She had made her way to the Gryffindor tower and was standing in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady.
"Password?" The Fat Lady asked, looking down at her.
"Welcome," Alexa said. She needed to talk to Harry. That would be her first step.
The portrait swung open and Alexa climbed in. The common room was filled with people. She was, at this point, used to the cozy red room. With no one going by house and so many people staying in the castle to help clean it, evenings had become a rotating event, circling from common room to common room.
"Hey Lex," Neville called from the comfort of a squishy loveseat. Luna sat beside him, curled up with a copy of the Quibbler in her lap,
Alexa made her way over to him, "Hey," she greeted, "Have you seen Harry?"
"I'm here!" a voice called from the stairs to the boys dormitory, "What's going on? Did you talk to McGonagall?"
"Yeah," Alexa said, "Can we talk outside for a minute?" Her heart hadn't stopped pounding since she left the office.
"Uh, yeah okay? Is everything okay?" He asked, brows pushing together as he followed her out of the room. They stepped out into the torch lit hallway and the portrait hole swung shut behind them. Alexa glanced up at the clearly curious Fat Lady.
"Let's walk," Harry said, noticing her gaze. Alexa nodded, and the Fat Lady gave a humph.
"I think it's best if you read this," she pulled the letter from the back pocket of her jeans, and handed it to him.
"This is from Dumbledore!" Harry exclaimed, "I didn't know you were-1979?" he stopped short, catching sight of the date in the top corner, "Are you older than me?"
Alexa chuckled, "You could say that. Read it," she urged. Harry's eyes scanned the letter quickly, growing wider by the second. And then he reread it. And reread it. And stared blankly at the prophecy.
"I don't understand," he said, "You were born when…?"
"1930," she answered, "There's a hotel in Vegas where you can stay for years and never age and it feels like no time is passing."
"You're definitely older than me," Harry murmured, looking down at the prophecy, "Do you have any idea what this means?" he asked.
"Only that I have to go back, which I was going to do anyways," she shrugged, "It'll probably play out in some sort obnoxious way where I don't know what's happening until it's happening."
"You're very calm about this," Harry said, tracing a finger over Dumbledore's long dried words, "I wasn't nearly so calm when I found out about my prophecy."
Alexa laughed, "I think I'm in shock. I'm going back to the time I should have been in if Pluto hadn't locked me away. Besides, maybe I could, I don't know, find my grandparents? Pluto took all the memories of my mother. I don't even know what she looked like really."
Harry stared at her for a moment before nodding, "But you're going to go back? You've decided?" There were a plethora of mixed emotions in his voice, and his eyes were bright.
"Harry, how many people won't die if I do this? Of course I'm going back."
He looked down, frowning, "I guess that makes what I did-"
"No," she cut him off, "I couldn't get to this unless you finished it. The only reason the drawer is open is because Voldemort is dead. One of Dumbledore's plans. I never understood the man. I barely knew him."
"I really didn't either." Harry shoved his hands deep in his pockets. He was silent for a moment, contemplating. "If you go back and you can't stop it," he said, suddenly sounding like a teenager on the brink of manhood and nothing more, "Can I ask you for something? Just one thing?"
Alexa nodded, "If I fail I owe you more than that."
"Save Sirius," he said, "Just save Sirius."
"He was your godfather, wasn't he?" Alexa asked. Harry nodded tightly. "I'll save him ." She could do that.
"Thank you," Harry's voice was choked.
She nodded silently, clutching the folder to her chest.
"Is that all about him?" Harry asked, "Do you want me to go through that and see if there's anything missing?" He offered, "I'll help you in any way I can."
"Please," Alexa said, handing it over, "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. And Ginny, actually, but I know she's staying with her family this weekend."
Harry raised his eyebrows, "Ginny?" he was flushing.
"She had him in her head for a year," Alexa explained, "She's got a different perspective."
Harry nodded brows pushing together, "That's for sure." He was silent for a moment. "I'll talk to her when I can."
"Thank you-I don't know who else I'm going to tell about this." She wrapped her arms around herself, and Harry put a hand on her shoulder. She had never spent a great deal of time with the Chosen One before the war, and even now this was the first time she had ever been alone with him.
"Thank you," he said, honestly and openly.
She nodded, "I need to go and start getting ready, or figuring out how to get ready-goodnight Harry."
