Summary: Betrayed and killed by the one they considered their best friend, Harry and Hermione made a different decision when they found themselves at King's Cross station. They chose to travel in a alternate universe and create a normal life for themselves. But of course as Harry Potter doesn't do normal he finds himself in 1962 in a world in which Grindelwald escapes from Nurmerngard and continues his war against muggles and Tom Riddle is the DADA professor. Not to mention that Voldemort is not happy being left behind and follows them in this dimension with an unknown plan in mind...What kind of destiny will they carve for themselves as they prepare to start Hogwarts as first year students? Also, a new prophecy is made...
Warnings: Slash, violence, humor, some Dumbledore bashing, swearing, Grey! Harry and Hermione etc.
Pairings: LV/HP, HG/SS
"talking"
'thinking'
/mental speach/
$parseltongue$
AN/ As always, thousand of apologies for the grammar errors and spelling mistakes you might come across the chapter, lol. And, if it isn't too much trouble, I will deeply appreciate it if some of you were to point said mistakes out to me so that I could fix them ~_~. Anyway, enjoy ^.^
Dear mother, beloved father and adorable little brother,
How are all of you doing? Hopefully, everything is alright at home despite
the nagging feeling I have telling me that you are all hiding something from me. Knowing how displeased I would be if that were to be the truth I trust you will not do that . After all, you all should know well enough that sooner or later I will find out if you did.
I have to admit that I'm surprised to have received only a short note as a reply to my previous letter though the cookies you
did sent me were enough to soothe my ire for now. I have to say that all my friends enjoyed them immensely though that made me fear for the safety of Kreacher as I believe some of them, like Rabastan Lestrange for example, actually consider kidnapping poor Kreacher to force him cook more of his heavenly cookies.
Also, mother, I am very happy you listened to my request and sent Severus a package with all the basic necessities one needs in the Slytherin Dorms. I dread to even imagine what could have happened if other students noticed that, besides being a half blood, Severus also wasn't as well-off as the rest of them.
Slytherin isn't an easy house to survive in after all.
I would never forget Severus' face as he read your note and opened the package you sent, after I cast the engorgement charm on it of course. Shock, alarm, disbelief, embarrassment and hope, all warred across the usually emotionless face of my friend.
But oh, mother! I have never met a more prideful person than Severus who, despite the quite obvious desire to accept the gift he forced himself to refuse it. Though, in retrospective, I think I should have expected that considering how he is.
In the end, I was actually forced to pull the 'who do you think you are to refuse a gift from the noble house of Black and insult us by doing so' card to make him accept it. Honestly now, he should be more honest. Anyone could see that despite the redundant facade in accepting the gift he tried to put on, he was quite pleased to have robes, books, daily clothes and other such things of the same quality as the rest of his peers in Slytherin. He actually glowed when he noticed the advanced potion kit!
It felt quite nice to finally see how his happy face looks like.
Going on, I am pleased to announce you that during the Defense against Dark Arts class I managed to cast a corporeal Patronus. The class is taught by professor Riddle, who is truly brilliant father, like you always said, and I admit that from all the professors I met till now at Hogwarts he is definitively the most impressive one.
Also I am very much intrigued by the system he uses in organizing his classes. It seems that he believes in separating the students not by houses but by the level of ability they show. I really do hope to land in the Advanced Class together with Hadrian and Severus and I'm glad to say that the chances seem to be in our favor.
After all Hadrian
had been the first to manage casting a corporeal Patronus, though an unusual one as it wasn't only a Thestral but also more real-looking than any other Patronus I ever seen or heard of as it was black instead of silver in color. Not to mention that some can't even see it as a Thestral can be seen only by those that witnessed death.
That isn't to say my Patronus is in any way less impressive, Regulus! Quite the contrary as it is an enormous three headed dog- a cerberus to be exact, that seems quite gentle and playful despite his frightening appearance. Unsurprisingly, everybody was awed by him.
Severus hasn't yet managed to cast the Patronus but I'm sure he will be able to soon as the wisps of silvery mist become more concentrated and solid with each casting he does. I believe his problem lies in finding a strong enough memory to use which I admit makes me suspicious of what his home life is like. What child doesn't have any memory strong enough to fill him with happiness?
That being said I'm afraid I have to end this letter here. I'm very tired since, after the performance we did in professor's Riddle class, many students came to me and Hadrian for advice and we ended up holding tutoring session for those who wanted to learn the Patronus Charm. And teaching is hard!
Love,
Sirius
P.S. Regulus you better not use our cousins to get revenge on me! I noticed that both Narcissa and Bellatrix avoid me like the plague while Andromeda seems to have disappeared from the face of the Earth! If this happens because you asked them to prank me and now they are binding their time, waiting for the perfect chance to catch me unaware, do not believe even for a second that I will not have my revenge. You better run and hide while you still can if my suspicions are true because if they prank me you will be the one to suffer the worst when I return!
Sighing, Walburga lovingly folded the letter after reading it and started to prepare for bed as her thoughts run a mile a minute. Regulus was already tucked in and fast asleep, according to Kreacher, while her husband was once again away, making sure that everything went smoothly when the compulsion web matter was revealed to the public.
As she removed her robe and dressed in her night wear with a wave of her wand, Walburga couldn't help but be content that, finally, everything started to look up for them.
Thankfully, Andromeda will be alright as her treatment, which consisted of ingestion of special potions, regular physical tests and systematically organized sessions with curse breakers followed by sessions with the mind healers, will be successful according to healer's Marconi predictions, though it will take time and the girl was to be kept at the clinic until she was entirely free of the compulsion web's influence.
That meant, for Walburga, that she could stop worrying and that she could now fantasize of what, once they found who was the one that dared target their family was, she could do to him to make him pay for her beloved son and niece suffering. Though she knew that finding the culprit will be no easy task she was certain that they could do it. Even if it took days, weeks, months or years. Punishment will be delivered.
As she brushed her hair, without the help of magic as she found that doing it manually helped her relax, she thought of Sirius' letter and couldn't help but be proud at her son perceptiveness though the conclusion he drew wasn't...as unexpected as it should be, truth to be told, considering the fact that Regulus had asked his cousins for help against Sirius before.
She couldn't help a smile at the thought.
How good it would have been if that was really the case. Alas, she wasn't the type of person to waste the time with wistful thinking. They knew the truth and soon everybody will know it as well. Tomorrow was, after all, the day when the newspaper will reveal everything to the wizarding world about the compulsion webs that were more real than many will be inclined to believe. What happened next...well, it wasn't her business actually.
The Black House did the honorable thing and shared their secrets with the rest of the wizarding community for their sake but the rest wasn't up to them. It was up to the wizarding world whether it listened to their warning or not. However, that didn't meant she didn't knew what the consequences of the revealed truth will be. Panic. Chaos. Paranoia.
And discrimination.
No matter what, Walburga Black had never been naive and blind to ways the world worked and knew that, although those under the Compulsion Web will be seen as victims, they will also be discriminated against.
How many will lose their jobs because their employer suspected them of working, however unwillingly, for another because of the compulsion web cast on them? The Ministry, for one, will never take the risk considering how many things it wouldn't want the large public to find out about actually were.
It wasn't fair, she knew that, but the world wasn't known to be kind in any way but harsh and cold – that was the absolute truth she was taught since early childhood.
