Authors Notes

If you are just starting out with this welcome. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed/followed/added to alerts. Please sit back and relax wit a cuppa and enjoy. We have gone back in time to meet Novella as a child and will go through her life in torture.

Chapter 4

A bang echoed throughout a dark dungeon. A door slammed and a small girl with long matted auburn hair awoke with a muffled cry. She had learnt long ago not to cry. Footsteps echoed towards her, their intensity increasing with every step they made. The girl knew the footsteps and she could tell just by the sound that the woman who they belonged to was going to beat her again.

The door to the room where the little girl cowered in the corner flew open with a streak of red, and the woman entered the room with an excruciatingly evil air of grace. A mop of wild black hair erupted throughout the room. 'What pray tell child are you doing on that floor?' Bellatrix sneered.

'I am so sorry Miss Bellatrix. So sorry, I was asleep, I have no bed so I sleep on the floor.'

Bellatrix sauntered over to her, 'Well now child that simply just won't do, will it. You are supposed to speak to your elders with respect.' The girl flew across the room as Bellatrix slapped her hard across the face. She leered at the girls body with an evil look in her eyes and kicked at her. The child whimpered. 'Ah does that hurt the poor little baby?' she sneered. 'Don't cry little one' she said as she kicked her in the stomach again. 'Get up off that floor you filthy little bitch. Lucius wants to see you.'

A shadow swept over the little girls face. She had never liked the man with the long white blonde hair. He seemed nice when he first spoke to her, but then everything changed when she grew up. She was only 11 years old now, there had been a lot of commotion over the past few weeks. She had overheard a conversation through the grate outside the room where she lived between two people, a man and a woman, she caught the name Albus Dumbledore and the word owl. Hearing the conversation brought her a little hope that maybe someone somewhere was fighting for her. From a tender age she knew these people were not her family. She had no idea who her family were all she remembered was a flash of green light and a man with black hair. She only remembered his hair though.

She winced as she stood up from the floor, holding onto her stomach she felt the bruising starting to appear on her skin from where she had been kicked. The sting of the slap still on her face, she welcomed the fact that she would not be in this woman's possession for too much longer. Even though she hated Lucius, she welcomed that she was being taken to him, maybe just maybe he will see her and change his mind about holding her captive in this evil place. After she had swilled her face in the refreshing icy cold water that Bellatrix had made appear from thin air, she straightened her scratchy sack that she was wearing, and was roughly dragged from the dark dungeon.

Coming through the door she had to shield her eyes to the brightness of the airy hallway. Footsteps came echoing down the hall 'Bella' a ladies voice spoke 'Lucius is waiting in the library.' As Bellatrix pulled her towards the library she saw a blonde haired boy with striking blue/grey eyes reading on a bench in the hall and a funny looking creature standing next to him holding a tray. The creature looked straight at her, like it was a moment of recognition, like he knew her.

9 1/2 Years Earlier...

'Dobby, I swear if you do not get in here right now, I will give you clothes, after I have beaten the hell out of you.' Narcissa shouted out as a pop rang out through the room. The small house elf appeared in front of Lucius Malfoy and his wife. 'Ah so you have finally decided to grace us with your presence you little piece of filth. This child has been taken from somewhere and given to us, I need you to look after her. Don't ever let us see her unless it is requested by my husband or myself. I want her nowhere near Draco, she is an evil child and will make my little Draco into an evil little boy. Look after it, her name is Novella. Horrible name so common, but we cant change it because she responds to it. She will live in the dungeon.'

Entering the library Bellatrix threw the child onto the floor. Lucius stood up and sauntered over to her, 'Thank you Bellatrix you may go I will call Dobby to take her back.' Bellatrix left slamming the door behind her.

