This chapter is aptly named Chaos because it's fucking chaotic. I'm bringing in Alt Alexia (from What If: Two Ideas) because someone needs to give her the spell to save people, and there's no way in hell I'm writing a complete Alt MTD just for Alt Alexia (who my sister is calling Altlexia)

It may get a little confusing but just know that Actual Alexia is always going to be in the other universe (in this chapter). If I mention Alexia in her own universe, it's Altlexia.

Chapter Three

"So, you're Hermione, too?"

Adelaide shrugged. "That's sort of the question, I suppose. We all are, really, but we're not. I'm Adelaide Snape, but I used to be Hermione Granger. My parents weren't French and Russian, though, just English. The other one used to be Hermione Granger, and now she's Mia Potter. We have a Cassiopeia Black, but she used to be Belle Potter, but really she's Hermione. It's all really complicated."

Jasper sighed and sat back. "Is she okay?"

"Lexi never really seems to be okay," Adelaide admitted. "Where she is… it could definitely be worse. You were pretty close with her, weren't you?"

He nodded. "Hermione was my favorite cousin. We spent holidays together, and visited a lot during summer. We wrote to one another until… we didn't. She disappeared. Mum said she was busy, but I can see that wasn't true."

The door to the kitchen opened and they looked over to find Regulus entering. Adelaide raised an eyebrow at him. "How're things going?"

"I don't know, I haven't talked to anyone since last night," he said as he reached the fridge.

Adelaide paused before nodding. "Lexi's?"

"It would seem so. And this is?"

"Jasper Caron," he introduced himself. "Hermione's cousin."

"Regulus Black," the man sighed as he looked to Adelaide. "Is he here because of Feliks?"

"Yep, as well as the rest of her extended family. Well, her mum's side. I saw someone suggest that Dolohov protect his family and he looked like he couldn't give less shits about what happened to them."

"I think we're all well and fucking fed up with his family," Regulus muttered. Adelaide snorted.

"You're in a mood today."

"Someone keeps trying to kill my best friend. Yes, I'm in a mood. Go talk to your own Regulus if you feel like it."

Adelaide's brow furrowed. "What do you mean, my own Regulus?"

"Your husband?" he stared at her. "We met, Adelaide. You're married to my alternate self. Go ask Mia."

"Fine," Adelaide said, getting to her feet. Frustrated, she grabbed him by his sleeve and tugged him behind her back into the sitting room, where she interrupted work. "Mia."

"Addy, kinda busy," Mia muttered. Looking up, she snorted. "Manhandling Lexi's exes now, are we?"

"Only because he claims I'm married to his alternate self."

"Shit."

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"Where is it?" Alexia asked, tossing a dagger on the floor in frustration. "Fuck! Dolohov, did you fucking touch it?"

"I touched nothing," he said, frowning at her. "You have all the-,"

"Well, I didn't fucking lose it, did I?" she snapped. She pulled her goggles down and ran her fingers through her hair. "It should be right here."

"Maybe we should take a breather," Alphard suggested. "Antonin will look for your tools while we take a walk."

"No," she said, throwing her goggles on the table next to her. She sat on the floor again with tools and pieces of what would become the machine sitting around her. Dolohov was nearby, attempting to help, but she yelled at him every time he got near. "I'm going to keep working."

"You haven't eaten today," he argued.

"I'm busy."

Alphard sighed and walked toward the door. "I'll get you something. Do you need anything?"

Alexia glanced up, her hair in her face and frowning. "There's a containment chamber, or should be, at Borgin and Burke's. Can you pick it up? We'll need it for some unstable energy I have to put in. It'll save us… weeks. It's really important, Alphard."

"I'll do my best," he promised. "I'll be back with lunch. Don't kill him while I'm gone."

She waved him off and turned back to the scattered pieces of her machine. Half of it was machinery while the other half was magical artifacts. At the end, they'd use special spells to make the two work together, but that was certainly a long ways away.

"You don't have to hate me, Dorogaya."

"Don't call me that," she snapped angrily. "And forget the fucking Russian."

"Why are you so angry?"

