Chapter Text
From his desk Dumbledore admired the view outside his office window. It was his long held belief that Hogwarts’ grounds were at there most splendid during the height of the summer season. He regretted that most of her students never saw the castle at this time. Alumni could arrange visits in the summers but rarely took advantage of it as this was not a widely known privilege. Dumbledore had encouraged this ignorance in the name of security after Tom’s interview all those years ago. He felt it wouldn’t do to risk someone bringing dark artifacts onto the grounds or placing curses as Tom had done. Because these souls could not be trusted all had to do without.
Keeping his focus on the splendor of Hogwarts at the start of July helped Dumbledore to endure the pain of Severus’ examination of his hand. It was only when the work was finished that he allowed his attention to return to what was happening in his office.
Looking to Severus’ expression told him everything he needed to know.
“The curse progresses then.”
Grim faced as always his potion Master agreed, “I’m sorry Headmaster but-”
“It will claim my life,” Dumbledore said sparing Severus from saying it.
“Yes.”
Dumbledore frowned. Looking down at the black withered flesh of his right hand he allowed himself a moment of melancholy and fear. He let himself feel it as the last ember of hope he had fostered was snuffed.
With his eyes still on his hand the dying man requested, “If you do not mind, I believe I would like some time to myself.”
But Severus did not acquiesce. He remained, silent and watchful.
Raising his head Dumbledore looked away from the evidence of his weakness to study the still relatively young man who stood studying him in return. There was a range of emotion Severus was looking to suppress of which Dumbledore could only catch glimpses and guess the motivations behind. It was a sign of how affected Severus was that any emotion showed at all on the capable spies face. Despite all his experience death was something which could still effect him.
No matter these feeling, in the end Severus said very little.
“Very well,” he allowed, finally accepting Dumbledore’s request. With great self discipline Severus collected his supplies in an orderly fashion. Unhurried but not lingering he proceeded before taking his leave.
Pausing at the door he looked back to hold Dumbledore’s gaze for a moment. Allowing his sincerity to show he said, “I am sorry Headmaster,” before making his exit.
Sighing, Dumbledore leaned back in his chair.
Turning his head to the side he returned to looking out at the view.
Hogwarts in the summer. He wondered if this would be the last he experienced it or if perhaps he might live long enough to see it again the coming year. He thought he might. If he was careful. Certainly more careful than he had been to put himself in this position.
Dumbledore had thought himself grown in his old age but it seemed his faults had not faded alongside his youth. The lore of the Deathly Hallows and their abilities still called to him. Having what he thought was the stone in hand, he ignored the wisdom of caution and put the ring in which it was set on his finger allowing the curse which would claim his life to take possession of the limb. He had not even shown the forethought to risk his non-dominate hand. As such not only would his mistake be the death him but in the months to come his wand hand would be all but lost to him as using it for casting would only speed along the curse.
What made his failure worse to bare was that in the end it was not the resurrection stone he had found. The stone and the ring had proven to be a ruse, left behind to mock him or any other who came looking. Dumbledore suspected that once the true ring had rested in the Gaunt home. He believed that it had been moved by Tom, likely after his return to the living. If he had thought to collect one of his hocruxes he had likely collected the others as well. Taking them to where, Dumbledore did not know, leaving him at a loss as to where he should search.
Outside the sun shined brightly on the peaceful landscape. In the distance Hagrid could be seen making the long trek from the castle down to his hut. Their Care Professor and Grounds Keeper had returned to Hogwarts alongside Dumbledore to much celebration despite the relatively short time they had been away. Grawp however remained at the property Mister Potter had procured for him.
When Hagrid returned from his mission with his half brother Dumbledore had hoped that things would work out for them, that love and family could prevail. His optimism it seemed was not misplaced in this matter for according to Hagrid Grawp was improving in his understanding of English and in matters of ‘knowing his own strength.’ Sadly his hopes that perhaps between himself and Severus they would come up with something to deal with the curse had not born such fruit.
Dumbledore had known all along that there might be little they could do to keep him alive. He had begun to accept that he would be dying by telling himself that what mattered was not his impending death but the work that would need to be completed in the days he had left. Thankfully some of these matters had been resolving themselves since the events at the Ministry with little effort on his part.
