Title: Crossroads
Author: jazzymaymay
Fandom: Harry Potter/Batman
Rating: Mature
Pairing(s): Harry Potter/Bruce Wayne (pre-relationship)
Warning(s): (highlight to reveal) mild transphobia, violence, and language.
Contains: mtf transgender Harry,
Beta(s): Entangled Woods, Benderfan1221
Notes: This fic has been a long labor of love. I had two other drafts of this fic that I actually posted and then later deleted. One was called Inside Out. Unlike the other drafts I plan on finishing this fic come hell or high water, although updates will come sporadically. I want to thank my friends Benderfan1221 and Starr Falling for cheering me on and telling me this didn't suck. I especially want to Entangled Woods who succumbed to my begging on Facebook and offered her red pen of doom to the cause. This is fic is unbrit picked as of now, but if you want the job please let me know. One more thing: I have a tumblr for this universe, where I will post fanart, character bios, and much more!
ETA: I forgot to mention that instead of using straight comic canon, I'm actually using my own mesh of the comics, the various movies, the animated series, and the Arkham video games. Everyone from both Harry Potter and Batman are much younger than they depicted in canon. Harry is in her early 20's and Batman is his late 20's-early 30's. I have a tumblr for this story - letscrissandcross dot tumblr dot com - that will have a fan cast and character bios. I will have them up as soon as possible.

Summary: When Harry Potter is outed as transgender in the Wizarding World, Harry has no choice but to leave everything behind and try to start over in Gotham City. However, her chance at normality is shaken upside down when she discovers that her new employers are targeted by the new head of the Falcone crime family, Alberto Falcone. Harry must decide between keeping her new found anonymity or stopping Falcone and risk being brought once again into the spotlight.

CHAPTER ONE

Soundtrack: Young Volcanoes - Fall Out Boy

The pain attacked me as fast and silently as a snake the moment I stepped into Gotham International Airport. Every inch of my body, from the top of the head to the bottom of my toes was in agony as if a thousand tiny little knives were stabbing into me. My magic surged through my body, battering against its prison that was made of my flesh, blood, and bone.

I gritted my teeth, as my body started to weaken against the onslaught. I swayed on my feet, and I quickly grabbed onto a nearby wall, praying that I wouldn't fall on my face. I blinked my eyes, as I tried to focus on the people who were passing by me, but all I could make out were their blurry shapes.

I let out a sharp gasp, as my magic continued to try force itself out of my body, pounding at me like someone was trying to smash through a brick wall with a sledgehammer. I tried to hold onto my magic as hard as I could. Yet, despite the agony I was going through, what made this situation all the worse were the whispers.

The whispers coaxed and cajoled, they poked and prodded my own simmering rage and the desperation that I had been carrying for four months inside of me as I watched Ron, Hermione, and even Ginny (people who I thought would always be by my side)turn away from me in my darkest hour. The thing was, a part of me, a very large part, wanted to make them pay. I wanted them to feel the loneliness, and the despair I felt. And with my level of power, it would be so easy. All I would need to do was to let loose, and let my magic go and let it wrought my wrath.

"Hey, lady are you okay?"

I was only marginally able to turn my head. To my surprise, a man was standing there beside me. I tried to open my mouth to, I don't know maybe reassure him that I wasn't crazy or in need of a doctor? However, before I could even do so, there was a loud crash, followed by screaming. In the corner of my eye, I could see a wall of broken windows.

Abruptly, the pain suddenly grew more intense. My legs gave out and I swiftly found myself sliding down the wall. I shuddered, a low whimper escaping my lips. I knew that it's was my fault. In my split second of inattention, a bit of my magic had managed to slip passed my control. Luckily, this time I had only broken some windows. God only knew what would happen have happened to the innocent bystanders if I had unleashed the force of all of my magic on them. There was no other choice: I had to stop my magic before it hurt someone.

"Hold on," The man said as he started to climb to his feet. "I'm going to get help."

"No," I bit out between my clenched teeth. "Just give me a moment."

I closed my eyes and did my best to block out the other people in the airport as much as I could. With all the same stubbornness that got me through the war, I managed to push the pain aside enough to actually sodding think. Frantically, I tried to think of a way to get firmly in control of my magic, until a thought popped into my mind 'Why don't I just pull it back in?' It seemed so simple, too simple to work; but I had to try.

