Disclaimer! I hereby swear upon my magic and my life, that I do not own Harry Potter nor do I own Marvel. They are owned by J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., Stan Lee, and Disney respectively. So have I sworn so mote it be. Now onto the story!

NOTE: I just wanted to say, big thank you to all of you who've read the prologue so far! Wow! I am genuinely amazed and appreciative for your reviews and favs and follows, I smile every time I get a new one! I know that things are really crazy right now with the coronavirus and I just wanted to say that I hope you are all doing okay in this time of uneasiness and stress. Finally, my biggest thank you goes to A True Hufflepuff 13 who has beta-read this chapter and the prologue. THANK YOU SO MUCH! You are the best!

-ooOoo-

Chapter One: Parenthood

~Later That Night~

He watched her that first night. He brought her home to his apartment in Queens and somehow it was like he was on autopilot. He knew he should've taken her to a hospital first, but he just couldn't bear to let her go. She was so small in a big world where people were so cruel. She, like him, was alone. He was angry. How could anyone be so heartless? At least he was able to care for himself. He watched her sleep peacefully. Her chest rose and fell gently. He was going to take care of her, he decided.

Steve folded the side of his comforter to make a barrier, added pillows to the side so the baby couldn't roll over, then carefully laid her in the middle of his bed. He sat down next to her and continued to watch over her for almost an hour. In the meantime, he studied the duffle bag more closely. Inside there was a soft, pink blanket with a large stag, doe, and fawn on it. In cursive letters, it said, "You Are Deerly Loved". He chuckled at the sweet pun. It also caused him to frown. If someone was trying to get rid of her, why bother leaving something that was clearly meant to show love? He continued to inspect the bag closely and found a folded sheet of paper in one of the side pockets. Frowning, he unfolded it and in neat handwriting was a message.

Harley Jade Potter, DOB: 07/31/2000

To whoever finds this child, I hope you take care of her. When the time is right, let her know that her parents are no longer with us, that they were murdered. Tell her that she was loved by them. Take care of her because God knows I couldn't do it.

Steve stared in shock. So her parents were dead, he thought sadly, and the person or people that she was originally left with couldn't take care of her. Or wouldn't, he thought bitterly. This note just hammered down his original thought of taking care of her. Setting aside the note and bag, he took the blanket and gently laid it on top of her. He continued to watch over her well into the early hours of the morning.

-ooOoo-

~Two Years Old~

Steve Rogers had never been as happy as he was now. When he woke up nearly 70 years into the future he was scared and alone. Everything was so new and loud and it made him uncomfortable and on edge. Then he stumbled upon little Harley, and he didn't feel so alone anymore.

Nine months had passed since he found her. It was now her second birthday according to the note he found. She was walking and talking more than when he had first found her. She was making full sentences! They were short but, complete and he was just proud of her. When he first took her in she would say odd words. When she was wrapped in her blanket she'd sometimes point at the stag and say, "Pwongs". Once when he had taken her for a walk they passed a woman walking a large black dog and, Harley pointed excitedly and squealed with joy, "Pa'foo!" And at bedtime when he would sometimes read her "Goodnight Moon" she'd point to the full moon in the drawings and say, "That Moony!"

She was also a little bit of a trouble maker. He noticed odd things seemed to happen around her. Today was no stranger to that quirkiness. He handed her a cookie, and made the mistake of leaving the jar next to her. He turned around to do something and when he turned back he caught her trying to sneak another one. After a light, "No sweetheart, just one, remember?" he pulled the jar away from her and put it back on top of the fridge. He turned around to continue his task and when he looked back at Harley a few minutes later the jar was next to her, she was munching on another cookie, and he could've sworn she looked a little smug.

She stared at him, and he stared back completely duped. He felt his mouth open, then closed a few times. He looked back and forth between the spot on top of the fridge and his daughter. She started to giggle uncontrollably and he couldn't help but laugh with her. He didn't know what else to do.

"Just this once because it's your birthday," he said with an outward smile. On the inside he was completely baffled.

He had to find a new spot to hide the cookies after that.

-ooOoo-

~Four And A Half Years Old~

Steve Rogers was awoken at two in the morning by a tiny hand shaking his shoulder. He opened his sky blue eyes, turned his head to the left, and saw the tiny form of his daughter standing there. He sat up with a yawn, turned on his bedside lamp, and worry filled him when he saw her tear-stained cheeks. Sitting up, he patted the spot next to him and she climbed up and sat cross-legged across from her dad. He noticed she was clutching her stuffed Bambi to her chest like her life depended on it.

