Disclaimer: Harry Potter isn't mine.

Chapter 1 The Game

He had been in Azkaban for nearly a month when Remus finally decided to confront him. Sirius didn't know what to say to him. Remus deserved the truth, but Sirius knew that he wouldn't believe him.

Remus looked worse than Sirius thought he must look. All of his friends were gone, betrayed by another friend. What did Harriet think? She was only a baby. Her favorite words were Momma and Da.

Sirius's eyes glistened as Remus sat across from him. She must be so confused. "Are you taking good care of her?" he asked hoarsely. "I mean… I'm sure she misses—"

"How dare you?" Remus nearly screamed. Remus never raised his voice. "She's with Petunia because of you!"

Petunia? As in Lily's sister Petunia? Sirius finally dared look Remus in the eye. He wasn't lying. "What?"

Remus laughed, sounding a bit crazy. "Yeah. Do you think a broke werewolf could take care of an infant? Who would I give her to during the full moon? You killed Peter! You killed everyone."

"No, I didn't." Petunia?! "Remus you have to listen to me…"

"What do you think?" Remus asked Kingsley. As Sirius told his "side" of the story, he became more and more numb. It was obviously a lie. It had to be.

Kingsley was grim. He didn't believe it. Remus should just let it go. "He's lying. But you shouldn't have told him where Harriet was, Remus. Black could have contacts on the outside."

"How?" Few were brave enough to visit Azkaban, let alone come often enough to pass on information.

He didn't say. "I'm going to check on Petunia."

Remus apparated as well. He would watch over little Harry's crib every night if he had to. How could he have been so stupid?

Kingsley glared when he saw Remus but otherwise didn't say anything. They walked to Number Four briskly and silently. Surely nothing had happened. Only a few minutes had passed, and Dumbledore must have dozens of wards on the property.

Petunia answered after three sharp knocks. "What?"

"We would like to see Harriet," Kingsley told her calmly. "And talk to you, Mrs. Dursley."

Petunia frowned. "Potter's friend took her a month ago." Remus's heart sunk. A month ago?! "Said she needed to be with her own kind, and frankly, I agreed. The little wretch wouldn't stop crying. He found us when I was taking them to the park. Poor Dudley had to deal with her crying for nearly three days."

"Potter's friend," Kingsley repeated. "Sirius is in Azkaban. Remus doesn't have her."

"The fat one," Petunia snapped. "Had a bandage on his hand."

"Peter?" Remus asked in disbelief. Was Sirius telling the truth?

Petunia rolled her eyes. "Yes. And I don't appreciate that headmaster telling me he died a hero. If there was someone else better suited to take her—"

"He told you about the familial magic protecting Harriet!" Remus roared. "And you just gave her away to someone you don't know?"

"There's no such thing as magic!" Petunia hissed. "That old man lied about that man being dead when Peter or whatever his name is wanted to raise her. I told my sister that I wanted nothing to do with her and—"

The door slammed in their faces when Petunia's voice broke. Sirius was telling the truth.

Seventeen years later…

Harriet didn't like hunting. She wished she could live off berries and herbs alone but that was impractical. It was getting cold and a lot of the edible plants were starting to die.

Over the last three days, she had been hunting a stag. Winter was almost here, and her father was busy preserving the food they had. Harriet wanted to make a few fever reducers too, but she had to get the stag. The stag would keep them from starving over the winter.

At the sound of a scream, Harriet jumped and straightened her bow and arrow. It was a human scream and sounded like a woman, so it couldn't be Dad. She should run.

"Someone help me!" the woman begged. Harriet heard footsteps pounding on the leaves of the Forest floor. They were getting closer.

Dad said to stay away from humans. They were savage but called themselves civilized. They wasted resources until they had none, causing them to resort to cannibalism. As soon as they caught her, they would eat her alive, start gnawing on her flesh as they cooked her over a fire. If she dared to scream, they would sow her mouth shut.

As the footsteps started to get closer, Harriet climbed up a tree. She had never seen another human besides Dad and her reflection in water. She wondered what they looked like. What did pure evil look like?

The woman was blonde and small like her. The man was big like Dad and had an odd looking stick that he pointed at her. She fell to the ground and screamed.

