Author: opalrose81
Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy or Harry Potter, but I have my fingers crossed that I'll get one of them for my birthday. Buffy belongs to Joss Whedon, while Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Summary: This starts off using the events of season 2, episode 22 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Becoming II). I've changed the ending obviously, but here's the general idea: Angelus never gets his soul back, forcing Buffy to send him to Hell, not Angel. However, he takes her on his little journey. Instead of ending up in Hell, Buffy finds herself in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew, among others, are beginning their seventh year.
Standard Author's Note: See earlier chapters.
Okay, I've got some time to do this, so I'm writing the next chapter (instead of studying). Course, not like I'd study anyway…Kidding! Below are the answers to my "riddle" (and I use the term loosely).
Artemisia-named after one of my favorite artists, Artemisia Gentileschi. She was the first woman accepted into the Academie del Disegno (quite an honor). Personally, I love how she portrayed women as strong and powerful figures.
Morgan-named after Morgan le Fay, considered to be King Arthur's half-sister. Some depict her as a witch, others as a healer.
Elizabeth-named for my favorite female character, Elizabeth Webber, on my favorite soap opera, General Hospital. In my opinion, she's the one of the few characters who seems to live in reality (somewhat), and if you watch soap operas (or in my case, watch and throw things at the television), you might know what I'm saying.
Jason-well, now that I mentioned Elizabeth, Jason should be easy to figure out (if you watch GH, that is). Jason Morgan-what a hottie! I'm a fan of Liason, so I'm just waiting for them to hook up on my screen. I guess I'll just have to settle with them being together in my story, for now.
And did everyone see my mention of Bill Weasley? It's assumed that Bill was either just starting Hogwarts or getting ready to during the Marauders' final year. I've put him as a second year student (and also on the Quidditch team). Anyway, on with the story!
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Sunnydale
Outside in the warm sunlight, the brunette walked alongside her companion. As she continued her diatribe about the 'losers' of Sunnydale High School, Cordelia glanced around, trying to avoid Harmony, at least for now. Her earlier attempt at friendliness hadn't turned out so well. 'The Titanic ended better,' she morosely thought to herself as she caught her breath. Noticing the new girl, who was looking at her with something akin to sympathy and something else, she just couldn't place it. Clearing her head, she continued.
"Buffy Summers. That's when all my troubles started," Cordelia explained as she clutched her side in pain. "When she moved here. Then, she finally got the idea to get gone and that other one decides to pitch her tent here. Faith…ooohhh! Slutty freak-" she cut off, wincing.
Her companion turned to her, "Are you okay?"
"Oh, I just pulled some stitches last night," Cordelia replied. "Know why? Surprise. It was Buff-Faith's fault." Finishing her comment, she looked in the direction of her nemesis-well, one of them.
Following Cordelia's gaze, Anya could see Faith, Willow, and Xander sitting on a bench. Before she could say anything, Harmony, accompanied by her 'squad', interrupted the two teenagers.
"Oh, hey, it's Garbage Girl. Loved the look last night, Cor. Dumpster chic for the dumped," she snickered as she walked smugly away. The rest of her group pushed their way between Cordelia and Anya. Looking at the other girl in sympathy, Anya could easily sense embarrassment coming from Cordelia. Unclasping her pendant, she smiled uncertainly.
"Here. I think you need this more than I do right now," she said as she clasped the pendant around Cordelia's neck.
Smiling gratefully, Cordelia began, "Yeah, I can use some luck. And a stick with pointy, sharp bits. If that Faith wasn't... I swear. She's a pain."
"But Xander, he's an utter loser. Don't you wish-"
"I never would've looked twice at Xander if Buffy hadn't made him marginally cooler by hanging with him," Cordelia interrupted, a look of disgust coming over her features.
"Really," her companion asked, interestedly.
Continuing, Cordelia said determinedly, "Yeah, I swear! I wish Buffy Summers had never come to Sunnydale."
As soon as those words were out of her mouth, Cordelia noticed Anya turn to face her, gasping at her appearance. Her face had changed, wrinkled and raw-looking. 'She needs better moisturizer,' she thought to herself.
