Chapter Three: Disagreement
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or affiliated characters, places, and things. They all belong to J.K. Rowling and affiliated companies. This particular plot is mine, however. And to make it seem more cohesive to the original stories I am using some of the lines from them, but they are not my material. They came from the excellent mind of their owner.
A/N: Okay just as another reminder this is still going to be taking pace two decades after the normal Harry Potter timeline. So, Violet's first year at Hogwarts was 2011, not 1991. Anyway please read and review. Thank you.
Albus was waiting in Arabella's house for Ms Potter. He had been there for four hours now. He knew the police were talking to her about what had happened, and that it would take time. He just didn't think it would take this long. He wanted to remove her memories of what she just learned. He needed to do this for her protection to remain. The Dursleys may be monsters, but they were the safest place for her. Tom was more than likely going to take advantage of this whole problem the moment he heard about it. If it wasn't him then one of the Death Eaters do it without being ordered to do so. Given Potter's return to her original gender, her fate would probably be worse than death for quite some time. To many, this would be unacceptable, but this was a double standard that was needed to save the world.
The so called 'heroes' that found the problem didn't know of the threat that had potentially unleashed on the world. What made matters worse is that they could not handle this threat at all. They would mess things up, and the death toll around the world would be outrageously high. With his plans, the death toll would be kept to a few thousand, and that was an acceptable number. So long as Doctor Fate was unaware of his plans things would go well.
When Arabella's door opened a shield charm appeared along the edges of the door. The shield blocked his ability to cast a stunner at Ms Potter when she came into view. Albus made his way around Arabella to see who was casting the spell. He was devastated at what he saw. Standing right behind Ms Potter was Doctor Fate. He did not look happy at all. The man's presence didn't bode well for him. If the tales were true about what he could do then some of his secrets might be in danger. The cold silence that filled the air was unpleasant. The look on Ms Potter's face was one of misgivings. The fact that her hand was in her right pocket did not put him at ease. He decided to break the tension.
"Violet it is good to see you have safely returned, but I must ask how do you know these people?" He asks in his grandfatherly voice.
"This is Doctor Fate professor. You know the friend Wonder Woman mentioned earlier. He was waiting for us outside." As Violet walked through the door Albus noticed a young woman standing just behind her. The girl's t-shirt and tight jeans made her appear like a muggle, but try he couldn't use passive Legilimency on the girl. He thought back to Violet's sorting, but he hadn't seen a younger version of this girl there. In fact, he hadn't seen any of the students at Hogwarts mature into this young woman. Maybe she went to another magical school. Violet must have noticed he was staring at the young woman as she wrapped an arm around her neck. "This is Kara, my girlfriend."
"Ms Potter where did you meet her?" Albus asked looking between the two girls. They were acting like they had known each other for some time. This was impossible though. Violet would have only been able to meet her a few weeks ago or during the summer break last year. He knew she couldn't have met her then as she was under constant watch. Albus tried to use passive Legilimency on both of them this time, but like last time he learned nothing. It was as if he was staring into an empty void when he looked eyes with them. Albus' right index finger twitched. There was a part of him that wanted to use his wand, but things would not end well for him against such a foe.
"I met her during my stay at the Leaky Cauldron last summer," Violet said in a chipper tone.
Albus looked at the other girl once more. This girl had to be magical Violet wasn't allowed to leave the Leaky Cauldron. He tried to use passive Legilimency on the girl once more. This time something pushed him back rather violently. He now knew this girl was not a normal girl. She had some form of magical education, and he was determined to find out where she learned this.
The girl leant over and whispered into Violet's ear. This wicked smile crossed Violet's face. Before he could ask what was going on Violet leant over and kissed the young woman firmly on the lips. The two seemed to deepen the kiss in short order to be sure. Albus' breath was taken away as a silvery glow surrounds them. It grew in brightness the longer the kiss lasted to the point it was almost blinding. Albus hoped he was misinterpreting what he was seeing, but he knew that was wishful thinking. The idea that they were soulmates was unnerving. These thoughts were only strengthened as the two girls separated. A thin silver line between their lips was final blow Albus' plans. They were indeed soulmates. The only soulmates he knew up to this point were Violet's parents. That James and Lilly's daughter would have one as well was so astronomically impossible it might as well be zero.
As Ms Potter looked at him Albus remembered something. Ms Potter, or at the time Mr Potter, had never been seen talking with this girl in Diagon Alley. This brought a smile to his face. Cornelius had told him that Violet would not be allowed to go out into the Muggle world. This was agreed to by Ms Potter, and Tom had not seen her or let her go into the muggle world. He may have been old, but he was still sharp of ear, and eyes. Albus might be able to bring her back to the Light with this. "Ms Potter, if I remember correctly you were not allowed to go into muggle London during that stay in Diagon Alley." He tried to look and sound concerned for her wellbeing.
"Yes sir, but how many times have I snuck around Hogwarts headmaster?" Violet said with a smile on her face. "I mean seriously I am the DAUGHTER of Prongs headmaster. I may not be pranking people, but I had to learn how to be stealthy while leaving with my relatives. I have only been caught twice, sir, so I think me getting around would have been easy. Remember, at age eleven I snuck off into a forbidden part of the castle, and made it through traps without being caught. There is also what I did in the two years that followed. Just thinking about Voldemort makes my want to vomit." Violet almost retched when she said the man's name. "There is no way that BASTARD is human in my honest opinion. Whatever magical acts he did to himself turned him into a monster."
