Prologue
October 31, 1981
Silence hung in the air like a thick fog in Godric's Hollow. It was nighttime and the world seemed at a stand still, for something horrible had just transpired. Not a single breeze dared disturb the heavy atmosphere surrounding the Potters residence. Dark magic hung in the air like a veil.
A dark figure stood on the doorstep, hand paused on the front doors handle. He was trembling with fear, holding his breath and trying to prepare for whatever he was going to find on the other side of the door. The clap of thunder snapped him out of his trance and with one last burst of desperation, Severus Snape pushed open the door, wand already drawn.
It didn't take him long to find James Potter's lifeless body as it was right near the entrance of the house. Memories flooded his brain, years of cruel words and horrible pranks. He couldn't find it in himself to feel anything towards James death. Snape only gave him a glance before tearing his eyes away and onto the staircase.
Time seemed to stand still as he climbed the stairs. Dread started to seep into his veins as piercing cries from a baby could be suddenly heard from a bedroom upstairs. Snape quickened his pace and followed the sound. His heart shattered when he finally found her. Lily.
All Snape could do is gasp for air and cling to the wall as he suddenly collapsed. Lily's dead green eyes pierced into him, illuminated by a lamp that was tipped over on the floor. The love of his life was dead, they had been found. He was too late. He crawled over to her, and lifted her into his arms. There had to be a spell, a potion, something to bring her back. His mind struggled to think, refusing to accept that she was dead, but all he could do is cling to her.
Flashes of red hair and sweet smiles stained his mind. It branded him, the memories of her, but they would not stop.
A young girl smiling sweetly up at him as he handed her a flower.
The sorting hat announcing "Gryffindor!" proudly as it sat upon her head.
Her nimble fingers picking up his books that were just smacked out of his hands.
Her eyes gleaming, stealing a quick glance at him from across the courtyard as they both graduated.
And her soft lips as they kissed him for the last time not only a year ago.
Snape had known that Lily could never forgive herself for that night they shared so many moons ago. It was a memory he often came back to. The tears her eyes held as she stood on his doorstep in the middle of the night. Her and James had gotten into a terrible fight and she wound up on his doorstep even though they hadn't spoken in years. Their friendship was strained long before the upcoming war. The betrayed look on her face when he had called her that horrible name so many years ago forever stained his memory. Guilt had always clung to him like a weed, but he invited her in despite all this. He always would. Lily had a power over his heart that could make him crumble.
After a few glasses of wine they found themselves tangled in bed together. Snape finally had a chance to convey just how much he loved her. He would do anything for her. None of it mattered though for when he awoke the next morning she was gone. Only a note was left in her place.
'I'm sorry Severus, this should have never happened.' was scrawled hurriedly on a piece of parchment in her handwriting. He had crumpled it up in anger.
Snape should have known this was going to happen. Lily would always go back to James. He would never be good enough for her he had realized.
The sound of crying broke him out of his memories and his head snapped up. In the crib next to him we're two babies. The baby boy was crying, confused and scared about what just transpired. The baby girl had unshed tears in her eyes, her bottom lip trembled as she stared up at Snape. He noted that she had a cut on her upper lip that was still bleeding. Realizing this he gently placed Lily's body back on the ground and walked over to the crib where the twins sat.
They both had dark hair with untamed curls. The boy had a cut on his forehead in the shape of a lightning bolt. He realized that the spell cast upon him must have deflected and part of it hit the girl. Snape frowned looking over the two. How in the world did these two babies survive an attack from the Dark Lord?
The boys crying snapped him out of his thoughts once again. Snape was at a loss for words for he never had to comfort a crying baby before. Lily's green eyes stared back at him through the boys, and before he could dwell on the memories they brought him, he cast his gaze over to the girl.
Her eyes were blue, and yet they did not seem to hold the same gaze that James' eyes once did. She looked familiar to him in a way he could not pinpoint. Snape decided that she took more of Lily's features than the boy did.
