No animals were harmed in the making of this fanfiction.

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A World Unknown-- Chapter 12: Justice & Innocence.

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The cold had begun to bite through her cloak by the time she was nearing the three broomsticks. The pub's steadfast warmth and joviality was an anchor that kept her sane during this crazy ordeal. The rowdy music emitting from the building reached her ears as did the warmth and light from glowing lanterns hung in the windows. Amongst the madness she had been constantly encountering since that Sunday, this was the only grounding place she could look to for support.

But now that she understood her position in the wizarding world, that was about to change.

She meekly slipped in through the heavy oak door and sent Rosie an uneasy smile, holding her new trinkets from the day up into the light. Rosie smiled cheerily back but was immediately called to service by a nearby table wanting another round of mead. Maggie regretfully dropped her hand and turned into the kitchen where her tiny pouch of money and supplies lay on the floor atop the thick blanket that had been her bed over the past few days. It hurt to think that this may be the last time she would see Rosie and the pub after all her hospitality and acceptance. She was more than compelled to simply abandon her quest, but the obligatory factors surrounding her situation were not to be ignored.

Amongst her scant belongings were a few sickles, elastics, some sap a needle and thread, and of course, the wand. Not much to go by, but when she made the conscious decision to undertake this search for justice, she accepted that it would not be gratifying.

She was growing to hate the word justice.

It meant nothing to her, but at the same time, all that she could rely on depended on its existence. Maggie had always viewed things from all angles and usually understood the drives and motives behind each action. It was, in her mind, one of her best qualities. Most people just viewed her as weak and indecisive, but the one thing that always got under her skin, was Involving the innocent.

Her, Uncle Randy and Aunt Rose, possibly even Harry Potter.

All of them are innocent, but not a thought is given to that factor. In a way, that must have been what compelled her to accept the things around her. The underlying knowledge that by letting these actions go unencumbered, she was promoting their acceptance. That was how she found herself bundling up her meager possessions under her arm and slipping out through the back door with not a trace of her presence left behind.

She wandered up and down the streets of Hogsmeade for what seemed like hours, awaiting the idea that was sure to dawn upon her. The only comfort that she contented herself with was that she was doing the 'right thing'. Somehow though, the chill night air that was cutting through to her skin did nothing to set her mind at ease.

Idea. Annnnnyyyy minute now.

Eventually, she gave up on wandering through the streets and trudged to the border of the thick forest separating her and the castle upon the crest of the ravine. As foreboding as it looked, nothing could be feel worse than the cold vice of guilt closing in on her chest. Still no ideas. So she did the only thing that she could think to do (which may have also been the stupidest thing she could think to do.) And stepped into the woods.

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After over three hours of wandering through the forest, her arms were scratched, her toes, peeking out from under the straps of her sandals, were bloody, but the most disheartening of all, her resolve was weakening.

She would have returned to Rosie and the encompassing warmth of the three broomsticks a thousand times over, were it not for the fact that she was hopelessly lost. The trees looming up on either side of her had all begun to look the same and even before she lost her orientation, Maggie had possessed very little understanding of the local geography.

Lost in her thoughts as she was, Maggie had failed to recognize the familiar murmur of voices, speaking in hushed, hurried tones, until she was nearly amongst them. The moment she realized what she was hearing, an icy fear gripped her like cold knives dragged across her skin. She dropped to her stomach, and unluckily landed on a twig that pierced the skin above her hip, emitting a small, sharp cry, she buried her face in her arms, hoping to stifle the sound. slowing her breath, which was coming in short, uneven gasps, and controlling her wildly shivering form were more difficult to handle by curling into a tighter ball on the forest floor.

The voices beyond the trees. It was like her dream!

The voices murmured for a few minutes more and then cut off abruptly, leaving the area silent but for the rustling grass in the night wind. Footsteps moving away from Maggie were the most welcome sound in the world, but still she held her breath for a full minute before the crunching of grass underfoot faded into the distance.

Drawing a deep, cautious breath, Maggie staggered to her feet and brushed the dirt and leaves off her front. A quick survey of the damage revealed that her square rimmed glasses had cracked and spidery shatters spread across the rim. Pulling back her cloak revealed that the small twig embedded in her side had drawn blood and splinters were still lodged under her skin. Wincing as she pulled them out, Maggie cleaned away the blood and used a few bandages from her kit to seal the wound over.

On shaky knees, she stumbled a few feet between the trees before the sharp snap of a twig caused her to turn sharply, all of her senses on hairtrigger. Not another sound came from that corner of the woods but as she turned back to her path, ahead of her, not 20 feet away, was a dark, low slung figure.

