Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, just the original characters and the plot. No copyright infringement is intended.

Revised


Evie woke earlier than the other girls the next morning, skipping the showers and quickly throwing on one of her new uniforms. She left the tie slung over her chair and wore her hair in two messy braids, knowing all too well that it would escape the ties before lunch.

Picking up her bag, she raced down the stairs and quickly wove her way through the corridors. It was going to be exhausting, acting like a lost and confused newcomer. Stopping briefly to grab a piece of toast from the dining hall, she headed straight for the library. It took her only a moment to find the small section on magical time travel. She had just enough time to pick out two books, one on the history of time travel, the other on modern methods, before heading to her first class of the day: potions.

She entered the classroom and immediately felt the eyes of her classmates latch on to her. A waving hand towards the front indicated that Lily had saved her a seat. Ignoring the curious looks, Evie joined her new friend.

"Where did you disappear to this morning?" Lily asked, as Evie pulled out her textbook, careful not to reveal the latest additions to her bag.

Evie shrugged, "I woke up early. Thought it might be a good time to explore." She turned to Lily with a rueful smile. "I got lost at least three times. This castle is huge!"

The years of experience avoiding questions from her sisters paid off. Lily, satisfied with this half answer, smiled back. "You get used to it. You should have waited- I could have showed you around."

"I'll be counting on you for the rest of the day."

Their conversation was interrupted as a portly man with a large mustache came up the aisle, greeting students as he walked. When he reached their desk, he gave Lily a large smile and a meaty pat on her shoulder before turning towards Evie.

"So you're the girl the headmaster sees fit to toss into my NEWT class," he stated brusquely.

Evie found it hard to be cowed by the gruff manner of a man who more resembled a chubby walrus she'd once seen in the zoo than a formidable wizard. All the same, she lowered her eyes and willed a blush to her cheeks. "Yes, sir."

The professor, a bit taken aback at first, let out a 'harrumph' and eyed her quizzically before smiling. "We'll see how you do. Not like I can ignore Dumbledore's orders, is it? No? Well then, Professor Slughorn's the name."

"Evie Montgomery, sir."

Slughorn nodded and proceeded to his desk at the front of the room. Lily leaned over and patted Evie's hand. "He really is the sweetest thing, you'll see," she said, before turning her attention to the professor, who was writing the instructions to a potion on the board.

Evie heard someone snort behind her.

"Only if he thinks you've got something to offer," she heard the same someone mutter. She glanced over her shoulder to see that Sirius Black and Remus Lupin were sitting there and, while Remus was giving his friend a disapproving look, Sirius was grinning at her mischievously. She grinned right back.

The potion, surprisingly enough, was one that Evie's mother (an accomplished witch in her own right, though she always said raising her daughters was work enough for her) had taught her that summer. Thanking whatever luck was on her side, she set about making it and by the end of the lesson had earned Slughorn's respect.

She knew that it wasn't likely she'd be so lucky in the rest of her lessons (except perhaps Herbology) since she was technically a month behind, so it was nice to have one class in which she knew what she was doing.

After Potions, Lily headed to Transfiguration along with most of the other seventh year Gryffindors. Evie, letting her friend know that she was fine on her own, headed to one of the courtyards near the Great Hall and settled in to read her library books.

Although very interesting, the history of time travel yielded very little useful information. The second book was much more helpful and soon Evie was lost in the text, chewing her lip in concentration and twirling one of her braids. This was how Sirius Black found her over an hour later.

He had been disturbed to discover that this girl who had so mysteriously appeared at Hogwarts captivated him. Although he was positive that her grief for her family was genuine, he was not convinced that her story was entirely true. She seemed…well, quite frankly she seemed too British to be Canadian, not to mention the fact that despite all her claims, she did not seem at all lost in the halls of Hogwarts.

There was something missing from her story and he wanted to know what it was. So when he happened upon her in the courtyard he took advantage of the opportunity and snuck up on her.

Evie jumped when he tapped her shoulder, simultaneously losing her place and whacking him on the head with the book. In the moment it took him to recover, she stowed away the book and switched it with her readily available Charms text, prepared for just this sort of eventuality.

"Blimey! Do you always hit people when they come over to say hello?" Sirius was reconsidering his assumption that this girl could never be a Beater as he rubbed the sizable lump growing on his forehead.

"Only when they act like they're trying to mug me," Evie replied wryly. "People saying an innocent hello don't usually use the sneak attack approach."

Sirius grinned. "Wait until you get to know James and you'll never say that again."

Evie frowned. She didn't want to get to know James. She didn't like the thought of being friends with people she knew would die soon enough.

Sirius saw the frown and changed topics. "So…you don't like Transfiguration?"

"More like it doesn't like me," said Evie ruefully. "I can barely change a hedgehog into a pincushion without hurting myself or the hedgehog."

Sirius laughed. "Those hedgehogs are so confused by the time we're through with them I doubt they even notice."

