Author's Note:

Hello dear readers! It's been a hot minute, and I wanted to let you know that I sincerely appreciate every single one of you that's following this story! It's still mind-boggling to me, so thank you! :)

Life has been a bit hectic since I got engaged in January, right after I posted the last chapter, but wedding planning has calmed down a bit, so hopefully I'll be able to get back to at least a monthly update. I'm SO excited about the rest of the story and I can't wait to see what you all think!

Review shout-out: Justforloveknows, lost in details, Guest, ColdOnePaul, amk41196, and HispanicAlaskan!

To the Guest reviewer: Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts! It was incredible to hear that I got you to like Snape, lol

Thank you all so much for letting me hear your thoughts about the story! :)

I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters or anything else resembling what J.K Rowling introduced us all to. Just the plot and OC are mine.


Previously, on Love Knows No Bounds:

Ava and the gang have returned from winter break and she's discovered that she's got a bit of elemental magic to deal with now on top of everything else. Since she's started training with Moody, she discussed it with him briefly and explained her soulmate situation as well. Moody seems to be the only one taking Ava's odd magical abilities seriously, and he trusts her explicitly, swearing an Oath as soon as she asked for one. Something fun that Ava's learning from Moody is how to detect magic being cast around her in hopes of not letting James and Sirius get the drop on her with their retaliation prank. Severus celebrated his birthday! There's also an upcoming Order meeting ;)


Chapter 58

Avalynn woke the morning after her second training session with Moody full of aches and pains. Her muscles protested even the slightest movement, but she shrugged it off, assuming they'd loosen up throughout the day. Granted, she wasn't as dead on her feet as she had been after the first meeting with the Auror, but still. The growly wizard had certainly put her through the ringer last night.

As she got dressed for the day, Ava smiled to herself, proud of the fact that she had progressed enough to impress Moody. Despite how physically exhausting their sessions were turning out to be, she wouldn't change it for anything in the world. I'm lucky he's even giving me the time of day. And Ava didn't think it was possible to be overprepared for the impending escalation of war from Voldemort and the Death Eaters.

Not to mention, the prank from the boys. She rolled her eyes and double checked that her schoolbag was all packed up. Hopefully, the practice with Moody will help with whatever those two have planned.

Aunt Minerva had already left for the Great Hall, so Ava swung open the door to their quarters, intent on heading there herself.

Remus stood just outside the entrance, arms crossed, eyebrow quirked.

She grimaced, knowing that her emotional turmoil last night during her meeting with Moody was likely to be felt across their soulmate bond. Ava didn't relish explaining it all to Remus—especially the part where she told the Auror about her soulmate being a werewolf.

He reached out and pulled her in for a quick kiss. "Care to tell me what happened last night?"

Ava relaxed minutely in his hold, breathing in his familiar scent. "You sure you want to know?" she mumbled against his chest.

Remus stepped back and laced their fingers. Frowning, he said, "Of course I do."

She nodded. Of course he does. Because he's caring and wonderful, and I've spilled his secret to someone without his permission. The thought hadn't occurred to Ava in the heat of the moment with Moody asking questions about her magic, but as she was getting ready for bed, it dawned on her that Remus might be upset with her once he found out. And he'd have every right to be, she reminded herself before casting Muffliato to surround them.

Ava tugged him down the corridor, towards the Great Hall, but kept their pace slow. She took a deep breath, fingers crossed that Remus wouldn't be too angry with her. "Well, my training with Moody took a turn while he was teaching me how to detect magic." She launched into a retelling of the night's events and noticed Remus's fingers tighten around hers when she got to the part about revealing their soulmate bond to Moody.

"Are you sure that was wise?" he asked hesitantly.

"I had him take an Oath, remember?"

Remus let out a breath. "Yeah." He nodded. "Yeah. Okay."

Ava pressed her lips together. "I also told him that you're a werewolf."

He froze, halting their steps.

She quickly continued, "I'm really sorry, but I told him how we both transform and aren't a threat to anyone since we keep our human minds, and how you've never hurt anyone. And he didn't care." Ava frowned. "Well, he cared that Greyback bit you, but—"

Remus sucked in a breath and gripped her fingers tighter.

"But it's not a big deal. I'm sorry I told him though, but he wasn't angry or anything like that."

A deep frown marred his face. "Are you positive? I can't imagine an Auror would allow a mons—"

She growled at his choice of words.

