Title: Magical Mutations

Summary: Not all mutants found their way to one of the many factions in America. Jean and Scott had a baby...a baby they wanted to grow up apart from the fight they dedicated their lives to. But what happens when their gifted little girl isn't just a mutant...she's also a witch?

Disclaimer: I own nothing, not even the idea, or the main character. That belongs to Shanna.

Author's Notes: This story is written in response to a challenge. It is AU, but takes place after HPB and X Men 3. Everything that happened in X Men happened, but in HPB, Dumbledore didn't die.

Obviously, this story is even more AU now that Deathly Hallows is out. However, I have got the ending written, even if the in-between bits aren't, so rest assured that mine will be quite different. I'll use JK's other Horcruxes, obviously...or will I?

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The One goes to his fate, To kill his foe, as preordained.
With him, he takes Athena's Daughter,
And Ra's son.
To scorch the Snake with his Lightning.
But he left behind his Heart,
And the Golden Moon.
The Light-Bringer has come to battle,
And wields the Mermaid Staff.
The new Golden Trio rises,
And will take to their breast three more.
One Freya, delight of her Mother's Eyes.
And the Prince who is his nemesis.
But the Stumbler,
Who once had a chance to be Chosen,
Will belong to this team,
And will show his Lion's Heart.
Be warned, tutors,
Without these six,
The Circle of Nine cannot be completed,
And the Son of Slytherin will triumph.
For while is it the Chosen One's job to end the war,
He needs the love and support of the Eight.
They each have something to offer,
But will only offer it if barriers fall,
And House Unity is achieved.

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Needless to say, the rest of the holidays were subdued, and all five students were glad to Floo back to Hogwarts, and lose themselves in the distraction of classes once more. The trio were out searching for the locket once more, and Kalli kept her head down, barely speaking to anyone.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Weasley, Loony, Longbottom and the Mudblood," Draco Malfoy sneered, completely ignoring his sister. "What's got you down, Mudblood? Finally realised how worthless you are and decided to stop befouling the school with your thoughts?"

Ginny's eyes flashed, and she drew her wand, but it was Letty who spoke up.

"Enough, Draco," she said softly. "Don't talk about things you don't understand."

The blonde Slytherin flicked his sister a scornful glare. "You don't think I realise why she's so sulky?" he asked. "Those attacks over Christmas weren't random." He leaned forward; invading Kalli's space, and making the girl look up, her eyes sparking with life for the first time in over a week. "They did it to get to you, Mudblood," he hissed. "It's your fault."

"Oh, no, it isn't," Luna assured him calmly. "Kalli didn't get the wrackspurts to make their brains go fuzzy, so obviously they just don't know right from wrong." She said it so reasonably, as if it made perfect sense. And perhaps to her it did.

Draco sneered again. "It's her fault," he repeated. "If she weren't an American they wouldn't have attacked America. If she weren't from New York-"

"Shut up!" Kalli flung herself at him, hands lashing out. Her fingernails scraped along Draco's cheek, and blood dripped down his pale skin.

"OW!" He yanked on her hair, scrabbling to get away from her sharp nails.

Kalli shrieked indignantly, sinking her teeth into his wrist.

With a roar of anger, Draco bucked her off, sending the tall girl sliding across the floor and into the wall with a muffled 'thud'. Then he launched himself at her, and she fought back just a viciously.

"ENOUGH!" A feminine voice roared angrily, the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor pushing her way through the crowds. "This is absolutely deplorable behaviour! Ten points each from both your houses, and detention tonight, eight o'clock! Now get to class this instant!"

Deprived of what looked to have been a very interesting fight, most of the students took off, grumbling under their breaths. Draco shot them all a nasty look before skulking off as well, leaving the girls to help Kalli up.

"Are you all right?" Luna asked, looking a bit concerned. "You hit the wall quite hard."

"Just peachy," Kalli rasped, trying to pat her hair back down.

She had blood dripping down her chin, and the start of a black eye was blossoming spectacularly on her face. Her hair was an absolute mess, as well, and Letty sighed, flicking her wand at it. A murmured word had the tangles smoothing out into a plait.

Ginny shook her head in amusement. "You just had to fight back, didn't you," she said, smiling. "Still, at least you gave as good as you got. That's not your blood, is it."

Her cousin shook her head, nose wrinkling. "Need water," she said, looking ill.

Letty waved her wand again, conjuring a glass. Another flick filled it with water. "Here."

Kalli drained it in one gulp, breathing heavily. "Thanks. I thought I was gonna chuck there for a minute."

"That would have been unfortunate," Luna said solemnly. "Also, I think we're going to be late for Potions."

Neville glanced at his watch, cursed, and sprinted off to his own class - Defence Against the Dark Arts.

The four girls looked at one another.

"I suppose we do have to go," Ginny said reluctantly.

"Yeah, we do," Kalli agreed, touching her sore eye.

"Or we could take you to the Hospital Wing," Letty suggested, eyes twinkling. "And then...maybe visit the kitchens?"

"Hmm, I am hungry. Some pudding would not go amiss," Luna mused. "Let's do it."

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Kalli was waiting outside Professor Smith's office at promptly 7:55 that night. She didn't want to be late, and give the professor more reason to shout at her. After all, she really shouldn't have been fighting, and she'd already had one lecture today. Madam Pomfrey had not been pleased to see Kalli so dishevelled, or that she'd apparently needed three friends to escort her.

