Chapter 27 Boy, Time Sure Does Fly When You're Having Fun!
Meagan closed her eyes. Sparks spiraled around her glowing form. Her
Muggle clothes suddenly flared red. The bottom of her jeans stretched out
and flapped in the breeze. Her shirt latched itself onto her jeans and
connected with it. The end of her sleeves grew large. A large lump of
material formed a hood on the back of her shirt. A rope slithered out
around her waist and magically tied itself. There was a flash and a
Gryffindor emblem perched itself on the newly formed robes.
Meagan pulled the hood up so it shielded her face. Her eyes became neon
blue so she could see in the dark. She hardly needed it, for the full moon
gleamed strongly in the night air. She felt energized by the moon's strong
rays. She took a deep breath and disappeared.
The moment she arrived on the Hogwarts Grounds, she transformed into a cat
in the case of danger. She padded silently through the moon rays, looking
for any sign of life. She found none. She gave a frustrated mewing sound.
"So," said a deep voice behind her that made her jump, "You came,
Gryffindor Girl." Meagan turned back and faced the owner of the voice.
"You always were looking for a new adventure." The man was wearing robes
identical to her own, with the exception to the fact that they were
yellow. It also had a Hufflepuff crest on it.
Meagan knew who it was. She felt the aura of power that radiated off him.
The lion on her Gryffindor crest roared and lashed its tail. The badger on
his Hufflepuff crest wiggled its nose and pawed at the air. She felt the
corners of her mouth twitching as the lion on her crest reared and shook
its head.
Meagan walked over to the man and lowered his hood. She stepped back. The
man's dark brown hair was in a tangled mess from the hood. His neon blue
eyes turned shimmering brown and then to purple with delight. His lips
curled into a smile, revealing straight white teeth.
"Michael," Meagan breathed. "Meagan," Michael said, nodding in
recognition. He lowered her hood and she shook her mane of brown hair.
She hugged him. "We, as I think I speak for Marykate too, missed you a
lot. It's just not fun being an heir without your friend there."
Michael grinned widely at her. His smile faltered. "Where is the
Ravenclaw Rouge?" he asked. Meagan shrugged. "Truthfully, Hufflepuff Boy,
I have no idea." She said.
"You don't think I didn't know about the note, do you?" said a voice.
Meagan and Michael turned. A lady in robes identical to theirs stepped out
of the shadows. Her robes were blue with a Ravenclaw crest on it. The
raven beat its wings excitedly and crowed. She lowered her hood.
"Marykate!" Meagan and Michael shouted at the same time. "In the flesh,"
said Marykate. She curtsied and stood up, grinning excitedly from ear-to-
ear.
"Well, here we are," Meagan said, "United at long last." She took
Marykate's and Michael's hands. Marykate and Michael connected their free
hands. Meagan closed her eyes as she felt the pulse of their magic now
coursing through her own veins. She felt the part of her that made her
seem broken off from the world mend. All her muscles relaxed and she
smiled. Everything was as it should be now.
Suddenly, something disrupted them. Meagan had let go of the other heirs'
hands and clutched her head. She fell to her knees, clutching her face in
her hands. She gave out a cry of pain and rolled onto her back,
twitching. She went rigid and her eyes rolled into her head. In a voice
that wasn't her own, she said:
"Voldemort has regained his accomplice. His close follower has returned to
him. Along with his close follower will be her daughter. Together, the
three will shift the balance of Dark and Light Magic in favor of the Dark.
A reign of terror will insure unless one person can stop it. The one
person is the only person who can stop them: Bellum Pugnare."
Meagan's body sagged. Her eyes rolled forward and she breathed deeply.
She closed her eyes, sat up, and rolled her shoulders. In a quaking voice,
she said in her normal voice, "That's the first prediction I've had in. in
twenty-two years." Her eyes were troubled. Marykate and Michael exchanged
glances.
"What did I say?" Meagan asked, starting to shake. Marykate read Meagan's
mind.
There are seven or eight parts to the mind, for it varies. The first part
is the part that controls all the senses, breathing, and whatnot. The
second part is the part that is consciousness. It allows the person to
think and see through the mind's eye. The third part is the part is the
subconscious. It allows the person to dream and daydream. The fourth part
is the part that controls emotions. It simulates a problem and tells the
mind what emotion the body should be feeling. The fifth part of the mind
connects cause and effect. When something happens, the mind tells the
consciousness what should happen next. The sixth part is the part that
remembers. It stores all the memories that stand out vividly in the mind.
The seventh part is where all the memories that have been forgotten are
stored. No one is able to unlock this part of the mind unless they are a
mind reader. The eighth part is the part of mind is a part only Seers
possess. It stores all the predictions the Seer has made. The only way to
read this part of the mind is to actually touch the person.
Marykate, who had had years of mind-reading experience, knew all this. She
touched Meagan's forehead and closed her eyes. She searched her friend's
mind. First she touched the part that influences emotions and caused
Meagan's shock and tenseness to change to calmness. She opened her eyes
and saw Meagan relaxing. She closed them again and tapped into the part of
the mind only Seers had. Eyes still closed, Marykate repeated Meagan's
latest prediction aloud: "Voldemort has regained his accomplice. His close
follower has returned to him. Along with his close follower will be her
daughter. Together, the three will shift the balance of Dark and Light
Magic in favor of the Dark. A reign of terror will insure unless one
person can stop it. The one person is the only person who can stop them:
Bellum Pugnare."
Meagan's eyes widened. "We have to get to Bellum!" she said, sitting up
and whacking heads with Marykate. Marykate used a bad choice of words and
fell over backwards, rubbing her head. Breathing fast, Meagan grabbed her
friends' hands and disappeared.
~*~
Alex couldn't stand it anymore. Crystal and her family were acting so
strange because she was there and it was driving her NUTS! She grabbed
Crystal's hand and dragged her down the corridor to an empty room. "We
have something to tell you," she said, trembling. "We do?" asked Aaron,
jogging along side them. Alex gave him a patronizing stare. "Yes, we do."
The trio walked into Crystal's room. Crystal looked around to see if
anyone was in the room. "So?" she asked, giving both kids a searching
look. Aaron and Alex looked at each other. "We know." They said in
unison. "Uh. know what?" Crystal asked, confused. "We know that you're a.
wizard." Alex said.
Crystal sagged in her seat. "I'm a witch, not a wizard. Wizards are boys
and witches are girls," she said, "And if you know, I hope you don't mind
if I change my room back." She waved her hand and her room's features
changed back to the way it usually was.
"A-aren't you gonna. zap us or something?" Aaron asked. Crystal snorted.
"I reserve the zapping for Brian only. He always acts stupid. You know, I
think I'll get him over here." She said, her lips twitching. Aaron and
Alex visibly relaxed.
'Brian Black, get your butt over here. I won't finish the sentence, my
mind-waves are easily deciphered by mind readers and whatnot.' Crystal mind-
waved Brain. 'Mmmph. Crys, its too early.' Brian replied. 'Then I'll
make you.' She said, laughing maliciously.
Crystal clicked her fingers and Brain appeared out of nowhere. He fell to
the ground with a thump. "Awww. Moonlight! I was sleeping! You know
how." he started to complain, but then saw Aaron and Alex. "Um. Hi?" he
tried.
Crystal sat down on the bed. "They know." She said. "If they know, can I
change into my robes?" Brian asked, yawning and scratching his head.
Sighing, she nodded. Brian clicked his fingers and he was dressed in hot
pink robes. "Gaaa!" he said, seeing the color. Crystal fell over
laughing. "It matches your frostbite! You should stay with that look!"
she gasped.
"Ha, ha, ha. Very funny. I'm laughing hysterically." Brian said, changing
into his regular blue robes. "You know, I could heal that frostbite of
yours but. NAH!" Crystal said, rolling on the ground. Brian's face, if
possible, had gone even redder. "I'll set a living snowman on you and see
how you like it!" he said.
"It's your own fault! You bewitched the snowballs to hit your family while
laughing insanely!"
"Well. um. it was funny! Dad hid behind Mum and it was funny!"
"I wish I had been there. we would have won. but it was a Black thing, I
bet. I wouldn't want to get into your family things."
Aaron and Alex watched them dazedly. It seemed to be so natural to the
two. They looked at each other and then back at the witch and wizard.
"Sorry," panted Crystal, "But I had to do that. It's just so funny that
the Abominable Snowman was chasing Brian around his yard." She laughed
again and breathed deeply. "Whoo." she said, panting, "Boy, was I holding
that in for a long time."
Alex and Aaron glanced at each other. "You're not going to-punish us-or
anything?" asked Alex, shaking. Crystal looked at her friends, her
eyebrows raised. "Of course not! You're my friends! Besides, only a Dark
Wizard would do that. If I were a Dark Wizard, you wouldn't have lived to
see today!" she said, her arms spread wide.
"Well, since they know." Brian began, looking around slyly, "Let's have
some fun." Crystal's eyes changed to the color of purple and she grinned
widely. She held out her fist. "I'm in," she said. "Me too!" Brian
exclaimed, putting his hand on her fist.
It was then Alex and Aaron realized that Crystal and Brian weren't powerful
wizards, but kids like themselves. "Count us in!" they said in unison and
put their hands on top of Brian's.