"Did you have a bad dream?" She nodded shakily and he saw some more tears slide down her cheeks. "Do you wanna talk about it?" She nodded again and wiping some tears away she took a breath.

"It was scary." she whispered.

"Most bad dreams are kiddo."

She gave a watery laugh, then frowned again. "There was lots of green light. Then there was someone laughing. He sounded really scary. It was like a monster. It was echoing. Then my scar hurt when I woke up."

Steve frowned in concern. She had had this dream before along with other strange ones. She never mentioned the laugh before, or the odd lightning bolt scar hurting. This was the first he'd heard about either.

"Did you see who was laughing?" he asked her quietly. She sniffled before shaking her head no. "And the scar? Does it still hurt or did it come and go?"

"No it stopped a few seconds after I woke up." she whispered.

"Come here," he whispered, arms outstretched so he could embrace her. She crawled over and he felt tiny arms wrap around his torso. He rubbed small circles into her back to calm her down.

"You know I'll never let anything hurt you right? I'm always gonna be here for you. Okay?" Steve whispered to his daughter.

He felt her nod her head and he pulled back and smiled at his daughter as he wiped away her tears.

"Can I stay with you?" Harley whispered, looking at him with those big green eyes.

He gave her a small smile and whispered, "Of course. Come here." He lifted the blankets and patted the spot next to him. She crawled over and curled up beside him.

"I love you to the moon," she whispered tiredly.

He smiled down at her, "And I love you back." He said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

They fell asleep soon after.

-ooOoo-

~Five Years Old~

Steve Rogers thought that he had prepared himself for this day in advance. Now that he was standing in front of his daughter's new school he realized that he was horribly wrong. He really didn't want to let her go, but he knew he had to.

Kneeling down in front of Harley so that he was eye-level with her he said, "Okay sweetheart, are you ready for your first day of school?"

Harley's big emerald eyes were wide with anticipation although there was a bit of nervousness in her demeanor. She nodded quietly, but her eyes were downcast. He put a finger under her chin and lifted her head up to meet his eyes.

"Hey now, what's the matter?"

She looked around nervously before whispering, "What if I do the magic?"

He pulled her into a reassuring hug and when he pulled away, tucking loose strands of wavy black hair behind her ears, he said, "You haven't done it in awhile. All you have to do is take a few deep breaths if you get nervous. If something happens you tell me and I'll figure something out. Okay? You don't have to worry about it. You are going to be okay. Remember, it isn't a bad thing, you just have to be careful."

He gave her an encouraging smile that she returned. She took a deep breath and looked at the school, shoulders back and chin held high, she took her dad's large hand in her little one, and together they walked into the building. The hallways were colorful and had drawings from older students. Maybe if I make something really nice, mine can go up there too, Harley thought to herself, pushing her round gold-framed glasses up her nose in determination. They walked down the halls to a classroom where colorful letters on the door read Mrs. Green. Inside the room were other parents and their kids. A woman in her forties was walking around greeting everyone and with a smile, she made her way over to Steve and Harley.

"Hello! I'm Mrs. Green. Who do we have here?" she asked, looking at Harley.

With an encouraging nudge from her father, she stepped forward, stuck out the hand that wasn't holding her dad's and shook Mrs. Green's hand.

"Hi, I'm Harley Potter," Harley said, with a shy smile.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Harley. And you must be her father?" Mrs. Green asked, looking at Steve.

She looked a little doubtful. Steve wasn't offended though. He got that look a lot, after all, he and Harley didn't look alike. The most they shared in physical characteristics was skin tone and light-colored eyes. Where his eyes were a soft sky blue, hers were bright, emerald green. Where his hair was blonde and straight, hers was pitch black and fell in waves to the middle of her back.

"Yes, I'm Steve Rogers." Steve introduced himself. He noticed the flicker of recognition pass across her face before she hid it with a smile.

"A pleasure to meet you, sir." She took his outstretched hand and shook it.

"So, Harley are you excited?" the teacher asked the little girl. Harley stayed quiet for a moment before answering with a smile, "Yes ma'am, I'm very excited."

With another smile, she excused herself to make a final round among the few latecomers and Steve kneeled down to be eye-level with his daughter once more. "Okay, I gotta go now sweetheart. I'll be back for you at three." She smiled at him and gave him a hug.

"I love you to the moon," said Harley.

"And I love you back."

~Later That Day~

"Okay kids, I want you to look at the people around your table and introduce yourselves to each other. I want you to remember their names and faces. These are gonna be your table neighbors for the rest of the year." Mrs. Green said happily.

