Princess Sunburst

Two sets of emerald eyes met while they were returning up to the bank’s ground floor along with Bill, Fleur, and Griphook. Apollonia could not be certain of what her brother was thinking, though she hoped it had something to do with the funerals tomorrow. As much as no one wished it to be so, tomorrow was Andromeda’s day to grieve. It was those funerals that made Apollonia want to do this; to return Andromeda to the family she lost. She nudged her brother. “What’s the plan?” she asked. “To what extent do you plan on shaking up the Wizarding World?”

“As much as I can,” Harry said.

Apollonia had her suspicions as to what her brother was planning. Though, she couldn’t say for sure if that was true. The only way that confirmation could be made was when Harry talked to Ragnok. Fortunately, she didn’t have to wait to long to figure it out, as Ragnok was waiting for the group to arrive. “Are all the vaults to your satisfaction?” the goblin queried.

“For the most part,” he replied.

“Is there any other business we can help you with, Lord Potter-Black?” the bank director asked Harry. As Apollonia soon noticed, the goblin seemed as accommodating for Harry as he was for her.

This was the chance Apollonia and Harry needed. This was the best way for the siblings to segue into the Black family shake-up. Apollonia glared at her brother, thus forcing him to mention the plan to the goblins. “Director Ragnok,” Harry said, “in regards to the Black family, I’d like to make a few adjustments. Andromeda Tonks, Nymphadora Tonks, Teddy Lupin, and Sirius Black should be welcomed back into the family. And, I would like Bellatrix Lestrange (nee Black) to be removed from the family after the Lestrange vault is collapsed and spread between the Tonks and Lupin vaults and the fund to rebuild Hogwarts.”

“Yes, Lord Potter-Black. It will be done,” Ragnok said.

Apollonia looked at her brother in surprise. This was not at all what the Slytherin expected to come from her brother’s request. Especially only taking Bellatrix from the family. “You don’t plan on disowning Regulus, Narcissa, or Draco?” Apollonia asked him.

“Each of them helped us in the war,” Harry shrugged. “Regulus had the locket stowed away in Grimmauld Place for years and, though I had to go through Umbridge to get it after ‘Dung sold it, it was still one of the easiest horcruxes for me to obtain; Narcissa helped keep me alive during my confrontation with Voldemort and protected you during the war; and her son gave me the opportunity to destroy Voldemort and protected you, even after learning that we were related. Speaking of, you’re the only reason that I’m not eliminating them from the Black family. If not for you, they’d already be gone. I’ve never liked them and would have gotten rid of them immediately if you weren’t around to stand up for them.”

There was no way that Apollonia could have expected that Harry would do something like that for her. If Harry planned on removing Bellatrix from the family, then he would probably have done the same to Draco and Narcissa because they were so antagonistic towards him. “You might want to get to know them,” Apollonia suggested. “Maybe then you’ll see what I do. Maybe you’ll understand just how much I’ve trusted them.” It was since she was twelve in which Apollonia had Narcissa and Draco Malfoy in her corner, helping her through the last six years of her life. And, it always proved to be good decision. They were always around to help, always around to give their support to the young Snape.

“Doubt that’ll happen,” Harry muttered.

As true as that statement was, Apollonia did not want to believe it. There had to be some way for the young Snape to convince her brother to accept that Draco and Narcissa were a part of his life; even without Apollonia’s connection to them, they were still a part of his life. Harry was a part of the Black family along with Draco, Narcissa, Andromeda, and Teddy. And family needed to stick together, no matter what. I’ll find a way to convince Harry, she thought. As much as Harry hates them, I know that a part of him will care.

***

Apollonia found herself seated in between George and Andromeda when it came time for the funeral; George on her left, Andromeda to her right. Harry was seated on the other side of Andromeda, with Teddy on his knee. To Apollonia’s surprise, even Ron was within feet of her; though he chose to say nothing to the Slytherin. While he accepted that Apollonia was Harry’s twin sister, it still didn’t mean that he would stay anywhere near the young Snape for longer than a few hours; he still hated her with such an abiding passion. It was really starting to annoy Apollonia, for she hadn’t been back to the Burrow in the last few days.

While she was comforting Andromeda over her loss, Apollonia could sense the presence of someone watching over her. Out of the corner of her eye, the Slytherin spotted the tell-tale pale, almost-whitish blond hair and pointed features; Draco and Narcissa were sitting just behind her. “You and Narcissa decided to come?” Apollonia asked the Malfoy heir.

“Mother insisted that we come pay our respects,” Draco confirmed.

