Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Stranger Things.

Welcome to my Fanfiction, Rather Stranger than Death. This will be my take on a female Harry Potter taken to the Stranger Things Universe. This will be an introductory chapter then follow Stranger Things until Season 4. I'm planning to only do the scenes my character is involved with so you might need to watch Stranger Things to be able to follow.

~*8*~ Scene Breaks

Italics Thoughts/Memories/Writing

The actress I see playing my version of fem!Harry (Maeve Dorea Iris Potter-Black) is Cara Delevingne.

Introduction

Maeve Dorea Iris Potter-Black was tired.

Not the normal tired either, the bone deep tired that could make you give up on the world. She had held on to hope, hope that once Voldemort was gone for good that she would find some semblance of peace and a normal existence. She had been a fool, she should have known that was never going to be the case for her.

Her Fifth Year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had been as eventful as the ones previously. She had a toad and her little lackeys from Slytherin House relentlessly tormenting her, Voldemort sending her searing pain through her scar and a recurring dream that meant very little actual sleep, Oh, and OWL's to study for, which were apparently supposed to be very important for the future of every young witch or wizard.

At the end of the year Voldemort had lured her in with a vision depicting the capture and torture of her Godfather, given that Sirius had a reckless streak a mile wide it had been entirely conceivable that he had been a little bit sloppy and got himself caught.

Now, Maeve didn't have a lot of people in the world that she cared about. She could make and maintain friendships but only so long as the other participant was trying and willing to do the same. If she cared about you she would go to the ends of the earth to protect you and ensure your happiness, she would and could protect herself but she required the other side of the relationship to care about her happiness too.

Which is why the so called friendship with her supposed Best Friends had dwindled to mere acquaintances that hung around her whenever she didn't actively avoid them. The overbearing nature of Hermione and the jealousy issues that came from Ron meant that there relationships had diminished to nothing of any real importance.

So, given that Sirius Black was one of the few people in this world that she actually cared about, she had gone in after him. A ragtag group of people had joined her, she wasn't really sure on the how's and the whys as she was in too much of a hurry to question much, and they had headed off to break into the Ministry of Magic.

He hadn't been there.

It had been a trap.

And she had fallen for it.

Sirius had come in after her, all the recklessness and insanity of the Black family shining through as he charged in without thought. He had fought and he had died, at the hands of his Cousin Bellatrix Lestrange. It hurt, she had no one now, but, in the moment before she had charged after the culprit she had heard her Parents voices from the Veil of Death that he had fallen through.

"Don't worry, we will look after him, live well little fawn"

There was a solace to be found in the knowledge that Sirius was back with her parents, who she knew he missed desperately. She knew he had kept himself going for her, because she had needed him. Now he was back in the arms of the people that he loved, and although she would miss him terribly, she knew that one day she would see him again. That had been something that had gotten her through even the hardest of times, that one day she would be with them again.

In that moment of loss, she felt something inside her shatter, like a glass bubble had been encasing her magic and then it wasn't. Like her magic had been dormant, restrained and in that moment torn between rage and grief it had exploded. She had raced after Bellatrix determined to get her revenge and been confronted by Voldemort.

It surprised her, how easy it had been in the end. The raw power that was flowing through her had its target, she had focused everything she had at him. Not thinking of a spell or anything really, just the desire for this to end. No more loss, and pain. No more fear. The fireplaces surrounding the atrium had activated, the ministry workers filtering in in droves, they all saw him.

Lord Voldemort was back!

Maeve Potter had been telling the truth.

And then he wasn't.

A bolt of raw power, the likes of which she had never felt before, shot out of her and hit him directly in the chest. It hit him, there was a mere moment of pause before he was gone, destroyed by a power he could never understand. Like ashes on the wind, his mouth opened in a silent scream, he slowly disappeared until there was nothing left.

It wasn't long after that that the whispers had started. Yes, she was no longer insane or a liar. Yes, she had defeated the monster that was Lord Voldemort and spared then the horror of a repeated War. But, she was powerful. Could she be contained should she decide to turn that power against them. Should she be controlled or stopped before she become such a threat. Would they be able to stop her when they couldn't even stop the man she had defeated with such ease.

