AN: I was looking for inspiration for Deadly Belladonna and found most of the good recent fics are in the Mauraders age and then I was looking through the JacobApples retired fics and was like Twice Dead and Totally Forgotten and Broken Reflections were going places. Plus Nauze has been asking for a FemHarry, so this one is for Nauze.

P.S. I did us all a favour and have plotted the crap out of this fic, it may not reach 100k but it will be finished by next year. Because I am rereading the books in Hindi and French so the topic will be on my mind.

Summary: She was furious with Dumbledore, she was furious with herself. Dalilah E. Potters feels that she is responsible for Sirius's death and makes a single wish that will rewrite the fabric of time. Everyone she loves is alive but Voldemort is at the height of his power. She is in more danger than ever before, with so much more to lose. Time Travel.

No paradox (silence yourself on this issue, there is no paradox), no slash, darkish fic, mind bending, but nothing truly explicit.

KEYnote: Basically everything between Harry and Dalilah is the same, she has a bit more scares with Petunia and a bit less from Vernon, she was jealous of Cho because she had a crush on Cedric ;) Other small differences exist but Dalilah is very much Harry and not a godmoded, perfected version of him.

Prologue

If she could've clawed her heart out, at that moment, to stop the pain, she would have. She was furious with Dumbledore but more furious at herself.

She had meant it when she said she didn't want to care anymore.

It was her fault Sirius was dead.

He had suffered so much, he had survived so much, but in the end, it was she, Dalilah E. Potter who had been the death of him.

Because she had kept her mouth shut about the pain in her scar, her dreams, dreams which Dumbledore said were possibly Voldemort influencing her mind.

It was a long walk back to Gryffindor Tower, each step bringing her deeper into despair.

All that she loved came to ruin. Her parents, Cedric, Sirius, and even Ron and Hermione had suffered so much unnecessarily because of her.

Dalilah was grateful that Hermione wasn't in their dorm as she began to pack up her things.

She hated the Dursleys, Aunt Petunia in particular, who practically made the Malfoys seem like kind people, but this summer, she would deserve the torment they gave her. Maybe if she worked hard enough, she wouldn't have to feel, maybe she would be too exhausted to care that the life of the Girl-Who-Lived wasn't worth the price everyone seemed willing to pay for it.

Voldemort hadn't even died, so really, what was the point?

Dalilah's hand hesitated over a sharp shard in her trunk and she dug it out, tossing aside Dudley's old hand-me-downs that made her seem like a perpetual tomboy no matter how long she grew her red hair.

She stared at the mirror shard in her hand and the world seemed to catch its breath, her lungs ceased expanding, and her heart stopped beating.

Because all along, all along, throughout this whole cursed year, she had had the ability to reach Sirius, forgotten in the bottom of her trunk.

Grief and rage overtook her, her magic exploding from her as the mirror shattered in her hand the world fell away.

Dalilah Potter had one wish, one single wish, that she good do this year over, that she could get a second chance to ask for help and not be so blitheringly stupid.

The backlash of her own magic hit her like a freight train, and she saw only dimly, that her trunk, half packed with Dudley's clothes and none of her books, shut itself then sat in a car that replaced the dormitory she had been in.

Dalilah fought to raise her head, to focus, to blink back the early summer sun as she heard echoes of her Aunt and Uncle's voices.

She was in their car, she realized, the car was driving, and for the life of her, Dalilah didn't understand how she had gotten here.

She leaned forward to peer at her supposed guardians in the front seats.

Dalilah reeled back as they turned to her with false faces. It was…

Unnerving as hell. It was like they were dummies with reflective triangles and rectangles making up their faces.

They had no eyes, and their voices were identifiable but untranslatable to her. It was her Aunt and Uncle's voices, but she couldn't hear what they were saying, nor was Dudley in the car, which was novel.

This had to be a dream, a really weird, grief-induced dream.

Dalilah looked out the window, still feeling a bit of vertigo as she realized the car wasn't real either.

Well, it was real, because she was sitting in it, but if she turned her head, glanced at it from the corner of her eye, it would flicker out of existence.

Outside the car, however, things were solid and real.

