again, and Mipsy will be there!" she told me in her little squeaky voice. I felt more tears fall from my eyes as I handed over my precious girl.
"Mother loved you Emerald. I will always be with you" I whispered as I placed a final kiss on her head. Mipsy spun on the spot, and my little angel was gone. I took a final look around the attic before turning my attention to Jarrod. "Well my dove, I guess now is as good a time as any." I whispered as I pulled out my wand. I summoned two bags, one filled with my belongings and the other filled with Jarrod . I took one last breath and disappeared away from spinner's end for the last time.
END OF BOOK 1