No to mention that the opposite of that was also possible – how many will try to fake being under a compulsion web in order to excuse some of their past mistakes and escape repercussions? She reckoned there will be too many to keep count.
No matter though, Walburga knew that she didn't had to worry about her son and niece. Both were strong enough to not let such matters affect them and, truthfully speaking, how many were stupid enough to talk against a member of the Black family?
She pitied the fool who dared do so.
They, the Blacks, weren't the ones you could trifle with and escape unscathed. Ever since the early beginnings of this now Ancient and Noble house, the Black members have always demonstrated an unrivaled viciousness when threatened, making their enemies tremble in fear. They were the epitome of Slytherin and proud of it, always able to use everything around them in their favor and deal with anything that threatened them swiftly and efficiently.
Why even now, in this situation, despite the personal feelings involved, her husband found a way to increase their fortune by buying fifty one percent of the shares of the 'Marconi institute' which, after the compulsion web paranoia began. as one of the few clinics capable of providing a treatment against the compulsion webs it will surely become quite profitable. Her full lips slightly curved in the beginning of an amused smirk.
And they said Orion was the most...tame...of the Blacks. Clearly, the ones who said so didn't knew him well enough to realize that he was a wolf in sheep clothing. always able to keep a clear head and take advantage of any situation, capable of masking his predatory nature with small smiles and gentleness. She expected nothing less from the husband she hand picked for herself though.
A light frown marred her flawless face as she thought about her father and his friend Augustus.
Tomorrow was also the day when they will go after Eileen to find out whether she was under a compulsion web or not and Walburga knew that they will drag her kicking and screaming to the clinic, if needed, in order to find out her diagnosis if she were to refuse to come with them willingly.
Pollux had already been forced to stun Augustus in order to stop the man from marching to his daughter house right then, when he found out said daughter was under a compulsion web –as in his mind there was no 'could be' about it- dressed as he was in potion-stained robes and with his cup of tea in hand. Or so she was told afterward when she met with her father.
Luckily Pollux, thank Merlin, was able to make the man see reason and realize that it was better to wait until the compulsion web problem became public knowledge before heading there. That way they could excuse their actions to the aurors if any problems were to arise. Not that there were many things that could count as a problem in face of the united powers of a Black and a Prince.
Walburga smiled as she remembered how, in the past, she and Eileen used said power in order to ascertain their superiority among their Slytherins peers. Ah, such good times those were. Idly, she wondered if the fact that she wanted her friend to be under a compulsion web, despite the consequences of what such a thing will further entail, made her be a bad friend? Then she remembered the letter from Sirius and the boy's suspicion towards the home life of Severus, Eileen's son.
There was no doubt in her mind that the good for nothing muggle that Eileen took for a husband wasn't capable of taking care of a family properly. He might even, and here her features darkened at even the thought of of such a thing happening, abuse them.
Death will be a too gentle punishment if that were the case, she viciously thought feeling rage filling her at the thought of a dirty muggle harming a witch, her friend!, in any way and the things around her started to tremble as her temper as her magic built up.
She took a deep breath to calm herself.
Now it wasn't the time to let anger overcome her. Putting her brush down, she crawled beneath the sateen sheets prepared to let sleep overcame her and make her forget, if even for a moment, of all the worry and complications caused by those blasted compulsion webs.
Her last thought before drifting off and entering the realm of Morpheus was that she had to go to Hogwarts tomorrow morning to gently explain the situation to Sirius before the boy, Morgana forbid, read about it first in the newspaper. If that happened the boy wouldn't be pleased with them. No, he wouldn't be pleased at all.
HP- Chronic Hero Syndrome
The morning air was cold when Bellatrix Black started to head towards the Quidditch Field, broom in hand, and puffs of air formed each time she exhaled. It was quite early, the sun having not risen yet, but she couldn't wait any longer, she had to vent her frustration somehow and since she wasn't allowed to Crucio the first poor soul that happened to pass her way, and such a pity that was, she was forced to use the only other means she had of getting rid of her anxiety – flying.
There was nothing, nothing, that could beat the feel of the wind rushing sharply against her face, the high caused by the rising adrenaline and the unrestrained freedom the sky had to offer. Flying was the best thing ever invented for Bellatrix, right there next to the Dark Arts.
She never felt more like herself than when she let herself go on a broom and it was only then that she could completely relax, that she could let go of all her worry and anger. When she flew there were only two things in the whole world that mattered – she and the unlimited sky.
While flying it was the only time she could simply be, unbounded by social status, political games or other trivial matters as such things were insignificant when faced with the infinity offered to her . As such she did it at any chance she got, specially when she needed to clear her head for one reason or another.
Like now.
Because Bellatrix Black wasn't by any means stupid. Sure, she didn't possessed the sly cunning, stunning grace and natural diplomacy talent of her sister Narcissa nor the books smart, analytical mind and political talent of Andromeda but that didn't meant she didn't understand the danger her sister and cousin had been in.
She was Bellatrix Black, the proud and noble daughter of the Black family. What she lacked in books smart she made up for with pure talent and what she lacked in finesse she made up for with power. Plus, she had good -terrific– instincts. She was one for action, not for planning, talking or strategy.
She knew that, out of her sisters, she was the one with the more powerful magic and the strongest in the dueling area. She was aware that her temper, so alike with that of her Aunt Walburga, and passion made her a deadly enemy to her opponents. She was also aware that the power she possessed, all her natural talent in dueling and Dark Arts, were of no use in helping her sister get better.
There was nothing she could do, but sit and wait. And there was nothing she hated more than that as she wasn't one used to being patient. Never had she felt more powerless, more... useless than in this situation caused by those trice damned compulsion webs. Oh, if only she got her hand on the perpetrator...
His screams of pain will seem like the loveliest melody to her ears, of that she was sure.
Alas, the perpetrator's hadn't been found out and she could only do nothing to help. It was because of that she become more and more frustrated which resulted in her coming to the Quidditch Field so early for a round of flying, without anyone bothering her.
Bemusedly, she reckoned that she was the only one awake at this hour since there was no one else crazy enough to lose sleep in a school in which every drop of energy affected the performance in class. Or if they were awake, for whatever reason, they certainly wouldn't come to the Quidditch Field to fly of all things
Shacking her head, bouncy, long black curls bobbing slightly, she snapped out of her musing and turned her large black eyes towards the endless sky. And promptly froze in her tracks.
A slow, predatory smile appeared a second later on her delicate face as an wicked, amused glint entered her eyes which were fixed on what seemed like a moving black dot in the sky. Well, it seemed she was wrong. There were people crazy enough to come at the Quidditch Field to fly at this ungodly hour.
And what...interesting people to do so indeed.
HP- Chronic Hero Syndrome
As he sneaked out from the Slytherin's Dorm, which was much harder to do without the invisibility cloak to hide him and the Marauder's Map to show him where everyone was, Hadrian's only thought was that, if he were to be caught and lose points for his House, Sirius will kill him. After Rabastan and Evan skinned him alive that is. Severus probably will only say something sarcastic and stare at him with that 'you really ARE an idiot' look he excelled in. And then there was also the fact that he will get detention.
But, although he didn't want all that to happen, he still had to do this.
It's just that, finally, the undeniable truth that what was happening to him was real, and not some sort of blown out of proportions fantasy dream or hallucination of his, hit home. And now he had to deal with the aftermath of that. And boy, what an aftermath it was.