Albus was shocked by this. Had he done the right thing by leaving her in that household? No, this wasn't his mistake. This was the piece of Tom's soul talking. "Ms. Potter that is a bit much don't you think?" Albus asked looking between the girl and Dr Fate. He couldn't say much as he didn't want the man to know what he suspected about Tom. "He may have done some horrible things, but he might regret his decisions one day, and we should be ready to forgive him, Ms Potter." He said softly as he looked into Ms Potter's eyes. Albus could see the rage burning within them.
"Headmaster I don't think you get it. People like Ra's al Ghul should be put away for their crimes, but I don't think prison would be enough for Voldemort. Voldemort and his followers are genocidal, and even people like Ra's al Ghoul would baulk at that. If you are unfamiliar with the term genocidal it means that he kills a specific group of people based on their ethnicity. In this case two groups of people. His followers will do worse. They will rape, torture, or kill you. That is if you are lucky. If you are unlucky they will do all three." Violet said with this growl to her voice. She then looked over at the brunette girl. "Kara love, could you go get my things please."
"Sure sweetie." Kara leant in and kissed her once more.
The young girl disappeared out of sight within seconds. Before he could ask where she had gone the girl had returned carrying Violet's trunk. Had the girl silently apparated to an unknown location? If she did that was impressive, but also a contradiction. There was no way to silently apparate. Perhaps this was a new spell discovered in Americas. He also couldn't rule out the Dark Arts. Only a fool ignores all the options. He was shaken out of his thoughts at the sound of Violet talking to Doctor Fate. He was unsure of what they were talking about as they as it was a language that he did not know. When they finished talking Violet nodded. Before he could ask what was going on the man reached over and placed his thumb and index finger over Violet's scar, and started incanting a spell Albus was unfamiliar. Was it possible that Ms Potter and Doctor Fate knew what was trapped behind the scar? Before he could say anything, the man was pulling his fingers away from the famous scar. The scream that left Violet was ear shattering. When his fingers were a foot away from her forehead Albus could see a small ball of light in-between Doctor Fate's fingers.
Albus pointed to the thing floating between Fate's fingers. He then asked in a shaky voice. "Is that Tom or Violet?"
"It is not, and what is sad is that you could have done this as well. All you had to do was a little research. I don't know why you didn't, but it is that you didn't that makes you grey. You are in no way the Leader of the Light." He looked between the two girls. "I will make sure the Daily Prophet will know what has happened to you, Violet. The more people who know the better."
The girls nodded. They then asked for a gate to somewhere. He didn't know where as it was the young Kara who asked Doctor Fate to open it. It was the same language Violet had been using earlier. Perhaps this was a language taught at Ilvermorny. Given that Doctor Fate host was American this was a possibility. The name Hermione Granger seems to have been used. Though he didn't want to chance it as Hermen Grag was not the young girl's name. He would have to look into this later. The Ministry would know where this powerful magic had led to. The two girls walked through the portal, and as soon as they were clear of it the portal was closed. Doctor Fate looked back at him and shook his head. In a flash of light, he was gone. This was not good, and if the look on Arabella's face told him anything it was that his life would not be an easy one for the foreseeable future.
-LVaD-
Hermione was trying to come to terms with the fickle nature of magic. At around ten this evening as she had been revising her homework for Transfiguration when a flash of green light filled her room. In that moment, she knew something had happened to Harry. Yet when she thought the boy's name it felt wrong somehow. Whatever happened to 'Harry' had affected her memory somehow. She didn't know how or why this had happened. While she remembered meeting the girl as 'Harry' she now knew her name to be Violet. As she made ready to write a letter to her friend about all of this her mum knocked on her door. When she was told she was decent her mum opened the door and asked her to come downstairs. When Hermione asked what was going on all her mum said was that it concerned one of her friends.
Once in the living room, she found her father transfixed by the news. As the announcer spoke Hermione felt uneasy and a little sick to her stomach. A businessman had been kidnapping children and doing unspeakable things to them. When she saw a picture of the man her breath was taken away from her. It was Violet's uncle, Vernon Dursley. As the report spoke Hermione just felt worse by the second. Violet's relatives had been holding three girls' captive for as long as two years. She was grateful that all of this had been uncovered, but she wondered if Violet had done her 'saving people' thing again for these young girls. As if to answer her question the video of members of the Justice League appeared on the screen. They had been tipped off to this by someone who knew Violet, and they informed the Little Whinging authorities before showing up to assist them.
Hermione was shaken from her thoughts by her father asking if these were her friend's relatives. She thought for a moment how to answer this. There was nothing to gain by lying about it, and if she had nowhere else to go then Violet might be able to stay here if she was honest. When she told him yes, her mother asked her why they remembered him as a boy. She told them it was probably part of Dumbledore's protection, but she didn't know for sure. They had asked why he would do such a thing, and all Hermione could do was look at the telly. At the time, she couldn't really think of a good reason for the headmaster to do something like this, but maybe he suspected something about Vernon Dursley. She didn't know which was worse though. The fact that the headmaster would protect one child from such thing, or that he would blatantly ignore the suffering of others.
