Well I apologize for taking so long with this chapter, I had a slight block on what to do next but here it is now and I hope it's worth the wait for you all.

This chapter, Angelique has a lot of thinking to do, protect her loved ones, finish her apprenticeship, focus on the war, care for her siblings, and also what to do about Severus. Hermione Granger, not sure if she'll show up for a while or not she's pretty much a bother anyway; this chapter, Angelique has to make some choices if not just one but also a spot for Lily and Sirius since they've been out for a bit.

Fair warning though, this will end in a cliffhanger of sorts.

Written by myself and my sister author AnnaBoleyna1536, and we don't own Harry Potter.

Enjoy!

Sirius' house, early morning:

"Hey Lils, you're up early." Lily Evans had been staying at Sirius' house again, this time just helping him out and more. She was in the kitchen making breakfast, chocolate chip and blueberry pancakes, her and Sirius' favorites with black coffee.

"I got hungry, so I started cooking." she smiled at him. For a few weeks now the divorce between James and Lily had been finalized, and Lily was a free woman now. She had her parents' house to live in, and a good amount of money James had been forced to give her plus full custody of Charlie and Abigail. James was being investigated for child abuse, but with the war going on the Aurors were short-handed.

"It smells good." Sirius kissed Lily's cheek, they had been dating for almost two weeks now. Surprisingly both of them had more in common than they thought, same hobbies, same interests in some subjects, and they both had an attraction for each other even before James and Lily divorced.

"Hope so, listen Sirius…Abigail sent me a letter the other day." she picked it up from the counter and handed it to Sirius.

"Did you write to her?" Lily nodded.

"Just to see how she was doing, and about Charlie and Angelique; go on, read it." ever since the encounter at Christmas Lily hadn't been able to write to her kids, she realized she was wrong about Charlie being gay and she had no right to tell him how to live his life. Knowing neither of the twins would take a letter she sent one to Abigail hoping to at least talk.

Hey Mum,

We're all doing fine, so far at least. Charlie and Ron, yeah they're getting better and they're good with each other you should know that. I know you said you're sorry about the things you told Charlie, but you need to tell him that yourself not me or Angie.

Angie's okay, other than still being pestered by Ginny Weasley and dad…yeah he came here the other day and I don't know what he said but it's got Angie upset and she barely leaves her room. She's doing her work and all, but it's been almost a week since she's been seen around anyone.

I wouldn't ask her though, you know she won't tell you. I'm glad to hear you're okay, you and Sirius but you two still have a long way to go with us. I shouldn't bring it up, but you know it's the truth. Charlie's got his grades back up thanks to Angie and me, and his health is so much better.

Listen mum, you know something is about to happen especially with that monster on the loose. All I can say is that you and Sirius stay out of trouble, unless trouble comes to you. I think Angie would say the same thing, or maybe not but don't get hurt alright?

Love,

Abigail

"Hmm, she's definitely picked up some of her sister's mannerisms." Sirius put the letter down, luckily they didn't have to worry about anyone coming to their door. His house was under the Fidelius charm and the secret keeper was Andromeda. Lily had come over frequently to keep an eye on things, plus Sirius was a bad housekeeper.

"Yes, I'm glad they're at Hogwarts it's the safest place there is right now." Lily finished up the pancakes and sent Sirius' over to him at the table.

"Damn…" he looked at the front page of the morning daily prophet. "More killings, nothing too out of the ordinary." he sipped his coffee. "You know Abigail is right, you'll have to face Charlie and Angelique sooner or later."

"I know, but they won't talk to me. I don't blame them, what I did to my own children my parents would be rolling in their grave."

"I think mine would just shout outright how much of a disappointment I am, seeing as I haven't married and given the family and heir and I'm a bad godfather."

"What can we do Sirius? Voldemort is out there somewhere wanting Angelique, he could go after Abigail and Charlie to get to her."

"You're right he could, but Angelique is smart, no she's intelligent…brilliantly intelligent. She has all of Hogwarts behind her, the Ministry can't touch her, and I'm sure she has some allies in others outside Hogwarts." Remus and Tonks definitely, those two were close to Angelique like her own parents.

"Yet we can't do anything, I can't protect the remaining two children I have." Lily ate her food, but she barely tasted it.

"Lils, I think the best we can do is what we have so far. We do what we can to protect Hogwarts and the students, I've sent a letter to Albus asking him if he'll need more help protecting the school but he hasn't' responded yet."

"Hopefully he will, even if it means we have to stay underground. The order is busy between the Ministry and the disappearances, but how much longer should we wait?"

"As long as we must, that's all we can do. We should tell them about us though."

"Yes, but later. Right now let's just finish breakfast and you have to get to the Ministry, I'm going to go and see Remus later I asked if I could drop by."

"Alright." Lily had been corresponding with Remus, but they weren't exactly 'friends'. While the two adults ate their morning meal they both wandered how the kids would take the idea of them dating each other.

Angelique's Room:

"Hmmm…still nothing new." Angelique closed her journal after putting the last of her notes away. Ten days had passed since the encounter with James, and ten days since she'd had longer than a minute conversation with Severus.