~*~
The door to Cate's house magically burst open. Lizzie and Sirius, who were there for a visit, looked up. Lizzie was teaching Sirius how to fold the laundry by hand and Sirius was doing a horrible job. He barely even blinked before he was pinned against the wall. He gave a strangled cry and closed his eyes. "Open your eyes, Sirius!" said a gruff voice that was familiar. Sirius opened his eyes and saw a pair of large blue eyes in front of his. They quickly changed color and were orange with fright. He blinked and gulped. "Sirius," Meagan said, her voice strangled, "The Dark Angel of Light is back!" Lizzie looked up sharply. "What?" she gasped, "How do you know?" Meagan's shoulders became tensed. "I had a prediction." She said, biting the inside of her cheek. "Oh my god!" shrilled Lizzie. "Uh oh." said Sirius, now hitting his head on the wall. Meagan released him and looked around her wildly. "Where's Bellum?" she asked, fidgeting nervously. Her orange eyes kept darting to the walls where lots of pictures hung. Suddenly, she was caught up in a fit of spasms. She collapsed to the ground. Her body seemed void of her usual energy as she turned milky white. Her eyes rolled up into her head and her body became rigid. "No," she croaked in her regular voice, "Not again!" Sirius and Lizzie blanched as she watched her convulsing on the floor. Then, for her second prediction that day, she said: "Bellum Pugnare cannot be found, for he has been lost in the Book of Souls. Dolere Malfoy has died as Bellum has, for Cate has killed her in vengeance. Lord Voldemort came to Cate and offered her something. He said that if she joined the Dark Side once again he would bring Bellum back to her. But Voldemort has lied. There is but one way to bring back someone lost in the Book of Souls. It is not a physical thing. Only a love so strong it is unbreakable can bring back a Lost Soul. If there is no hatred in the entire person for even the briefest moment, the Lost Soul can be returned. Cate will experience this but she will find it out on her own. Bellum will be freed." Meagan's whole body sagged and she lie on the floor, gasping for breath. Her eyes rolled forward and she closed them. She began to shake. "Two predictions in one day." she said hoarsely, shaking even more violently, "That means something bad will definitely happen." "What is this filth doing in my house?" Cate asked, pursing her lips as she entered the room. Meagan's eyes rapidly changed color. It was hard to tell what they'd rest on first. She scuttled backwards and pushed herself up the wall. "W-where's Bellum? This is quite important." she said, gulping nervously. "Bellum is. indisposed as of right now. Go," Cate said. Meagan gulped again. "Meagan, why don't you tell her your prediction-!" Sirius said. "Padfoot!" Meagan hissed, her eyes turning red. She stood up and faced Cate, bracing herself for a jinx. "Prediction, eh?" Cate said, pacing around her, "Full of odd little surprises, now aren't we? A Seer? Dear me, I'd've never thought. Yes, secrets do eat away at you until they get so big someone finds out. Does your precious little Harry know, Meagan? Maybe you're just too good for him. The great Meagan Cassandra Delmore is just too good for little old Harry Potter, eh?" Cate had never dared say such things in front of her parents. Only when she was the Dark Angel of Light did she dare. Sirius and Lizzie looked over at their eldest daughter, shocked. "Catie, you know better!" Lizzie said, standing up. Her eyes flashed at her daughter dangerously. "I know better than to what, dearest mother of mine who left me?" Cate said, the gold flecks in her eyes standing out prominently. "I know better than to poke fun at my elders, dearest father who was dragged off to Azkaban and left his daughter to be killed?" This was too much for Meagan. Making fun of Harry was enough. She could just barely hold back her anger because of that. But making fun of her parents who loved her and toiled to bring her back was too much. She lunged at Cate and pinned her against the wall, her hand at Cate's throat. Cate started to move towards her wand but Meagan said, "One more word or wrong move, Dark Angel of Light, and you'll get it." Too late. Cate took her wand out. "Incendio!" she shrieked. Meagan ducked and the curtain burst into fire. Lizzie quickly put it out. Meagan stuck her hand into the flames and drew it out with a handful of fire. She flung the fireball at Cate, but she dodged it. Cate gave a scream of frustration and yelled, "Diffindo!" Meagan did a back flip. The spell hit the glass window and the glass spilt in half and then shattered. She shouted the Conjunctivitis Curse. Cate screamed as the spell hit her and her eye got infected, making it almost impossible to see. She waved her wand around blindly and bellowed, "Avada- !" She stopped, partly in shock. Green smoke sputtered out of the end of Cate's wand. She hesitated, wondering whether or not to finish the incantation. Meagan had frozen too. She started to dodge it, but it was already way too late. ~*~ "C'mon, it isn't bad!" Crystal said, her Lightning on her shoulder. "It's a broom for cripes sake!" Aaron said, biting his lip. "A highly safe broom!" she said indignantly. "Safe or not safe, I'm not riding a FREAKING BROOMSTICK!" "You are such a baby!" "Am not!" "Am too!" "Am not!" "Am too!" Brian and Alex watched the two with interest. "Do you think this is going to go on all day?" asked Alex, yawning and glancing at Brian. "No doubt about it," he said, yawning also. "Soda?" "Sure." Brian clicked his fingers and two bottles of Coke appeared. "Thanks," Alex said, taking a long sip. "No prob." He said, nodding as he watched Crystal and Aaron fight. Crystal's eyes were brown with determination and stubbornness. Every now and then they flickered red. "Hello Brian." Said a voice behind Brian that made him jump. "Stop sneaking up on me, Neil!" Brian said crossly, watching Alex giggle. The gold flecks in his eyes flashed. "I didn't," Neil said, shrugging. He gazed intently at Brian who shuddered involuntarily. "What do you want, pipsqueak." Brian asked, feeling Neil's eyes burrow into his. "Have you seen my mum?" asked Neil. Brian felt a chill go down his spine and he squirmed as he realized Neil hadn't blinked once. Not once. "No." Brian said slowly, "Why?" Neil shrugged, looking downcast. Neil looked up at Brian again. Brian's jaw dropped open for a second and he was completely lost in his thoughts. He felt recent memories drawn forward. "Hey! Hey, hey, hey! Stop messing with my mind!" Brian said, starting to look panicked. Neil blinked, breaking the connection. "Sorry." He said, turned and left. Brian gaped after him. ~*~ Meagan didn't scream. She didn't even flinch. "Bring it on!" she yelled, a vein throbbing in her temples. "You will pay, Catherine Black! Now my kids won't have a mother! You-!" she was cut off abruptly. A lucky thing, because Meagan was about to do some heavy duty swearing. She closed her eyes as it felt like her soul was torn from her body. It wasn't a comforting feeling. She opened her eyes as she felt herself being sucked down what seemed to be a giant drain. Her soul twisted and turned down in the spiraling motion. This surely wasn't death, was it? Maybe it was the effects of the death spell. It was then she started to scream. No sooner than she started to scream, she landed. She felt herself suddenly become solid. She didn't feel like it was her own, too. The suction feeling suddenly stopped. The impact hit her mind so hard that she didn't even have a chance to fight for her consciousness. ~*~ Nicolas Turner sighed deeply. Hogwarts would be starting up again soon. His parents didn't know he was a wizard, and it was a lucky thing too, for he would've been killed. Nicolas didn't like his family and his family didn't like him. He was treated more like a slave boy than one kin to them. His older brother, Finn, was treated as handsomely as a prince for his hard work. Hard work had never been Nicolas's thing. When his family wasn't looking, he'd usually charm things instead of actually doing them. He vowed he would curse them as soon as he learned one good enough for them. "Off with ye, Nicolas, you lazy thing!" shouted his mother, Elizabeth, "Go fetch slop for the pigs!" Scowling, Nicolas took the bucket of slop his mother had for him and took it out back to put in the trough. "Nicolas, off with ye! Go feed the pigs! Nicolas, go sweep the floor! Nicolas, do our dirty work, Nicolas!" he mimicked as he hauled the wooden bucket into the pigpen. He wiped his sweaty bangs back out his eyes and continued poking fun at his mother. Nicolas sighed and sat down on the fence of the sty. "My life is unimportant, isn't it?" he asked the snorting pigs. "Yet thou life is as simple as eating slop." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I wish I was destined to have an adventure." He said. The pigs snorted. Ariana, his friend, suddenly came running down the dirt pathway to him. Her long, brown hair that usually reached her knees trailed out behind her. Her sparkling blue eyes were smiling at him. Her slippers padded on the ground. She held up a long silken dress of royalty so she could run. Her father was one of the Lords to the King. She was grinning at him with her straight teeth. They were even clean! Her father had hired a rare doctor to doctor her teeth. "Nicolas! Nicolas!" she called in a musical voice with a heavy British accent. "Ariana! I am here!" he called back, running out to meet her. She ran into his arms and he held her. "Why art thou here, Lady Ariana Bryne?" he asked, running his fingers through her long hair. "Father shan't know about this, Nicolas. He says we shan't meet!" she said, hugging him closely. Nicolas looked at the daughter of Lord Bryne closely. She had been courted many times by his own brother, Finn, but to no success. She had always loved Nicolas. She always would, she had vowed once. Nicolas touched Ariana's lips and caressed her rosy cheek. "No matter, dearest Ariana, I shall come to see thou through anything." He said softly. "Oh, Nicolas," said Ariana, burying her face in his ragged clothes. Without warning, a violent wind swept around them. "Ariana!" cried Nicolas, clutching onto his beloved. "Nicolas! Help me!" she screamed, her hair becoming tangled and dirty. A tunnel of green came barreling out of the sky. It encased itself around Ariana. "Nic-!" she said, but her voice was cut short. The fierce wind became a gentle breeze and the tunnel of green disappeared. Ariana slumped in his arms. "No! No!" yelled Nicolas, sobbing into Ariana's neck, "What foul magic is this!? Who wouldst bestow such a terrible thing upon my beloved Ariana!?" Everything remained silent except the echoes of his voice. "Ariana!" he cried into the darkening twilight, "ARIANA!" ~*~ "W-what happened? W-where am I?" Meagan moaned. Her head lolled unpleasantly on her neck. She kept her eyes closed. She blindly stretched a hand out in front of her. It touched a face. "Harry?" she mumbled, "Sirius? James? Remus?" "No, milady, 'tis I, your beloved Finn." Said a strange voice. "Finn? I don't recall." Meagan croaked, lifting one heavy eyelid and then the other. She saw a strong, good-looking young man with blonde hair looking down at her. His brown eyes were wide and sympathetic. "Do not worry, milady, I will fetch thou some water!" Finn said, and hurried out of the room. As soon as Finn left, another boy entered the room. His large gray eyes searched the room. He was covered in freckles and his hair, so dark brown it was almost black, was a tangled mess upon his head. He had thick eyebrows and was a scrawny little thing. "Oooh. I need to find Harry. I need to save him." Meagan said, sitting up and getting so dizzy she had to lie down. "Harry? Who is this Harry?" asked the boy suspiciously. Meagan tried to move her hand but it got caught in her hair. Odd, she thought, trying to remove it. In fact, her hair was way too long to be hers. "Come here, lad," Meagan said. "Lad? But am I not thy lover, Nicolas?" Nicolas asked. "Just do it." Meagan said. Nicolas approached the bed and stood there expectantly. She touched his hand. "Ahhh! Good! You're a wizard! You'll understand!" she said, smiling broadly. "Shhh!" said Nicolas, glancing to his left and right. "How do you know about wizards?" he demanded. Meagan sighed, preparing to do some major explaining. "I was in a duel with my archenemy the Dark Angel of Light and she began to say the Killing Curse, but stopped after the first word. Now. Now I'm in this body." She said, biting her lip. "Dark Angel of Light?" asked Nicolas, looking confused. Realization struck Meagan like a bucket of ice-cold water. "What year is this?" she asked, blanching several shades. "The year is 1020, milady." Nicolas said. Meagan lie down again, breathing deeply. "How long has Hogwarts been founded?" "Two years." "Is milord Godric Gryffindor alive?" "Yes! Of course!" Meagan leapt out of bed with a triumphant cry. She wobbled dangerously and sat down again. "I'd better wait a minute before actually trying to get to him." She said, lying down. "Who art thou, milady?" Nicolas asked. "Why, I'm Meagan Potter, husband of Harry Potter." "Thou cried his name in thou sleep. And the names James and Remus. Thou also shouted serious." "Yes. The Marauders. They're my buds: James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Sirius Black." "Thou name thy flowers?" "Um. no. I'm meant that they're my friends." "Oh. How old are you, Lady Potter?" Meagan licked her (well, they aren't hers) lips. She was inwardly laughing at being called Lady Potter. She decided that she should tell the truth. A giggle escaped her lips. She smiled at him, her teeth showing. "I'm fifty years old. You see, my regular body is that of a 20-year-old's now. I got stuck at the age of 16 for. 17 years and ever since then, my aging process has slowed. All of my friends are 50 and my husband is 33. My oldest child 12 and my youngest is short of a few weeks. I've led a very complicated life, Nick." Meagan said this all, thinking all the while. "Nick?" Nicolas asked, puzzled. "It's called a nickname," explained Meagan, "Nick is the nickname for Nicolas. Meg is the nickname for Meagan, not that I want you to call me that." Nicolas nodded as if he understood. "Milady, I hast returned with they water!" Finn said, dashing into the room. Took long enough, Meagan thought. She concealed her snort and took the wooden goblet she was passed. She took a sip and nearly retched. There was something SWIMMING IN HER MOUTH. Her throat constricted and she made a high-pitched whining noise. Slowly, she spit the contents of her mouth back into the cup. There was a worm in the water. "What's wrong, Lady Bryne?" inquired Finn and Nicolas at the same time. Nicolas looked apprehensive about his futuristic friend. Finn threw a fit. He ran over to her and hugged her. "It is all right, milady!" he said. Meagan, looking desperate, mouthed, "Help me" from between the gap in his arms. He nodded and drew his wand. "Incendio." He whispered, pointing it at the curtains. The curtain caught fire and he quickly hid his wand. Meagan winked at him and threw the cup of water at it, worm and all. She quickly doused it with a bit of magic. She was glad that, even though she was in the body of a muggle, she still possessed her usual powers. Nicolas shot her a quizzical look. Licking her lips, she mind-waved, 'Nick, tell him I'm going to come visit your school. Do it!' Nicolas was shocked. He had heard her voice in his head. So he did as she said. "Um... uh. Milady is coming to my s-school." stuttered Nicolas. 