“And you wanted to come see me,” Apollonia assumed.

“Well, yes; there’s that too,” he admitted.

“And the perfect time for a family reunion,” the Slytherin grinned. Apollonia doubted that Harry was aware of the people sitting behind him. Even Andromeda might not know, though she supposed that it had a lot to do with her being estranged from her sisters for so many years that she didn’t realize that Narcissa and Draco were around. But, the last remnants of the Black family were currently sitting within inches of one another, whether all of them were aware of it or not. It was her best chance at having them reconnect.

Over the next hour and a half, Apollonia spread her time between comforting Andromeda, making sure George did nothing stupid, and planning the best way to have the Black family reunite. It was the longest hour and a half of her life, which ended the second all three were lowered into the ground. Andromeda burst into tears and it was up to Apollonia to help the Black woman through her grief, with the young Snape giving the older woman a comforting hug. She met her brother’s gaze as she was doing so and mouthed two words: “It’s time.” While it would never cause Andromeda to get past the deaths of her husband, daughter, and son-in-law, bringing her back into the family might lessen the blow.

The graves were covered and condolences were given to an inconsolable woman by everyone who came to pay their respects. It was to Apollonia’s luck that they did not stick around too long, leaving only Harry, Apollonia, Andromeda, Teddy, Draco, Narcissa, Hermione, and the Weasleys at the gravesite. The Weasleys—all save George, which was expected by now—chatted amongst themselves while Harry turned to face Apollonia. The look on her brother’s face confirmed one thing; Harry was livid at the Malfoys’ appearance. “What are the Malfoys doing here?” he hissed. “What possible reason could they have for being here?”

“They’re family,” Apollonia argued.

“Not really,” Harry muttered.

Apollonia elbowed her brother. “Don’t you dare start with that, Harry. This is neither the time nor the place for you complain about either of them. Not at a funeral, especially this one. Actually, while I’m thinking of it, isn’t there something you should be doing?” she asked Harry.

Her brother nodded. “You might want to take Teddy then.”

Removing her godson from her brother’s arms, Apollonia cradled Teddy in her arms as Harry prepared to give the grieving widow the news. The Snape looked down sadly at her turquoise-haired godson. “I wish your parents were here,” she said softly to the little boy. “Especially your mum; I got used to chatting with her on a regular basis.” Apollonia regretted not contacting Tonks during the eleven years between meetings; things might have been different if she had, like Draco actually knowing his cousin and non-crazy aunt.

“Andromeda, I want to talk to you about something,” Harry said.

“What might that be?” Andromeda asked.

“I was having a chat with Apollonia shortly after the final battle and, while she was proving to me that the two of us were siblings, it occurred to me that my grandmother was your great-aunt. After Sirius died at the Department of Mysteries, I was made the head of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black,” Harry began. “In the past, the house has been considered rather dark, known for their interests in the Dark Arts. My intent is to change that belief, to make the House of Black into something respectable. Now, I know it’s not going to be much of a comfort after everything that happened with the final battle, but I’ve welcomed you back into the family; both you and Teddy.”

Apollonia smiled weakly as the reinstated Black woman engulfed Harry into a tight hug. “Thank you, Harry. I…” The rest of the conversation was drowned out by her godson’s cries.

“Is that…?”

The young Snape calmed her godson down and turned around. “Yes, Draco. This is your cousin’s son. Maybe if you had gotten to know your aunt, you might have known what type of person Dora was.”

“Father wouldn’t have allowed it,” he replied.

“You think I care about what Lucius would have allowed, Draco!” Apollonia hissed. “Your father is the reason that Dad was even involved in the war; he was the one who recruited Dad into the folds of the Death Eaters! You know that, right? My entire life was warped because Lucius fucking Malfoy decided he was going to recruit my father into the darkness; he’s the reason for that mark on both yours and my father’s arms, the reason that my life got so fucked up. Did you know that, if not for me and Mum, he might have stayed like that? I hate your father; he’s the reason I lost my parents, specifically my mother when Dad handed the first half of the prophecy to Voldemort.” She was shaking, trying to keep a grip on Teddy as she took out all of her frustrations on Draco for what his father did to her.

“I am aware of this, you know,” Draco reminded her.

“Well I have to say it,” the young Snape argued. “You have no idea of how much pain I went through, how much suffering your father dealt me. He nearly turned me into a Death Eater, against my father’s wishes. And that would have destroyed any chance I had at having a relationship with my brother. You have no idea how close I came to my brother not accepting me, even after all the work I put into helping him win the war. I thought for sure that he would still hate me for all the trouble Dad caused him over the years. It was simply happenstance – a miracle – that Harry accepted me as the only real family he had left.”