Harley looked around her table nervously. There was one other girl and two boys. The girl was to her left and she had pretty light brown skin, dark brown eyes, and messy curls that framed her face. Her name was Michelle Jones but she preferred MJ. The boy across from her had shiny black hair that was like a bowl cut but longer all around, he had a friendly face and his name was Ned Leeds. Finally, was the boy to her right. He, like her, was quite shy. He had dark brown curls and soft brown eyes that were framed by square glasses. His name was Peter Parker.

Harley decided to be the brave one and went ahead and asked, "So, what do you guys like to do?"

Ned excitedly started to talk about his favorite science fiction story: Star Wars. Peter gladly joined in his conversation, and they quickly started to debate who was the best Jedi. MJ turned to Harley and quietly told her that she liked to read and draw. Harley happily told her that she liked to draw too. MJ liked drawing people but she wasn't very good yet, and Harley told her she liked to draw animals, both real and magical. She drew her dreams too because they were often strange.

"What's so strange about them?" MJ asked her interest peaked. Her voice had risen a bit by accident and Peter and Ned turned to look at Harley too. Their heads tilted in curiosity.

"What's strange?" Peter asked.

Harley looked around nervously and Peter, noticing her nervousness, said "Don't worry we won't tell anyone. We promise."

She smiled at him and then leaned in, the others leaned in too, eyes wide with interest. She told them in a whisper about how just a few days ago she had an odd dream of a huge, flying motorcycle.

"Woah. That is kinda weird. It's pretty cool though," Ned whispered. MJ and Peter nodded. Harley smiled, she liked her new friends.

-ooOoo-

~Eight Years Old, July 31, 2008~

"Peter! Ned! Come on!" yelled an excited Harley as she ran with MJ to the edge of the water at her favorite lake.

It was a beautiful summer day. The sky was periwinkle blue and dotted with fluffy white clouds. The air was warm and smelled like the woods and charcoal from grills. Best of all, it was Harley's eighth birthday, and she was going to celebrate it with her friends and dad! They were going to Harley's favorite place to swim, Lake Tiorati. It had gorgeous blue water, surrounded by thick, dark green trees and the edge of the water was met with soft, warm sand.

"Well don't run so fast Harley!" Peter yelled trying to run after her, Ned not too far behind him.

"Kids be careful!" yelled Peter's aunt, May Parker.

"It's alright May, let them have their fun." replied her husband Ben. She continued to watch them worriedly. Steve Rogers who was walking next to them chuckled.

"Don't worry they'll be okay. The worst that can happen is they all get sunburns." Steve said jokingly. May gave Steve a look, but he could see her lips twitching. They turned back to look at the kids and just in time too, the kids had just run into the water and were starting to play Marco Polo.

The three adults watched the four of them for the next few hours. Splashing and swimming about in the blue water. All laughing and screaming in joy. It was around three in the afternoon when something strange happened. The kids had come out of the water for a late lunch and decided that instead of sitting around for thirty minutes that they go for a walk through the woods. Steve took the kids so that Ben and May could have a few minutes alone together to relax and then off they went. Harley, Peter, MJ and Ned had engaged in a game of tag with Steve watching carefully from a few feet behind. All of a sudden Harley slipped on some uneven ground and fell… right next to a hidden snake. Harley barely contained her scream as she didn't want to provoke it and stayed absolutely still. Eyes wide with alarm, she heard footsteps hurrying over to her and her fear spiked. She didn't want her dad or friends to get hurt.

That's when she felt it. That slight tug in her heart that she couldn't explain. That odd feeling of just knowing what to do. She sometimes wondered if this was what the Jedi in Star Wars felt when they were connecting themselves to the force. She threw her arm out and with her palm facing her friends and dad she heard their footsteps falter and shouts of shock as they were all pushed back by an imaginary force. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the snake rear its head, ready to strike!

"NO!" she cried trying to scoot away from the snake. Of all the things she expected to happen, one of them was definitely not for the snake to actually listen to her. It looked much less angry now. It had uncoiled itself and if she could read a snake's facial expressions she would have said it looked curious.

"You can understand me, little one?" the snake asked. It had a smooth woman's voice. Through the words she could hear hissing. Harley was so shocked all she could do was nod yes.

"I have heard of the ones they call Parseltongues but have never met any. They are quite rare. How exciting!" The snake cheered.

Suddenly Harley was being lifted off the ground by her dad. The snake had slithered away, and it was all over. Harley felt herself being squeezed suddenly, "Oh thank god you're okay," said a relieved and scared sounding Steve.