Breaking out of his racing thoughts, he reached down to pick the girl up. Her small arms grasped onto his sleeve surprising him as he lifted her up awkwardly. She made a small sound, almost like a whimper and he made a shushing sound. He needed to get them out before more followers decided to come back. He needed to get Lily's children somewhere safe. That's the last thing he could do for her. With a new found purpose he bent down and picked up the boy tucking him against his other side. Dumbledore would know what to do with them. With one last pained glance at Lily still form, he quickly disappeared into the night.
Snape quickly realized that sneaking through the night with two babies was a difficult task. When one would quiet down the other would start crying, creating a never ending cycle of squeals that broke the silence of the night like a knife. Apparating with a baby, let alone two would not be very pleasant for them, but he had to get them to safety and fast. Frowning down at them he quickly made the decision and prepared his ears for the screams that were to come.
To say that Dumbledore wasn't suspicious of the eerie feeling in the air that night was an understatement. He knew something was coming but he didn't know just what. The magic that hung in the air was thick with warning. Something had happened and he had a niggling feeling that it wasn't good.
As if on cue, the teacup he held in his hands cracked just before it reached his lips, spilling tea all over his lap. Thank Merlin's beard that it had already gone cold for it seemed he was buried with unfinished paperwork he had been avoiding all week.
Before Dumbledore had time to react to the sudden warning that his teacup gave him, a familiar pop rang throughout his office. There was a split second of silence before screaming wails filled the space. Dumbledore was on his feet immediately but before he could round the corner to see what the commotion was Severus Snape came to view, anguish on his face, and both arms struggling to hold two screaming infants. Before he had time to ask what was going on Severus began explaining what had happened between panicked breaths. "Dumbledore- we were too late, the Potters- Lily- she's dead."
It all clicked into place in Dumbledore's mind as he stared at the two wailing infants in Snape's arms. He was leaning against the wall fighting back tears and before he could say anything else Dumbledore plucked the boy from his arms and began shushing him while swaying side to side.
Sorrow filled his heart at the news of what had become of the Potters. Someone had betrayed them, but the question was who would have done such a thing? "Didn't you hear what I said- their dead-" Snape began before Dumbledore cut him off.
"I heard you Severus." His fingers found the cut on the boys forehead but before he could even get close he snapped his hand back. Dark magic pricked at his fingers and his suspicions were confirmed.
"And what of Voldemort ?" He asked quietly, his attention back on Snape.
Snape flinched at the mention of the dark lords name, "Gone. His cloak was on the ground next to Lily when I found her." he said, recalling the memory.
'Gone indeed...' Dumbledore thought. What powerful magic to have deflected a spell like that, coming from the Dark Lord no less.
The baby Snape was holding suddenly began to fuss and he shifted her in his arms. "I didn't know what to do with them, I-"
"It's quite alright Severus, you did the right thing by bringing them here." He said, the corner of his mouth turning up just a hair. It was true, Dumbledore didn't know what would have happened if Snape hadn't been the first one to arrive at the Potter's house.
Dumbledore held the infant up in front of him with a look of fondness. "It would seem that Harry and Eleanor have put an end to the Dark Lord... for now." He said, the edges of his eyes crinkling as he smiled at the boy.
Snape's gaze once again fell upon the cut on the girls lip. "But how-"
Dumbledore chuckled, interrupting him again. "Love of course. Lily's love for her children. She sacrificed her life for theirs." He said simply. Dumbledore's gaze fell upon girls face, who at the moment seemed to be struggling to stay awake. Certain features of her face stuck out to him and he frowned to himself.
Snape watched as Dumbledore seemed to be struggling with something. His eyes lingered on the girl a long time before he seemed to snap out of it. He looked up at Snape and smiled with a twinkle in his eye, seeming to have come to a conclusion of some sort. "For the time being I will leave them in Hagrid's care, I need to make arrangements." He said finally.
"Sir is it wise to leave two infants in the care of a half giant?" Snape questioned.
"Nonsense, I trust Hagrid with my own life. He will no doubt take good care of them for the short time I need him to." He said turning away from him.