"—a person like me to keep attending school where loads of people are inherently at risk every month."

Ava clenched her jaw. Every time they took a few steps forward with Remus's self-esteem, there was always something to pull him right back. "Look, Remus Lupin," she said, poking his chest. "Those kinds of thoughts are bullshit and you need to remember that. Moony isn't some terrible creature that plagues the earth with his existence."

She cupped his cheek. "He's a sweet, protective wolf who I love very, very much. If you can't accept that, then maybe he and I will run away together and butt you out of this relationship."

Remus cracked a smile.

"Moody didn't even bring up the fact that you're a werewolf anyway. I really don't think he's worried about it. He's more concerned with Greyback. If he's not worried about you, there's absolutely no reason for you to be. It's not like he's going to swoop in and drag you off to Azkaban." Her magic bristled at just the thought.

Remus gulped and ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Yeah, I suppose that true."

Ava pecked a kiss on his lips. "And even if that did happen, do you honestly think I'd let him get away with it? You're mine, mate. Forever." A pleasant warmth spread from her chest to their joined hands in agreement, mingling with his magic.

Lifting her hand to place a kiss on the back of it, Remus gave her a wide grin, eyes flashing amber. "I wouldn't have it any other way." His voice had taken on that sexy, gravelly tone that always got her all worked up.

Desire and need rushed through Ava's veins, shooting across their bond, causing Remus to groan.

"We can't. Not now," he said with a shake of his head."We have to get to breakfast. And we have classes."

"I know." She shifted on her feet, rubbing her thighs together. "We will have alone time this weekend, I swear it."

He inhaled deeply and shuddered before laying his forehead down on her shoulder. "You smell so good."

Ava laughed and patted the back of his head. "I know. I'm sorry. I'll try to rein it in."

Even though she was just teasing, she thought it might be a good opportunity to try using Occlumency to tuck away her feelings like Moody suggested. Ava drew in a slow breath and imagined burying the part of her that wanted to jump Remus's bones right in the corridor. She dug into the ground and visualized trees sprouting above it, keeping those feelings hidden deep beneath their roots.

Remus quickly pulled away from her. "What did you do?"

"I used Occlumency to box up my horniness." She waggled her eyebrows.

He frowned. "I don't like it. Our bond feels…weird when you do that."

"I need to practice anyway," she said with a shrug. "And I didn't completely close off the bond. I think you'll survive not being able to tell how turned on I am." She gestured towards the staircase that would lead them to the Great Hall.

"Why do you need to practice?" he asked, walking hand in hand with Ava.

"Moody mentioned that Occlumency might help with my little magical outbursts since they seem to be caused by my emotions getting out of hand." That makes me sound like a child.

Remus chuckled. "Don't pout, love. I'm sure it's just because you're learning magic later than most. It'll work itself out."

She huffed. "I hope so. Moody said I could be getting a sort of magical boost from our bond."

Nodding, he said, "That could be true. Our bond is why you transform too and how we both heal faster afterwards." He grinned and pressed a kiss to her temple. "It's gotten so much better since you've been there."

She smiled. "The full moon is next week, right?"

"Yep. Moony is dying to play with your wolf, love. You better watch out." He tickled her side.

Ava kept grinning at the werewolf. This is the kind of attitude he should have about himself all the time.


Blowing a stray hair out of her face, Ava groaned internally, wanting to slam her head onto the table that the Order of the Phoenix sat around. The meeting was utterly boring thus far and she couldn't help but feel like her time was being wasted. It wasn't as though she wanted to be in on the action of the skirmishes with Death Eaters, but the discussions could at least be efficient for fuck's sake. It reminded her of work meetings that really should've just been an email.

She caught Fabian's gaze from across the table.

He gave her a subtle exasperated look, clearly also done with the inane musings of Order members that were going in circles.

Ava bit her lip to keep from laughing.

Fabian's eyes flashed and he perked up in his seat.

Oh no. She had already forgotten to stay mad at the obnoxious wizard after their last encounter, and here she was, adding fuel to the fire. That boy is too determined for his own good. She was going to hex him if he didn't quit. Ava wondered if telling him she had a soulmate would make him back off.

Not wanting to give the Prewett twin any more attention than she already had, she casually glanced down the table in an attempt to discreetly observe those around her. This was only her second Order meeting after all, and she wanted to familiarize herself with the other members.