The one man who would have defended her till the end was gone.

Another too much of a coward to face the world in spite of his supposed love of her and her parents.

The other man who could have defended her seemed to be throwing a tantrum over a future he had planned for her that she had refused to follow.

Then her so called best friends had joined in the mob mentality, exulting her temper for the last year and how often they had talked her out of moments of violence with some of the other students at school.

As if the whole of Wizarding Britain wasn't calling her insane and a liar, or that she was being tortured at school by a toad and her little inquisitorial squad, or that it was her that had to physically hold back Ron on more than one occasion from punching Draco in the face or had to disarm Hermione when she went to Hex one of the other girls because they disagreed with her opinion.

She had more than enough reason to be grumpy but a raised voice after a stressful day doesn't exude violence and a temper, but the sheep are bleating louder than ever. It was time to get the hell out of dodge.

~*8*~

During the summer before her third year, when she had run away from Privet Drive, she had bought herself her biggest purchase to date. Between her first 2 years at Hogwarts and her life at Privet Drive it had always been her plan to run away as soon as the opportunity presented itself. She had been looking at various trunks to store all her things when she made a wonderful discovery in the Trunk shop.

Multicompartment Trunks, Pocket dimensions of space for all your Wizarding and Witchy needs.

She had bought one, cost her a pretty penny too, but it had been worth it. It had 4 compartments. One was a Library, one was a Wardrobe, one was a safe space for Potion Making and practising spells, the last however was her favourite, it was a fully furnished and equipped living space.

It was perfect but she had never quite got round to filling it.

Until now, after realising she needed to leave she immediately headed to Gringotts. The meeting she had was very insightful and probably should have happened the year before. She hadn't entered Gringotts herself since the Summer before her third year so this had been the Goblins first opportunity to alert her of her new status.

Due to her unwilling participation in the Triwizard Tournament during her 4th year she had been declared a legal adult by her magical guardian. The fact that Dumbledore as her magical guardian could have removed her from the tournament due to her being under age was something she had decided to ignore for now.

The fact she was now legally an adult meant she had no need of a magical guardian, could not be forced to stay at Privet Drive, could use magic outside of school and had full access to everything that was hers but had been held until she came of age.

This meant vaults. Many vault full of money and jewels, books and weaponry. It also meant titles and properties. All of which while useful weren't going to help her with her current predicament. So the Goblins made her a deal.

While the Goblins normally kept a distance for any Wizarding situations they had as a collective found themselves disliking the way the heiress of two prominent family's was being treated by the masses. The fact that this was also a way for them to snub the wizarding world as a whole who looked down on them for their creature nature was just a welcome bonus.

They planned to fake her death and get her out of the country.

She made a Will, bequeathing all her titles, properties and moneys, upon the event of her death to the Goblin Nation. In return the Goblin's where giving her the Muggle money equivalent so she could easily fake her death and slip away into the muggle world, unnoticed. If all went to plan she would then be jumping on an airplane to get her across the pond to the United States.

Over the course of two week she bought and stored everything she thought she would need. Full Muggle wardrobe, all her properties were looted of their books and stored in her Library compartment. Potions Ingredients and some potions were purchased and stored. All her vaults were thoroughly explored for anything she wanted to keep. Anything and everything she wanted was bought and stored including a magical tent that she wanted to analyse.

She really should have known it was going too smoothly for one of her plans.

After leaving Gringotts for what she had planned to be the last time, a Time-Turner and Emergency Portkey around her neck on a chain, she was immediately confronted by members of the Order of the Phoenix and several Aurors.

"Miss Potter, Come with us immediately" one of the Aurors ordered.

"One, Its Lady Potter-Black, show some respect" Maeve answered with all the obstinance she could muster. She had no intention of going quietly "Two, No. I am in the middle of something. You can however request an appointment. All requests get processed through Gringotts"

"Miss Pot…" The auror started

"Lady!" she demanded.

"Lady Potter, we demand you come with us!"