In a powerful voice, Anya said, "Done."
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Hogwarts
"Happy Turkey Day," Buffy exclaimed as she took a seat next to Remus for breakfast.
Buffy had woken up this morning from a somewhat peaceful dream. It seemed as time wore on, her dreams were getting better. There was no more waking up almost as soon as she had fallen asleep. The nightmares that had plagued her for weeks, thankfully, had ebbed. Strange, though, was that she couldn't remember the nightmares. She didn't think she could forget being in Hell, but she was turning out to be wrong. When Buffy tried to talk to Professor Dumbledore about it, he had smiled and said that maybe whoever took her out of Hell and brought her to Hogwarts was helping her to forget. Or, at least she thought that was what he said. She had a tendency to space out, especially when someone with authority would speak. If he was right, Buffy could only feign surprise at TPTB for interfering once again. Except, this was a welcome interference.
As she got ready with the other seventh year girls, Lily had mentioned the date, reminding Buffy that it was Thanksgiving. It had always been easy for her to remember the holiday. How could you forget the day before the biggest shopping day of the year? Being in England (or close enough, she would tell herself), Buffy didn't expect any big Thanksgiving celebrations, but she would try her best to honor the day. Brushing out a rather nasty tangle from her hair, she wondered what her friends in Sunnydale were doing. A few days earlier, she had received a letter from Willow and Xander, telling her all the gossip-good and bad. Buffy was worried about her friends, both having gone through very painful breakups and had tried to be sympathetic in her response. She had promised to kill Spike the next time she saw him. And she knew there would be a next time. Included in the letter, though, was a small note from her mother. Her mother had written a loving letter telling Buffy how much she missed her and that she wasn't mad at her. Buffy was never happier to have Giles. Her watcher had explained everything to her, giving her the letter Buffy had written a week or so after writing to the gang the first time. Still, Buffy felt guilty over leaving her mother, even though she wasn't too alone anymore.
It seemed Faith was making progress in Sunnydale. Joyce had taken her in as another daughter (appeasing Buffy's guilt slightly) and the gang had come to accept her as an equal. She could remember the night she read it for the first time. As she read her mother's last lines of love and pride, Buffy realized tears were running down her cheeks. Sirius had sat down next to her earlier and listened as she read the letter aloud, sometime in the middle wrapping his arm around her shoulders in support. As she stepped away from the mirror, she noticed the small piece of parchment lying beside her bed. A small smile graced her features as she remembered what happened after she finished the letter. Curling into Sirius's embrace, she allowed him to comfort her. It was some time later that evening that she smiled at him in gratitude, said her thanks, and kissed him sweetly on the mouth. Looking back at him, she grinned and wished him good night. Ever since then, there had been awkwardness between the two. 'Well, that stops today,' she thought to herself as looked across the table at Sirius.
"Happy what," Peter asked, reaching for more eggs.
Rolling her eyes in mock annoyance Buffy said, "It's Thanksgiving, guys. Turkey Day."
"Buff," James tried to explain slowly, as if she was a child. "We're in Britain. We don't celebrate Thanksgiving here."
Pouting in disappointment, Buffy continued, "Thank you for that, James. I had no clue. Now I know why the Pilgrims left your country in the first place. Being of the American-variety, I still plan on having my holiday fun. Without the turkey. And the stuffing. And the rolls. And the- ya' know, I think I'll just pretend to celebrate Thanksgiving."
Smiling sheepishly as her friends laughed, Buffy took a bite of her breakfast.
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Hogwarts
Almost a week had passed since Buffy had last read a letter from Sunnydale. She knew her mother, as well as Faith and Giles were planning on visiting during Christmas, however she had yet to receive a definitive answer from everyone else. Buffy already knew Cordelia wouldn't be coming, not that she could blame her. Or that she would really miss her-well, maybe a little, but Buffy was scared to imagine what that could mean. As she was thinking about this, completely disregarding her Slayer duties in the meantime, Artemis flew write above her. Landing on her shoulder, the owl nipped at Buffy's cheek playfully and took off in the direction of the Owlery for some much needed rest. Opening the parchment, a smile crept over her face as she read the words. Giving up on her patrolling (not like she found anything anymore), Buffy ran through the hallways and up to Gryffindor Tower.