Though she had prior knowledge of the couple, Ava found her eyes drifting towards Molly and Arthur Weasley. They hadn't been able to find a sitter for the kids, so Arthur was currently distracting a one-year-old Percy with a toy towards the back of the room. Bill and Charlie, seven and five years old, respectively, had been left to play in a warded room down the hall with monitoring spells that would alert the parents if anything was amiss.

Three kids is more than enough for me, she thought, knowing that the Weasleys had four more on the way. Two of which currently resided in Molly's seriously pregnant body. The older witch still had a little less than three months to go if the original timeline stayed the same, but it looked as though she could give birth next week. The twins must be HUGE. Ava shuddered. Sure, she wanted kids some day, but she wasn't looking forward to the actual birthing process. She just prayed she'd have one baby at a time.

Her stomach grumbled, prompting an immediate craving of the chocolate peanut butter cake she had made for Severus. She could've sworn that he was eating something just like that for dessert earlier in the Great Hall. In an effort to distract herself from hunger pains and to have a momentary reprieve from the politics of behind-the-scenes power plays between the Order and the Death Eaters, Ava excused herself to go to the bathroom, trying to hide a grimace of pain as Moody caught her eye.

She kept moving, refusing to let the Auror know how affected she was by their training sessions. Working on extending her magical core caused Ava's abs, chest, back, and even arms to feel like they got stomped on for hours on end, and then all the dueling gave her legs quite the workout. But she wanted to keep practicing with Moody, and he wouldn't want to if she came off as some sort of delicate flower.

As she walked down the hall, Ava considered the busy weekend ahead. Tomorrow morning was Benedict's surprise flying lesson with James and Sirius, then a lunch date with Remus in the Room of Requirement, some girl time with Lily, and then she was to join Severus and Regulus with Aunt Minerva to discuss Animagus training. And that was just Saturday. She took a deep breath. I'll have plenty of time to catch up on homework Sunday if I have to. It'll be fine.

After using the bathroom, Ava was heading back towards the meeting when a crash and shout sounded from behind a closed door. She peered up and down the hall, realizing that the commotion was coming from the room that Bill and Charlie were supposed to be in. To be safe, she pulled out her wand, holding it up in front of her as she stepped towards the door. Just as she reached for the handle, the door cracked open a few inches, causing her to startle.

Two little redheads poked out.

She relaxed, lowering her wand.

Upon seeing Ava in front of the door, Bill, she assumed based on his height, muttered a worried, "Uh oh."

Charlie let out a yelp and ducked behind his brother.

"Are you both alright? Is anything wrong?" she asked, crouching down to their eye-level and clenching her jaw as her sore muscles made their presence known.

Charlie peeked out his freckled face from behind Bill. "We're bored."

Ava smiled. You and me both kid. "But neither of you are hurt?"

Bill shook his head vigorously, moving an arm behind his back.

A frown scrunched up the younger brother's face. "Are too!"

"Quiet Charlie," Bill hissed.

"But you are!"

Ava scooted a little closer and held out a hand. "Will you let me see please? I know some healing spells."

Bill eyed her warily. "I won't be in trouble?"

"Not at all."

He presented his arm, but thankfully he only had a scratch that wasn't very deep.

Ava healed it quickly with a muttered Episkey, not having known until recently that it would heal all sorts of little injuries. The scratch sealed itself up and disappeared. "There you go," she told him with a smile.

"Thank you. I'm Bill, and this is Charlie."

"You're welcome, and I'm Ava." He's rather polite for a little kid. "So, what are you doing trying to break out of the room?"

Both boys' eyes widened.

"Hey!" Bill exclaimed, glaring at her. "You said we weren't gonna get in trouble."

"Yeah," Charlie added.

Bill shuffled on his feet. "Besides, it was an accident."

"How so?" she asked.

"I didn't really mean to," Bill said, shoulders drooping. "I just kept looking at the door wishing Mum's spells would go away so we could leave and do some exploring."

Ava shook her head with a smile. She was hardly one to reprimand others for a fit of accidental magic. "You're just in an old house, you aren't missing anything too exciting, I promise."

Charlie piped up, "But there could be ghosts or pixies or dragons!" He grinned widely at the last suggestion.

A laugh burst from her. Sounds about right. "I'm sure I would've noticed a dragon lurking about." Ava stood with a quiet groan.

"Our mum makes the same noise when she stands up too," Charlie said.