Now that the shock was wearing off he realized how big, and he meant BIG, everything happening around him really was and also his own importance and effect on this new world. Despite the fact that he already should have known all this, and he did knew it on some level, till now everything just seemed so surreal and, although he acted as if he was in control, for him it was as if he was stuck in a dream. Like he was playing a part of a play. A game. But it wasn't. It was all so, so real, but still surreal and it wasn't a dream and dear Merlin that meant that he wasn't going to wake up to his old life! Ever!
This was his life now. His only life. And it was a mess. Even more complicated than his old one what with all of whom he was now. It also didn't seem like it will become less complicated in the future, but quite the contrary.
And he so wasn't prepared to deal with it.
He was only eleven going on seventeen, he wasn't even supposed to have to deal with all the crap life just loved to trow at him. Why couldn't he be normal, just another face in crowd? Why did he have to be the one influencing the fate of the world? Why, oh why, did he had to be the one life liked to screw over and over again?
And yes, he was aware that he was whining and that he should just be glad that he wasn't dead and had another shot at living but, as he thought about Grindelwald – his dark lord grandfather!, his heritage – which, by Merlin, influenced way too many things going, or which will go, haywire in his life , the supposed prophecy about him – and he didn't even want to think about opening that can of worms yet and the could be dark-lord Riddle on top of them all, he believed that he bloody earned the right to do so after all the things that simply continued to happen to him.
Not to mention it was so strangeto suddenly realize that everything was real, just like that, in the blink of an eye, as he lay in bed listening to the small snores of his dorm mates.
It was like waking up from a trance and he reckoned it would have happened sooner if it wasn't for the fact that everything happened so fast since the bitter betrayal that started everything and as such he was forced to continuously try keep up and adapt, no matter that he didn't fully understand what he was keeping up with. With the return to Hogwarts and his discussion with Hermione turned Sirius- another shocking thing he has to get used to- that took place in the Room of Requirement, added to the fact that he finally settled in some sort of routine and a familiar environment, helped him clear his head and actually think and mull over his happenings since coming into this new world.
And now he was confused. Though he knew what he should do and even had some sort of vague idea of how to go about it, he still was so confused about why should he be the one to do it. Why couldn't fate use another to accomplish its goals?
Not to say that he wasn't exactly reliable, the fact that he practically abandoned his old world to Voldemort, purely for selfish reasons just so that he could be happy, with no consideration for his friends that counted on him to win the war for them, being enough proof of that . That was also THE reason he felt like he was the filthiest man on Earth, the scum of the scum, sacrificing the happiness of other to achieve his own.
And the sad thing? He really was happy, if more than a little stressed out, happy here in this strange new world with new friends, new enemies, a more than he could handle alone situation and his new family, which made it all the worse for his conscience.
Hadrian grimaced.
He really had to stop being such an angsty teenager.
He so hated his whiny self, always complaining, complaining and complaining some more about the unfairness of life, making him become all the more annoyed with himself. Perhaps it was merely the stress of the situation getting to him that made his trail of thought become similar to a soap opera character. But then again, it could be that his mind had finally snapped under pressure and he had gone crazy – though, according to a certain reporter, that happened long ago, in his fourth year.
The inability of his mind to reconcile with the true depth of reality and process it into apt feeling might have more than a little to do with it too. No mater though, the thing was he just couldn't allow it to go on.
As such he decided to stop with all his sulking and brooding – Merlin knew he didn't need to become an emo teen considering how much he needed to be optimistic in order to handle his messed up life, sometime hope being his only reason for going on against all changes even when he wanted to just stop and give up in his struggle for a normal life. And there was only one thing that could help him snap from the self-pitying slum he entered.
Flying.
Nothing could help him clear his head better than soaring through the air at high speeds, pulling a round of life-threatening moves with the wind whistling in his ears and with the blood pounding in his eardrums as he plummeted to the ground only to dive in the last moment, all that with a help of a simple broom slightly more comfortable than a stick. Yeah, flying was the best!
And that's what he decided to do. But, since now he was a first year, a bit a sneaking around was needed in order for him to enjoy the thrill of flying without worry. Because of that, here he was at the dawn of day, sneaking out of his Dorm to go to the Hogwarts Quidditch Field, taking care so that nobody will see him.
It will be pretty bad if he were to be caught but, as he inhaled the fresh smell of grass deeply, he thought it was totally worth the risk. Once he was up in air, heart beating wildly in excitement in his chest, that feeling multiplied by several times. He was finally...free!
So caught up he was in the enjoyment of the moment that he never noticed the other Slytherin student that wanted to fly so early in the morning raising up in the air and flying towards him until it was literally in front of him.
"My, my, what do we have here? A ickle-little firstie breaking the rules?" cowed Bellatrix, with a big, predatory smile on her face as she watched the surprised Slytherin closely, curios about the boy rumors said to be her cousin's Sirius close friend, the famous Hadrian Malfoy. Ha, she will see if the boy was worth his salt right now. The fame meant nothing to her and she wasn't about to let her cousin befriend stupid fools that thought that they deserved everything because they made a newspaper front page once or twice.
The Black weren't that shallow to give their friendship to those fools as only the most deserving were worthy of the honor of calling them friends.
Hadrian, also, watched the teenage girl in front of him with wide eyes. Damn, he never thought he'll meet her so soon. He knew he will, eventually, since they were part of the same house and she was Sirius' cousin but just not so soon.
Beautiful as always, with large, black eyes surrounded by thick eyelashes which were noticeably lacking the glint of madness he was so used to seeing, full lips of the color of cherries curved into an wide smirk and a porcelain face framed by long, curly, black hair, Bellatrix Lest-Black stood there in all her glory watching him like a predator watched its prey.
Gulping, he swallowed his nerves and the instinct to attack her – She isn't the same one that killed Sirius, remember!, before responding.
"I wasn't aware I was breaking any rules," he replied evenly, trying to not let his voice quiver as verdant orbs bored into black ones. "I thought that it was prohibited for the first years to bring brooms to school. Nobody ever said anything about flying also being prohibited."
Bellatrix pulled herself up on the broom, giving the impression of looming over Hadrian who, once again, cursed his height.
"And then on what are you flying, boy? On air?"
"This isn't my broom, Miss Black. It was borrowed to me by Yaxley as I helped him yesterday master the Patronus Charm," Hadrian smoothly responded, all the while patting himself on the head for his cover. Of course it was his broom – his first present ever from his new parents in fact. But he wouldn't let her know that. And Yaxley would vouch for him – he owed him for helping, after all.
Bellatrix stared Hadrian down for a little while and Hadrian barely stopped himself from fidgeting under her stare. Did she realized that he had just lied? Were his lies so easy to see through? He thought himself a decent liar till now, years living at orphanage or with the Dursleys making him master the art lying, deception and half-truths from early childhood but maybe he wasn't as good as he thought he was.
After all, he had lived six years among Griffindors were honesty was usually the norm, any kind or form of deceit being highly frowned upon.
When Bellatrix slowly started to flash her white teeth in a smile – or was that a smirk? – he almost sighed in relief until he caught himself.
He still got it.
"I like you, boy," Bellatrix declared, as queen granting her subject a great honor. "I approve of you being Sirius' friend, " she continued as Hadrian felt his eyebrow rise up in surprise.
Idly, he wondered how the heck did Bellatrix manage to look so regal while standing on a broomstick, several meters up in the air, with her heir in disarray because of the wind. Alas, he reckoned that this was the sort of mystery he will never find the answer to.