"Yes, well, I much prefer my other classes."

Sirius considered her for a moment. "Lily said you like Herbology and that you want to be a healer."

Evie blushed. "Lily is right." She frowned for a moment. "Of course, they usually expect Healers to be able to transfigure, but Madame Pomfrey thinks that they'll make an exception. There's much more to being a good Healer than turning turtles into teapots. I just hope she's right."

Sirius looked at her for a moment, wondering why it was that Madame Pomfrey already thought someone might make an exception for Evie. He shook the thought off. Certainly they'd assessed her skill level before admitting her to the school. Maybe she was just really good at… well at whatever it was that Healers really did. He said as much to Evie.

Evie laughed softly and smiled, storing away her book. "Let's hope so! Now," she said, standing. "Isn't it about time for lunch?"

With that the two proceeded to the Great Hall to join their friends.


The rest of the day passed uneventfully. Evie was only a bit behind in Charms, and though the gap in her knowledge was much more considerable in Defense Against the Dark Arts, she had already secured herself a tutor by way of Remus Lupin. The quiet boy had sat next to her while Kylie sat with Lily and had whispered explanations in her ear whenever a confused expression crossed her face. They were much farther ahead than she'd anticipated; Evie supposed the fact that a war was on outside Hogwarts walls would make the professors push their students a little harder. Whatever the reason, Remus' offer of assistance as they exited the classroom had been readily accepted.

Both Lily and Kylie accompanied Evie down to the Quidditch pitch. Evie didn't have much by way of gear so she had been surprised to find a pair of worn leather gloves on her bed when she went upstairs to change. She had reckoned without the kindness of her new Gryffindor year mates. Sure enough, there was a small KG inked on the inside of each glove. This small gift had been enough to brighten her mood and tear her mind away from pondering her current predicament.

James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were already waiting at the pitch. Two boys, one tall with curly red hair and the other black haired and stocky, stood off to the side. A slender brunette was giggling as Sirius whispered something in her ear. Evie assumed they were the other members of the team.

Kylie moved closer to Evie as they walked towards the small group. "The three you don't know are the other team members," Kylie murmured, confirming Evie's suspicions.

"The girl, Lara Milner, she's a Chaser and a 5th year. Everyone knows that she's after Sirius and that she wouldn't bother with Quidditch if he weren't on the team. She's actually quite good, when he's not distracting her."

Lily snorted, but Kylie continued, ignoring her.

"That's the other Chaser," Kylie nodded towards the redhead. "Name's Alexander Styce. He's a 6th year and full of it. He's good, but he thinks he's great. He assumes he'll be captain next year but James thinks the other 6th year, Tommy Calvino – he's the one with the black hair – is a better choice. Tommy's Keeper and he's absolutely brilliant. He's a bit quiet so Styce overpowers him somewhat, but he knows his stuff."

"Not to mention you have a crush on him," Lily put in dryly, causing Kylie to blush.

"Just like you have a crush on James?" Kylie taunted.

It was Lily's turn to blush. "He's much nicer than he used to be. I guess I didn't really know him before."

"She hated him," Kylie informed Evie.

"I did not!"

Kylie gave her a pointed look.

"Ok, maybe I thought he was arrogant."

Kylie rolled her eyes. "James has loved Lily since day one. And Lily…she either ignored him or fought with him. And now…" Kylie grinned. "Now she likes him."

The redheaded girl's face turned a bright red. "Fine," she said grudgingly. "Maybe I do." She wheeled round on Evie. "But you cannot, I repeat, cannot tell anyone." She stressed each word with a shake of her index finger.

Evie held up both hands and widened her eyes in feigned innocence. "Tell them what?"

Lily gave her one last glare before turning and walking on.

Kylie shook her head and tugged Evie after her.

When they reached the group, Sirius pulled away from Lara and crossed his arms. "Took you long enough."

Evie grinned. "Sorry, had to powder my nose, dear. Don't get your panties all in a twist."

"Alright," James interceded, "this is a tryout, remember?" He gave them each a look. "Sirius, go get Evie a broom."

Sirius headed off to the broom shed, muttering under his breath.

"Ok, so Evie I'm going to have you fly around a bit, just to see you in the air, then we'll send you and Sirius up there to hit a bludger back and forth. After that we'll reassess. Sound alright?"

Evie nodded and peeled off her cloak. It was a warm enough afternoon to just play in a sweater and pants. Sirius was coming back from the shed, a smirk on his face. Evie eyed the broom warily. He had grabbed quite possibly the worst broom she had ever seen. So he thought she couldn't handle it?

Evie saw James open his mouth, apparently about to scold his friend. Laying a hand on his arm as she moved past, she shook her head slightly. Smiling at Sirius innocently, she accepted the broom.

"Thanks."

Sirius' grin widened. "No problem."