Snape looked down at the girl in his arms. Her head leaned against his shoulder as she slumbered. Eleanor. Her name was Eleanor.
A memory flooded his brain. Lily was but a young girl, holding a very small bundle of black fur.
"What shall we name her Severus?" She had asked him.
He frowned down at the small kitten. "Hmm. She seems very prissy for a cat. Eleanor?" He finally said, "An old woman's name for a grumpy cat."
"Eleanor!?" Lily laughed. "I think that's a beautiful name. We can call her Ellie!"
Lily had named her daughter after the name they gave their neighborhood cat they had found when he was younger. Snape frowned, her sleeping form reminding him so much of the girl he loved all those years. This was the last thing left of her, her two children.
"What do you plan to do with them?" He asked looking back up to Dumbledore. He was writing on a piece of parchment one handed and balancing Harry on his hip.
"They will go live with their aunt and uncle on 4 Privet Drive." He said, his face void of any emotion.
"The muggles?" Snape asked astonished.
"Yes those are the ones." Dumbledore replied simply.
"You can't possibly be serious?" he said frowning.
"They are the only family they have left." Dumbledore said, his lips downturned. With a nod he brought out his wand and pointed it at the letter. He flicked his wrist and it rolled up and sealed itself with a wax seal.
Snape's eyes suddenly spied a familiar piece of parchment on his desk. He could make out the writing of Lily's handwriting but before he could try to read it it rolled up on itself. Dumbledore then tucked it away in his desk.
"For another time." He said smiling at Snape's confused expression. His eyes trailed down to Eleanor again. "I will explain when the moment is right." He said with a final nod.
Snape trusted Dumbledore, but he had the feeling he was hiding something from him. Never less, he knew whatever it was he would not find out until Dumbledore wanted him to.
Snape left Dumbledore's office that night, his thoughts racing about the hours past events. His heart still burned with pain from Lily's death. He worried for her children but he knew he could do nothing to help with that situation. He still needed to fulfill his fake role as a loyal Death Eater.
Eleanor's familiar blue eyes seared a hole in the back of his mind. He had no doubt this would not be the last he saw of them. He hoped that whoever these muggle family members were would teach them of their heritage.
"They no doubt will be the most famous children in our magical world. Not a witch or wizard won't know their names." Dumbledore had said.
Snape knew the reasonings behind leaving the children with their muggle aunt and uncle, but it didn't mean he agreed with it.
That night, two bundles sat at the doorstep of the house on 4 Privet Drive. In them, Harry and Eleanor slept soundly, blissfully unaware of the magnitude of the night's events. Their survival would forever be marked on this night, making the history books of the wizarding world. As would the defeat of Voldemort, the Dark Lord.
Hello everyone! This is the prologue of my story I have had bouncing around in my head for the past couple of years. If you are here, that means you are a Draco fan like myself!
I seem to always have a hard time finding a good written Draco X OC story, so I finally decided just to make one myself. I have not written in ages. Probably not since middle school ( if it gives you any hints about how long ago that was, I'm in my mid twenties now).
As I have warned, this story is a good ol' fashioned slow burn. This story is going to be a long one, so buckle up kids.
I have already written most of chapter one, so that will be coming shortly. I will give a warning, I have ADHD and tend to go through phases of writing non stop to procrastinating with writer's block. So I apologize in advance if my uploading schedule seems uneven. I promise to keep you guys updated as I progress and if I take any long breaks I will update you on that as well.
Please feel free to leave a review with your thoughts and feelings on things as they are the fuel to my fire! Please leave only kind and gentle critiquing. This is a hate and bully free zone and I will block anyone who is hateful.
With that out of the way, I am excited to go on this journey with you all!
This story is Rated M and I will give warning breaks in the story before any scenes with sexual or traumatic themes and will put another break in the story when it ends with a small explanation of what happened to keep you all in the loop. If you feel that a certain scene needs a disclaimer and I didn't put one, please feel free to message me and I'll add one!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters. I only own Eleanor and any other character that I add to the story. I do not own any of the Harry Potter books nor movies. This story is only for FUN.