"They're coming! They're coming for Christmas," she shouted, leaping through the hole. Looking around her at the numerous faces in stunned silence, she blushed and whispered, "Sorry."
Heading to the gang's 'usual place', she plopped down in the empty seat by Peter and propped her feet on top of the table. As her companions stared at her in confusion, Buffy maintained her profuse grin. Sweeping her blonde hair so it fell behind her shoulders, she finally noticed the five other students' expressions.
"What," she asked in confusion.
"I think she's gone mad," James whispered to Remus, who was seated next to him. Remus could only roll his eyes and try his best not to grin. Truth be told, he was starting to doubt the girl's sanity himself.
"Would you stop, James? Let Buffy speak," Lily admonished. She set aside her Divination essay, hoping for a much-needed break.
"Yeah Buff. Speak. Tell us, who's coming? Little green men? People from St. Mungo's to lock you aw- Ow," James retort was cut off by Buffy's punch to his arm. Rubbing the appendage, he grimaced, knowing that there'd be a bruise soon. "Watch it. Can't hurt the star Chaser, now"
Raising her eyebrow, Buffy simply replied, "You're right-handed. Besides, that's what you get when you piss off someone stronger than you. And I was so happy 'cause everybody's coming for Christ-"
"They're coming," Lily asked, uncrossing her legs. The girl couldn't help but feel happy for Buffy, as she would be reunited with her friends from home.
Nodding eagerly, Buffy's grinned became larger, "That's what I've been saying!"
"Everyone?"
"Well…Mom, Giles, Will, Xander, Oz. Oh, and Faith!"
"This is so exciting! I'm staying…Mum, Dad, and Petunia are going on holiday."
"Right. And it's got nothing to do with you wanting to study over the break," James said.
Buffy rolled her eyes. James could be so difficult, sometimes. Continuing, "So it's gonna be you and me, Lil'-"
"Actually, I think I'm gonna stay too," interrupted Sirius. All eyes turned to him.
"But you always go home with me, Padfoot," said James in confusion. Looking in his best friend's eyes, he nodded slightly in understanding. "Have it your way. Mum and Dad'll miss you."
"Hey! It won't be such a bad Christmas, afterall," Buffy exclaimed, smiling with the rest of her friends
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Sunnydale
Giles rushed towards his desk, laying the green pendant down. This small amulet was the demon's source of power. Destroying it would be their world's escape. Frantically searching for something to smash the object with, he soon came upon a marble paperweight. Clutching it in his hand he noticed the female demon lift herself off the floor.
"You trusting fool! How do you know the other world is any better than this," Anyanka asked, her eyes flashing in anger.
"Because it has to be," was his response as he lifted the paperweight and smashed the amulet, despite Anyanka's protest.
In a burst of green light, the amulet shatters into thousands of pieces.
Continuing, Cordelia said determinedly, "Yeah, I swear! I wish Buffy Summers had never come to Sunnydale."
Turning to face Cordelia, Anya said, "Done." After a brief pause, she was stunned when nothing seemed to happen.
"That would be cool! No, wait. I wish Buffy Summers had never been born," Cordelia began again, smiling at the idea.
"Done!"
As Anya looked down at herself in confusion, she did not realize the disappearance of her amulet. Not allowing the frustration to overcome her, she tried to relax.
"And I wish that Xander Harris never again knows the touch of a woman," Cordelia muttered, as she resumed her walk along the high school quad. "And that Willow wakes up tomorrow covered in monkey hair."
"Done," Anya exclaimed, beginning to reach her breaking point.
"In fact, I wish all men except maybe the dumb and the really agreeable kind disappear off the face of the earth. That would be so cool! Or maybe..."
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Hogwarts
"Wow! Two wins for the Gryffs," Buffy whooped as the house began to file into the common room. Tossing her scarf and releasing her hair from its ponytail, she settled herself on the couch. Leaning back into the plush furniture, she sighed contentedly and threw her feet onto the table.