'Tomorrow.' Meagan mind-waved, nodding. "Tomorrow." Nicolas finished, biting his lip and looking at her. She nodded. 'Good job.' She said. "Why wouldst milady be wanting to visit thy school?" asked Finn, roaring with laughing. Meagan closed her eyes and concentrated. "I wish to visit thy school, Nicolas," Meagan said in her best British accent. She was no great shakes at using accents and she was surprised at how natural it sounded. "Tomorrow, it twill be, then, milady." Nicolas said, grinning. "Yes." Meagan said, nodding gleefully. Finn looked downtrodden. ~*~ "Something is definitely fishy about Neil," Brian said, shaking his head. Crystal snorted. Aaron and Alex looked at them thoughtfully. "He was messing with my mind! I felt myself thinking something I wasn't willing to think!" he huffed, crossing his arms. He winced, his frostbite stinging. "Fine, I'll go ask him." Crystal said, and walked out of the room. Brian strutted out after her. Aaron and Alex followed hesitantly. "O brother! Where art thou!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. Neil sidled out of one of the many doors and gazed intently at her. "Yes?" he asked, his eyes flickering to Aaron and Alex. "What were you doing to Brian?" Crystal asked, pursing her lips. "Let me show you," he said, smiling his shy smile. Neil looked into her eyes. They were an emerald green, like his father's. They burrowed into Crystal's blue-green ones. She couldn't blink no matter how much she wanted to. She felt herself being drawn in to his unwavering gaze. The room around her disappeared into blackness. She wanted to give a startled yell but she no longer controlled her body. They landed somewhere with a soft thumping sound. Neil lifted his gaze and observed the scene around him. It was her room. Brian, Aaron, Alex, and she were in it. Yet, Neil and Crystal stood near the wall. The real Crystal gaped. She approached her other self and reached her hand. "They can't see, hear, or feel you." Neil said, his voice echoing strangely. She quickly withdrew her hand. "Where are we?" Crystal asked, looking around her. "In your memories," Neil said simply, blinking slowly and turning. Alex (the memory) said, "We know." She saw her other self blanch. "Uh. no what?" the memory asked, her voice echoing like Neil's had. "We know you're a. wizard." Alex the memory said, looking scared. "What- Hey! How come my voice isn't echoing?" Crystal asked, taken aback. Neil considered the question. "Because this is your memory in your head. I don't think you imagine your voice echoing when you think." He said knowledgably. Suddenly she began to be shaken roughly from side to side. Neil observed this, nodding thoughtfully. "I think they're trying to get you back. Look into my eyes again." He said. Crystal shuddered a little and looked into his eyes. The room disappeared again. Suddenly, it seemed as though something in the back of her mind clicked on. She squirmed a little. Without warning, she was being shaken roughly. Her face was close to Neil's. She fell over backwards. "Whoa!" she said, falling back into Brian. "Ack!" Neil said, blundering into Aaron, who cringed and backed away. "I need to improve on my landings." Neil said, up-righting himself and dusting his clothes. He turned and left. "Crys! Moonlight! What did he do?" Brian asked frantically. "We actually went into one of my memories. I was standing in one of my memories!" Crystal said, staggering upright. "It was so weird. I wonder if I could do it!" She grabbed Brian by the shoulders. He was her guinea pig for every magical experiment she tried. He whimpered. "Why me?" he asked the moment before he was dragged into his memory. ~*~ Cate stood panting. Her mother had preformed the counter curse and she could see again. Meagan was unconscious and on the ground. "You're lucky she isn't dead! How would we have explained the death of Meagan Potter!?" Lizzie was screaming herself hoarse. Sirius was trying to revive Meagan. "Blue Eyes! Wake up! Um. um. Brian kissed Crystal! No, not really. WAKE UP!" Sirius said, his face getting red. Meagan groaned and slowly got up. Sirius looked into her eyes. He screamed. Lizzie turned on heel. She backed into the wall, her face livid with horror. She clutched at her face and slid down the wall, chocking back a sob of terror. Cate bit back a smile. She was glad. She was glad, she realized. That terrified her. Her heart beat rapidly. She was torn between loving it and hating it. There was no in-between. There was no soul in Meagan. The light that made her eyes sparkle was gone. She was as pale as death. Her mouth was a horizontal line on her face, showing nothing but indifference. Her hair was suddenly void of its usual bounciness and was greasy and stringy. "Meagan!" Sirius squeaked. "Oh god, oh god, so horrible," Lizzie mumbled, her face buried in her hands. Cate just stood staring. "CATE!" Lizzie screamed, turning her tear-streaked face toward her daughter, who cringed, "Do you know what this means!? Voldemort may never be defeated!" Cate backed into the wall. She fell. Her face was twisted in an odd expression. Then she started to cry, like a lost little girl. Because she was one. ~*~ (A/N-Meagan: Hey! I just want to say I borrowed this idea from K. A. Applegate's Everworld series! They were good books!) Meagan tried desperately not to fall asleep. It was a hard thing to do. Even though the bed she was in was filled with straw and poked her back, she fell into a slumber. She screamed. She was falling through green. Suddenly, she landed. She stumbled. She blundered into someone. She squinted to make out the face, but her eyes just wouldn't focus for her. In time, they did. "Sirius!" she gasped. "Oh my god. I was sent back to the year 1020! I thought I was dead for good this time! Sirius! Sirius?" Sirius looked abashed. Lizzie was trembling horribly. Cate's face was painstakingly twisted. "Hello?" she asked, waving her hand. "I think you're still there. partially." Lizzie wheezed. "Um. why do you think that?" Meagan asked, biting her lip. Lizzie gestured to the mirror on the wall. Meagan went over and looked at her reflection. "Ahhhh!" she screamed in complete horror. She looked like she had just received the dementor's kiss. Everything seemed soulless, except for her eyes, which were now yellow with shock. "How-why-when-CATE!" she shrieked, starting for Cate. Sirius stepped in front of her, but Meagan threw him aside with her ferocious strength. Lizzie stepped up and touched Meagan's forehead. She touched the part of the mind that controlled emotions. Meagan stumbled backwards into the wall. Breathing deeply she looked up at Lizzie. "Thanks. I needed that, Liz." She said, breathing deeply. "I'm not all here. I think that Cate's half saying the incantation is making me shift to different places in time. You see, on the other end I just fell asleep. I guess this body is just on autopilot when I'm. not all here. Please, don't tell Harry. Tell him I've come down with a rare illness. I'll tell him when I come back. Also tell him I'll still be up to that Quidditch match in three days. Don't tell the kids, either; I don't want to scare them. Please, Lizzie! Please Padfoot! Keep an eye on Cate, she's the Dark-!" Meagan said. Her sentence was cut short as she spiraled down the green nothingness again. "Angel of Light!" she wheezed. Finn looked down at her, puzzled. "Thou hath a funny accent, milady." He said, scratching his blonde hair. "Come, milady! Today we travel to Hogwarts!" called Nicolas. He took her hand and led her out the front door. Her long hair fluttered gently out behind her. She looked at it, disgusted. She had a problem with long hair. It just wouldn't allow you to play Quidditch! Nicolas led her to the barn, where two horses stood waiting. One was as white as snow. Its long white mane and tail fluttered out in the breeze. One of its dark eyes was watching them intently. The other was as black as night with a long gray mane and tail. It was taller than the white mare and was a stallion. Meagan squealed and ran over to the white mare. "Do you mind if I ride you?" she asked it. The horse reared and shook its long mane. "It talks!" the mare said, alarmed. "I heard." Grunted the black stallion. "Yes, I talk. I happen to talk to animals a lot." Meagan said, grinning. "Are you the fabled heir to Lord Gryffindor? He also possesses the ability to talk to us!" the black stallion said, pawing the ground. "In a way, yes." Meagan said. Nicolas was staring at her. She flashed him a broad grin. "It would be an honor if you rode me, Lady." Said the white mare, smiling with her eyes. Meagan elegantly swung her leg over the horse and sat in the saddle. Nicolas clumsily fell into the stallion's saddle. "Easy, easy!" he neighed, rearing. "In my hastiness, I forgot to properly introduce myself! I am Snow Grace, milady. My mate is Night Bird." Snow Grace said as they started off at a steady walk. "I am Meagan Potter. You may call me Lady Potter, if you wish." Meagan said. She nudged Snow Grace's side and she went into a trot. "He rides like a sack of potatoes!" grunted Night Bird unhappily. Meagan giggled and nudged Snow Grace's sides again. Snow Grace sped up into a canter. "Let me run, Lady Potter, let me run!" Snow Grace whinnied, giddy. "Go, Snow Grace, run!" Meagan yelled and Snow Grace went galloping. Night Bird trailed behind them. "Hogwarts!" Meagan shouted, slowing Snow Grace to a trot. Snow Grace was panting but she, too, was admiring Hogwarts. It was looking fantastic. "Oh wow. It looks brand new!" Meagan choked, stopping Snow Grace. "Wonderful, isn't it?" Nicolas asked. She looked at Nicolas, amazed. He seemed to be talking more and more like she was. He seemed to be changing his accent. "Come on! I need to talk to Godric! Yah!" Meagan said, nudging Snow Grace's side hard. Snow Grace reared and shook her long white mane. Then she took off in a full run. "Woo Hoo!" Meagan yelled, the wind making her long hair fan out behind her. Nicolas and Night Bird tailed her closely. They reached Hogwarts in about half-an-hour. When they reached the castle, five house-elves came out and went to care for the horses. Meagan took off in a jog for the castle, her hair and long dress getting in the way. Nicolas jogged beside her, a weird grin on his face. "The one thing that has saved my life. Let's go see Professor Gryffindor." He said, eyes shining as he looked up at the castle. "I'm never going to get away from this place for good," she said and, laughing, ran after Nicolas into the castle. ~*~ "Are you sure these things are safe?" Crystal asked, wobbling on her roller blades and pulling at the protection pads. "They're a lot safer than a broomstick." Aaron retorted, skating fast and going off a magical ramp Crystal and Brian had devised. "Yee-hah!" he yelled as he turned a full 360° and landing on his feet. Crystal scowled. "Show off." she muttered. She skated around for a while, getting used to the fact that she had one line of four wheels to support her weight. Brian was doing horribly. He had learned how to roller blade backwards and couldn't do it forwards, causing him to run into a variety of things. Crystal decided she was going to try the ramp. Breathing harshly, she stopped a good ten yards from the ramp. Then she went as fast as she could, with some help from some magic. She rocketed off the ramp and did a back flip. "AAAAH!" she screamed, curling into a ball as she flipped upside down. She let go as she saw the ground rushing towards her and landed on her blades. She yelped from the impact and fell on her butt. Alex watched Crystal with an open mouth. Not looking where she was going, she ran into the telephone pole. Aaron, too, had fall on his butt. Brian had bladed backwards into the house and Crystal was looking up at them dazedly. "We need butt pads." She muttered thickly. They were soon in action again. Crystal was trying to teach Brian how to roller blade forward, but to no success. She would