Three days later, Jessica was starting to get very angry with the wizards and witches in Harry's life. They had to know what had happened, and yet no one was doing anything about it.

Hedwig still hadn't returned – and neither had any other owl – and Jess spent a good portion of her day in her spare bedroom, talking to Harry – or, rather, listening as he ranted about how unfair it was.

Normally, Jess would have chided him about acting like a teenager – even if he was one – but she completely agreed with everything he said.

"I guess the nightmares aren't getting any better?" She asked softly, when he finally took a second to breathe.

Harry sighed. "No. Unless by 'getting better', you mean 'getting worse', in which case, yes. I don't suppose you've had another dream telling me when I'm getting out of here, have you?"

Jess smiled. "No, but I did have another dream this morning."

"This morning?" Harry repeated.

"This morning." Jess confirmed. "I took a nap after breakfast for the first time in years."

"Must have been important." Harry commented, his frown evident in his voice. "What …?"

The sound of a door unlocking sounded through the pipe, and Jess heard Harry stand, blocking the window from view.

"We're going out." Vernon Dursley's voice said.

"Sorry?" Harry asked, his voice just polite enough to cover the coldness in it.

"We – that is to say, your aunt, Dudley and I – are going out."

Jess stifled her snort. He hardly needed to elaborate – the Dursleys had never bothered taking Harry anywhere, aside from Dudley's birthday trip to the zoo, and those few days before Harry's eleventh birthday, when they had fled the letters from Hogwarts. She shuddered, remembering how worried she'd been.

"Fine." Harry said dully.

"You are not to leave your bedroom while we are away."

"Okay."

"You are not to touch the television, the stereo, or any of our possessions."

"Right."

"You are not to steal food from the fridge."

Jess stood up and paced the length of the room, before whirling to glare at the wall, as though her gaze could pierce the brick and cement. No child should have to STEAL food from their own house just to be properly fed.

"I am going to lock your door."
"You do that."

Jess covered her mouth, her glare softening into a smile. She could only imagine Vernon Dursley's face at this lack of rebellion, and she forced the image from her mind until she heard the door lock again, lest he hear her laughter.

"Nicely done." She said softly.

"Thanks." Harry replied heavily, and she heard him sink back onto his bed. "Just so you know, I fully intend on picking the lock and coming over when they're gone."

"Good." Jess said firmly. "At least then I can make sure that you've got at least one decent meal inside you. Best come through the cupboard though – that new security system they've been bragging about probably …"

She trailed off, hearing a loud crack from downstairs.

"What was that?" Harry asked instantly.

Jess hesitated. She knew that Harry wouldn't have heard the sound as clearly as her – her bedroom door was open, while his was shut and locked.

She didn't want to worry him – or, worse, get his hopes up – the sound was probably a car backfiring and nothing to do with the wizarding world at all.

"Probably one of my dinner plates." Jess sighed, running a hand through her hair. "I stacked them rather precariously earlier. Give your aunt and uncle time to leave and then come through – I'll tell you about the new dream then."

"Alright, see you in a minute." Harry called as Jess left the room. She hurried down the stairs and poked her head round the kitchen door, just in case.

Sure enough, her plates were still stacked on the side, as precariously as she'd left them, no china shattered on her tiled floor.

She made her way into the living room and pulled aside the netting over her window. The Dursleys' car was still in the driveway, but that wasn't what caught her attention.

None of the street lights seemed to be working, and ten people were huddled in the street, shrouded in the shadows of the houses across the road. Her pulse quickened, her grip tightening on the net curtains.

Hopefully these people were here to collect Harry, finally, but what if his Ministry had decided not to wait for a trial before expelling him?

Or what if those Dementors had just been the opening act?

Jess was just about to run upstairs and warn Harry, when one of the people broke away from the rest and hobbled off down the street.

Squinting through the gathering darkness, Jess could just make out a carpet bag dangling from the figure's arm and smiled.

Mrs Figg, which means they must be …

Her thoughts stuttered to a halt and she gasped aloud as another of the figures stepped close enough to activate her porch light.

