Chapter 1:
A Great Past for A Greater Future
Harry stared blankly at the woman he was deeply in love with, her curly brown hair barely reaching her shoulders, her fare complexion warm and welcoming. They had known each other since they had first met at her orphanage near his forbidding home on Privet Drive. She was an abandoned orphan, much like himself, who also faced the same unwanted destiny as he. As a child, 11 exactly, he was told that he was the only wizard to ever come out of an attack made by the Dark wizard who's name most magical creatures still fear to say, Voldemort. Everyone Voldemort went up against supposedly died, except for Harry, and when Voldemort had tried to kill him, instead of Harry dying, Voldemort lost his powers, and became defenseless, and Harry was able to walk away at the age of one with only a scar.
This scar was what had made him famous in the wizarding world. Many died opposing Voldemort. To have a one-year old remove Voldemort from power and live to tell the tale was amazing, and every one knew from the start he was going to be an amazing wizard. However, there was one other person who no one knew had lived. This young child faced Voldemort at the same age as Harry. However, she did get a scar similar to the one Harry tried to cover with his thick bangs, she got something else as well. Instead of dying as Voldemort had intended, she instead got amnesia. She would not remember who she was, or where she came from, so who would know the difference if she were alive or dead. Voldemort didn't like the thought of losing, so he assured everyone she was gone forever.
His lie didn't deceive Professor Dumbledore, the late headmaster of Hogwarts, and he later discovered she was alive and had Harry go and bring her back to the wizarding world. Maybe Dumbledore had Harry go because he lived nearby, or because he wanted Harry to meet Cassie because of their similar past. Either way, when Harry first met her, he instantly knew that they were meant to be. As she learned of her past, and got to know who she truly was, he could sense she was beginning to feel the same way. Together, they faced the wrath of Voldemort and came out of several brutal attacks alive. Near death though, they both were on more than one occasion, their affections for one another kept them alive. It was at this particular time however, that Harry felt much as he did when he was still in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As he gazed at the woman sitting across from him, he found himself smiling with joy, their hands locked warmly in one another's. Looking at her, he could think of nothing but the overwhelming feelings he had for her. He could not imagine ever losing her.
Thinking back on their life together, he remembered how scared he was to ask her to marry him, and how excited he was when she answered yes. They had held their wedding a year ago, on September 30. They both were more than happy to start their lives together and maybe some day start a family. As Harry looked across the dinner table at his wife, he couldn't help but smile, and be thankful for every second they had spent together as husband and wife this past year.
"Happy anniversary, Cassie." Harry held out his other hand and grabbed hers, squeezing it gently and flashing her a warm and tender smile.
"Happy anniversary, Harry." Cassie squeezed Harry's just as tightly, then leaned over the table and gave him a light kiss. A kiss that had more passion, affection, and tenderness than any kiss they had yet given each other, a kiss that would always be a part of both of them for as long as they lived.
"I know we are supposed to trade gifts, but I thought you might enjoy having a day out tomorrow, just you and me. I will buy you whatever you like, but my gift is just being able to spend time with you." Harry stated this almost apologetically, but from Cassie's expression, he knew he had nothing to apologize for.
"You know that I want nothing more than to just be with you." Looking at her, her cheeks flushed with pink, her hair cascading to her shoulders in a gentle rush, and her hazel eyes showing more truth than any he had ever seen. Cassie's smile was soft and polite, just as it always was. Harry couldn't stop himself from noting how genuine and true she was, and just how much she meant to him.
They had their dinner that night at the Cross-Wands Inn, enjoying their steaks and champagne. It seemed the night was endless. They walked along a scenic, un-known trail in the near-by forest, discussing what they thought was coming in their next years together, and what they hoped life would become for the both of them. Everything seemed perfect, until they ran into an old enemy, who wasn't going to let the past die.
"Well, look who we have here." Draco Malfoy was striding towards them as they emerged from the wood, his face contorted into an amused smirk that they had known all too well. "If it isn't stupid Potter, and his hideous girlfriend Cassie."
"Oh, how nice it is to see you too Malfoy. I would express how pleased I am to see you but I am afraid there just aren't enough words." She kept the same sarcastic and annoyed tone as Draco. Cassie stared at him with a look of utter disgust. They had had more than their share of problems at school, and Malfoy obviously wanted more.
"Malfoy, don't you have some poor, defenseless creature to abuse. After all, you wouldn't want to be seen talking to us, it might ruin your reputation, as a wizard that is." Harry was holding Cassie's arm to prevent her from saying anything, but couldn't stop himself from saying what was on his mind.
"Well excuse me. You are right though, why would I want to waste my time talking to a pair of wizards who disgrace the name. You always were a waste of magic blood, and obviously that hasn't changed." Malfoy stepped forward right in both of their faces, making sure to glare at Harry when he stated the last of his sentence.