push him forward and he would only fall on his face. She ended up having to put shielding spells all over him because he was so scratched up, and the frostbite was no help. Crystal roller bladed forward to show Brian how to again, when something happened. Her eyes became wide and she looked paralyzed. Scenes flashed by her eyes. She saw Nita and Neil running away from a hulking shadow. Their faces were white and they looked desperate. That scene melted into a dark night. She saw herself and Brian sitting on a bench. She watched as they leaned forward and their lips touched. She saw that scene disappear and saw the triplets. One of them was different from the others. She was deaf and she was blonde. "I want to stay a Potter!" cried the triplet, "I want to be a wizard!" Crystal fell into Brian. Brian caught her by the arms and tried to hold her up. Alex and Aaron came over to help. "Crys!" Brian yelled, his voice rising in panic. Alex and Aaron started to go white. Crystal suddenly jerked. Brian fell over, with Crystal sprawled on top of him. "Are you all right?" Brian asked in an oddly high voice. "Yeah. I'm fine. It was nothing." She said, shaking a little. She needed to talk to her mother. very soon. There was a lump in her throat. But, she told herself; her mother was ill and had been for a day and a half. ~*~ Meagan strutted through the halls, very sure of herself. The term hadn't started yet. It started the next day. Nicolas looked around nervously. He still wasn't familiar with the corridors and passageways of Hogwarts yet. While she was looking the other way, she ran into someone. "Watch were you are going, dear girl!" cried Salazar Slytherin. Meagan backed into the wall. Nicolas gasped. Slytherin was known for his horrible temper and for his study in the Dark Arts. "You are a muggle!" he raged suddenly. "I am not!" she protested before she could think twice. Slytherin's face was starting to get red. "How dare you speak back to your elders!" he roared. "I always do." Meagan retorted, being the Marauder she was. Slytherin took out his wand. Meagan was about to shout a spell when Nicolas grabbed her by the arm. He dragged her down the corridor, while she shouted, "I like you better dead!" "What are you doing?" he hissed, pushing her against the wall. "Well, he's pretty considerate when he's dead. You see, I died when I was thirty-two. Being what I am, I lived to see life the next day. I met up with Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, and Salazar Slytherin. They're my. mentors, I guess you could say." "What are you?" "Why, I'm the Heir of Gryffindor." Meagan said. Nicolas released his hold and backed into the wall. "Oh, milady!" he said, "I didn't know! I wouldn't been so harsh if I'd have known." He looked ready to go down on his knees and grovel. "Um. okay." She said. "Who do we have here?" said a very familiar voice from behind them. "Professor Gryffindor!" cried Nicolas, his eyes widening. Meagan's eyes sparkled. "Hello Godric. It's been a long time since I've seen you. alive." She said. Gryffindor looked at her, bemused. "Yes, you heard me right. You see, Godric, I am your Heir. I come from the distant future. Almost a thousand years, to be exact. I am you're Created Heir. You created me to stop all evil. You're blood heir, Catherine Black, tried to kill me but it didn't work. It sent me here, and put me in this body. Now I need your help again. I need you to send me back, the way I came. Please. I need you!" Meagan said, her eyes pleading. Godric was shaken. He eyed her closely. "How do I know you are my Heir, never mind my Created Heir?" he asked. Meagan pointed to a rug that went down the corridor. On command, it rolled itself up and stopped inches away from their feet. Then she walked over to a heavy desk and picked it up with one hand. Then she balanced it on her finger. "Forget I asked," he said, awestruck. "I'm going to go to bed now. Tomorrow will be a tiring day for me. Nicolas, are you coming? Nicolas?" Nicolas was staring at her with his mouth wide open. "Um. yeah. uh. okay." he stammered. Meagan took Nicolas by the arm and led him to the Gryffindor Common Room. "Good night!" she called to Nicolas, dashing up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. He watched her until she disappeared from sight. Meagan slipped her many-layered dress off and put on a nightgown. She jumped into the bed and sighed. Hogwarts was her real home, no matter what the time. She let herself slip into a deep sleep, when, suddenly, she wasn't in bed anymore. She was holding two of the triplets. A doctor emerged from a side room. The doctor shook his head sadly, his eyes wide. "What is it?" Meagan demanded, "Is she okay?" The doctor didn't meet her eyes but kept his on the ground. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Potter. Angelina is. deaf. There's nothing we can do about it. I'm sorry." He said. Meagan almost dropped Ashleigh and Abigail. They squirmed and flailed their tiny arms. "Deaf?" she asked, his eyes wide and yellow. The yellow quickly melted into dark blue. "Angelina can't.. she's a Potter! She's my baby! She can't be!" she shrieked, tears falling down her face. Harry, who was standing next to her, shook his head sadly and placed a hand on her shoulder. Meagan was going into hysterics. Tears were pouring involuntarily down her face. "No!" she wailed, "Can't you do something? You're a wizard, for God's sake, do something man!" She begged. The doctor hung his head and said, "Sorry, Mrs. Potter. There is nothing we can do. I am so very sorry." Meagan put her face into Harry's robes and sobbed. "No, no, no, she's a Potter," she said weakly. "She's a Gryffindor." The doctor sighed. Few people knew that Meagan was an Heir, and he was one of them. He shuddered. Then he leaned forward and said, "There's something else." Meagan took her face out of Harry's robes. "What?" she sniffed, "Nothing could be much worse than being a deaf witch." The doctor shifted guiltily. "Mrs. Potter, Mr. Potter, I think you'd better sit down." He said. Meagan sat down in a chair and Harry sat next to her, rubbing her back. "Angelina is also a squib." "NOOOOOO!" Meagan screamed, making the triplets start to cry. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" She felt as though her heart was being ripped in two. She felt a sorrow and horror so deep it felt as though she was back at Lily and James's house, after they had just died. The doctor handed Angelina to Harry, who was numb with shock. "It can't be," he whispered. Suddenly, Meagan was no longer in the hospital room, but back in the dormitory. Nicolas was standing over her. There were tears pouring down her face. She hid her face in Nicolas's robes. He awkwardly stroked her hair. "What is it? What happened?" he asked, startled by this behavior. "My baby, Angelina, is a. is a.. squib!" she howled miserably. Nicolas looked at her. "Is she your first child?" he asked. "No," sniffed Meagan, "She's my. my. eighth." He looked at her, his eyes wide. "I want to go home." She whispered, her head against Nicolas's chest. "I just want to go home." ~*~ The blow of Angelina's being a squib hit the Potter family hard. She was just staring off into space most of the time. Alex and Aaron were starting to get worried. Crystal hadn't invited Brian over since the news came. Jo and Jess stopped playing pranks. Neil was even quieter and Nita was so subdued she barely got up out of bed, and when she did she just sat on the couch. "Um. Crystal?" asked Alex timidly. "Yes?" Crystal replied in a toneless voice. "Um. what's a squib?" Alex asked. They heard that Angelina was a squib but didn't know was a squib was. Crystal turned her deep blue eyes to look at her two muggle friends. "A squib is a muggle born into a wizarding family." She said. Alex and Aaron looked at each other. "I don't think I'm even going to enjoy the Quidditch match tomorrow." Crystal said. Again, Alex and Aaron looked at each other. Crystal had promised them that she was going to sneak them into the match. They were very excited about it. "Well, you guys should catch some z's. Tomorrow's going to be a good day." Crystal said. Sighing, Aaron and Alex walked up to bed. ~*~ "The first word of the death spell? Are you sure?" asked Godric. Meagan nodded. "I'm sure I'm sure. That's how I got here. It'll probably send me back. I don't really trust my logic. but it'll probably work." She said. Godric and Nicolas were standing next to each other. They were ready to send Meagan back. Nicolas couldn't wait to get Ariana back. Godric held his wand up and closed his eyes. He didn't want to kill his Created Heir off. She seemed so sure of herself. "Tell me when you're ready." He said. Nicolas looked at Meagan. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement. She was going to go home and she was happy about it. Meagan held her arms out and closed her eyes. "Hit me!" she said. "Avada- !" Godric cried, flourishing his wand. "No! Wait!" screamed Nicolas, diving for Meagan. He couldn't let this happen! "No, Nicolas! You'll come with me! Nooooooo!" Meagan shrieked. Nicolas tried to shove her away from the green smoke that came rushing towards them, but it was too late. And it wasn't too late for just Meagan. ~*~ Crystal was wrong. She was going to enjoy this match. Her mother was going to play, as well as her father. Alex and Aaron were hidden under the Invisibility Cloak. They got Top Box seats. They always did. And they never had adult supervision. "Aaron and Alex, you can come out now!" Crystal said brightly, watching as Lee Jordan came to the top box. Her father had told her how Lee Jordan had always commentated at his school matches. Because of that, Lee knew the entire Potter family very well. "Hello, Crystal! How have your parents been fairing?" Lee asked. "Okay. My mum couldn't wait for this match!" she replied. Lee nodded, grinning. Then he was given the signal to start commentating. "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, witches and wizards of all ages, to today's Quidditch match!" Lee said, his voice resounding around the stadium. "Today's match is between the Chudley Cannons and Ballycastle Bats!" The crowd applauded its approval. The Ballycastle Bats shot out to few cheers. It was as if the stadium exploded, however, when the Chudley Cannons came out. Lee named them all. ".And let's welcome back our favorite Chaser, Meagan Potter! Let's give a cheer to her husband and superb Seeker, Harry Potter!" Lee shouted. Harry did a loopy-loop when he came out to the roaring applause. Meagan did nothing really. She seemed as indifferent as she had been these days. The players hovered over the field, waiting for the balls to come into play. The referee let the balls loose. "The Quaffle is released and the game is on!" Lee shouted. Meagan dived for the ball. Harry flew in a spiral upwards and squinted around for the Snitch. Meagan clutched the ball to her side and flew towards the goal post. She was about to throw it, when. ~*~ Meagan screamed. She was falling through green again! Only this time, she had someone with her. She landed with a thud but didn't pass out. She screamed as a Bludger came at her face. She ducked it. Then she realized where she was. She was playing Quidditch. Meagan chucked the ball through the goal post. The crowd applauded and whistled. "Woo-hoo!" she called, applauding for herself over her head. She could hear the faint call of "Way to go, Mum!" in the crowd. The Quaffle flew into play again and Meagan grabbed it. She swerved the Ballycastle's Chaser and ducked a Bludger. She heard the Ballycastle Beater say a few choice words that's not wise to repeat. Then another Bludger hit her in the back. She gave a scream of frustration as she dropped the Quaffle and her nose hit the handle of her Lightning, causing it to bleed. The shiny, metallic-looking blood ran down her face and dripped onto the ground. The crowd gasped as one. "Ballycastle Bats in possession! Oooh! Nice Bludger work by the Cannon's Beater! The Chaser drops the Quaffle and Meagan Potter retrieves it! Oooh! Mrs. Potter gets hit in the side! The Bats in possession again! Another Cannon's Chaser gets that Quaffle and puts it through the goal post! The current score is Cannons: 20 and Bats: 10!" Lee yelled, doing his job. Meagan cheered on her team. She dived and got hit with the Bludger again and again. She scored again and again. "The current score is Cannons: 80 and Bats: 80! I say!" Lee shrieked, jumping up and down, "Oh, I say! Harry Potter goes into a spectacular dive and is tailed by the Ballycastle Seeker!" It was true. Harry had gone into a dive. He was shooting down vertically at full speed. His face was screwed up with concentration. You could see the beads of sweat flying off his forehead. He loosened his grip on the broomstick and slowed. The Ballycastle Seeker gave a triumphant yell. "I'm going to get the Snitch first, you dolt!" he yelled. Harry pulled up. "What Snitch?" he asked. The Ballycastle Seeker screamed as he hit the ground. Harry swerved upward and darted after the Snitch. The diversion had worked! He dived under his wife and over the Ballycastle Beater, who took a desperate swing at him with his bat. He leaned forward so much that was practically falling off the broom. He gritted his teeth and concentrated. His hand shook as he reached out for it. The crowd gave a scream of horror. A Bludger hit him in the side and sent him cart wheeling through midair, just barely managing to stay on his broom. His arm had snapped and was broken. The pain nearly blinded him. "Oh, you are gonna pay!" Meagan said and grabbed her Beater's club and used her unnatural strength to hit a Bludger at the Beater who had hit Harry. It hit the Beater in the stomach and sent him flying backwards into the wall. "Foul!" screamed