Alexia's hands froze and she looked up at him for the first time that day. "When I was in my fifth year, I traveled the multiverse for the first time. I was with Regulus Black when I was taken to another universe, where I met… so many alternate versions of myself. We were moving, seemingly randomly, from universe to universe with our friends. And then we went to the last universe. That was when I realized that Antonin Dolohov, when given something to love, will do terrible things. That includes my husband, yes. In that universe, he loved Ruby, that universe's version of me. He loved her so much that he was ready to rip it all apart to keep her alive. And when we killed her, he tried for his revenge. He's still out there.

"And so I sit here, thinking about what you love. I know your loyalty lies with the DOM. I know you're interested in me. But really, truly, what do you love? What would you use this machine for? Do I need to be prepared when it's finally ready? What are you going to do?"

Dolohov sat forward and rested his elbows on his knees as he looked at her. "I plan to do what you do, Alexia. I plan to research the multiverse and use that research to, hopefully, improve my own universe. I will not interfere with your work."

Alexia frowned at him, still angry. "I love my husband. You have no fucking idea what was happening in our universe when I had to bring Hermione here. You've no idea what I have been dealing with."

"Tell me."

She scoffed.

"I am not your husband, but I am his alternate self. And though you suppress it, we are still bonded. I have taken on your bond with your husband. It must be extremely painful. If we work together, Alexia, you can return home much sooner."

Alexia shifted a little and refocused on her work quietly, his words in her mind still.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"That makes no sense," Adelaide snapped at Mia. Everyone in the room was watching with wide eyes. "I've never been married! I never even dated anyone in the past, I just fucking suffered through it!"

"Lexi… said something," Reid grimaced as the glare turned to him. "She told us when it happened. Or after, I guess."

Mia nodded. "I'm sorry, Addy. I wanted to tell you, to say something, to make her fix it, but she made me leave. That's why I wasn't talking to her, and then I came here and her bloody cousin had escaped and- I'm sorry."

"I don't understand," Adelaide insisted. "I was married? To… Regulus. Oh my god, the ring!"

"Huh?"

She dug into her bag and pulled out the ring. "I found myself wearing it and I couldn't figure out why. Lexi said… maybe I got drunk and married Sirius. She knew?"

"I'm sorry, how could her husband simply stop existing?" Jasper asked in shock.

"The more we tell the muggle, the more we will have to Obliviate," Antonin told the women. "If you would prefer to give us more work, do it in another room."

A patronus flew in the room, stopping in front of James, who tensed. "Lisette Malfoy is dead. Message reads 'Hide and I keep playing.' In France."

Rossi got to his feet, along with Reid and Antonin. "Everyone stay here."

James rubbed his forehead. "Someone needs to tell Malfoy."

Mia grimaced. "I'll go. Where's he at?"

"Think Draco said all of them were going to be at the site of Malfoy Manor today for some blood warding," James sighed. "Take someone with you, I don't want you getting mistaken for Lexi out there."

"I've got my boys," she assured him. "You've got enough to transport the muggles to France?"

"Yes. We'll regroup here when we're done."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Alternate Alexia

Alphard had left to get Charlus and Dorea, and Bertie had done tests on Alexia for another five minutes before Antonin made him stop and the man had made his way into his office once again.

It left the trio in the office together in silence. It was approaching uncomfortable silence when Antonin finally looked to Avery. "How long has she been having these… episodes?"

"Merlin," Avery tipped his head back. Alexia looked at him too, also curious. "Since her third year."

"That long?" Alexia breathed. "I must be- what year am I in?"

"Fifth," he offered.

"So for two years, this has been happening?" she questioned, shocked. "No wonder it's so bad. How did it… happen?"

Avery grimaced. "You told me a witch cursed you with Omnis Dolor. Put you through all the pain you've ever been through, but because you've…"

"Been tortured," Alexia whispered. "I've been tortured."

"For how long?" Antonin asked quietly. He looked at her like his heart was breaking, and through their bond, she could feel that it was.

"Hours," she replied softly. "It had to have been hours, but I don't remember… getting out. I remember she had my arm, she carved it in and- and then-,"

"Hermione," Avery said gently. "For you, now, it's been years. Look at your arm again. You're okay."

She did look down, but she was distracted by what looked like a portal opening to her side. It was moving toward her, and she backed up, knocking into Antonin. He grabbed her and tried to pull her out of the way, but soon it pulled her, Antonin, and Avery through together.

