Chapter One - Wanted Things Learnt

Rowena sighed as she looked over the small front garden. She liked living in Godric's Hollow, though she wished there was more to do and more people her own age around. She couldn't wait to go back to school. She didn't really have friends, it didn't interest her. She had already learnt how easy it was to control people with her words. It made her feel powerful.

She was sitting in the front garden on a small wooden bench. She sat there stiffly and she watched the leaves and grass ripple in the slight breeze. Her eyes fell upon a lone red rose which was slowly dying. Something about it made her smile faintly. The rest of the roses among the hedge had already perished from the intense heat of the summer. She only had another month to go until school started.

She was almost eighteen and she was most looking forward to it, mostly because she could use her wand and not get into trouble for it, well, she could use it now but her guardian would not allow it. She knew her guardian though wasn't looking forward to it. She had been grounded once because she almost got expelled from the Wizarding School that she attended. It wasn't even her fault… well, not really.

Again Rowena sighed loudly and looked up at the sky. It was a bright blue, there were no clouds around. The birds were out and chirping happily but there wasn't anyone about because of the heat. Everything looked dry. It made her wonder when it would rain.

Because of the heat, and the fact that she was sitting in direct sunlight, Rowena looked down at her arms, they were extremely white. Her whole body was pale and no matter how long she was in the sun, it never changed. It didn't bother her but it made her question it.

After a little while her light brown eyes moved upwards swiftly as she heard several voices coming towards her. Her eyes then found and followed a small group of adults that were walking past the fence. Rowena slipped her socked feet into her sneakers and she walked over. She leaned over the fence. It was locked from the inside by her guardian. She hated that she was stuck here.

Her eyes continued to follow the group, there were two women and three men. Rowena smiled to herself as she lifted her hand and pointed it towards the group, open palmed.

'Rowena!'

She closed her eyes in annoyance and sighed and lowered her arm. She removed herself from the fence and she turned around. She looked at the man before her. He was tall, thin with a long white hair and beard. His bright blue eyes glowed behind his half-moon spectacles.

'I hope you weren't planning to use magic on those Muggles.'

As Rowena approached Albus Dumbledore she shook her head once. 'I wouldn't dream of it.'

Rowena stopped and Albus took a small step towards his ward, his eyes were serious. 'The last thing I need is for you to end up in Azkaban for deliberately using magic and using it to attack Muggles.'

Rowena looked into Albus' eyes but she said nothing. She had nothing to say to that. She wasn't underage, though Albus seemed to keep forgetting that fact. She couldn't help but feel like her guardian worried too much. He was uptight about everything. It was another reason that she wanted to leave this place; she had no freedom here, despite her age.

'You should come inside now. We have things to discuss,' Albus said softly.

A thought suddenly echoed within her mind, had she done something else wrong? She cautiously walked past Albus who waited for her to walk in first. She knew this house once belonged to Albus' parents. He told her that after they died it went to him and that he didn't live in it before he took care of her. Rowena thought about it often but she still didn't know the circumstances of how she came to be with him. He still refused to tell her anything about the past.

She walked into the kitchen and she could hear Albus not far behind her. She made her way over to the old, rickety table in the middle of the room and she sat down. Albus immediately joined her. He took out his wand and gave it a casual flick. A silver tray with a pot of tea and two matching cups appeared between them on the table.

Rowena eyed it nervously. Albus brought it forwards and poured them each a cup. He then poured milk and one sugar into one of the cups and then passed it over to Rowena. Her mouth twitched and a part of her wanted to scream. He knew her too well; he knew too many things about her.

Albus then picked up his own cup and took a sip but Rowena hadn't moved. She stared at him blankly as she waited for him to speak. She just wanted to know what this was about and get it over with quickly.

Albus smiled at her kindly. 'For your last year of school I would like you to attend Hogwarts,' he said.

A dark look flashed over Rowena's face which did not go unnoticed by Albus, whose smile then disappeared. 'I do not wish to go there. I am happy at Durmstrang,' she said quietly. Her eyes had narrowed slightly but they were locked on Albus' face.

'Well, considering the future, you might not have a choice. I have spoken to the headmaster at Durmstrang though nothing is official.'

'You had no right,' Rowena breathed through gritted teeth.

Albus sighed; he still looked at the young girl sitting opposite him. 'I am your guardian and I did tell you that this might happen. Besides, you'll be safer at Hogwarts.'

'Yes, I do remember that, but you still haven't told me why and besides, I'm almost nineteen,' Rowena reminded him. She felt like she needed to. What about what she wanted?

