Chapter three: To Finally learn the Truth
Vasara stood dumbfounded before the massive Castle that would lead the way inside Hogswarts. She's never been at Hogswarts before and her reason for coming wasn't exactly under a happy circumstance. Raising a fist up from her side, Vasara pounded on the door a few times; there was no answer so Vasara repeated her action while crying out, "For Merlin's sake, open this door!" Her fist was now aching and a restless feeling began to take a hold of her. But then a loud boom came from the other side of the door and to her relief, a door opened. A horrid looking man who was well into his late fifties with dark grey hair that went well past his shoulders and a wrinkly face wearing a scowl appeared in the doorway.
"What business do you have coming here at this time of night? Trespassing is against the law mind you……" the man grumbled; Vasara straightened up,
"I am not trespassing, sir. And though my business is my own, I am here to see Albus Dumbledore; it is urgent." She answered. The man mumbled a few words under his breath that Vasara couldn't catch before he turned around and walked back into Hogswarts; Vasara quickly followed behind him. Within the Castle at last, Vasara found herself in absolute awe at the architecture of the grand school. As she followed the man through the school, her eyes couldn't help but look all around at the many portraits hanging on the walls, the endless corridors, and rooms they passed. Finally the man came to a stop in front of a large statue of a bird with its wings spread out, encasing a small alter holding a large, opened book; Vasara couldn't decide if the bird was either an eagle, hawk, or possibly phoenix. The man approached the statue and muttered a word Vasara couldn't catch, and then to her amazement, the statue started to rotate to reveal a long winding staircase heading upwards. The man turned back around to Vasara,
"His office is just up those stairs…." He grumbled. Vasara opened her mouth to thank the man when another voice suddenly came from behind her,
"Filch, whose that?" another male voice asked.
"Ah Severus, this girl here is asking to see Albus." The man called Filch answered. Vasara turned around to see an extremely tall man with greasy looking black hair that hung limply down his neck, stopping just above his broad shoulders, approach her. The man was completely dressed in black robes and had a very intimidating air about him. Severus Snape stopped just a few feet from Vasara, his dark gaze penetrating right through her.
"Did this girl say why?" Snape asked in his mono tone voice, his eyes never leaving Vasara's face. Vasara, refusing to feel intimated by this man, glared up at him and boldly spoke up,
"I did not have to, sir , for it's none of your business."
Snape crossed his arms over his chest at Vasara's boldness, "Did you have an appointment with the Headmaster?" he coolly asked.
"No." she firmly answered.
"Then you cannot be expected to meet with him. This is a school, and he's a very busy man, so unless you've got an appointment, then you'd best be on your way." Snape retorted. Vasara stood her ground,
"I beg your pardon, sir, but since when does one need to setup an appointment to see her god……" Vasara was quickly cut off.
"Severus, what's with all the noise?" a low and familiarly calm voice asked. Vasara and Snape turned their heads to see a familiar looking old man dressed in bluish grey robes standing on the last few steps of the winding staircase. Though Vasara could clearly see that he had aged since the last time she had seen him, she could recognize his kind blue eyes anywhere along with his long grey beard; at the sight of her godfather, Vasara lost her voice.
"Headmaster, this girl wishes to meet with you." Snape answered; Albus Dumbledore glanced over to Vasara and gave her a soft smile,
'Well then, dear girl, let us go to my office where we can speak privately." Dumbledore kindly answered before he glanced back over at Snape and Filch, "Thank you, gentlemen, I can take things from here." He stated signaling for their dismissal. "This way, my dear." Dumbledore softly murmured as he turned around and walked back up the winding staircase. Vasara gave Snape a triumphant glare before she swiftly followed her godfather up to his office. At the top of the stairs, she saw an open door and hesitantly walked through it into a grand office. She softly closed the door behind her before she stepped further into the room. Her eyes found her godfather standing in front of a large bookshelf facing away from her; Vasara took a couple steps toward him before she drew in a shaky breath,
"Albus?" her voice called out softly. Slowly, Albus Dumbledore turned around and gave her a soft caring smile,
"Hello, Vasara." He answered. Hearing her godfather say her name after all those years made Vasara feel like a child of eight again and tears quickly found their way into her eyes. Without even thinking, she ran over to him and threw herself into his receiving arms. His arms wrapped around her back in a comforting manner while he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on Vasara's head, "Look at you," he began, "….my little Vasara all grownup." He praised. Vasara laughed softly before she stepped back from her beloved godfather.