They passed a sign that read Cokeworth, which Dalilah dimly knew was a part of an old factory district.

She gazed down a road that had a single, slightly decrepit house, a sign proclaimed it proudly as Spinner's End. Then they were passing a river and stretch of green fields and old trees before they reached a house that, unlike Private Drive, did not look like the house on the plot beside it.

As soon as the car stopped, Dalilah was opening the weird door and dragging her old trunk behind her. The strange creatures got out of the car, going for the front door of the house, and finally, finally, she could hear their words as she cautiously followed behind them.

"This horrid child had a family all along," the Not-Vernon said.

"They should pay us for all she's cost us over the years," Not-Petunia griped.

Not-Vernon pounded on the door.

The door opened a few beats later, a very tall Scandinavian man scowled down at puppet-creatures, but Dalilah didn't think he looked as freaked out as he should have.

"Who are you?" the man asked, his accent thick, Dutch.

The puppet-Vernon, reached back and grabbed Dalilah's wrist and pratically threw her bodily at the stranger.

Dalilah squeaked, instinctively reaching for her wand that she realized that she didn't have. More than sort of panicking, she was shaking as the stranger caught her gently by shoulders.

Her only consolation was that the man had a face and seemed to think this as weird as she did.

Which of course, because she was Potter, things escalated and got even weirder.

"Lily?" the man asked, touching her face almost reverently, "Your eyes…"

"She's your runt," Not-Vernon said, "we were told she was an orphan, we've been fostering her ungrateful hyde since she was never claimed at the hospital."

All the colour left, the man's face and he let out a soft oath, before asking, "Dalilah? It can't be…"

Dalilah startled, "You know me? Who are you?"

"He's your father, you stupid child," Not-Petunia said.

The man let his hands drop then, and he turned on the creatures with thinly veiled rage, "How dare you? The hospital told us Lily's twin had died! We buried her!"

The Not-Vernon creature shrugged, "Take it up with the hospital, she is not our problem anymore. She's an ungrateful, selfish, stupi-"

"Get out!" the man roared, stepping in front of Dalilah, shielding her, "Get out of here!"

"You owe us for ou-"

"I owe you? You stole one of my daughters!"

"Eirick?" a woman called from up the stairs.

The creature laughed, "Fine, take her. She's a curse."

Those words hurt and Dalilah watched around 'Eirick' as the creatures got into their false car.

Eirick slammed the door and she turned to watch out the large windows near the end of the house, as the car drove off, flickering in the sun like before winking out, a broken illusion.

A petite woman with auburn-brown hair and emerald green eyes came down the steps, "Lily?" the woman greeted Dalilah, frowning slightly, "How did you get home so quickly? The train isn't due for another few hours. We were just about to go pick you and Severus up."

She put her hands on her hips, "Lily Evans, what did you do to your eyes? And what on Earth are you wearing?"

Eirick put a hand on Dalilah's shoulder, and said slowly, "Rose, she isn't Lily."

Rose's eyes went really wide and Dalilah was frozen, her mind reeling with confusion.

Lily Evans was dead.

Rose's face crumpled, and she shook her head, blinking fast, she swallowed, "No, Lily's twin didn't make it."

Dalilah found her voice, "I'm sorry, what's happening? Who are you?"

"Didn't those so-called foster parents of yours explain why they brought you here?" Eirick asked.

"No?" she said, then reaffirmed, "But then, they never have. They don't like me much, you see." And the feeling was quite mutual.

Eirick looked down at her sadly, "Let's start with introductions, my name is Eirick Evans, and this is your- this is Rose Evans, my wife. We have two daughters, Petunia and Lily Evans. And you are?"

Dalilah gaped at him.

Him.

Her grandfather.

She looked slowly back at Rose Evans.

Her grandmother.

They were talking about her mother, in the present tense.

Lily Evans was alive.

Holy Griffins.

Time travel?

Was this time travel?

She thought back to the last thing she could remember, being in her dorm room, crying and hating life.

The magic, and her wish.

Could she do accidental magic that could take her back in time?

Dalilah decided she was most likely hallucinating and this was just a fever dream, so screw it; "My name is Dalilah Evans."