When they came out the other side, there was a man standing there with a wand and a knife in his hands. His eyes snapped to Alexia, and he began stalking forward, but Antonin slipped between them.

"Feliks, move a step closer and I will kill you," he warned. Apparently, Feliks didn't care, because the man arched the blade up. Before he could pull it down to stab Antonin, Alexia grabbed onto him and Avery and twisted on her ankle, Apparating out of the ministry.

They landed outside of Grimmauld Place, and Alexia didn't hesitate to push forward and bring them inside. Slamming the door behind them, she let out a deep breath.

"Lexi?"

Her eyes snapped open to see Sirius staring at her in panic. "S-Sirius? How- I don't understand, how are you-,"

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked her sharply. "Mia said you can't get back for weeks, maybe months!"

"What?" she paused. "What are you talking about?"

"Dolohov, tell-," Sirius cut off, his eyes narrowing at Antonin. "You're young. Damn it, Lexi, is this time travel again?"

"I… maybe…?"

Sirius grimaced. "You should probably get to Potter Manor before Feliks tries to murder you again, or worse."

Alexia stared. "Worse than murder?"

He didn't answer her. Instead, he led her to the floo room and went through first. Once they'd all come through, he took them to the sitting room. "Here's something complicated. I'm going back to Grimmauld Place to keep looking up… what I was looking up."

"Still concerned you won't tell us what that is," James said, looking at the trio with a frown. "Lex, you look… young. And confused."

"Jasper?" Alexia asked with a sharp gasp. "What are you doing here?"

"Hermione?" the man asked hesitantly. "I can't tell who's you and who isn't."

"Well, you're my cousin, so I'd assume I'm me. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well," a woman sitting across from Jasper began with a snort. "Because you could be me. Or Adelaide, but she's having a bit of a… well deserved freak out upstairs."

"What?" Alexia asked sharply, staring at the woman. "Who are you? Why do you look… like me?"

"I'm Mia," she said. She looked bored. "Your alternate self. Weird you don't know this. Must be time travel or something. You look like Alexia. Are you not her?"

"I- I am, apparently," Alexia allowed. Avery cut in.

"She's having a bad episode. She is Alexia, she just doesn't remember it."

James grimaced. "Lexi's been having a few episodes lately. Does she have her potion she made with Alphard?"

"I think we are forgetting a rather important fact about my wife," Antonin said, staring at the young trio. "She despises Avery."

Alexia glanced at Avery. "I do?"

"No," her friend told her. "We've been friends for years now, Dolohov. If something happens in the future-,"

"She has always hated you," he cut Avery off. "Since her second year when we cursed her and her brother."

"I have never hurt her," Alexia's Antonin said sharply. "I have only wanted to care for her and keep her safe."

Mia's eyebrows raised. "Oh, so it's an alternate Alexia. Just what we need right now. We've got her insane cousin attacking people, Lady Malfoy was murdered, her muggle family is here, Adelaide found out about her non-existent husband, and now we've got alternate universe Alexia and her Death Eater boyfriends here. I miss our Lexi."

Alexia stared. "I'm sorry, wait, what-,"

"Wait, did you say she's having an episode?" another, somewhat older Avery asked. His younger self nodded.

"She mentioned her brother…" he trailed off, glancing at the man in question. "I take it we're in an alternate universe in the future?"

"Yes."

"In our universe, her brother is going to die," he explained. "She told me about it and had this episode. Nothing we usually do to help her has helped."

James grimaced and rubbed his forehead. "Lexi told me that I caused that episode. I'm not sure how she actually ever got out of it. I know she did some mind healing with Alphard."

"I helped her," the other Avery said with a sigh. "In our universe, Adelaide's, my grandfather had a spell that can destroy that oppressive blanket over her memories. It's painful, but I can do it."

"Well, it's not like we're busy," Mia shrugged. "Waiting for the BAU and the Prewett twins to get back right now. James got sidelined."

"Which is ridiculous," the man muttered angrily. Mia rolled her eyes at him.

"You said if you saw him you would gut him. They're the FBI, Jamie, of course they sidelined you."

"I will be going to bring Elias and some other friends of Hermione's here," the older Antonin told them. "Potter, if you want to help-,"

"Thank Merlin," James breathed. "I'm going crazy just sitting here."