the audience. "Foul!" shouted Lee. The referee blew his whistle. The Ballycastle Bats Chaser went for the hoop but got stopped by the Cannon's Keeper, Oliver Wood. After the foul took place, Harry flew around in search of the Snitch. He squinted through the haze of pain for any fleck of gold. Then he saw it. It was right below the Bat's Seeker. His eyes widened. Then Megan saw it too. She winked at him, her eyes purple. He leaned forward on his broom and sped toward the other Seeker. The other Seeker gave a yell and dived out of his way. Harry's fingers closed around the golden ball. All he could see was a blur as Meagan ran into him and hugged him tightly. "The Cannons win, 250 to 100!" Lee shouted, jumping up and down with glee. Meagan and Harry flew down to the locker room. When they landed, Meagan kissed Harry long and hard. Their teammates stared at them with wide eyes. Harry looked at her, shocked. "I thought you were sick!" he said. "Not anymore!" Meagan squealed. She waited for everyone to leave. Then she told Harry what had happened. He looked at her with wide eyes. They both looked up as the door opened. A boy with long brown hair that was so dark it was always black walked into the room. His face, behind his many freckles, was extremely pale. His gray eyes were wide and his thick eyebrows were wrinkled. He was a skinny little thing. "Nicolas!" Meagan gasped. "Yeah." Nicolas said shakily. "Oh, you poor thing, you're coming home with us!" she said, helping him come in and sit down. "Meagan?" he croaked, looking into her eyes, "Is that you?" Meagan looked nonplussed. "Yes, of course. Come along." She said. "Meagan? Is this the Nicolas kid you were telling me about?" Harry asked, looking a little worried. "Yeah." Meagan said, checking to see if he was all right. "Do you know how to apparate?" she asked Nicolas. He nodded. "Let's go." She said. ~*~ Nicolas fit in really well at the Potter residence. Alex and Aaron got sent home, for term started again quite soon. Crystal had taken to spying on Nicolas between pulling pranks and having Marauder Meetings. She giggled as she followed him down the corridor and he looked around for the person who had giggled. It was all good, until one day. "Ooooh!" Crystal gave a moan, trying to spook Nicolas. "Whoever that is, quit it!" he moaned, hiding his face in his pillow. She moaned and he jumped up, frustrated. As he jumped up, he hit Crystal, who wasn't solid or visible. Crystal shrieked as suddenly she was solid and visible again. She fell and skidded across the floor. Nicolas looked at her, shocked. "How did you do that?" Crystal asked in a voice that was barely audible. "I-I don't know," he said. Crystal fled, terrified. "Wait!" Nicolas called after her, but she sped up and lost Nicolas in seconds. "Mum! Mum!" Crystal shrieked. Meagan, who had been sleeping, woke up with a start as Crystal flung herself at her. "Oof!" Meagan grunted. "Mum! Nicolas! He stopped my powers!" Crystal said, hysterical. "What?" "I was bugging him, while I was invisible and not solid. then he jumped up and hit me. Then I became solid and visible again! Nothing is supposed to do that!" "Oh, great." Meagan said. ~*~ Cate watched this all in a hovering crystal ball. "So," she said in her silky voice, "They do have a weakness, and to think it's only a boy!" She laughed evilly to herself. "Now, to abduct that Nicolas child. But how to do it. it must be neat. No one should suspect that it's only the disturbed Catherine Black. Now, to work." ~*~ "Hello," said a voice. Nicolas jumped about a foot in the air. He turned around. A figure appeared in the shadows. It was a woman. Her long shimmering brown hair fell about her shoulders. Her brown eyes were like polished wood with golden specks in them. Her lips were a perfectly tinted red. Her makeup was even. Her silky skin seemed to glow in the candlelight. She had a perfect figure. "Um. hi." Said Nicolas, shifting his weight nervously. "I am Catherine Black. Have you heard of me?" Cate said in a soft tone, willing him to notice her every whim. "No, I haven't, Catherine." Nicolas said. He was drooling a little. Cate smiled with her straight, white teeth. She caressed his cheek. "I am surprised." She said, softly in his ear. He started to pant. "I-I'm Nicolas Turner." He stammered. "I know," Cate said, cupping his chin in her hand. "Wow." he breathed. She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips. His knees buckled. He didn't notice that she had just magically taken most of his will power. "You have a choice to make, my dearest Nicolas. You can either stay here with this loud and noisy family, or you can come with me." She said. She ran her fingers through his hair and pressed her body close to his. She kissed him lightly again. "I will bring Meagan here and you can make the choice." She clicked her fingers and Meagan was suddenly there. She looked as if she were about to kiss someone. "Huh? Cate." Meagan growled. She was wearing a tight white dress that sparkled. Her hair was twisted into a shining knob at the back of her head, and was hanging there with an enchanted hair ornament that looked and acted like a real butterfly. Her lips were a careful shade of light pink. She was wearing no makeup. White high-heels made her look taller than she usually did. "Our friend has a choice to make." Cate said, stroking Nicolas's cheek, "He can either stay with you, or he will come with me. He will make this decision." Meagan's eyes became cherry red. "You know about him. You know he can stop our powers. You're going to use him against us!" she accused. Cate made a hurt face and kissed Nicolas on the cheek. "Now, now, that is not nice, is it? Don't you agree, Nicolas?" she said. Nicolas, a dreamy look on his face, nodded. "Nicolas! No! She's the Dark Angel of Light! She'll take you and use you! She'll torture you!" Meagan shrieked. He looked bewildered for a moment. He was about to say that he'd go with Meagan, when Cate kissed him again. With that kiss, she removed all of his free will. "I'll go with Catherine." He said. "So be it." Cate said. "Noooo!" Meagan screamed as Nicolas was taken away. The minute they appeared at Cate's house, Cate looked pregnant again. Nicolas's free will had also returned. He looked around him and blinked. Then he realized what had just happened. Cate laughed her evil laugh. "You are mine now, you foolish boy. Your power is mine. I will stop the Created Heirs once and for all!" she shrieked, and laughed insanely. Nicolas turned and tried to run away, but Cate clicked her fingers and he was trapped like a rat. She clicked her fingers again and a cage fell and clanged to a rest around Nicolas. "Noooo!" Nicolas shrieked. He grabbed the bars and put his face against the bars. "Let me go!" he pleaded. "Not until I find out what lets you stop the Created Heirs!" Cate said, and started toward him with her wand raised. He screamed.
The door to Cate's house magically burst open. Lizzie and Sirius, who were there for a visit, looked up. Lizzie was teaching Sirius how to fold the laundry by hand and Sirius was doing a horrible job. He barely even blinked before he was pinned against the wall. He gave a strangled cry and closed his eyes. "Open your eyes, Sirius!" said a gruff voice that was familiar. Sirius opened his eyes and saw a pair of large blue eyes in front of his. They quickly changed color and were orange with fright. He blinked and gulped. "Sirius," Meagan said, her voice strangled, "The Dark Angel of Light is back!" Lizzie looked up sharply. "What?" she gasped, "How do you know?" Meagan's shoulders became tensed. "I had a prediction." She said, biting the inside of her cheek. "Oh my god!" shrilled Lizzie. "Uh oh." said Sirius, now hitting his head on the wall. Meagan released him and looked around her wildly. "Where's Bellum?" she asked, fidgeting nervously. Her orange eyes kept darting to the walls where lots of pictures hung. Suddenly, she was caught up in a fit of spasms. She collapsed to the ground. Her body seemed void of her usual energy as she turned milky white. Her eyes rolled up into her head and her body became rigid. "No," she croaked in her regular voice, "Not again!" Sirius and Lizzie blanched as she watched her convulsing on the floor. Then, for her second prediction that day, she said: "Bellum Pugnare cannot be found, for he has been lost in the Book of Souls. Dolere Malfoy has died as Bellum has, for Cate has killed her in vengeance. Lord Voldemort came to Cate and offered her something. He said that if she joined the Dark Side once again he would bring Bellum back to her. But Voldemort has lied. There is but one way to bring back someone lost in the Book of Souls. It is not a physical thing. Only a love so strong it is unbreakable can bring back a Lost Soul. If there is no hatred in the entire person for even the briefest moment, the Lost Soul can be returned. Cate will experience this but she will find it out on her own. Bellum will be freed." Meagan's whole body sagged and she lie on the floor, gasping for breath. Her eyes rolled forward and she closed them. She began to shake. "Two predictions in one day." she said hoarsely, shaking even more violently, "That means something bad will definitely happen." "What is this filth doing in my house?" Cate asked, pursing her lips as she entered the room. Meagan's eyes rapidly changed color. It was hard to tell what they'd rest on first. She scuttled backwards and pushed herself up the wall. "W-where's Bellum? This is quite important." she said, gulping nervously. "Bellum is. indisposed as of right now. Go," Cate said. Meagan gulped again. "Meagan, why don't you tell her your prediction-!" Sirius said. "Padfoot!" Meagan hissed, her eyes turning red. She stood up and faced Cate, bracing herself for a jinx. "Prediction, eh?" Cate said, pacing around her, "Full of odd little surprises, now aren't we? A Seer? Dear me, I'd've never thought. Yes, secrets do eat away at you until they get so big someone finds out. Does your precious little Harry know, Meagan? Maybe you're just too good for him. The great Meagan Cassandra Delmore is just too good for little old Harry Potter, eh?" Cate had never dared say such things in front of her parents. Only when she was the Dark Angel of Light did she dare. Sirius and Lizzie looked over at their eldest daughter, shocked. "Catie, you know better!" Lizzie said, standing up. Her eyes flashed at her daughter dangerously. "I know better than to what, dearest mother of mine who left me?" Cate said, the gold flecks in her eyes standing out prominently. "I know better than to poke fun at my elders, dearest father who was dragged off to Azkaban and left his daughter to be killed?" This was too much for Meagan. Making fun of Harry was enough. She could just barely hold back her anger because of that. But making fun of her parents who loved her and toiled to bring her back was too much. She lunged at Cate and pinned her against the wall, her hand at Cate's throat. Cate started to move towards her wand but Meagan said, "One more word or wrong move, Dark Angel of Light, and you'll get it." Too late. Cate took her wand out. "Incendio!" she shrieked. Meagan ducked and the curtain burst into fire. Lizzie quickly put it out. Meagan stuck her hand into the flames and drew it out with a handful of fire. She flung the fireball at Cate, but she dodged it. Cate gave a scream of frustration and yelled, "Diffindo!" Meagan did a back flip. The spell hit the glass window and the glass spilt in half and then shattered. She shouted the Conjunctivitis Curse. Cate screamed as the spell hit her and her eye got infected, making it almost impossible to see. She waved her wand around blindly and bellowed, "Avada- !" She stopped, partly in shock. Green smoke sputtered out of the end of Cate's wand. She hesitated, wondering whether or not to finish the incantation. Meagan had frozen too. She started to dodge it, but it was already way too late. ~*~ "C'mon, it isn't bad!" Crystal said, her Lightning on her shoulder. "It's a broom for cripes sake!" Aaron said, biting his lip. "A highly safe broom!" she said indignantly. "Safe or not safe, I'm not riding a FREAKING BROOMSTICK!" "You are such a baby!" "Am not!" "Am too!" "Am not!" "Am too!" Brian and Alex watched the two with interest. "Do you think this is going to go on all day?" asked Alex, yawning and glancing at Brian. "No doubt about it," he said, yawning also. "Soda?" "Sure." Brian clicked his fingers and two bottles of Coke appeared. "Thanks," Alex said, taking a long sip. "No prob." He said, nodding as he watched Crystal and Aaron fight. Crystal's eyes were brown with determination and stubbornness. Every now and then they flickered red. "Hello Brian." Said a voice behind Brian that made him jump. "Stop sneaking up on me, Neil!" Brian said crossly, watching Alex giggle. The gold flecks in his eyes flashed. "I didn't," Neil said, shrugging. He gazed intently at Brian who shuddered involuntarily. "What do you want, pipsqueak." Brian asked, feeling Neil's eyes burrow into his. "Have you seen my mum?" asked Neil. Brian felt a chill go down his spine and he squirmed as he realized Neil hadn't blinked once. Not once. "No." Brian said slowly, "Why?" Neil shrugged, looking downcast. Neil looked up at Brian again. Brian's jaw dropped open for a second and he was completely lost in his thoughts. He felt recent memories drawn forward. "Hey! Hey, hey, hey! Stop messing with my mind!" Brian said, starting to look panicked. Neil blinked, breaking the connection. "Sorry." He said, turned and left. Brian gaped after him. ~*~ Meagan didn't scream. She didn't even flinch. "Bring it on!" she yelled, a vein throbbing in her temples. "You will pay, Catherine Black! Now my kids won't have a mother! You-!" she was cut off abruptly. A lucky thing, because Meagan was about to do some heavy duty swearing. She closed her eyes as it felt like her soul was torn from her body. It wasn't a comforting feeling. She opened her eyes as she felt herself being sucked down what seemed to be a giant drain. Her soul twisted and turned down in the spiraling motion. This surely wasn't death, was it? Maybe it was the effects of the death spell. It was then she started to scream. No sooner than she started to scream, she landed. She felt herself suddenly become solid. She didn't feel like it was her own, too. The suction feeling suddenly stopped. The impact hit her mind so hard that she didn't even have a chance to fight for her consciousness. ~*~ Nicolas Turner sighed deeply. Hogwarts would be starting up again soon. His parents didn't know he was a wizard, and it was a lucky thing too, for he would've been killed. Nicolas didn't like his family and his family didn't like him. He was treated more like a slave boy than one kin to them. His older brother, Finn, was treated as handsomely as a prince for his hard work. Hard work had never been Nicolas's thing. When his family wasn't looking, he'd usually charm things instead of actually doing them. He vowed he would curse them as soon as he learned one good enough for them. "Off with ye, Nicolas, you lazy thing!" shouted his mother, Elizabeth, "Go fetch slop for the pigs!" Scowling, Nicolas took the bucket of slop his mother had for him and took it out back to put in the trough. "Nicolas, off with ye! Go feed the pigs! Nicolas, go sweep the floor! Nicolas, do our dirty work, Nicolas!" he mimicked as he hauled the wooden bucket into the pigpen. He wiped his sweaty bangs back out his eyes and continued poking fun at his mother. Nicolas sighed and sat down on the fence of the sty. "My life is unimportant, isn't it?" he asked the snorting pigs. "Yet thou life is as simple as eating slop." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I wish I was destined to have an adventure." He said. The pigs snorted. Ariana, his friend, suddenly came running down the dirt pathway to him. Her long, brown hair that usually reached her knees trailed out behind her. Her sparkling blue eyes were smiling at him. Her slippers padded on the ground. She held up a long silken dress of royalty so she could run. Her father was one of the Lords to the King. She was grinning at him with her straight teeth. They were even clean! Her father had hired a rare doctor to doctor her teeth. "Nicolas! Nicolas!" she called in a musical voice with a heavy British accent. "Ariana! I am here!" he called back, running out to meet her. She ran into his arms and he held her. "Why art thou here, Lady Ariana Bryne?" he asked, running his fingers through her long hair. "Father shan't know about this, Nicolas. He says we shan't meet!" she said, hugging him closely. Nicolas looked at the daughter of Lord Bryne closely. She had been courted many times by his own brother, Finn, but to no success. She had always loved Nicolas. She always would, she had vowed once. Nicolas touched Ariana's lips and caressed her rosy cheek. "No matter, dearest Ariana, I shall come to see thou through anything." He said softly. "Oh, Nicolas," said Ariana, burying her face in his ragged clothes. Without warning, a violent wind swept around them. "Ariana!" cried Nicolas, clutching onto his beloved. "Nicolas! Help me!" she screamed, her hair becoming tangled and dirty. A tunnel of green came barreling out of the sky. It encased itself around Ariana. "Nic-!" she said, but her voice was cut short. The fierce wind became a gentle breeze and the tunnel of green disappeared. Ariana slumped in his arms. "No! No!" yelled Nicolas, sobbing into Ariana's neck, "What foul magic is this!? Who wouldst bestow such a terrible thing upon my beloved Ariana!?" Everything remained silent except the echoes of his voice. "Ariana!" he cried into the darkening twilight, "ARIANA!" ~*~ "W-what happened? W-where am I?" Meagan moaned. Her head lolled unpleasantly on her neck. She kept her eyes closed. She blindly stretched a hand out in front of her. It touched a face. "Harry?" she mumbled, "Sirius? James? Remus?" "No, milady, 'tis I, your beloved Finn." Said a strange voice. "Finn? I don't recall." Meagan croaked, lifting one heavy eyelid and then the other. She saw a strong, good-looking young man with blonde hair looking down at her. His brown eyes were wide and sympathetic. "Do not worry, milady, I will fetch thou some water!" Finn said, and hurried out of the room. As soon as Finn left, another boy entered the room. His large gray eyes searched the room. He was covered in freckles and his hair, so dark brown it was almost black, was a tangled mess upon his head. He had thick eyebrows and was a scrawny little thing. "Oooh. I need to find Harry. I need to save him." Meagan said, sitting up and getting so dizzy she had to lie down. "Harry? Who is this Harry?" asked the boy suspiciously. Meagan tried to move her hand but it got caught in her hair. Odd, she thought, trying to remove it. In fact, her hair was way too long to be hers. "Come here, lad," Meagan said. "Lad? But am I not thy lover, Nicolas?" Nicolas asked. "Just do it." Meagan said. Nicolas approached the bed and stood there expectantly. She touched his hand. "Ahhh! Good! You're a wizard! You'll understand!" she said, smiling broadly. "Shhh!" said Nicolas, glancing to his left and right. "How do you know about wizards?" he demanded. Meagan sighed, preparing to do some major explaining. "I was in a duel with my archenemy the Dark Angel of Light and she began to say the Killing Curse, but stopped after the first word. Now. Now I'm in this body." She said, biting her lip. "Dark Angel of Light?" asked Nicolas, looking confused. Realization struck Meagan like a bucket of ice-cold water. "What year is this?" she asked, blanching several shades. "The year is 1020, milady." Nicolas said. Meagan lie down again, breathing deeply. "How long has Hogwarts been founded?" "Two years." "Is milord Godric Gryffindor alive?" "Yes! Of course!" Meagan leapt out of bed with a triumphant cry. She wobbled dangerously and sat down again. "I'd better wait a minute before actually trying to get to him." She said, lying down. "Who art thou, milady?" Nicolas asked. "Why, I'm Meagan Potter, husband of Harry Potter." "Thou cried his name in thou sleep. And the names James and Remus. Thou also shouted serious." "Yes. The Marauders. They're my buds: James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Sirius Black." "Thou name thy flowers?" "Um. no. I'm meant that they're my friends." "Oh. How old are you, Lady Potter?" Meagan licked her (well, they aren't hers) lips. She was inwardly laughing at being called Lady Potter. She decided that she should tell the truth. A giggle escaped her lips. She smiled at him, her teeth showing. "I'm fifty years old. You see, my regular body is that of a 20-year-old's now. I got stuck at the age of 16 for. 17 years and ever since then, my aging process has slowed. All of my friends are 50 and my husband is 33. My oldest child 12 and my youngest is short of a few weeks. I've led a very complicated life, Nick." Meagan said this all, thinking all the while. "Nick?" Nicolas asked, puzzled. "It's called a nickname," explained Meagan, "Nick is the nickname for Nicolas. Meg is the nickname for Meagan, not that I want you to call me that." Nicolas nodded as if he understood. "Milady, I hast returned with they water!" Finn said, dashing into the room. Took long enough, Meagan thought. She concealed her snort and took the wooden goblet she was passed. She took a sip and nearly retched. There was something SWIMMING IN HER MOUTH. Her throat constricted and she made a high-pitched whining noise. Slowly, she spit the contents of her mouth back into the cup. There was a worm in the water. "What's wrong, Lady Bryne?" inquired Finn and Nicolas at the same time. Nicolas looked apprehensive about his futuristic friend. Finn threw a fit. He ran over to her and hugged her. "It is all right, milady!" he said. Meagan, looking desperate, mouthed, "Help me" from between the gap in his arms. He nodded and drew his wand. "Incendio." He whispered, pointing it at the curtains. The curtain caught fire and he quickly hid his wand. Meagan winked at him and threw the cup of water at it, worm and all. She quickly doused it with a bit of magic. She was glad that, even though she was in the body of a muggle, she still possessed her usual powers. Nicolas shot her a quizzical look. Licking her lips, she mind-waved, 'Nick, tell him I'm going to come visit your school. Do it!' Nicolas was shocked. He had heard her voice in his head. So he did as she said. "Um... uh. Milady is coming to my s-school." stuttered Nicolas. 'Tomorrow.' Meagan mind-waved, nodding. "Tomorrow." Nicolas finished, biting his lip and looking at her. She nodded. 'Good job.' She said. "Why wouldst milady be wanting to visit thy school?" asked Finn, roaring with laughing. Meagan closed her eyes and concentrated. "I wish to visit thy school, Nicolas," Meagan said in her best British accent. She was no great shakes at using accents and she was surprised at how natural it sounded. "Tomorrow, it twill be, then, milady." Nicolas said, grinning. "Yes." Meagan said, nodding gleefully. Finn looked downtrodden. ~*~ "Something is definitely fishy about Neil," Brian said, shaking his head. Crystal snorted. Aaron and Alex looked at them thoughtfully. "He was messing with my mind! I felt myself thinking something I wasn't willing to think!" he huffed, crossing his arms. He winced, his frostbite stinging. "Fine, I'll go ask him." Crystal said, and walked out of the room. Brian strutted out after her. Aaron and Alex followed hesitantly. "O brother! Where art thou!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. Neil sidled out of one of the many doors and gazed intently at her. "Yes?" he asked, his eyes flickering to Aaron and Alex. "What were you doing to Brian?" Crystal asked, pursing her lips. "Let me show you," he said, smiling his shy smile. Neil looked into her eyes. They were an emerald green, like his father's. They burrowed into Crystal's blue-green ones. She couldn't blink no matter how much she wanted to. She felt herself being drawn in to his unwavering gaze. The room around her disappeared into blackness. She wanted to give a startled yell but she no longer controlled her body. They landed somewhere with a soft thumping sound. Neil lifted his gaze and observed the scene around him. It was her room. Brian, Aaron, Alex, and she were in it. Yet, Neil and Crystal stood near the wall. The real Crystal gaped. She approached her other self and reached her hand. "They can't see, hear, or feel you." Neil said, his voice echoing strangely. She quickly withdrew her hand. "Where are we?" Crystal asked, looking around her. "In your memories," Neil said simply, blinking slowly and turning. Alex (the memory) said, "We know." She saw her other self blanch. "Uh. no what?" the memory asked, her voice echoing like Neil's had. "We know you're a. wizard." Alex the memory said, looking scared. "What- Hey! How come my voice isn't echoing?" Crystal asked, taken aback. Neil considered the question. "Because this is your memory in your head. I don't think you imagine your voice echoing when you think." He said knowledgably. Suddenly she began to be shaken roughly from side to side. Neil observed this, nodding thoughtfully. "I think they're trying to get you back. Look into my eyes again." He said. Crystal shuddered a little and looked into his eyes. The room disappeared again. Suddenly, it seemed as though something in the back of her mind clicked on. She squirmed a little. Without warning, she was being shaken roughly. Her face was close to Neil's. She fell over backwards. "Whoa!" she said, falling back into Brian. "Ack!" Neil said, blundering into Aaron, who cringed and backed away. "I need to improve on my landings." Neil said, up-righting himself and dusting his clothes. He turned and left. "Crys! Moonlight! What did he do?" Brian asked frantically. "We actually went into one of my memories. I was standing in one of my memories!" Crystal said, staggering upright. "It was so weird. I wonder if I could do it!" She grabbed Brian by the shoulders. He was her guinea pig for every magical experiment she tried. He whimpered. "Why me?" he asked the moment before he was dragged into his memory. ~*~ Cate stood panting. Her mother had preformed the counter curse and she could see again. Meagan was unconscious and on the ground. "You're lucky she isn't dead! How would we have explained the death of Meagan Potter!?" Lizzie was screaming herself hoarse. Sirius was trying to revive Meagan. "Blue Eyes! Wake up! Um. um. Brian kissed Crystal! No, not really. WAKE UP!" Sirius said, his face getting red. Meagan groaned and slowly got up. Sirius looked into her eyes. He screamed. Lizzie turned on heel. She backed into the wall, her face livid with horror. She clutched at her face and slid down the wall, chocking back a sob of terror. Cate bit back a smile. She was glad. She was glad, she realized. That terrified her. Her heart beat rapidly. She was torn between loving it and hating it. There was no in-between. There was no soul in Meagan. The light that made her eyes sparkle was gone. She was as pale as death. Her mouth was a horizontal line on her face, showing nothing but indifference. Her hair was suddenly void of its usual bounciness and was greasy and stringy. "Meagan!" Sirius squeaked. "Oh god, oh god, so horrible," Lizzie mumbled, her face buried in her hands. Cate just stood staring. "CATE!" Lizzie screamed, turning her tear-streaked face toward her daughter, who cringed, "Do you know what this means!? Voldemort may never be defeated!" Cate backed into the wall. She fell. Her face