She knew that face – had seen it in one of her dreams when Harry was nine, albeit younger – and she knew who he was.

Hurrying to the front door, she pulled it open and stepped into her front garden. "Don't just stand there!" She hissed. "If they think you're here for Harry, they'll never leave!"

Looks were exchanged, along with a whispered conversation, but the man she had recognised as Remus Lupin seemed to know who she was, and led his fellows up her driveway and into her home.

She ushered them into the living room, drawing the curtains closed.

"Well," she stated, "it's about time you lot got here!"

"Excuse me?" One of the women asked, brushing her long dark hair away from her face.

Jess leaned against the window, her arms crossed. "Three days, he's been sitting up there, wondering if anyone actually gives a damn about the fact that he had to fight for his soul the other night! Would it have killed you to send him a note telling him you were on your way? I mean, I've come to terms with the fact that you people don't care what happens when he's here, but this is getting ridiculous!"

"I don't like what you're implying, girl." One of the men growled. This man she also recognised, from Harry's stories rather than her own dreams, one rapidly spinning eye giving away his identity.

Jess narrowed her eyes, refusing to be intimidated. "Yeah, well, I don't like how Harry has to live; apparently we'll both just have to get used to it."

Professor 'Mad-Eye' Moody gave her a twisted smile. "I like this one, Remus. How'd you meet her?"

"I didn't." Remus admitted, stepping between her and the crowd of slightly confused, slightly angry witches and wizards in her living room. "But Harry has. Her name's Jessica – correct?"

Jess nodded, favouring him a smile. "Yes. Jessica Brown."

"She knows about magic because Harry told her after his first year." Remus explained. "She's a true-dreamer."

"Is it even possible for a Muggle to be a true-dreamer?" Another of the women asked sceptically.

Jess took a moment to admire the woman's purple hair, before slipping past them to the writing desk in the corner of the room. "I have prophetic dreams as well, if you want to talk about things that shouldn't be possible. And I had another this morning, if you'd care to see it."

"I would." Remus said, as the others murmured among themselves. He took the piece of paper she handed him, and read it aloud. "'Hidden beneath a mask so fair, the only one with heart to dare, to go against the Lord of Light, and by that act bring down the night'."

"Are they always that cryptic?" The purple-haired woman asked, sounding more interested now.

Jess shrugged. "I've only had three prophetic ones. The last one was – the first was three words repeated over and over again around an image of a large black dog."

Apparently, everyone there recognised the description, but it was a tall bald, black wizard who spoke. "What three words?"

"Innocence. Injustice. Betrayal." Jess recited, unable to help feeling smug at the sharp intake of breath.

"I seem to recall Harry writing that you had clues last time." Remus said, waving the piece of paper he was holding. "Words, I think?"

"Not this time." Jess sighed. "The only thing I got was the full moon, but that could mean anything. Maybe whoever it is will be found on the full moon, or they were hidden on the full moon, or they're a werewolf, or they're going to find a cure for lycanthropy …" she shrugged. "The list goes on."

"How'd you know the illness that goes with the werewolf curse?" Remus asked. "Not something that usually gets passed around the Muggle world."

Jess smiled. "I read Harry's school books. He leaves them with me, just in case they decide to burn them all. Not that it does his homework much good when he's locked in his room all day."

"Why's he locked in his room?" The third witch asked.

Jess scowled, though not at her. "Because they were reminded rather violently that the wizarding world exists, and they're blaming Harry for it."

The purple-haired witch was frowning lightly. "How accurate are these dreams?"

"Well, the last two prophecies both came true." Jess told her. "And I've dreamed the events of Harry's time at Hogwarts. And there's this …" She searched in her writing desk again, and pulled out another sheet of paper.

This one was bigger, and rather than writing, it was covered in carefully sketched pencil marks.

Jess wasn't much of an artist usually, but the urge to draw the scene she'd dreamed one night six years ago had been too much, and her pencil had almost acted of its own accord.

She handed it to Remus, and his eyes widened as a gasp escaped him.