"Eight years can do that to a person." She teased giving him a sad smile which he returned.
"Come, let's sit down. We have much to discuss." Dumbledore stated calmly while he linked his arm with Vasara's before he escorted her over to a small comfy couch. They quickly took a seat beside each other and got comfortable before he spoke again, "Now, not that I am not thrilled to see you again, my dear, but why have you come?" he asked; Vasara softly bowed her head,
"Death Eaters, Albus, they came and attacked Hogsmade." She answered. When she looked back up at Dumbledore, a look of dread had come across his features,
"I feared as much," he began, "but thank Merlin you're at least safe." Vasara nodded her head before she lowered her gaze down to her lap,
"Is that why you separated us, Albus?" she softly asked; Dumbledore gave a soft sigh,
"Yes my dear, it is." He answered.
"Why?" she questioned curiously; Dumbledore remained silent. "Albus, please, I think I'm old enough to understand your reasons for things." She gently pointed out; Dumbledore gave her a soft smile,
"You're right. It's time you learned the truth." He answered, "Tell me Vasara, what do you know about your parents?" he asked. Vasara was taken back by the question,
"My parents?" she repeated before she gave a soft shrug of her shoulders and answered, "Not much. Only that they died unexplainably when I was just an infant and they left me in your care…..what does this have to do with anything?" she asked curiously.
"Everything my dear." Dumbledore replied, "Do you know how they died?" he asked calmly.
"Accident, right?" Vasara answered uncertainly; to her surprise, Dumbledore shook his head,
"No."
"No?!" she repeated, "What do you mean 'no'?"
"It was no accident that your parents died my dear. They were killed." He gravely answered; Vasara's turquoise eyes widened in shock at the news,
"….They were murdered? By who?" she softly demanded. Dumbledore answered her question with one word: Voldemort. "Why?" she whispered. Dumbledore reached a comforting hand over to Vasara and took up one of her hands within his own.
"Vasara dear, there are secrets about your parents' past that have been kept hidden from you for your own protection." He gently explained,
"Such as?"she pushed,
"They use to work for Voldemort." He answered; Vasara paled softly,
"My parents? Death Eaters?" she stated in disbelief; Dumbledore nodded his head,
"Yes. But please try to understand, when they signed on with him, they were just a couple of teens like yourself who were drawn into his circle by their ignorance and the pressure of a friend. They, at the time, didn't know what they had gotten themselves into until years later once they had married each other and saw the true horrors and evils they were apart of." He explained.
"How do you know this?" Vasara calmly asked.
"Your parents were two of my finest students here at Hogswarts. They had talked about leaving the Death Eater ranks for years but the decision became final once your mother conceived a child; you." He paused for a second to let his information sink in before continuing, "One day, they came to me in the dead of the night and told me of their situation; your mother at the time was just beginning to show. They asked for my help and protection, which I of course gave without hesitation. I helped them go into hiding, giving them their escape from Voldemort. For months, they were safely hidden from Voldemort's clutches; the next time I heard word from your parents was when I received a letter stating that your mother had just given birth to healthy baby girl whom they named Vasara." He paused again; Vasara gave him a weak smile and nod encouraging him to go on, "It was on the night of your birth that they named me your godfather. Even though they had been safely hidden from Voldemort, your parents still took cautions incase their past caught up with them. Which eventually, it did…"
"How? If they were hidden, how were they killed? Vasara asked.
"Voldemort used some of his best spies to try and locate your parents. One actually succeeded in getting a hold of your parents' address through a hospital."
"Why did he check there?" she asked curiously.
"He knew your mother was pregnant. It took him a few months to find the address though, Hospital files are pretty tricky to get into." Dumbledore stated; Vasara gave a soft nod,
"But not tricky enough……" she added sadly.
"Indeed. So, naturally, once Voldemort knew their location, he wasted no time in paying them a visit. The night of their deaths, your father managed to contact me just moments before Voldemort showed up. He told me that somehow they had been discovered and that Voldemort was practically at their doorstep. I came as fast as I could………but by the time I had arrived on scene, Voldemort had already dealt with your parents and a Death Eater who came with him had just discovered you; crying in your cradle for your parents. Voldemort took one glance at me before fleeing but not before he ordered Bellatrix to kill you as well," At that name Vasara's head perked up,
"Bellatrix?" she repeated the familiar name, "Was….she the one who discover the location of my parents?" Vasara asked.
