Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters, that honour befalls JK Rowling. This story is also heavily inspired by Kurinoone's absolutely brilliant fic "The Darkness Within"
AN: Original and now alternate Prologue for "The Inevitable Darkness"
Prologue
It was on a perfectly quiet night, in a perfectly quaint village, that horror and devastation struck the little family of three in Godrics Hollow on Halloween 1981. Lily and James Potter were getting ready to go out on a date, awaiting the arrival of one Hestia Jones to babysit their fifteen-month-old son, Harry.
Lily and Hestia met at university where they both were working to become Potion Masters, and were paired up together when they were the only ones in the class to be able to correctly brew the Polyjuice Potion, much to the chagrin of the rest of the class. They quickly became fast friends and their relationship only strengthened with time, Hestia was even apart of their wedding where, in typical best man and maid-of-honour fashion, Hestia and one of James' best friends, Sirius Black, got together and were subsequently named godmother and father to Harry when he came along not long after.
As Lily was musing about her relationship with her best friend a knock sounded at the front door of the cottage, drawing her from her thoughts. She glanced at the clock on her vanity and cursed under her breath. They were going to miss the reservation if she took much longer.
Lily finished applying her blush and stood to give herself a once-over in the mirror. Her hair fell gracefully over her shoulders in loose waves, with the pieces in the front tied behind with a small green pin that stood out in stark contrast to her fiery red hair and managed to perfectly match her beautiful emerald green eyes. She was wearing a knee-length deep green wrap dress that accentuated the 21-year old's curves perfectly and little black heels to match, with her token doe necklace with emerald eyes sitting on her collarbone.
She came down the dark wood stairs to see Hestia and James sitting on the couch in the living room with Harry bouncing on Hestia's knee giggling when she'd stop and blow raspberries on his chubby little neck.
"Bambi you look stunning!" Hestia exclaimed with a grin ignoring the glare James shot her. As Lily and Hestia were both muggle-born, they'd grown up watching Bambi and when Hestia found out Lily's Patronus was a doe, she'd taken to calling her the nick-name. But since James was a pureblood and grew up in the wizarding world, he had no idea who or what a Bambi was and, much to his vexation, neither woman would tell him what it meant. Lily smiled and thanked her for the compliment.
"Hestia thank you so much for babysitting Harry tonight for us. You're a life-saver!" Lily said as she greeted her now-standing friend with a hug and pulled her son into her arms.
"Oh please it's nothing; I needed more time with my darling godson anyway." She cooed, tickling Harry while he squealed in mirth in his mother's arms "Sirius has this insane idea that Harry loves him more than me, codswallop though. You love your godmummy Hestia more than that barmy mutt Sirius, huh? Can you say, Hestia? Hes-tea-aah." She sounded out, taking Harry back in her arms. James and Lily shared a look and mutually decided now was not the time to tell her Harry had recently learned how to say something that sounded suspiciously like Padfoot.
"Bloody hell we're gonna be late! Thank you again, Hestia, we'll be home around 11:30 and you're welcome to anything in the fridge," James leaned down to kiss Harry goodbye "Bye kiddo we'll be back soon, love you lots." He stepped back and walked towards the door as Lily repeated the process. James looked at his little family and couldn't help the goofy grin that came to his face. How in Godrics name did I get this lucky?
Lily moved away from Harry only to rush back when he called her and only left when Hestia gave her a "don't worry he'll be fine", and met her husband at the door with a final wave goodbye to their baby boy and best friend. They stepped out into the cool night air and simultaneously glanced up at the full pale moon surrounded by the millions of glittering stars, light-years away, and their beautiful constellations.
"I hope Moony will be alright with just Sirius tonight..." James breathed with slight guilt in his Hazel eyes. Usually Peter, or as the Marauders called him Wormtail, would be there but as he was named the Potters secret-keeper, he'd been hidden in a safe house by the Order.
"Stop worrying love, they'll be alright." She placated, grabbing his hand and starting down the front walk. Her head turned once more to look through the front window at Harry who was happily playing with an animated looking Hestia, watching as she levitated his tap-dancing toys in front of him while he reached out and tried to grab them. James snaked an arm around her small waist looking at the fifteen-month-old and his godmother and echoed his earlier thought.
"Stop worrying love, they'll be alright." James teased. Lily smacked his arm but turned around nonetheless. I'm just working myself into a tizzy, he'll be perfectly fine without us for a few hours. She sighed and walked with her husband, arm still perched on her waist, to the end of the wards and apparated to the muggle restaurant.