"Whew," muttered Lily as she rubbed her hands together. "It's beginning to get colder. We'll probably have snow shortly." Walking to stand in front of the fire she, she made a desperate attempt to bring some heat back to her hands. Despite the incessant clapping and cheering, she thought she lost circulation shortly after everyone had sat down in the stands.
"That was a great game," said Peter excitedly. He sat on the couch from Buffy, his smile never once leaving his face. As quite as the boy was, he seemed to come alive during a Quidditch match.
"Did you doubt," James asked, as everyone's heads turned sharply in his direction. Accompanied by the rest of the Gryffindor squad, he smiled modestly as his fellow students congratulated him and the rest of the team on the game. As he walked over towards his friends, he managed to escape the group surrounding the rest of the team.
"Hey, Prongs! Can I get your autograph," joked Sirius. Seated next to Buffy, he had his arm draped casually over her shoulders.
"Sure Padfoot. When you're poor, you'll be able to sell it. Yes, I'm always willing to help the little people," James responded, standing tall and proud.
"Careful there, Alfalfa. Ya' don't want your head to get as big as your mouth," responded Buffy, a smirk playing across her lips. By now her companions were used to the various pop culture references she tossed around, not even bothering to question her quips. Their cavalier manner disappointed her. Almost.
"James, it was a really good game," Remus commented. "I'm sure Malfoy was disappointed. Slytherin's worst loss in over decade."
"Why, thank you Moony. I can't take all the credit. No, I must share some of the victory with Jason. Best seeker we've had," James laughed, noticing his teammate approaching him.
Buffy raised an eyebrow in response, "Some being the operative word, right?" They all laughed as their classmate stood next to James.
The blonde young man looked at his captain and smiled, "Hey! It was either win or listen to you complain till the next game. I'm a coward." Grasping his girlfriend, Elizabeth's, hand, he began to drag her off to a more secluded area of the tower to 'celebrate'.
Yelling their goodbyes to the retreating couple, the five smiled. James stretched his arms over his head, grimacing a bit as he remembered the bruise on his shoulder. Courtesy of a bludger sent by Rodolphus Lestrange. Looking at Lily, who so far had remained silent, he walked forward to stand in front of the blazing fire beside her and tilted his head in her direction.
"What are you doing Evans," he questioned playfully. James loved Quidditch. And winning. Winning Quidditch was even better. Of course, he definitely enjoyed the cheers and congratulations from his fellow students. However, he was disappointed over the lack of praise from Lily.
Teeth chattering, Lily attempted to answer, "My hands are frozen, James. What, in Merlin's name, do you think I'm doing?"
"Stop-stop that," he murmured, taking her small hands between his gloved ones. Rubbing them, he looked up at her and smiled, "Better?"
"Yeah," she whispered, looking into his eyes. A smile curled her lips as she continued to stare into his face.
The rest of the group had continued their own conversation, mostly consisting of Sirius giving his rendition of the match. Laughing at his antics, Buffy looked to her side and noticed the more private conversation going on. Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she watched two of her closest friends.
"Oh…you're bleeding," Lily said. Timidly brushing his unruly dark hair aside, she peered at the wound closely. She stepped a little closer to James, her eyes filled with concern.
"Huh," he asked, confused. "Oh. Regulus sorta knocked me before I scored. The third time. No big deal. Doesn't hurt a bit," he tried to explain, reaching his hand up to touch his forehead. However, there was no mistaking the wince of pain at the act.
"Why don't you kiss it and make it better, Lil'," asked Buffy, interrupting. As Remus, Peter, and Sirius looked at their friends in confusion, Buffy could see the hesitation in Lily.
'Why not,' Lily thought to herself as she shifted onto her tiptoes and leaned forward. Pressing a gentle kiss to James's forehead, she could have sworn she heard him sigh. As she returned to stand at her real height, she looked up into his eyes and softly smiled, "Better?"
"Much," was the only reply. As their friends returned to whatever conversation they were having, he leaned down towards the auburn haired girl's ear. "That wasn't so hard was it," he asked as he gently squeezed her hand and smiled.