Tears filled her grandmother's eyes, "They told us at the hospital that Lily's twin had died, I am so sorry. So very sorry-"

Dalilah, who had not two hours ago been losing her mind at her Headmaster who instead of comforting her, had told her she was some kind of Chosen One, stepped forward and pulled the woman who was about as tall as she was into a hug.

Rose held her so tightly Dalilah could hardly breathe but she didn't mind.

She didn't even mind that Rose thought she was her daughter when in actuality she was her grandmother.

It didn't matter, they were family, and Dalilah had so precious little that the semantics weren't worth getting bent out of shape over.

Large arms wrapped around them both, and Eirick, her grandfather, kissed her head and spoke words of gratitude in Dutch.

Dalilah could have stayed like that forever, loved and safe, even if it was nothing but a dream.

But Eirick pulled back, "I have to pick up Lily and Severus. Where is Petunia?"

Rose pulled back too but caught Dalilah's hand, "With that boyfriend of hers. I-"

"No, no," Eirick said, "Stay, you two get settled." He smiled brightly down at Dalilah, "Welcome home, daughter." He checked the clock on the wall, "We'll be home in a few hours."

Dalilah's throat was tight and she clung to Rose's hand as they watched the man go.

He blew them a kiss as he pulled out of the driveway, leaving Dalilah in unfamiliar waters with so many, many questions and absolutely zero hours.

Lily was so ready to go home; as much as she loved Hogwarts, she swore the whole 'mudblood' stuff had been getting worse and James Potter was making himself more insufferable than should be humanly possible.

"Bye, Lily-Flower, have a great summer!" Potter shouted to her as she and Severus made a beeline for her father who stood out like a blonde giant in the crowd. Lily didn't even spare the Quidditch star a backward

She ran into his arms and he lifted her off the ground as he hugged her back.

"Hi, Papa."

He held onto her a little longer than normal before pulling back, smiling down at her with a strange look in his eyes, as if he were grieving and blindingly happy all at once.

"Hello, Mr Evans," Severus greeted, down at the prospect of going home, but still, Sev had always liked her dad and her dad him.

"Is everything alright, Papa?"

Papa nodded his head a bit too fast, "Yes, do you have everything? I would like to get back on the road."

"Where's Mum?"

"Waiting on us at home."

She nodded and she had to nearly run to keep up with his long legs.

Lily was a bit disappointed that Papa ended up being as quiet as Severus as she talked about the year. Usually, he was more interested and asked more questions about the magical world, he and mum thought it was as fascinating as she did.

But by the time they dropped Severus off, Lily got into the front seat, she was well past done with the silent treatment.

"Papa," she said in a no-nonsense tone she had learned from mum, "What's wrong?"

Papa parked the car and sighed, "Lily, how much have we told you about what happened to your sister?"

Lily's heart skipped, "Is Tuney okay!? You never sai-"

"No, no, Petunia is fine, I meant, your twin sister?"

Lily swallowed hard, "You told me she died in the hospital, that the doctors did all they could for her, but she was…"

Lily had always felt guilty about it.

About Dalilah.

Petunia had teased Lily about being the vampire twin who had killed her own twin and that's why she had magic. She knew it wasn't true, but it still hurt, and it hurt more to think she could have had a sister as weird as her, who actually, maybe, liked her.

"The doctors lied to us."

"What?" Lily asked, startled out of her own thoughts. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, they gave our baby to someone else, and the baby girl we buried was never ours. Lily, Dalilah is alive."

"What?" Lily squeaked, "But how- how could they make a mistake like that?"

"I don't know, sweetheart, I don't know. She even has her own name Dalilah Evans, she grew up in foster care. I don't know how no one ever connected her back to us and that hospital shut down a few years ago after a fire, so I doubt we will ever know. But your twin sister has come home."

Lily was out of the car quicker than a bolt of lightning.

"Mum!?" she called.

"In here, sweety!"

Lily ran into the kitchen, where a mirror image of herself came to her feet, nearly knocking her tea off the island counter.

They had the same hair, and skin, and were the same height, though Dalilah was thinner, her pants and worn t-shirt making her look like a boy but for the long braids. Her face was a bit puffy and she looked like she had been crying as much as mum had.

