Although I have read the books and consulted sources, don't be upset if I take liberties. Thanks for reading. Your enthusiasm for the story keeps me going!

I had a reviewer who informed me that the twins are actually the same age as the BTVS characters. I'm surprised no one else pointed that out to me. I was thinking one year apart, and I thought I HAD researched it. Sorry for anyone that was irked but too polite to correct me. I did go back and rewrite where I incorrectly called them 5th year when they will be 6th year. Thanks to the reviewer who corrected me. I appreciate it.

Chapter 14: Marked

*****Where We Left Off*****

Severus got dress, preparing mentally to answer the Dark Lord's summons. If he ignored it, the pain would just get worse. Not to mention, his role as a double agent would be compromised. He knew that he needed to speak to Albus, but he stopped at Rupert's room on the way.

"I've been summoned by the Dark Lord," Severus told him. "I am going to speak with Albus. Can you come?"

"Yes, of course," Giles said.

Within ten minutes, they were in Albus' office. "I've been called," he explained.

"That's unfortunate," Albus said.

"What do I say about Buffy Anne and Cordelia? He has to have heard about them. That must be why he's calling," Severus said.

"Are you done being a spy?" Albus asked. "You can refuse the call."

"He will make it most unpleasant," Severus said grimly.

"We must find a way to remove your mark," Giles said. "I will consult my books."

"The Order needs me to continue as a spy," Severus said. "But I do not want to endanger my girls."

"They are safe here," Albus pointed out.

"I cannot keep them locked up here," Severus said.

"Buffy is quite able to take care of herself," Giles reminded him.

"What will you say when you are asked how no one knew of Buffy Anne's existence?" Albus asked.

"I could blame it on Buffy Anne's mother, but she will be here at the end of summer," Severus said.

"Blame it on me," Albus said. "Tell them I stole your daughter and bespelled her and her slight death broke the spell."

"That might work," Severus acknowledged. He knew it'd probably make his loyalty to the Dark Lord seem more certain. "If she's sorted in Gryffindor, though, it could be problematic."

"We are not tampering with the house sorting," Albus said firmly.

Severus nodded, not surprised. "Fine," he said.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Giles asked. "If something happens to you, there is no telling what your daughter would do."

"I trust you to keep her in line if something did happen," Severus said grimly. "I will see you later. I must go."

He wasted no time leaving the premises, so he could join up with his fellow Death Eaters. Being there with them was harder than before, and he felt a deep-seated shame. He was so unworthy of a daughter such as Buffy Anne. She was all that was good and pure, and he had aligned himself with these soulless murderers and defiler of women such as his own late sister.

"Severus, come here," the Dark Lord bid. He stepped closer until he was standing directly in front of him. He glanced at Lucien, who was standing almost next to him.

"Yes, my lord," he said, looking up expectantly at the grotesque figure. His presence was not quite so menacing as it once was, but he still was formidable.

"I hear rumors of strangers at your school," Voldemort said. "Then I learn that you went to the ministry to get Sirius Black cleared of his charges and my dear Peter fingered. Explain yourself!"

Severus prepared himself for a blast of magic, punishing him for his actions, but it didn't come. He spoke quickly. "I discovered not very long ago that I have a teenager daughter that is alive, hidden from me. She is a witch, and I only knew she existed when she suddenly appeared on my family tapestry," he explained.

"What?" Lucius asked. "The rumors are true? You do have a daughter?"

"It's more than that," Severus said. "A short liaison right after high school created Buffy Anne. Albus must've discovered it and spirited her to an American hellmouth in a place called Sunnydale, California."

"A hellmouth? Really?" Voldemort asked, intrigued. "I have heard of such a place, but I have not known anyone to venture so far."

"Well, I have, and I can assure you the rumors are true," Severus said. "I was accosted by three vampires not long after entering the town. My life saved by a teenager named Cordelia, who I found out was my niece, daughter of my late sister and Regulus Black."

That announcement caused even more of a murmur from the Death Eaters.

"You have discovered offspring from the Black family tree? My son, then, cannot be the Black family heir?" Lucius asked, clearly upset at the news.

"Sorry, Lucius, but, no. Cordelia would be as she is a direct heir—unless, of course, he manages to convince some fool to bear his children.," Severus explained. "Since Sirius was reinstated, though, she won't get all of the fortune until he dies."

"We'll get on that," Lucius said with a wicked gleam.

"Explain, Severus, why you helped clear Sirius?" Voldemort demanded.

"I had no choice really," he said with a sigh of resignation. "My daughter befriended Potter and was hearing about the rumors concerning my association with you. I had to earn her trust somehow, so she would stay here for the school term. Her mother allowed her to spend the summer with me."