"Yes. Bellatrix Lestrange, one of Voldemort's most loyal and sadistic followers." He explained before getting back to his story, "She of course never had the chance to kill you with me around. Once she was gone, I contacted the Ministry at once and told them what had happened before I took you away to live with me……when I first held you in my arms, I made a vow to myself that night; since I couldn't save your parents, I'd do all in my power to make sure that you would always be safe and protected." As Dumbledore finished, Vasara found that tears had once again come to her eyes; she quickly wiped them away before she gave a soft sniff and nod of her head in understanding of why her life had turned out the way it did.
"Your parents were good people, Vasara. Never doubt that." He gently murmured; Vasara only nodded. After she took a few seconds to regain her composure, she took in a deep breath and asked
"Why though, did you send me away when I was eight?"
"During those eight years that I had you, I had nothing to fear because just a few months shortly after the deaths of your Mother and Father did Voldemort himself vanquish." He answered. Vasara thought about that statement for a few seconds before it clicked,
"By Harry Potter……" she murmured, recalling all the stories about the Boy-Who-Lived.
"Yes. But the year you turned eight, rumors started going about saying that Voldemort hadn't been completely been destroyed. His spirit had somehow still remained and would possess living beings. When that news reached me, I wasn't willing to take the risk of him finding out about you being my godchild, so I sent you away to live with Mrs. Flox incase the rumors were true; that way your identity would still be hidden and you'd still be close enough for me to keep an eye on you." He explained.
"And the rumors were true?" she guessed. Dumbledore nodded.
"Yes. Three years later, Voldemort made his presence known to me when he and young Harry Potter met for the first time within the very walls of Hogswarts, which was why I never allowed you to come to school because Voldemort always seemed to have a way of getting through."
"Albus, you've been shielding me from the eyes of society since infancy, but why exactly?? What have we to fear? I mean….you don't actually think that after all this time, Voldemort would want me for some reason….right?" she asked surprisingly calmly,
"What do you mean?" he returned,
"Meaning is there a possibility that he may want to….finish what he started with my family…or use me as leverage against you."
"Who told you that?"
"Mrs. Flox." She simply answered; Dumbledore gave a soft sigh,
"As far as I know, he may not evening know you're alive, but if he figured it out, then yes there is a possibility that he may try to do both." Vasara nodded her head in understanding.
"So what are we gonna do?" she asked.
"For now, we are going act normally, get you setup in society and all." He answered.
There was a small moment of silence and confusion on Vasara's part before she softly asked,
"Albus, what's my last name?"
Dumbledore gave his godchild a soft smile before answering, "Thompson. Vasara May Thompson." Vasara smiled back
"So, exactly what did you mean about getting 'setup in society'?" she asked curiously,
"Well there's quite a few secrets you probably didn't know about your parents; for instance, your Mother was an Heiress, and your Father was an extremely respected and wealthy man. When they married, their fortunes combined making them richer than most pureblood families, including the Malfoys."
"Oh!" she murmured in surprise; Dumbledore nodded his head,
"Yes. In fact, tomorrow I shall take you to the Manor that your Mother had left behind for you." He stated.
"Seriously?" she asked. Dumbledore nodded again,
"Mmhmm….then we'll go to the bank and reopen their account for you….and possibly do some shopping if your Mother's clothes are in poor condition and can't fit you." He added; At the mention of her mother, Vasara's eyes lit up,
"I'll get to wear things that belonged to my mom?" she asked a growing feeling of excitement began settling over her.
"If you like."
"Oh yes. I'd like that very much." She answered.
"Then its settled, once we're ready tomorrow morning, we'll head out. But until then best thing you could do is get a goodnight's rest."
"Albus," Vasara began protesting but was silence by a raised hand from Dumbledore,
"No more Vasara, I am still you guarding and therefore in charge here." He playfully teased causing Vasara to smile and laugh softly.
"It's great to have you back, Albus." She confessed happily. Dumbledore smiled before he brought his wand out and wave it in the air; a blanket and pillow then appeared on his lap.
"Couch ok?" he asked while he handed over the blanket and pillow.
"Yeah it's cool." She answered while receiving the things Dumbledore held out to her. When Dumbledore rose from his seat on the couch, Vasara quickly made her 'bed' on it before she settle comfortably in it. Dumbledore leaned down and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead,
"Goodnight, my little Vasara."
"Goodnight, Albus." She answered giving her godfather a small smile. Within five minuets Dumbledore turned off all the lights in his office before he left for his own bedchamber.