The Potter household was in celebration. Their first child, Harry James Potter, had been born on January 1, 1976. Everything was perfect; James and Lily were happy, and the family friends even more so. But in 1981, another pregnancy was announced. However, this one did not bring the same joy as the war had reached its critical point.
A prophecy was made. A child would have the power to destroy the Dark Lord, and it was believed that the Potter's child would be the one to bring an end to the reign of terror. Fearing for his children and wife, James Potter decided to go into hiding until Lily gave birth.
The peace was short-lived. On October 31, 1981, Lily went into labor. Some members of the Order helped with the birth of Sam Evans Potter, the second heir. Weeks passed, and one night, everyone in the Potter mansion felt the cold air seeping through the windows, and they smelled blood.
Lily looked out the window and saw him: dressed in black like a starless sky, tall and thin. She knew immediately that Voldemort had discovered the prophecy and had come to solve this potential problem. The mansion's door was shattered when the dark figure entered, a pressure felt as if the ocean were pressing down on her. She froze at the foot of the stairs until James shouted.
"Lily, take Harry and Sam and run. I'll hold him off."
Lily didn't question it. She knew James didn't stand a chance. She had to make it worthwhile and ran up the stairs to the boys' room. From above, she heard a cry of pain from James.
The witch rushed into the room and locked the door. At that moment, young Harry looked at his mother, frightened by the noises from downstairs. His brother cried in the crib. Lily grabbed Harry in her arms and would have done the same with Sam if the door hadn't opened.
"Good evening, Mrs. Potter. I hope I'm not disturbing your night," said Lord Voldemort, his voice cold and devoid of any empathy. He was a real monster.
Lily couldn't think in his presence. She couldn't see his face, just a shadow and his vibrant red eyes. It was terrifying to stand before the Dark Lord.
"Please... spare my children... they wouldn't be... threats to you," she pleaded, kneeling on the floor. It was all she could do in that moment. Even with her wand in hand, it was impossible to fight Voldemort; she knew that well.
With a horrible laugh, the Dark Lord extended his hand towards her, and it felt as if the weight of the world was on her shoulders. The lack of air was unbearable. When she realized, she was floating in mid-air and was thrown against the bedroom wall, breaking it. Her last vision was the dark figure approaching her sons.
Harry saw everything that thing did to his mother, but the five-year-old boy felt no fear, only hatred. He stood in front of his brother's crib. The Dark Lord merely laughed at the child's foolish courage. For the first time, his wand was drawn. The poor boy didn't stand a chance before being thrown like his mother. At that moment, Voldemort reached the crib and saw the supposed "chosen one" and uttered the words,
"Avada Kedavra."
The green flash illuminated the entire house. When Lily awoke, she struggled to her feet and went to the crib. Her son was unharmed. She didn't understand what had happened. Had the Dark Lord changed his mind? Had someone stopped him? In the corner of the room lay her other son. Lily rushed to him, fearing the worst, but he was alive, just unconscious. She picked him up and placed him on the armchair in the corner of the room. When she looked back, there was a burnt silhouette of the dark figure.
Hearing noises downstairs, Lily grabbed her wand and ran. From the stairs, she saw the other members of the Order entering the house with Dumbledore, who said,
"We need to talk."
Weeks passed after Voldemort's attack on the Potter house. His death made the front pages of every wizarding newspaper and magazine. Everyone was celebrating. Sam Evans Potter was hailed as the savior of the wizarding world.
The Potters were recovering well. It was discovered that Peter Pettigrew, a close family friend, had sold information about various light wizards, causing many deaths.
A year had passed since the death of the Dark Lord and the fall of the Death Eaters. The wizarding world was finally at peace. Unfortunately, it wasn't the same for little Harry Potter, who had apparently become just a background member of the family.
There were no more bedtime stories, no hugs or games. All that mattered now was Sam's well-being. Harry didn't mind the lack of affection and concern from his parents. The boy spent his days in the library reading. If they had paid more attention to him, they might have noticed that the boy had taught himself to read.