Maggie's breath caught in her throat and she choked back a scream as she made out the vauge form of a large boarhound through the shatters of her glasses. It was heaving with exertion and its fur was bristling. Sharp teeth were bared in a menacing gesture and the moon glinted off their stained ivory surface. It emitted Low growls from deep within its throat and settled back on its haunches in preparation to attack. Maggie tore in the opposite direction at a wild pace. The damp bed of leaves underfoot caused her feet to slip out from under her and crash face first into the forest floor. The rough low barks of the dog were getting closer every second and it was only a matter of time before it caught her. Scrambling for a hold on her hands and knees she frantically grabbed for something, anything to defend herself. A few feet away was a thick sapling stump protruding from under the foliage. She tore it away from the damp earth and stood in an uneasy stance with the branch held in an iron grip before her. The dog tore through the distance between them at such and alarming rate that Maggie stepped back, surrendering some of her ground and felt her back collide with a firm, cool surface that gave in a little as she pressed up against it.

Before she had a chance to react, a beefy, muscled hand reached down and clamped hard down on her shoulder. A scream ripped forth from Maggie's throat and resounded through the trees all around. Startled, the figure dropped her back to the floor where she jumped back to her feet, still shouting threats and swinging the stump wildly around at anything that got within reach. After a few seconds of this, The huge hand wrenched the branch from her grasp and hurled it through the woods. It lifted her off the ground, still kicking and screaming wildly, and proceeded to give her a good shake.
"Stop" it" He shouted, and shook her some more "Fang can't take much more 'o that an' neither can I for that matter!!"

Puzzled, she ceased her wailing and squinted through the darkness at the man that held her. That voice sounded vaugely familiar.

"About time li'l missy." He guffawed. "I was 'bout to let fang go 'head and slobber all over ya."

He lowered her until her feet touched the floor once more and dug a massive hand deep into his coat, producing a large lantern and a larger pink umbrella. After a few muttered words, the flame in the lamp sprung to life and illuminated the strange scene before her.

The man holding the lantern was immediately recognizable as Reubus Hagrid, Rosies' friend from the pub. His wily black hair and beard, combined with his massive size, were unmistakable. He wore the same long brown jacket as the day she met him but by the searching look on his face, she guessed he hadn't made the connection between the dirty, wild girl before him and the polite young lady from the pub. Off to her left was the gigantic boarhound who was just sitting there scratching himself and slobbering, quite a lot, on the ground below.

"I'm Turribly sorry if Fang 'ere scared you." Said Reubus, ringing his hands together. "Strangers tend to excite 'im, that's all!"

"No really, I'm all right." She said. It did seem as though the dog had lost all of his power to evoke fear now that she saw his only real threat was drowning her in saliva. It wasn't an impossibility either, considering a small, gooey pool had already formed at his feet.

"Oy!" Said Mr. Hagrid, eyeing her suspiciously. "Are you from 'ogwarts? I don't recall seeing you around 'ere."

"Actually, Im not" she kicked at the ground. "But I'm headed in that direction..... Do you think you could help me get there? I mean, you look like you are so accustomed to finding your way around these woods." A little compliment here and there couldn't hurt she thought.

"Well, I do make it a point to know all the business here at 'ogwarts." Hagrid swelled with pride."But 'ow do I know that I can trust you? For all I know, you're in league with You-know-who 'imself." He had suddenly turned very somber.

"You mean Voldermort?"

Hagrid bristled and turned very white all of a sudden. He jumped forwards and clamped a massive hand over her mouth, as if he were afraid she was calling down all hell upon them with every word she spoke.

"Never.....ever.....say....that.....name!!!" Hagrid demanded in a harsh voice. Wide-eyed, Maggie nodded and he lowered his hand from her face. "Its near a crime to say 'is name! 'ave you lost your senses?!"

"Uh...yea.....I guess i have" Maggie finished feebly.

"I s'pose i can't be leaving a young gal like yourself out 'ere on your own at night." Hagrid thought out loud "Ill 'ave to be showin' you to the castle, then. C'mon with you"

A wave of relief washed over Maggie so intensely that her weary knees nearly buckled beneath her and it took her a moment to realize that Mr. Hagrid had already begun to head off to the east, presumably in the direction of the castle.
She sprinted forth to catch up with him and immediately regretted the swift movement for all the pain it caused her various lacerations.

Reubus Hagrid, looking back, found Maggie doubled over and stumbling in his general direction. She was walking at an awkward angle so as not to aggravate the delicate state her feet presented themselves in. Without a second thought, Hagrid scooped her up in one of his massive arms and despite her feeble protests, proceeded to carry her the distance from the forbidden forest to the castle.