Alas, Hestia and Harry were not alright. Far from it. For the young parents did not know that Lord Voldemort, the darkest wizard of all time, was on his way to their home to murder the child prophesied to bring his downfall. They did not know that while they were being led to their seats by the hostess, that Voldemort was blasting the door down to their cottage and entering the home. Or how he was telling Hestia Jones to move from her place of bodily blocking the terrified and silent Harry from their stance at his wandpoint. That when she refused he used the Cruiciatus curse on her but yet she still wouldn't move aside, determined to protect her godson with everything she had until her dying breath. How when she still would not budge after four rounds of the torture curse, he shouted in a rage and glee filled cry "AVADA KEDAVRA" and killed her instantly, fulfilling her promise to protect Harry. That after Hestia's lifeless body fell to the floor unmoving Voldemort then pointed his Yew wand at the bawling toddler shaking her arm and crying "Hes-eea" and fired the killing curse once more only for it to ricochet off of the child and come hurtling back at its caster. They didn't know that after narrowly missing being hit, Voldemort stared at the child in an unguarded moment of pure awe and confusion at what had just transpired; gawking at the bright red and bleeding, lightning bolt-shaped cut on the fifteen-month-olds forehead who looked just as confused as him. That after a few minutes of indecision he scooped the toddler with silent tears rolling down his cheek for his godmother up in his arms and walked through the giant scorch mark lined hole in the side of the cottage where the curse had struck, cast the Dark Mark and apparated back to his Headquarters. The parents had no way of knowing this, so they enjoyed a content night in muggle London. They only knew how horrible the night truly had been when they arrived at Godrics Hollow to see their home swarming with Aurors and Order members, the side of their house destroyed and the Dark Mark looming threateningly overhead. They found Dumbledore with a grim look on his face and a dull look in his eyes speaking with an equally sombre Kingsley and their hearts stopped.
"Harry! Harry! Dumbledore where's Harry! Hestia!" Lily cried out in panicked hysteria with James, tears running down their cheeks, looking everywhere for a little mop of messy raven hair and a long black loose ponytail.
Dumbledore turned and looked at them, his eyes holding no twinkle. Not even an ounce of the dancing joviality that usually swims in those pools of blue. All of a sudden he looked every day of his 100 years and what the 21-year-olds were praying with everything they had to anyone that would listen wasn't true, was confirmed. Their baby was gone.
Sirius Black looked at the empty seat next to him and let out a long breath. It would have been their 17th anniversary. He sighed solemnly and thought about his late fiancee, Hestia. He'd never even looked at another woman after she died; she was it for him. She and Harry had been his entire world, and when they died, they took apart of him with them. Sirius mourned them just as wholly as James and Lily did, and thought about what his godson would look like and talk like; what his interests would be, would he have a girlfriend (or boyfriend, he didn't judge), would he be a sports buff like James or lean more toward academics like Lily.
He wondered if he and Hestia would have their own little ones running around, causing havoc in their trail. The lost opportunities and the lost life with his love always weighed heavy on his soul on their July 2 anniversary and Halloween. Padfoot heard a loud crash sound from upstairs followed by three voices calling out "we're okay!" and felt the first smile grace his face all-day at the wary and tired looks on James and Lily's and Arthur and Molly's faces as they recognized their children's voices. How they keep up with those rugrats I will never understand.
About five months after Hestia and Harry died, Lily and James found out Lily had fallen pregnant again and their lives once again were bright and held meaning. They still missed their son and friend with every breath they took, but they had another child that needed them now. They had a beautiful baby boy on 3 November 1982 (coincidentally Sirius' birthday, though he graciously permitted to share after a relatively short argument -well as short as an argument with Sirius can be- with Lily) and named him Elijah Charles Potter, now fourteen, and appointed Remus Lupin and Alice Longbottom as godparents. They'd originally asked Sirius to be the godfather, but he declined and said he was already a godfather even if his godson wasn't there anymore.
James and Lily had planned on only having Elijah but three years ago they got one hell of a shock when they discovered they were going to be parents again. Then on 9 September 1993, they had bouncing baby girl Alexandra Hestia Potter, named in honour of the woman who was like a sister to Lily and gave her life in the name of protecting their son, and named Nymphadora Tonks and Severus Snape godparents.
Shortly after Harry's death, Severus Snape showed up on James and Lily's new doorstep with a tin of brownies and a thermos of hot cocoa -a treat they shared whenever one of them was sad during their youth- where Lily opened the door with red, puffy cheeks and eyes, tear tracks new and long dried marring her face and all grievances were forgotten and the years melted away as she flung herself at him and cried into her best friend since childhoods shoulder for hours. After that day Snape and Lily were as thick as thieves once more and Severus and James came to a mutual understanding that everything in their past would stay in the past, for Lily's sake.