Antonin paused. "I was speaking to Mia."

Mia shook her head. "Nah, I'm gonna stay with Mini Lexi. Wanna make sure she's okay. I remember what happened when Lexi's memories got released that day… yeah, I'm staying with her."

Antonin grimaced and nodded at James. "Come."

"Yes."

The pair left, and Alexia looked to the older Avery. "What exactly are you going to do?"

"You'll lie down and carefully, I'll enter your mind," he said, but her Avery immediately cut in.

"No way in hell are you getting anywhere near her mind," he snapped at his alternate self. "We have no reason to trust you, and she already has to trust a lot of people that she wouldn't at the point in her memories that she is."

"It's an advanced and technically dark curse that I wouldn't want to just give to you," he argued back. "I've actually used it before."

"And in all fairness, Lexi did scream like she was being attacked," Mia cut in. "Why don't we ask her who she wants to do it?"

Alexia looked at Mia gratefully, though she did seem overwhelmed still, as well as hesitant. "Well… I don't… know him, but he's performed the curse before. That being said, you've been helping me since… this started. I suppose… Dolohov."

"What?"

"I figured," Mia nodded. "Good choice."

"Why would you- you don't even trust him," Alexia's friend frowned at her. "He won't hurt you, but you aren't scared?"

"I am," she said slowly. "But from my understanding, soulmates can never hurt one another. If he carries it out, I trust that he'll be literally incapable of hurting me."

Antonin seemed to relax a little. Very reluctantly and nervously, Adelaide's Avery gave him the spell and told him how to cast it.

After going up to a room, Alexia sat on the couch with Antonin in front of her. Mia was close by, watching them carefully.

Antonin muttered a few words, summoning family magic. The Thestral came to stand by them calmly. "Help with her pain as I cast the spell."

Alexia was startled when the thestral rubbed its head against her arm, but the feeling was more comforting than almost anything else. She took in a deep breath and let it out. "I'm ready."

Antonin himself hesitated, clearly concerned over hurting her. Still, he raised his wand and, grimacing, cast the spell.

They first slipped into a memory where she was her adult self, out in Knockturn Alley.

"Poppins!"

Alexia jumped slightly and pointed her dagger at the woman, but relaxed almost immediately. "Damn it, Sadie, I could've hurt you."

"You'd never hurt me," the other woman winked at her. "What're you looking for down here this time?"

"You," she admitted. "Look, I figured we should talk about who you met yesterday."

Sadie's grin faded a little bit. "The new Unspeakable?"

"You know I have a soulmate, Sadie, I told you."

"I didn't think you'd get him to work with you," she shot back.

"No, you just didn't think you'd have to face the fact that I'm with someone. Happily," Alexia tensed. "I warned you, I told you I'm with him because I didn't want you to… get hurt."

"Then you should've mentioned it sooner, shouldn't you?"

"I never did anything to make you think I was-,"

"You played my games!" Sadie snapped. "Damn it, Alexia, you knew how I felt from day one."

Alexia tensed. "You need to forget that name."

Sadie stepped closer and grabbed one of her hands. "I told you, Alexia. I told you how I feel and that it's not going to change because of him."

"I care about you," Alexia said slowly. "But I need you to respect my relationship. I love him, Sadie, a lot. Things are complicated- more complicated than I could ever tell you, but one day, he and I are hopefully going to spend our lives together. I want you to be a part of my life, a friend, but I need you to respect my relationship."

Sadie quieted. She looked Alexia over slowly and squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before she opened them again and squeezed Alexia's hand gently. "Hey, I'd do a lot to stay in your life, Poppins. Just come find me when you've got the time. You know where I am. I'll be there if you need me."

The memory shifted, this time to sitting in the DOM with Alphard and Bertie. Alexia had her head lying on her desk with her eyes open, looking at her boss and her friend. There was a board of a timeline in the middle of the room that Alphard was standing at.

"No, no, that was the McKinnon family," she said quietly. "Please, this is so hard. Get it right."

"Need to take a break?" Alphard asked. When she nodded, he waved away the board. "We'll figure out how to help them."