"You really should think about growing up one of these days," Cassie was tightening her fist, and stepping towards Malfoy so they were now breathing down each other, "You were, and always have been out to prove that you were better than Harry and I in some way, when we didn't have the slightest interest proving anything about who was best. Do me a favor, Draco, and realize that we have always been better than you, even without trying." Cassie had a bad habit of losing her temper, and Harry was struggling now to try and prevent her from hitting Malfoy, even though that was exactly what he wanted to do.
"You, better than me? I think you need to re-think what you are saying. I never had to prove anything; I am a better wizard than either of you. How can you think that you could be better than me, when you were raised by muggles? You're almost as bad as that mugblood Granger. You two could never be better than me, and one day, you will see why. Trust me, you will." His eyes were nearly red with hatred. Harry stepped forward and rounded on Malfoy.
Before Harry could say anything though, Cassie broke free of his grip and punched Draco across his cheek, breaking his jaw. Malfoy yelped in pain and went for his wand. Immediately Harry withdrew his wand, and held Cassie back as she went to punch him again. "Muggles eh, well Malfoy," She was breathing hard, anger flushed through her flaming cheeks, "I learned that from being raised by muggles. Obviously, they can't be all that dismal if they can make even a wizard cry. If I ever hear that you are talking bad about Hermione, or any muggle born for that matter, again, I will hurt you in a way that magic wont fix, and trust me, I will enjoy every minute of it. You are, and always have been a cocky bastard."
Draco fumbled in his robes for his wand, and Cassie was fighting hard to break free of Harry's grip. When he retrieved his wand he pointed it at his freely hanging jaw and muttered "mendium," putting his jaw back into its proper place.
"If I told the Ministry of your behavior Ms. Reid, you could find yourself in front of a court in no time. Believe me when I say I have the authority and power to make sure they will properly punish you, despite your past." Draco was fuming, his bleach blonde hair reflecting the light off the street lamps not far away. Then he paused and looked at Harry, struggling now not only to hold Cassie back, but hold his own choice actions back as well. "No. I think I can keep this to myself, after all, why would I sink to the level of a cheap witch like you? I am not the type to holler off and punch my foe across the face. No, but I will just walk away with the knowledge that I am a better mannered person." With that, he started to walk away, and as Cassie and Harry started to do the same, Malfoy pulled his wand and aimed at Cassie.
"TETE-LOCOWIA" Malfoy was charging his spell quickly at Cassie, a green light escaping from his wand. As Harry heard Malfoy's scream, he turned and quickly dodged in front of Cassie to save her. Immediately, he started convulsing, his ears were ringing. Harry's tongue rolled limply from each side of mouth. Harry lost track of time, and everything else. All he could think about was how much pain he was in. It seemed so much like a curse Voldemort had once used on him, but at the same time, so very different. Harry wanted so bad to just kill Malfoy at that moment, to make him pay for all the evils that had ever haunted him. What was happening to his mind? He was thinking horrible things that would never ever occur to him under any other circumstances. What was happening?
Then, suddenly, everything stopped. Harry staggered to his feet, leaning on Cassie for support as she lifted him off the ground. When he regained his vision, he saw that Malfoy was walking away, his head hung low, part of his cape had something slimy down it's front.
"Harry, I can't believe you did that for me. That spell was aimed at me." Cassie was paying no mind to the disgruntled disgrace walking away, and giving Harry every last bit of her attention and care.
"No, don't worry about it. I am fine. What did you do to Malfoy?" Harry forgot about the strange experience he had just had and was trying to get more to the point of what happened after he had been hexed.
"Well, I just counteracted the spell he hit you with, then turned on him. Let's just say that I need to thank Ron later. Malfoy will never want to look at another slug again." Harry started laughing. He remembered how in the second year at Hogwarts, Ron had tried to curse Malfoy for calling Hermione a mugblood by having him burp up slugs. Unfortunately, Ron's wand was broken at the time and he ended up tasting the slugs.
"Ha, never too old for a little fun are we?" Harry was laughing, still slightly out of breath from the seizure he had briefly experienced. Then, very seriously, he turned to Cassie, "What do you think he meant when he said 'you'll see' just how much better a wizard he is than us?"
"I don't know he was probably just trying boost himself up. You know Malfoy, he always has to seem like the best." Cassie obviously didn't take the idea of Malfoy being a threat too seriously, and Harry didn't know why he did.
They apparated back into their home. Both of them were exhausted from their encounter with Malfoy, and were more than happy to try and make the rest of their one-year anniversary the best it could. Harry was still doing his best to regain some of the balance and vision he lost wriggling on the ground. They both fell into bed in the early hours of the new day.
