Obscure-Tome peers through the glass window. Are they gone ? He wonders to himself. All he did was torch his lawn to say 'Disclaimer - Harry Potter Does Not Belong To Me' . Dratted firefighters ruined it all and now he's on the run for arson. Really. All that he did was torch the lawn. The illegal Llama breeding center under it wasn't his. Ummmm...Not really. Anyways, braving the smoke and rabid firefighters, Obscure-Tome pushes the publish button.

This is my first proper work on FFN. I am a relatively new (read - just joined) writer on FFN. Being a grammarian of sorts please do PM me on grammatical errors. Constructive criticism appreciated but a big no no to flames. If you don't like it OR are feeling down OR are depressed, do NOT, in ANY way take out your bad experiences on me. I cuss like a sailor and would probably call you something (untypable here). So here goes nothing...

PRELUDE

It was a calm night. A cool breeze blew through the air. Silence pervaded, only to be broken suddenly by screams of a women. Funnily enough, though the screams bespoke of the lady's pain, inbetween were interspersed promises of pain, lack of physical contact (probably never again) and worst of all - long, cold nights on the hallway couch. The woman's cries lasted a long time. Eight and a half hours, to be precise. Finally, the lady's screams died down. In its place was the soft cries of a healthy newborn. And so, on the dawn of 31st July, Hadrian James Potter was born to Lord James Potter, Earl Potter, and Lady Lily Potter, Countess Potter.

Somewhere Unplottable In Wales...

James Potter had never been so nervous. Not even when he was caught at the tender age of 15, innebriated on Firewhiskey, by his father - Charlus Potter. Or even when after his 'Aunt Minnie' caught him sneaking Catnip into Dumbledore's trousers, marched him by his ear to the Floo, and fire-called his Mother, Dorea. No, the birthing of his son had him nervous beyond measure. He worried for his unborn son, worried for his wife, the beautiful Lily Potter nee Evans. But what scared him the most was, was what was to follow.

Even Lily didn't know the full ritual which had to be undertaken. But not doing so would mean certain death for his son. As he worried, his gaze swept towards his father - Charlus Potter. As if sensing his son's discomfort, Charlus reached out and held James' hand. "It'll be all fine, son. Nothing is there to fear. But I still remember, distinctly, the abject terror on your mother's face as the beast appeared. Prongs, she called the Noble Deer that approached the altair. Your son will be fine. And Dorea will take care of Lily."

James nodded, drew a shudderinf breath, as he replied. "I know, dad. Just that I'll be a father soon. Can I do it, will I fail, what do I do, how do i do it... Questions fill my mind. It just blows me apart to think that I, James, managed to get Lily to love me. Lily, who I loved from when I first saw her. Lily, who was seemed to hate me later on -Hell, she said she'd rather kiss a snake than me once upon a time -to Lily who I married. Lily, who loves me and who I love...and now we're having our firstborn son. It's... It's a lot to take in and... I. Am. Just. Rambling."

Charles chuckled. "Brings back memories. The famed Potter Charm and it's less known compatriot - the Potter Nerves."

Before he could continue, the screams started, and James rushed in, ignoring the protests of the Mediwitches. He just had to be at his wife's side. Lily was in pain. He needed to be there. He needed to do something. After all, she was birthing their son ! Charles just looked at the disappearing figure of James and shook his head. Ever the Noble Gryfindor. That was James. The first Gryfindor Potter in ten generations.

In The Bedroom...

Lily Potter knew that becoming a mother was going to be a pain in the arse. Actually, it involved pain in the lower back, knees, stomach and just about every other part of her body. But would she change anything ? Nope. She dearly wanted to see her son. As she gazed at the surroundings, at the hustle of House Elves bringing in hot water, clean towels, Mediwitches running diagnostic spells, her eyes landed on her mother-in-law, whom she had come to love as her own mother ever since she'd been cast out of her own house.

