She stood at the top of the stairs, her parents on either side of her. From where they stood, she could hear laughter and talking, along with soft music to set the tone. At the bottom of the stairs, she noticed Fred, George, Charlie and Draco waiting for them. When Draco saw them at the top of the stairs, he smiled at her and walked to the doorway of the ballroom, casting a Sonorus to draw attention to himself.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my greatest pleasure to present Lady Hyacinth Iris Riddle-Snape to you." He announced, prompting them to begin walking down the stairs. At about midway down, Tom turned to look at her, taking in the almost aristocratic planes of his daughter's face with pride.
"You ready for this, darling?" he asked, drawing her attention. She smiled, something he likened to the sun breaking through rain clouds. He felt his heart swell at sight. Their relationship was still delicate, something that they approached with gentle curiosity, and he wagered a guess that it was a similar situation between his husband and daughter.
All three of them had terrible pasts, but if they could agree on one thing, they all three were determined to be better than their past and strived to love each other and themselves better.
"I don't think I'll ever be ready, Dad. But for what it's worth, I'm glad I have you both by my side as I do this," she said, voice soft and calm, nothing betraying her nerves. Tom smiled back at her, catching the eye of his husband on the other side of her and sharing a soft look.
"You look beautiful, my dear", Severus spoke up, breaking the brief lapse of silence as they drew closer to the end of the stairs. From where the stairs were situated, the people in the ballroom kept catching glimpses of her dress, and Hyacinth smiled at the gasps of awe at its beauty.
"Thank you, mama," she replied, "I have Constance and Noémie to thank. I hope they were invited to stay tonight; I would like to cook for them in thanks tomorrow morning", she pondered, and Tom hummed.
"I'm sure that can be arranged", he whispered to her as they stepped off the final step, leaving them just out of view of the ballroom door. Charlie and Draco had already entered the ballroom. Fred and George flashed matching, impish grins at her and took their place next to their parents, just slightly behind them.
Hyacinth took a steadying breath before she nodded to her family, and they made their way into the ballroom to shocked gasps. A stunned silence swept over the room before someone, most likely Bellatrix, whooped and started a loud applause that went on for quite some time. Hyacinth curtsied to her audience, looking every bit the noble, pureblood woman she was learning to be.
She surveyed the room, taking in people's faces, some she recognised, most she didn't know. Her father had explained to her that everyone in attendance were Knights of Walpurgis, loyal friends to himself and her mother. All had been put under a Fidelius Charm; some had even taken Unbreakable Vows. As such, she was comfortable telling her story.
As the applause and cheering died down, Hyacinth cast her own Sonorus before she began to speak.
"I would like to start by thanking all of you for attending tonight. My reunion with my family, my actual family, has been a long time coming. I am told that everyone here is a loyal, trustworthy party, so it is of utmost importance that you all know my story.
"The girl you see before you hasn't always existed as you see her now. I was lied to and led to believe that I was the chosen one, destined to be the catalyst of war and to kill Voldemort," at her father's wince at the name, she reached out and held his hand, "All my life I have been looked at, so much so that I have learned to differentiate the meaning behind their eyes, could see the pity or the love, anger, hate, jealousy. But I failed to truly see the true intentions behind the eyes of the people I once considered family. Those same people lied to me, manipulated me and stole from me; I'm sure you read the papers," she quipped, drawing out a strained chuckle from the crowd.
"While that is now in the past and I now have my family, my real family, I can assure you their time will come, and I hope that when that time comes, some if not all of you will help me in taking my revenge" she announced, pride and a dark glimmer behind her eyes and someone shouted a loud 'Of course we will' from the back of the room. Hyacinth giggled at that, something that was amplified by the Sonorus and echoed around the quiet room.
"Thank you. Alas, that time is not yet, so for now, a toast!" She said, picking up a flute of champagne from one of the floating serving trays in the room and raising her glass high, watching as the rest of the room followed. "To true families", she declared before silently cancelling her Sonorus charm as the room repeated her words. In two hours, she would need to announce who her chosen would be, and an hour after that, the ritual to age her up one year would take place, after which they would continue the ball well into the late night.
For the time being, she busied herself with mingling and familiarising herself with the people who had attended. She was quite surprised to see Amelia Bones in attendance and, once catching her eye, made a beeline for her.
"Madame Bones," she greeted with a curtsey, "I must say, I was not expecting to see you tonight," she said, curiosity lacing her words. Amelia smiled, something rarely seen on the face of the formidable politician.
"What can I say? I'm full of surprises, Miss Riddle-Snape," she replied, and Hyacinth hid a surprised laugh behind a polite cough.
"Please, Madame Bones, call me Hyacinth; the formalities make me feel older than my years, and like my Aunt Bella likes to say, if there's one thing I'm not, it's old ", Hyacinth joked, drawing out a laugh from the woman before her.
"Ok, Hyacinth," she replied, making sure to use her name ", but you must call me Amelia in return, at least outside of the Ministry. That news article came as a great shock to me. May I be so uncouth as to ask who the other person was that was stealing from you? I may be able to get something started in the Ministry," she asked, moving closer to Hyacinth's side and lowering her voice slightly.
Hyacinth considered for a moment; if she were to do this, it would shake the wizarding world to its core. She smirked; she was always one for the dramatics. She got it from her mother.
"I won't tell you here and now, but the information, proof and some other juicy details will be on your desk first thing", she promised, and Amelia grinned, something akin to a shark. She nodded to Hyacinth, and Hyacinth nodded back before the two parted ways.
Life is nothing without a bit of chaos to make things interesting.
YOU ARE READING
Snakes and Ladders (Fem!HPxLM) (DISCONTINUED)
Fanfiction-DISCONTINUED- After the Triwizard Tournament, Hazel Potter goes through an early inheritance brought on by now being considered an adult through the tournament. Through this, she learns secrets Dumbledore never intended for her to know and she vows...