“I would have killed him if he didn’t,” Draco told her.

“Thanks for the vote of support,” Apollonia muttered. It wasn’t really going to help that much however; Draco and Harry were never going to get along with one another. While they both accepted that they were each a part of her life, it didn’t mean that they wanted to become friends. Harry was against everything Draco believed in. I always knew there was going to be a problem with this, she thought, looking between Harry and Draco. How am I ever supposed to have a normal life when the two people I care about most in the world hate each other? And, what of Teddy? She looked down sadly at the turquoise-haired little boy; he needed to know what was left of his family: her, Harry, Andromeda, Narcissa, and Draco. That was impossible if Draco and Harry couldn’t get along.

Harry and Andromeda came towards Apollonia, causing a sudden POP of apparition to resound behind her; Draco had disappeared. Out in the distance, another POP could be heard, which Apollonia could only assume was Narcissa. And now that both remaining Malfoys were gone, Apollonia needed to focus on Andromeda and the news Harry just gave her about what was done. “How are you feeling, Andromeda?” the young Snape asked.

“I’ll never be the same,” Andromeda admitted sadly. “I lost my husband and daughter because of this war. Not even being readmitted into the family that shunned me for what I wanted with my life can change that, even if it will help me cope. I only have Teddy left.”

“Did Harry tell you the other thing?” she asked.

“What would that be?” Andromeda wondered.

“The Lestrange vault is being collapsed and given to you and Teddy,” Apollonia explained, wondering why her brother said nothing of this. “Harry decided that it was high time to eliminate her from the family. Given all the pain she caused—killing Sirius and Dora—I think it was for the best.” Apollonia was glad she never met Bellatrix Lestrange. Otherwise, she would have killed the woman where she stood for everything that happened. Not going back to Malfoy Manor since the summer before sixth year was definitely for the best. By the time it was time for winter break, Apollonia realized that Harry was her brother and was ready to destroy Bellatrix for killing Sirius and subsequently hurting Harry.

“She’s out of my life forever then?” Andromeda asked.

Apollonia nodded, handing Teddy back over to his grandmother. “I wanted her destroyed for all that she did to your family, to her own family; killed your cousin twenty-three months ago and then your daughter just a few weeks ago. It’s despicable is what it is.”

“Understand how pleased I was when Molly killed her?” Harry asked. “Nothing in the world could have pleased me more than to see the woman gone. And everything else is just icing on the cake.”

That was true. After hearing that Dora was killed—and by her own aunt, too—the one thing that Apollonia wanted to see was Bellatrix gone. And that was exactly what she got; Molly killed Bellatrix to protect her daughter. But still, the damage had been done; Dora was gone. Teddy was an orphan because his great-aunt thought of nothing but herself. “It shouldn’t have happened,” Apollonia mumbled. “I get that Dora wanted to protect the world from Voldemort’s wrath, but did she have to do it at the cost of Teddy having a mother?”

“I wish she thought of that as well,” Andromeda said.

“Eleven years wasted,” the Slytherin mumbled. “And, to think, I had all that time in which we could have communicated. What the hell was I thinking?” It was only when the war was in full force – after Dumbledore made the arrangements for the two old acquaintances to meet about her part in helping with the war effort – that Apollonia truly got the chance to know her former baby-sitter. And, it was because of that friendship with the metamorphagus that Teddy was now her godson. There was still a part of Dora in the world, though it was not the same as having her around. “What was I thinking?” the Slytherin wondered. “How could I have ever forgotten someone for eleven years, especially someone so distinctive?”

“Indeed,” Andromeda chuckled.

Apollonia eyed the older woman, wondering what she was talking about. “I have no idea what you’re talking about?” the young Snape admitted. “Could you maybe explain?”

“Think carefully, Ms. Snape,” Andromeda prodded.

Apollonia did as she was told; racking her brain for any sense of what was said. However, she could not find it. There was nothing the Slytherin could think of that might explain any of this. “I really don’t…” And then it hit her like a ton of bricks, just as Teddy’s hair flashed to canary yellow for a brief flicker of a moment. She knew what Andromeda was trying to say, something that the teen blocked out from her childhood. “He…he…he…” she stammered.

“You remember now, don’t you?” Andromeda asked.

Apollonia nodded. “If he wasn’t already gone, I’d kill him.”

“I’m confused here,” Harry said, reminding them of his presence. “Would someone mind telling me what the hell is going on here; perhaps why my sister would like to kill someone who’s already dead?”