"Your daughter is a witch?" Voldemort asked.

Severus nodded. It was working; they were buying what he was saying. "She and Cordelia both are. My daughter, though, is more powerful," he said. Should he mention her friends? Draco would see them when classes resumed.

"That is good news," Voldemort said. "You will bring her to me at first opportunity."

Severus mentally groaned. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. She is getting used to our world, my lord. We do not want to push her too fast too quickly," he said.

"Fine," he grudgingly agreed. "We can wait until I gain my body to have her take my mark. Your niece, too. Let's hope she takes after you and not her father and uncle."

"I have ever confidence that Cordelia will be sorted in my house," Severus said, praying it was true. Surely, one of the girls would be sorted into his house?

"You better hope so," Voldemort said with a warning.

Severus stepped back as they discussed some other things that had nothing to do with him. When he started to slip away, Lucius came up to him.

"Severus, I'd like to have you and your girls join my family for dinner Sunday," Lucius asked. "It will give the girls a chance to meet Draco."

"That will be fine," Severus said. "I must warn you, though, that they are Americans."

"It should make for an interesting dinner," Lucius said. "You know how my wife loves to entertain."

"You will tell her about her cousin?" Severus asked.

Lucius nodded. "She will be delighted that Draco will have family at the school," he said.

Severus walked out of the building with Lucius. He couldn't believe that he didn't get punished in any way. If the Dark Lord got his physical body back, his power would be even greater.

"Cordelia was adopted by a loving family, but she hasn't any siblings," Severus said. "She and my daughter went to the same school, but there not exactly close. Both, though, are excited to meet Draco."

"Well, then, we look forward to seeing you on Sunday," Lucius said.

Severus breathed a sigh of relief as Lucius apparated home. Then he followed, arriving back outside the gates of Hogwarts.

He'd not only survived unscathed, but he was given a reprieve.

*****The Next Day*****

Percy was scheduled to arrive that afternoon, so the group had an early start to London. All of the teens insisted on going with Harry to the coven. Cordelia and Willow planned out a few tourists stop before they made it to the covens. Then it was Diagon Alley afterward.

Buffy had insisted that Buckingham Palace was the first stop, and she was stunned to find out that Harry had never been.

"Seriously? You live in this country, and you haven't seen the palace of your queen?" Buffy asked in surprise.

"It's not like my aunt and uncle would ever take me on a vacation," Harry said.

"Well, that's going to change," Sirius vowed, having also tagged along. Giles was glad to have another adult supervise the group. Severus stayed home so that he could speak with Albus about his meeting with the Dark Lord.

"Why isn't Uncle Sevvie here?" Cordelia asked Buffy.

"He had a meeting with Dumbledore," Buffy said. "He promised to take us to the London Eye next weekend, though."

"What's the London Eye?" Ron asked.

Cordelia snickered. "Man, you magic folk are seriously out of touch," she muttered.

"It's this giant Ferris Wheel on the Thames River. It's the largest in Europe," Willow said.

"Imagine the view you could see!" Buffy said. She was very much looking forward to some daddy-daughter time.

They used a port key to get to London, which saved a lot of time. Touring the palace and then the Tower of London took them to lunch at a restaurant actually called The Place to Eat.

"I love this town!" Buffy said after they left.

"Because you ate enough for three people," Cordelia said with a snort.

"And I can still keep my girlish figure," Buffy said with a smug grin.

Cordelia rolled her eyes but said nothing. Sirius just grinned, thoroughly enamored with his niece. She was gorgeous and witty, his favorite traits in a female. She was clearly a Black but without the cruel disdain his mother had. He could tell she often fell disdain for her cousin, but there was a clear respect. He couldn't put his finger on it, but Sirius had a strong feeling that there was something about Buffy Anne that Cordelia knew, but he and Harry did not.

Both girls treated Harry with affection, and he ate up their attention. Of course, the twins were vying for the lovely ladies at ever turn. Willow and Xander were too busy gawking at the sights to feel ignored.

Sirius apparated to Devon with Harry and Cordelia while the twins took Willow, Xander, Buffy, and Giles. Severus insisted that the American teens not try apparating until they got caught up on their other classes.

Harry was very anxious when Giles introduced him to the witches. "Agnes and Shirley are the two that will be taking point, Harry," Giles introduced. One was very old and the other had red hair like the Weasley's and appeared to be the same age as Sirius.

"What exactly are you wanting to do?" Sirius asked.

"Right now, we just want to examine him and conduct some tests," Shirley explained. "We won't do anything without consulting you."

"Very well," Sirius said, nodding.