She rolled her eyes. "Thanks for that." Ava raised an eyebrow at the brothers. "Speaking of your mum, you know she put you in this room to keep you safe while she and your dad are busy, right? You shouldn't be wandering about."

Charlie looked a little frightened whereas Bill glared at her once more.

"You won't tell on us, will you?" Charlie asked in a small voice, ocean blue eyes pleading.

Ava pressed her lips together. The kid was so damn cute. Stupid puppy dog eyes. She sighed. "I'm not going to get you in trouble, but you do need to stay in here until they come and get you." She didn't promise not to tell their parents though. The boys couldn't just be left alone for God knows how long while the Order kept deliberating over how to sway certain Ministry workers to their side. "Will you both stay here until the grown-ups are done talking?"

The little redheads nodded.

"Good. Don't you have toys or something in there?" She jerked her head towards the room behind the brothers.

Charlie sighed. "Yes, but I don't want to play with those toys anymore."

"I assure you, you won't find anything fun to play with out here."

Bill wrapped an arm around his brother's shoulders. "C'mon, Charlie. We'll play a new game." He led the younger boy back into the room.

"You'll stay here?" she asked once again, worried about leaving them alone.

Bill nodded. "Yes Miss Ava, we'll stay," he said in a resigned tone.

She kept herself from laughing at how dramatic the boy sounded. "I'm sure the meeting will be done soon enough. I'll see you boys later. It was nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you," Bill and Charlie replied in unison.

"Bye Miss Ava," Charlie said with a wave.

She grinned and sent him a wave back before softly closing the door. The boys were polite, she'd give them that. As Ava headed back down the corridor towards the Order meeting, it dawned on her that Molly should've been alerted that the wards were down since Bill managed to disable them.

She was about to turn the corner and nearly ran into the mother herself, bouncing a sniffling Percy in her arms. "Mrs. Weasley."

"Call me Molly, dear."

"I was just coming back from the bathroom and heard a loud noise," Ava began.

Molly's eyes widened, darting down to where her children were playing.

She rushed on, "Bill and Charlie are fine. Well, Bill had a little scratch but I healed it. He somehow got the wards down. They were just bored, and I promised I wouldn't get them in trouble." Ava grimaced, looking away from the mother. "I know I can't keep you from yelling at them, but please don't. They were very sweet and polite. Bill said it was an accident and it really seemed to be." She risked a glance at the older witch.

Molly rolled her eyes. "That boy. This is the second time that he's broken through my wards."

Ava couldn't help her smile, remembering that Bill Weasley grew up to be a Curse Breaker. "He must have a knack for dismantling spells."

Returning Ava's grin, Molly said, "Thank you for healing him."

"It's no problem."

Molly shifted Percy on her hip. The youngest Weasley boy was adorable, red hair with a bit of curl sticking up everywhere. Ava's gaze drew back to Molly. Up close, the mother appeared rather exhausted, dark circles under her eyes.

It's only going to get worse once the twins are born. Ava bit her lip, an idea popping in her mind. "Bill and Charlie really were sweet. I wouldn't mind babysitting the boys, Percy too, if you and Arthur ever want some time for yourselves."

Molly's eyebrows shot up. "That's kind of you to offer, dear, but I'm sure you're much too busy with school."

Ava shrugged. True. "Maybe sometimes, but if there's ever a weekend that you'd like some help, just let me know. I'm sure Aunt Minerva wouldn't mind letting me Floo to the Burrow and back, it's an easy trip after all." She'd been trying to put the mother at ease, but something she said must've landed wrong from the frown on Molly's face.

"How'd you know where we live?"

Oh. Faking a smile, she said, "Aunt Minerva or maybe one of the boys must've mentioned it."

Molly nodded, knowing Ava meant the woman's younger brothers. She flashed Ava a genuine smile, hitching Percy up higher on her hip as he played with a small dragon toy. "Fabian is quite taken with you."

Ava couldn't stop the groan from escaping her lips as she looked towards the ceiling.

"Has he been pestering you?" Molly asked, her motherly tone coming out in full force.

"It's just—", she began but stopped herself. Should she really tell Molly the truth?

The older witch peered at her in concern. "You can tell me, dear."

Ava steeled her nerves, though she trusted Molly Weasley, she hadn't gotten an Oath from the older witch, but she wasn't about to pass up this opportunity. Maybe Molly could talk some sense into her brother. "I have a soulmate."

The mother beamed. "That's wonderful!"

