Thanks to reviewers:
The Lady Morgaine: I have to admit, it didn't take very long to find out the name meanings. I work in a book store at the weekends and one of the girls there is called Lily. I just thought it was a cool fact to put into the prophecy :) She will develop a mother's instinct, but over time. Gotta love dream Tara! Thanks for reviewing.
Charmed-angel 4: Names are weird things, but their various meanings are cool! I decided to go in a different route for the Trojka, but all will be revealed in the next thirteen pages (unlucky for some!) Thanks for reviewing.
Juzblu: Thanks for reading and reviewing
Slinky-and-the-BloodyWands: Hope you liked the rest of the story. Keep on reviewing!
Velara: Oops- thanks for the correction. She'll be Madam Pince in all future chapters. Thanks for reviewing.
Virginia: I had a prologue, and when I got your review I started the first chapter. I've gotten back into the story and hopefully I'll start posting within the next month. Thanks for reviewing (and keep bugging me about the WW sequel!)
Matt: Thanks for betaing, you're the best!
A/N: After this chapter, this will most likely go off in a totally different direction to the books to make the story work.
I will be revealing more about Lily's life and how Dawn remembers it. I realised that there wasn't really that much 'foundation' in this story, so I've decided to add a few 'memory scenes' so you can get my version of the character's background. These scenes are to be indicated by a series of m's.
CHAPTER SEVEN: OF TROKJA'S, TROLL'S AND TEACHERS
"Did you know about this?" Dawn stormed into Dumbledore's office.
"Ah Miss Summers, I do not know of what you speak so I will have to go with…yes?"
"This prophecy; Lily means the tears of Eve?"
"Oh so you figured it out? Well done!" Dumbledore smiled happily, but then saw the look on Dawn's face. "Problem?"
"You say I'm this Lily-"
"You are her." Dumbledore inserted, but Dawn ignored him.
"-and she appears to be part of this Trojka."
"Yes…you are…and?" He asked innocently.
"And? You never thought to mention this?"
"You learnt it on your own. Always a valuable experience when you do something by yourself."
Dawn stared at him incredulously. "You didn't think I deserved to know something that's going to affect my life in a pretty big way?"
He smiled triumphantly. "Yes. It will affect your life. I'm glad you've admitted that. Was that all?"
"All... what…I mean." Dawn spluttered. Dumbledore would make a great chess player; he was always about fifty moves ahead of everyone else.
"You were perhaps curious about what the rest of the prophecy means?" Dawn nodded dumbly. "It just so happens that I have a spare copy right here. So…I would be interested to hear any thoughts you'd have on the matter."
Dawn nodded again and took the paper offered.
"Miss Summers?" Dumbledore called out at Dawn prepared to leave. "Will you be continuing with your classes on Monday?"
"Err, yea. I guess."
"Excellent! Well I'll see you this afternoon I expect, with your thoughts on the prophecy, yes?"
She nodded again. It was not until she left Dumbledore's office that she regained her power of speech and could put her thoughts into something resembling order.
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Dawn sat in the staff room trying to figure out the prophecy. She'd decided that the chosen one comment either referred to Buffy or Faith as they were the only current slayers that were actually chosen. Out of the two it was most likely to be Buffy as Faith was off god knows where doing god knows who and Buffy had been marked as a champion by the powers where as Faith were just a slayer.
She was the only one in the staff room so she had nabbed the comfiest chair. It was made of soft burgundy velvet and faced the fire. Professor Snape almost walked in, but when he saw the brunette sitting with her back to him he froze in his tracks. He disliked the American girl intensely, but she had gained just a smidgen of his respect when he realised her intelligence. But only a smidgen and he would never let her know that she had even gained that.
He had previously believed that her presence at Hogwarts was purely due to her dysfunctional 'family' contacts, but she had since demonstrated a knowledge on several ancient languages, prophesies and demonology as well as a few other obscure subjects that only a learned person would know he had realised that she may in fact have some use to their cause. But that didn't mean he had to like her.
He began to back out slowly, careful not to let Dawn hear him and then…
"It's a big staffroom; you can ignore me quite easily in here."