He had gone with the aurors to Malfoy manor as to assure Narcissa knew that she had no need to keep up her cover. Beyond their initial conversation he had not been allowed to speak with her nor to take part in the raid. Narcissa was taken into custody where she told the Aurors all they needed to know about the manor before beginning their raid. The damage wrought to the home by the Dark Lord shocked even the seasoned members of the auror forces. What they found in the dungeon even more so. Members from all walks of magical society -witch, wizard, and other- had been kept by the Tom. Many of those who had gone missing over the last year were there to be found with tales of horror to share.
At the very back of cells kept on his own was Peter Pettigrew. Once he was sat at the interrogation table the former Order member shared all regarding his involvement with the Dark from spying on the Light and betraying the Potters to escaping justice and living as Scabbers with the Weasleys, the events at Hogwarts after Sirius’ escape, and bringing about the Tom’s resurrection. With his confession acquired Peter faced justice under Ministry law. While he headed to Azkaban Sirius’ name was finally cleared though he refused to hand himself over until declarations were made that he was forgiven for escaping custody not once but twice and being an illegal animagus.
It was Harriet who ensured he, Narcissa, and Snape would face no persecution and she managed this by arranging an interview with Rita Skeeter.
Since the attack on the Ministry Miss Skeeter had been championing Harriet while leading the cry for justice. She worked relentlessly to rile the public into pushing with her for harsher sentencing not only on Death Eaters but for supports of the Dark and those who had made the Ministry weak to them. She called not only for time in Azkaban but also an attack on the legacy of the guilty. While the Ministry was doing an admirable job of investigating matters Rita was working to dig up what even they couldn’t with a particular focus on the short comings of the Ministry in the past and how corruption had allowed the Death Eaters to push their agendas. She correctly pointed out that had the Death Eaters been without funds they would not have been able to bribe officials to further their cause. She wanted all Dark supporters left with little to their name. The only exceptions she made were for Narcissa and Severus who she portrayed as champions after learning from Harriet of their work for the Light.
Severus was being praised across the country for his efforts in training Harriet to duel and his work as a spy. He was a hero in the eyes of many though it made his work as a Professor at Hogwarts difficult. Among the children and family of the Dark he was looked down on as a traitor and their resentments were only made worse by how many had suffered loses with people they cared for either sent to the grave or Azkaban after their Lord’s fall. The others in the student body found it hard to believe that their Potions Professor could actually be on the side of the Light but Harriet’s friends in the D.A. defended him and brought public opinion around with their accounts of all the help he had been not only to Harriet but to all of them. Without Harriet in the school it was her friends who were her voice and so the other students listened to them accordingly.
Per John’s recommendation Harriet had been kept away from Hogwarts after her ordeal. The only ‘public’ appearances she made had been for Rita’s interview, to give testimony before the Wizengamot, to see Sirius’s public pardoning, and lastly to take her O.W.L exams. The rest of her time had been spent in the safety of Grimmauld Place until a few days prior when she moved to Privet Drive where she would remain for three weeks before returning to her Godfather’s home for the rest of the holiday.
Over all, Dumbledore was proud of how well Harriet had been handling herself in the last months. It made him optimistic that she would be able to stand with composure under the burden that would pass from his shoulders to hers as a leader of the wizarding world.
Having defeated Voldemort was already putting influence in her hands. Influence that she would need in the future. It would be Dumbledore’s priority to teach her how to wield it responsibly. He had desired that Harriet have as normal a childhood as she could, unaffected by her fame, but that was not a luxury that could be afforded going forward. With his dying it would fall to her to guide otherwise another might do so and lead people astray. Dumbledore would supervise Harriet’s rise to insure she was on the right path while surrounding her with those who could give her the support she needed while keeping her grounded.
Perhaps if he had heeded his own brother the world they lived in would be unrecognizable for its improvements.
However Harriet was not him. She did not long for power but for peace and justice. During all her years at Hogwarts she had proven this many times over. Imbalance and favoritism grated her even when it fell in her favor. She had argued against being put on the quidditch team for some time, only giving up on complaining when McGonagall gave her a month of detentions to go along with her appointment to the team. Of course she then expected Draco to receive the same as well as a lecture for taking what wasn’t his.