"No!" she replied, and upon seeing several of the aurors behind the lead one raising their wands she sent a high powered knock-back jynx at the congregated group sending them sprawling. Then the fight was on, they all got back up, some quicker than others and they fought.

Maeve didn't know how long she fought for, spell after spell left her wand with barely a thought. She disarmed and stunned, incapacitated by whatever means necessary but refused to become what they were afraid of.

They were showing no such restraint.

Then out of nowhere a bright green light flew at her from the side. She never got the chance to see who threw the spell before it hit her. Straight in the centre of her chest, right where her two necklaces sat.

There was a yell of pain from Maeve as the spell hit, and then nothing. No body hit the floor, no retaliation, she was just gone.

~*8*~

Maeve groaned as she came to. Then was surprised that she had the ability to come too. She looked around confused as she saw what appeared to be a pure white void, gradually details appeared and she was looking at a pure white version of King Cross Station.

She looked around briefly before looking down at herself. She was surprised but not necessarily bothered by the complete lack of clothing she found. It wasn't like there was anyone there to see her anyway.

Just as she finished the thought she heard the sound of a throat clearing.

With a yelp she spun around and saw a man sat calmly on one of the benches as if he was simply waiting for his train. He spoke quietly, not looking at her just simply stating "This place works on will, if you will your clothing to appear on your body, they will"

"Thanks" she said as she did as instructed and her clothing appeared as it had been before she woke up here. Looking closer at the man she saw he was an older man, dressed in a simple black suit with a walking stick lent by his side. "um… I don't suppose you can tell me where I am?"

"You are in the in-between. This is where the souls of the dead come to before moving on to where ever they are going" the man explained "Most don't stop here long enough for it to manifest fully, but, you are a special case, I wanted the opportunity to speak to you"

"And who are you?" Maeve asked, bluntly, but not rudely.

"I am Death" the man stated simply.

"Oh, Hi?" she said with a little wave.

"Hello" the man said with a slight tilt to his lips as he gestures to the bench beside him.

Maeve walks over and takes a seat, she looks around for a moment before focusing on the man beside her "Why is it you wanted to speak to me?"

"There are not many people in this world that can surprise me" Death started "You humans have a predictability to you that after a millennium of guiding souls becomes very apparent. In the last stretch of time there have been 2 souls that have surprised me. The other not in a good way"

"Voldemort?" Maeve asked hesitantly.

Death nodded once "He had taken many precautions in order to avoid me. He should have been within my realm over a decade ago on the night your parents died in fact. His precautions saved his life and he has managed to avoid me ever since" Death explained "About a year before you were born a true prophecy was given. It declared you as the one that would defeat Voldemort. It completed itself that night. However, the prophecy became 2 men's obsession; Voldemorts' and Albus Dumbledore's"

"Dumbledore refused to believe the prophecy had completed as Voldemort still lived. He had planned your entire life until your death which if he had had it his way would have been at the hands of Voldemort in a few years' time" Death explained "In his glorified fantasy, you would have weakened him and died trying and Dumbledore could have easily finished him off. You would be hailed as a fallen martyr and he would have been heralded the champion of light once more"

"That explains a lot actually" Maeve hummed.

"You are not surprised which is to be expected after all. You always doubted him" Death nodded "You were always smarter than any of them gave you credit for. He planned to condition you. The Dursley's would make your life there unbearable and then you would look to him as a hero who would again and again take you away from there. He never expected you to have the level of survival instincts that you do nor did he expect to be blamed for your constant return to them"

"He miscalculated a lot with me" she agreed, before releasing a sigh "Wasn't enough in the end though was it"

"This is where I come in" Death admits with a nod "You have done me a favour and I shall offer you something in return should you wish to take me up on it. Voldemort couldn't be taken by me until you had destroyed his precautions, which you did through pure grief over the loss of your godfather. I could not interfere in any realm that involves creature who are the subjects of free will, so this was a great favour for me even if you didn't know that at the time"

"Okay, normally, I would take a guess but you're the personification of death so I don't really think I have any idea the extent of what your capable of even with my imagination" Maeve sheepishly admitted.