She had up until now thought that Dumbledore was always right and that Violet's relatives place was the safest place for her. Now, however, she was questioning all of his decisions. There was no way a wizard as powerful as Albus Dumbledore didn't know about the abuse Violet must have suffered. This combined with all the things that had gone on in the school for the last three years she had been there made her more worried about the headmaster than she had ever felt about Sirius Black. That Violet's protections had been tied to those monsters made Hermione feel sick at her stomach.
She had wanted to send her letter to Violet immediately, but her parents said she should wait until tomorrow afternoon when things had calmed down for the poor girl. She had agreed with them when she thought about it for a minute. It was this of course that found her sitting at her desk staring blankly at her Arithmancy book. She looked over at her alarm clock. It was nearly two o'clock in the morning. Today was going to be a long day.
TAP! TAP! TAP!
A sound coming from her window drew her attention. When she looked out the window she saw Violet floating there with a smile on her face. Hermione got out of bed and ran to her window. When she opened it she found out what was supporting her friend. Instead of her Firebolt, Hermione's eyes fell on a brown-haired girl holding Violet up. The girl looked maybe a couple of years older than herself. Looking back up at her friend she found her carrying this mischievous smiling.
"Violet, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked.
"I came to see you, Hermione. I know out of all my friends it would be you that was worried the most. I am not saying that Ronald wouldn't be, but that his concerns would be less." Violet looked down at the young woman holding her up. "Oh, and don't worry about Kara. She just got back from a long trip across the pond."
"Pond?" Hermione looked quizzically at her friend. She couldn't mean…
"The Atlantic Ocean," Violet said with a smug look on her face. It almost seemed as she was trying not to think about her relatives. "Budge up Hermione we need to get in. I think it would seem odd if any of your neighbours looked out the window right now. I mean I know I am being supported by the perverted Supergirl…"
"Hey!" the young woman said with a stern voice.
"But I don't think it would be cool for us to be floating out her for the world to see."
Hermione nodded her head and backed away from the window. It was at that moment her brain finally registered what Violet had said. "Wait you mean THE Supergirl is supporting you?" Hermione said in stunned amazement.
"Yep," Violet said as she climbed through the window. She was followed by a brunet teen wearing a white t-shirt, a pair of faded jeans, and black boots. For a moment Hermione thought that Violet was having her on, and then the girl removed her wig that she realised her friend wasn't joking. Hermione had seen her on the news a couple of times, but seeing her in the flesh was breath-taking. She kind of felt guilty in this moment. She had always had a feeling for Violet, but she couldn't deny that she was attracted to this girl as well. Violet's voice snapped her out of her introspection. "If you missed it her name is Kara. Anyway, I came here to talk to you. It is super important that you listen to what I have to say."
"Why?" Hermione was worried this might have something to do with Dumbledore or… "I saw the news, and if it has to do with that…"
Violet started waving her hands in a dismissive manner. "No, this has nothing to do with that. They didn't lay a finger on me in that way." Violet looked over at Kara, and let out a held breath. "Well, the story is a bit long so I will give you the sort version. Kara and I are mentally from the future, and we have come back in time to change things." Hermine wanted to say something, but Violet held up her hand. "No, this is different than what we did with the Time Turner. We died," she pointed to herself and Kara, "…and were sent back in time to fix things."
Hermione raised an eyebrow at this. She knew Violet to tell some tales as Harry, but she had never made a lie this big. Maybe. "Why?"
"To take a line from my girlfriend: 'Dumbledore fucked things up.' He has held so many secrets that it literally took me sacrificing myself to solve them, and even that was the wrong way of doing things."
"YOU SACRIFICED YOURSELF!" Hermione screamed.
"Not so loudly." Violet chastised. "Yes, and it felt horrible."
"Because you and Kara hadn't said goodbye," Hermione said in a whisper.
"No, but I took the same Killing Curse. It hit us both on the side." Kara said looking down at the ground.
"Anyway, our Grim Reaper told us a few things about what was supposed to happen. First, we, meaning the three of us, are soulmates." Hermione's jaw seemed to dislodge itself. "Secondly that we are supposed to bring the magical world into the modern age. Now, Kara and I are already under the soul bond, but we were told to bring you under it as well ASAP. I don't feel comfortable doing this, but if a Grim Reaper is telling us to do it then maybe we should." Violet said kicking at the dust on the ground.
This dumbfounded Hermione. This was the first time she has ever heard of Death, much less a Grim Reaper, doing something in a positive manner. Normally when death does something things didn't go well for the person involved. This seemed a little off kilter for her really, but given what has happened in Violet's live this was quite normal when she thought about it. During her first year at Hogwarts, she had nearly died twice. In her second year, Violet fought a basilisk. Then last year they both thought a madman was out to kill her. So, given what has happened in the past this wasn't too abnormal.
Hermione closed her eyes and took in a calming breath. She looked back at the other two girls in the room. They seemed as anxious as she felt. This must be new territory for them as well. They had been in a relationship with each other for, assembly, years. So, adding a new person to the relationship must feel awkward. Hermione closed her eyes again and took a shallow breath. She decided to bite the bullet as it were.
"Okay, how do we do this?" she asked in general not caring which girl answered the question.
"Well, given what we felt when we kissed each other not too long ago, I would say we have to kiss each other." Hermione could feel her cheeks heating up at this point. Given what she was thinking earlier this was probably going to be ruined by teenage hormones. "That means you have to kiss the both of us though."