Too livid to even speak, even to her brother, Apollonia allowed Andromeda to regale Harry with the story; though, Apollonia would have to fill in the blanks. “Shortly after your parents graduated from Hogwarts, I happened upon a young man interested in learning a little in healing. The recent graduate was taken on and spent a year working there to learn what he could, specifically in regards to Potions. Yes, Harry; you know who I’m talking about. During that time when he was studying at St. Mungo’s, we became rather close; close enough that, when his daughter was born, he asked if I would play nanny to her when he started teaching at Hogwarts. Throughout the week, your sister was with me while her father taught at Hogwarts. And that continued up until she was eleven; I was with her during the week, and her father was around on the weekends and during the summer,” Andromeda explained to the savior of the Wizarding World. “The pattern was like that until she was eleven…well, all except for one week where I caught dragon pox.”

Apollonia snarled at that. “He didn’t even have the decency to remind me that I met Tonks before that; that she was my nanny’s daughter. I could have been even closer to Tonks than I was if he had just told me. But, he didn’t. All that mattered at the time was me misbehaving to teach three errant students a lesson. Nor does he bother to remind me about her anytime afterwards,” Apollonia hissed. She looked at her brother. “Harry, do you realize that I’ve spent more time with your family members than you have; Draco, Narcissa, Andromeda, and Tonks?”

“It crossed my mind,” Harry shrugged.

How much sense does that make though?” she asked. “Much of my life was spent around people who are blood-related to you, yet you only spend about three months with any of them after Mum and James were killed. You spent a good chunk of your life in a place where you were never wanted, a place you were shunned and neglected. And while we’re on the subject, why couldn’t Dad have made an attempt to keep you away from the Dursleys? I might have known you better if he did what was right.” Apollonia was just so pissed with her father; he made every possible mistake in the world, from how he raised his daughter to how the war was fought. He did very little right in how he approached anything.

And, because her father didn’t think to tell Apollonia about any of this, she wasted eleven years, not being able to get to know Dora. The same went for her brother. Things could have been so much different if only her father made a few different choices. How did I forget that any of this would happen? It was so obvious, so why didn’t she remember any of this? And what did her father have to gain by keeping any of this from her?

“I think you’re taking this a little too far,” Harry said.

“Maybe that’s how you see it,” Apollonia said. “However, what you don’t seem to understand is that I had my life ruined by two people: my father and Lucius Malfoy. Well, more so Lucius than Dad though; Dad wouldn’t have done any of this if not for the one who recruited him.” Apollonia had her own share of hardships, mostly dealing with the actions of others that cost her the chance to know people she cared about. Sadly, she didn’t know how she was ever going to work through this, how she’d ever get past what her father and Lucius Malfoy did to her.

“No, this is definitely going too far,” Harry asserted.

Apollonia chose not to answer, instead apparating away from the gravesite. There was something that she needed to do, something she didn’t want Harry to know about; she doubted he knew that it was even in her possession. Upon apparating out to Shell Cottage, Apollonia ran inside to retrieve the Resurrection Stone from where she stowed it. Initially, the Slytherin had no intention of using it any further than she had. But, she couldn’t bring herself to do that, not when there were so many questions she had for specific people who died. And, now seemed the best time for the questioning to take place.

Upon locating the black stone, the Slytherin turned the stone in her hand three times, bringing forth the spirit of Nymphadora Tonks-Lupin. “What the…Apollonia?” she asked.

“Hey, Tonks,” Apollonia said nervously.

“What am I doing here?” the metamorphagus asked.

“I needed to ask you something,” Apollonia explained. “Something was brought to my attention at your funeral and I feel as if I have to ask; I want to know if you know anything. In your younger years—before you entered Hogwarts—was there ever a little girl hanging around?”

The older woman shrugged. “I wouldn’t know.”

“Did you know that I was around at one point?” she asked.

There was no surprise on the metamorphagus’s face, which could only mean that Dora knew more than she was letting on; Apollonia couldn’t say for sure if the woman was aware of it, but she was definitely hiding something from her. “I wondered if you forgot,” she replied.

“You knew?” she asked. “Why not say anything?”

“The next time I saw you was not the best time to mention it, for that was my detention. And, the following time was at Dumbledore’s request, in wartimes. There was no real way for me to say anything about what Mum did for you. It was part of the reason I had you named Teddy’s godmother, because of everything I remembered about you; it wasn’t just because you had a connection to my aunt and cousin, though it did play a part. How is Teddy anyway?”