Jess knew why – that picture was the reason she had recognised him earlier. In it, he was sat on the bank of a lake, surrounded by several of his classmates, including (she knew now) Harry's parents.

A minute later, his forehead creased in confusion, and he looked up at her. "Could I have a word with you? In private?"

Jess was surprised, but shrugged. "Alright." She led him further through the house into the kitchen, shutting the door behind them, before dashing to the sink as the pile of plates threatened to topple over. "Whoops!"

"Allow me." Remus flicked his wand and the plates soared back into their cupboard, stacking neatly.

"Thanks." Jess sat down at her kitchen table and gestured to one of the other chairs. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Remus sat down opposite her and very carefully set the picture and prophecy in front of him. He pointed to the picture. "Do you remember having this dream?"

Jess frowned. "Well … yes. Not vividly, obviously – I have a lot of dreams, and it was six years ago. There wasn't much to it though – just you and your friends on the bank of the lake. It was … James I was most drawn to." She admitted. "He looked so much like Harry … for obvious reasons, but I didn't know that then."

"Were you there?" Remus asked. "Or were you just watching?"

"I was just watching." Jess answered. "At least, I assume so. None of you talked to me anyway … although you did keep smiling at me." She added pointlessly, gesturing to the picture.

Sure enough, whilst the others were silently laughing amongst themselves, Remus was smiling directly out of the paper.

"At you?" Remus asked. "Or someone behind you?"

Jess shrugged. "Could have been either. Why?"

"And there wasn't anyone else with us?" Remus pressed.

Jess leaned back in her chair, thinking hard. "No." She said finally. "No, I drew it as I saw it. Or rather, my pencil drew it as I saw it – I didn't really have much of a say in the matter."

"Because there was someone else." Remus told her in a whisper. "Someone else who should have been there, because we were never by the lake without her."

"Okay …" Jess said slowly. "What does that …?"

"You know what I am?" Remus asked over her half-formed query.

Jess raised an eyebrow. "I know you're a werewolf, if that's what you mean." She said calmly. "Harry told me. But I don't think the dream was talking about you, if that's what you're wondering – I got the feeling it was a woman actually."

Remus closed his eyes, but couldn't hide the emotion that passed across his face. "Her name was Jennifer." He said slowly, his voice barely audible; she had to lean forward to hear him at all. "The woman missing from the picture. She was Sirius's sister, Harry's godmother … and I love her more than anything."

Jess didn't miss the sudden change from past to present tense. "She's …?"

"Missing." Remus finished. "Presumed dead. But we shared a soul-bond. I'd know if she was dead … although that in itself makes no sense, because I should have been able to find her if that were true. Because of the soul bond, she could help me keep control of myself during the transformations. Do you think it could refer to her?"

Jess hesitated. "Well … that does make sense," she said carefully, "because normally when I dream about the full moon, it's chaotic and pain-filled and …" she broke off with a grimace.

"You dream about the full moon a lot?" Remus asked.

"Not so much about the full moon." Jess amended. "It's more that I dream on the full moon. Nightmares, really, more than dreams."

"How long have you had these dreams?"

Jess raised an eyebrow. "Harry didn't tell you that bit?" She sighed. "A little over fourteen years. That I can remember."

"That you can remember?" Remus repeated.

"I have amnesia of sorts." Jess explained. "I can remember that things happened, I just can't remember them happening."

"Sounds like a Memory Charm." Remus said, frowning.

Jess stiffened. "A Memory Charm?" She whispered. "Is that … Is that easily fixed? I mean, can you tell easily?"

Now it was Remus's turn to lean back in his chair, regarding her curiously. "Most Muggles would panic if they thought a spell had been cast on them."
"I'm not most Muggles." Jess told him with a humourless smile. "Besides, I don't believe what I do remember. None of it makes sense. I want to know who I am."

"Now that sounds more like a Memory Modification." Remus frowned. "Easier to fix, harder to confirm."

"Can you?" Jess asked.

"I can." Remus said slowly. "It'll mean using Legilimency. Mind reading." He elaborated, when she looked confused. "Except it's not mind-reading, and Addie would give me a two-hour lecture on calling it that." He tapped the picture and she glanced down to see that he was pointing to one of the girls talking to Harry's mother.