"G'night Alexa," he replied, smiling. They parted ways and she made her way down to the dungeon. There hadn't been a lot of fighting in the bottom most level of the castle. The route to her common room was largely unscathed. It was a frozen place in time where only she had changed.
"Welcome," she murmured. The wall slid aside, revealing the warm common room. While all students were now welcome in all common rooms, not many chose to visit the Slytherin. Even the Slytherins still present didn't spend a great deal of time there. Neville and some of the DA had been the only ones to visit, and it had been a very deliberate political act. But there was something about the common room that was home for her, probably more than any other place had ever been.
She turned the letter over in her hands, as she walked towards her dormitory, completely absorbed in thought and completely missing Draco, who was sitting by the fire.
"Is everything okay di Angelo?" He called. Alexa jumped, whirling around.
"Sorry," she said, knowing he would have noticed her hand clapping down on her wand, "I didn't see you. Everything is fine." She tucked the letter into her back pocket, and joined him on the sofa.
"Okay," he said, he leaned back and winced.
"Peeves really got you good, huh," she chuckled.
He rolled his eyes, "I went off the banister, somebody had to levitate me to safety. It's a good thing Parvati was there, I rather think McLaggin would have just let me fall.
She winced, "I'm glad she was there." They fell into silence
"I don't think I should go to the memorial," Draco said finally. He had his hand wrapped absently around where she knew his dark mark sat, fading day by day but still ever present. The otherwise cozy room suddenly felt far too cold.
"I think you should," Alexa said, "It shows your support." She had spoken with Hermione about this previously. It was, in the bushy-haired witch's opinion, critical to get him reintegrated into society. Alexa had to agree with her.
"Somebody tried to kill me the first time I left the castle-screamed she lost her children in the first war and her grandchildren in the second. People look at me and they see my father or Bellatrix."
Alexa winced, she remembered the incident. He had gone with Harry and herself to Hogsmeade. If Harry hadn't seen the elderly witch draw her wand, Draco wouldn't be sitting with her. The thought chilled her-Draco had been working harder than anyone in the castle, and she knew it was to make up for what he had done. And he had done terrible, awful things. But not irredeemable things.
"You're not either of them-and this is going to be a closed event with security, you've been invited by Kingsley. It's not the same as an open street," she pointed out, curling her legs under her. The letter crinkled in her pocket.
"There are going to be representatives from other Ministries, and dignitaries and-"
"Dumbledore's Army, and anyone who fought and survived. Who know you and remember you. Harry will be there, Hermione will be there, Neville will be there, and I'll be there."
"Do you even think it's a good idea for you to go?" He asked, brows pushing together.
"You worried about me Draco?" she laughed, thinking of the letter in her pocket. She was worried about herself for much different reasons.
"Yes," he said plainly, looking at her, "I know what the purebloods think of Demigods-a lot of them hate you. They think you're an animal."
"They don't hate me," Alexa countered, "They're afraid of me. And as long as they're afraid of me I'll be safe." She shrugged, wrapping her arms around herself.
Draco shook his head, "Your overconfidence is going to get you one day," he said, leaning back against the sofa, legs stretching out in front of him onto the coffee table. He stared contemplatively into the fire, and Alexa wondered, not for the first time, why it was always Draco she ended up having these kinds of late night conversations with.
"And I'm sure Pluto will be so unhappy to see me he'll send me right back. Lighten up Malfoy, I'm glad I don't have to hide what I am anymore." She was, truly. That had been such a sudden freedom she sometimes found herself covering her arm as a reflex. She was touched by his concern. She supposed they were friends. She liked being friends.
He exhaled, glancing over at her,"I see why Blaise claims to be already going grey."
She rolled her eyes, "Anyways, I think you should go."
He sighed, "I know you're right-I heard you and Hermione talking the other day about how a public appearance would help me and show that I support the effort." Alexa bit her lip, she had thought she and Hermione had been alone for that one. Draco had been going out of his way to be around Hermione, constantly asking questions about the muggle world. If there was one thing that was for sure, it was that Draco was adaptive.
"I'll make sure to keep an eye out for anything," she said, "and Kingsley has pretty tight security on the place. Not all the Death Eaters have been rounded up yet."
"That was a long talk with McGonagall," he said casually.