* * *
Cassie Potter woke early the next day, still a bit shaken from the events of the previous evening. She could not control herself, she was happy from the romance she and her husband had shared, and still confused about Malfoy's actions. Cassie told Harry she thought all was well to keep him calm, but there were too many strange facts to ignore. Why was Malfoy in the woods alone? Why would he be so angry with them after eight years? Was he going to do something to prove his skill? Cassie was frazzled and could not think any more about Malfoy, or the wonderful evening he had ruined. Coming back to a more pleasant life, she bent over her husband, and kissed him lightly on the cheek. She decided to make breakfast in bed for him. She slid out of bed, pulled on her moon-and-stars robe, slipped her wand into its respective pocket and went downstairs into the kitchen. Before breakfast though, she decided she would write to her and Harry's two best friends since their school days, Ronald Weasley, and Hermione Granger. It just so happened that they were together, and Hermione was hoping for a proposal soon. Cassie quickly jotted down how the previous day went, asked them how they were doing, made a few quick adjustments, and tied it onto their owl Ledwig, who graciously stuck out his leg to allow her to tie it easier, and shooed him out into the glorious and fresh October morning. The day seemed to be perfect, the birds were chirping, a light breeze blew through the tree meekly disturbing their shiny leaves, and everything seemed to be working in perfect harmony.
As she ordered the eggs to scramble and the bread to toast with a flick of her wand, she sat down, oblivious to the world around her. She couldn't help but think back to her old Hogwarts days. She remembered how when she first came to school, although she was the same age as Harry, Ron, and Hermione, she had to be in the first year courses because she wasn't "discovered" until she was 15 and had no previous knowledge of magic. She had grown up in an American orphanage that closed down and sent her to London. All her life she was told she was just left on their doorstep with a name and nothing else. She grew up believing that her parents didn't love her, that they just abandoned her. She still remembered how the other kids were all adopted, leaving her behind because, according to Ms. Kimble, the orphanage attendant, she was a bad kid. Cassie didn't know why at the time, but every time she would get upset or nervous, it seemed that something would happen that couldn't be explained in muggle terms. Everything was blamed on her, because there was no one else to blame it on. She was tired of being treated inferior and wicked.
Then one glorious day, an attractive boy her age showed up with a letter from a distant school accepting her. More than anxious to get away, she left without question. This young man proved to be one of the greatest friends she had ever known, and she, like him, proved to be a survivor of the Dark wizard Voldemort. Because of that connection, he could understand her on a level no one else ever had before. It had made her feel loved for the first time. She was a wizard, along with several other children and adults. Harry, who had a scar on his forehead marking his survival, was different from her though. While Harry lived because his mother sacrificed herself for him making him untouchable, Cassie simply lived. She came out of a situation at the age of one with a scar on her right wrist, and no recollection of who she was, or anything of her past. While Harry was a remarkable wizard, she proved to be better. For some reason, all the things she learned, she already knew. She had an amazing knowledge of magical creatures that she had no idea about. Dumbledore said that this was due to the fact that her parents were veterinarians for the wizarding creatures, and they passed their knowledge on to her through genes. Still, even things not related to animals, she could perform and understand without being taught, merely knowing the words to a spell, or the ingredients to a potion, she could do it. Whether it was for 7th year students, or only the most experienced wizards, she could do them all. She soon caught up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione study wise, and stayed in their class, even when she could have moved on. The fact she could do so much scared many people, but all who knew Cassie also knew that she would never use her powers for the dark arts.
It was only after the toast was burning and the eggs scrambled to nothing that Cassie finally came-to again. Her past seemed like one big puzzle. She threw away the now uneatable food, and started again, making sure to pay closer attention. She again was lost in thought, but knew about the food, and only the food. She remembered how the Dark wizard Voldemort had tried to kill Harry in his 1st, 2nd, and 4th years, then her and Harry in their remaining 3 years of Hogwarts together. Every time, Voldemort was temporarily stopped, but each time came back with even more hate towards them than imaginable. He nearly killed them, but they would not die when they had each other to live for. Finally, in their 7th, and last, year at Hogwarts, Voldemort once again tried to kill the both of them. They had had enough, and with their combined spells, they banished Voldemort for good. It almost seemed instantly, but once Voldemort had been hit this last time, both of their scars slowly faded, then vanished, much like any thoughts of Voldemort. Finally, the things that they were both famous for having were gone. To the eye, they were normal wizards again. Neither of them really enjoyed being celebrities, people had always stared at their wrist and forehead, had asked about how they had done it, and asked about Voldemort who they so sheepishly referred to as "You-Know-Who." They hoped they would live semi-normal lives now. So far, it had appeared that their wish would come true. Occasionally, people recognized who they were, but that was okay. They were totally happy; they were together, Voldemort had been buried eight years in their past, and they were still close with their two best friends, Ron and Hermione.