"Dumbledore's little brats think they can go to Hogsmeade," he taunted. Harriet watched with a sick sort of fascination. Dad was right. If she helped the woman, would she try to hurt her?

"Please," she sobbed. The man kicked the woman in the ribs, causing Harriet to jump. "I-I don't know where he is—"

"Or…" He started circling her. "You thought you could apparate to him. Which one is it, Lovegood? Were you going to see your boyfriend? Or were you buying him a little Christmas present?"

The girl made to weakly crawl away as her attacker laughed cruelly. The man was still laughing as he motioned to kick her in the head. Harriet couldn't take it anymore.

Her arrow went straight through his neck before Harriet could take the time to close her eyes. With a scream, the woman looked up and saw her. Harriet froze, not knowing what to do. Surely the woman was going to kill her now.

They stared at each other for a long moment until they heard the sound of someone else coming. The woman ran and looked over her should, beckoning Harriet to follow. She wasn't going to fall for such a trap.

Good thing she didn't because it was Dad anyway. Harriet climbed from the tree as fast as she could as Dad ran for the body, probably trying to save the man. They weren't evil like the other humans.

"R-R-Rodolphus," Dad stuttered. Harriet hardly ever heard him stutter.

"He was attacking a woman," Harriet said, trying not to look at the man. There was so much blood. "I had to—"

Dad rounded on her. Harriet had never seen him so angry. "What did I tell you about getting this close to the edge of the Forest?"

Harriet took a step back. When Dad yelled at her, she felt terrible. "But the stag—"

"Stags do not leave the Forest!" he yelled. "And even if it did, you are not to follow it. You know that, Harriet!"

"He-he was hurting the woman," Harriet tried.

"What woman?" Dad yelled. "Is someone here?"

Harriet shook her head frantically. "N-no. She left."

He grabbed her wrist so tightly that Harriet cried out. When she saw that he was dragging her closer to the edge of the Forest, Harriet started screaming. Was he going to banish her? Like he had Black and Lupin? She wasn't evil. She hadn't meant to kill that man. He was going to kill that woman—

When the trees were gone, the world started spinning. Then, Harriet was in another world entirely.

"Another Hunt shall begin," the Dark Lord announced. Severus tried not to sigh. He had returned four years ago after Longbottom had won the Triwizard Tournament. Severus had been spying ever since. Hopefully Longbottom would destroy the last horcrux soon.

Severus hated the Hunts that occurred at least twice a year. The Dark Lord threw a Muggle into the forest near Malfoy Manor, and they were forced to hunt the man or woman down like an animal. Whoever won temporarily gained the Dark Lord's favor.

The Hunt was one of the Dark Lord's greatest sources of amusement. As he rose from his seat to present the "game," he seemed to be savoring every moment. It must be a muggleborn this time.

Severus never participated, stating that the Hunt would get in the way of spying on Dumbledore. The Order of the Phoenix was still trying to break down the wards around the Forest.

"I have found…" The Dark Lord paused and stared Severus down. He never trusted Severus, but then again, he never trusted anyone. "…a specimen that even you would be interested in, Severus, and whoever catches her gets to keep her."

"Keep her, my lord?" Lucius Malfoy asked.

"Crucio! Do not interrupt me!" the Dark Lord snarled. He waited for Lucius's pitiful screams of pain to die down before he continued. "Keep her, kill her, do whatever you please with her."

The Death Eaters were usually like hunting dogs. As soon as they caught their prey, the Dark Lord dealt the final blow and killed their prize. Whoever caught this poor woman was going to be expected to torture her mercilessly before giving her death. Severus hoped he would not be forced to participate. She was probably a Lily look alike.

"Bring her out." The Dark Lord was practically simpering. "Wormtail."

It took a moment for Severus to recognize the nickname. Pettigrew. Peter Pettigrew who stole Harriet when she was a baby and hadn't been seen since. Seventeen years ago. Then that could only mean…

A profusely sweating Pettigrew dragged out a blindfolded woman who had a cloth tied around her mouth to muffle her screams. Her hands were bound with the chains that Pettigrew was using to drag her. Harriet.

"She screams just like her mother," the Dark Lord said fondly. The screaming stopped, and she focused on the direction that the Dark Lord was speaking. Bile rose in Severus's throat.