That same night, Harry woke up thirsty and went downstairs to get a glass of water. He overheard voices in his father's office. Curiosity got the better of him, and he stopped by the slightly open door to hear something he didn't need to.
"We can't keep Harry here," said a man Harry didn't recognize. "He hasn't had any accidental magic incidents so far. The boy is a Squib," said another, identified as his father.
"Even so, we can't just leave him anywhere," said his mother. "There are still Death Eaters loose. Who knows what they'll do if they find out about Harry?" said another unknown voice. "What should we do, Dumbledore?" the same unknown voice asked.
Silence filled the room as Albus considered the options available. Then he decided,
"Lily, do you still keep in touch with Lady Winters?"
Lily was silent for a while before responding,
"It's been a long time since I last sent her a letter, but I can try."
As soon as she finished speaking, the same unknown voice shouted,
"Cassandra is a terrible choice, Dumbledore. She's completely unhinged."
Cassandra Winter, a pure-blood, had become friends with Lily at Hogwarts. However, noble obligations had complicated the relationship, and over time, it had become almost nonexistent.
Seeing that the conversation was coming to an end, Harry returned to his room and sat on the bed, brooding over everything he had heard.
Why did they want to get rid of him?
Would they miss him?
Was it really necessary?
And so Harry's night went, thinking...
Days later, in the afternoon, Harry heard a knock on the door.
"Come in," said the boy.
His mother and father entered the room and started to speak,
"Look, Harry, we really love you, but we can't take care of Sam perfectly with you here," said James. Then Lily said,
"We talked to a friend of ours. She's willing to take care of you for a few months until we can manage."
They watched the boy's reaction, but there was none. He looked at them with an expression of boredom.
Those green eyes shone; it was like looking into space, and they were terrifying. They felt fear. Without thinking, they headed for the door, only to stop at the boy's voice,
"After I leave... I never want to see you again," he said with a coldness that was impossible for a child. Lily and James just stared at their son before finally leaving the room.
It was a Monday when the mansion doors were opened for the woman to enter. Harry's first impression was that she was a giant. Lily soon called the woman to the office. The conversation was brief. The two soon returned to the mansion's entrance, where Harry was already with his suitcase. He took a closer look at this Cassandra.
The first thing he noticed was that she was very tall, with green eyes and dark hair reaching her waist. Her skin was as white as ivory, and her face had a diamond shape. The woman bent down to try to reach the boy's height but still remained taller than him.
The woman's face, which had previously shown anger, was now replaced with a smile.
"What's your name?" she asked, even though she already knew.
"Harry Potter, ma'am," the boy replied.
Still smiling, the woman picked Harry up effortlessly, scaring him a little.
"You'll stay with me now. My name is Cassandra Winter," she said, and the boy just nodded.
Cassandra turned and looked directly at Lily,
"I hope you never look for me again, Lily. I'm ending our friendship," she said with a cold and aggressive tone.
Lily was startled by Cassandra's voice,
"I won't," she said before reentering the Potter mansion.
---
**Winter Mansion**
It was elegant and dark inside. The furniture was made of shiny reddish wood. The stairs were made of the same wood. Everything was beautiful and dark-toned. Cassandra showed Harry his room. It was exactly like the rest of the house, with red wooden furniture and black walls.
"Do you like it?" she asked.
"It's very beautiful, like the rest of your house, Mrs. Cassandra," replied the boy.
The woman felt bad for the little boy. She could understand James; he had always been an irresponsible idiot. But Lily, she couldn't understand. The girl had always said she wanted children, and now that she had them, she just threw one away.
"Harry James Potter, that's the name Lily and James gave you, and I don't like it. So I'll give you a new name."
Harry was a little upset by this; after all, he liked his name. However, after thinking about it, he decided it was better to get rid of it.
"What name do you like?" he asked.
Saying that Cassandra