Severus had been worried about her, she knew that. Angelique had him know however that she needed to think, after all he kept a huge secret from her with good reasons, but she was still partially angry with him. She spent most of her time working on healing spells using dummies Poppy sent over from St. Mungo's for new trainees. The dummies looked and moved like real humans, but with the proper spell cast the 'wounds' would heal. She also took tests Poppy put together on specific hexes and their counters, proper treatments and all with some potions.

It had been busy, but in the little spare time she had Angelique would go back to the potion she was trying to enhance. The Wolfsbane potion, itself could allow werewolves to keep their minds, but the transformation was still painful and agonizing from what Remus said. There would likely never be a cure for the lycanthropy, but at the very least there could be ways to improve the health of those who suffered from it and make the transformation bearable.

'It's like your bones are reshaping, growing and stretching painfully as you slowly lose your mind and become the mindless, bloodthirsty beast. You want to feed and bite, but under the Wolfsbane the feeling lessens, but the biting is difficult.' those were Remus' words, and from examining Greyback's blood under a muggle microscope there were definite abnormalities in the blood cells from an average human or wizard. Strange purple spots would appear in the wolf blood, but an average human had healthy blood cells, and a wizard…well there wasn't much different but the naked eye could barely point out the lighter red color.

So far nothing had changed, even with the phoenix feathers and tears supplied by Dumbledore there wasn't much to go for. There had to be a way, medicinal and remedy potions Angelique could do just fine even a simple love potion, but for one so advanced with the formula of the Wolfsbane, things weren't going to come easily.

'Hmm, perhaps I'll look into it more later.' she put the journal away, and saw Phantom sleeping on the bed. She'd had a long morning help Hagrid and Fang chase off some weasels and rodents in the gardens so she needed the rest.

"Book of Merlin, come to me." the book appeared from the shelf and into the hand. At first she thought about checking on Voldemort, but dismissed the thought when another came to mind. How did he survive that night in Godric's Hollow? How did he survive for over a decade as a mangled spirit, possessing his minions and hiding away under the 'watchful' eye of Peter Pettigrew? And how did he connect to Angelique? Why choose her and the other Potters?

"The answers you seek…lie right in front of you." a voice came in the room, and Angelique looked down to see the face of Merlin himself staring up from the book's cover.

"Wha…" she almost gasped, but then remembered the book was Merlin's so this must be his spirit. "Merlin…is it really you?"

"It is I child, I have been assisting you all this time or at least my magic has." he smiled a grandfatherly smile. "You have suffered over the years, yet you have cared more for others than yourself."

"Yes, let me guess you know all about me and so you chose me for a purpose as your heir."

"Indeed, your magic is very strong even with your brother and sister around. Reasons being you will learn on your own."

"Maybe but you said the answers I seek lie in front of me, what do you mean?"

"You wonder how a powerful yet monstrous wizard like Tom Riddle could live after being hit with the Killing Curse, well perhaps…to understand his motives for everything you must understand him first."

"Understand…wait Tom Riddle…that's his real name?" Merlin nodded.

"He is a child born of the witch Merope Gaunt, and the muggle man Thomas Riddle. He is a half-blood, but his parents weren't in love when they conceived him."

"What do you mean?" Merlin smiled slightly.

"Child…before I show you the events that have led up to things until now, you must speak with your master. I imagine he will want to see some of this as well." she stared at the face questioningly.

"Only I can see inside your pages correct? How would he be able to?"

"You can ask or speak to me, requesting that he see inside as well and he will but only as long as he holds onto you. I shall assume you are conflicted right now because of a secret your father…"

"He's not my father." she growled that out.

"James Potter, he told you that your master once loved the woman who should be your mother. He did once in a lifetime over a decade ago, but he is not the same boy and she is not the same girl he loved."

"Perhaps, but he should've told me." why were they discussing this?

"He would've at the right time, James Potter only worsened it to make you upset and succeeded. Do you intend to succumb to his desires?"

"Desires of what? To make me miserable, to cut me off from the people I love, so far he has done nothing of the sort."

"But he has, you haven't spoken with your master in days now. He is most worried about you, and he blames himself for not telling you sooner. He cares for you a great deal, more than you could imagine."

"I do so for him, but he…"

"Child you mustn't let one mistake destroy the relationship you have with Severus Snape. He is a good man, he has looked out for you for so long, and only when you have nearly reached womanhood has he begun to realize how special you are to him." Angelique felt her cheeks get hot.

"Special?" no one had ever said that to her before.

"You are special, to a lot of people. Now we can talk about that later, I advise you to go and see your master. The sooner you two talk, the better you'll be with each other and then I will show you what needs to be seen." with that said he disappeared from the cover.

"Merlin wait…I can't just…" he vanished and the book was just a book again. "Meddlesome old man."

'I need to understand Tom in order to go after him, to kill him. To do that, I need Severus' help.' Severus served under the man for a while, he knew how he worked and he was still in his inner circle of followers. He hadn't been summoned, that she knew of, but he would tell her if he had. Just like he would tell her everything else, to protect her and care for her…like she would for him.

"Alright!" she shouted and it woke Phantom from her sleep. "I'll go see him, get off my back already!" she put the book away and pet Phantom. "Stay here girl, get some rest."

