Chapter 1: Godric's Hallow
Magic a word which held different meanings depending on who you asked. Some such as Lucius Malfoy would tell you that it was a tool, which should be reserved for a select few separating them from the masses. Others such as Albus Dumbledore would describe it as an energy source, a way that mankind can harness the power of nature in all its glory both the positive and the negative. While those basic definitions did have some valid points, what the wizarding world failed to realise in their arrogance was that magic was a sentient being. Ever wondered why some witches and wizards appear to have magical reserves their peers couldn't even dream of? Or why some had wondrous abilities such as parseltongue or visions? The answer to that was for some reason we can never truly understood she had favourite children. Unfortunately some of these children influenced by the darkness in the world around them turned from away the vision intended for them. While others truly used the gifts granted to them to help their brethren. Our story begins with one such witch…
Lily Potter formerly Evans was a truly exceptional witch, aware of her abilities from the age of nine thanks to one Severus Snape, she arrived at Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry with knowledge about the customs and traditions of the world she was entering the rest of her muggle raised peers lacked. From the start it was clear she had been granted a particularly strong affinity with her magical core able to cast most spells encountered on the first try. Most who knew her would describe Lily as an exceptional student, a natural leader as shown during her time as perfect and head girl, and now a doting mother to a beautiful baby boy. Indeed Lily was either loved or hated by all those who knew her, after all those who believed in Pureblood propaganda couldn't have such a powerful muggleborn witch running around now could they? What they didn't know was that she was also a natural born seer. An ability that had lain dormant until now…
A big beefy man with thick dark hair and a purple face throws a screaming two year old infant with unruly black hair and startling green eyes into a dark cupboard. The infant remains there occasional whimpers escaping him even after his throat grows too hoarse to continue screaming, rumbles of hunger escaping his stomach revealing the fact the poor lad hasn't had a bite to eat all day.
An eight year old with the same startling green eyes and unruly hair as the infant before walks down a deserted street. He is small for his age and has the stick thin figure of one who didn't often have the pleasure of food. His bowed head and slouched shoulders give the aura of one who didn't want to be noticed, this impression is only strengthened as the boy begins to run at the sound of another who looked more like a whale than a child shouting "HARRY! GET HIM BOYS". Although young Harry makes it difficult for his pursuers to capture him having agility on his side due to his small figure he is eventually captured.
The whale of a boy previously mentioned, who was clearly the leader smirked as he punched Harry who had been pinned to the ground by two others in the face. The tubby boy then moved back with an amused expression on his face as he watched the two other boys proceed to beat young Harry to their hearts contents. When they finally abandon him ten minutes he is lying there bruised all over with two black eyes, a broken arm and a fractured leg, he lies there helplessly wailing in pain.
The same boy appears once more, this time he looks slightly older than before, nine maybe ten age years old. He is sitting in the middle of a classroom watching in astonishment as the hair of the teacher who had just been shouting at him moments before suddenly turns blue. When he is finally brought home a few hours later by a thin woman with an unusually large amount of neck, she slaps him hard in the face sneering at him before proclaiming "You disgusting freak of a boy" before throwing him into the same dark cupboard as the infant.
Lily Potter woke like a shot her red hair curled around her shoulders as a soft sob escaped her, "No not my baby boy". She mumbled before slipping out of bed smiling at the sleeping form of her husband who looked like an older version of the boy who had haunted her dreams, except the eyes he had gotten them from her. Lily walked quietly to the foot of the bed and stared down at her baby boy who giggled happily upon spotting her, lifting him up she smiled softly as her mind flashed back to the events that had marked him as special before he was even born.
A furious Lily Potter and a bemused James Potter step past the gargoyle guarding the headmasters office at Hogwarts with Lily Once she had finally arrived in the circular office she glared at the sole occupant. "ALBUS DUMBLEDORE! HOW DARE YOU DRAG ME AND JAMES OUT OF WORK LIKE THIS? I WAS WORKING ON SAVING A YOUNG MAN FROM POTION POISONING. IF HE DOESN'T SURVIVE I SWEAR I'LL HEX YOU." As she spoke her wand was in hand the infamous Evans temper clearly gotten the better of her. She simply sneered in the direction of the portrait of Armando Dippet who was muttering about how he'd have handled insolent girls in his day.
Albus Dumbledore simply sighed his expression grave. "Lily, James please sit down. We've a lot to discuss." The duo complied although the red head didn't go as far as to put her wand away. Once they were all comfortable Dumbledore began "You may have heard I recently hired a new Divination Professor?" At their nods he continued "Well what you don't know is that when I was interviewing her a prophecy was made. I can confirm it was genuine as it appeared in the department of mysteries as do all genuine prophecies."