"I had to talk to Harry after." She didn't like the sudden shift in topic.
He raised an eyebrow, "Nothing good happens when Potter is involved." His tone was kidding but she knew there was a grain of truth in his words. She would have easily believed Harry was a demigod, from the amount of trouble that found him.
"It's going to be fine." Her voice was smooth despite the anxiety sinking in.
He looked at her and narrowed his eyes, "You look like you did during the battle. What's going on Alexa?" What was the harm in telling him really?
She exhaled and pulled the letter out of her pocket and handed it over, slouching back into the couch.
He read it silently, his eyes growing larger and larger as he went.
"Are you going?" He asked. She nodded, looking at the fire.
He ran his hand through his hair, "You're braver than I ever want to be," he said, shaking his head.
She was silent, looking into the fire. Her mind was a roar of white noise. She couldn't think, faces kept flashing in her mind. She hadn't heard from Octavian all summer, Neville, Blaise, Theo, Lavender, Padma, Draco. Suddenly everything seemed like a loss. She had built something where she was, in this time. She could feel the hysterics creeping in over her mind, and clenched her hands into fists.
Draco's face twisted, "This is absurd," he said plainly, "That he's still playing with us like this. We won the war, and now a letter from twenty something years ago sends you back because you're actually seventy?"
"There's a prophecy too. It's not just Dumbledore," she said tightly, "The gods are doing this. He took the offered scroll and glared at the stuff writing as he read.
Draco shook his head, "I can't believe you're doing this," he said, meeting her eyes, "Who else knows?"
"Harry and McGonagall," she said.
He raised his eyebrows, "So not even the dynamic duo? Why tell me then? I wouldn't expect that-sorry," he checked himself, something he had been doing frequently, "That's insensitive."
She shrugged, looking down, "You're not going to stop me," she said, trying to formulate why she had told him of all people, "And I understand you. I trust you." She was silent, trying to formulate more of an answer.
"Thank you," Draco said, suddenly looking quite emotional. She realized she was probably the first person to say that to him, at least in quite some while. She reached out and put her hand over his, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"Mostly," she gave him a half, teasing grin, "I suppose I should apologize for breaking your nose in second year since we're friends and all now."
He stared at her for a moment and burst out laughing, wrapping his own hand around hers and clutching it tightly, "That dueling class was a joke, and honestly I deserved the punch."
"Well I certainly thought so," she laughed.
"So you were born in America in 1931?" He asked.
"Italy, Venice, Italy. It's fuzzy-Pluto took my memories when he put me into the hotel, but when I crossed through the River Tiberius to get into Camp Jupiter-the Demigod camp where I lived that's where the city of New Rome is as well-it came undone."
And suddenly she was talking and telling Draco far more than she had ever planned, and he said there listening, asking questions occasionally, laughing and joking when she told stories of the trouble she and Octavian had gotten into, sobering when she talked about her siblings.
There would be somebody who would know her story after she left.
They fell asleep sometime in the midst of him telling her about falling off a broom and getting caught in a tree and her telling him about losing a war elephant in New Rome. She woke up to Draco being gone, and a blanket tucked around her.
...
She was going to leave the morning after the memorial. She was not going to tell Blaise or Theo. It would hurt them too much, and they would never find out. Harry and Ginny had helped massively in adding to her file on Tom Riddle. Mcgonagall had provided several yearbooks from the time, and additional school files on students. She told Neville. He was less than happy but helped her with gusto. She assembled a trunk of all the things she needed, including a few sets of clothing. The muggle dresses sent a spark of something mournful in her. She remembered a flash of something new, of clinging to a dress in the exact color and hiding behind her mother, Pluto stepping towards her, crouching down. He was smiling.
The person she found herself spending the most time with, oddly enough, was Draco. He helped her scour through books, and newspapers, writing notes on things that she would need to know about the wizarding world at the time, helping her put together a timeline of the important dates.
Blaise and Theo noticed something, of course, and there was a tremendous guilt towards them for not telling. Theo in particular had tried to corner her on several occasions, but Draco had taken to running interference. She appreciated him.
The week flew by more quickly than she imagined and by the day of the memorial she felt horribly, shakingly unprepared. She was sitting on her bed in her dormitory, the same dormitory she had lived in since she was eleven, the same dormitory she would live in for the next two years fifty years ago, and felt like she was going to throw up. Her makeup was done, she was not going to cry. This was what had to be done.