Dumbledore chuckled at the memory but his fond recollections turned sour with the thought of the troubles this sense of justice might cause Harriet in the real world. Sometimes, for the greater good, compromises had to be made. Dumbledore felt uncertain she would be able to handle that. It was one of the many things he would have to ensure Harriet learned before his passing.
Voldemort would be back and when he returned Harriet would have to stand against him. This second death bought her more time to prepare but the day would come. The war would begin again, of that Dumbledore was certain. When the time came Harriet would have to make a stand. His thoughts grew morose as he thought of what she might have to sacrifice to see this done.
Dumbledore would do all he could to see to it Harriet was in a position of stability and power before stepping into his shoes. He would help her until there was no longer the strength in him to do so. The first step would be regular visits to Privet Drive to begin her lessons. When the time came that the blood protections were satisfied magical training could begin in secrecy behind headquarters' wards. Sirius, Remus, and Moody would all be helping to supplement his teachings with Severus taking over for them once the school year started, continuing where he had left off in Harriet’s tutoring. With some convincing Dumbledore expected the other Professors would be willing to lend their time as well. Harriet had never been a bad student but they would need more from her going forward. She would have to become what the world was going to need from her which would require many sacrifices along the way.
While Dumbledore was considering his plans for Harriet, Snape was in his chambers considering the plans others might have for the girl.
It was his suspicion that what happened at the Ministry was the Dark Lord’s design. Snape could not say if every detail had played out to Voldemort’s liking but he expected more was in the Dark Lord’s favor than less.
For almost a year he’d been a puppet maneuvered as Voldemort desired just as all the others had. Snape had no illusions about that. As far as he was aware he had been entrusted with more information than the others but that by no means meant he was the Dark Lord’s confident. He was given only what information Voldemort felt he needed to best see to his duties. Nothing more. However he had the insight to know that whatever understanding the outside world thought they knew about the Dark Lord was laughable.
The man -if one dared call him that- presented himself in a way that was designed to be misinterpreted. He was the quintessential master manipulator playing with others who thought the game was limited to a chest board with its universally recognized set of rules. As such Severus would not claim to know with certainty why the Dark Lord had allowed his defeat at Potter’s hand but he had little doubt that it had been his choice. Any lingering doubts he might have entertained were extinguished by the accounts of that night.
The press reported verbatim every word that the Dark Lord had preached at the Ministry and it had been Voldemort that ensured they would be able to. He brought them in. He gave them an aurors’ dictation quill with which to take notes. He brought the cameras and told them which moments to capture. Lord Voldemort wanted these words known. While others saw the sentiments expressed as boasting or gloating Severus saw them for what they were. Motivation. Every word Voldemort spoke that night was designed to point out the failings of the past so they would not be repeated.
The only motivation for why Voldemort would do this that Severus would dare to gamble on was Harriet. Since his return the Dark Lord had been obsessed with the girl. One might go so far as to say he was parental with his focus on seeing her well and looked after. What better way to set the girl up for a bright future than to systematically weakened the Dark to near extinction then pose her as the next Dumbledore, a defeater of Dark Lords and beacon for the Light.
Only a few had thought to consider the possibility that the Dark Lord had arranged his death. Narcissa and Dumbledore were the only ones Severus had heard speak of it.
After his dealings at Malfoy Manor Dumbledore had come to Hogwarts to seek out Severus and whisk him away before the Aurors could come for him. They proceeded directly to headquarters where the first order of business had been that of the Headmaster asking to see Severus’ Dark Mark which shockingly to Severus had turned a shade of icey blue and cold to the touch, something previously unheard of. When he asked for answers he received a limited explanation of what had happened at the Ministry and of the ‘revelation’ of Miss Potter’s mixed being status.
When Dumbledore asked Severus about his misdiagnosis he confessed that there had been no mistake at all. He told the Headmaster of his knowing the truth all along but having been ordered and bound by vow to provide a different answer to the Order. Dumbledore questioned him further to learn what he could about what had been hidden by Severus’ vows. By the end his trust in Snape still stood. The one he found fault with was himself for not keeping track of things more personally when he knew Snape was compromised due to his work as a spy. While Snape had outwardly maintained a passive facade on the inside he was fuming with the Headmaster for not learning from his mistakes and looking more deeply at the current situation. For while Snape claimed to be free of his vows he was decidedly not. The explanation he had given was the one fed to him by the Dark Lord to be used should the truth of Harriet’s condition be discovered. Whatever ‘death’ Lord Voldemort had suffered did nothing to free Severus from his vows and the orders previously given to him.