was twisted in an odd expression. Then she started to cry, like a lost little girl. Because she was one. ~*~ (A/N-Meagan: Hey! I just want to say I borrowed this idea from K. A. Applegate's Everworld series! They were good books!) Meagan tried desperately not to fall asleep. It was a hard thing to do. Even though the bed she was in was filled with straw and poked her back, she fell into a slumber. She screamed. She was falling through green. Suddenly, she landed. She stumbled. She blundered into someone. She squinted to make out the face, but her eyes just wouldn't focus for her. In time, they did. "Sirius!" she gasped. "Oh my god. I was sent back to the year 1020! I thought I was dead for good this time! Sirius! Sirius?" Sirius looked abashed. Lizzie was trembling horribly. Cate's face was painstakingly twisted. "Hello?" she asked, waving her hand. "I think you're still there. partially." Lizzie wheezed. "Um. why do you think that?" Meagan asked, biting her lip. Lizzie gestured to the mirror on the wall. Meagan went over and looked at her reflection. "Ahhhh!" she screamed in complete horror. She looked like she had just received the dementor's kiss. Everything seemed soulless, except for her eyes, which were now yellow with shock. "How-why-when-CATE!" she shrieked, starting for Cate. Sirius stepped in front of her, but Meagan threw him aside with her ferocious strength. Lizzie stepped up and touched Meagan's forehead. She touched the part of the mind that controlled emotions. Meagan stumbled backwards into the wall. Breathing deeply she looked up at Lizzie. "Thanks. I needed that, Liz." She said, breathing deeply. "I'm not all here. I think that Cate's half saying the incantation is making me shift to different places in time. You see, on the other end I just fell asleep. I guess this body is just on autopilot when I'm. not all here. Please, don't tell Harry. Tell him I've come down with a rare illness. I'll tell him when I come back. Also tell him I'll still be up to that Quidditch match in three days. Don't tell the kids, either; I don't want to scare them. Please, Lizzie! Please Padfoot! Keep an eye on Cate, she's the Dark-!" Meagan said. Her sentence was cut short as she spiraled down the green nothingness again. "Angel of Light!" she wheezed. Finn looked down at her, puzzled. "Thou hath a funny accent, milady." He said, scratching his blonde hair. "Come, milady! Today we travel to Hogwarts!" called Nicolas. He took her hand and led her out the front door. Her long hair fluttered gently out behind her. She looked at it, disgusted. She had a problem with long hair. It just wouldn't allow you to play Quidditch! Nicolas led her to the barn, where two horses stood waiting. One was as white as snow. Its long white mane and tail fluttered out in the breeze. One of its dark eyes was watching them intently. The other was as black as night with a long gray mane and tail. It was taller than the white mare and was a stallion. Meagan squealed and ran over to the white mare. "Do you mind if I ride you?" she asked it. The horse reared and shook its long mane. "It talks!" the mare said, alarmed. "I heard." Grunted the black stallion. "Yes, I talk. I happen to talk to animals a lot." Meagan said, grinning. "Are you the fabled heir to Lord Gryffindor? He also possesses the ability to talk to us!" the black stallion said, pawing the ground. "In a way, yes." Meagan said. Nicolas was staring at her. She flashed him a broad grin. "It would be an honor if you rode me, Lady." Said the white mare, smiling with her eyes. Meagan elegantly swung her leg over the horse and sat in the saddle. Nicolas clumsily fell into the stallion's saddle. "Easy, easy!" he neighed, rearing. "In my hastiness, I forgot to properly introduce myself! I am Snow Grace, milady. My mate is Night Bird." Snow Grace said as they started off at a steady walk. "I am Meagan Potter. You may call me Lady Potter, if you wish." Meagan said. She nudged Snow Grace's side and she went into a trot. "He rides like a sack of potatoes!" grunted Night Bird unhappily. Meagan giggled and nudged Snow Grace's sides again. Snow Grace sped up into a canter. "Let me run, Lady Potter, let me run!" Snow Grace whinnied, giddy. "Go, Snow Grace, run!" Meagan yelled and Snow Grace went galloping. Night Bird trailed behind them. "Hogwarts!" Meagan shouted, slowing Snow Grace to a trot. Snow Grace was panting but she, too, was admiring Hogwarts. It was looking fantastic. "Oh wow. It looks brand new!" Meagan choked, stopping Snow Grace. "Wonderful, isn't it?" Nicolas asked. She looked at Nicolas, amazed. He seemed to be talking more and more like she was. He seemed to be changing his accent. "Come on! I need to talk to Godric! Yah!" Meagan said, nudging Snow Grace's side hard. Snow Grace reared and shook her long white mane. Then she took off in a full run. "Woo Hoo!" Meagan yelled, the wind making her long hair fan out behind her. Nicolas and Night Bird tailed her closely. They reached Hogwarts in about half-an-hour. When they reached the castle, five house-elves came out and went to care for the horses. Meagan took off in a jog for the castle, her hair and long dress getting in the way. Nicolas jogged beside her, a weird grin on his face. "The one thing that has saved my life. Let's go see Professor Gryffindor." He said, eyes shining as he looked up at the castle. "I'm never going to get away from this place for good," she said and, laughing, ran after Nicolas into the castle. ~*~ "Are you sure these things are safe?" Crystal asked, wobbling on her roller blades and pulling at the protection pads. "They're a lot safer than a broomstick." Aaron retorted, skating fast and going off a magical ramp Crystal and Brian had devised. "Yee-hah!" he yelled as he turned a full 360° and landing on his feet. Crystal scowled. "Show off." she muttered. She skated around for a while, getting used to the fact that she had one line of four wheels to support her weight. Brian was doing horribly. He had learned how to roller blade backwards and couldn't do it forwards, causing him to run into a variety of things. Crystal decided she was going to try the ramp. Breathing harshly, she stopped a good ten yards from the ramp. Then she went as fast as she could, with some help from some magic. She rocketed off the ramp and did a back flip. "AAAAH!" she screamed, curling into a ball as she flipped upside down. She let go as she saw the ground rushing towards her and landed on her blades. She yelped from the impact and fell on her butt. Alex watched Crystal with an open mouth. Not looking where she was going, she ran into the telephone pole. Aaron, too, had fall on his butt. Brian had bladed backwards into the house and Crystal was looking up at them dazedly. "We need butt pads." She muttered thickly. They were soon in action again. Crystal was trying to teach Brian how to roller blade forward, but to no success. She would push him forward and he would only fall on his face. She ended up having to put shielding spells all over him because he was so scratched up, and the frostbite was no help. Crystal roller bladed forward to show Brian how to again, when something happened. Her eyes became wide and she looked paralyzed. Scenes flashed by her eyes. She saw Nita and Neil running away from a hulking shadow. Their faces were white and they looked desperate. That scene melted into a dark night. She saw herself and Brian sitting on a bench. She watched as they leaned forward and their lips touched. She saw that scene disappear and saw the triplets. One of them was different from the others. She was deaf and she was blonde. "I want to stay a Potter!" cried the triplet, "I want to be a wizard!" Crystal fell into Brian. Brian caught her by the arms and tried to hold her up. Alex and Aaron came over to help. "Crys!" Brian yelled, his voice rising in panic. Alex and Aaron started to go white. Crystal suddenly jerked. Brian fell over, with Crystal sprawled on top of him. "Are you all right?" Brian asked in an oddly high voice. "Yeah. I'm fine. It was nothing." She said, shaking a little. She needed to talk to her mother. very soon. There was a lump in her throat. But, she told herself; her mother was ill and had been for a day and a half. ~*~ Meagan strutted through the halls, very sure of herself. The term hadn't started yet. It started the next day. Nicolas looked around nervously. He still wasn't familiar with the corridors and passageways of Hogwarts yet. While she was looking the other way, she ran into someone. "Watch were you are going, dear girl!" cried Salazar Slytherin. Meagan backed into the wall. Nicolas gasped. Slytherin was known for his horrible temper and for his study in the Dark Arts. "You are a muggle!" he raged suddenly. "I am not!" she protested before she could think twice. Slytherin's face was starting to get red. "How dare you speak back to your elders!" he roared. "I always do." Meagan retorted, being the Marauder she was. Slytherin took out his wand. Meagan was about to shout a spell when Nicolas grabbed her by the arm. He dragged her down the corridor, while she shouted, "I like you better dead!" "What are you doing?" he hissed, pushing her against the wall. "Well, he's pretty considerate when he's dead. You see, I died when I was thirty-two. Being what I am, I lived to see life the next day. I met up with Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, and Salazar Slytherin. They're my. mentors, I guess you could say." "What are you?" "Why, I'm the Heir of Gryffindor." Meagan said. Nicolas released his hold and backed into the wall. "Oh, milady!" he said, "I didn't know! I wouldn't been so harsh if I'd have known." He looked ready to go down on his knees and grovel. "Um. okay." She said. "Who do we have here?" said a very familiar voice from behind them. "Professor Gryffindor!" cried Nicolas, his eyes widening. Meagan's eyes sparkled. "Hello Godric. It's been a long time since I've seen you. alive." She said. Gryffindor looked at her, bemused. "Yes, you heard me right. You see, Godric, I am your Heir. I come from the distant future. Almost a thousand years, to be exact. I am you're Created Heir. You created me to stop all evil. You're blood heir, Catherine Black, tried to kill me but it didn't work. It sent me here, and put me in this body. Now I need your help again. I need you to send me back, the way I came. Please. I need you!" Meagan said, her eyes pleading. Godric was shaken. He eyed her closely. "How do I know you are my Heir, never mind my Created Heir?" he asked. Meagan pointed to a rug that went down the corridor. On command, it rolled itself up and stopped inches away from their feet. Then she walked over to a heavy desk and picked it up with one hand. Then she balanced it on her finger. "Forget I asked," he said, awestruck. "I'm going to go to bed now. Tomorrow will be a tiring day for me. Nicolas, are you coming? Nicolas?" Nicolas was staring at her with his mouth wide open. "Um. yeah. uh. okay." he stammered. Meagan took Nicolas by the arm and led him to the Gryffindor Common Room. "Good night!" she called to Nicolas, dashing up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. He watched her until she disappeared from sight. Meagan slipped her many-layered dress off and put on a nightgown. She jumped into the bed and sighed. Hogwarts was her real home, no matter what the time. She let herself slip into a deep sleep, when, suddenly, she wasn't in bed anymore. She was holding two of the triplets. A doctor emerged from a side room. The doctor shook his head sadly, his eyes wide. "What is it?" Meagan demanded, "Is she okay?" The doctor didn't meet her eyes but kept his on the ground. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Potter. Angelina is. deaf. There's nothing we can do about it. I'm sorry." He said. Meagan almost dropped Ashleigh and Abigail. They squirmed and flailed their tiny arms. "Deaf?" she asked, his eyes wide and yellow. The yellow quickly melted into dark blue. "Angelina can't.. she's a Potter! She's my baby! She can't be!" she shrieked, tears falling down her face. Harry, who was standing next to her, shook his head sadly and placed a hand on her shoulder. Meagan was going into hysterics. Tears were pouring involuntarily down her face. "No!" she wailed, "Can't you do something? You're a wizard, for God's sake, do something man!" She begged. The doctor hung his head and said, "Sorry, Mrs. Potter. There is nothing we can do. I am so very sorry." Meagan put her face into Harry's robes and sobbed. "No, no, no, she's a Potter," she said weakly. "She's a Gryffindor." The doctor sighed. Few people knew that Meagan was an Heir, and he was one of them. He shuddered. Then he leaned forward and said, "There's something else." Meagan took her face out of Harry's robes. "What?" she sniffed, "Nothing could be much worse than being a deaf witch." The doctor shifted guiltily. "Mrs. Potter, Mr. Potter, I think you'd better sit down." He said. Meagan sat down in a chair and Harry sat next to her, rubbing her back. "Angelina is also a squib." "NOOOOOO!" Meagan screamed, making the triplets start to cry. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" She felt as though her heart was being ripped in two. She felt a sorrow and horror so deep it felt as though she was back at Lily and James's house, after they had just died. The doctor handed Angelina to Harry, who was numb with shock. "It can't be," he whispered. Suddenly, Meagan was no longer in the hospital room, but back in the dormitory. Nicolas was standing over her. There were tears pouring down her face. She hid her face in Nicolas's robes. He awkwardly stroked her hair. "What is it? What happened?" he asked, startled by this behavior. "My baby, Angelina, is a. is a.. squib!" she howled miserably. Nicolas looked at her. "Is she your first child?" he asked. "No," sniffed Meagan, "She's my. my. eighth." He looked at her, his eyes wide. "I want to go home." She whispered, her head against Nicolas's chest. "I just want to go home." ~*~ The blow of Angelina's being a squib hit the Potter family hard. She was just staring off into space most of the time. Alex and Aaron were starting to get worried. Crystal hadn't invited Brian over since the news came. Jo and Jess stopped playing pranks. Neil was even quieter and Nita was so subdued she barely got up out of bed, and when she did she just sat on the couch. "Um. Crystal?" asked Alex timidly. "Yes?" Crystal replied in a toneless voice. "Um. what's a squib?" Alex asked. They heard that Angelina was a squib but didn't know was a squib was. Crystal turned her deep blue eyes to look at her two muggle friends. "A squib is a muggle born into a wizarding family." She said. Alex and Aaron looked at each other. "I don't think I'm even going to enjoy the Quidditch match tomorrow." Crystal said. Again, Alex and Aaron looked at each other. Crystal had promised them that she was going to sneak them into the match. They were very excited about it. "Well, you guys should catch some z's. Tomorrow's going to be a good day." Crystal said. Sighing, Aaron and Alex walked up to bed. ~*~ "The first word of the death spell? Are you sure?" asked Godric. Meagan nodded. "I'm sure I'm sure. That's how I got here. It'll probably send me back. I don't really trust my logic. but it'll probably work." She said. Godric and Nicolas were standing next to each other. They were ready to send Meagan back. Nicolas couldn't wait to get Ariana back. Godric held his wand up and closed his eyes. He didn't want to kill his Created Heir off. She seemed so sure of herself. "Tell me when you're ready." He said. Nicolas looked at Meagan. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement. She was going to go home and she was happy about it. Meagan held her arms out and closed her eyes. "Hit me!" she said. "Avada- !" Godric cried, flourishing his wand. "No! Wait!" screamed Nicolas, diving for Meagan. He couldn't let this happen! "No, Nicolas! You'll come with me! Nooooooo!" Meagan shrieked. Nicolas tried to shove her away from the green smoke that came rushing towards them, but it was too late. And it wasn't too late for just Meagan. ~*~ Crystal was wrong. She was going to enjoy this match. Her mother was going to play, as well as her father. Alex and Aaron were hidden under the Invisibility Cloak. They got Top Box seats. They always did. And they never had adult supervision. "Aaron and Alex, you can come out now!" Crystal said brightly, watching as Lee Jordan came to the top box. Her father had told her how Lee Jordan had always commentated at his school matches. Because of that, Lee knew the entire Potter family very well. "Hello, Crystal! How have your parents been fairing?" Lee asked. "Okay. My mum couldn't wait for this match!" she replied. Lee nodded, grinning. Then he was given the signal to start commentating. "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, witches and wizards of all ages, to today's Quidditch match!" Lee said, his voice resounding around the stadium. "Today's match is between the Chudley Cannons and Ballycastle Bats!" The crowd applauded its approval. The Ballycastle Bats shot out to few cheers. It was as if the stadium exploded, however, when the Chudley Cannons came out. Lee named them all. ".And let's welcome back our favorite Chaser, Meagan Potter! Let's give a cheer to her husband and superb Seeker, Harry Potter!" Lee shouted. Harry did a loopy-loop when he came out to the roaring applause. Meagan did nothing really. She seemed as indifferent as she had been these days. The players hovered over the field, waiting for the balls to come into play. The referee let the balls loose. "The Quaffle is released and the game is on!" Lee shouted. Meagan dived for the ball. Harry flew in a spiral upwards and squinted around for the Snitch. Meagan clutched the ball to her side and flew towards the goal post. She was about to throw it, when. ~*~ Meagan screamed. She was falling through green again! Only this time, she had someone with her. She landed with a thud but didn't pass out. She screamed as a Bludger came at her face. She ducked it. Then she realized where she was. She was playing Quidditch. Meagan chucked the ball through the goal post. The crowd applauded and whistled. "Woo-hoo!" she called, applauding for herself over her head. She could hear the faint call of "Way to go, Mum!" in the crowd. The Quaffle flew into play again and Meagan grabbed it. She swerved the Ballycastle's Chaser and ducked a Bludger. She heard the Ballycastle Beater say a few choice words that's not wise to repeat. Then another Bludger hit her in the back. She gave a scream of frustration as she dropped the Quaffle and her nose hit the handle of her Lightning, causing it to bleed. The shiny, metallic-looking blood ran down her face and dripped onto the ground. The crowd gasped as one. "Ballycastle Bats in possession! Oooh! Nice Bludger work by the Cannon's Beater! The Chaser drops the Quaffle and Meagan Potter retrieves it! Oooh! Mrs. Potter gets hit in the side! The Bats in possession again! Another Cannon's Chaser gets that Quaffle and puts it through the goal post! The current score is Cannons: 20 and Bats: 10!" Lee yelled, doing his job. Meagan cheered on her team. She dived and got hit with the Bludger again and again. She scored again and again. "The current score is Cannons: 80 and Bats: 80! I say!" Lee shrieked, jumping up and down, "Oh, I say! Harry Potter goes into a spectacular dive and is tailed by the Ballycastle Seeker!" It was true. Harry had gone into a dive. He was shooting down vertically at full speed. His face was screwed up with concentration. You could see the beads of sweat flying off his forehead. He loosened his grip on the broomstick and slowed. The Ballycastle Seeker gave a triumphant yell. "I'm going to get the Snitch first, you dolt!" he yelled. Harry pulled up. "What Snitch?" he asked. The Ballycastle Seeker screamed as he hit the ground. Harry swerved upward and darted after the Snitch. The diversion had worked! He dived under his wife and over the Ballycastle Beater, who took a desperate swing at him with his bat. He leaned forward so much that was practically falling off the broom. He gritted his teeth and concentrated. His hand shook as he reached out for it. The crowd gave a scream of horror. A Bludger hit him in the side and sent him cart wheeling through midair, just barely managing to stay on his broom. His arm had snapped and was broken. The pain nearly blinded him. "Oh, you are gonna pay!" Meagan said and grabbed her Beater's club and used her unnatural strength to hit a Bludger at the Beater who had hit Harry. It hit the Beater in the stomach and sent him flying backwards into the wall. "Foul!" screamed the audience. "Foul!" shouted Lee. The referee blew his whistle. The Ballycastle Bats Chaser went for the hoop but got stopped by the Cannon's Keeper, Oliver Wood. After the foul took place, Harry flew around in search of the Snitch. He squinted through the haze of pain for any fleck of gold. Then he saw it. It was right below the Bat's Seeker. His eyes widened. Then Megan saw it too. She winked at him, her eyes purple. He leaned forward on his broom and sped toward the other Seeker. The other Seeker gave a yell and dived out of his way. Harry's fingers closed around the golden ball. All he could see was a blur as Meagan ran into him and hugged him tightly. "The Cannons win, 250 to 100!" Lee shouted, jumping up and down with glee. Meagan and Harry flew down to the locker room. When they landed, Meagan kissed Harry long and hard. Their teammates stared at them with wide eyes. Harry looked at her, shocked. "I thought you were sick!" he said. "Not anymore!" Meagan squealed. She waited for everyone to leave. Then she told Harry what had happened. He looked at her with wide eyes. They both looked up as the door opened. A boy with long brown hair that was so dark it was always black walked into the room. His face, behind his many freckles, was extremely pale. His gray eyes were wide and his thick eyebrows were wrinkled. He was a skinny little thing. "Nicolas!" Meagan gasped. "Yeah." Nicolas said shakily. "Oh, you poor thing, you're coming home with us!" she said, helping him come in and sit down. "Meagan?" he croaked, looking into her eyes, "Is that you?" Meagan looked nonplussed. "Yes, of course. Come along." She said. "Meagan? Is this the Nicolas kid you were telling me about?" Harry asked, looking a little worried. "Yeah." Meagan said, checking to see if he was all right. "Do you know how to apparate?" she asked Nicolas. He nodded. "Let's go." She said. ~*~ Nicolas fit in really well at the Potter residence. Alex and Aaron got sent home, for term started again quite soon. Crystal had taken to spying on Nicolas between pulling pranks and having Marauder Meetings. She giggled as she followed him down the corridor and he looked around for the person who had giggled. It was all good, until one day. "Ooooh!" Crystal gave a moan, trying to spook Nicolas. "Whoever that is, quit it!" he moaned, hiding his face in his pillow. She moaned and he jumped up, frustrated. As he jumped up, he hit Crystal, who wasn't solid or visible. Crystal shrieked as suddenly she was solid and visible again. She fell and skidded across the floor. Nicolas looked at her, shocked. "How did you do that?" Crystal asked in a voice that was barely audible. "I-I don't know," he said. Crystal fled, terrified. "Wait!" Nicolas called after her, but she sped up and lost Nicolas in seconds. "Mum! Mum!" Crystal shrieked. Meagan, who had been sleeping, woke up with a start as Crystal flung herself at her. "Oof!" Meagan grunted. "Mum! Nicolas! He stopped my powers!" Crystal said, hysterical. "What?" "I was bugging him, while I was invisible and not solid. then he jumped up and hit me. Then I became solid and visible again! Nothing is supposed to do that!" "Oh, great." Meagan said. ~*~ Cate watched this all in a hovering crystal ball. "So," she said in her silky voice, "They do have a weakness, and to think it's only a boy!" She laughed evilly to herself. "Now, to abduct that Nicolas child. But how to do it. it must be neat. No one should suspect that it's only the disturbed Catherine Black. Now, to work." ~*~ "Hello," said a voice. Nicolas jumped about a foot in the air. He turned around. A figure appeared in the shadows. It was a woman. Her long shimmering brown hair fell about her shoulders. Her brown eyes were like polished wood with golden specks in them. Her lips were a perfectly tinted red. Her makeup was even. Her silky skin seemed to glow in the candlelight. She had a perfect figure. "Um. hi." Said Nicolas, shifting his weight nervously. "I am Catherine Black. Have you heard of me?" Cate said in a soft tone, willing him to notice her every whim. "No, I haven't, Catherine." Nicolas said. He was drooling a little. Cate smiled with her straight, white teeth. She caressed his cheek. "I am surprised." She said, softly in his ear. He started to pant. "I-I'm Nicolas Turner." He stammered. "I know," Cate said, cupping his chin in her hand. "Wow." he breathed. She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips. His knees buckled. He didn't notice that she had just magically taken most of his will power. "You have a choice to make, my dearest Nicolas. You can either stay here with this loud and noisy family, or you can come with me." She said. She ran her fingers through his hair and pressed her body close to his. She kissed him lightly again. "I will bring Meagan here and you can make the choice." She clicked her fingers and Meagan was suddenly there. She looked as if she were about to kiss someone. "Huh? Cate." Meagan growled. She was wearing a tight white dress that sparkled. Her hair was twisted into a shining knob at the back of her head, and was hanging there with an enchanted hair ornament that looked and acted like a real butterfly. Her lips were a careful shade of light pink. She was wearing no makeup. White high-heels made her look taller than she usually did. "Our friend has a choice to make." Cate said, stroking Nicolas's cheek, "He can either stay with you, or he will come with me. He will make this decision." Meagan's eyes became cherry red. "You know about him. You know he can stop our powers. You're going to use him against us!" she accused. Cate made a hurt face and kissed Nicolas on the cheek. "Now, now, that is not nice, is it? Don't you agree, Nicolas?" she said. Nicolas, a dreamy look on his face, nodded. "Nicolas! No! She's the Dark Angel of Light! She'll take you and use you! She'll torture you!" Meagan shrieked. He looked bewildered for a moment. He was about to say that he'd go with Meagan, when Cate kissed him again. With that kiss, she removed all of his free will. "I'll go with Catherine." He said. "So be it." Cate said. "Noooo!" Meagan screamed as Nicolas was taken away. The minute they appeared at Cate's house, Cate looked pregnant again. Nicolas's free will had also returned. He looked around him and blinked. Then he realized what had just happened. Cate laughed her evil laugh. "You are mine now, you foolish boy. Your power is mine. I will stop the Created Heirs once and for all!" she shrieked, and laughed insanely. Nicolas turned and tried to run away, but Cate clicked her fingers and he was trapped like a rat. She clicked her fingers again and a cage fell and clanged to a rest around Nicolas. "Noooo!" Nicolas shrieked. He grabbed the bars and put his face against the bars. "Let me go!" he pleaded. "Not until I find out what lets you stop the Created Heirs!" Cate said, and started toward him with her wand raised. He screamed.