The walk was a quiet one with an occasional remark from one or the other on the distance, the weather, or some local wildlife. Hagrid still hadn't recognized Maggie for the proper young girl at the three Broomsticks. That didn't surprise her, owing to her unremarkable features and mannerisms. At one point Maggie mentioned Harry Potter and Hagrid nearly burst with all his praise for Harry's skill in Quidditch, or his classes at the school, one of which Hagrid taught with an unusual relish; Care of Magical Creatures.

Looks like one more added to the many enrolled in the Harry Potter fan club.

Maggie had grown to resent his popularity after a time. It seemed that no matter where you went in the wizarding world, the mention of his name brought about great praise of his achievements, concern for his heath and observations on his situation.

She had never gotten any attention like that.

Back in Canada she was just another punk tomboy with a dysfunctional family. She never got any attention from guys unless they were trying to get help hooking up with one of her friends. She had accepted at a young age that she wasn't very pretty so she gave up on all those endeavors. She immersed herself instead in friends, to escape her family and reading, to escape her messed up world. She was always separated from her friends in the sense that she wanted something more, more than the makeup and movies an girl-talk. She loved the adventures in her books and travel and she loved the idea of being a hero.

None of that ever came to her until this summer though. Travel: true, she was trekking all over England. Adventure: Not quite the way she had pictured it but better than nothing. No heroism yet though. Just pursuit, vengeance and now, possibly justice.

Damn justice. That was all she'd had going for her from the beginning really.

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They approached the castle near to 5:00 in the morning, so a little activity could be observed amongst the grounds.
A stout, elderly woman who was harvesting some sort of weed at the edge of the forest cheerily waved at Hagrid and looked puzzled when she spotted Maggie tucked into his arm but let it pass without comment.

Hogwarts was a Sight to behold. It was an expansive grey stone castle complete with towers and turrets complete with old 18th century masonry. The entrance was barred by Grand solid oak doors that were intricately carved in the likeness of four different animals. The badger, the snake, the raven and the lion. Maggie vaugely remembered Hermione mentioning some sort of 4 house familiars for the school. A dazzlingly huge lake rested placidly alongside the castle, its dark waters undisturbed by even the wind. The sight of it prodded something forgotten in Maggie's Memory and made a small shiver run down her spine.

Hagrid Placed Maggie down on the stone steps leading up to the entrance doors and pushed them ajar with his massive ham-sized hands. Together, they wandered through the wide stone corridors of the School and Maggie trailed a few feet behind to marvel at the wondrous expanse around her.

The paintings on the wall spoke to her as she passed. It was wholly unnerving to interact with something that should be inanimate but she had grown a bit accustomed to it by greeting a small portrait on the wall of the pub every morning for the sake of civility.
She was NOT prepared for what came next.

A man wearing a silvery-gray frock appeared seemingly out of nowhere ahead of them. His clothing didn't move as he did, it was kind of.....suspended, and for that matter, it was opaque.

"Uuhhhh. Hagrid?" She reached up to tap him on his gargantuan shoulder. "What is that?"

"Why, its only the Fat Friar."

"Oh"

"Yep. 'es 'ufflepuffs resident ghost."

"Oh..........Hagrid?"

"Mmnn?"

"Hogwarts has ghosts?"

"Ah, well. Im sure that you're used to dealing with poltergeists and the like." He nodded "All of our ghosts are very well cultured and behaved. Very few like to haunt at all."

Right, Thought Maggie. Play along. Smile and Nod. But honestly, was she expected to talk to ghosts? As they drew nearer to the Fat Friar it became evident that he was, in fact, a ghost. He looked like an ordinary person. Except he was silvery-opaque. And suspended a foot above the ground. And Dead. A bit weird, that.

"Why Hagrid!" Greeted the friar. "A good morning to both you and your companion. Whoever she may be?"

Hagrid Faltered for a moment realizing that she had never asked Maggie for her name. She couldn't stand to see him flounder after he had been so nice to her.

"My name's Kaliey, Kaliey Heinen." She offered, using her old alibi from the train. "Im very pleased to meet you."
Maggie held her hand out in a gesture of welcome but regretted it when The friar reached forward and his hand plunged through hers. It was as if it had fallen asleep and been packed in snow all at once. Maggie managed to keep her smile straight though as she withdrew her hand and once more, trailed slowly after Hagrid down the corridor. "It was nice to have met you!" Maggie called back down the corridor but it was too late, because the Friar was already moving off through one of the stone walls.

Weird.