Jess shifted slightly in her seat. "It's not that I don't trust you to go rifling through my head," she said carefully, "because Harry trusts you and that's good enough for me, but … at the moment, I'm just assuming that I know who you are."

Remus chuckled. "Of course – we were never properly introduced, were we? Remus Lupin."

Jess took his offered hand, and a jolt of static electricity shot through them. She let go quickly, barely hearing his rueful apology, as her head seemed to explode with a hundred thoughts and memories and feelings and fears.

A few things rose to the surface, however, vying for attention.

First and foremost was the man sitting across the table from her, now looking quite worried that she seemed to have retreated into her own mind.

Second of all was the sudden crushing realism of Sirius's incarceration – it was one thing to be told what Dementors were like, but now she remembered …

Speaking of Harry, there was also the growing anger that Harry had not only been abandoned with his aunt and uncle (and James and Lily definitely didn't request that), but that there were wards and charms around the house or on Harry himself, that prevented people from interfering, even if they knew he was being abused and neglected.

Finally, there was the knowledge that one thing still remained a mystery – who had hit her with the Charm in the first place? Whoever it was, she remembered turning her back on them, which meant – to top it all off – it was someone she trusted.

Yes, Jennifer Black was not happy, and someone was going to pay.

"You were right." She whispered hoarsely, suddenly aware of how different her voice sounded. "You were right. I remember."

"How …?" Remus frowned. "There's no way it would have lifted from just shaking my …" He trailed off. "Hidden beneath a mask so fair …" he repeated slowly. "I assumed a glamour, but … it was more than that … it was the guise of a fair-haired woman … Jen?"

Looking up, Jen was tempted to reach out into his mind, but resisted, unsure of the state of the link – as he'd said, he should have been able to find her, which suggested the bond had been tampered with in some way.

The thought caused bile to rise up in her throat and she choked it down, holding out her hand. "Wand?"

Remus handed his over without a second thought, and she aimed it at her face. "Finite glamouri."

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Jen sighed in frustration. It wasn't the wand, she knew that – she'd always been able to use his wand as easily as hers. "Whoever put this glamour on me is more powerful than me then."

Remus raised an eyebrow. "That's not many people."

"I know." Jen tapped the wand against her throat and murmured a second incantation. "Did that one work?"

Remus smiled as her voice returned to normal, cementing the fact that it was definitely her. "Yeah. Yeah, that one worked."

"Good." Jen returned his wand. "Then you can start by telling me that my brother's alright after twelve years in hell."

Her voice cracked and he had suddenly rounded the table and pulled her into his arms. "He's fine, Jen." He whispered. "Still has nightmares, thinner than I'd like, but fine."

"Thank Merlin and Morgana." Jen breathed out, resting her head on his shoulder. "And Peter …?"

"Yeah." Remus confirmed darkly. "Peter."

Jen lifted her head to meet his eyes. "Is Mandy alright?"

"She's coping." Remus answered. "Are you alright?"
"I'm angry." Jen admitted in a low voice. "Very angry. Whoever did this …"

"… they were on our side." Remus finished. "Peter?"

Jen shook her head. "No. No, Peter had more power than any of us gave him credit for, but he wasn't more powerful than me. Nowhere close. Whoever it was, they weren't in our generation of graduates."

Remus nodded. It had only been a few weeks ago that he'd had a similar discussion with Hermione, about the research in the Department of Mysteries that had listed the Hogwarts graduates of his generation in terms of power.

Jen had topped the list, followed closely by James, Sirius, Addie, and Lily. Although, as Sirius had remarked at the time, he could never remember which way round he and Addie came.

"I'll need my wand back." Jen commented, frowning. "Harry mentioned something about Hermione having a second wand and it coming from Sirius's vault. Can I assume it's mine?"
"You can." Remus helped her to her feet. "It's at Headquarters. I assume you're coming with us?"
Jen snorted. "As if I'd do anything else. Where …?" She broke off at the sound of a car engine starting up. "The Dursleys are leaving. Come on."
They returned to the living room, where the various witches and wizards had made themselves at home. Jen smiled, as her eyes travelled over them, now recognising them as old friends and fellow Order members, until they alighted upon the purple-haired witch.