Hermione felt herself going even more scarlet at this point. 'When did she become this logical?' Hermione thought with a touch of admiration. "Then it should be you first Violet. If it doesn't work, then we will talk about what might make the soul bond start."
Violet nodded and walked forward. They stared at each other awkwardly for a little bit. Then they tried to kiss each other. Since they both leant their heads in the same direction they bumped into each other's noses. This caused Kara to chuckle a little. Violet told her to "Stuff it", and tried to kiss her again. This time their lips met gently. At first, she was shocked at how right this felt. She had been wanting this for months, and now that it was happening it felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. In that moment she gave into her feelings and deepened the kiss. All of a sudden the cloud that had been blocking her mind for about a month was lifted. All of these memories came rushing back to her. She was kind of shocked what she and Violet had to do to protect the ones they loved. That the three of them had spent a year in the Sanctuary of Solitude was mildly depressing.
When Violet broke away Hermine stood there blinking. When she came to her senses she looked over at the blonde. She was kind of scared that the young woman was smiling at her. Kara walked towards her so slowly that Hermione's eyes drifted to her swaying hips as she walked up to Violet. "Come here…" Hermione watched as she kissed Violet. This iridescent glow surrounded the both them. When Kara broke away from Violet she looked at Hermione with a wicked grin. She was torn in this moment between lust and decency. She was raised to show some level of restraint in situations like this, but lust seemed to be winning. She did not resist as Kara placed a hand on the back of her head and pulled them closer together. When the girls' lips met her own Hermione once again felt this surge of energy flow through her. The gaps in her memory were starting to be filled as the kiss deepened. She could recall helping teach Kara about the magical world. How she had helped prepare her for the hatred that would be coming her way when they went to Hogwarts. In all the sadness, there were glimpses of joy and happiness. If it weren't for Kara's tongue she would be laughing at how Draco was beaten as he tried to 'dual' Kara. He had called her out in the Great Hall, and Dumbledore in his infinite wisdom allowed. The fight was over in a matter of seconds. As Malfoy turned around to cast a spell Kara used her heat vision to incinerate the boy's wand.
This of course came with the memory of how she died and how had killed her. It seemed almost anticlimactic really. Draco had snuck up behind her and hit her with a cutting charm at the back of her neck. This, of course, stopped all the good feeling she was feeling. The last thing she had seen was a red and blue blur charging Draco Malfoy.
When she broke away from Kara's lips Hermione thought on what she had just learned. She looked at the both of them. Violet looked a touch worried while Kara had this shite eating grin on her face. Hermione hit Kara on the shoulder. "You were always an arse."
"Hermione, do you remember?" Violet asked attentively.
"I remember everything up to Kara or Clark killing Draco after he killed me." At that moment Violet squealed and launched herself at Hermione. The hug she was receiving was a welcome thing. What stopped this joyous moment was the sound of her door being thrown open. When the two of them broke apart Hermione turned around to see her mum and dad staring at the two of them. Given by the looks on their faces this was not what they were expecting. When they came back to their senses her mother and father walked up to Violet and started asking her if she was okay. It took Violet a few minutes to convince them she was okay. Once they were satisfied they looked to Kara. They asked if she was a friend of theirs from school.
Hermione decided to answer for her. "No, she doesn't. Mum, Dad this is Violet's girlfriend she's from Kansas. Her legal name is Kara Annabel Kent." She looked at her two friends, and when they nodded she continued. "Her birth name is Kara Zor-El. Her cousin is Kal-El." She waited for a few seconds, and then she noticed the light bulbs clicking on in her parents' brains.
"You mean to tell me you, our sweet daughter, know Superman's cousin?" her dad asked. Hermione nodded her confirmation. "Can I get your autograph?" he asked with a sheepish smile on his face. Her mum hit him on his shoulder. "I mean it is a pleasure to meet you."
"Well there is more to this story, but since we need to tell a whole group we should do this somewhere Dumbledore can't reach easily," Violet said. She looked between the two eldest Grangers. "Would you two mind a mini-vacation to Kansas?"
Hermione's mum looked saddened at this. "Violet I would love to, but it would take a few days to arrange things with our patients, and then we would have to arrange a flight and a host of other things. I don't think it would be a viable option right now."
"Actually we can get you there faster," Kara said. "Before you ask no I am not talking about flying you at hypersonic speed." Kara looked over to Violet. "Our dear sweet Violet here can open a portal to the Kent farm, and we can just walk there. If you don't have an appointment over the weekend you can stay over. Ma and Pa wouldn't mind having guest over."
Hermione looked pleadingly between her mother and her father. They seemed to be having a silent conversation with themselves. When she thought they were going to say no her shoulders fell. "Hermione dear we will go, but we need to make some arrangements. If your friend can do this without getting in trouble we will go. Just be ready when they get here okay?"
Hermione nodded her agreement. "Thank you, so much." She hugged both her parents tightly. She turned back to Violet. "Are you sure you can do that without getting into trouble?" Hermione asked Violet.
"As my alter ego, yes, but I am still under the Trace as Violet Potter." Violet seemed to notice that her parents had their doubts. "So, long as I am on good terms with the UN and the Justice League as Arcanist I can't be tracked. As I am told the Trace will always register me as 'Arcanist'." As her parents stood there in silence Hermione felt Violet leant in and kissed her on the cheek. "Now I know you, my love. Given all that you have read, you might be able to prepare you parents for what they are going to learn." She looked at Kara and smiled. "As it stands if I don't get this one back home, or she will be in trouble."