The toast smelled crisp, and the eggs looked to be the perfect consistency, so Cassie arranged them onto a tray and used her wand to guide the tray up the stairs, while her hands held onto the glasses of pumpkin juice. Once the smell of food resounded off the walls of their fairly large bedroom, Harry woke up with a smile just as big as Cassie's and announced "Breakfast in bed, for me?' in a sarcastic, yet satisfied and grateful tone. He grabbed his glasses off the nightstand and focused his eyes on her.
"Of course, what else?" And with that they sat in bed and talked of what their life was in the past, and how they felt now that the first year of their lives together was over. They were careful not to mention their thoughts of Malfoy's actions, and stayed clear of anything that might relate back to him in any way.
They spent the whole day, together. They talked, went out to lunch, and then went shopping like Harry had planned. He ended up buying her a silver chain necklace with a snake wrapped around a rose charm on it. It was nothing fancy, but Cassie fell in love with it, and Harry could not resist buying it for her.
They were both on the England Quiditch team. Harry, a seeker, and Cassie, a keeper. It was something they had both enjoyed very much at Hogwarts, and by luck, were able to continue for a living. When they walked into the broom shop, they were trampled over to sign autographs and take photographs. Though this reminded them both of their days with scars, these children were of a different generation, and probably didn't take much faith in what they thought of as a bedtime story. They knew that they were now only popular for the sport they both loved and cherished. As soon as the manager of the store ushered everyone away to give them both room to breath and asked them what assistance he could be, they walked over towards the brooms.
"The Lightning-Racer 4, that is what Chuck said we were going to be riding now wasn't it?" Harry questioned. The Lightning-Racer 4 was supposed to be the fastest broom yet made. That statement was saying something considering the last "fastest yet" broom went from 0-150 miles per hour in 5 seconds. The game of Quiditch had had to get steadily harder as well; but with these Lightning-Racer 4 brooms, nothing seemed impossible.
"Harry, just think, going 0-175 miles per hour in 3 seconds, do we really need all that speed?"
"Well, I hear they are quickening the snitch and making the quaffles smaller, so I guess it will be necessary."
"Good point, I guess if they want you to catch something the size of a bouncy ball traveling faster than the eye can see every match, I can stop something the size of a softball every shot!" Cassie said this sarcastically, but her words were right. Harry had been a seeker since his first year in Hogwarts where he became the youngest seeker in a century. He was very good, and never afraid to sacrifice himself to win a game. The only times he didn't catch the snitch were when he was sick, or the other team was cheating, but still, that number was only up to 2 times, including the one match he lost in his 3rd year at Hogwarts. Cassie however, was a good keeper, but not the best. She would do anything to stop a ball, but had a bad habit of not watching out for the bludgers, resulting in her being removed from the games because of concussions. She couldn't even count all her concussions, and thanks to the wizard potions for them, she hadn't received any brain damage, yet.
The store emptied slowly, and they decided to go home. They walked to a corner in shadow and apparated into their own house. It felt good to be home for both of them. Though they both were still soaring with happiness, they were both drowned in exhaustion. Back in their bedroom, Ledwig, the son of Harry's old owl Hedwig, stood on the post of the bed, a letter with Hermione's neat writing on it tied tightly on his leg.
"What do they want?" Harry questioned, staring blankly at Ledwig.
"I wrote them a letter, just saying hey this morning. I also said what a good anniversary we had, hope you don't mind."
"It's alright, lets just see what Hermione has to say." Harry walked toward Ledwig and untied the letter from his leg. Ledwig patiently held open his mouth waiting for a treat. "Oh, right!" and Harry slipped a bacon wrap into his mouth.
Dear Cassie and Harry,
I am so happy that your first year was great. I have heard it is always the hardest, congratulations! All of my excitement isn't focused on you however, Ron proposed! Isn't that awesome? Finally, we will be married and the destiny that has been working since we were both only 11 will be full-filled. His parents and mine are thrilled! Have you told your godfather Sirius yet? Well, I will see you soon for sure.
Your friend,
Hermione
At the mention of Sirius, Cassie remembered that she had not written him in a while, even though he was the only family that either of them could claim.
"Wow! I can't believe Ron actually did it!" Harry sat, unblinking at the parchment.
"She has been waiting for that long before we were engaged, I am sure that they will have a great life together." At this Cassie grabbed her pajamas and headed for the shower. When she stuck out her hand to open the bathroom door, she let out a shriek of terror, and then lost her breath, her pajamas dropping to the floor.
Harry rushed to her side to see what was wrong. She didn't need to tell him though, because he could already see the problem. There on Cassie's right wrist, the scar that had brought her fame, and almost death, was starting to get steadily clearer. Harry could see Cassie's horrified face look at his, and then fall upon his forehead. He knew without looking what was happening. His scar was also reappearing.
They both knew that this could only mean one thing, Voldemort had returned.