"True" Death agreed with an indulgent smile "Your options are these; you can either move on as normal and be with your Parents and Godfather or you can create a new life, in a new world. I will point out that barring drastic changes to your personality the first option will be there once you've lived out your second life"

"What's the catch?" she asked curiously.

"In this new world there is magic, but it is wilder" Death started to explain "Very few have the ability to wield it. The ones who can are blunter with its usage, utilising it for concentrated telepathy and telekinesis. There are no witches or wizards in this world in that way you will be unique"

"Due to the excess of wild magic in the specific town I plan to send you to there is an alternate pocket dimension that has become a hellscape version of the same town. There are a few monsters to fight but they are not specifically going after you unless you choose to get involved, which knowing you, you will" he smiled "In this town you will have a house and all the money you gathered from Gringotts will be deposited in an account with some investments set up. This money will be more than enough to keep you going for the rest of your life without ever having to work unless of course you choose to. You will find a family, not a conventional one but one you make your own in this world and you will be able to find your soulmates there without the stigma of the Girl-Who-Lived attached to you"

"Soulmates, as in plural?" Maeve asked with curiosity. She didn't know much about the concept except what she had read in fiction books and they seemed rather strange.

"Yes, I'd wager you'll end up settling for two with the size of you magical core like your mother did" Death stated before explaining "The concept of soulmates gets romanticised in stories but the fundamental rule that all of us have to follow is we can't interfere with free will. Us selecting a soulmate for you humans would be a direct violation of that very rule. There are many potential soulmates out there for each human, the actual bond can only form with the help of magic through one of the members. Only once you have gotten to know the person or persons and both sides accept the bond does the bond form"

"So, I potentially have two soulmates in this new world but unlike the stories I get to choose who they will be and who I find worthy of being" Maeve clarified, she thought about her parent relationship and then thought about what there loss did to Sirius, it made sense.

"Yes, this new world will not be without some hardships. However, given what I know of you the hardships will not outweigh what you will gain" Death agreed "It might take a years or so to start up but it is nothing beyond what you will be capable of handling"

"Okay" she nodded thinking for a second "Any other catches I should be made aware of?"

"You will still be 16, all memories and everything intact. You will be an emancipated minor and all the paperwork will be waiting for you. I will heal your body of its malnutrition so I imagine you will be taller, I will leave it up to you whether I remove your scars or not. I will also fully unlock your family magics which are currently still blocked off from you" Death smirked "Well, you'll also be about 14 years in the past but I don't think that would affect you very much given the magical world is about half a century behind the times"

"Ha!" Maeve barked "True, It would be downright modern for me. As for my scars leave them, I have never really bothered with them anyway I don't see the point of starting now... Except perhaps the one on my forehead. What family magics do I have?"

"Of course. Naturally you have the ability to be an Animagus, transfiguration magics have always run strong within the Potter family" Death explained "You are naturally powerful and with access to the mind magics from your Black blood you will have the control enough to cast through pure will, wandlessly and wordlessly. Also through the Black blood you have the ability known as Metamorphagus. Finally your mother had an ability called Mage Sight, which allows you to see and sense magic. You will find looking at people a little disconcerting at first as magic is the spark of life so we all carry it within us, most people call it the soul. It will give you insights into people, things you will understand about them without ever having to say a word"

"Okay, I like that. And the first option will just happen naturally whenever it's my new time to die?" she asked.

"Yes" he nodded.

Maeve take a moment to look around and at the other end of the platform where three figures that she would recognise anywhere. Stood there with proud, encouraging smiles lighting up their faces where her Parents and her Godfather.

She hears the whispered voice of her Godfather "Live a good life Pup, We'll still be here when you get back. Just make it a good long lifetime away first"

Her decision had been made and without her even voicing it out loud the low sound of a train pulling up at the platform. Death simply smiled and gestured for the train.