"Curfew?" Her dad said with a smile.
"Worse, chores," Kara said with a smile.
With that Violet and Kara bid them farewell, and then Violet shifted into her Arcanist outfit. She gestured for Hermione to step back. Once she had enough space Arcanist created a portal to the Kent farm. Before she left Kara walked back, and put on her wig. Once they were gone Hermione faced her mum and dad. They looked somewhere between being in awe and confused. 'Why me,' Hermione thought as tried to figure out how to explain all of this to her parents. This concern was not helped by her folks turning the questioning gaze upon her. She summoned up her Gryffindor courage and charged into the discussion.
"Mum, Dad, there is something I need to tell you and promise me you will not get mad."
"Honey the only thing we'd get mad at you is if you had to commit a heinous crime." Her father said with a calming smile. "Now what is the three of you think we should know?"
"What would you say if told you I travelled backwards through time?" Hermione said a little sheepishly.
-LVaD-
Martha Kent was staring at the TV screen worried about her daughter. CNN was still running the story of Vernon and Petunia Dursley. They were playing the video of Kara helping a girl out of the residence. This girl had to be the one that had informed Kara about these people. She had been mopping when this story broke. She was simultaneously proud of and concerned for her daughter. She was proud that she had informed the Justice League of what was going on instead of dealing with it herself. If she had tried to handle this on her own the news would be condemning her and Clark, and Kara would have been feeling miserable for months. The part that concerned her was the fight that had occurred about three hours after the arrest of the Dursleys. Someone had attacked the car carrying the niece of two of the Dursleys. The shaky phone recording of the fight was awe inspiring. A young woman with platinum blonde hair wearing what could best be described as a 'modern' set of wizard's robes paired with thigh-high black boots, and what appeared to be some really short shorts. The girl was levitating a car door infront of her to protect her from gunfire. After about five seconds the girl moved the door and took gunfire directly. The bullets bounced off some kind barrier infront of her. She then shot a series of projectiles off her fingertips at the men. As this man fell down Clark and Kara joined the fight. It was the fact that the men seemed to have been after the niece of the Dursleys were what concerned her. If the person behind the attack thought that Supergirl was friends with the young girl they might go after her, and that didn't sit well with Martha.
The sound of the female news anchor laughing snapped Martha out of her melancholy. The screen was now showing some banter between Arcanist and Supergirl. It seems that Kara and the young Arcanist girl knew each other somehow, and it looked like they had been seeing one another for some time now. She had been telling that girl she needed to get out of the house and go meet people her own age. Granted she was thinking she would be picking a handsome young man instead of an attractive young lady, but beggars can't be choosers.
"Well she is from another planet, and I have to remember that she was raised there until she at least fourteen. I'll have to ask her about her culture's views on those kind of things." Martha said with a smile. The sound of footsteps on the patio got her attention. "That has to be Kara."
Marth got up from the couch and made her way to the front door. When she got there a young girl no older than fourteen was walking through the door. She had messy jet black and these beautiful emerald green eyes. The girl looked a touch underfed. The scrubs she was wearing seemed a touch too big for her. This had to be the young lady from the news broadcast. When the girl noticed Martha, she smiled. In that moment, her eyes seemed to glow.
"'Ello, you must be Mrs Kent. Kara has told me all about you." The young woman said with a cheery voice.
"Yes, I am dearie. I hate to ask this, but are you that young girl from England?" The young girl nodded. Martha couldn't fight her motherly instincts anymore. She walked up to the young girl and gave her a gentle hug. As she stepped back she looked into the young girl's eyes. "I hope Kara didn't scare you dear, and if you have no place else to go you are welcome here."
The girl's smile brightened as she nodded. "Thank you, Mrs Kent." The young girl looked around like she was looking for something to do. "My name is Violet Potter by the way, and Kara said you might have something for me to do?"
"Oh you don't have to do anything Violet was it?" the young girl nodded. "You're probably tired right now. If you are I will gladly show you to a room?"
Violet shook her head. "No ma'am I am not tired at all. I am actually rather wired, to be honest." The girl blushed a little. "So, do you need me to do anything?"
Martha smiled at the girl. This was a first a child who looked forward to doing some chores. "Well I was going to go to the grocery store, but I think we need to get you to the store first. Those clothes don't suit you. After that, you can help me with getting the groceries."
"Sure thing Mrs Kent," Violet said with a smile. Martha was amazed at what she was seeing. Most children who had gone through what was reported this young lady had endured would have turned most people into monsters. Yet here this young girl was being cordial and respectful. There was no hint of resentment in her voice. "But, you really don't have to worry about spending money on my…"
Martha cut her off. "Violet you could be a millionaire, and I wouldn't expect you to spend a dime. All of this is on me. Let me go tell John what is going on, and I will be right back." Martha said with a smile.
"Yes, ma'am," Violet said. The girl was blushing a little at this point. The poor thing had to have the worst memories she could imagine. Yet try as she might Martha could not find a hint of malice in the girl.
Martha nodded to the young woman and walked into the kitchen to retrieve her purse. When she returned to the living room she found the young lady waiting patiently for her. Martha then searched through her purse looking for her car keys. When she found them she had them over to the young lady and told her where the truck was. The girl nodded her head and opened the door for her. Martha thanked her and walked out onto the patio to look for John. She had to walk around to the back of the house to find him.
