Ch. 196 Riddles

"My lord and lady, we have the child." An elderly man's voice informed us from our Floo connection.

"Come through quickly. I need to start bonding with it as soon as possible to help things along." Victoria ordered immediately as she opened our Floo for travel. "Get the lactation potions."

"Yes ma'am." I hurriedly replied as I went to her potion cabinet.

And yes, lactation potions are a thing.

Many 'noble' women hoist off the care of their children to House-Elves and even something akin to a governess/tutor/nursemaid, so having something to help stimulate mammary glands could be useful. Really depends on your situation.

Adopting babies also happens and new mothers wish to bond with them, the potion is extremely useful then too, hence why I was handing to Tory.

That it can help the breasts fill out somewhat as a result sometime is a 'happy side effect' to some.

By the time I returned, Healer Frank Dewitt, the man who had accepted the mission to retrieve the child of Tom Riddle and Bellatrix Lestrange, and in some ways my own, was standing with a wry look on his face as he observed Tory.

He was an older man, his polyjuice already being reversed evidently, with an appearance placing him in his late 60 early 70's, sporting neatly combed grey hair, dark blue eyes and a face which generally exuded calmness. He was a bit shorter than average, with his back slightly hunched due to age not helping, but he had a firm spirit and desire to help others.

"Thank you for this Healer Dewitt." I sincerely said to the man as I handed (it got snatched) the potion over to Tory who was fiercely examining the sleeping newborn.

It seemed like a healthy babe, with surprisingly pale little tuft of hair on its head quite reminiscent of my own too.

Quite magically connected as well, but that should essentially be expected with just how much magic was involved with its birth. If my senses weren't wrong, it had enormous potential and due to my own 'judgement' on Bellatrix and Tom's efforts to use dark rituals to save her, the babe's magic was balanced.

I look forward to her development and will have to keep an eye on her for sure.

"It was nothing my lord. I could not stand by after learning of the child's existence. She would have had a harsh life." Dewitt compassionately replied.

"So I've gained a daughter then?" I asked for confirmation.

"Indeed. Delphini Slytherin. I could not hamper the naming, I hope you understand my lord." The healer answered with a nod and slight worry in his eyes.

"Of course." I comforted the older man. "My wife is the epitome of Slytherin and my little brother is a Parselmouth, meanwhile I have a the lord and lady Black as family, the child will be accepted no matter what gifts she holds and her parents."

"You have no idea how much that relives this old man's worries my lord." Dewitt sighed with a small smile. "Then I guess congratulations are in order and I truly hope the child and yourselves will find happiness with each other."

"We will do everything we can." I seriously promised the man as we shook hands.

"Then I will leave you both to bond with her. Her birth may not have a pleasant reason nor completion, but I sincerely hope her life will be a good one." Dewitt said as we bid each other farewell and he took his leave.

I turned my eyes over to my lovely wife, who had already begun to nurse and coo over the newborn.

It was both sweet and amusing to see my usually proud and strong wife fussing over the child.

"How is she love?" I asked her softly to not disturb the now nursing child.

"Healthy, with all things considered I was expecting some deformities, inborn illnesses or more immediate disabilities, but my scans showed nothing of the sort." She answered in almost a whisper, without taking her eyes off the child.

"You've heard her name?" I followed up to clarify.

"Yes." She simply answered with a small frown she usually had when thinking. "The Delphini aspect will be fine if we simply say we used the Black family traditions to nod towards Amelia's marriage, meanwhile we can perform the necessary rituals to adopt her into our bloodlines soon to have her gain the name Bones for now.

Should she choose to change it later, then it will be her choice between Bones, Travers, Lestrange, Black, Slytherin and even maybe Riddle if she truly desires it."

"In the eyes of magic, I am already akin to a parent or maybe godfather due to my role in her conception and the subsequent magic which allowed for her healthy birth." I informed Tory to help her think of the proper course we shall discuss later. "She is also very connected to magic itself, hence any ritual used will need to be carefully prepared to not harm her and we will need to make sure no magic will influence her development."

"I'm sure you and James can prepare something to shield her." She dismissed the latter out of pure confidence in our skills. "Meanwhile I will be preparing everything myself for her development and the ritual. You will check my work and once everything is done, we will be introducing our new daughter to everyone.

Her having a similar hair to you will certainly be useful, but I checked her pupillary response and noticed her eyes being a rather unique silver as well. Likely an effect from her Black ancestry."