With that matter settled Dumbledore laid down his own instructions for how Snape was to proceed going forward before they left the privacy of the Black Library so he might return to Hogwarts and be taken into Auror custody.
However Hogwarts and Dumbledore’s plan had to be put on hold as waiting for them in the kitchen had been the mutt all but frothing at the mouth. Black demanded to know how Snape could have been so mistaken in his diagnosis to which Dumbledore claimed he had been the one to ask Snape to lie. In a rare showing Sirius presented his anger with the Headmaster while telling him that if he’d thought to ask he could have gotten answers sooner.
“You know something of Harriet’s heritage,” Dumbledore asked.
Black nodded, cutting a guilty look to Lupin.
What followed was a tale that seemed utterly absurd to Severus as the mutt claimed that not only had Lily cheated on Potter but had continued to do so even after they were married. The one thing Snape found himself agreeing with the dog on was that it had to have been the work of trickery. Severus could not see Lily, loyal Lily, committing such a betrayal. When he voiced these feelings Sirius sneered at him with familiar hatred.
“But you’d know all about it won’t you,” the mutt accused.
The flea bitten mongrel had the nerve to suggest that that he was Harriet’s father, that Snape would have betrayed Lily in such a way. Black was fool enough to think Severus of all people would lower himself to take the name of Potter and taint his love for Lily by winning her for a night at a time through bewitchment. Absurd! And easily disproven as the rest of the room pointed out to the mongrel.
In his haste to find justification for his feelings towards Severus, Black had over looked one of the most obvious flaws in his hypothesis. Namely, John. John and Harriet were both Potters, kin. The blood tests which had already been conducted with no part played by Severus had confirmed this. Jon proved the identity of Harriet’s father. Whoever he was they had no reason to doubt that he was indeed a Potter from America.
Black hadn't been happy to so easily be proven wrong. He tried to argue but there was more evidence to be had. More evidence which proved how delusional his mad theory was. However like a dog with a bone, the mutt could not let it go.
Some days later at Harriet’s request a new test was done to bring the matter to a close once and for all. They carried it out using many samples including ones taken from John in order for Black to see for himself that it was not a faulty nor tampered result. In the process Snape used some Slytherin cunning to steal a sample of John’s blood which he brought back to Hogwarts for further testing of his own. The results of those tests had proven disturbing.
Jon indeed was Harriet’s kin but of a far closer relation than they’d been lead to believe.
According to Severus’ findings the boy was not Harriet’s cousin but her brother with as much active Jotunn blood in his veins as her.
Severus did not believe this was a coincidence. He believed it was the result of deception and planning. The planning of whom he did not know. Perhaps it was John’s choosing to keep his heritage and his connection to Harriet a secret. Perhaps the boy was a pawn like Severus, maneuvered into place with little to no idea of the greater scheme at hand. Maybe this was all some grand design of Harriet’s biological father. But, what seemed the most fitting explanation to Snape was that this should be some machination of his Lord who had been so invested in learning about and investigating the truth about Harriet’s heritage. Voldemort had been secure enough in his belief to claim before all that it was from her Potter blood that Harriet received her Jotunn nature. What better guard to put in place for the girl than a secret one? Could Voldemort not have found and recruited the brother or was there something else at play here? Something Severus could not think to imagine.
He did not know but his ignorance did not stop Snape from reaching a decision.
No matter what plot or plan was at play he would not speak a word of it. He would keep it secret until such a time as the Dark Lord returned and told him differently. Until that day Severus would continue do as he had been ordered and as he believe his Lord would wish of him. He would look after Harriet Potter with all that was in his power to do to keep her safe and see her strong.
And the Fates, they did smile.
Everything it seemed, was playing out towards their aims. Between her tutor, her headmaster, her champion, and the others in her life Harriet was assured to grow stronger in herself, her ability, and her position in the world with every passing year. They felt confident when the time came for the Universe to turn its attentions on Earth, their Mistress would be ready to face them all.