"Dad… can't breathe." squeaked Harley.

She felt the arms loosen, but they didn't let her go. "What happened?" asked a shocked Ned. Harley looked nervously between her dad and her friends who were looking at her expectantly.

"Are you like a Jedi?" asked a completely serious Peter.

"Peter don't be ridiculous," deadpanned MJ.

"I'm not a Jedi," said Harley with a slight huff of annoyance. They turned to look at her again and she shrunk back a bit.

"How come you never said you could do… that?" said a bewildered Ned.

Harley looked at her dad and he bent down to her level, blue eyes meeting green, "Do you want to tell them?"

Harley looked unsure of herself but nodded. She knew she couldn't hide it from her friends this time. It was too obvious. Steeling herself, she looked around at each of her friends and in a rush of words said, "I think I have some kind of magic powers and I have no clue how to control them."

Silence. Harley's statement was met with absolute silence. She felt herself start to cringe, as her friends continued to gape at her. "I understand if you guys don't want to be friends anymore-"

She was cut off by Peter, "Are you crazy? Why wouldn't we want to be your friends? This just makes you extra cool!"

MJ and Ned were nodding in agreement to Peter's statement. Now Harley was the one gaping at her friends.

"I thought you guys wouldn't want to be my friends anymore. That you would think I was too… weird." She looked down at the ground a little ashamed at having even thought that. She felt her dad's hand on her shoulder and then she felt three pairs of arms wrapping around her. Ned, Peter, and MJ had wrapped her in a group hug and then Peter said, "That's not true. We like you because you're you."

Steve smiled at the scene before him and Harley didn't think she'd ever cried so hard in her life.

"Thank you." she whispered. This was the best birthday yet!

-ooOoo-

~August 05, 2008 5:30 P.M.~

"What can you do so far with your magic?" asked a curious MJ.

She was spending the week at Harley's apartment because her parents were going out of town to visit some friends. Peter and Ned were here today too, and they were going to have a movie night. The way they did their movie nights was by letting each member pick one movie. Their choices came with a twist though. Before choosing a movie, the kids had to pick a random letter from a hat and then choose a movie that started with the letter they picked. Today's choices were Jumanji, Madagascar, The Bridge To Terabithia, and The Sandlot.

Harley thought for a moment before saying, "Not a lot. Mostly random things. One time when dad took me to get a haircut for picture day, it came out really bad, and the lady cut my bangs really short, except the spot where my scar is. Then when I woke up the next day it was back to normal. Dad says that when I was younger I would make things float, it still happens sometimes. Oh! When we were walking through the woods at the lake!"

"Yeah, but we were all there for that." said a confused Ned.

"You didn't see all of it though. You guys know how I pushed you away because of the snake I saw? Well, it was getting ready to bite me, but I yelled "NO!" and it stopped. Then it talked to me." she finished excitedly.

Her three friends were gaping at her.

"No way!" They exclaimed simultaneously.

"Yes, way!" Harley cheered back. "I mean it scared the heck out of me but, I swear, it happened."

MJ asked, "What does a snake even talk about?"

Then Peter added to MJ's question, "Yeah, what did it say to you?"

"Well it asked if I could understand it. Also I think it was a lady snake. It had a woman's voice. Then she called me a Parseltongue, I think? She said that it's really rare and that she had never met any. She sounded really excited to have met me. It was pretty weird." Harley finished her story.

"Woah, that's awesome." breathed an awestruck Ned. Peter looked like he agreed, but MJ looked unsure. Harley noticed, and asked her friend what was on her mind. MJ hesitated before speaking, "I mean… it sounds cool and all, but it seems kind of sketchy too. Think about books and movies, snakes are usually the bad guys in them. I'm not saying you are, but I think you shouldn't talk to snakes a lot. It gives me a bad feeling." Harley could see her friend's point and nodded along with her.

"You're probably right." Harley said.

At that moment there was a light yipping noise. Harley turned and smiled at her new dog. She was a slightly late birthday present from her dad. She decided to call her Frida, after the painter. Right now Frida was a three month old Xolo dog. Harley bent down to pick her up, she was just the sweetest little dog and so far she was always happy. "You guys wanna start the movies?" Harley asked. There were nods of agreement and the night officially began.

-ooOoo-

~August 06, 2008 2:30ish A.M.~

The wind woke everyone up. It was roaring and howling to be let in. The rain was bashing against the windows like bullets. Harley and MJ came out of Harley's room and met Peter and Ned in the living room. Harley's dad came out to the living room soon after. Steve was met with four very scared looking faces as well as the shaking puppy in Harley's arms. He didn't know what to do… yet. Walking over to the light switch he flicked it on but there was no light.