Drat. "How did you know I was here?"
"Duh! Dumbledore told you the deal about me? Made from a slayer. Ring any bells?"
Snape scowled inwardly, but kept his usual indifferent sneer on the outside. "I wasn't made aware that you possessed any…powers."
"Well I don't really, just the same as the child of a slayer would have; enhanced senses and an aptitude for fighting."
Snape sighed seemingly unimpressed but storing this information away for future reference. "Is that it?" He sneered nastily.
Dawn narrowed her eyes. "Yes."
"They let you into a rather highly regarded council with those qualifications? And a small amount of knowledge of prophecies and ancient languages? It really was a case of the lunatics taking over the asylum, wasn't it?" Snape scorned.
"God, what is your problem? I've never done anything to you but you've been a total ass to me! I never even met you before I came here!"
"No; you didn't." Snape admitted.
"What does that- oh. " Dawn paused, thinking of the best way to phrase her question. "Did you know Lily?"
Snape allowed a small smile to grace his features. "We were in school together. She was the only Gryffindor I could bear to be around and then she married Potter and went around with the rest of his idiotic groupies."
"That's why you're being so mean? 'Cause I-she married James? Well that's dumb!"
Snape glared back at the young lady standing in front of him. She certainly had Evans' fire, but she was a good two inches taller than the red headed girl making that glare more intimidating. But Severus Snape was not about to be intimidated by a little girl, so he glared harder before sweeping out of the staff room to go and tell Dumbledore about the meanie new teacher.
And to sulk. He was rather fond of sulking.
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"Come in, Miss Summers, I've been expecting you."
'Well duh!' Dawn almost said; he did ask her to come this afternoon to talk prophecies.
"You've been investigating the prophecy? And I trust that you have identified the most likely members of the Trojka?"
"I guess." Dawn stammered.
"Marvellous! So, what do you think that Harry, the elder Miss Summers and yourself should do? That is who you believe to be mention, correct?"
"That does kinda make sense; Buffy's chosen, Lilly's- I'm the tears of Eve and Harry's 'the line'." Dawn admitted.
"Yes. All three of you have been hunted, marked and touched by evil. And all of you are champions."
"I'm no champion." Dawn said quietly.
Dumbledore shook his head sadly. "Can't you see that you are? Miss Summers, when I found you at Wolfram and Hart, I did a lot of research before I approached you again. I know that, since you technically existed, you have evolved from a bratty sister, if you'll pardon the expression, to a brave warrior. Unless I am very much mistaken, you offered to close the portal that the essence of the key created, did you not?"
"I didn't stop Buffy though, did I?"
"My dear, do you honestly think that you could stop your sister from doing anything? Anyway, since then you have fought alongside various slayers without superpowers and quite often at a severe disadvantage, yet you are still here…fighting."
"You never stop fighting." Dawn muttered under her breath.
"Pardon?"
"Buffy told me once that you never stop fighting, no matter what… cause that moment that you stop, you lose all hope and you die."
Dumbledore smiled softly. "A very bright woman, your sister."
Dawn crinkled up her nose, but then when she thought about it. Buffy was no genius, but she did make sense…sometimes. "Yeah, well…I've still got some things that I need to do, so…"
"Certainly, Miss Summers. My door is always open."
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
31st October 1994 – 11:58 pm
"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off –"
" No James, I can't..."
"Just go!" James Potter pushed his wife towards the staircase, their baby son held tightly in her arms.
Lily cast one last look back to her husband before stumbling up the stairs and into baby Harry's bedroom.
She closed the door behind her as she heard Voldemort's evil cackle fill the room. He was here. Peter had betrayed them. Lily clutched Harry tightly to her chest, praying for James to somehow defeat the dark wizard. But her hopes were dashed as she heard a hissing voice say those two permanent words; Avada Kedavra.
A green light seemed to fill the entire building. Her soul mate was gone, ruthlessly killed. What did it matter anymore? Harry stirred in her arms; she still had one more thing to fight for.