Sirius and Giles stayed in the room to watch their tests while the other teenagers explored the property. It was a nice size manor, and they roamed around. George bribed Ron to distract Fred, so he could take Cordy for a walk around the property's small pound.

Ron and Xander were engaged in a rock skipping contest with Willow judging and calling out encouragements. Fred was throwing insults, challenging the winner.

"Finally, I have you all to myself," George said gleefully. Cordelia had allowed him to link his arm with hers, and he was relishing every second.

Cordy smiled up at him. "You did maneuver that quite cleverly," she said.

"Thank you," he said with a smug grin.

"How is it really having a twin?" Cordelia asked, glancing up at him.

"It's quite wonderful really," George said. "I never feel lonely. Fred is always up for some fun. I always have someone that understands my every thought and mood. Fred knows what I'm thinking sometimes before I do."

"I'm not sure I'd like someone knowing me that well," she admitted. "It's kind of scary. No one could hurt you the way that person could."

"But that'd be like hurting himself," George explained. "I could no more hurt Fred on purpose than I could myself."

"So how do you see this ending then?" Cordelia pointed out. "Won't one of you be disappointed or hurt if I chose the other?"

George was silent as he considered. "Well, if one of us really loved you more, the other would step back," he said.

"What if you both loved me?" Cordelia asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Then we'd convince you to take us both!" George declared.

Cordelia laughed and rolled her eyes. "Yea, right," she said.

"Think about it. You'd never have to choose, and double the adoration, double the attention," George told her.

Cordelia stopped walking and turned to face him. She considered how to show him that he was so very wrong. Her arm went to his neck, and she pulled him down. "I think you need to learn something," she said softly. Then she kissed him.

George's mind blanked out as Cordelia Chase-Black kissed him like he'd never been kissed before. The kiss was endless, and he tried desperately to keep up.

Finally, Cordelia pulled back, giving him a smile of satisfaction. "There. Now maybe you will understand. I'm Cordelia Chase, and I don't share," she said.

Then she sauntered away, a smile on her face.

Buffy had been showing Hermione how to do back flips a few yards away, and she waved at Cordelia, who she saw embracing one of the twins. From a distance, she couldn't tell if it was George or Fred.

She walked toward her cousin. "What's going on? Which one are you playing with by the pond?" she asked.

"That's George," Cordelia said, glancing back. She grinned to see George staring after her in shock and awe, so she gave him a little wave.

Dramatically, George clutched his heart and fall back onto the grass, causing Cordelia to giggle. How did she find these nuts so charming? If Harmony could see the twins, she'd not be impressed. It was funny how little her prejudices in Sunnydale mattered here.

"He's totally bananas over you," Buffy said. She looked at Cordelia, noticing that she looked a bit flushed and distracted. "Are you feeling a bit flushed, Cor? Did Georgie get your motor running?"

"He thought he and Fred could share me," Cordelia said a bit haughtily. "I showed him how wrong he was."

Buffy's mouth fell open in shock, and then she burst out laughing.

"Hey, Harry's coming outside," Cordelia pointed.

The girls moved quickly to find out what Harry was told by the coven. "What did they say, Harry?" Buffy asked when they made it to his side.

Harry looked scared and shaken. "Voldemort left a piece of himself inside me," he shared.

"What do you mean?" Cordelia asked.

"He marked me," Harry said. His hand rose and rubbed his scar, and he shuddered. "There's a bit of his soul or something under my scar. I am connected to him."

"Does that mean he's connected to you, too?" Buffy asked, a bit horrified at the implications.

Harry nodded. "I think so," he said.

"God, Harry, that blows," Cordelia said, putting her hand on his shoulder.

Buffy hugged him. "Don't worry, Harry. We'll still be your friend," she said. Then she pulled back and moved her hair revealing her neck—the side that the Master had bit. "I have a mark from a monster, too."

Harry's eyes widened as he saw the bite mark. "What happened?" he asked quietly.

A haunted look came into Buffy's eyes. "I was bitten by a very old and very ugly master vampire," she revealed. "He killed me, actually, by throwing me unconscious into a pool of water. Xander saved me, though."

"Wow," Harry said, gazing down at her in awe.

"I got through that," Buffy said. "We'll get you through this."

Somehow, looking at the smaller woman reassured Harry, and he felt less afraid.

Buffy had a fierce look in her eye that made Harry believe her.

She wasn't afraid of anything, and he could be brave if she was with him.

*****Chapter End*****

I wanted to get further along with the plot, but I'm trying to keep up my 2 week posting schedule. It's probably better to update faster than make you wait for a long chapter. I hope you enjoyed this.

Anyone know how old the Harry Potter kids were when allowed to apparate? I was thinking sixteen. Is that correct? Let me know if I got it wrong. Thanks for reading!