"Er...okay, Miss Black," he said after a few second noticing that she was waiting some kind of answer from him.
"Don't give me any of that 'Miss Black' thing you got going, Sirius' friends I approve of are also my friends. Call me Bella, I'll call you Dray," Bellatrix said with much aplomb.
"...Dray?" Hadrian eventually asked in a faint voice – he did not squeak, thank you very much! – not quite knowing how to react to this kind of unknown – and dare he say it - friendly Bellatrix. Somehow, he had a very, very bad feeling about this.
How in Merlin's name did he manage to attract the attention of people that were his bitter enemies in his old life, anyway? There should be some kind of law against that- you know, to stop the unnecessary confusion it caused!
"Hadrian is too long," the witch said as if that explained everything. And maybe it did, he wearily thought simply deciding to give up for the moment and go with the flow.
Why the heck was he even trying to be serious about life and make sense out of it anyway? In the end after all, no matter what happens, it's not like anybody gets out of it alive anyway. Some tried, it;s true, like Voldemort and everybody saw how that ended up like, but nobody succeeded. So why should he spend it worrying?
"So, how about an one on one, Dray? Think you can handle me?" Bellatrix then asked challengingly, a teasing smirk on her face and eyes full of mischief.
"...You're on", was the simple answer Hadrian gave.
Why the hell not, after all, he thought. He had nothing to lose. He was too tired to even care anymore that she was the counterpart of Bellatrix Lestrange of his old world. As he soared through the air trying to gain more speed, there was only one thing on his mind.
To have fun.
"Oh, and by the way little Dray," Bella called from up front, "Yaxley never owned a broom in his life. He is afraid of heights."
HP- Chronic Hero Syndrome
Patricia Parkinson was fuming as she returned to the Dorms from the breakfast table in a huff.
Stupid mudblood, stupid Black and stupid professors! Didn't they had anything better to talk about? So what if a couple of first years managed to cast a corporeal patronus? So what if she couldn't even cast the silvery mist? So what if she had to seek out the help of the mudblood and Black in order to improve? So what?
That didn't meant she had to suffer through all breakfast hearing of their accomplishments as everyone praised their talent all the while wondering were they were that they didn't came down to breakfast. Even that disgrace of a half-blood, Snape, managed to gain their attention with the talent he displayed in Slughorn's Potion Class. A fluke, for certain, she thought. But they will soon see the truth.
Not to mention that, to top it all, those stupid, stupid, oh so stupid Lestrange and Rosier paid more attention to that Zabini girl than her! Even after she went to all the trouble to destroy the girl potion and make her look like a fool. AGH! She was so mad! Why wasn't anything going as she wanted it to? How could everyone disregard her so easily?
How could she she succeed in her mission at Hogwarts if nobody took notice of her?
She was a member of the Parkinson House which wasn't Ancient or Noble - they were 'nouveau riche', as some snobbish purebloods called them, as the only reason they were even taken in consideration was because her grandfather, Patrocles Parkinson, made good money at the end of the first war with Grindelwald in the building construction business, after Grindelwald was sent to Nurmengard, managing to raise the value of their House name.
As it was, she was the only daughter of the Parkinson family. She had two brothers though.
Her oldest brother, Parson, was going to become the Head of the Parkinson House while her second brother, Patrick, was accepted to a private magical School on the continent, where he hoped to find a worthy match – not such a hard task to accomplish, she reckoned, since he was quite handsome and also possessed a calm nature that attracted people to him. She was more worried about Parson in that area, truth to be told, as he wasn't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer nor particularly handsome.
And then it was her.
Patricia knew well enough she wasn't the prettiest girl there was. But she wasn't ugly. And she was quite smart, thank you very much. As such she first thought her mission of finding a worthy husband would be an easy one. As the only daughter of the Parkinson House it was her duty to strengthen the House' ties with the Noble Houses by marrying into one of them. Easier said than done, that.
That's why she never considered going to Beauxbotons since her average looks could never hope to compete with the ones posed by those vile creatures, the veelas, which attended that particular school as if they were as good as any other normal witches. Ha, there was one thing those disgusting creatures were good for and that definitively wasn't wand-work.
Durmstrang was a good choice, but sadly she completely failed the entrance examination...
Of course her papa wasn't pleased by that but there was nothing she could do. After all, despite her smarts, her magic wasn't all that powerful and Durmstrang accepted only the ones most gifted in magical prowess into their folds. So the only choice she had was to come to Hogwarts in order to find someone to fit her standards.
Her father already told her to not pay any attention to Hadrian Malfoy as he, no doubt, was only a lucky mudblood, who survived the Avada Kadevra curse in a freak accident.
As her dearest papa said, his Order of Merlin will not fill the Vaults in Gringotts. Even though he was adopted by the Malfoys, the Malfoy House already had a heir- Lucius and also another girl – Aria to leave their fortune to.
The mudblood should fill lucky he was even associated with the pureblood circles. Who knows, maybe some desperate widower will take him as husband in the future since, after all, he wasn't all that bad too look at.
The same her father said about Sirius Black. Everyone and their mother knew that Sirius was an idiot, a disgrace to his pureblood heritage and that sooner or later he will be disowned by his family. No, the one she had to keep her eyes one when he came to Hogwarts was his younger brother Regulus who, her Papa told her, will be the one to inherit the Black fortune.
But, the ones to whom she should really pay all her attention now, were Evan Rosier - the Scion of the most Noble House of Rosier and, of course, Rabastan Lestrange - the second son of the Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange.
If his stupid oldest brother Rodolphus – and what an ugly name that was – hadn't looked after Rabastan as a hawk, she would have already slipped the Armotentia potion, provided to her by her dear father, in his drink. And that stupid Rosier, who was supposed to be the easy prey since he didn't have anybody to look after him at Hogwarts, was the most irritating of them all, always so cautious with what he ate or drank.
Oh, how she wished it were as simple as her papa thought it will be.
Alas, it wasn't and her spotlight was stolen by those stupid fools.
Stupid Lestrange and Rosier for not paying her attention, stupid Zabini for being prettier than her, stupid Patronuses for being so hard to cast, stupid Sirius, stupid adopted mudbloods with Order of Merlin. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
But she will show them all...No one messes with Patricia Parkinson!
Of course it didn't helped her mood when she found herself in front of the Slytherin entrance only to realize she had forgotten the damn password and couldn't enter the Dorm. Who, in Morgana's name, chooses those stupid latin phrases as a password anyway?
As it was was it was no wonder that, when Patricia Parkinson finally remembered the password, after a couple of tries, and entered the Common Room of the Slytherin Dorm she was on the edge of explosion. Finding the room occupied by Sirius Black and Severus Snape, two of the people who made it at the top of her black list, also didn't improve her mood at all.
Hearing the entrance opening, both Sirius and Severus turned hopeful looks towards the entrance only to sigh in disappointment a second later. Sadly, it seemed that it wasn't Hadrian – only Merlin knew were the boy went off to before they woke up but,when he returned, Sirius was gonna give him an earful for making them worry like this.
"Oh, it's just you," Severus' voice coolly rang, dismissively, after he saw who it was at the entrance.
"And who did you expect Snape? Santa Claus? I almost forgot you are a little halfblood who believes in the crazy things muggle come up with," Parkinson said nastily, leveling Severus with a look of contempt. Severus was not impressed and simply ignored her.