Long ago, when McGonagal had visited the Evans, she told them that Lily was a witch. Her foster parents being the puritans they were, decided to cast Lily out. In reality, Lily was just an adopted child. Adopted for but one purpose - to marry into an influential family. She was a beautiful girl and no doubt - could be easily be sold for a high price. The Evanses were social climbers and climbers of the worst sort. They went so far as to neglect Petunia to raise Lily as the perfect bride - prim, proper, dull. As a result, by no fault if Lily's, Petunia came to hate her . But Lily's life was no fun. It was full of sortow and pain. She was punished for being smart. She was punished for her playfullness. But most of her punishments were because of mysterious things that happened around her. Then when she was cast out onto the streets, she was found by Dorea. In her tear-addled state, she told her her whole story, forgetting that she wasn't supposed to tell others know she was a witch. Furious, Dorea decided to let her into her house - manor, really - and thus, Lily grew up at Potter Manor. To keep up with appearances, the Evanses were paid to smile and just act as if the three of them were one happy family. The greedy Evanses would pick and drop Lily off at King's Cross. House Elves would then pick or drop her at the Manor . And so, it was widely believed that Lily lived at 4 Privet Drive with the Evanses.

As she prepared for labour, Lily thought about James. When she came to stay at Potter manor, she was immediately accepted by the rest of the Potters. Charlus became her surrogate 'dad' and Dorea her 'mom'. But James... That was an issue. Initially Lily saw him as a brother. She was jealous of him, of what he had since his birth. But then she realised that he wasn't at fault. Despite being extremely rich -and titled- James was nothing but kind to her. And genuinely so. Soon, Lily saw this and changed her views. But she could not, in good faith tell this to him. She saw him as a sibling. And one thing siblings never do is apologise to one another, as doing so tends to inflate the other's ego to infinitismely large proportions. So, harsh words (like those between siblings) and pranks, were regularly exchanged. However, as Lily grew, her feelings towards James changed. She saw him as more than a brother. But she thought he didn't. Deciding that it was better to distance herself from him, she did exactly so. James wasn't pleased. Caustic remarks were exchanged, and both James and Lily were hurting. In the end, only due to Dorea slipping them Veritaserum (small doses) did they admit that they loved each other. First as siblings, later as more. As Lily thought of all this, she felt the baby shift and she gasped in pain. Before she lost all semblances of control,she turned to Dorea and in garbled tones murmured

" Will...th...the...ritual...ha...harm...my...son?"

Dorea blanched as she realised what Lily was asking her, shook her head and asked just one thing - "How?" Lily smiled a strained smile and answered - "Potte...r Grimoire...unli...mited...access...to...library."

Further conversation was cut short as the contractions began and Lily screamed in pain. Footsteps rang out loud as James ran in, looking for his wife. Labor had begun.

Eight hours later, Hadrian James Potter was born. With his green eyes and tufts of messy black hair, he stole the hearts of all the four Potters present. As James looked at his tired wife and their son who lay between them, he couldn't think of anything but that what lay in front of them was perfection to his eyes. And that perfection had a name - Hadrian. As he drifted off to sleep, James -briefly- worried about the ritual seven days hence.

7 Days Later...

It was tradition for the Potter family to gain a spirit animal 7 days from their birth. It was their secret Family magic, which not only aided their Animagus form but also improved theie Transfiguration skills exponentially. For example, James was a deer. His spirit animal animagus form and patronus were deer.

Charlus's spirit animal, patronus and animagus form was that of an eagle. Everyone was curious what Hadrian's form would be. After all, a son begetted if two powerful parents (magically speaking) would be no lightweight himself. But apart from the Spirit Animal or Heavenly Gaurdian, call it what you may, the Potters were also worried about the backlash of the ritual on baby Hadrian. The ritual was designed as a surefire way to drain a baby's core. This allowed the Spirit Animal to integrate itself with the baby and also had the benefit of increasing the core size.

So, seven days from Hadrian's birth , he along with the four other Potters went to the woods behind the Manor.

Deep, deep inside these woods ran a stream. Over this stream was an ancient bridge that held firm even today. It was on this bridge that the three Peverells had crossed the river and met Death. It was also on this bridge that Death used the vices of the Elder two to bring them to ruin. The Eldest's greed for power led to his downfall. The Second's arrogance led to his. But the Third was pure of Heart, and so Death blessed him with the Family magic of the Spirit Animals. And as the Potters were direct descendants of the Third brother, It was in them that Peverell Spirit Magic (oft incorrectly called Death magic) resided.