Sirius pulled himself out of his thoughts when he remembered Albus started speaking. He had called an emergency Order of The Phoenix meeting to Number 12 Grimmauld Place, but no one knew why. He looked around the drawing-room they were all gathered in and gazed at the familiar faces he'd come to know over the years; all the Weasleys, save the twins, Ron, and Ginny, were sitting next to Kingsley Shacklebolt on his left with Remus, James, and Lily on his right. Tonks and Mad-eye Moody were seated directly across from him with Oliver Wood, Cedric Diggory, Hagrid, Minerva McGonagall, Sturgis Podmore, Dedalus Diggle, and Elphias Doge seated on the right side of the table and Mundungus Fletcher, Arabella Figg, Frank and Alice Longbottom, Emmeline Vance, Evan Newton and Leo Robertson on the left and Severus Snape sitting next to the seat at the head of the table that Dumbledore occupied.
Most of their Auror members were unable to make the meeting with barely any notice beforehand and those with children had been forced to bring them from their various locations and shoo them upstairs. James and Lily had arrived right before Dumbledore and were in the process of asking how Sirius was doing today when Albus started the meeting.
"I am most sorry to call you all here so soon after our last meeting, but I have received some troubling news. As you are well aware, there have been several attacks and some subsequent deaths of Death Eaters in the recent year. Many of the Death Eaters left with their lives gave themselves up to the Ministry willingly to escape any future attacks. But as it is neither the Ministry nor the Order ordering these strikes I've been left to wonder who could be instigating these assaults." Dumbledore explained.
"Why should it matter who's killing Death Eaters? As far as I'm concerned, they're doing us a favour. Making our job a hell of a lot easier if you ask me." Came Moody's gruff voice.
Murmurs of agreement went around the table. James and Snape shared a look. If it's not the Order or The Ministry that only leaves one faction left, Voldemort.
"It matters because if it's not The Ministry, and we don't have anything to do with this, then we don't know is facilitating these attacks and whether they're friend or foe," Remus responded.
"Precisely..." Dumbledore trailed off, a thoughtful look on his face.
"Is there something else, Albus?" Lily asked. She'd known Dumbledore long enough to know when there was something he wasn't saying.
Dumbledore sighed "I have an inkling who might be responsible for these attacks," all eyes in the room were glued to him "I believe, at present time, that Voldemort may be the one ordering these killings." He responded to his Potions Professor.
Some around the table flinched at the use of the Dark Lords' name while others rolled their eyes at the response. It's just a name for Merlin's sake! You're not going to summon him by saying it.
"Why would Voldemort order his men killed? That doesn't make much sense," said Tonks. Sirius snorted.
"When has anything he's done made sense?" Sirius muttered.
McGonagall shot him a dark look, and he closed his mouth, a slight blush making its way up his neck and looking like he was 16 again and just interrupted a lecture. James and Remus snickered behind their hands at the sheepish look on the dog animagus' face, earning an elbow in their sides from Sirius and Lily.
"What makes ye' think so Albus?" asked Hagrid, completely unaware of the exchange happening down the table.
"As I said I do not know for sure. What I am sure of, though, is that if Voldemort's men were being targeted and killed, he isn't one to sit idly by and do nothing. He, on the contrary, seems pleased with the demise of these men. I believe they might have wronged him in some way... Severus," Dumbledore turned to look at his DADA teacher, "I ask you to keep an ear out and an eye open for anything regarding these men's missions, deaths, their attacker, or anything they may have done to anger Voldemort." He said, handing Snape a list of deceased Death Eaters. He gave it a cursory glance and recognized a name he remembered hearing a rumour about.
"Headmaster I do remember hearing some rumblings surrounding Rosier's death," Severus said with a raised eyebrow and look that clearly said he thought it was nothing more than hogwash "there was talk that he was going to betray the Dark Lord but someone killed him before he got the chance. There's this ludacris rumour that Voldemorts secret assassin -who is nothing more than a myth to keep his followers from defecting- did the deed. They called him..." He trailed off, looking like he was wrestling with himself whether he should even humour the tale of this 'secret powerful assassin'
"Well spit it out already will ya!" Mundungus barked.
Snape glared at him and scowled, but answered nonetheless.
"They call him...The Grim"
Fifty kilometres away in a grand manor with stained glass windows and beautifully and intricately carved onyx marble pillars and statues lining the exterior, a boy with shortcut raven hair and beautiful emerald green eyes sat reading a weathered book by the firelight, oblivious to the conversation that would end up changing his life forever.
AN: Phew that was a lot harder than I anticipated! If you're confused about the dates, Lily found out she was pregnant when she was 2 months along so she got pregnant about 3 months after that Halloween. I'll try and post the next chapter sometime this week. This chapters just to get the ball rolling, I promise the plot is going to get moving along soon. If you have any comments or suggestions please review and let me know, I've never written a fic of this size and I want to make it as good as can be. Alright, I'm done. Thank you and please favourite and review!