At the bang of the door Novella flinched, Lucius laughed at her, 'Do get up of the floor child, no one is going to strike you not yet anyway. Now, it seems that you have had mail, I do not know how these owls have found you, but no one knows how a post owls mind works. But know this, none of these letters mean you will be rescued from here. For all intent and purpose the dungeon in Malfoy Manor is your home. I want you to know that a man will be coming to ensure you only leave the dungeon when you are required by us. People will come down from time to time, and you will receive a meal once a day, along with water. It seems we may have to move you, but I hope that won't be soon. As you are growing up, my wife will come to the dungeons along with a healer whom we trust. They will speak to you for a while and if you have any questions afterwards they will answer them for you. And know this you will not be left alone during this time my wife will be in the room with you.' Lucius told her.

'Yes, Sir, I understand. Please don't get me wrong but I don't understand why you think you will have to move me.' Novella asked politely.

'You insolent girl, when I said questions I didn't mean to me.' He barked.

'Sir, I am sorry I didn't mean to make you angry.' Novella cowered backwards slightly and flinched as Lucius stood and walked towards her.

Raising his hand he slapped her so hard across the face that she flew backwards and hit the wall with a band. She fell to the floor and lay there curled in a ball, not wanting to cry.

'Insolent, that is what you are' he sneered. 'Dobby!'

With a loud pop the elf appeared in the room. 'Take her back to the dungeons withhold her food for the day its punishment for answering back.'

Dobby walked over to where the girl was cowering on the floor and within minutes they were in the confines of the dungeon room where Novella lived. She lay down on the floor and curled into a ball. Despite her pact to herself tears ran silently down her face.

Quickly he observed her wounds, and popped out of the room. Within minutes he was back with a cloth and a bowl of warm water in his small hands.

'I have to be quick and quite Miss Novvy' he said 'Just in case they find me but I am going to clean up these cuts on your face from where they struck you.'

Dobby tenderly cleaned the cuts on Novellas face, quietly he asked her to raise the sack that she wore and applied the wet cloth to soothe the redness and bruising that had appeared. He desperately wanted to use elf magic but he knew he couldn't his evil Malfoy masters and mistresses would know he had used magic. Even though Novella knew about magic for when she was a young child Dobby had told her stories. The stories his own parents had told him when he was a young elf.

Her tears had eased of to a sniff every so often by the time Dobby was finished. He stroked her head silently and popped back out of the room. She slept fitfully until noises woke her up. She heard two men outside her door getting up off the floor she ran to the far corner off the room crouching in the corner as they entered. A single man walked into the room dressed completely in black. He had a large thin nose and greasy long black her.

'Novella' he said solemnly she got up off the floor and walked slowly over to him. He magically appeared two chairs out of thin air, and placed the opposite each other in the middle of the room. 'Please sit.' he said to gesturing towards one of the chairs.

She sat down quietly and nervously. The man sat opposite her. 'Now child, my name is Severus Snape, and I have been asked here today to speak to you. I help people who have problems with their minds, now please I want you to just relax don't move an inch and don't speak, look right at me.' Severus said to her, he could tell the child was scared and he wanted to know why, he viewed the small marks on her face, and had the inclination of where they came from.

Gently he jumped into her mind, probing for answers he saw the most recent memories inside her head, Bellatrix beating her black and blue Lucius striking her so hard she hit the wall, he saw Dobby tended to her afterwards, but delving deeper until he saw what he was really looking for a man who looked like James with Lily's eyes, a scar shaped like lightening on his forehead rounded glasses, with a red headed woman. A castle in the distance. There were no words spoken just a forlorn look on there faces. He knew she had had a vision in her dreams a vision and not known about it, this man was her younger brother in the future, the woman possibly his wife she had a Weasley look about her. The castle in the distance was Hogwarts he knew that place anywhere. 'I must see Albus about this' he thought to himself as he left her mind.

