Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Dahlia Potter and the Philosopher Stone

Chapter Two

The two man sat still, astonished. Both were in deep thoughts about the last Dark Lord of Great-Britain. It was there that, fifty-three years ago, Albus Dumbledore saw Tom Marvolo Riddle for the first time. He didn't know back then that the young boy would become one of the most feared man in the Wizarding world. Now, he was worried that Dahlia would turn just like him, ruthless and untrustworthy.

Motioning to the teachers to follow him, he made his way to the gates of the school to apparate in London. Transfiguring their clothes into Muggle outfits, they walked confidently through the dark iron gates. Dumbledore knocked twice. A scrawny-looking woman opened the door.

"Can I help you?"

Casting a slight compulsion charm on her, the Headmaster said: "I have an appointment with Mrs Richards. We are here to offer a place in our school to a young girl in your institution, Miss Dahlia Potter."

"Of course. Come in." The woman led them through the maze of corridors. The place looked better than before. Gone were the mildew on the walls, or the poorly made painting. The stairs were no longer threatening to fall into pieces. The place was clean and airy. The children were wearing different clothes, not the dull grey uniform of the thirties. They were happier as well, running in the hallways, chatting loudly or playing in the courtyard. An enticing smell was coming from the kitchen, where a young teenager was preparing supper. A young boy was following her, listening to her advices to cut the vegetables. They passed a small nursery were an old woman was feeding a baby, humming softly a song.

"Mrs Richards? The three guests have arrived."

The woman let them in and closed the door behind them. Dumbledore repeated the Confundus charm on the person inside. The office was a square room with a desk in the middle. One wall was covered by pictures of the orphans and the other with bookcases containing the files of the children. A large window with white curtains provided light. The matron of the orphanage was a tall woman with grey hair and a wrinkled face. She motioned them to sit and served them tea.

"I believe presentations are in order. I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, and this is Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape."

"Pleasure to meet you. I am Lisa Richards. I understand that you wish to offer Dahlia a place in your school. We received a letter yesterday. She told me that she had arranged everything. I hope you didn't encounter any problems?"

"Not at all Madam. In fact, Miss Potter rejected our offer. Quite understandable, since she had never heard of it before. We were hoping that we could talk to her, maybe change her mind. Can you tell me what kind of child she is?"

Dumbledore feared the answer. Would she already be dark, and so untrainable to defeat Voldemort? McGonagall was happy that she was not with the Dursleys and hoped that she would reconsider her decision. Snape was already hating her, unable to see past the fact that the girl was the daughter of his school nemesis. He was more than happy to never hear of her again and live his own life by torturing children and favouring Slytherins.

"Dahlia is a kind child. Easy to love. She struggles a bit in Maths and Sciences at school, she prefers History and Literature. Her favourite past-times is reading old novels or teach the young ones the history of England and France. She speaks French fluently, by the way." The matron was delighted to talk about one of her success as model citizen." Sister Margaret, one of our oldest caretaker, taught her."

McGonagall straightened on her chair, posing her finished cup of tea on the desk. "What about her friends? Does she have many?"

"Most of the children here are friendly acquaintances. Same thing for school."

"So the brat thinks herself above them. That they are not worthy of her attention. It doesn't surprise me. Just as arrogant as her father."

"No, not at all!" Mrs Richards was shocked by Snape's assumptions." Wait, what do you mean 'as her father'? You knew her parents?"

"Yes, I was a teacher to both of them. That's why Miss Potter has a place in our school. Her parents registered her the day she was born." McGonagall shot to Snape a glare." Don't mind what Severus said, he and James Potter were fighting for Lily's attention. They didn't like each other."

"It's alright Mrs McGonagall. Not everyone can get past petty rivalry."

Snape shifted under the barely concealed insult and went to retort but a warning look from Dumbledore shut him off. He begrudgingly complied and squeezed his cup in his hands, nearly breaking it.

"Please continue Mrs Richards." Dumbledore added a layer of compulsion on the matron to reveal the truth. It seems that Dahlia was not so dark, after all. There was still hope. "What did you mean by 'most of the children'? Not all of them?"

"Five years ago, a woman walked through the door of this orphanage, heavily pregnant. The father had died and she had nowhere to go. Sister Margaret and Dahlia took care of her, even though she was just five years-old. The woman had her baby here, a healthy girl. Not long after, she died her child in her arms, Dahlia and Sister Margaret at her side, comforting her. The little girl swore to love the baby as her own and the mother let her takes the name of Anne Elizabeth Potter. You have to understand, Professors, that in that time, the staff here was very small and the money was tight. Sister Margaret was over eighty years-old and she couldn't interrupt her sleep each night to calm a baby. It was Dahlia who woke up every time Anne Elizabeth was fussing. It was Dahlia who changed her diapers, bathed her and fed her. The bond between these two girls is very strong. Sister Margaret was more of a tutor, not a mother. She taught them everything she knew, and when she died last year, Dahlia more or less cut herself from the world to teach Anne Elizabeth the basics, like writing and reading, both in French and in English. At first, I was a little wary, because she told her that she had to work hard to achieve in life, but Anne Elizabeth is not only concentrating on studying and has a balanced lifestyle, so I let them loose and watch them from afar."

"Are you telling me that Miss Potter took care of a new born baby at five years-old?" The three teachers sat there, their mouth open like a fish. Taking care of a child is a great responsibility and to entrust it to a child as well? Dumbledore was now smiling from ear to ear, his eyes twinkling. In his mind, loving children was an incontestable sign of goodness. Yes, the girl would be a perfect beacon of the Light side in the war against Voldemort.

"Yes. Now, they are both children I can be proud of."

"Do accidents happen often around Miss Potter? Anything unusual, or weird, generally accompanied by extreme emotions."

"Well, there was one time. When she was four or five, an older girl, Jasmine, pushed her down the stairs. I believe she was jealous that Dahlia was loved by the staff. I mean, Jasmine was a bully, and nobody missed her much when she left two years later. But Dahlia broke her ankle and her arm that day. And in the morning…"

"Was Jasmine injured?" Dumbledore's emotions were a roller-coaster. First, the Girl-Who-Lived in the same orphanage than Tom Riddle, second her love for little Anne Elizabeth Potter, and now she might had hurt someone magically. Snape was already thinking 'Making fun of hurting other, just like her father'. However, the matron's answer surprised them once more.

"No, not at all. We send her to her room without supper and with more chores than usual the next day. No, what I mean is that we patched up Dahlia the best that we could with our little supplies and the next day, everything was healed. We called it a miracle. She bears not mark at all."

"This sound very interesting. Can we meet her?" Dumbledore was looking forward to chat with her. He wanted to make an opinion of the girl.

Mrs Richards rose and motioned them to follow her. She went upstairs and knocked twice on the second door on the left.