The other four had looked at each other and smiled knowingly at their friends' blossoming relationship. Quietly applauding herself, Buffy looked at the others smugly. "I'm brilliant," she whispered, the four quietly chuckling from their seated positions.
Bringing her closer to him, Sirius leaned next to her ear and whispered, "Yes, you are." Kissing the side of her head, he noticed the beautiful smile on her face. And he couldn't help smiling in response.
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Sunnydale
The few months Faith had lived in Sunnydale, she had drastically changed. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she had changed. Life had never been all rainbows and sunshine and cute puppies for her. And she was okay with that. Or so she thought. Befriending Willow, Xander, Oz, and, strangely, Cordelia (to a certain extent), was the first step on the road to normalcy. Originally, she wasn't too thrilled with Giles (she had to go to school), but eventually she had warmed up to him. He was cooler than her first watcher…and cuter. Then there was Joyce.
Joyce was wonderful. Kind, understanding, Joyce was 'mother-of-the-year material'. Not like Faith had any previous knowledge on the subject, what with her mother's awful maternal instincts. She instantly warmed up to the woman, however she laid witness to the damage Buffy had caused. Giles had briefed her on the situation and while Faith felt sympathy, she also couldn't stop the feelings of anger towards her sister slayer. She didn't even know the girl, and she wanted to punch her lights out. It wasn't until later, when Buffy began to regularly contact everyone, that her feelings changed. Seeing the excitement on Joyce's face when she received a letter (even though it was freaky seeing mail delivered by owl), Faith couldn't help but warm towards the girl who so desperately wanted to make her mother proud. As such, Faith wanted to make Joyce proud as well. She would protect her, as the woman had done for her.
Which might be sooner, rather than later. Being on the Hellmouth, strange vibes were constantly in the air, but now it seemed to get stronger. Faith couldn't explain the feeling that would linger in her stomach, despite the numerous attempts to do so. She could tell something was coming, she just wasn't sure what.
"Watcha' thinking about," Xander asked, breaking Faith's concentration. Moving aside on the ledge, she allowed him to sit next to her. No sooner had the dark haired young man done so, when Willow claimed the other side.
"Oh. You know me. Nothing," she smiled quickly, tossing her long brown hair over her shoulders. Saying hi to Willow, then Oz, she was pleased to notice Willow's arm looped through the red haired young man's. It was nice to see her friends reconcile, even if it was only part of the group.
As the conversation turned away from their meeting later that night at the Bronze, towards slaying, Xander asked, "So, any more news on the new Watcher front?"
"Nada. The Council said that he, or she, would be here soon. Course, they can't give us any specifics, 'cause, ya' know, we're not important enough," was Faith's reply, her disgust for the Watcher's Council clearly showing.
"It's not fair. Giles should be your Watcher. Now he's unemployed," said Willow.
"Not really, 'cause he'll still be working in the library," Oz reminded, trying to comfort his girlfriend.
Xander looked at the other three, his face serious, "I don't know 'bout you guys, but I just hope the newbie isn't evil. I don't really feel like meeting another Mrs. Post."
"Well, we do live on the Hellmouth. So, the odds aren't really in our favor."
As Faith thought about that, she couldn't help but be relieved about the gang's upcoming trip to visit Buffy. She had a feeling the two of them would soon be working together. In that case, they would need as much time to get to know one another as possible.
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Okay, I've included scenes from The Wish, which was very hard to do. In case you're confused, I'm going to explain the situation somewhat:
With Cordelia's wish, she is transported to another world. Another dimension, almost. With Giles's actions, reality is reversed, specifically to the time of Cordelia's initial wish. With Anya's pendant destroyed, she is unable to grant this wish. Thus what takes place in the 'other world' never comes to pass. And no one remembers the hell they were practically living in earlier. Also, Cordelia is resentful of Buffy because of her recent breakup with Xander. And with Buffy nowhere in sight, she easily takes out her aggression on Faith.
Hope that covers it a bit. If not, don't worry too much about it. Just look at it as a way for me to make Anya a mortal.
Well, that's it for this chapter. With finals coming up, it might be awhile until my next post. Especially since a week ago, I found myself randomly working on the end. Anyway, hope you enjoyed and please review!