Prologue - A Contract Set by Death
Watching the young child in front of him, Death could not help but to feel kinship for him.
Harry had mop of dark hair that would prove to be unruly as he grew. And with eyes that were a piercing green and had an eerie similarity to the spells that called Death so frequently to this time of civil war.
Death had always watched over the heirs to the Peverell line throughout history but with the state of the magical world around him this heir warranted a closer eye than many of the others.
Harry's parents were cuddled on a lush green sofa at the side of the room while the child giggled playfully in the arms of his godfather in the center on a carpet in brilliant red and gold colors, celebrating his first birthday. The grimm was certainly a fine choice of guardian in Death's opinion, a defender of innocent souls and a fierce soul himself. He held as much love in his eyes for the child as his parents. Death watched as the grimm shifted in and out of his animal form, Harry pleasantly entertained with it all.
The room held the remnants of a small birthday celebration at the dining table, with a cake whose remains were on the face of the small boy, a small pile of presents on the table and strewn around the carpet.
The grimm, leaving Harry to crawl around on the carpet with his toys, joined the couple on the couch with a laugh.
Death's daughter crawled around from Their robes and forward towards the carpet and approached Harry, her dirty blonde hair settling around her shoulders and a smile on her face. The boy could not see her, as both her and Death were behind the veil that separated life from death, unable to truly join the living world yet close enough to feel the buzzing of life and energy on the other side.
Harry though, seemed to sense their presence and stopped to stare at Their daughter, his small face scrunched together with confusion. Then, giggling, Harry offered out one of his toys to her, a small figurine of a raven, carved from elder wood, with detailed feathers carved into the wood. It came alive in Their daughter's hands and she beamed and giggled as it flew around her head.
The adults on the couch became quiet as the figurine vanished from their perception, unsure what to make of it.
Death's daughter crawled back, seemingly pleased with her new gift as Death gathered her in Their arms and they left, slowly disappearing into the void they called home. Intrigued by what just happened, They wondered at what it may mean, Their daughter simply smiled in Their arms.
~--~
Death had watched over young Harry on a few occasions after that night, Their daughter having formed a strange friendship with the other baby even though the boy could not see her.
Harry giggled as he sat on the carpet once more, objects being passed in and out of his reality as Death's daughter pulled them to her side of the veil and passed them back through.
Death was glad that even though his existence as a deity behind the veil yet not part of the dead was a lonely one, his daughter could at least find some small joys.
Harry's parents did not know what to make of the boy's behavior but seemed happy enough to put it to some form of accidental magic.
It was Samhain and while the family observed some of the older traditions it amused Death to see some decorations that hailed from the muggle Halloween, bright orange pumpkin lanterns hanging from the ceiling and bats cut from black paper adorning the walls. The veil between death and life was at it's thinnest today which was why Death had chosen to observe the heir again, knowing it was the closest They could get to the young heir while forced to remain on the other side of the veil.
A sudden chill came over the air, there was a pounding at the door.
James Potter glanced at his wife, motioning her to get Harry as he carefully approached the front door. The door blasted inwards and James for Lily to take Harry and run, he stood in the corridor to stop the stranger from entering but collapsed to the ground after being struck by a flash of green light.
Death sighed as They pulled the man's soul through the veil, it formed and stared around. James slowly came to a realization as he stared at his own prone body, lying crumpled on the floor.
The stranger continued through the house, cackling threats and throwing spells, destroying furniture and decorations.
Death motioned to follow as They picked up Their daughter and went up the stairs behind the intruder.
Lily was in a small room, painted in purples and blues, standing between the stranger and a small wooden cot where Harry sat, staring at his mother.
Death's daughter was clinging to Their legs as she stared at Harry, a whimper coming out from her lips.
Death glared at the man standing before them, the same man who had torn his soul to pieces and hidden them in an attempt to avoid Death's grip.
James' shade cried out as a green flash tore through the room and struck Lily. Death pulled her soul through the veil.
Both parents stared in horror as the man stood before their child. Death could not have interfered to save James and Lily's lifes but They would not stand by as the last heir to the Peverell line died.
Their daughter stared at them with pleading eyes, James and Lily looked on in horror.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Time stood still.
James and Lily had tried to throw themselves in front of the curse once more, but they were mere shades, helpless to stop it.
Death stood and deliberated, Their daughter crawled out of Their arms and towards the cot where she sat staring at Harry.
Voldemort stood tall, triumph etched into his features. This would not do, Death could not allow such a twisted soul to stand victorius over the House of Peverell.
They could not pull Voldemort's soul through the veil, not before all the other pieces of it had been destroyed, but there were other ways to stop what was about to happen.
Death pulled a parchment from Their cloak, an old paper with an odd symbol stamped in the corner, and began to write.
They wrote out a betrothal contract, dictated by the most ancient of magiks, one which would deem both parties in the betrothal absolute equals by oath and by magic. Death signed the document, the room filled with magic that surged like wave and roared in Their ears.
Death held the quill and parchment towards the Potters.
They had been warily watching Death, as they had tried to comfort each other they came to realise who Death was.
They read the contract carefully and looked at the two babies by the cot, one frozen in time, a deadly spell mere inches from his face, the other staring back intently, head tilted in question. The Potters understood that a parent would do anything to make sure their child could live a happy life and long life, they would do it for Harry and Death would do it for Their daughter.
They signed the contract, and time resumed.