She was shorter and thinner, much thinner. Her hair was matted, and she was covered in dirt and dried sweat. Upon closer inspection, her face wasn't the same. The nose was James Potter's, and the lips weren't as full, but if he wasn't focused, Severus would have mistaken her for Lily.

The Dark Lord, along with Nagini, started circling her. Severus placed his shaking hands under the table as the monster of a man patted Harriet's head. He grabbed her blindfold and roughly ripped it off. Hazel eyes scanned the room frantically. Severus felt his heart clench when they briefly focused on him.

"Apparently word travels slow in the Forbidden Forest," the Dark Lord said dryly. "It took you four years to bring me the girl, Wormtail."

The pathetic excuse for a man dropped to his knees. Harriet started to struggle again when he started to beg. "P-please my lord. I-I am your f-f-faithful s-s-s-servant! I b-b-brought you the g-girl!""

"You brought me the girl when you realized I was strong enough to kill you with her," the Dark Lord hissed. "Crucio!"

To Severus's complete disbelief, the girl ran for Pettigrew when he fell to the ground screaming. She even fearlessly pushed past Nagini to get to him. The Dark Lord's cold cackles drowned out the screams.

"Not to worry, Harriet." The Dark Lord petted her head, almost lovingly, but Harriet knew better and fell backwards trying to get away from him. "Your father will be perfectly fine. You on the other hand…"

Father. She thought Pettigrew was her father? Severus supposed it made sense. Harriet was taken when she was barely a toddler. Pettigrew was all she knew. This meeting had to be over. He had to get to Dumbledore. Hopefully the Hunt didn't start today. The Dark Lord usually let his victims shiver in fear in the dungeons overnight before a Hunt.

But the Dark Lord was enjoying this too much. Harriet was the Girl Who Lived. Why wasn't he killing her outright? Perhaps it was because after she "died," Longbottom was considered the Chose One. The Dark Lord could contain his glee no longer and ripped the cloth off Harriet's mouth.

"Hurt him again, and it will be your last regret!" she snarled.

Even the Death Eaters started laughing at her words. When she charged at the Dark Lord, Pettigrew grabbed her chains and yanked, causing her to fall flat on her face. She was trying to save him. Her expression filled with hurt and betrayal after she scrambled to an upright position. Then, the Dark Lord continued to circle her, describing her like she was an object being auctioned off.

"Harriet is eighteen years old. She cannot read or use a wand." The Dark Lord grinned. "But her wilderness survival skills are impeccable. It may take months to claim your prize. Unless the dogs get her first."

Dogs. The full moon was in three weeks. If no one found her by then, Greyback and his pack surely would. Harriet wouldn't last months. It was rare that the "dogs" were able to participate in a "Hunt."

Harriet was panting heavily as she soaked in what the Dark Lord had said. She glanced at Pettigrew, worrying for the man who had betrayed her. "And if they can't catch me?"

More laughter from the Death Eaters. However the Dark Lord considered this a possibility and held up a hand to silence them. He stopped in front of her and stared her down. Harriet did not waver.

"If they can't catch you in six months," he said calmly, "you will join my ranks."

The refusal was threatening to burst out. Severus could see it and wondered how long he would have to endure seeing her tortured. But then she pursed her lips and narrowed eyes fell on Pettigrew, wondering what would happen to him if she refused. So Lily's daughter was a little Slytherin.

"Deal."

They had a feast after this announcement. Severus didn't say a word when Harriet was forced to sit next to him. She studied him intensely, wondering why she was shoved into the chair next to him. He tried his best to refuse to look at her.

"The Hunt will begin at dawn, Harriet," the Dark Lord informed her. "So I suggest you eat up and get a good night's sleep."

Most would refuse to eat for fear of poison. It must have been her Gryffindor genes that made her grab a dinner roll. Or it could be that she obviously knew what it was like not to eat every day. Even Pettigrew was thin.

The food wasn't poisoned, but Severus still thought she was being stupid for eating the food. He couldn't resist raising his eyebrows when she frowned and sniffed it. Perhaps she wasn't stupid after all.

"It's c-called bread, Harriet," Pettigrew told her. What the fuck? "It's m-m-made from a plant called wheat."