It was at this point a confused looking James Potter interrupted "I'm sorry Albus, but what has this got to do with us?" Dumbledore just sighed before continuing "The prophecy predicted the downfall of Lord Voldemort." He allowed the couple a moment to recover from the shock "What it basically said was that the one with the power to defeat Voldemort would be born at the end of July to those who have thrice defied him. It goes on to state that he'd have a power the dark lord knows not and somehow Voldemort would mark him as his equal." Horrified gasps escaped both parents Lily standing up a loud screech escaping him "Oh god no… Please not Harry." Tears escaped her at the thought of her young child having to face that monster.
Dumbledore just sighed patiently "Lily please clam down, it's true that Harry is one of two people the prophecy could have been referring to." James who had managed to take the news slightly better than his wife made the connection first "The other child's Neville isn't it?" Dumbledore just nodded another sigh escaping the aged wizard "You're going to have to take Harry into hiding just like Alice and Frank have with Neville. A spy overheard some of the prophecy…."
Lily shook her head as she came out of her thoughts about that day, the day they had ran into hiding changing their lives forever, before she walked over and nudged the sleeping form of her husband. He shot awake in an instant his entire body alert before eventually calming down "You had the dream again didn't you Lily?" The Potter patriarch asked his voice full of concern. She nodded "It was even worse the way Petunia and her whale of a husband and child treated him it was awful. They STARVED him James. Not only that but she slapped him hard across the face for performing accidental magic."She cried at the last unable to contain her sadness at the thought of her special boy going through that. James just sighed flicking a loose bit of hair out of her face "Firecracker it was just a dream." He said lovingly using the nickname he had first started using back in their Hogwarts days affectionately in reference to her temper.
"No James I can't explain it, but I just know how somehow that it's a warning, a warning from magic itself that if we don't do something about it. This is what Harry will face growing up…" The red head paced around the room before suddenly grinning "Of course I've got it…." James just stared at his beautiful wife his expression still full of concern. "Our wills make it clear that there is no way Harry should EVER be raised by that bitch I call sister. So it must have be someone who has the power to bury a will and go against our wishes like that and I can only think of one person…. Albus."
James gave his wife a look that said 'he would never do that' but wisely decided against making such a statement having the wisdom to let his wife continue, when she's in such an emotional state. "There's one thing we can do that Albus would never think of James, a blood adoption." The powerful auror suddenly shot out of Lily a furious expression on his face. "I can't believe you're even considering that… if we do such a thing whoever chosen would be just as much his parents we are. More even depending on how his magic develops."
Lily just nodded "I know James, but this is a last resort. If we're dead anyway wouldn't you rather he be raised by someone who would love him just like they would their own son." He sighed but nodded praying that they would never come to this. "Sirius would do an excellent job with him…" The auror said brightly before frowning at the look on his wives face.
"No James that would be much too obvious… we need someone who is not afraid to stand up to Dumbledore. I love Sirius, but we both know he'd be too busy hunting down Peter or something equally as foolish if he were to betray us. That's why we can't use the typical suspects… Remus, Alice, Frank they'd all hand him over to Dumbledore if he told them living with Petunia would be the best thing for Harry." James nodded not liking it, but agreeing with his wife's logic, there was a reason she was regarded as the brains of the Potter operation after all.
"No we need someone loyal to either of us over Dumbledore…" She thought hard for a moment before her nose scrunching up as though disgusted at herself for even thinking of the solution she had come up with. Several seconds later however she nodded clearly deciding her choice was for the best. "Severus James. We need Severus to raise Harry…" She held a hand up as though to stop the explosion she was expecting to come. "I know you hate him, in fact he's not my favourite person in the world right now. But he came around to our side and I think he loves me more than he hates you. I just know if we asked this of him he'd do it. Please James do this for Harry."
The Potter male nodded and just as he was about to make a note to threaten the greasy git about what would happen if he ever hurt Lily or his son. The couple jumped as they felt the wards guarding them collapse, which could only mean one thing, Lord Voldemort was here. James jumped to his feet "Lily you do what you gotta do. I'll try and bide us some time…" The proud father grabbed his wand leaving the room praying he could buy his wife and son the time they desperately needed knowing tonight he was going to die.