There was a long, awkward silence. The tension in the room was increasing. Albus looked as though he was waiting for Rowena to say something else but it never came. Albus sighed again. He knew his ward could be extremely stubborn when she wasn't happy about something.

'What would you like to know about your past?' Albus asked. Maybe it was time she knew about who she really was.

Rowena just nodded and she folded her arms across her chest. She had no questions right now. She just wanted Albus to talk. Her tea was still sitting in front of her untouched. She had been waiting to hear this for a while. She was close to Albus when she was young but from an early age she worked out for herself that he wasn't her father, there was no way she was related to him. They were too different.

'Your mother's name is Isabelle Baylon, she's still alive though she's unable to care for you,' Albus began slowly.

'Why?' Rowena interrupted.

Albus ignored the question and continued as though nothing happened. 'Your father's name is Tom Riddle. He was a wizard but your mother's a Muggle.'

'He was a wizard? Are you saying he's dead?' asked Rowena giving Albus a calculating look.

'I wish you wouldn't interrupt,' Albus said softly. 'Your mother was unable to care for her because she was alone and she was young, she could only just take care of herself. Your father is still alive but he's not the same man that he once was.'

Rowena frowned. 'I don't understand.'

'Your father now goes by the name Lord Voldemort.'

At hearing those words, Rowena shot out of her chair with such force that her chair fell to the ground with a loud thud. She only just made it to the sink where a tiny bit of vomit flew from her mouth. She leaned over the sink and washed her mouth out. Her breathing then increased heavily and she began to pant. Her stomach felt like it had been dropped to the floor and stomped on.

'Are you alright?' Albus asked softly.

The sound of his voice made her want to be sick again. She wasn't sure why she felt this way. For some reason, she had almost expected him to say who her father was but it still came as a horrible shock. Her eyes widened as the truth began to sink in. It felt as though her chest were about to burst.

She always knew that she was different. It answered a lot of the questions that she had about herself. The reason why she was able to talk to snakes, why she found it easy to manipulate people and why she found the Dark Arts easy and alluring. A part of it scared her but the more she thought it through, the more exciting it seemed. Her real father was a powerful and feared wizard. She knew what she was feeling now was wrong.

'Do I look like him?' she asked not moving from the sink.

'Yes, you look very much like Tom,' Albus said. 'Though he had black hair when he was younger, yours is a little lighter.'

'What about my mother?' she asked slowly.

'She had long, red hair and grey eyes, though she's quite pale also,' replied Albus gently.

'Why should I go to Hogwarts?' asked Rowena. She still had not moved from the sink. She was unable to blink much and she kept her eyes on the stained grey of the sink.

'Because you'll be safer there,' Albus repeated.

'But why?' she asked, her voice getting louder.

'It's because of who you are,' he replied softly. 'People will find out that you're Voldemort's daughter and I don't think many people will like it. Plus, Tom will then find out about you and I can't risk anything happening to you.'

'Why?' Rowena asked turning to face Albus. She walked over and stood in front of the table, opposite Albus and she leaned against the cupboards against the wall behind her. She folded her arms across her chest and her stare became cold.

Albus sighed. Nothing he said seemed to be getting through. 'Tom won't be happy to learn that he has a child. If you go to Hogwarts, you'll be protected.'

'Watched is more like,' Rowena said coldly.

The room went silent once more. It seemed as though Albus wasn't going to argue, so he remained quiet. Rowena wasn't happy how this talk was going. 'Who named me?' she asked changing the topic.

'I did,' Albus replied. 'I named you Rowena, after Rowena Ravenclaw, she was one of the founders of Hogwarts, a very intelligent and clever witch, and your middle name, Merope, was your grandmother's name.'

'My father's mother?' she asked unsurely.

'Yes.'

Once again, there was silence. Hearing all of this made Rowena feel unsure of herself and she didn't know if she knew who she was anymore. Everything she thought she knew about herself had just been wiped away.

'Do you have any other questions for now?' Albus asked.

'Who's Ariana?' she asked calmly.

She smiled ever so slightly as Albus' facial expression turned into one of surprise. It was not question that he had expected. 'That's not what I meant,' he said softly, his face returning to his calm expression.

Rowena wasn't stupid, she knew it wasn't what he meant but she no longer wanted to talk about her parents and her past. When it was discussed it almost felt like they were talking about someone else's life, not hers.

'She was my sister. Why do you ask?'

'Was your sister? What happened?' Rowena asked frowning.

Albus ignored her questions. 'Why are you asking?' he repeated.

'I was cleaning my room a few weeks ago and I found a small piece of parchment and it had Ariana's name on it, and your brother's,' she answered reluctantly.

