Prologue
This is the story of the second Potter child. It started on the 30th of October, the day she was born. The next day, her parents were dead.
October 31st-Godric's Hollow
The baby was asleep in her cradle. Lily was exhausted, but a combination of happy energy and stubbornness had her up and about. James was entertaining Harry while Lily wrote letters to her friends and family announcing the birth of their daughter. Lily got up and yawned, casting a guilty glance at the stack of letters waiting to be sent. She would send them tomorrow, she resolved. She checked to make sure Lena was still asleep. Lily planted a kiss on her forehead and went downstairs to put Harry to bed. He was laughing and attempting to catch the wisps of colored smoke James was causing to erupt from his wand. She bent down to pick up Harry. James kissed his son and wife as they went upstairs. He yawned. It had been an eventful twenty-four hours, and he hadn't gotten nearly enough sleep. Suddenly, the door crashed open. James was instantly awake, adrenaline pumping through his veins.
" Lily, he's here! Take the kids and go!", he shouted, running into the foyer. The last thing James Potter saw was a flash of green light. Lily was terrified. Her wand wasn't in her pocket.
"Stupid!" she said hysterically through her sobs. She piled furniture against the door. It was Harry he was after, but she knew he wouldn't hesitate to kill all of them. She saw a flash of green light from underneath the door. "Pull yourself together!" she thought, even though her heart was breaking. The door exploded, splinters soaring everywhere. She threw her body in front of the cradles.
"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"
"Stand aside, you silly girl...stand aside, now."
"Not my children, please no, take me, kill me instead-"
"This is my last warning-"
"Not Harry! Please...have mercy….have mercy...not Harry! Not my Lena! Please- I'll do anything!"
"Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!
Green light enveloped her form. She fell to the ground with a thud. The child he had come for stared at the hooded figure with an inquisitive expression. The sibling was awake, and Voldemort noticed that her eyes were open and focused, something unusual in a child of her age. Neither of them were crying. He pointed his wand at the boy's face, watching in disgust as his face crumpled into a scowl. A high-pitched cry started up in the boy's throat. He had never liked the whining of small children at the orphanage, and it was a peeve he had retained. For the third time that night he shouted the curse. But this time, something went wrong. It rebounded upon its caster. He was in pain, excruciating pain…
Lucius Malfoy felt his master's presence die. He apparated at the Potter's house. The smoking remains were not even a minute old, yet he could feel death radiating from the place like light from a beacon. He was about to trudge away when he heard a child's cry from underneath the rubble. He stepped closer, cautiously. The cry was louder and more urgent this time. Lucius pulled out his wand and levitated wreckage from the source of the sound. He found a pair of cribs side by side, the closer of the two contained a boy, a cut the shape of lightning was oozing blood slowly down his temple. The Potter boy, he thought with a mixture of disgust and wonder. It was the contents of the second cradle which were if possible, even more intriguing. A small girl. Wisps of flaming red hair stuck out in odd directions, and it was from her mouth that the piercing screams came. She couldn't have been more than a day old, but her eyes were focused and furious. The name Lena was painted on the side of her crib in flowing cursive. He thought of Narcissa back at home, who had only yesterday had her third miscarriage. He bundled up the small girl in his cloak. He had no idea of the trouble this small act of kindness would bring..