"It's not Fabian," she blurted.

Molly laughed. "Of course, dear, that's fine. He'll get over it I'm sure. I'll give him a little talking to and he'll leave you alone. A soulmate, how exciting! They're rather rare, you know."

Ava smiled, Molly's excitement infectious, but then sobered. "Please don't tell anyone other than Fabian if you happen to mention it to him."

The older witch patted Ava's shoulder. "I certainly won't, don't you worry." Molly shifted Percy to her other hip. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to check on my other boys."

She watched the mother coo at her youngest, walking towards the room where Bill and Charlie were, and realized that they'd had a pleasant conversation. Not quite as shrill as I imagined Molly Weasley to be. Though, to be fair, the older witch had been a tad screechy the night Ava was inducted, protesting loudly about her still being a student. But at least it seemed Molly wouldn't be holding it against her.

Ava made her way back towards her empty seat at the front of the meeting table and barely managed to keep in a pained grunt as she sat back down.

Moody stared at her with his usual intense gaze, hands clasped together in front of him, as if waiting for her to confess how sore her entire body was.

She quirked a brow at the Auror, his intimidating tactic not working as well as it would've a couple weeks ago.

They only broke eye contact a couple seconds later because Dumbledore dismissed the group.

Finally, Ava thought, pushing back her chair and standing to join Aunt Minerva and Professor Flitwick. But in her relief to be free of the never-ending meeting, she'd forgotten just how achingly tense her muscles were after settling in her chair, and a little whimper escaped her lips. She stood still for a moment, staring resolutely at the table as the pain subsided, and took a breath, hoping that no one had noticed.

Ever so slightly, she tilted her head up to see if that was the case, but no such luck. Not only was Moody frowning at her, but both Gideon and Fabian were looking at her in concern.

"I'm fine," she said, waving her hand at them and turning away from the table. Before Ava could walk even a couple of steps in the direction of the professors, someone grabbed her elbow, stopping her in place.

"You aren't weak for needing a Pain Potion, lass," Moody grumbled.

Her brows shot up. "How'd you get around the table so quick old man?" she asked, hoping to distract him with the insult. She knew how fast he could move on the dueling mat.

Moody's eyes narrowed and he pulled her out into the corridor and down a ways from everyone that was leaving by Floo or Apparition out the front door. "Why won't you just take a Pain Potion? You've taken the Pepper-Up Potions during our sessions, and you've used Healing spells."

Ava sighed and fiddled with her hands. She whispered, "I'm—I'm not sure it would work. And I don't think it's a good idea to test it out and see."

He raised a thick brow. "Why?" The Auror must've sensed her hesitancy because he cast Muffliato.

She looked down the hall to be sure everyone else was filing out of the meeting room in the opposite direction. "The bond was rather…insistent that Remus and I get together."

Confusion crossed his face.

"I was having magical…episodes, I suppose you'd call them, and I had to take a lot of Pain Potions, extra strength ones, and I built up a tolerance to it."

Moody's eyes widened. "I'm guessing you had some not so nice side affects?"

She nodded.

"How much were you taking?" he asked, voice gruff.

Ava tore away from his penetrating gaze to stare at her feet. "Too much. Severus and I were brewing our own, trying to make it safer and last longer, but in the end, I just needed to complete the bond."

Moody grunted. "So you aren't in pain any longer? From the bond?"

Her head shot up. "Why, Moody, sir, I'd say that almost sounded like concern."

He huffed and rolled his eyes before canceling the privacy spell, choosing not to rebuke her statement.

Ava grinned and looped her arm through his as they walked back down the corridor to join the stragglers in the large meeting room.

Moody grumbled something under his breath when the Prewett twins spotted how cozy they looked together. He pulled away and clapped her on the shoulder roughly before striding away.

She laughed and shook her head. Gotta maintain that badass Auror image somehow.

The Weasleys, along with all three children, approached her, Charlie and Bill's faces lighting up when they noticed her standing there.

"Miss Ava!" Charlie yelled, running towards her and stopping just shy of slamming into her.

"Hi Charlie," she said, grinning at the tiny redhead.

With a quick glance at Molly and Arthur, Ava found them frowning at their youngest, but she was distracted when Charlie thrust something in her direction.

"I told you there were dragons here," he said proudly, showing off the same dragon toy that Percy had been playing with earlier.