~*8*~

Maeve had been in Hawkins Indiana for a month preparing herself for this day. Her first day in American High School. It was daunting, not only had she not been in regular school since she was eleven but she was walking into an American school which was bound to be different. Her first few classes had been strange. Now she wasn't being gawked at for being the Girl-Who-Lived, she was being stared at because she had a very British accent. She felt like she was from outer space rather than just from across the pond it was strange.

So, having had quite enough of people for at least the hour they got for lunch she decided to go for a wander in the woods behind the football pitch. Spotting a picnic bench not very far in she settled down there to eat and just enjoy her surroundings. She had been sat there for about twenty minutes when the snapping of twigs caught her attention.

Stumbling into her little slice of paradise was a man, he looked a bit older so she couldn't really call him a boy. He was dressed in a combination of leather and denim, that suited the long curly hair rocker look he seemed to be going for. Several badges were pinned to his outer denim jacket and the bag he had carelessly over his shoulder. He stopped short as his gaze landed on her, clearly not having expected anyone else to be out there.

"Uh… Hi?" He said surprised.

"Hello" she said with a smile while taking in the slight aura that surrounded the man. It had been a strange sensation to get used to but it was one she found she quite enjoyed now that she was.

"Sorry, I didn't expect anyone else to be out here" he explained quickly.

"It's no problem" she said with a shrug "I can't imagine that I am the only one wanting to escape the masses even if it's only for a little while"

"True" he grinned dimples showing on his face making him look years younger "I'm Eddie" he introduced as he stepped forward with an offered hand.

"Maeve" she replied swiftly shaking the hand. She liked him already, he was different than the rest of the school. "Do you go to school here?"

"Yup, first day" he said tensing slightly as if preparing for something "You?"

"Same" Maeve said with a smile though she wanted to frown. That reaction was far to conditioned, she already didn't like it and couldn't help but wonder why "Sorry, you just look a bit older than most of the people here"

"I am, I'll be 16 in October" Eddie admitted looking to the floor.

"Oh, I'm already 16 so I got you beat" she teased hoping to make him relax.

"You are?" he asked his head shooting up.

"Yup! Turned at end of July" Maeve shrugged, thankful she had managed to get him to relax even if only a little "Brit school is a bit different. The placement test put me here"

"I missed 2 years when I was younger" Eddie admitted "Just never managed to catch up"

"Well, I'm grateful I'm not alone" Maeve admitted with a smile which he returned before joining her on the bench.

"So, you been in America long?" he asked curiously taking the offered half a sandwich she held out to him with a thankful smile.

"Only been here a month" she explained softly "Haven't really experienced much yet. People do seem extremely surprised by the accent"

"Yeah, I imagine they are treating you like their meeting an alien for the first time" he sniggered "The normies don't like anything different princess, it is unfortunately the small town mentality that you should expect here. Anything different gets stared at, talked about and judged usually to be found lacking"

"Yeah, I am unfortunately getting that" she said softly "I seem to stand out where ever I go without even meaning too"

"That's not a bad thing" he shrugged.

"Yeah, but you at least attract attention cause the differences they find strange are your own choices" Maeve said simply "I wish I stood out cause of my own choices rather than the other people's judgements"

"So, Why don't you?" he asked curiously.

"Never really had time to figure that out" she shrugged "Now, I'm not really sure where to start"

"Well, I can help you out there if you want" he offered tugging at his hair "If you're willing to split the gas we can drive out to Indiana Central and find a style you like"

"Really? That would be great" she cheered feeling slightly sad at the surprise in his eyes at her genuine enthusiasm for the idea and deciding to herself that she would drill that reaction out of him by any means necessary. He was nice and she wasn't going to let small minded people kill the spark in him "I'll pay for the gas and lunch as well as a thank you for helping me" she finished with a smile.

Eddie started to smile "you don't have to do that you know, I'd just enjoy the company and can't afford it on my own"

"It's no problem" she waved off swiftly "I can afford it and you're doing me a favour so…"

~*8*~

Unknown to both Maeve and Eddie, that meeting had been the start of something wonderful. They had a great time shopping Eddie daring her to try riskier clothes than she would have tried herself and most of the time she loved them. Together they tried everything they could think of in the mall, from clothes and music, to different foods and entertainment. She had enjoyed going to the arcade with him and loved the fact Hawkins had one so she could go more regularly. She also found out she enjoyed going to the movies and absolutely sucked at bowling.