"Alexa?" Draco called from the bottom of the staircase, "Are you ready?" She inhaled sharply and rose, she had to go.
"I'm just changing," she said. Her voice broke and she cursed.
"Take your time," he called back.
Alexa inhaled and pulled on her dress. It was somewhere between traditional roman attire and dress robes. A simple black long-sleeved gown that fell to her ankles, with a dark purple tunic pulled over that hung loose at an angle and was tucked in at the waist with a golden sash. To cover and mimic the robes the wizards would surely be wearing a thin black cape was fastened to her shoulders with silver buttons. Paired with black flats the effect was intimidating. Which was, admittedly her goal. But she was having second thoughts about not wearing the normal dress robes.
But what they thought of her birth didn't matter, she would be gone by noon tomorrow. Taking a deep breath and pulling on her traveling cloak and clutch, she squared her shoulders and descended to the common room.
Draco was waiting at the bottom of the steps, and he opened his mouth to say something when Blaise and Theo came galloping down the stairs.
"Alexa!" Theo yelped, coming to a grinding halt, a goofy grin crossing his face, "You look amazing."
Blaise clapped him on the back, meeting her and Draco in the center of the room, "Just as late as usual I see?" He drawled, thoroughly ignoring the blond next to her.
Alexa rolled her eyes, bumping him with her shoulder as she move past him to the door, "Just as late as you, as usual." The familiar banter was a comfort, but there was still a gaping wound waiting to be slit into her heart by the loss of them.
"How are you Malfoy?" Blaise asked. Theo meanwhile had jogged to keep up with her.
"Are you okay?" He asked, "You've been practically nonexistent this week."
"Sorry," she flashed a smile, "It's just there's been so much to do-and with the memorial..." she trailed off shrugging. She hated to have to lie to him but she knew if she let herself be around him all week she would never have had the strength to leave.
He wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close against his chest as they walked, "I know."
The familiar smell of him was overwhelming, and tears pushed at her eyes but she blinked them back. None of that.
He released her before they entered the Great Hall, and Draco was swiftly by her side.
"Keep steady," he murmured under his breath. She nodded. The Great Hall had been set up with temporary Floo Travel points. Four stone fireplaces, tall enough to stand inside in pairs of two, had been set up at different corners of the room. She and Draco stood in line behind Theo and Blaise, and Alexa positively felt like she was choking. Draco stood close enough for their shoulders to brush, and he kept glancing down at her. She stared straight ahead, focused only on her destination.
"Alright! You two next!" Flitwick squeaked, urging the pair forwards. Together they stood in the fireplace, and Draco took the offered floo powder.
"The Ministry of Magic," he said clearly, and they were gone.
Floo powder was by far her least favorite way to travel. It was like being tied to a spinning top, and when it finally ceased she was left swaying and dizzy.
"Ready?" Draco asked, she nodded, posture rigid.
He offered her his arm, both for his own sake and hers, and she took it gladly, and together they entered the Ministry. There was a great glittering fountain, with abstract figures meant to represent different creatures, around which people were milling. There were waiters with polished trays of drinks and appetizers. She held Draco's arm more tightly, and with expert ease he plucked two glasses of something from a passing tray and handed one to her.
"Big turnout," he said. She looked at him, realizing his hands were shaking. She turned and locked eyes with a man staring at them with disgust on his face. He went white and quickly turned away.
"Yeah," she agreed, sipping her drink and giving the arm she still held a squeeze, "It is."
Draco exhaled, and stood a bit taller.
"There you are!" Harry came sliding over to them looking rather flustered, emerging from a dense mob of people, "I was looking for you."
"We just got here," Alexa filled in, glancing back at the mob. Several were muttering amongst themselves, and Harry glanced over his shoulder, clearly annoyed.
"They won't leave me alone," he said, "I got separated from Ginny and I can't-oh! There she is!" Harry ducked off, much to Alexa's amusement.
For the majority of the night, Draco and Alexa stayed side by side. They were avoided by and large, which worked for Harry because whenever he seemed to become overwhelmed he would surely appear at their side.
Andromeda Tonks came as well, toting baby Teddy in her arms. Alexa had only met the woman a few times. She was Draco's aunt, and Teddy was Harry's godson. She supposed that made Draco and Harry family on some strange level, but she wasn't entirely sure how that worked.