Albus stood up from his chair and walked over to Rowena slowly. When he reached her he held out his hand silently. Rowena hated that he seemed to know everything. She had always wondered how he did it. She reached into the inside pocket of her black robes and took out a small, folded piece of parchment. It was old and was turning brown. She handed it to Albus who opened and read it quickly. He then folded it and placed it within his own robes.

'I think that will be all for now. We can finish this discussion later,' Albus said quietly returning to the table.

'Not much of a discussion when you've already made up your mind about my future,' Rowena said as she walked out the door. She closed it roughly behind her and she heard Albus call her but she ignored it. She walked up to the second floor and entered her bedroom.

She knew this room belonged to Ariana because it's where she found the note and she knew it must have been his sister and not some other woman. She couldn't imagine Albus married. It did make her question what happened to Ariana though. She did know Albus' brother; he had come over quite a few times when she was young. They were still in contact, though not as often anymore.

She sighed heavily and lay down on her single bed. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed again. What was going to happen to her now? She just learnt that she wasn't really who she thought and she had to change schools. She wanted to stay at Durmstrang. It wasn't because of the teachers or lack of friends but she felt comfortable there. It was home to her. She didn't want to have to change schools and start all over again.

After a long time of thinking, Rowena eventually fell asleep still wearing her day robes.

In the morning when Rowena went downstairs she couldn't help but notice how quiet it was. She walked into the living room but no-one was there. She entered the kitchen but Albus wasn't in there either. Maybe he had already gone out. It made Rowena a little upset. She wished she could go out when she pleased.

She went into the kitchen and she decided to make breakfast. She exhaled sharply through closed teeth several times throughout the cooking process. She hated living and doing things like a Muggle. Just as she placed the finished product on the table, the kitchen door opened and Albus walked in. He looked around and watched what Rowena was doing for a moment before approaching the table.

'Good morning, Rowena,' he said chirpily.

'Morning,' she replied back not so chirpy.

Albus sat down and he stared at the food for a moment before eating it. Rowena wondered if he thought she might poison him, but Rowena would never do that. She knew it would be too hard to do that to him. A person would need to do something craftier. She sat down at the table, opposite Albus and began eating slowly. Albus' blue eyes looked Rowena up and down before he said anything.

'I have changed my mind.'

Rowena's head shot up at the end of the sentence. What was he talking about? She frowned at him but said nothing, so Albus continued.

'I have decided to let you remain at Durmstrang.'

'If you wanted to keep an eye on me, then why not send me to Hogwarts in the first place?' Rowena asked, ignoring what Albus said, which was what she wanted to hear.

'Because if you remember correctly, I gave you a choice and you chose to go to Durmstrang. Of course I could have forced you to go to Hogwarts but I knew you wouldn't enjoy it and I don't want your school days to be a horrible experience.'

Rowena did remember that day. She was almost twelve and she knew that Albus wanted her to go to Hogwarts, but it was only because he worked there and it was a place he could watch her every move and it wasn't something Rowena was comfortable with. She needed much time away from him and his watchful eyes. It gave her peace and she was able to relax.

'What changed your mind?' asked Rowena quietly.

'I remember that day and the choice you made. Of course, people will found out about you but I don't know if many people will make the connection at Durmstrang. But you do know that if something happens I will have to remove you from that school?' Albus enquired.

Rowena nodded her understanding but she thought Albus worried too much. Nothing was going to happen while she was at school. She knew how to take care of herself, she was quite good at it and she knew it. She knew that many teachers had informed Albus on her lack of communication and socialisation with other students but Rowena continued to ignore it. She wasn't interested in other people.

Over the next few days her school things arrived and Rowena had already packed her trunk. She was looking forward to going back to school and away from this place. She felt a little guilty but she ignored it. She did love Albus but she couldn't stand how he was most of the time.

When it was time for her to go, she stood in front of the fireplace and Albus threw in a handful of Floo powder, making the fireplace turn into a great green inferno. Rowena breathed deeply and she placed her trunk in first and she turned to Albus before stepping in as well. She knew there were things that he wanted to say.

'Now, I want you to behave and look after yourself and no getting yourself into trouble.'

'I won't,' Rowena said back automatically. She had heard this every time she went back.

She went to turn to the fire but Albus grabbed her shoulder and she stopped. He stepped towards her and hugged her loosely. She didn't like hugs, she wasn't that affectionate but she patted his back a couple of times.

'Bye,' she said inaudibly.

If he said it back, she didn't hear. She was already whizzing through the fire and she landed in an office. It was the headmaster's office at Durmstrang.