She faked a gasp. "Oh, wow!" Ava gritted her teeth to bend down to his eye-level. "How on Earth were you able to capture it? Do you know what kind of dragon it is?"

Charlie nodded enthusiastically. "It's a Swedish Short-Snout, and I caught with my hands. It was flying through the air."

"That's quite impressive."

Bill appeared over Charlie's shoulder, frowning. He leaned in and whispered, "You know it's not a real dragon, right?"

Charlie's eyes darted back and forth between Ava and Bill, a pout forming on his face.

Uh oh. Just as Charlie's lower lip began to tremble, Ava said, "It must've been real since it was flying around the room."

"Actually," Bill started, "Dad cast—"

Ava cut him off. "That was quite brave of you Charlie." She gave Bill a stern look.

The oldest brother rolled his eyes, but relented.

Charlie stood up straighter and flashed a crooked smile.

He really is too cute. Without warning, Charlie launched himself at Ava, still in her crouched position, tackling her to the ground. A breath was forced from her lungs as the weight of a small child sat on her chest. Every fiber of her being was screaming in discomfort. I take it back. The kid's a menace.

"Charlie Weasley!" Molly shrieked, pulling the little boy off of Ava. "I'm so sorry about that, I don't know what's gotten into him."

Ava just laughed. He's a kid. "It's totally fine. No harm done."

Two sets of hands hefted her up from the ground.

"Our little nephew must really like you," Gideon said from her left.

"Not that we can blame him," Fabian added from the right.

Ava rolled her eyes and shrugged out of their grasp. "Thanks." Taking stock of the room, she saw Molly had pulled Charlie aside with Bill and Percy to scold the middle child and some Order members looked on with amusement before returning to their conversations.

Arthur walked up to her. "I apologize for Charlie's behavior, he's never done that before."

"It's fi—what do you mean?" Ava asked with a frown.

The father chuckled, but then ducked his head sheepishly as if remembering that his child had just toppled her over. "He's never been so…forward—"

"Friendly," Gideon added.

"Comfortable," Fabian said at the same time.

Arthur continued, "—with a stranger before."

Ava's heart warmed. "Well, I'm glad to have helped him come out of his shell a bit."

Molly came back over with the boys in tow, and handed off Percy to Arthur, shooing away Charlie and Bill along with their father. With the boys out of ear-shot, Molly looked to Ava and said, "Charlie's usually very shy around strangers, you know. I think it might be good for him to be around people other than just family. Maybe get him more socialized with other adults."

Ava nodded. "Like I said, if you ever want me to babysit, I'm there." She really hadn't planned on adding childcare services to her already full plate, but she doubted the Weasleys would call on her that often. Not to mention, the little boys might brighten up her weekends.

Gideon cleared his throat and said, "We wouldn't mind lending a hand too, that way Ava wouldn't have all three boys on her own."

Molly smiled. "That's very thoughtful."

"Yeah," Ava said. "I'd like that, thanks Gideon."

"Oi," Fabian called out. "Don't forget about me." He smirked at Ava. "I wouldn't mind getting to see this lovely witch more outside of Order meetings."

Molly tsked and began to pull Fabian way, just like she had with Charlie. "I'll owl you, dear," she said to Ava over her shoulder, now dragging Fabian by the ear after he muttered something that was no doubt obnoxious to his sister.

Gideon laughed and shook his head. "I'm sorry about him."

Ava shrugged. "She'll set him straight."

He peered at her with inquisitive eyes.

"Molly just seems like a good mother, is all. I'm sure that extends to her annoying brother as well."

Gideon seemed satisfied with her explanation.

She let out a breath. I've got to stop saying things like that. In actuality, she'd only met the Prewett twins and Weasleys twice. It wouldn't do to appear overtly familiar with their personalities and lives.

"I look forward to our babysitting adventure together Ava," Gideon said with a grin before bidding her a goodnight and heading towards his family.

"That was rather sweet of you," a familiar feminine voice said from behind Ava.

She spun around to see Dorea Potter standing there with a smirk. "Hello."

"Are you finding yourself drawn to children, Ava?" the older witch asked. "Wanting to have some of your own soon?"

Ava choked on her own spit at the suggestion. "No—no," she coughed out, shaking her head. "Not any time soon."

Dorea pouted slightly. "I find myself looking forward to grandchildren," she said, a bit wistfully.

