30th September 1981

The knock on the front door roused Severus from his chair wondering who could be at his house since few knew where he lived. Hurrying to occlude his mind in case He was at the door, Severus was brought up short when he opened the door to Narcissa Malfoy and Portia Zabini.

"To what do I owe the pleasure at such an hour?" Severus drawled, his shrewd black eyes taking in the two women, both tall and thin with an air of aristocracy about them, but one pale and blonde and the other dark skinned with smooth black curls cascading down her back.

"I need you to hide her." Portia shifted her daughter in her arms and Severus looked down at the small cloaked figure then back up to the women.

"Severus please," Narcissa pleaded. Severus rolled his eyes then took a few steps back allowing the older women into his house.

Narcissa and Portia stopped in the middle of his sitting room and Severus indicated they sit.

"How are the boys?" Severus asked pointedly as he analysed the two women. Narcissa blushed but lifted her chin, recognising the thinly veiled threat.

"Draco is well, thank you. We celebrated his first birthday a few months ago… Lucius noticed your absence." Severus kept his face impassive as Narcissa responded with her own threat.

"Lucius understands that The Dark Lord sets many tasks that his Death Eaters are not privy to." Narcissa paled and Portia brushed her hair back nervously, neither woman was a Death Eater, but both their husbands were followers.

"Severus, I would not come to you if it was not necessary," Portia cut in, shortening the clever word play between the two individuals who had both won the 'Snake tongue' prize in their respective years at Hogwarts.

"Indeed," Severus drawled, turning to face Portia and indicating she sit.

"You know He holds the prophecy of the Potter brat in high esteem-,"

"It could be either the Potter brat or the Longbottom one, but it seems The Dark Lord has chosen Potter," Severus interrupted, not hiding his distaste at the fact The Dark Lord had settled on killing Lily Potter's son and by default, Lily Potter also.

"Well, when he decided on the Potter boy I visited a Seer at my brother's insistence. She spoke a prophecy to me," Portia murmured, and Severus couldn't help but roll his eyes, but he stayed silent. "Two pure children from opposing sides a 'child with eyes of gold' and a 'child with hair of flame' will complete the Golden trio and aid The Chosen One in vanquishing the dark lord," Portia muttered.

"So a Weasley will help, amazing, what does this have to do with you?" Severus asked. Portia bit her lip and then turned her daughter around on her lap removing the cloak from her head.

Severus looked down at the girl with nothing but boredom showing on his face and he was glad he was so practiced at controlling his emotions, because the cherubic two-year old was gazing at him with bright gold eyes with her face surrounded by a mass of smooth black curls.

"When?"

"When she first displayed her magic," Portia answered.

"Why are you involving me?"

"As soon as He finds out he will have her killed Severus. Luther heard the prophecy also and laughed. I have been lucky Luther was out of the house all day yesterday while I dithered.

"Zabini was out with the Lestranges," Severus muttered absentmindedly as he analysed the girls face. She was truly a beautiful child, she had the smooth black curls of her mother and twin brother, her skin was slightly lighter than her mother's having a caramel pigment instead, but the eyes were something else entirely. Her iris started around her pupil the brightest gold and darkened steadily while flecked through with Zabini green.

"Will you help?" Portia asked, her tone almost begging.

"Why me?" Severus sighed.

"Because you know ways to change her appearance on a more long-term basis, while also being good enough at occlumency to hide her," Portia responded.

"And what of the Weasley child? You would leave them without warning?" Severus raised his eyebrow a hint of a smirk around his mouth.

"As long as the golden eyed child doesn't appear, Luther will have no need to inform The Dark Lord of the prophecy. I begged him to keep quiet, lest others start to look further into recent prophecies and draw conclusions as to why The Dark Lord was so concerned," Portia hissed. Severus nodded and began tapping his finger on his chin.

"Luther does not have the best occlumency shields Portia, The Dark Lord will know."

"And this is why I need you to hide he…and then alter my memory," Portia said resolutely.

"Okay," Severus relented. "Would you care to do the honours in sending your daughter sleep? I will glamour her and then hide her in the muggle world. At Severus' words, Portia's eyes widened and her arms tightened around her child. "Today Portia, Luther must return to find his daughter unresponsive in her bed if it is to work," Severus nearly growled.

Narcissa rolled her eyes and cast a deep-sleep charm over the child and Severus got to work. Once upon a time the Prince's had been masters of transfiguration and Potions. Severus himself favoured Potions but that didn't mean he hadn't explored every inch of transfiguration. It was with this family knowledge that he summoned one of his mother's old transfiguration tomes he had once perused and located the spell for a long-lasting glamour. When he felt Narcissa peering over his shoulder he snapped the book shut and glared at her.

"Narcissa, as I'm sure you are aware you will not be retaining any true memories of tonight nor any memories of the golden eyed child. The more involved you become the harder your obliviation will be," Severus deadpanned. Narcissa coloured a little at his tone but stepped back regardless. Given space, Severus withdrew his true wand and began murmuring the long incantation, his velvet voice smooth as a stream of blue light enveloped the girl.