"Shut your trap, Parkinson. We aren't in the mood for your petty insults", Sirius said in exasperation."And we were expecting Hadrian. He isn't by any chance at breakfast, is he?"
"Oh, did the mudblood abandoned you already? What a surprise. It seems that, after all, the mudblood isn't as stupid as I believed him to be if he realized you two aren't worth it."
"And who is worthy, Parkinson?" Sirius finally snapped, irritated with the bitchy girl. "You?"he asked in a tone that conveyed perfectly what he thought about that idea, making the Slytherin witch flush in anger.
"Why you -"
"Why me what, Parkinson? You are just a jealous brat who thinks the world revolves herself and when Hadrian didn't become your little lap-dog you began to slander us continuously and I'm getting tired of it. Grow up or leave us alone already!", Sirius exclaimed in frustration.
Every day, every hour, every minute she had free, Parkinson used it to gossip about them and slander their reputation and he was sick of it already.
"Gah!", was Parkinson's retort. "How could you even think I'm jealous of you over that mudblood's friendship? What, do you think he is all that because of his Order of Merlin and adoption in the Malfoy House? Please! He is just a mudblood, a little more than a plaything to the Malfoys and once they get bored of him they will kick him out in the streets, were he belongs! He will be left to crawl back to those filthy muggles as he deserves to," the witch finally exploded pouring all her venom into her words.
"You are crossing the line, Parkinson," Sirius said, his eyes narrowed dangerously, fingers twitching for the wand in his pocked.
"What, did the truth hurt?", the girl taunted enjoying his torment, torment that shewas the cause of.
Before Sirius retorted though, Severus intervened.
"Sirius," the other said calmly, not even bothering to lift his eyes from the book he returned to when he saw who it was that entered the Common Room, "it's not worth it."
And just like that Sirius calmed down considerably, before deciding he will also ignore the girl. Severus was right, she simply wasn't worth the bother if she let her prejudice blind her so much.
"What is it Snape, aren't I allowed to express my opinion? Everybody else seem to be, " she sneered annoyed at the holier that thou attitude of the halfblood.
"Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. It's just that yours is stupid and thus not worth to be taken in consideration," the boy said without looking up from his book, before continuing to ignore the Slytherin witch.
Seeing that both boys were death set on ignoring her, Parkinson huffed before plopping down on one of the couches present in the room. Fine, let them ignore her, see if she cared! She thought as she brought out the morning newspaper from her pocket in order to read it and pass the time more easily until it was time for the first class of the day.
The newspaper was still unfolded, as she hadn't had the opportunity to read it at breakfast before she stormed out annoyed at the general population, and, once she opened it, she couldn't stop her lips from curving into a smirk.
Ignore me now, she viciously thought as she started to read aloud, to the surprise of the two Slytherins who didn't knew what she was up to now. They soon figured it out though.
SHOCKING NEWS
The Ancient and Noble House of Black targeted by compulsion webs!
Who will be next?
By Leona Skeeter
Considering the times we live in, many of us consider death to be a possible outcome to befall either us or our families and till now there was nothing that could scare us more than it. However, dear readers, I wonder how many of you will welcome life when you are forced to live said life merely as puppets for another, without even realizing?
Impossible, you say?
Well, Orion Black, head of the Ancient and Noble House of Black might have something to say about that considering two members of his family have fallen victims to a magic that can, in fact, make one behave in a certain way for his whole life, just like a puppet without strings. And that magic, dear readers, is called compulsion web.
Compulsion webs are a highly advanced type of mental curse that can only be cast by a very powerful and talented wizard or witch, which purpose is to influence the behavior of an individual to the the point where even his way of thinking is molded in accordance with the compulsion web purpose. As it is, compulsion webs are very hard to get rid of and even harder to notice their influence on an individual.
"Just after his birth , my son Sirius Orion Black, scion and heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Black, was placed under a compulsion web that greatly influenced his action and personality, making him act differently than he would have normally had as he grew up. Luckily, the inconstancy and the continued fluctuation of my son's magic that happened because of the sudden growth spurt his magical core had, made a fissure in the web, giving his true personality a chance to fight it off.
With the help of the Infitialis Ritus, an ancient ritual that Sirius found through his research in the Black library, he managed to destroy the compulsion web placed on his mind," Orion Black said, giving this reporter the impression he was both proud at his son courage and talent to succeed alone in casting such a highly dangerous ritual and terrified at what the other outcome of the ritual could have been – death.
Also, the fact that the compulsion web remained undetected for such a long time and that, if it weren't for the young boy perceptiveness in seeing the inconstancy of his own behavior it would have remained so, it's quite alarming I believe, dear readers.
And, as if having his son so close to death wasn't already enough, Lord Black soon discovered that even his niece Andromeda Black, the second daughter of Cygnus and Druella Black, was under the influence of a compulsion web. As it is, she is now receiving treatment in the "Marconi Institute'', created by the renowned italian healer Marcello Marconi, trying to fight off the compulsion web put on herself.
"We didn't want to risk her life with the Infitialis Ritus as we also wouldn't have allowed Sirius to do if we knew what he was up to. Because of that, we sought the help of a specialist and Healer Marconi came highly recommended. It was he who told us to make the matter public for the sake of the wizarding world at large. The children are our future, they have to live free from outside influences. We ask all parents to go forward and check their children, and not only, for compulsion webs if they have even the tiniest suspicion that something may be wrong," Lord Black said in a determined tone of voice.
Healer Marcello Marconi, the author of more than fifty publications in the magazine 'The Healing of the Mind' and the owner of 'The Marconi Institute' joined us to provide more information about Compulsion webs.
"Firstly, all of us must be aware that compulsion webs are illegal and punished with a life-sentence in Azkaban and confiscation of all possessions, being considered even worse than the Imperius Curse which is one of the three Unforgivables.
The main reason for that it's because they are nearly impossible of being detected by one who doesn't specialize in them and it's even more hard to find the one who is responsible of placing the web in the first place. If the compulsion web is discovered after only a few days, even a couple of weeks of being placed on an individual, sure, then there will be enough residual magic to give off a strong magical signature that will lead us straight to the criminal who did such a vile thing.
But after a few months, forget about years, pass since compulsion web was placed there will no magical traces what so ever for anyone to see. The web will penetrate the magical core, and become part of its victim magical signature," healer Marconi bluntly informed.
"To find out whether someone is under a compulsion web or not it's not difficult for a Healer trained in curses that affect the mind. However, the problem is, who will bring a child or an adult for a check up if, in their eyes, there is nothing wrong with the person in question?
You see, when the compulsion web is placed the symptoms will be the most noticeable in the first few days, disappearing completely after some time. In the case of a child who had an web placed on him at an early age, they might never find out the truth considering the behavior and personality induced by the compulsion web to be his true ones, the changes taking place in concordance with the child's growth. Some even live their entire life under the influence of such a web and die without no one being the wiser about the truth.
After the curse web is placed on the victim, in the first hours the victim will suffer from fever, cold symptoms, stomach aches, nightmares, mood swings and there was even report made by a healer which said rash could also be a symptom," Marconi said, providing me with a pamphlet (which is posted on page two) that contained a more detailed description of the symptoms in cause.