Draco arrived only seconds after her, his face still a mess of bruises, favouring his right wrist. Obviously, he hadn't had time to see the mediwitch, and probably hadn't taken the chance on skipping class, since he actually had Defence Against the Dark Arts at that time.

The redheaded professor poked her head out of her office. "In you come," she said simply, swinging the door open. The pair trooped inside.

Professor Smith sat on the corner of her desk, and gestured to the two seats in front of her. "Sit."

They sat.

"Now, would either of you care to tell me what you were fighting about?"

The pair examined their teacher silently for a moment, neither one saying anything. Her robes weren't buttoned properly, and you could see the jeans underneath. There was a hole in one knee, and her shoes were beaten-up trainers. Her hair was pulled back in a respectable ponytail, and there was ink on her nose, just below where her glasses sat.

Kalli shook her head. "No, I would not," she said softly. She knew that Draco would get into more trouble than her over the incident, yet; somehow, she didn't want to tattle. Partly because it wasn't really in her nature, but mostly because she just couldn't, for some reason.

Draco shot her a surprised look. Obviously he'd expected her to fairly leap off the hook of trouble. He too shook his head.

"Very well." Professor Smith leaned back, looking at them both seriously over the tops of her glasses. Her hazel eyes were devoid of any sort of amusement. "Fighting is appalling in itself, but to come across the pair of you squabbling like children..." She shook her head. "It was disgusting. What's more, you looked fit to kill one another, and you could have been seriously hurt." She shook her head again. "Let's go."

Like ducklings they followed her to the Trophy Room. Every single shield, plaque and trophy had been taken off of the walls.

"You're going to polish every one until I can see my face in it. No magic, please." She took their wands, and gestured to the tins of polish and rags by the burnished awards. "Hopefully you'll polish up your manners and learn to work together at the same time. I'll be back in two hours." She swept out, leaving the pair to stare at the pile in dismay.

Sighing, Kalli set to work. Never would she have been more grateful for her mother's telekinesis than now. Still, it was a well-known fact that children did not always get their parents' mutations. She should count herself lucky that she'd been born normal...unlike some mutants.

"Well, you might as well start," she told the blonde irritably. "I'm not doing all the work."

Draco glared at her, then picked up a trophy. He rubbed at it, hard.

"Polish first, idiot," Kalli sneered, tossing him a pot. "Never polished your broom before?" She flushed slightly at the unintended double entendre.

"It's a primary step in broom care, so yes. But that doesn't necessarily follow on to plebeian work such as this."

"Most 'educated' activities follow on from plebeian ones. That's where they come from," the redhead informed him loftily.

Draco merely sneered at her.

They worked in silence for half an hour, before Kalli could bear it no longer. "Do you really think it's my fault?" she asked, half dreading the answer.

For a moment it seemed as though Draco would respond with the affirmative, would tell her that yes, it was most assuredly all her fault.

"No," he said at last. "It's not your fault. Volde-erm, the Dark Lord-was trying to get at you, because you're a Weasley, but there was a revel planned for Christmas night anyway. He wanted to make sure the Light side didn't get too complacent. And the place was only unlucky coincidence."

"Thank you," she said in a grateful whisper.

Draco shrugged, obviously uncomfortable. "If it were your fault, I'd have said so," he told her sharply.

They finished the detention in silence, and when Professor Smith came back she had nothing but good things to say.

"You did your detention well, and without complaint. I only hope you won't be back," she smiled at them both, then bade them to hurry to their dorms, lest they be caught after curfew and get into more trouble.

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After that, Kalli and Draco didn't fight half so much. They had their spats, of course, but he seemed quite content to ignore her, and while she wasn't really content to ignore him, she was willing to do so.

She also had another long talk with Betsy Braddock, who had gone home for the holidays, but had come back, as full of questions and strange comments as ever.

"It's a pity about your aunt, Kalli," she'd said as they walked along the corridor, giving the girl a one-armed hug. "She was a lovely woman, and she cared about you very much."

"How do you know that?" Kalli asked.

Betsy looked surprised. "I visited her, of course. I asked Professor Dumbledore for your old address, and I went 'round to see her, to discuss your progress. She was very pleased, although she did wonder why you hadn't written. Didn't the Headmaster tell you?"

Kalli pursed her lips. "No, he didn't. Why-" she was knocked into the wall when someone shoved Betsy aside and kept striding down the corridor. It was Draco.

"Walk much, you big oaf?!" she screeched angrily.

Draco turned around, eyes glittering. "I wouldn't have to push people out of the way if they didn't hog the entire corridor," he retorted angrily.

"Then you say excuse me! You'd think a person with such purportedly aristocratic blood would know how to say excuse me!" She was right up in his face now.

"Why don't you shove it, Grey?"

"You shove it, Malfoy!" She accompanied her words with a tiny push to his shoulders.

Draco grabbed her upper arms, and they stood toe-to-toe, glaring. All of a sudden, without any concerted thought, they lunged at one another. Draco's teeth attacked Kalli's lower lip, and she returned the favour by savagely biting his tongue. They gazed at one another, panting, before kissing again, with more fervour, but less force.

Luna and Ginny, who'd just walked around the corner, looked at the scene, then at one another, then back at the pair again.

"I wonder what they'd do if they really liked one another." Luna whispered to Ginny.

End Chapter 28