She heard the footsteps come slowly up the stairs. Thud, thud, thud. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. No fireplace to floo from and apparition wards due to the 'secret keeper' spell that was still activated so there really was no escape. Thud, thud, thud. This was it; the end.
The door burst open and Voldemort stepped inside smirking cruelly. Lily stepped back and turned Harry's face into her breast so he wouldn't have to see the monster in front of him.
"Please..." Lily begged. "No...not Harry." She felt Harry's crib jut into her back as she backed up. Lily made an instant decision and put the squirming baby into the cot and shielded him with her body. She'd do everything she could to save him.
"Stand aside!" Voldemort said forcefully.
"Not Harry! Not Harry! Please - I'll do anything –" Lily pleaded.
"Stand aside, girl!" Voldemort said, his red slit eyes glowing at the girl's defiance.
"Harry, not Harry... Please not Harry... Take me instead!" Lily begged uselessly. Anything to keep Harry safe.
Voldemort gave her a cruel smirk, and lifted his wand; he didn't really care who he killed as long as the boy died. "Avada Kedavra".
Lily closed her eyes as a jet of green light headed towards her.
And then Dawn woke up.
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Dawn hurried into the classroom, not forgetting her nightmare from much earlier that Halloween morning; the ten year anniversary since James and Lily's supposed death. "Sorry, sorry."
Harry and Ron exchanged looks while Draco and a few other Slytherin's sniggered. Professor Summers was nearly twenty minutes late and she looked tired and shrivelled. Her hair had little kinks in it like she hadn't had time to brush it properly, the robe that had been slung on over a pair of jeans and a white tee was crumpled and there were dark circles under her eyes.
"Sorry I'm late, right…umm…everyone get into pairs." Dawn fumbled with the papers on her desk, where was the damn lesson plan? It couldn't just vanish, oh wait, this was a magic school; things were vanishing all the time! "Right, err…if you just start on the warm up I showed you last lesson and then we'll…do something else."
The various duos around the room started on the breathing and stretching exercises, none of them knowing why their teacher was acting so strangely.
Dawn was still shuffling through the papers in hope of finding the carefully drawn out plans that had been made for all of her classes. She was so engrossed in her task, that she didn't notice the whispers going around the classroom.
"I heard that she's insane!" On girl would say.
The other students would gasp in astonishment. "What?" "No!" "Never!"
"Yes; Rhonda from Ravenclaw says that she has this long scar down her forearm."
"So?"
"So if a muggle gets depressed and wants to kill themselves then they sometimes cut themselves…there."
More astonished gasps would follow and then the news would be passed on until all the occupants of the room had heard that Professor Summers was a knife waving loon who once cut herself before gutting a horde of innocent bystanders.
"Well it's hardly surprising really." Draco proclaimed pompously after hearing the tale. "I mean she is from Sunnydale!"
Harry, Ron and several others didn't understand this statement. "What's in Sunnydale?"
"Nothing anymore. But it used to be a hellmouth." Pansy Parkinson sneered.
Seeing that most of the class still didn't understand, Hermione took the opportunity to show off her knowledge on the subject. "The hellmouth is so full of dark magix that it can overload a witch or a wizard or anything magically inclined really. There are only a few things powerful enough to fight it, and the rest…"
"What?" Semus asked, the whole class for once interested in what Hermione was saying.
"If you're lucky you just go insane, if your not then the darkness consumes you and makes you part of it."
Dawn looked up and noticed that none of the group was doing what they were supposed to. "Hey you lot, get back to it."
Draco began to saunter over to his partner. "That's what the old crank gets for letting mudbloods and muggles into the school." He muttered, not expecting his teacher to hear.
"What was that Mr. Malfoy?"
"Nothing Professor." He lied.
Dawn went over to him. "You really picked the wrong day for this, kid."
"The wrong day for what, Professor?" He asked innocently.
It didn't take much to set the stressed former-hellmouth-habitant off and Draco had just rubbed her up the wrong way. "You think you're so much better than everyone, don't you? Well newsflash- you're not. You think that your magic makes you more powerful, but I know over a hundred 'muggles' that could kill you in an instant and I happen to be one of them, so think before you insult me or my family in this classroom, okay?" Okay? She repeated, lowering her voice from the almost-shout that it had become.