"And if we do, how do we plan for their return in the future?" she wondered. "I mean, how are we going to get them back to society? And the paperwork alone is bound to be miserable."

"I'll set files for them now, of course," Bertie offered. "Prepare it with the departments I'll need to. It'll be a piece of cake when the time comes!"

"And you, are you going to be okay?" Alphard asked Alexia. She shrugged.

"I figure when I'm born and start going to school Bertie can combine my legal files with Hermione Granger's in preparation. I'm sure Professor McGonagall will help me out with the N.E.W.T.s and things when I ask."

"I mean, do you have a plan?"

Alexia hesitated. Chewing on her lip, she glanced at the empty desk in the room. "Antonin."

"That's not a plan, that's your boyfriend."

She rolled her eyes. "I mean, I'll get to him first. Avery says it's going to be bloody fucking painful to suppress everything for both of us, so I'll find him as soon as I can and release it. I'll want his… I know I'll need him, anyway."

"And after that?"

She sighed and sat up. "I don't know. Ideas?"

"Who do you trust in that time?"

"To what extent?"

"Completely."

"Harry," she said immediately. "Ginny. I don't know. Everyone will need to know, won't they?"

"Some, but not all," Bertie told her. "I'll make a list of things you are not allowed to tell them about."

"Great. Can we continue now?"

They fell out of her mind with her falling forward, into his arms. She immediately passed out, and when she woke up, he was gently rubbing her back. She grabbed her head in her hands and groaned. "Fuck."

"Do you remember?"

She considered the question and nodded slowly. "Kinda wish I didn't."

Mia snorted. "Why?"

Alexia sat up and looked at Antonin. "Now we have to talk about how I've been lying to him."

"That's my cue to leave," Mia got to her feet. "If you need me, I'll be in the library down the hall. Just yell for me."

When she left, Antonin looked Alexia over closely. "You never told me about your memory."

Alexia shrugged. "I couldn't explain how it happened. Bertie would've yelled and made me Obliviate you."

"It was a DOM matter?"

"Yes. It was the first time Sadie and I met. We had a disagreement over who would take Fletcher, and she cursed me. We've since made up, but it left me with a lot of lasting damage," she explained. There was a moment of silence before she spoke again. "I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't because-,"

"Because I will hurt you one day."

Alexia fell silent. When he just kept looking at her, she pushed up her sleeve and held her arm out. He looked down and read it. "Mudblood. Bellatrix carved this in my arm the day you helped her torture me."

"I… tortured you," he whispered. She could see and feel the pain he felt over the very idea.

"We fought, too, a few times. The DOM… the DOM was the worst," she said quietly. "You held me, you made me- it was bad. Then the diner, and the forest, you grabbed me again. If you'd like to know, you're very attractive when you're older."

"I tortured and cursed you and you make jokes?" he asked sharply. "How can you-,"

"Because I fucking love you," she interrupted sharply. "Because I know that when this is over and we're back home, I'm going to have to Obliviate you. If I don't, Bertie will. I know that when the time comes, I'm going to suppress our bond so that you are able to hurt me and you forget me. I know that I'm… going to have to turn you into that person, all so that I can end up here so that one day in the future, we can truly be together and be happy."

There was a knock on the door and they both looked over as Avery walked in. He saw how close they were sitting and breathed out in relief. "You remember, ace?"

Alexia smiled at him a little. "I do. And if you ever take me to the DOM while Antonin is there again, I'll curse your fucking bloodline."

"And she's in a good mood," he rolled his eyes. "I've had a few things explained to me. I kind of understand what's happening, if you're interested."

"What is happening? Because it seems like we're in the future, but also-,"

"Another universe," Avery confirmed. "One where you're Alexia, but different. I'm not sure how. Mia is another version of you, and she's very different from you and this universe's you, apparently. I guess here, you work to study the multiverse with Antonin."

"He looked- wait, what about Feliks? He tried to- what?"

Avery grimaced. "I told Mia about that and she lost it and sent a Patronus to your alternate self's Antonin. Then she left, so I figured I'd come check on you."

"Well, that's great, but are we in danger?" Alexia wondered. "I mean, is Feliks going to-,"

She was cut off by once more having a portal slam into her and Antonin. They were tossed about haphazardly until they were finally deposited on the floor in the DOM once more.

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