But aside from the style differences, their only distinguishing feature was that Dalilah's eyes were hazel not green.

Lily blinked back tears and pulled the other girl into a hug.

Her hug was returned just as fiercely and whispered from her heart, "I'm so happy you're alive, Dalilah."

Dalilah's first words to her seemed just as heartfelt, "I'm happy you're alive too."

Chapter 1 - Welcome (Back) to Hogwarts

Dalilah never woke up, her life stayed impossibly inexplicably wonderful.

She was in the past, and apparently, she had taken her dead aunt's spot as Lily's twin sister.

Professor McGonagall even showed up, further evidence that she wasn't hallucinating, as she was handed her 'first' Hogwart letter.

Dalilah had spent a summer, not working, but studying with her Lily 'catching up' on the material. Though, she had managed to wow her new family with her cooking and baking skills.

Petunia, the Young, had been completely mortified to be shown up in the kitchen.

Technically, it was Petunia who had taught Dalilah how to run the kitchen but she wasn't sure she was going to give her credit for beating her anytime she made even the smallest mistake, forcing Dalilah to have to sneak away to the public school library during elementary school to learn how to be the type of cook that no one could fault.

No, Dalilah didn't like Aunt Petunia any more than she liked this teenage version of her, even if she wasn't quite as cruel yet.

Lily and Dalilah quickly became inseparable which had seemed to perturb Severus Snape until he realized that Dalilah wasn't trying to get in between them.

All in all, Dalilah was just happy, really truly happy, and happy to make her mother, her twin sister happy.

Happy to know in this world still breathed James Potter and Sirius Black.

Even if she only last night overheard a discussion between Eirick, Rose, and Lily about the oddness of Dalilah's reappearance, of her own oddities, such as flinching at odd moments, being obsessive compulsive in the kitchen, or, and this was a big one, violently jumping at shadows in the mirror. Add all that to her tendency to never talk about herself or her past, and well, Dalilah was positive she could be making a better impression.

Petunia hated her guts, which was okay with Dalilah because it meant the older girl avoided her like the plague.

She was pretty sure the Professors at Hogwarts were having similar discussions, but of course, because she was muggleborn and had been removed from the system so long, no one thought to question her on her 'miraculous appearance.'

Professor McGonagall had taken Dalilah to Diagon Alley and explained more about the wizarding world than Hagrid or Dumbledore had.

She adored Hagrid but it also would have been really nice to know all this before going to Hogwarts, famous and clueless.

Then again, McGonagall wouldn't have given Dudley a tail.

You lose some, you win some.

Dalilah thought she would have to fake being bad at magic.

Except, as powerful as Hermione had always insisted she was, to pass a test, it seemed, nope, she was pretty far behind. Dalilah didn't think she had failed her OWLs in her own timeline, but all the things Severus and Lily were helping her review from first to fourth year made her reconsider that.

So, yes, she was being allowed to enter fifth year (again) and she was hiding how much she knew about Defensive Against the Dark Arts, but it wasn't because of Hogwarts. Nope, she had probably learned more in one summer than she had in four years at Hogwarts.

Hermione was completely right, Dalilah did need to take studying more seriously.

On the Platform 9 ¾, Dalilah said goodbye to her grandparents and felt as if her heart was breaking.

The Evans home, even with Petunia popping in and out with her boyfriend Vernon, had become a true home to her, even more than Hogwarts itself.

Pulling back from a hug, Eirick said, "You can come home whenever you want."

She smiled up at him, "I can't thank you enough."

Rose shushed her, "None of that, we love you so much. Both of you so much. I have never been happier than the day you came home to us."

Dalilah blinked back tears, "I love you too."

She still wasn't quite comfortable calling them Mom and Dad, but the words 'I love you' had never meant more.

Her grandparents kissed her cheeks, then Lily's and then they were chasing after a train that was just about ready to go.

Severus had already gone ahead to find them seats, so when Lily and Dalilah barreled into the train cart, they ended up barrelling into none other than James Potter and Sirius Black.

Dalilah was giddy and embarrassed as Sirius helped her to her feet. Although she had known automatically who they were having seen pictures of them, she was not prepared for being face to face with a fifteen-year-old Padfoot.