"Woof!" Phantom barked at her and laid back down. Angelique left her room, into the corridors only when classes just let out and it was crowded. She walked so fast she didn't see someone come up to her and they bumped shoulders.

"Ow!" it was a Gryffindor fifth year girl, light brown curly hair with a red headband.

"Sorry." Angelique suddenly recognized her as Lavender Brown, a girl who had been giving Ron Weasley puppy eyes a lot lately. "You hurt?"

"No, thanks." she took off in a hurry. Angelique continued on her way to the dungeons, Severus should be having a free period right now. They would talk, and then she would tell him about Merlin's words.

knock knock knock

"Enter." Severus' called from the other side and Angelique entered. He was working on some papers, with his usual scowl that would often make Angelique smile. "I'm busy at the moment."

"I know, which is why I need you to not talk and just listen but feel free to speak after I'm done." she entered and put a silencing charm on the room, and then locked the door behind her.

"You haven't spoken to me in days."

"You can't blame me can you?" he said nothing. "Now grade your papers and just listen to me." he stared at her for a moment, but went back to the papers. "I know you didn't want to hurt me, you had your reasons for not telling me but that doesn't excuse the fact that you kept it from me longer than necessary. You really threw the book at me when you failed to mention that you were once in love with Lily, the woman who has left me to the wolves on more than one occasion however…I can't stay mad at you forever."

"You have every reason to be." Severus looked up at her. "I should've told you."

"Yes but you are clearly sorry, aren't you?" He put his quill down.

"I am, I didn't mean to hurt you." he stood from his desk. "I assumed you would need time to think, and I don't expect you to forgive me easily."

"Would you forgive me if I did the same to you?" Severus sighed.

"Probably not, and I doubt I would talk to you after ten days." she smirked.

"It'd take you a month to forgive me, weeks to even talk to me again am I right?" he nodded. "I admit I had no intention of coming down today in fact I was going to wait a few more days before I spoke to you again." he approached her.

"So what made you change your mind?" looking up into those daring black eyes, those beautiful black eyes Angelique's brown ones twinkled at him.

"Someone made me realize that those most precious to me are the ones I can't bear to lose…especially not because of a stupid secret that happened way before I was born. Charlie and Abbey both are worried but they don't like seeing me unhappy and being away from you for too long has made me unhappy."

"You sound as if you're declaring your undying love for me." the corners of Severus' mouth were twitching, threatening to smile.

"I don't know about that, but I am extremely fond of you and I care for you more than myself. It's not the same care I have for Abbey and Charlie, probably not even for Remus and Tonks but…I don't know how to explain it." she sighed. "Maybe…I don't…" she growled in frustration, rubbing her eyes. "I don't know what to say anymore…but do you understand?"

"I do." his arms went around her, and she let hers go around his waist. He smelled of smoke and sandalwood, she missed that scent. It comforted her, and her anger deep inside began to fade away quickly. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you as well." she pulled back a little. "I don't care how much older than me you are, in two years I'll be of age and I can be with whoever I choose."

'If I survive that long.' she pushed that thought away as soon as it left her head.

"Angelique…know this now. I may have loved Lily years ago, but any love that I had for the girl I met in my childhood is gone because she is not that girl anymore nor is she the woman before all of this began. You aren't her, you're not James, you're not Charlus or Abigail…you are the one I care for more than anything." he leaned down a bit to her face.

"You mean that?"

"I do." a little closer, and their lips connected. The kiss was sweet and gentle, almost romantic. Angelique noted how sweet Severus' lips tasted, but pulled back so as not to get too carried away. Part of her still grieved for Cedric, but another part wanted to let Severus inside. Severus wasn't Cedric or Bags, he was more than Cedric had been, and definitely far better a man than Bags was.

"Why do you put up with me?" she whispered to him.

"People often do crazy things for those they care for." a quick smile, and a peck on the lips Angelique let her arms slide down.

"Severus, I haven't fully forgiven you but I will. However, I have to ask that you come to my rooms tonight."

"Why?" he stared at her.

"Because you and I are going to meet with someone, someone who can help us understand Voldemort better and thus how to defeat him."

"You've caught on, there's more to him than anyone could see even Dumbledore."

"True."

"Now pray tell who are we going to see tonight in your rooms?" she smirked.

"Just come tonight, nine o'clock sharp and no delays. If you need to give an excuse, then do so but be prompt." she patted his shoulder.

"Now where are you going?"

"Back to my rooms, Phantom will be needing to walk so I should check on her. Remember, nine o'clock."

"Nine o'clock." with that said and done Angelique removed the silencing charm and unlocked the door. Tonight things were going to get strange, but at the very least she and Severus would learn something new.

So Angelique and Severus have made up partially, and Lily and Sirius are dating now. Merlin himself has spoken to Angelique and she's going to learn about Voldemort's past with Severus in the next chapter.

What more is there to learn about the infamous Dark Lord, other than what some others already know? Is Dumbledore going to be dragged into this? Once all this goes down, what is Angelique going to do and most importantly, when is Voldemort going to act?

R&R

Later!