Jen didn't recognise her from the original Order – she was too young to have been a member – but her heart-shaped face was all too familiar.

"Guess who was under a Memory Charm?" Remus asked lightly.

"Oh please." Jen said, rolling her eyes, as everyone reached for their wands. "As if I'd ever join Mouldy-Shorts. I don't have my wand anyway, and I'll leave the glamour on for now." She winked at Remus, who grinned, knowing that she'd rather have that conversation with Sirius in private. "And don't bother breaking in next door. Harry will be over soon anyway; you may as well wait. So, Nymmy," she addressed the youngest witch, "what are you up to now?"
"Don't call me …" Nymphadora Tonks, daughter of Jen's cousin, Andromeda, paused mid-sentence. "Wait. There's only two people who ever called me that. And you're not Sirius."

Jen raised an eyebrow. "I should hope not." She suddenly found herself with an armful of cousin and hugged her tightly. "It's good to see you too."

"Nymphadora!" Mad-Eye barked. "Haven't I taught you better than that?! Constant vigilance, girl!"

Jen rolled her eyes. "When I was thirteen-years-old, David Potter took me, James and Sirius to work with him. You told him that I'd either be the best auror you'd ever worked with, or your worst nightmare."

Mad-Eye looked momentarily stunned, before his face formed a twisted smile. "Good to have you back, Black. Had us all worried there."

"There's an understatement." Dora muttered, pulling away to wipe her eyes.

"Well?" Jen prompted her. "What are you up to now?"
"I'm an auror." Dora answered proudly.

"Good for you." Jen tugged a strand of hair. "It was blue last time I saw you."

Dora shrugged. "I like variety."

"Your mum?" Jen asked.

"She's fine." Dora assured her. "So's Dad. They'll want to see you."

"I'll try to call by and see her at some point this week." Jen said, hearing a tapping noise on the other side of the wall. "And that's my cue."

Pushing a coffee table out of the way, she grasped a nick in the wall and tugged sharply, causing a small door to swing open.

Harry crawled through the opening and straightened up, stretching. "Thanks, Jess; I …" He trailed off and looked around the living room, making eye contact with everyone there. "What's going on?"

"It's alright, Harry." Remus told him with a smile. "We've come to take you with us."

"How long do we have?" Jen asked, causing Harry to frown slightly at the use of pronoun.

"Long enough." Remus told her. "You explain; we'll get his things together."
"I'll go!" Dora volunteered brightly, disapparating.

Remus sighed. "I'll go and fix whatever she's broken." He informed them, before vanishing himself with a crack.

"Jess?" Harry questioned, as she chuckled fondly – apparently Dora hadn't changed a bit. "What's going on?"

Jen put a hand on his shoulder and guided him through to the kitchen, where the two pieces of paper still lay on the table. "I had another dream, Harry."

"Yeah, you said." Harry picked it up and read it through. "Sounds like one Hermione heard last year. Who is she, do you know?"

Jen took a deep breath. "Me. It's me, Harry."

Harry looked up, looking bewildered. "But … But you're not a witch."

"Yes, I am, Harry." Jen sighed. "I just didn't know until about ten minutes ago. I was under a Memory Charm; my magic was escaping me."

"You're a witch." Harry said softly. "You went to Hogwarts?"

Jen chuckled. "I did. I was a Gryffindor."
Harry grinned at her. "Does that mean you're coming with us?"
"It does." Jen smiled back. "It also means you don't have to go back to the Dursleys."

Hope blossomed in Harry's expression for a second, before his face fell. "But … Dumbledore …"

"Albus Dumbledore has no say over where you spend your summers, Harry." Jen told him, more sharply than she had intended. "Besides, I have the legal high ground here."
"How?" Harry asked quietly, sounding as though he wished he could believe her, but doubted it.

Jen's smile softened. "Because I'm your godmother."