Her first thought?

He's beautiful.

She felt herself flush scarlet and just knew, knew, that her pink face was clashing horribly with her hair, and she turned away from Sirius's smug expression.

"Let go of me!" Lily exclaimed.

"I was just helping you up, Lils," James said cheerfully, "You're the one who fell into me after all."

She knew her father was a bit of a bully, Professor Lupin having been much more charitable about her mother, but still, Dalilah admired her young father for having eyes only for Lily even with her 'twin near identical sister' standing right beside her.

"You don't have to get handsy," Lily sniped at him, checking her baggage, their black cat, Nahla, was yowling in her crate.

"I wasn't being handsy, I was being a gentleman and helping you up. Do you need help with your bags?" he asked, completely unfazed by Lily's hostility.

Okay, maybe her father was a bit daft.

Sirius cleared his throat, "So, we all know who dear Ms. Evans, but who is this lovely flower?"

Dalilah couldn't help but smile, holding out her hand, "I'm Dalilah Evans, Lily's long lost twin sister."

And not the damn Girl-Who-Lived.

Sirius took her hand but didn't shake it, he turned it and kissed the back of it.

Dalilah was back to blushing and internally cursing herself.

Sirius Black was her Godfather. But he didn't look like an escaped convict she had known. No, he looked young, with long dark curly hair, a clean shaven face, and eyes that were the most lovely shade of blue-grey.

"You have a twin!?" James exclaimed, looking Dalilah over in fascination.

"Yes," Lily said, shrinking and pocketing their luggage before grabbing the cat carrier and then Dalilah's wrist, "Long lost twin sister, who has been found. Now, do us all a favour, Potter, and go and get yourself lost."

Then Lily was dragging Dalilah away from the two boisterous boys. Lily didn't let go until they found Severus.

Dalilah had hardly taken a seat, smoothing her dress out, because, for the first time in her life, she owned a dress, dresses, actually, when Lily spun on her.

"What do you think you were doing!?" Lily bellowed.

Dalilah stared up at her, only ever having seen Lily lose her temper at Tuney before. "What did I do?"

Lily threw her hands up, "You flirted with the Marauders!"

"Oh," Dalilah blushed, "I mean, he was kind of cute, so, um-"

Severus' look was so deeply wounded and Lily looked ready to go catatonic.

"YOU THINK JAMES POTTER IS CUTE!?"

Dalilah winced and fought not to gag. No, her father wasn't horrible looking or anything but she didn't want to look at him like that, "No, I meant Sirius Black, he's handsome."

Which was just a simple fact, and not something Dalilah was going to dwell on, nope, not at all.

Some of Lily's ire faded but there was still plenty of heat in her voice when she said, "Sirius is a git, they both are."

Dalilah shrugged, "Okay, Lils, it's not like they asked me out or anything. I just met them."

Lily completely deflated at that, sinking down next to Severus, "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell. They just get under my skin."

Dalilah couldn't help but tease a little, "I know, you talk about them all the time."

Severus looked out the window, looking seven shades of unhappy as Lily's face went bright pink, "I do not."

Dalilah had never understood why Professor Snape never looked at her, never met her gaze, never directly spoke to her, until she had met him in the past and realized how hopelessly gone he was on Lily Evans.

Which meant that James Potter and Severus Snape must have been school long rivals, family drama at its best.

But Dalilah gave them both an out, "Oh, I'm sorry, I mean you bitch about them all time."

Lily huffed at her, before rolling her eyes, "You're the worst."

Dalilah grinned, but her gaze drifted to the landscape: What would her life be like now?

She had wished to repeat fifth year, and now she was, just a few decades early.

Right before a war that would ravage Wizarding Britain.

She unconsciously reached for her holly wand that Olivander had given to her with the speech of 'You will accomplish many a great things' sans 'or massively terribly things like the Serial Killer who murdered your parents.'

Honestly, just getting to be Dalilah, not the Girl-Who-Lived, not anybody, anybody really cared about, was a huge step up.

Also, she was a Quidditch star, and since she knew James was a Chaser and Sirius was a Beater, so she could out-fly any non-professional Seeker and be on the same team with them.