Apollonia shrugged at looked at the metamorphagus sadly. “It’s hard to say if he’ll miss you and Remus,” the girl admitted. “Between myself, Harry, and your mother though, he’ll never have a shortage of stories.” The Slytherin looked down at the stone in her hand. I might even use the stone to help Teddy. Maybe when he’s old enough to understand what happened. But, Apollonia chose not to say anything about that plan just yet, not until Teddy started asking about his parents. And there was no telling as to when that might be.

“My mother?” Tonks asked.

“Yes,” Apollonia nodded. “Both Harry and I agreed that it might be best – therapeutic if you will – for your mother to raise Teddy. After everything she lost, it seemed only fair. But, you and Remus can rest assured that Harry and I will be around to watch Teddy grow up; she’ll need our help.” That much had always been clear; Andromeda’s grief would only hinder her ability to raise her grandson, which was part of the reason that things were set up as they were. “It’s not fair that he won’t be allowed to know you or Remus.”

“Tell him we died so that he could live,” Tonks said.

Apollonia nodded. “I don’t know if that will tide him over, but I will try.” And use the stone so that Teddy can at least talk with his parents from time to time, the Slytherin decided. It was unclear as to when Teddy might start asking for his parents, but it wouldn’t hurt to be prepared for whenever that day might come. Maybe I should keep the stone on my person in case that day should come. I can’t waste any time in doing what I did today.

Upon saying goodbye and allowing Tonks’s spirit to return to the stone, Apollonia called her father out of the stone. The familiar face appeared before her, a scowl plastered on his face. “What is it now, princess?” the unpleasant man asked. “What did you want?”

“Why do you continue to lie to me, even after death?” she yelled.

“I do not know what you mean,” he replied.

“Are you kidding me?” the younger Snape screamed. “I spend the majority of my life under the guidance of Andromeda Tonks and you never said anything; then, during the one week that I’m allowed at Hogwarts, I happen to be baby-sat by my nanny’s daughter. Do you realize how unbelievably cruel that is? It’s downright mean not to mention that I knew her, especially when I was in contact with Tonks since January of sixth year.”

“And involve you in something you had no part of?” Dad questioned. “I think not. You were already a target. By giving you anymore contact with them, it could have placed you in danger. Just as you were kept away from your brother, I did the same with anyone I knew to have ties to the light.”

“Then why was she my nanny?” Apollonia asked.

“Andromeda was the one person I knew who could give an unbiased view of the world,” Dad said. “She grew up in a traditionalist pureblood family, but ran off to marry a muggleborn wizard; she was the perfect person to keep you from becoming as I did, getting drawn into the pureblood belief by those who thought themselves superior. I thought that by asking her to raise you during the year might keep you away from all of this, so that you might be sorted in Ravenclaw and wouldn’t have to deal with any of this. I did not believe that Slytherin was the place for you. But, you were placed in my old house and became as close to invisible as you could possibly get. Even so, I did not want you to become involved in the war, so I used the Malfoys as a way of protecting you, under the promise from Narcissa that you would be kept out of the war that we both knew would come.”

Even if Apollonia could understand her father’s reasoning behind all that he did, she knew that he made some terrible mistakes. One was glaringly obvious. “Dad, what if Andromeda and Narcissa were in communication with one another, never mind that the former was disowned for marrying beneath her bloodline? For all you knew, they could have.”

“Narcissa had not seen or heard from her sister since the early seventies, right when I was first starting Hogwarts,” Dad replied. “I was sure that neither of the two sisters would realize that they were both helping me raise my daughter. And they most certainly didn’t; it was not until you and the metamorphagus daughter of Andromeda’s began communicating that Andromeda realized that the same girl she helped raise was in contact with her sister.”

“I don’t actually care,” Apollonia huffed.

“You should,” her father argued.

“Maybe once I would have cared, before I realized that Harry Potter was my brother, but not anymore,” Apollonia said. “You did a lot of stupid things over the years, the most notable of which happened to be not giving me the opportunity to get to know my brother. You always said I was like Mum. Well, if I was, wouldn’t I have been able to rein in Harry’s impulsive streak; after all, you’ve always claimed that Harry was like James? Things might have been so much different if only you had allowed me to know my brother.” She scowled. “So, thanks Dad; thanks for completely ruining my life. Nothing in my life has gone right because of you and the choice you made to try and keep me out of the war.”

With that, Apollonia sent her father’s spirit back into the Resurrection Stone and surreptitiously slipped the stone into her pocket. She would deal with it later. Right now, it was best for her to go back out to the funeral, comfort Andromeda in her time of need. And there was one other thing that had to be done, something only she was capable of doing.