"We already tried that dad." Harley whispered. A loud bang made the kids jump, if possible closer to one another.

"Okay, kids let's get away from the windows and-"

CRASH!

Like with the snake at Lake Tiorati, it all happened very quickly. There was a tree just outside the living room window that Harley liked. It had bright green leaves in the spring and summer. In the fall when the leaves were red, orange, and yellow, and the morning and evening light shone through the branches, it looked like it was on fire. Now with the raging storm outside its viciously swinging branches had shattered the window Glass sprayed the living room, and Steve moved himself in a flash, The serum had its perks. He managed to grab all four kids and carry them into the kitchen. They took cover behind the kitchen island and Steve made sure the kids kept their heads down as he shielded them with his body.

Steve didn't know how long it took for him to realize that he couldn't hear the wind anymore. When he finally looked up there was a golden light surrounding the small group. He looked up more to the ceiling and saw more golden light, it was in the shape of a dome he were being shielded by some kind of... magic and then his eyes flickered down to his daughter, where she was squished between him and Peter, and she was clutching Frida to her chest. The kids noticed too, ironically it was Harley who noticed last.

She looked up finally, green eyes wide.

"Harley?" her dad asked.

"Yeah?"

"Is this you?" Peter asked this time.

She just nodded.

"You think you can fix the window too?" said her dad lightly.

The kids couldn't help it, they all laughed.

-ooOoo-

~August 03, 2011~

Harley and her dad were having a really nice day. They went for a run together and took Frida with them and took a break at the local dog park, where Frida had the time of her life. After their run, they stopped at Harley's favorite breakfast place, where they sold breakfast tacos with homemade salsa. She liked the green and her dad preferred the red. She was eleven now, and would be starting the sixth grade later this month with her best friends Peter, Ned, and MJ.

They were almost home when they noticed something odd. There were two strangers waiting outside the door to their apartment. Harley had never seen such odd looking strangers before. They were a man and a woman. The woman looked to be around her mid-sixties. Her black hair was tied back into a severe knot at the back of her head. She had a very stern face, and sharp blue eyes that looked like they could spot trouble instantly. She wore rectangular glasses, and was wearing what could only be described as robes that were emerald green. 'Although, Harley thought, 'it could pass for a really old-fashioned dress.'

However, the man was definitely on the stranger side of things. He looked a little too old to possibly be walking around without a cane, or in a wheelchair, or without an oxygen tank. If he was trying to be subtle he wasn't very good at it. He too was wearing robes, but they were way flashier, a deep purple, with gold stars. He had long, silver hair and an equally long silver beard that he could tuck into his belt. He wore glasses too, except these were in the shape of half moons, and behind them were twinkling blue eyes. They rested on a long crooked nose that looked like it'd been broken at least twice. Harley didn't know why but, she had a strange feeling about him. Like he knew more than he let on, or that he liked to keep secrets. He also exuded power in the way he carried himself. It was a quiet power but power nonetheless. She still didn't like it though, but decided to hold off on her judgement.

Her dad stopped them short of a few feet from the strangers and stepped in front of Harley. Harley held onto Frida's leash who went uncharacteristically quiet. Even she stood just a little closer to Harley.

"Hello there, who are you?" her dad said politely, but she could hear the slight wariness in his voice.

The woman stepped forward, her hand outstretched, her dad took it. "Good morning, I am Minerva McGonagall." She had an accent, it was a little thick. Scottish maybe? "This is my colleague, Albus Dumbledore." she gestured to the man next to her. "We have something for you, Miss Potter." said Dumbledore (his accent was British, Harley noted).

It was then he reached into his robes and pulled out what looked like a letter. Her dad took it from him and examined it closely. His eyes narrowed suspiciously and he stepped a little closer to the pair.

There was a steely edge to his voice when he spoke, "What the hell is this? Is this some kind of twisted joke, because I don't find it funny. Especially when it looks like a pair of random strangers are stalking my daughter."

The strangers though much older didn't look afraid of her dad. In fact, they seemed ready for this type of reaction like they got it often.

"Please, if we may explain. Has Harley ever showcased interesting abilities? Things that seem like magic?" asked Dumbledore quickly.

It was here that her dad stopped short. Harley felt her eyes widen and she looked at her dad, who looked at her, blues eyes also wide.

"What do you know?" her dad asked suspiciously, still guarding Harley.

"Harley, like her birth parents, has magic. She is what's known as a witch."