Title: Shine of a Ruby
Disclaimer: This story is based on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, who is not the same as Sparks, i.e. me
Author: Sparks (the-sparky-scribblings)
Rating: PG-13/Fiction T
Summary: Life is never easy. Especially when your little brother defeated the most powerful Dark wizard in history. And you're also dealing with growing up, singlehandedly raising said younger brother, and trying to keep track of your love life which may or may not exist.
A/N: I hope you guys liked the last chapter! This one is late because I wrote two pages worth of boring filler crap which I then deleted because of the writer's block it gave me, and, oh yeah, because I realized it was boring filler crap.
The real story starts here and the romance part(:D) will start in a few chapters
Lights, camera, action!
31st October, 1981
That morning, no student at Hogwarts suspected anything unusual would happen. That an incident which would cause joy to many and blinding grief to a few would take place was an inconceivable notion. Yet, the incident which happened filled the above prerequisites and also struck terror into the hearts of some, and filled the majority of the Wizarding world with a feeling of security and safety, the likes of which had not been felt since the arrival of the threat posed by Voldemort to the Wizarding world.
This incident was the murder of Lily and James Potter.
The ceiling of the Great Hall showed a cloudless night with a star-studded sky. The Gryffindor first-years were eating, making up horror stories, and trying unusual new food combinations when Hagrid walked up to the table, an unusually pale, grave look on his normally kind, ruddy face. He said nothing, simply beckoning to Ruby Potter before leaving the Hall. This, in addition to the suspicious absence of Professor McGonagall, confirmed her suspicions of unpleasant circumstances. She turned away from Biscuit, who was dangling her glasses above her head, and rose from her seat, jogging to catch up with Hagrid's long strides out to his hut on the grounds.
"Hagrid, what happened?" she panted, grabbing a fence post to catch her breath. Once again, he did not answer, simply taking her hand and closing it over one end of a metal curtain rod. She gripped it tighter as she felt the jerk at her navel which lifted their feet off the ground, spinning them into existence at the ruins of what once used to be her home in Godric's Hollow. Her jaw dropped as she took in the wreckage, and, more importantly, Sirius crying over her father's body.
"DADDY!" she screamed, running towards the body. "Something must've hit him on the head! We've got to take him to St. Mungo's and quick! He could be comatose and we won't even have realized!"
She babbled on in this fashion, even trying to revive James' body by pouring cold water on his face, but her frenzied actions born of denial were cut short when Sirius put his hands on her shoulders and forced her to look at him. Ruby knew, deep down, that her father was dead and that nothing she did would bring him back, but this knowledge did not stop her from screaming at her godfather.
"Why are we still here? Why didn't you take him to St. Mungo's yet? Where's Mum? She.'s a bloody Healer, goddamit, she should be able to fix up Daddy!" Only after she finished screaming did she finally hear a soft cry coming from the first floor. She ran up the stairs to find Harry whimpering in his crib, a newly formed lightning scar on his forehead and their mother lying spread-eagled on the floor in front of his crib. Her lips were parted in a silent scream, emerald eyes wide open. Ruby slowly looked up, following her mother's unseeing gaze to a deep green formation in the sky. A skull with a serpent emerging from it. The Dark Mark.
It was this insignia, combined with the sight of her mother's dead body, that caused Ruby to finally break. Grabbing the infant and squeezing him tightly, she collapsed to the floor, tears finally flowing down her cheeks. She cried hard, cried for her parents, the fallen warriors; for her godfather, who had lost his fellow Marauder, his brother, the last part of the family who'd taken him in when his own family had closed it's doors on him; for her own brother, the innocent baby who had a dark future ahead of him due to no fault of his own; and finally, the last few tears for herself, for not being able to be the best daughter they could ever imagine, and for never being able to make their hearts burst with pride for her.
She did not understand how she managed to stumble her way down the stairs carrying her brother, but soon enough, she was flying over Bristol, sitting in the sidecar of the motorbike Sirius had given to Hagrid, with Harry fast asleep in her arms. Sirius' last words to her, promising to kill Peter and let her destroy the body, echoed through her brain, a mildly reassuring mantra which lulled her into a restless sleep.
It was the touchdown at Privet Drive which woke Ruby. Yet, she pretended to be asleep, absently cuddling Harry closer and hoping that her friends Juliet Parker and Hestia Jones would shake her awake and hand her another letter from her mother, detailing the mischief and trouble her father and brother had gotten into. She knew it was futile when she felt the warmth emanated by the bundle in her arms.
Forcing herself to rise from her slumped position, she stared at the unfamiliar surroundings through lopsided, smudged glasses and froze when she read and recognized the sign bearing the street's name. Surely they wouldn't— she decided that even if Dumbledore would dare to leave her and her brother at their aunt's house, she would never come quietly.
Albus Dumbledore, the eccentric Headmaster of Hogwarts, stood in the middle of the street, which was shrouded in darkness. Beside him stood Minerva McGonagall, who was arguing against the idea of the remaining Potters being locked away at the Dursley household. Ruby strongly agreed with the Transfiguration professor, and was about to voice her sentiments when she and Harry were lifted by Hagrid, hugged lightly and gently placed on the ground.
Dumbledore looked at her gravely and took a deep breath before finally telling her the plans he had involving her and Harry.
"Harry must stay here at Privet Drive. Isolation from the Wizarding world will help in avoiding any unnecessary negative attention. When she died, your mother's magic set up blood protections for Harry which require him to stay with a person who shares her blood. You cannot stay with Harry during this time period. I am sending you to live with the family of one of your housemates. Please, don't try to over-complicate matters, Miss Potter," Before the last sentence was spoken, Ruby snapped back her angry refusal, and took off into the night with Harry nestled in her arms.
A quick Trip Jinx made her fall before she could even reach the end of the cul-de-sac. Dumbledore caught up with the struggling girl in a few strides. "You can not leave Harry here alone," she snapped. "I don't care who you wanted me to live with, but I will let Harry stay here on one condition. I stay here during school holidays to protect him." Dumbledore opened his mouth to refuse, but Ruby continued, albeit in a more pathetic manner than before. "I can't let you take Harry away from me. He's all I have left. Please, Professor Dumbledore, you've got to understand!" The last sentence was a muffled whisper as she buried her face into the bundle containing Harry, trying to glean comfort, however small the comfort might be.
Dumbledore sighed. Try as he might, he couldn't keep the last remainder of his eleven-year old student's past from her. "Very well. You may stay on one condition. Harry must not find out about the Wizarding world until he turns eleven. I hope you will follow this one rule I set, unlike the many others you have broken in your time at Hogwarts."
He thought that an Unbreakable Vow would be unnecessary with someone so young, that the young girl would actually follow his conditions, but, looking back, he realized that he should have formed one with the girl who was so hellbent on breaking rules he'd set for her own well-being.
Read and review! I want critical, analytic reviews so I can improve on my story and characters :)
Love,
Sparks