Draco was actually scared. This muggle born teacher was dangerous, he could tell by the look in her eyes. "Y-yes, Professor."
"Fifty points from Slytherin. Back to work. Now!"
Harry and Ron returned to their warm-ups, pleased by Malfoy getting a well deserved dressing down, but they both had the same question on their minds; was Professor Summers strong enough to resist the hellmouth magix? Or was she crazy or evil?
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"Professor Summers!"
She stopped reluctantly.
"I want a word with you."
"I thought you might." She sighed.
"Why did you take fifty points off Slytherin in one go?"
"One of your students called me a mudblood." Snape gave her a look that clearly said 'so?' "He shouldn't insult what he doesn't understand."
"Or maybe he does understand." Snape said as cruelly as he could.
"He doesn't."
Snape noticed the crowd gathering around them and decided to end the 'conversation'. "We'll speak again, Summers."
She sighed wearily again. "Whatever."
He stormed off. She turned to head off in her original direction, but bumped right into the one student she was trying to avoid; Harry.
"Harry." She said, her voice catching in her throat as thoughts flooded her mind.
'Okay breath, it's not too bad. I mean who hasn't done this? Granted for most people it's not with the son they don't remember, but still…'
Dawn bent down to pick up the various articles that had scattered across the floor, the fact that it meant that she could avoid eye contact with Harry was just an added bonus. "I'm sorry, Harry, I wasn't looking where I was going."
"Err, yeah. Me neither." Harry mumbled embarrassed. "Sorry."
"It's okay, really." They fell into an awkward silence. Dawn finally allowed herself to look up at Harry.
Harry shifted uncomfortably. She was staring at him. "I better get to-"
"Right, right. Sorry. See you in class." Dawn stood still for a moment before heading off to her next class.
Harry walked off in the opposite direction.
"Hey, what took you so long?" Ron stepped out from where he was supposed to meet his friend.
Harry frowned in confusion. "I bumped into Professor Summers…literally."
"And?"
The frown deepened. "I don't know."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Could you be any more vague?"
"She was really…odd."
"Hmm, apparently so."
Harry tried to explain. "Odd, you know, distracted and awkward."
"So, do you think she's evil?" Ron asked flippantly.
"Don't know…you wanna get to potions?"
"No."
Harry grinned at his friend. "Shall we go anyway?"
Ron sighed. "Yeah, alright."
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The great hall had been decorated especially for the Halloween feast. There were many things that you'd expect to see, balloons and streamers, although they had a decidedly magical twist; but there were also hundreds of bats flying around the magical night time ceiling.
The students were feasting on the food in front of them and you could hear them talking and laughing. Harry shifted uncomfortably in his seat. She was doing it again.
It had started towards the beginning of the meal. Harry had had the strangest feeling that he was being watched. He'd turned around in his seat and had locked eyes with the new defence teacher, Professor Summers.
She'd held his gaze for a second, but then dropped her eyes back to her food. A moment later Harry had returned his attention back to the conversation his friends was having, but he wasn't fully focused on it. He had been surprised at the look on Professor Summers' face; she looked confused and sad… really sad.
She'd done it again a few minutes later, and then again, and again and again. And now she was doing it again.
'I will not turn around, I will not turn around.' Harry repeated in his head over and over. But why did she keep staring at him? He reached for another pumpkin pie, determined to ignore his professor.
"Troll!" Everyone's heads snapped round at the sound of the usually quiet DADA professor thundering into the hall. "Troll in the dungeons!" Professor Quirrell stopped. "Just thought you ought to know." His eyes rolled back in his head and he dropped in a dead faint.
Dumbledore immediately took control of the situation, not allowing any students to panic. "Prefects, escort your houses to their houses."
As the prefects started moving, Harry caught a glimpse of Professor Summers. She was following the rest of the staff who was going on a troll hunt and was carrying a shiny silver axe. Where had that come from? He didn't have time to ponder it further as Percy (who was really in his element) shooed him out of the hall.