Let him think she was an idiot. She was the youngest in her family and had suffered through worse hand-me-downs in her time. She smiled ruefully and rubbed a scar on her forearm that the old broom she had learned to ride on had left when it decided to roll and plummet on her first solo ride.

She ran her hands down the length of the broomstick, recognizing the glitches in the magic holding it together and plucking at a stray twig. She had worked as an assistant at Quality Quidditch Supplies in Diagon Alley two summers ago. While she was no expert, she did know how to avoid the tricks this broom was prepared to spring. It might not be a perfect ride, but she was sure she could handle it.

Checking to make sure that the primary spells were still intact, Evie mounted the broom and took off.

She felt the broom waver, the sprite-like magic testing the situation, and almost instantly felt it settle. Breathing in deep the crisp fall air she leaned forward and shot to the far end of the pitch.

Up in the air, alone with nothing but the wind, Evie could finally breathe. The thoughts of home, the terror of that timeless place, and the sorrow at being stranded in such a strange time: it all faded into the background. Right then, there was only the feeling of freedom and solitude. Forgetting where she was and even why she was flying, Evie flew in loops around the pitch, spinning and diving just for the pure glory of it. Her whole life, this had been the one place she'd felt free of everything, of all the expectations and pressures of her family, all the worries of school and her friends. Up on her broom, the only thing that mattered was the air whooshing past her and the sun on her face. It was nice to know that even now, after everything that had happened in the last couple days, that was still the case.

On the ground, everyone stood watching. James stood next to Sirius. He had been angry with his friend for not seeing that they needed this girl to be good, no matter who she was. He had been angry that Sirius had chosen the worst broom possible for Evie. But watching her fly, he forgot.

It was clear to everyone that she had forgotten this was supposed to be a tryout. She flew effortlessly, beautifully, but not the way one flies to play Quidditch. She flew like the only thing she needed, the only thing she wanted, was to just be alone and free.

Sirius, who had been frustrated by Evie's easy attitude walking onto the pitch, watched her fly and suddenly remembered why he had started flying. He could see on her face the simple joy of being free of everything.

They watched as Evie let go of the broom and dove, arms outstretched, plummeting at an unfathomable speed towards the ground. She pulled up quickly, not even using her hands, and they heard the soft strain of a laugh.

Once she pulled out of the dive, Evie remembered where she was. Speeding back to the group, low to the ground, she grinned. Let them say she couldn't fly now.

She stopped short in front of Sirius. "So? I thought this was a tryout?"

"And I thought I gave you the worst broom," he retorted, grinning and picking up his own broom.

James handed them each a bat and released one of the bludgers. They both shot into the air, racing to be the first to reach it. Sirius got there first and hit it towards the goal posts. Evie swung her bat in a powerful stroke and smashed it back towards him. This continued for another few minutes before James subtly signaled the other players into the air, testing Evie's ability to protect her teammates.

There was one moment when Sirius hit the Bludger towards Styce and it looked like Evie wouldn't be able to turn and catch it in time. But then her arm swung back and the bat hit the bludger with a loud thwack, sending it roaring back towards the goal posts.

After that, there really was no point in pretending she wouldn't make the team. James called the team in and they each congratulated Evie and filtered off the pitch. When only James, Lily, and Kylie were left (Remus and Peter having gone in for dinner) Evie looked back to the sky. Sure enough, Sirius was weaving in and out of the goalposts. She told them to go back without her and, watching them leave the pitch, remounted her broom and flew back up to meet Sirius in the sky.

They hovered in mid-field, both looking out over the grounds.

"Where did you learn that Bludger Backbeat?" Sirius asked.

"My older sister, Julie. She's…she was a Chaser but she was basically brilliant wherever you put her on the pitch." Evie smiled, remembering the day Jules had taught her that move. "She was nine years older than me, so by the time I turned ten she was really good. She could have gone pro, if she'd wanted to. None of my other sisters really played much. The twins would sometimes but Jules taught me everything. I almost broke her nose the first time I tried that."

Sirius looked at her. "How many sisters did you have?"

"Five."

"And you were the youngest?"

"Yes."

"Wow."

Evie laughed. "It wasn't as bad as it sounds."

"You miss them."

Evie shielded her eyes against the glare of the setting sun (when had it gotten to be so late?) and looked at him. "It hasn't really hit me yet. I keep thinking I'll see them soon, that Jules will come and visit or that Margaret will owl me to check in and remind me that I need to study more." Evie could feel the tears forming and swallowed, unable to stop them from brimming forth.

Sirius noted the tears trickling down her cheeks and turned away. He wasn't very good with crying, even this quiet stoic kind. He considered his options and what he knew about the girl sitting in the air next to him. Perhaps the best option was to simply ignore it. "Race you to the broom shed?"

Evie drew in a deep breath and rewarded him with a watery smile. "Yeah, sure."

Sirius pitched forward on his broom and sped off. Evie grinned and shot forward, following her newest friend.