He was at the moment talking to Kara as she held up the tractor. It seemed to have gotten another flat tire. This might put a dent into how much money was available for the shopping trip she was going on with Violet. She walked up to the two of them thinking of a way to explain to her husband the need for this shopping trip. This was going to take some mastery level negotiations. When she got close enough to the two of them she could hear what the two were talking about, and it made her smile a little.
"I know Pa, but she needs a family, and while any of her friends would gladly take her in I don't trust one of them," Kara said with conviction. The look on her face was murderous.
"Kara, I am not saying we will turn her away, but you should have told us before you left is all I am saying," Johnathan said as he looked at the undercarriage of the tractor. "It looks like there is some damage to the axil on the right-hand side." It sounded like he said a little something under his breath, but if Martha didn't hear it she couldn't say anything about it. "What ya need Martha?"
"I am going to the grocery store, and I am taking Violet clothes shopping. Unless she brought some things with her all she has is the scrubs she is wearing."
Kara growled at the mention of clothes. Martha and John looked at her worried. "She has clothes in that trunk I put in on the patio, but they are her cousins, and he weighs like three hundred pounds. The things she lived with forcing her to wear them."
Martha could feel her rage boiling up at this point, but she couldn't give into that emotions. She looked over at Kara. The girl looked frightened about something. Marth cursed herself for letting her feeling show. "Kara dear, you did the right thing today. I am also glad you got Clark involved. I don't think the police would have listened to you if you hadn't." She saw the young girl relax a little as a blush spread across her cheeks. "By the way you and I need to have a talk when I get back." Martha couldn't help but smile as she saw the blood drain from Kara's face. "Don't worry you're not in trouble dear, but I want you to be well aware of what you may encounter if I am right about certain things."
"What are you talking about Martha?" John asked as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "You can set it down now Kara."
"Sure Pa," Kara said and then set the tractor down. "You know, now that I think about I should remind her to get some money out of her bank account."
"What?" Martha asked.
"She is rich ma. Not Bruce Wayne rich, but she very well off." Kara said with a smile. "We were just a little too lost in what we were planning that we didn't think it all the way through."
"That's okay Kara. I told her she is not spending a dime on the clothes." She gave a stern look to Johnathan before he said anything. "She has no clothes that are appropriate for her Johnathan. While we are gone Kara take her trunk up to the guest room. I am just disgusted with what they made her wear."
Johnathan looked at the tractor. He seemed to be working through the situation at the moment. She may not have used 'mastery level negotiations', but she might still be able to do something about the situation. "Well the axel could be fixed with a little heat vision, and that would hold until next month, but I may have to ask Clark for a little help with the price," Johnathan said while rubbing his chin. "Martha I don't mean to be a pest, but is the girl okay?"
Martha nodded her head. "I don't know what she went through, but the news didn't say more than she was not sexually abused. Yet one of the neighbours told the reporter that she was always doing yard work for them. Given the way she holds herself, I don't think it was good John." Martha sighed.
"Well they are behind bars now, and the man is lucky I ain't there with him," Johnathan said with such resonance in his voice Martha wondered just how far he would have gone in correcting the man's behaviour. Johnathan shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Go on Martha, before I get too angry, and make sure you pick up more than what we usually get. We are feeding an extra person. I hope she isn't like Kara the disposal here…"
"Hey!" Kara said swatting John on the shoulder as he laughed.
"Anything special I should pick up for our guest?" Martha asked Kara.
"Well she does like steak, and I think she would love your homemade salad dressing ma," Kara said with a smile. When Martha nodded Kara looked at Johnathan. "What needs the heat treatment?"
As Martha made her way back to the garage she could her Johnathan asking Kara about Violet. The first words out of her mouth made her smile. She would never have thought Johnathan would be okay with this kind of relationship, but here Kara was pouring her soul out to him, and he didn't seem to care. "I guess raising the 'Man of Steel' did have an impact on us." Martha laughed as she thought about what they were now faced with. "I guess being a mother figure to Violet couldn't hurt."
-LVaD-
Violet was blushing blood red at this point. Martha had been talking to her during the drive to Smallville about the 'birds and the bees.' She didn't know how transparent Kara had been with Mrs Kent, but given the talk, she was being given Violet would guess 'very'. As embarrassing as this was it seemed Martha was actually trying to be helpful. Though the warning about the dangers of being exposed to diseases seemed a bit excessive to her really. All the feelings of dread that she was going thoughts during the 'the talk' for the second time in her life would remain for hours. What was funny is that she had been given the talk by the same woman!
"Now I just have one more question for you Violet," Martha said with a sly smile.
"Yes, Mrs Kent?" Violet asked.
"Please, it is Martha or Ma." Violet nodded. "Now do you know who my daughter is?" Martha looked over at her with this knowing look on her face.
Violet knew what the woman was asking. Violet could feel this feeling of fear and regret rising. She started beating them down. This woman wasn't Petunia or Dumbledore and was a genuinely good person. There was no way she would pull over and kick her out of the truck. "Yes ma'am, and to be honest with you I am a witch." She looked over at Martha as they pulled in the shopping centre. Like last time the woman just nodded. "I know what you've been told about witches and wizards, but I can tell you that not all of us are bad. In fact, most of us just want to live 'normal' lives. We are not good or bad. We are just people, and most are caught in the fight between those who claim to be the light side and dark side."