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Dawn closed her eyes and called on whatever minor slayer awareness she had inherited from Buffy and the sensitivity she had gained from being constantly vigilant in Sunnydale. There was no troll down here, it must have moved.
"Professor McGonagall?" Dawn called.
"Yes Dawn?"
"There's no troll down here. I would have been able to sense it by now."
Snape snorted rudely from where he was searching, but McGonagall ignored him.
"Yes; it looks that way. The troll has somehow gone upstairs."
Snape nodded reluctantly in agreement and then he, Dawn and Professor McGonagall rushed up the stairs. When they got to the top they were greeted by Professor Flitwick.
"All the students are in their houses safely."
"Thank God." Dawn muttered.
Snape turned to her. "We've still got to find the troll and get rid of it- we're still in danger."
Before Dawn could reply a resounding crash echoed through the hall. The teachers set off at a run, but before they had gotten two feet towards where the noise had come from there was a frightened scream.
Snape looked up sharply. "Now may be a good time for you to resume your conversation with your almighty."
Dawn quickened her pace, darting in front of the older staff members. She burst into the girl's toilets and was surprised to see the troll unconscious. She looked around; expecting to see a staff member or possibly a seventh year, but what she saw was Harry, Ron and Hermione.
"Are you okay?" She asked as Professors Snape and McGonagall entered.
"F-Fine." Ron stuttered his eyes wide and fixed on the troll on the floor.
Snape bent over the troll. It seemed to be unconscious, for the moment at least.
"What on earth were you thinking of?" said Professor McGonagall furiously. "You're lucky you weren't killed. Why aren't you in your dormitory?"
Harry and Ron looked at each other, neither knowing what to say. But they were saved by an unexpected source.
"Please, Professor McGonagall- they were looking for me." Hermione said, meekly getting to her feet. "I went looking for the troll because I-I thought I could deal with it on my own- you know, because I've read all about them."
Ron stared at Hermione disbelievingly while Harry tried to look as if the story wasn't new to him. McGonagall was to busy being all angry to notice the looks on the children's' faces, but Dawn saw the look; Hermione wasn't telling the truth.
"If they hadn't found me I'd be dead by now. Harry stuck his wand up its nose and Ron knocked it out with its own club. They didn't have to come and fetch anyone. It was about to finish me off when they arrived."
McGonagall stared at the tree of them slightly disbelievingly. "Well in that case…Miss Granger, you foolish girl, how could you think of tackling a mountain troll on your own. Miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for this. I'm very disappointed in you."
Dawn was studying the emotions on the students' faces and Snape watching smugly. Nobody noticed that the troll was regaining consciousness.
"If you're not hurt at all," McGonagall continued, "you'd better get off to Gryffindor Tower. Students are-"
She was cut off by a sickening crunch. The troll had shifted slightly and alerted Dawn to what was happening. She had raised the axe she was holding and swung it down as hard as she could on the troll's neck. She was no slayer though, so the axe had only got about half way through the creatures thick neck.
While all the occupants of the toilet looked on wide eyed, Dawn pressed down on the axe handle with all the energy she could muster. There was another crunch as the bone snapped and the head rolled to a stop at Professor Snape's feet.
Professor McGonagall looked to the head and then back to Dawn again, her mouth gaping. Ron's lips had formed into a 'o' shape, Hermione looked sick and Harry was looking at the teacher curiously.
Dawn felt that she should give some kind of explanation for her actions, to break the silence and stop all those people from staring at her if nothing else. It was no big deal, Buffy had fought a troll God and this was just a little minion. She shifted uncomfortably under the stares. "What? It was waking up!"
A/N REGARDING 'HERMIONE'S HELLMOUTH TALES': Willow was strong enough to resist the darkness except for that one fairly major glitch, same goes for most of the other Buffy characters. Dawn didn't practice magic enough on the hellmouth to be affected, and what she did do is what I'm classing as 'Wicca for beginners'. If anyone wants a clearer explanation of this, the prophecy, or anything else then just drop me a review or email and I'll respond to it!
Please Review; Kiara xxx