Anyways, as soon as the Potters reached the Bridge, they began preparing Hadrian for the ritual. He was stripped of clothing and dipped in the icy river water. Then, the four Potters dripped 7 drops of their blood into a chalice, which was brought to Hadrian's lips.

As soon as the last drops passed Hadrian's lips, staining them red in the process, the Potters began the ritual. Words of a language older than time passed their lips. The knowledge of exactly what the words meant had been lost centuries ago. To the Potters though, they could feel their blood boil. Magic courses through their veins as their spirit animals stirred wothin them.

Hadrian slept through most of it. He felt the frosty touch of the water. His magic immediately reacted, heating him back up to normal. Then he felt something warm flow down his lips. As it entered his tummy, something in his chest stirred. It started to flow. It was hot and it burnt Hadrian on the inside. He started to cry. It burnt more. He cried more. It became hotter, hotter and hotter till with a bang, it exploded, showering golden light on everyone. Hadrian found himself to be in a different place. He was floating in darkness. All around him were whispers in the shadows. He felt lost. He wanted to go home. As if hearing his words, a soothing melody floated over. Then as if in a trance, he reached out and grabbed at the darkness. He was rewarded by a startled squak! for his actions. More indistinct murmurs followed, till at last, he could feel someone approach. Though he knew that this person was not someone he had met (babies are notoriously sensitive towards magic) he felt familiar to him. He fell asleep. When he next opened his eyes, he was back at home. All was fine.

The Potters' POV...

Dorea and Charlus knew something was wrong as soon as the ritual started. The wind blew, trees bent their mighty branches, dust whipped itself into clouds and animals all around bayed, as if sensing imminent danger. Danger of a predator. Of imminent death...Death? As if struck by lightning, Dorea and Charlus turned towards each other. James and Lily were too busy to notice the older couple's actions. Dorea hesitated and spoke up " Charlus...D'you think that this is that case? In this clearing, no wind blows and no animal utters a sound. And listen - the animals are crying! Terrified! Like Death himself is going to descend. The legendary pure bloodline has been reactivated, it seems."

Charlus nodded grimly and sighed. He knew what the pure bloodline signified. When the Peverell the Third was given his gift, he was also told of a terrible price his bloodline would have to pay. Every single time a Great Evil would rise, the Potter Scion would need to face the calamity. At that time, Death would himself bless the Scion. The last time this happened was during Merlin's time. Also, as a consequence, the Potters would recieve powers proportionate to their need. Thus, their Blood Purity could be assessed easily by how powerful their ritual phenomena was. James' bloodline had a relaticely high purity of 48%. Charlus's was around 62%. Both of them were powerhouses. They needed to be. Afterall, Charlus was the singly most important factor in the defeat of Grindlewald, contrary to what Dumbledore liked to think. And James was arguably the most succesful auror of his generation. As Charlus and Dorea prepared for the descent of Death, James and Lily watched on, knowing that this ritual was somehow different from the average rituals.

As the quartet watched, Hadrian began glowing a bright golden colour. His soft wailing reached the ears of the Potters even over the harsh winds and animal howls. As they watched, Hadrian rose out of the water, and seemingly grabbed at something. They all heard the startled squak! of a bird of some sort, before, in front of Hadrian, a massive spike of black energy gathered. It shimmered and with a bang , ripped the golden glow out of Hadrian's body. It showered the spectators in golden light. What happened next was both terrifying and amazing. The black spike of energy grew and grew into a massive pillar, reaching into the heavens before falling down. From within the receding mass of light, an pale white, like bone-white man stepped forth. He was dressed in an immaculate italian suit, with platinum cufflinks, Rayban aviators, a silver Rolex and Gucci shoes. He looked every bit the head mafiaso. Except for his scythe. That was plain freaky. He just gazed at Hadrian, before gently lifting him and kissing his brow. Almost immediately, he calmed down and went to sleep. Death , for he was He, held Hadrian as a grandparent does a grandchild the first time he sees him. The remaining Potters were left gawking at Death. Dorea pinched Charlus (who promptly yelped) to see if what was happening was real or not. It was. James was fanning air towards Lily's face. Poor Lily had almost fainted. Death clearing his throat brought everyone back to reality. "So! How do my descendants -by magic- do?" ... T.B.C

And that's for now folks!