By the time the speeches were done, and all the necessary hands had been shaken, Teddy was fast asleep in his godfather's arms, Andromada looking fondly, and a bit teary eyed, over them.
"You had better be a bit tamer than your godfather," she said sternly, "Sirius was always such a wild boy."
"Yes Andromeda," Harry said obediently. Most of the guests had filed away, and the waiters had begun to stack the chairs that lined the room. Alexa distanced herself from the group, standing beside the fountain, looking up at the featureless, smooth form of what was surely meant to be an abstract centaur.
"Do you want to hold him, Draco?" Harry's voice came, and she glanced back just in time to see Draco's panicked expression as Harry deposited the sleeping baby into his arms.
"You're doing fine dear," Andromeda said soothingly. Alexa turned back around and ignored the pang in her chest.
"They used to have faces, you know." Harry's voice just behind her startled her, "But when we fought in the ministry the fountain was destroyed-I like this one better." He offered her a glass of a dark amber liquid, and she took it. She didn't think the waiters were giving out drinks anymore, but he was the chosen one after all.
"It's nice," she agreed.
"Tomorrow's the day, isn't it?" he asked. She sighed, looking at him. The anxiety was coiled tight in her stomach, but she nodded.
"Do you think I can change him? Do you think it's possible?" she asked, not sure if she really wanted an answer.
"I don't know when Tom Riddle truly became Voldemort. I think by the time I asked him to regret what he had done he was beyond that. He was beyond help and beyond saving. But I think you have a shot at saving him." Harry sipped his drink, a look settling into his eyes that made him look far older than he should.
"Does he deserve saving?"
"Nobody deserves saving," Harry chuckled, "Some of us just get lucky."
Alexa laughed, looking up at the face of the wizard, eyes damper than before, "To being lucky," she held out her glass, and Harry tapped his against it.
"To being lucky," he agreed.
She looked back now, out into the clearing room. She saw Blaise and Theo and Daphne, all laughing together. Neville and Luna sitting intimately together, Neville listening carefully to whatever Luna was saying, and Ginny joining the conversation, the grim expression of a survivor lingering in her eyes even when she smiled. She saw Ron and Hermione, arms around each other as they leaned against a wall, saying nothing, just standing close.
Suddenly everything and everyone seemed like potential. Everyone had a path together and a future to live out. Things would change as soon as she left, but some things were meant to be. She saw Draco, a warmth in his eyes that she had never seen as he looked down at his cousin nestled in his arms. And maybe she saw a glimpse of a man she could have loved, if Fate weren't such a goddamn bitch.
"I'm going to head out," Harry said, "I'll see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow, Harry. Thank you," she was earnest, "For helping me."
"I think I should be the one who's thanking you," He said, flashing a grin. And then he left. Draco handed Teddy back to Andromeda, and appeared at her side.
"I think we should head back," he said quietly, placing his hand on the small of her back.
"Yes," she agreed, "Last night." Draco pursed his lips, but nodded. They flooed back to the castle, and back to the Slytherin common room. Blaise and Theo were sitting asleep on the sofa, still in their dress robes. They had left long before Alexa had.
She looked at them fondly, and Draco lingered at her side.
"I'm going to miss them," she whispered, blinking tears out of her eyes.
"They'll be okay. You're going to make things better for them," Draco whispered back. She nodded, turning and looking up at him.
"Thank you," she said honestly.
He smiled, "'Course. I'll see you tomorrow. I'm not letting Potter send you off without me." She chuckled, and they parted ways.
She snuck back up to her dorm to change, carefully folding the dress into the trunk she was taking with her. It was filled to the brim with notes and books and files. The letters, all of them, the prophecy, and the potion, were all carefully tucked away inside a smaller box placed inside. There were scant clothes, dresses from the past and some modern things she had packed in. She would never be able to wear them but she couldn't bear to leave everything behind. There were pictures too, from her years at school and her summers at camp. Looking at the tunk made her chest ache, and she shut it quickly. She pulled on a ratty old t-shirt and some sweatpants, and pulled the comforter off her bed. Padding barefoot down to the common room, she curled up between her boys, pulled the blanket over the three of them, and fell asleep.
Tomorrow all of this would be gone.