Portia watched with trepidation as changes began to settle over her daughter. The most obvious change was the girl's hair. Instead of the smooth black ringlets, her hair lightened a few shades and became a wild and unruly mess of brown frizzy hair. Dark freckles appeared across her nose, and when Severus gently opened one of her eyes, the iris was a milky brown as opposed to gold or Zabini green. Severus glanced up at Portia towards the end of the spell and noticing the deep sadness within her eyes added something extra with another flick of his wand.

"What did you do, she barely looks any different?" Portia asked when she noticed the change in the wand movements followed by a green light.

"Patience Portia… I added a condition to her glamour and I see no reason to alter her appearance too drastically, she is a baby after all. At such a time when the world is safe from Him the glamour will begin to fall. I will tune the condition into your memory charms also. Do not fret He will not know," Severus spoke calmly, trying not to cause further anguish to a woman already torn.

"Thank you Severus," Portia whispered before she bent to place a lingering kiss on her daughter's forehead whispering a few words to her. "Find her a loving family… I will ensure that she is financed for."

"No need. The smaller the paper trail the better in this case," Severus cut in and Portia nodded sadly.

The final half an hour was spent in relative calm. Severus moved the sleeping infant to his bedroom as Portia summoned her elf and then Severus modified the memories of both women. When they left, it was with a watertight memory of visiting Snape for help with some household potions, which both women had done in the past. The last Portia remembered of her daughter, she had green eyes and was soundly sleeping in the cot opposite her twin brother while Narcissa had no memory or thought of a gold-eyed babe.

"Mister Snape be having a job for Nippy?" Portia's elf asked causing Severus to turn to face the elf.

"You are to aid your mistress by bringing me a 2 year old infant that has very recently deceased," Severus ordered, ignoring the deep seated unease he felt at the dark magic he would have to do. Nippy's eyes widened but she nodded and then disappeared with a crack, reappearing seconds later cradling a limp child.

"The family?" Severus asked.

"I removed the babe from a house with a dark mark sir," Nippy responded sadly. Severus just nodded before he sliced into his hand and allowed a single spot of blood to land on the child's forehead. From there he worked quick, his mouth chanting the words as his wand formed a hypnotic pattern as he glamoured the unfortunate child to look exactly as the Zabini girl did. Upon completion Severus felt a tug as the blood droplet disappeared into the girls forehead and he knew that he had tied the glamour to himself. As long as he lived the glamour would hold.

"Nippy, place the girl in the Zabini girl's crib and come back," Severus ordered. Nippy looked on sadly but did as she was bid. When she reappeared, Severus didn't hesitate to obliviate the poor thing giving her memories of falling asleep in her cupboard before she was summoned to collect potions from Severus.

With his house empty of all but the sleeping babe upstairs Severus closed his eyes to think. Few individuals knew that his father still had family and only he knew of a cousin many times removed that would raise the child well, it helped that the man his cousin had married was black and hopefully that would deflect any questions about the girl's colouring. Without giving himself more time to consider Severus collected the infant and disapparated to the childless home of his fourth cousin Mary Granger.

"Hello?" The woman asked politely as she opened the door. Severus had never made himself known, but knew of the woman's struggles to bear children. Pointing his wand carefully he imperioed the woman so she allowed him into her house then he set about altering her memory.

Severus turned away from cousin's his house having implanted a series of strong memory charms over the couple that made them believe that the girl was their true born daughter and that they were moving away to open their own dentist surgery. He knew that the Granger's had few friends and no other family and so before he left he snagged some information regarding their bank accounts and fabricated a letter to The Granger's that would inform them they would be receiving a monthly stipend from a silent investor into their practice.

When he popped into existence at his house Severus threw up wards that would turn away anyone who would darken his doorstep that evening save for Albus Dumbledore and The Dark Lord.

***TZT***

It was a few days later when news trickled down that the Zabini's eldest daughter had been discovered dead. Crowded around the Malfoy dining room table Severus kept his face impassive and his occlumency shields watertight as he listened to Portia's pleading with The Dark Lord to go away to deal with her grief with her family. He had agreed but not without an ultimate sacrifice on her part.

"If you go… You will leave Luther behind and you will never find lasting love again." The Dark Lord had smiled at this and Severus felt a tickle of magic down the back of his neck, this was not a compromise this was a curse, but he held his tongue, he did not wish to face Lord Voldemort's wrath when he was only just toeing the line.

"My Lord… I need to," Portia begged from her end of the table. Luther watched her with careful eyes but Severus knew he wished that his wife would take Blaise and run.

"Well by all means go, deal with your grief… But before we do… Let us toast to her memory," The Dark Lord hissed. He had a smile on his face but Severus knew those smiles were false, regardless he raised his glass of wine in from of him. As one the Death Eaters spoke.

"To Blou Zabini."