Turning a few more corners, they found themselves in front of a towering stone gargoyle in a dead end hallway. Hagrid appeared to be trying to recall something and was murmuring to himself. After a time, he approached the Gargoyle and said in a clear voice. "Levitating lolly!"

The Gargoyle turned and descended into the stone floor, revealing a narrow circular staircase leading up into the unknown. Hagrid barely squeezed through the stone archway and Maggie strolled behind, eyeing the walls as she went. The staircase opened into a wide room with lush red carpeting and hundreds of portraits of elderly men and women lining the walls. Bookcases were filled end to end with rich tomes and volumes against each corner. An elderly man sporting a long purple hat and floor length beard peered out at her from behind half moon glasses. He sat deep im paperwork behind a mahogany desk and behind his shoulder was perched the most magnificent animal that she had ever seen. It was a magnificent bird with a deep red-gold plumage that hung its head under its wings which tips were tinted with blue. It looked like the embodiment of flame.
The elderly man behind the desk stood slowly and quietly observed Maggie for a few moments.
"Young lady." He began "I do not believe, that you and I have been introduced."

"'er name's Kaliey Heinen, professor Dumbledore. I found her out wandering in the woods alone at night." Hagrid rushed through his words. "I know it ain't too wise of me sir, but begging your pardon, i couldn't leave 'er out there alone."

"Of course Hagrid." He replied. "But now i believe that it may be best for miss Heinen to explain herself before we go any further."

Both of the men looked to her and Maggie couldn't help but stammer for all the attention she was receiving.

"Well." How to get out of this one? "Im Kaliey and i went to a wizard school in Canada. I graduated early. Really early for my age. I just wanted to spend some time getting to know all about the other wizarding schools around the world and i guess that brought me here."

Hagrid looked blank, as he tended to do. The headmaster on the other hand, had a slow smile and his eyes were twinkling merrily under his thick white brows.

"That all seems to be in order." He turned to Hagrid. "Severus needs some powdered toadstool for the first year lesson tomorrow, would you kindly fetch some fresh specimens from the greenhouses Hagrid?"

With a quick nod in her direction, Mr. Hagrid rushed out the door, eager to help out Dumbledore, who he seemed to hold in high reverence.

"I believe that you are the young woman who i have been warned of by a certain Mr. Allouitious Figg." Maggie eyes bulged in her head. He knew she had been lying! Problem! "I am well aware of you situation and am more than happy to accommodate you here at Hogwarts until you find what it is you are searching for."

"Ummmm....."

"Not as a student of course. Even for Hogwarts, it is unusual to initiate a student into a house at the beginning of the year. You may stay on as a teachers aide. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, you will assist professor Severus Snape In the teaching and formulation of his potions class. On Tuesdays, you can assist Hagrid with his Care Of Magical Creatures subjects. All other days will be free for you to act of your own accord. I must warn you though; although you are not a student here, all the school rules apply to you as well."

He was so direct in hi administration that there was not a single thought of doing other than what he had said. He began to outline the rules she was to abide by, but she was only half listening. This man had solved all of her problems, and judging by his mannerisms, had no plan to reveal her to Harry Potter Or any of the staff. Allouitious had already contacted The Headmaster of the school. He must have been very sure that she would pursue Harry Potter instead of returning to her home. He read her like a book.

"As for your magical ability," he continued. "Due to your heritage and history, it is unlikely that you possess any, but due to the dangers of being in the magical community unarmed with absolute ignorance of us and our customs, I feel it is unwise to allow you to roam free with the limited knowledge you do possess Therefore, my dear, you will sleep in the kitchens with the house elves and they will tutor you in ways of the magical community."

"The kitchens like Cinderella?" She was incredulous "and elves? Like pointy ears?"

"All of that will be explained in time." He confided. "As I see it, you will be given a magnificent opportunity to live and learn in another culture. All of your arrangements at home have been taken care of. Your aunt and Uncle believe that you are with your mother, she believes you are in the company of your father, and he that you are with her."

"You did all that just to indulge a little girl you don't even know?" Maggie was skeptical

"Some things are better done with a minor interference. My philosophy is that we all have a part to play in others lives, and only we choose whether the impact is good or otherwise." He conceded. "After all, Muggle Maggie. Who am i to interfere with Justice?"

His eyes twinkled again and this time the smile was one full of secrets.
Mabye Her Justice would be found after all.

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TBC
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I know i used justice a lot in this chapter but i think im going to make that the theme of Maggie's search. Its more fitting than revenge after all, and the two aren't all that different. (Jello is also a dish best served cold.)

Thanks again to all who reviewed.

Tajuki Soupofthedaysara

WeaslyTwinsLover112 RiddleStar

You guys kick all ass.