I could still hear the man's voice, but it was more distant now. I ignored him, as I visualized the magic inside me. I could almost see it now. In my mind, my magic was a long thick rope. I imagined that I was now grabbing the rope, and suddenly the rope began to jerk violently back and forth like I was an old fashion American cowboy trying to rope an angry bull. Time seemed to slow down as I carefully and gradually started to pull on the long thread of my magic as hard as I could. I yanked and pulled the thread of my magic so that painstakingly, inch by bloody inch, it slid back inside and into my magical core. As I pulled in the last bits of my magic, the pain faded instantly just as suddenly as it had appeared.

I leaned my head back against the wall and sighed in relief. I felt out of breath and more exhausted than I had felt since I defeated Voldemort five years prior. "That's it!" The man stood up. "I'm going to get you some help."

"No." I pleaded. "I feel better, just help me up." The man threw me a dubious look. "Are you sure?"

I tried to give him a reassuring smile, but I was pretty sure it came out more as a grimace. "I'm sure."

He shrugged, and took my hand and helped me unsteadily onto my feet. I swayed a little bit on my feet. After a moment, I finally regained my balance. I threw him a small grateful smile. "You see, I'm fine."

"Well, if you don't need any more I help..."

"No," I shook my head. "But thank you for your help."

"No problem." He gave me a small smile, then looked down at his watch and frowned. "Well, I better be off."

"Thanks again."

The man just nodded, before he turned around and walked away.

I glanced back to see if my momentary loss of control gathered any attention, but to my relief, everybody's attention was currently on the broken windows and the shards of glass that littered the floor. I sighed, as I thought about how much damaged my magic could have caused. Thank god this incident wouldn't be a blip on the American Ministry's radar.

The major reason I had picked to start over in Gotham in the first place was the city's inherent chaotic dark magic that seem to cover every inch of the city like a thick fog. It was impossible to get a read on anyone's magic signature in a place like Gotham. And despite Gotham's horrible crime rate and a terrible reputation for costumed psychos, it still made the city a perfect place for someone like me to disappear in.

And speaking of Gotham's magic, I suddenly wondered if the city's magic was partly responsible for my momentary loss of control. It was definitely something I didn't plan for when I originally picked the city, and maybe Gotham's inherent magic had some effect on mine? I still had the some taint on my own magic from Voldemort's influence, and maybe the city's magic was attracted to it.

In the end, there was no diffident way to tell. So it was best that I just don't do any magic for a while until I can be sure that my magic didn't try to rebel again. I didn't want to hurt anyone, and I needed to keep my head down and keep a low profile. I diffidently want anyone back home to figure out where I was, and I sure as hell didn't need any sodding Rogue Death Eaters coming after me now that I no longer had the protection of the Ministry behind me.

I straightened out my dress as best as I could. Then I picked up my carry-on bag and headed towards Passport Control. I groaned when I saw the long line. This was going to take forever, and with the flight, and my bout of magical upheaval, I absolutely wasn't up for the long wait. Even though, the pain had faded, I was still both physically and mentally exhausted.

I walked tiredly to the back of the line. The wait seemed to take forever, and I suddenly wished that I had my phone. I had gotten rid of it just before I left London. Hermione was smart enough to try to track my phone by its GPS, and it would make all my effort to disappear from the Wizarding World for nothing.

It was almost an hour and a half later when I finally, FINALLY, got to the front of the line. "Papers and Passport." The border agent recited in a bored voice. I quickly handed over my passport and my immigration papers.

"Aster Jane Potter?"

"Y-Yes." I stuttered. I had only officially been Aster Jane Potter for a few weeks now, and I was still getting used to hearing Aster instead of Harry.

While the border control agent scanned and verified my documents and passport, he asked me the usual questions. I tiredly told him about my plans to move to Gotham permanently, how I planned on getting a job, and about the substantial sum that was currently sitting in my account at Gotham National Bank. For a moment, I wondered if anyone could pick up on the small paper trail I left when I liquated most of the Potter vaults. I had done my best to cover my tracks when I turned the Black vaults over to Andromeda and Teddy. They needed the money more than I did at this point, and the Potter vaults would more than cover any expenses I may have.

Still, I did leave a paper trail and anyone who really was invested in finding me might still have the chance (no matter how slim) to find me. I sighed in relief as I realized that someone would have to a court order from The Wizagmont to gather the information legally, and it was almost impossible to break in Gringott's records.

"Here you go," The border control agent handed me back my passport and threw me a quick "Welcome to Gotham."

"Thank you," I said, giving him a bright smile. I quickly gathered my carry-on and walked away. I was more than ready to start my new life in Gotham.

To Be Continued…