"Sirius will likely know about who's child this is due to that magical tapestry, so we should warn him in advance. He'll understand what we did. His experiences growing up should garner us his support." I told her with some small worry over the judgement my family might hold over this matter.

I hope Sirius, Andromeda and Narcissa do not hold the death of their sister/cousin against me too much. The woman was insane and any child raised near anyone she would have desired would be twisted beyond humanity.

I am certain they will want to be somewhat involved in this new niece of theirs however.

"Then she should do the rituals soon. The earlier we do it the less it will harm the child anyway." Tory firmly replied.

We both looked at the innocent little girl we had suddenly taken in as she finished her feeding, allowing Tory to burp her before she opened her still dilated, silvery eyes and happily smiled at us, waving her little hands and arms upward.

"We will take care of her. Her path will likely be a difficult one, but we will make sure she knows love." I declared as gently let the little one grasp onto my index and happily giggle.

"Our home will never be without warmth for this daughter of ours. No matter who birthed her, she is my daughter now and no daughters of House Travers will feel unloved anymore." Victoria quietly replied with passionate eyes as she cradled the baby in her arms.

"Then let us go. We have much to do to secure her safety and care." I said with a smile.

We then shared a look and grinned.

"Dobby, Winky," Tory called out as the two House-elves appeared before us, seemingly barely capable of holding still as they shifted in place and constantly took peeks at the little bundle in her arms. "Meet little Delphini, our newly adopted daughter."

The joyous and near reverential looks on both their faces as they looked at the wiggling bundle was quite an amusing sight to behold.

"We will be grateful for your help in taking care of her, but we will also need some time to properly bond as new parents, adoptive ones at that, so don't take it personally that we will generally be very involved in taking care of her." I warned the two as their ears did droop slightly. "But, that doesn't mean we mind having both of you spending time with her and helping us. I know both of you have had experience taking care of little ones, so we will be appreciating all the help we can get."

"Yous no be worrying Master Boneses, Winky be making sure young mistress be taken care of!" Our little female elf excitedly promised.

"Dobby be sure young mistress be hundreds of times better than bad former young master. Dobby protect!" The more… fanatical one said.

"Just try not to go overboard you two. Tory will be taking time off from her work to spend time with Delphini, but later on we will likely leave her in your care. Although we might have some family come in to babysit from time to time as well." I slowly informed the two bundles of excitement.

""Of course Master!"" They replied in sync, looking innocent enough, but never underestimate the lengths a house-elf will go to protect its family.

"Good. Now it is late enough and little Delphini has just eaten after having a rather eventful first day in the world, hence we shall be going to bed and taking her with us." I told the two. "Goodnight."

""Goodnight master, mistress and little mistress."" They excitedly replied while waving, then disappearing to do things I am not sure I would like to know for now.

A few days later, we truly adopted little Delphini into our families through magic, blood and law, thus Delphini Amelia Bones came to be in the world. An innocent child with very few who knew her origins beyond a blood adopted babe we took in from a dead mother and unfit father.

Vague and maybe with enough hints that some may form theories, but we did not wish to lie to our new daughter in the future, no matter how difficult it would be to tell her the truth later.

-Malfoy Manor, a month later, (3rd person POV)

One Lord Voldemort had finally returned from his time abroad with his snake familiar and a triumphant expression as he readied to face his servants.

Upon his entrance through the Floo however, he was greeted with a sight which was far from his expectation.

No groveling purebloods, no fearful tools he could command and end at his leisure, only one crucified Lucius Malfoy instead of the portrait of his Lord which had hung in the foyer.

The man was alive, in suspended animation and injured but alive.

What truly began enraging the dark lord was the sight of bodies of his servants littering the ground before him, all dismembered or beheaded in some fashion or other. The most important of these was his most loyal and fanatical follower, Bellatrix, who's head sat before him and looking up to him as if still alive.

"You are unworthy and have lost your right to lead. Defeated, but not knowing it, this a fool as well. We leave and take recompense for the insults and dishonor heaped upon us by the weak imbeciles who followed you." Bellatrix's severed head spoke with a savage smile as it sat there. "We left you the blonde worm to throw your tantrum against.

The screams of rage resounding from that mansion, followed by howls of pain and then silence.

Less than an hour later, the mansion was burning to the ground.

The Dark Lord was not pleased over the loss of many of his native supporters and the ressources he had brought to the manor and the ones which had been made available to him thanks to the Malfoy family and other 'tributes' brought in by others.