Several Death Eaters started laughing at her ignorance. Now that her hands were free, Harriet covered her ears. Was she autistic? No… What had the Dark Lord said? Apparently word travels slow in the Forbidden Forest. Had she… been living in the Forest, alone with Pettigrew all this time?
All of the noises, foods, people were twenty times more than she was used to. Severus had to hold in dozens of questions as Harriet tentatively took a bite. Clearly, she didn't recognize any of the foods in front of her.

The Dark Lord was absolutely loving this. He savored Harriet's discomfort as she forced herself to eat. "Severus, Harriet, was in love with your mother."

At the mention of her mother, Harriet perked up in interest, despite her terror, as Severus felt all the color drain from his face. She grew up with Acromantula, wolves, centaurs, and countless other beasts. Of course mere men wouldn't paralyze her with fear.

"So much so," he continued, "that he was wanted me to kill you and her father so they could be together."

That wasn't entirely true. When he gave away the prophecy that marked Harriet for death, he had simply pleaded for Lily's life. He was so madly in love with her that he was willing to have her family murdered so she could live. He realized now that it wasn't love. It was hate. Hate for Potter, hate for himself, hate for Harriet, who he had never met. He allowed it to poison his soul, to morph his love into sick obsession.

He realized this too little too late.

"I killed her, of course," the Dark Lord said matter-of-factly. "Which I fear has melted his cold, blackened heart. I fear that he wants to repent for his sins. That is why I want him to be the one to catch you."

Harriet stopped her nervous nibbling. The Dark Lord snapped his fingers and Crabbe and Goyle Senior rose from their seats to drag her away. Severus could only imagine what was running through her head right now. She refused to scream or struggle.

"The Hunt begins at dawn," the Dark Lord announced. The Death Eaters started cheering. Severus wondered how many of them were genuinely excited.

Sirius tried not to yawn when he got Dumbledore's patronus. An emergency Order meeting at two in the bloody morning. What a way to start the anniversary of Lily and James's death.

He wondered if Harriet knew the significance of today, wherever she was. Sirius knew he would probably die before seeing her again, but he refused to believe that she was gone. Remus thought she was dead. He knew that even though his best friend pretended to believe with him. Sirius only hoped that Wormtail had dropped her off at an orphanage somewhere when he realized that he wasn't going to be caught, that she had gotten adopted and was living a normal life.

Snape was his usual greasy, pasty self. Sirius glared at him but didn't say anything. Not today. Today was too sad to continue their twenty eight year hatred of each other. The git didn't say anything until Bill sat down.

"Are you any closer to breaking down the wards?" he asked desperately. "Around Malfoy Manor."

The Hunt was disgusting, but Snape never reacted like this before. Remus often wondered how pretending to be a Death Eater didn't drive him insane, but Sirius knew Snape was fine because he didn't care. He was evil. For the briefest moment, Sirius thought he might be wrong. Perhaps Snape was starting to crack.

Bill shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He had been trying to break the wards for two years. Six Hunts had occurred during this time, and the guilt weighed heavily on him. "Yes. I mean no. It's a combination of wards. I've identified most of them but—"

"Harriet," Snape rasped. Sirius felt his blood run cold. "Harriet is going to be hunted in just a few hours."

The entire Order went in an uproar while Sirius, the only one who believed Harriet was alive, was too shocked to speak. Harriet's been with Wormtail all this time. He had given up looking for her almost ten years ago because he had to face the truth. The trail had run cold almost as soon as Wormtail kidnapped her. There were no clues, nowhere for him to look. It was like they had vanished.

Snape did his best to explain while everyone proceeded to panic. Voldemort planned to let his Death Eaters spend half a year hunting Harriet like an animal. Whoever got her first got to torture her to death.

"She doesn't stand a chance!"

"Are you sure it's her?"

"It doesn't matter who it is! The point is he's hunting someone again!"

"The point is that we are no closer to breaking the wards," Albus said. "I do not believe Harriet will last six months."

"Obviously," Snape drawled. "She doesn't know magic."

"How do you know?" Hermione asked.

"The Dark Lord gladly informed us." Snape seemed haunted by the memories. "She won't last six hours, let alone six months. He said she cannot read or us a wand. She was living with Pettigrew in the Forbidden Forest."

That close? Harriet was that close, and they had no idea. How many times had Hargrid been mere steps away from her? Remus had been a professor for a year. They were so close to her all this time.