"For this purpose the criminal usually targets children when they are teething, so that the parents and the healers don't notice, the symptoms colliding with the ones caused by teething. In the past compulsion webs were one of the biggest threat for our ancestors' children and because of that said children were taken outside only when they reached the age of four-five years old not like in our times when some people go shopping with their newborn baby.
However, since with time magic become weaker and now not many are powerful enough to cast such a spell, such times were forgotten as the compulsion webs became nothing more than a bad memory. It seem though they are still a reality to our world" healer Marconi solemnly said.
Also, the healer warned that another time when someone might try to place a compulsion web is when the would be victim suffers from some sort of physical illness.
No to mention that, in the cases of children under compulsion webs, one should expect to see some behavior disturbances, like excessive pranking, tantrums with no reason, sleep disturbances, enuresis in some cases, tics and so on, as the child's mind tries to cope with the web placed on it.
"For close family members, because they have seen the child behave like that for so long, compulsion web is the last thing they will think of to explain such behavior. I, a father myself, love all my children unconditionally and I am always trying to see the best in them, even if they were to not grow up as I first expected them to. This is why, even if they think their children aren't under a compulsion web, I still recommend the parents to bring their children to my clinic for a check up, just in case. Better safe than sorry, is my motto" said healer Marconi and this reporter couldn't agree more.
"Also," the healer continued, "do not confuse those behavior disturbances with the natural temperament of a person. The natural temperament is something a child is born with, is what distinguish us from one other. Usually in a family where there is more than a child, parents will see that one child is soft, loves to read books, appreciate arts and so on while another may be a sport and dueling lover. That is the difference between two siblings with two different temperaments- nothing to worry about.
When the compulsion web is placed later in life, though, the differences in behavior will be more noticeable- a girl may elope and go on her merry way out of the blue, a husband may decide to stop his perfect career and do something completely strange, a mother may abandon her children and so on. Of course, there are cases in which a compulsion web will do more good than bad but I ask, how can one condone to something that practically stoles someones freedom of thought and action?
Also how can one trust victims of compulsion webs with jobs in politics, teaching or auror forces knowing they could have a hidden purpose in ind? How can you know that they will do what is asked of them and that they will not go behind your back to do whatever the compulsion dictates them to?" Marconi finished, showing his deep disapproval towards the consequences of a compulsion web.
The compulsion webs destroys the life not only of their victims, but also of all those around them. And seeing that the victims may not realize that their life is influenced by lies and as such not seek treatment voluntarily it is our duty, dear readers, to be vigilante and report our suspicions to the authorities.
Remember, you may save your relative, friend or lover from living a life of lies so do not stall. Take action!
Report your suspicions to the authorities!
"Ministry orders its employees to take the check up for compulsion webs" - see page 3
"Tension between Gringotts and Ministry – why?" - see page 5
"Dumbledore – forgiven?" - see page 6
As Parkinson finished reading in Sirius' mind crickets could be heard. Oh boy, he really done it now, he thought as he felt himself pale and become dizzy.
Never had he thought that the excuse he came up with will cause, well, this!
When he came upon the term of 'compulsion web' in the Black library he thought he hit the jackpot as it provided him with the perfect explanation for his behavior. He chose to fake the use of the Infitialis Ritus as the mean with which he escaped the influence of such an web because the only aftereffect of using said ritual was depletion of the magical core, if it didn't end in death that is.
As such, he only had to cast enough difficult spells to use up all his magic and then prepare the stage of the show – his room in which the ritual supposedly took place - using some very simple spells. Sirius', the old one's that is, mind proved to be a source of endless inspiration when it had all that information and knowledge contained by the mind of Hermione as a resource. It was so simple, so easy to fool everyone into believing him!
And now it became the biggest disaster he ever caused! How couldhe cause something of this proportion to happen? He didn't knew how to deal with this – usually it was Hadrian who was the instigator of things like this, not him. How could he ever fix this mess?
He could actually see how people will panic and how paranoia will take over the wizarding world, all without any real reaso –
...wait...wait just a minute...
Didn't the article say something about Andromeda?
"Parkinson, give that here," he said then proceeded to all but rip off the newspaper from the girl's hands ignoring her indignant squeak.
..Aha! There it was – it was clearly written, black on white, no room for doubt. Andromeda had been diagnosed with being under a compulsion web. So that's why everyone was behaving so strangely around him lately – and to think he thought Regulus put them up to it, Sirius thought feeling gobsmacked by everything.
And what did it mean that Andromeda was under the influence of a compulsion web? Did it meant that the Andromeda of their old world was also under the influence of such a web, only she never found out?
Somehow, that idea didn't sounded as far-fetched as he wished it would. And, now that he thought about it maybe even the Sirius of their old world had been under the influence of such a web, if he were to be honest.
He always had thought it strange that Sirius from the other universe hated his family so much only because his beliefs differed from theirs. After all, he knew for certain that, despite the fact that they didn't disapprove of Voldemort's goals, neither Walburga nor Orion had accepted to serve under him and Regulus had only joined Voldemort due to the pressure put on him by everyone, proceeding to betray the bastard when the opportunity arose. The bond between Sirius and his family shouldn't have suffered so much only because of that much.
His behavior was strange no matter how he thought about it, specially if one thought how united the pureblood families usually were.
Then, there was also the fact that, until he ran away from home from his own initiative, Sirius hadn't been blasted out of the family tree despite the many times he went against its traditions and defied every belief of it – more than enough proof that his parent loved him if they tried to overlook what was, no doubt, in their opinion a most disgraceful behavior despite how the other pureblood must have gossiped about them because of it.
With dread he realized that maybe even he, or rather the old Sirius, has been under the influence of a compulsion web but managed to escape its influence when Sirius and Hermione's souls combined in one. He felt sick to even think of something controlling, influencing his thoughts and actions.
And his cousin was really going through such a thing, not like him who only faked everything as a convenient excuse.
He was such a fool!
"What is it, did the the poor Black heir didn't know about this?" taunted Parkinson, taking great pleasure in the ever changing expression of Sirius at the moment. "Don't be sad, we all knew both you and Andromeda had something in the head, so this didn't come as a big surprise, really. But now, at least your parents can excuse the disgraces you are without losing much face and when your brother becomes Head of Family in your place you will not be thrown out in the streets, not like you wouldn't deserve to," the girl continued with a sneer.
Both Sirius and Severus looked at her in wonder at what came out of her mouth. Was she really serious?
"Merlin, girl, that it's the only thing the article made you think of?", Severus asked in disbelief that someone so shallow could even exist
"Well, look at this. The filthy halfblood defends his friend," Parkinson said ignoring Snape's words. "What is it Sirius, are you too much of a pansy that you can't defend yourself? That you need a knight in armor to protect your honor?" the girl maliciously asked at which Sirius only gave a bland look.
"...I'm not even going to bother with you. I have more important thing to do than deal with your seemingly limitless stupidity," Sirius said turning on his heels, ready to go to his Dorm to write a letter to his mother and father. Then he had to have a talk with either Bellatrix or Narcissa. Oh yes, he would.
So caught up was he in his planing he never noticed the darkening features of Parkinson.
Stupid? She was stupid? He was the stupid one! Oh, but she will show him stupid alright, she thought taking out her wand.
"Reducto!", she angrily cast pointing her wand towards Sirius, mind clouded by rage at him, at Hogwarts, at her parents and the world in general and, to her surprise, a beam of red went out of her wand heading straight to the boy.