Flying with her father had been a dream she never imagined could ever even be a possibility.

Thank you, Time Travel.

"It's going to be great," Lily was saying, "you have to be sorted into Gryffindor, we are twins after all, and we'll be in all of each other's classes."

Except for Runes, which was just an archaic language. Dalilah had decided against Divinations, because no, just no, not after the Department of Mysteries, and was instead taking Arithmancy and Care of Magical Creatures.

"I don't know, Lily, she might end up in Hufflepuff," Severus said deadpan.

Thinking of Cedric's sweet smile, Dalilah raised an eyebrow at him, "What's wrong with Hufflepuff?"

"It's not Gryffindor," Lily said, playfully mockpunching Severus's arm.

"Maybe I'll pair with Potter for Potions class to distract him from causing you both to lose your heads," Dalilah mused.

"Hey!" Severus and Lily exclaimed.

Dalilah laughed.

Severus and Lily weren't exactly her best friends, nothing like Ron and Hermione had been, especially given how many secrets she was keeping, but she enjoyed their company.

And that's more than she could say about Dudley or even most of the other students at Hogwarts, from her time or now.

o)O(o

Hogwarts was as magical as ever and Dalilah felt almost as nervous waiting at the end of the line of First years as she had when she had actually been one of them.

"And finally, Evans, Dalilah, who will be entering into the Fifth Year."

Dalilah glanced at the Gryffindor table where Lily smiled at her broadly. She saw James watching her too, but he kept glancing back at Lily, and then she caught Sirius's eye and he winked at her.

She almost didn't recognize Remus Lupin who looked healthy and happy, but she most certainly recognized Peter Pettigrew.

Shoving the thought of him aside, she took her seat on the stool that was much smaller now. She feared what the Hat might say.

But as it turned, the Sorting Hat didn't ponder over her thoughts at all because no sooner than the Hat touched the crown of her head, did it shout, "SLYTHERIN!"

McGonagall pulled the Hat off, her jade eyes a bit wide as the entire hall filled with silence.

Dalilah didn't move. Breath held, her eyes found Lily's, her smile was frozen, emerald eyes big.

She glanced at James next and he looked dismissive, and that hurt her.

And Sirius…

Sirius looked disappointed and that perhaps hurt worst of all.

Dalilah stood, back straight as she walked to her new table that did not so much as raise a hand in welcome, much less clap.

She sat down between Severus and a boy who looked a lot like Sirius.

Sound broke out in whispers around the hall as the Headmaster rose to start the Feast.

A boy with brown hair and evil beady eyes, leaned over the table, he was big, his shoulder impressive, and he asked, "Who are your people?"

Dalilah didn't cower, showed not the slightest sign of fear, as she returned, "Who's asking?"

The boy sneered, and she was ninety-nine percent sure he was or was going to be a Death Eater, "Mulciber II, seventh year. Are you a half-blood? Like Prince, here?"

Dalilah knew there was no way in hell she could keep her relationship with Lily secret, they were damn near identical, even if she was in actuality a Potter.

It didn't matter, because blood purity didn't matter, it was just the principles of how one was raised and what they believed.

"I am Lily Evans' twin sister."

Mulciber's sneer turned truly horrid, "In Slytherin? How does a Mudblood g-"

With an easy motion, she picked up a goblet and threw milk in the ugly boy's face. She drawled savagely, knowing all too well that she was digging her own grave, "How does someone as moronic as you get sorted into the House of Cleverness?"

If looks could kill, Dalilah would have been struck dead as a doornail. Actually, the only reason she wasn't dead now was because the Professors were watching.

She was going to have to ward her bed, nightly.

Severus whispered under his breath, "You shouldn't have done that."

Dalilah sipped her pumpkin juice without dignifying that with a response as Mulciber got and moved further down the table to sit with a group of boys who looked ready to join Dudley's gang in 'Dalilah hunting'.

She didn't need Severus commentary, she knew she had ruined this already.

It looked like fifth year was off to a stupendous start.

Sirius/Dalilah and Lily/James pairings.

AN: Meaningful reviews keep the wheels rolling. Thoughts, dragons, or feedback on the chapter, please?