Hermione, because she was Hermione, wasn't lost in the horror of reality. She was too busy analyzing what was presented to her. "He said she doesn't know how to use a wand. He said nothing about her not being able to us magic. Perhaps she knows wandless magic. But… she can't read? The Death Eaters can make signs, leave each other notes about her whereabouts."

"Working together is against the rules," Snape croaked. "But it doesn't matter. She seemed a bit… feeble minded."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sirius snapped. Was Snape really going to insult Harry's intelligence? They didn't have the time for their petty school boy games.

Remus put a hand on his wrist. "Sirius… She's had next to no social contact for most of her life. I can't imagine Peter… raised her properly. Can she talk, Severus?"

Can she talk? What kind of question was that? But she couldn't read… And Hermione could be wrong about her knowing magic. What if… What if she had been raised like an animal? What if she couldn't walk or use the bathroom? What if she had the mind of the baby that had been taken?

"Yes." But Snape was very, very pale. "I don't know how to describe it. She was dressed like a cavewoman and didn't know how to use cutlery. But she could talk. And she loves Pettigrew. The Dark Lord said she would join his ranks if she survived. She wasn't going to agree until she thought about what it would mean for Pettigrew."

"So she's intelligent," Dumbledore said. He wasn't asking, and from the looks of all the Order members, none of them agreed, not even Snape. "You are nowhere near taking down the wards, Mr. Weasley?"

Bill shook his head solemnly. "I was hoping to by next year, sir."

"Tell Fudge," Sirius said desperately, knowing Fudge wouldn't do anything. The auror department was in shambles. Five of them died recently taking down Bellatrix, who was causing riots in Azkaban while awaiting her trial.

"What's he going to do?" Ron cried. "I say we go with Snape—"

"He could kill her immediately at the sight of us," Remus said quietly. "But we can't just let her die…"

Dumbledore's plan was even worse than Ron's. "Severus will have to catch her."

"Absolutely not," Sirius yelled. "He'll be expected to torture her!" And he might, he thought but was too sickened by the idea to voice it out loud. Was it really Harriet?

"He will bring a portkey," Dumbledore stated, as if it were obvious. "I'm afraid it will compromise—"

"Exactly," Hermione interrupted. "We need Professor Snape. He's never risked his position as a spy before. Just—"

"Stop." Surprisingly, it was Neville who spoke up. He hardly ever did and usually soaked everything in. He was a fighter but not a leader. "Severus will have to decide. Severus and no one else."

Everyone turned to look at Snape. If he said no, Sirius fully planned to rip every slimy hair out of his head and use Polyjuice potion to do it. Position as a spy be damned. Who the hell did Hermione think she was? Harriet was family.

But Snape might not think so. Sirius was fully aware of Snape's feelings for Lily. Did he still love her? Probably. And Harriet was living proof that Lily chose James and not him. Sirius clenched his fists, waiting. He wanted nothing more than to attack the greasy bastard.

"Stay at headquarters," Snape finally said. "I'll be bringing her back in just a few hours."

The girl was still in her chains. She was shaking like a leaf but kept her face blank. There was no begging or attempts at bartering. Harriet stared straight ahead into the forest, which was still dark as the sun started to creep up.

"I thought you would be joining us, Severus," the Dark Lord practically gushed. "I'm curious of what you will do with her if you're the one to capture her. Any final words, Harriet?"

Harriet stared straight ahead. She teetered slightly and pushed her feet into the dirt. Severus wondered if Granger was right, if Harriet knew any wandless magic.

"Very well." The Dark Lord sounded torn between disappointed and excited. He pointed his wand at Harriet's chains, freeing her. "Let the Hunt begi—"

Harriet kicked her feet in the dirt. To everyone's shock, a thick cloud of dirt surround it them, blowing dirt, grass, and small peebles. Severus tried not to gasp, but it didn't matter. Dirt was already in his eyes, ears, and throat. Anywhere that wasn't covered with clothing was caked in it. He pointed his wand at his face to clear it to see his fellow Death Eaters either struggling to do the same or stupidly wiping the dirt out of their eyes.

The Dark Lord was already clean and a sick grin was taking over his face. This was going to be much more interesting for him that the usual Hunts.

Harriet was nowhere to be seen.

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