'Novella, I hope that you continue to stay as safe as you can. Please don't give them any cause to harm you further.' Severus said to her as he stood up from the chair. He felt compassion towards this child he knew where she came from he felt he had to protect her for Lily in the way that the Malfoys were protecting her for darkness he protected her for the light. Yes she was the spawn of his long dead enemy but she was also the daughter of his true love. He did everything in the name of Lily Potter. 'Now child drink this and lay down.' he handed her a potion vial filled with a dreamless sleep potion, she drank it and laid down on the sacks that she used for a bed. He crouched next to her and waited while she fell asleep. As she drifted into a deep dreamless sleep he stroked her head and whispered. 'Child I will protect you as much as I possibly can until the day I die, I will protect you.' He stood and turned with a swirl of his black robes he left the room.

Five Years Later.

A sixteen year old woman sat nervously dressed in a black dress in a dark dungeon waiting for the black haired man to come, markings on the wall indicated the day was today. Last time he came he had talked to her about many things but today was the day he would explain why she was here. She knew she had been kept alive for a purpose but she didn't know what that purpose was. She heard a bang and footsteps along the dungeon corridor leading to her room. He entered the room with a swirl of black robes.

'Novella' he said solemnly. He noticed her face lit up as he entered the room, then suddenly darken again as she saw a flash of white blonde hair behind him.

'Severus, please don't use that awful common name' Lucius said behind him.

'I will use her name Lucius, this woman is not a play thing for the dark lord.' Severus spoke back with utter disdain in his voice. 'Leave us, I will speak to her alone, and get what I need to give to him.'

Lucius left the room slamming the door behind him. While Severus once again magically pulled two chairs out of thin air. 'Now, Novella please sit down I will talk to you once again when I have finished my job here. You know what I need to do.'

Over the years of this man's visiting her Novella knew he had been looking inside her mind for things that he needed to get. He had spoken to her after doing his job each time, as she grew older he told her about her parents, their names were Lily and James, and how they had died. He had told her of a place where people like her lived without scrutiny. And he had told her that he helped in this place doing a job teaching children how to make the potions he brought for her to help her sleep easily. He had also told her that she was here for a purpose.

Sitting in front of her he once again gently delved into her mind. Probing slowly through her memories, he found one that was of interest to him, and also to the dark lord, but he knew he what he had to do. Watching it in his own mind he saw, fighting within the Ministry of Magic. Children and adults against death eaters, he saw the Weasley siblings Ron and Ginny, Potter, Granger, Longbottom and Lovegood. Order members fighting white flashes dark flashes, and him the dark lord fighting Potter in the atrium.

After seeing what he wanted to see Severus pulled out of her mind. She slumped forwards and he caught her in his arms. Her eyes glazing over and staring at him blankly.

'He will return tonight, the one who fought death with the last breath in his body will return tonight. Harry Potter will fight him and Cedric Diggory will die. He will return tonight.' Her voice was raspy it was not her voice.

A vision had over taken her while he was in the room, as suddenly as it happened it was gone. He had to take this information to Albus. Without a moment to lose he laid her down on the floor, got rid of the chairs and administered the dreamless sleep potion, he would have to speak to her next time he was there, as Novella slipped into a dreamless sleep he swirled around and left the room.

'Lucius I have information and will give it to the dark lord upon his return, I have to go I have work to mark before my lessons tomorrow.' Sweeping out of the door he apparated before reaching the top of the stairs.

Appearing outside Hogwarts a few minutes later he ran through the gates, and towards the front door of the castle.

Back at Malfoy Manor Lucius Malfoy watched thin air where Severus had just been, he wondered what the man had seen inside the girls mind. He would just have to wait and see, he knew that the return of the dark lord was imminent but he didn't know anything else, and he hated that he was not part of the inner circle any more.

Authors notes

Sorry its taken a while to get this up, I've had a few appointments that have taken over my life and I am preparing for surgery which hopefully will leave me with little pain and recovery. Next chapter will see a leap through time and see Novella as a grown woman. Thanks for reading and for the reviews they are truly appreciated.

~Mary~