In her haze she saw Snape sating up from where he was seated on the couch trying to reach Sirius in time but she knew he wouldn't reach him fast enough. And the stupid boy hadn't even noticed that a curse was heading straight to him, so lost in his thoughts he was. Ha, that's what he deserved for dismissing her!
"Protego Duo!" shouted an angry voice from the doorway and a blueish cocoon enveloped Sirius right before the Reducto curse struck him.
Turning around, surprised at the interference, Parkinson was face with a an angry Bellatrix that had her wand out and a bewildered Hadrian that held a broom in each hand.
"...What the heck it's going on here?" asked Hadrian after a blink, taking in the scene he stumbled upon.
Parkinson had enough.
"Great, now the mudblood is here. Joy!", she said as nastily as she could, not wanting to let them see how shaken she was that she almost cursed a fellow student in her rage. She didn't knew she could actually cast the curse – it was the first time it worked for her. Such luck, she cynically thought. If the curse had struck it would have been grounds for expulsion and her papa wouldn't have been happy with her. Not at all.
"Shut up, little bitch, and tell me why you attacked my cousin?", snarled Bellatrix, pointing her wand at the first year who dared cast Reducto at Sirius. Which was pretty impressive for a first year, but that was beyond the point.
"What do you care? Isn't he a disgrace to your family? Not that are better off, isn't that right dear Bella? Everybody's talking, you know, about how unbecoming of your status you're behaving with your troll like manners and tomboyish nature. Better smarten up or nobody will want to marry you. Well, you could always marry a muggle though. I hear they are pretty dim-witted," the first year sneered and the only reason she wasn't half dead right now was because Hadrian left the brooms fall to the ground and was holding off the older Slytherin from cursing her, all the while wondering from where the hell did he got the courage to interfere between Bellatrix and her intended prey, specially considering the state of rage she was in.
Warily, he realized it was simply because he didn't want to witness a murder happening in front of his eyes. Really, sometimes, he simply couldn't believe his luck. Just after he relaxed a bit he had to return and find this- a crazy girl who seemed to have suicidal tendencies at the moment. Great, just great. Fan-freaking-tastic even!
What did he do to deserve all this crap happening to him, anyway?
"Listen Parkinson," Hadrian started fixing his viridian eyes on the Slytherin witch, making her slightly flinch though she maintained her ground, "I don't know what your problem is but -"
"Oh, shut it, Malfoy!", Parkinson cut him off. She knew she will get in trouble no matter what she did or say now so she decided to at least she get all her frustration off her chest.
"You are the worst of them, mudblood. Always so damn arrogant as if you're the best world has to offer only because you survived in a freak accident and became adopted by the Malfoys. And such a teacher pet, on top of that. Everyone knows you hadn't actually cast that damn Patronus- nobody can see it after all and those who say they do only want to earn your favor.
But once your fame passes everybody will abandon you like the scum you are- even if the professors trying their best to enter your good graces now, prince of the mudbloods, " the girl sneered pouring all her rage into the words, her face scrunched up in anger though she was rather pleased to see Hadrian taken aback by her speech.
Ha, she bet that she was the first one to tell him the truth to his face till now. Stupid, fame seeking mudblood.
"Really, I had no idea you thought so about your professors Miss Parkinson," a smooth voice interfered and turning around the girl was ready to unleash another round of insults upon the one who said that only to swallow her words before she could blurt them out once she saw who it was.
Accompanied by a beautiful, regal looking women and a young teen whom she recognized as one of the prefects, Tom Riddle stood in the entrance, his burgundy eyes coolly assessing the situation.
"Pr-professor? How long have you been there?" the girl stuttered, blanching at the sight of the headmaster and the one who was without a doubt Lady Walburga Black.
"Long enough, Miss Parkinson. And I must say I am not impressed.," Riddle bluntly informed her.
"I believe at least three weeks of detention with professor McGonagall are in order for your unsightly behavior. Also, I will make sure your father hears about this," Riddle said before completely dismissing the girl and turning towards the other occupants of the room.
"Mr. Black, Miss Black, Mr. Snape, you are to follow Mr. Yaxley here," he said referring to the blond haired, blue eyed teen accompanying him, "that will take you and Lady Black to a room in which you can discuss with disruptions. Mr. Hadrian, you are to accompany me in my office," Riddle curtly said appearing to be in a bad mood before storming out of the Slytherins Common Room leaving everyone surprised at the abrupt manner he seemed to have adopted overnight.
An awkward silence proceeded to entail after the professor's sudden departure.
"Er...it's nice seeing you again, Lady Black", Hadrian said politely after a few second passed, "but I'm afraid I have to go after the professor now."
"Indeed, and I believe it's better that you hurry. Headmaster Riddle isn't in the most...patient of moods at the moment ," Walburga said and, if it weren't for the poise she had to maintain at all times, she will have chuckled at the relieved expression that appeared on the boy's face at her words.
"Well then, I better take my leave if that is the case. I hope you have a pleasant visit at Hogwarts Lady Black and hopefully we'll talk more next time we meet. Have a good day," Hadrian said with a grin before taking off after Riddle.
As they watched him go, both Severus and Sirius thought the same thing – traitor! How dare him leave them alone in this uncomfortable situation without even saying one word to them, at least to offer an explanation for his absence till now? Oh, they will make him pay when all was done and over.
"Come on children," Walburga said, snapping them from their thoughts of torture,"we'll exchange greetings and pleasantries once we reach the room allocated to us for our meeting. Mr. Yaxley, please lead the way."
"Lady Black", Severus said after swallowing his nerves, "are you sure my presence it's required?"
Brown eyes softened slightly as they rested on the boy.
"Of course, child. Now shush and follow Mr. Yaxley – we'll talk more once we reach our destination" she gently ordered before proceeding to do just that while Bellatrix, Sirius and Severus mutely followed her example.
As she was about to exist the Common Room, Walburga gave a side-long glance toward the miserable looking girl which looked like she was about to cry.
"Miss Parkinson, please let your father know that I desire to...talk with him considering our collaboration. Have a nice day," she coolly ordered the girl before graciously exiting the room.
Left alone in the middle of the Slytherin's Common Room, Patricia couldn't stop her tears from falling. What had she been thinking? Nothing, that's what!
She was by far the stupidest of them all, she realized.
HP- Chronic Hero Syndrome
Severus was... happy. And that was such a foreign feeling for him to feel that he almost didn't recognized it at first.
But, as he watched Sirius lecture Hadrian for disappearing on them in the morning and for abandoning them later to go with Riddle, he realized that if happiness really existed then it was what he was feeling now.
Thinking about his flower he realized that she didn't need him anymore. She made other friends in her house but, somehow, that didn't sadden him as it would have normally had since she seemed willing to also keep being his friend as well. Not to mention that he also made some new, good friends since coming to Hogwarts.
He wasn't stupid, far from it actually, so he knew how lucky he was to be befriended and befriend both Hadrian Malfoy and Sirius Black on the Hogwarts train, however reluctantly on his side that was. Despite his annoyance of then, now he couldn't thank Merlin enough for bringing the strange boy who talked incessantly to him, despite his best effort to make him stop, in his compartment.
He knew well enough that the only reason he had been tolerated into the snake's house till now, despite his heritage, was because he had those two as friends. He knew the rest of Slytherins could barely wait for Hadrian and Sirius to bore of him so that they could torment him but, despite his efforts to not get his hopes up, he just knew that those two will never abandon him.