He arrived at the bottom of the stairs just in time for the front door to explode open clearly the victim of a well-placed Bombarda. James waved his wand summoning a piece of furniture banishing it in the direction of the intruder who landed flat on his ass on the ground outside. Immediately standing up the figure of the Dark Lord known as Voldemort growled angrily "You're going to pay for that Potter, Crucio." With all the instincts gathered from combat training James moved to the side dodging the curse happy that he had managed to anger the sadistic bastard enough that he wouldn't want to kill him before Lily did what she needed to.
"Nice move Potter, but you're only delaying the inevitable." With a swish of his wand the dark lord summoned a man sized cobra which he hissed at ordering to kill his enemy. Using James' distraction to disarm him Voldemort just smirked as he walked up the stairs watching as the summoned cobras squeeze James to death. Normally he'd have played more with the fool for daring to embarrass him so, but tonight he had more important things to attend to, like the destruction of the brat that could lead to his downfall.
Finally arriving at the top of the stairs the being known as Voldemort muttered a quick incantation followed by the simple order "Point Me." The feared wizard smiled victoriously as the wand pointed him in the direction of baby Potter's nursery. Since he was about to destroy the greatest threat to his power and had just killed one of the fools who opposed him he was feeling generous. Perhaps he'd keep Potter's mudblood alive after all. She was after all powerful in her own right and there was nothing that turned him on more than power.
He stepped through the doorway of the nursery frowning as he spotted the woman who was standing protectively in front of his pram. Did she really think she had what it took to stand up to him? The most powerful wizard the world has ever seen. "Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!". He snarled as he heard her despicable pleas for mercy, the fool of a girl, as if he'd ever let a threat such as this a child picked by the fates to destroy him live. "Stand aside, you silly girl...stand aside, now..." He darkly ordered deciding for once to try and remain true to his promise to his loyal Deatheater, besides he could have some uses for Mrs Potter. "Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead" He snarled as he heard her pathetic command, so be it. "Avada Kedavra." He watched with bemusement as the now dead witches body slumped to the ground. It seemed his initial thought was right as always, all mudbloods were good for was killing when he needed to pent out unwanted frustration.
He stepped over the dead body his focus now on the infant before him who was looking up at him through those striking green eyes of his defiantly. "Good bye Harry Potter." He cruelly stated before whispering "Avada Kedavra." The dark lord screamed pain upon pain enveloping him as the curse turned back on its owner forcing him out of his body and unknown to the dark lord at the time transferring the part of his soul he had intended on using as a Horcrux into the body of one Harry Potter. The last thing the spirit of Voldemort saw before he fled the Potters was the now scarred baby disappearing from sight.
Meanwhile sitting in the living room of a small house that had clearly seen better days. A thin pale man with a long hooked nose sat drinking from a bottle of whiskey soft tears escaping the usually cold Potions master. Oh Lily! Why had he done it? Why had he joined the ranks of a mass murdering psychopath knowing he hated people like the woman he loved? It was just as he was about to pick up his fifth glass of whiskey that he jumped as a young child appeared in front of him. He looked at the figure suspiciously? What was this some sort of test from the dark lord, or just some idiots idea of a prank? After several minutes of checking for every dark curse known to wizard kind he lifted the young boy satisfied there wasn't any type of curse waiting to activate on the one who lifted him.
It was as he looked into the eyes of the child his expression hardened, this was Potter's spawn. It hurt too much to think of him as Lily's, what was he doing here? It was just as this thought crossed his mind that a hologram of the woman he loved appeared before him. "Severus, if you are seeing this it means James and I died the way we wanted to protecting Harry from Voldemort and that the protection we left him worked as planned. Please, Severus if you truly loved me. Don't look at Harry as the son of the man you hated, but as the son of the girl you once regarded as your best friend. Look at him as a child who has nothing in this world, but the love and attention you can offer him. Get a blood adoption performed and take him to somewhere Albus can't get him and send him to Petunia." Snape allowed a few more tears to escape him as he held the infant close to his chest as Lily disappeared, he would do it, and he would protect her son for her raising him as his own.
Meanwhile outside of number 4 privet drive a certain headmaster was receiving the shock of his life as his messenger he sent to collect young Harry from privet drive announced the boy was no longer there.
(And there we have it folks! The beginning of the Harry Potter Snape series which looks at what might have happened had Lily a little bit of warning about what was to come, and didn't trust Dumbledore's motives. Please, please read and review and for those about to complain about Snape. Please remember he's just lost the only woman he's ever loved and she's just told him his final wishes. Anyways once more please READ AND REVIEW! ~ SecondTimeAround)