"And where do you fall in this struggle Arcanist?" Martha asked. Violet's blush deepened at this point. Martha just laughed as she pulled into a parking space. "Violet I raised Superman for God's sake. It doesn't take many mental capabilities to put two and two together. I know who Supergirl is, and your little flirting thing was one of the talking points of the news in the last hour."
"Yeah, we didn't think about that. Kara was just worried about Booster Gold getting some ideas." Violet laughed at this. "Although I don't blame her. The young man does seem to have the notion that he is the desire of every woman."
"He isn't the only that thinks that way, Violet. A little bit of warning though, not many people will be as accepting of your relationship as we are, and if that wasn't clear for you. I give you my blessing to date her." Ma said with a smile on her face.
In that moment Violet thought 'Did I just think of her as Ma?' She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "You have a point, ma'am. How did you know I was Arcanist?"
"Well on the way back from talking with Johnathan I could hear him and Kara talking about you. The way she was talking about you left little to the imagination. Johnathan wasn't freaking out about it just to let you know." Martha said as she got out of the truck. When Violet joined her behind the truck she continued the conversation. "It's a bit off topic but those things that call themselves your aunt and uncle didn't hurt you, did they?"
"No Ma they did not. I may have been beaten and thrown into a cupboard, and emotionally abused, but it never crossed that line. I mean it is not like Vernon or Petunia were attracted to boys." Martha looked surprised at this information. Violet then remembered this Martha didn't know she had been a boy for over ten years. She then explained how she had been turned into a boy by Dumbledore. Martha asked if the man knew what the Dursleys were doing. She told her she didn't know. She told Martha if he did it wasn't because he profited from them. She told Martha that the man seemed to have a God complex when it came to Violet's life. "He probably turned me into a boy to be a polar opposite of the man who killed my father."
"WHAT?!" Martha said in a fit of shock and rage.
Violet sighed. She looked around to make sure they were still alone as they walked through the doors to the store. "My father gave his life to protect me and my mum. The magic he did took hold on the both of us. There is more, but right now is the best time to tell that story." Martha nodded as she looked at a group of giggling girls headed their way. Violet waited for the girls to pass before she went on. "The man went to the extreme of using alchemy, which he botched, to change my gender. He did this to 'protect' me from marriage contracts and aggressive young me."
"I don't know what alchemy is, but I do know what a bad idea is, and this sounds like a really bad idea." Ma said with more than a hint of venom in her voice.
"It is extremely advanced potion making. That is all you need to know."
Ma tilted her head, "Have you told Clark or Bruce about any of this?"
Violet simply blinked, "No. We are waiting for the weekend."
Ma's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "Why the long wait?"
Violet smiled, "My friend, Hermione, has more information, and she wont be able to get here until Friday."
"So, she is needed for us to get the complete story of what is going on?" Ma asked a little bit stunned.
"Yes, ma'am. I wish I could just tell you, but it is better for you to see it. Doctor Fate should have the device we need for that. It's best if we all reveal what we know then give it to you in pieces. I have had my experience learning things that way, and I don't want to repeat it. It would be a waste of very precious time."
Martha looked confused, and Violet really couldn't blame her. She was being vague, but given where they were she couldn't just tell the woman she was mentally from the future. Even if she put it in a way that only Martha knew what she was talking about she would be viewed as crazy. Thankfully Martha put her mind at ease when she smiled. "Well I don't know how that is going to help, but if she is needed we'll be happy to give her and her folks a place to stay, but it can't be for long."
"Don't worry they won't be here longer than the weekend," Violet said with a smile.
"Good, I don't want to know what kind of trouble the three of you can get into." Ma said as they walked into the female teen's portion of the store.
They spent the next two hours selecting then purchasing clothes. Some of Ma's comments made her blush as they were picking out some dresses for her. She kept telling her that the objective of picking a dress was to choose one that would make Kara's heart stop. One look, over her shoulder at Ma revealed the woman smiling like the Cheshire Cat. Violet's woes increased when they started picking out unmentionables. This only brought back memories when she was trying to buy a wedding dress and the things to go underneath it. The woman wasn't getting her skimpy underwear this time though, and for that she was thankful. When the woman had done this Tonks was with them. Tonks looked between them and then started laughing. She had laughed so hard the manager of the store thought she was having a fit or something. By the time they had left the store it was one in the afternoon.
Violet was thankful that Martha had insisted she change into one of the outfits they had just bought. Violet could feel her cheeks warm up at the mention of what she was wearing. She didn't dislike the scrubs, but she would rather be in her own clothes. So, Violet took some of her new clothes (a pair of jeans; some undergarments; and a tank top) and then went into a bathroom to change. She walked into one of the stalls and started to change into her clothes. She was thinking about what she was going do with her old clothes. The idea of setting them on fire came to mind, but she scratched that idea as it might set Pa's field on fire. By the time she was completely dressed she had come to the conclusion of just tossing them in the garbage. It was more poetic than setting them on fire.