Her music taste was eclectic, she seemed to enjoy a variety of songs from different genres without really settling on one. Clothing wise though she seemed to like pairing bright colours with black or greys. Eddie had called it a mix of punky and gothic, and she enjoyed the weird mix that seemed to suit her perfectly. Often favouring band t-shirts with a plaid shirt and her very own leather jacket paired with skinny jeans and either combat boots or converse. The riskier stuff was kept for just the two of them.

On one of the other occasions they had gone shopping together he had convinced her to get some piercings which is how she had ended up with a nose ring, 2 piercings in the lobe of each ear and the cartilage pierced at the top of her right ear. Currently he was trying to talk her into a tattoo but he had yet to be successful.

It had been nearly a year since there initial meeting and the pair quickly became thick as thieves, Eddie always encouraging her to try new things including trying some musical instruments and offering to teach her guitar, she seemed to favour the acoustic version to his electric. She found she could sing quite well and would sing along while he played the guitar in there little campfire sessions they had with Wayne in her back garden on his rare days off. Thanks-giving and Christmas dinner had been taken over by her (not that the Munson's did much for them at any rate) and she enjoyed the little family dinners she had with the pair.

Wayne Munson had been a surprise she hadn't expected, her natural wariness of Uncles vanished quickly in his calm and caring presence. He had taken to watching out for her in the same way he did Eddie and she loved him for it.

Christmas had held some revelations as well. She had decided to tell Eddie about her magic and how she actually came to be here. Gradually she told him more and more of her own history and rather than becoming afraid Eddie was fascinated.

He took to magic with all the excitement of a child on Christmas morning, experimenting with different magics and testing different ways of utilising spells and potions. He introduced her to Dungeons and Dragons and while teaching her how to play he also showed her the different spells and they tested which ones would work within her own power (Dancing lights had been a fun one – useful too)

Her talent in metamorphing also hailed some fun, experimenting with different hair colours and styles. She found that she favoured blondes in various shades but sported pale pink or ash white on occasion when she was in the mood.

Her history had been harder for him to take, the loss of her parents and her upbringing with the Dursleys had filled him with both a compassionate sadness and useless rage. She had told a few stories of her times at Hogwarts but not all of them at his insistence. They had all the time in the world to properly get to know each other after all, he had said but she more thought they were a bit much to go through all in one sitting.

New Years had come and Eddie had asked her out, she had requested that he give it a month (not completely sure of his acceptance of her magic yet) and if he still wanted to he could plan their first date for Valentines day. Eddie had been adamant he wouldn't change his mind and proved himself correct when on the 1st of February he asked again and she agreed.

They still hung out most of the time anyway and there hadn't been much difference to the way they had been before except the occasionally went on actual dates and there was kissing and other stuff involved (The other stuff had been rather spontaneous on both sides after a weekend away in San Francisco for a Metallica concert in early March).

Together they had also helped each other figure out their own preferences when it came to their sexuality. They both realised quickly that while they were attracted to the opposite gender to them they were also attracted to their own. For Eddie it seemed to be by appearance alone but for Maeve it seemed to depend on their personality and what she read from there aura.

She had been introduced to the rest of the Hell Fire club that had followed him through Middle School and they had started a Dungeons and Dragons campaign together (She was a Half-Eleven Rogue who had a penchant for shiny things especially sharp ones) and she attended all of Corroded Coffins gigs at the Hideout on Friday nights, Eddie usually staying the night at hers after the gig.

It had just passed Halloween, which she had spent curled up with Eddie and Wayne at their trailer watching Horror Movies, and it was moving into November. There was something in the air. Her magic was humming under her skin, prepared. Like a static spark waiting poised in the tips of her fingers. Something was coming and her magic was ready.

I hope you enjoyed the start of my story. Please read and review. DarkRoseTales xo