That's why he also wouldn't abandon them no matter what. And if he had to fight so that he could continue being friends with them then fight he will.
As he thought of the discussion he just had with Lady Black he couldn't help a barely noticeable smile from appearing on his face. Merlin, who would have thought that he, the dirt poor halfblood, had Lady Black 'call me Aunt, child' as his Godmother. It was surprising. It was mindblowing It was totally awesome!
Godmother...
He will always associate that word with the day in which he was delivered a trunk full of treasures he never thought will ever posses.
Mountains of different clothes and garments like the Hogwarts standards robes, made of heavy silk, the shoes made from dragon-hide leather , the trousers, the gloves, the socks, the undergarments – all sorted in their specific boxes together with the way too many bottles filled with expensive shampoos, conditioners, soaps, creams and perfumes that he remembered seeing in the window of a shop to which his mother gave a look of longing before sighing heavily and skipping the shop all together simply because it was out of their league.
And that's not saying anything about the snow white parchments spelled against ink spillages, the finest set of quills made from the hippogriff feathers and, the most awesome of them all, the advanced potion kit, with the additional set of cutting knifes and leather-bound set of potion books.
It was enough to make him lose the emotionless mask he so prided himself in, so overwhelmed he was by the gift though he tried to maintain at least a semblance of dignity before accepting and enjoying his new belongings.
He never had anything as nice as what he received then but that didn't meant he hadn't wished to have.
He remembered with a guilty conscience how he had stolen, in his first year of muggle school, a pen with ink that could glow in the dark from one of his school mates. It had been his most precious treasure before meeting Lily, despite the fact he knew it had been wrong of him to steal it. Still, it had been so tempting at the time to posses the pen that belonged in a world in which fathers weren't drunkards, but loving and caring taking their families to the zoo or to the cinema and in which families were happy simply by having their dinners together, and enjoying each other company.
He used to stay wide awake at night, playing with the pen and dreaming of a life in which everything was perfect, in which he was rich and happy, and lived in a mansion with servants taking care of his every need, all the while trying to block the screams from the next room, the sounds of his mother and father arguing. Not even they could destroy his dream.
The pen was still hidden under the loose wooden floor board of his room.
Not that he needed it anymore after what his Godmother just told him. About how, if everything went well, he will never have to return to his muggle life.
He found out many more things in the course of his discussion with Lady Black.
He found out in more detail about how his friend Sirius and his cousin Andromeda have been under a compulsion web, beyond the information provided by the Daily Prophet. He found that it was also possible for his mother to be under one but that there was a chance she could escape from under it. He learned that Lady Black was supposed to be the Godmother of his mother's children, and viceversa, and that she was very eager to start taking her duties seriously from now on.
And he learned he had a grandfather that was very anxious to meet him.
Only Bellatrix' presence in the room helped him maintain his face blank after he all this information was delivered to him as he didn't wanted the girl to think of his as a weakling. So that's why he didn't react outwardly even though he wanted to cry, to laugh and so much more to express the happiness, the gratitude, the relief, the rage he felt in that the moment.
As the Herbology professor entered the classroom to start the lesson, causing Sirius to give a sheepish looking a Hadrian a 'this isn't over' look, Severus decided that his father, the sneering Slytherins that didn't approved of him and the stupid people like Parkinson and Petunia could go to hell for all he cared.
He had a grandfather who wanted to meet him, he had a godmother who cared for him, he had friends more awesome than he felt he deserved to have and, soon enough, he will have his mother beside him, released from under the compulsion web influence, free to leave his father and build herself a new life together with him.
He was happy.
HP- Chronic Hero Syndrome
Pollux Black and Augustus Prince looked at the shabby looking house in unhidden disgust.
Was this really the place in which Eileen, the always princess like Eileen who didn't accept anything less than perfect, spent her last twelve years of life in? If there were any doubts in their mind about whether the women was under a compulsion web or not, they had just been shattered for the two pureblood wizards.
There was no other way for the one who had been the Prince heiress to come live here out of her own free will otherwise.
As they neared the house, August felt more tired and old with each step he took. It was his fault that his beloved daughter had to live like a, like a beggar for all this time together with her son. If he trusted her more, if he believe more in her he would have realized that something was wrong when she suddenly decided to give up all her life-long beliefs and marry a muggle.
But no, he decided to let the hurt and pain of betrayal blind him, causing him to lose her for so long. Twelve years.
Twelve years!
That's how long he allowed his daughter to suffer. That's how long it took him to find out the truth. That's how much he had to atone for and he didn't think the remainder of his life was enough to .
But now he will not fail, he will not allow himself to. He could and would repent for his past mistakes by making sure the future was a bright one for both his daughter and grandson. He will take care of them from now on.
Sound of shouting reached his ears and, after exchanging a look with Pollux who nodded to show he heard it too, he started to fasten his steps. He all but blasted the door when he heard the pained screamed that caused his heart to bleed.
It was the sight of his daughter purple eye and split lip that done it.
Not hearing the shouts of Pollux that was behind him, Augustus let the red haze take over him as he pointed his wand at what seemed to be an inebriated piece of filth .
"Avada Kadevra" he whispered maliciously, pouring all his hate, frustration, pain and disgust into the words.
And just like that Tobias Snape ended his existence, the last thing he ever saw being a nice, beautiful green light.
...TBC...
AN/ Hey guys ^-^ Finally I update - yay! ^0^ LOL, I'm pretty hyper these days - passed all my exams and the euphoria hasn't worn out yet I guess =^~^=. Now I only have the college admittance exam and then VACATION! Which means faster updates! Yay! Rejoice with me minna-san ^0^...*sound of crickets*...
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So yeah, anyway, going on ...YAHOO!~ WE HAVE DONE IT! We reached the 3000 review mark! You guys are simply AWESOME and I have no word to express my gratitude for your support till now ^_^ I appreciate each and every review I received till now, I read all of them of course though purely for selfish reasons as they always managed to brighten my day, if only a little (though I do fail at the replying part...^,^) It feels good that my writing is appreciated ^/^
As it is, I couldn't have done it alone though and I HAVE to give my thanks to the always AMAZING Zana who stuck with me from the very beginning and supported me each step of this journey with suggestion, advice and the proverbial kick in the ass to get it back in gear whenever it was needed.
Also, I am happy to announce you that three readers have decided to take on the challenge of beta-ing this story. I still haven't posted any improved chapters yet lol, but I want to give them my thanks. They are TwentyTawnyTigers , Silver moonbeams and Kingdark. However, till they reach this chapter will take a while so please, if any mistake catches your eye, do not hesitate to bring it to my attention so that I could fix it ^-^
Also, I owe my thanks to musme who, through Zana, is sending me important information about France that will help me immensely in the future^-^
It's a given I believe, that my thanks also goes to all my reviewers and readers, specially to those that saw fit to help me however they could by giving me advices, suggestions, correcting my silly mistakes and or by simply showing me they are reading this through a short comment/ message. I love all you and your help and support it's what keeps this story alive.
Thank you ^-^
I hope you enjoyed the chapter and, if there is anything you think I should add/correct/change/renounce and so on in the chapter to make it better please do tell me.
Ja ne ^-^
Sara Blake
P.S. I didn't had my laptop for a while so if I didn't answered some personal messages or the such in the meantime I'm really sorry!~_~
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PUSH THE BOTTON~ COME ON, YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO~ ^,^