When she exited the bathroom Martha gave her a once over. The woman seemed satisfied with what she saw. She was asked about the clothes in her trunk, and Violet said they should just toss them. Martha nodded in agreement with that action. The two of then left for the grocery store. It took an additional hour to pick up all of the groceries they would be needing. During the return trip, Ma started asking questions about how Violet knew a wizard had done all the things he did to her. Violet told her that it was a good guess really. She said that given that the man who left her with the Dursleys probably knew what they were doing he may have done this to protect her. She told her that the man was so focused on defeating an evil wizard that he lost sight of the people was trying to protect.
"Well, that is enlightening. So anything else I should be aware of?" Marth asked while laughing light-heartedly.
"Not really. I mean there are hate groups even within the magical community. Most of them are directed at Muggle-borns, those magic users born to non-magic users, and the magic user who isn't human. For example, there are openly homosexual couples in the wizarding communities. This has only recently become acceptable in the Muggle world." Violet started to blush at this. "I mean non-magical community. I need to work on my delivery of that."
"Some people still hate that kind of couples," Martha said with hate pouring off each syllable. "They use their faith to commit civil rights violation, or worse. There is no way I can take on faith that I should kill someone because of who they love." Martha glanced at her. She had this slight smile in this moment. "I don't mind that it is going on, but I do expect some discretion between the two of you."
Violet blushed at this. "Thanks, Ma you don't know how much that means to me, or how much that is going to mean to Kara. I also promise you that I will not let anything happen so long as I am able to protect her. Honestly, I don't want to agitate Clark or you. I love living you know?"
"Good, and just so you know I will probably beat my son to the punch in protecting her," Martha said with an equally coy smile. This made Violet sweat a little.
The rest of the ride to the farm was held with gentle conversation. Ma did seem more interested in the magical world this goes around. She figured her mum had answered a lot of these questions the last time. The idea of Merlin being really didn't seem to surprise her, and this was something she hadn't told her the last time around. When Violet asked her why she wasn't taken aback by this surprised her. "Clark has met a man claiming to be Merlin. Is it possible for a wizard to live that long?"
Violet nodded, the idea that he would contact Clark wasn't outside the norm. He did have a 'tendency' to require the aid of others against some of his foes. Thankfully Ma had started asking her about the 'Magical world'. She didn't tell her everything, but she didn't hide there were evil people within it as well. She told her about Voldemort, and why she was an 'orphan'. The more she told Ma about Dumbledore the more Ma's disdain for him grew.
Thankfully for the woman's blood pressure, they had arrived back home. Violet then started helping Martha carry things inside. Once the clothes and food were placed where they belonged Martha ushered her out of the kitchen insisting the girl get some sleep. Violet wanted to protest, but a yawn ended this discussion. Martha said she would be getting her clothes in the washed soon. Violet thanked her and walked toward the stairs. Martha told her how to get to Kara's bedroom.
-LVaD-
11:35 AM August 6
Lois was looking over at Clark a little dumbfounded by the stuff he had just told her. Apparently, Kara had come back from the future somehow, and not in the normal way either. She didn't come back body, mind, and soul. Nope Kara had to do things the odd way. She came back just mind and soul merging with her younger self. Now, normally Lois would be all for this. The idea of going back in time to her younger body with all the knowledge of the future sounded amazing. Well that, and she would be sleeping with Superman a lot sooner than she had in this timeline.
"So she came back in time to save us right?" Lois asked with a raised eyebrow. "Because I know what I would go back in time for."
"Lois even I know what you would come back in time for," Clark said with a smile. Lois picked up a pillow and threw it at him. The man let the pillow hit him in the face. "Now as far as I know, yes she came back in time to save more than just us. Apparently what she and Violet experienced in the future is horrible. Those two things that call themselves Violet's 'relatives' hurt according to Kara twelve more children. Six of them died during their captivity."
"Damn," Lois said under her breath. A growl left her mouth at this news. "So we have to find who is part of this child abduction ring." Clark nodded in agreement. "And their niece? They didn't hurt her did they?"
"No. Apparently the old man at the arrest of the Dursleys is a wizard, and as we all know Violet is a witch," Clark said as he tossed some peanuts into his mouth.
Lois nodded at this information. Given what she had seen the girl do it made some sense, but what kind of man lets this happen to children? "We are going to have to come up with some records of travel for Kara. I don't normally agree with this, but that old man may try to find a hole in their story."
Clark smiled at this comment. "You are too smart for your own good."
"So I'm told." Lois smiled coyly at him.
"You are a minx you know that right?" Clark said with an ever growing grin.
Lois got up from her seat and sauntered on over to Clark. "A minx am I?" She asked as got closer to him. She slid up onto his lap. Her face was inches away from her own "Am I a good minx or a bad minx?"
"Depends on the day…" Clark leant in and kissed her on the lips. She got lost in the passion. There was one thing that did ruin the mood though.
"We should be in Gotham in about six and a half hours, and if you two want to continue this the plane does have a bedroom," Bruce said as he sat down in the seat adjacent to Clark. Lois and Clark parted coughing a little bit at the interruption. "All though I must warn you the bed has already been broken in."
"Too MUCH information Bruce," Clark said squinting his eyes. "Aside from our arrival in Gotham how long till Smallville?"
"If you fly about four hours, but if I do it about four and a half." Bruce smiled at the two of them. "There is another option though."
Lois leant forward. "Oh, what is it?"
"Well if you are feeling a touch frisky I think Ms Potter can get you to the Kent farm in under a minute once we land in Gotham." Lois grabbed another pillow and threw it the man. He batted it away and fell into a fit of ruckus laughter.