Ava nearly began to laugh, but the comment from Dorea prompted her to recall that the older Potter couple had already passed away when Harry was a baby. Her heart leapt, realizing she didn't know how they died. Was it Dragon Pox? Were they somehow taken out by Voldemort? I think it was Dragon Pox. Well, shit. How do I stop them from getting sick?

Dorea must've noticed Ava's change in demeanor because she gently touched the young witch's shoulder. "Are you alright, dear?"

"Yeah." Her voice cracked and she shook herself. "Yeah," she said, sounding more confident this time. "I was just thinking about if I had a baby right now. Not really the time to, is it?"

With a frown, Dorea said, "No, I guess not." She appeared deflated, but perked right back up. "How's school going?"

Ava rolled her eyes. "It's only been a week since break."

But the mother didn't take that as an answer and soon Ava revealed that she was doing well in classes thus far and had started training with Moody, though the last part was whispered. But glancing around the room, there wasn't anyone left that Ava would really be concerned about knowing that little detail. Not to mention, all the Order members had taken an Oath, so maybe her training would fall under that?

She wasn't given much time to ponder on that question as the remaining dozen or so people filtered out, leaving behind Ava, Dumbledore, and his lieutenants.

It was time to destroy the Horcrux.

Dumbledore removed an object from his robes and enlarged it—the charmed box that Ava used to keep Tom Riddle's diary hidden.

Based on the last time Ava destroyed a Horcrux, she was glad that more experienced people were there to handle it. Though, she supposed, Dumbledore was the only other person in the room to have done so since he took take of the Gaunt Ring. But the others, her aunt, Professor Flitwick, Moody, Edgar Bones, Dedalus Diggle, and Elphias Dodge didn't have experience with that kind of dark magic before.

"Where's the best place to do this, Albus?" Diggle asked.

"Outside," Ava and Dumbledore answered simultaneously.

The adults looked at her with varying degrees of confusion and disbelief, though Aunt Minerva's face showed more concern than anything, likely because she knew of Ava's previous encounter with the diadem Horcrux.

Uncomfortable, Ava plowed through with an explanation. "We're using Basilisk venom, right? It'll eat right through your floor if any drips onto it." She frowned. "I'm not sure if a spell would necessarily be strong enough to prevent that either."

"She's quite right," Professor Flitwick piped up.

"Outside it is then," Diggle said, leading the group out of the room towards the front door.

Stepping out onto the lawn, Ava had to remind herself that the wards around his house prevented any Muggle neighbors from seeing any sort of magical spectacle that could take place. Regardless, Dumbledore set about casting a few more spells.

"What do you know about Horcruxes, Miss McGonagall?" Flitwick asked, walking alongside her out into the yard.

Before she could answer, Bones chimed in, "When Albus told us what Voldemort had done, I didn't believe him at first."

"Yeah, it's a bit disturbing," Ava said.

"A bit?!" Dodge exclaimed.

"He's a dark wizard, Elphias," Moody growled. "What did you expect?"

Dodge huffed, but stayed silent.

Moody and Ava shared a look, the Auror appearing as though he might actually roll his eyes.

She stifled a laugh, but seeing the Headmaster place the charmed box on the ground, Ava made herself focus. She closed her eyes briefly and took a slow, deep breath, reinforcing her Occlumency shields. There was no way in hell she'd let a dark figment of her imagination to appear from the Horcrux in front of the others. Even Moody or Aunt Minerva. There was no telling what would show up.

"It might fight back," she muttered, eyeing the box warily.

"It will?" Moody asked in a low voice from her side.

She hadn't noticed him move closer. "Especially this particular one," she said, thinking of the specter of Tom Riddle appearing in the Chamber of Secrets.

Moody, Aunt Minerva, and Professor Flitwick all drew their wands at her words. The others were a bit slower to react, but did the same. Not that their wands would do anything, she grumbled internally. Ava hadn't bothered removing her own from its holster. The only spell she knew of that would get rid of a Horcrux was Fiendfyre and she certainly didn't know how to cast that.

"I'll attempt to handle this on my own," Dumbledore said, gesturing for everyone to move back. "But if it seems that I need assistance, by all means, act swiftly." He pulled a vial out of his robes, black liquid indicating it was the Basilisk venom.

Ava swallowed, palms sweating as her fingers curled and uncurled. Her eyes darted to the charmed box.

With a flick of the Headmaster's wand, the lid of the box lifted. A wave of dark magic flooded out, sweeping across the lawn, sending an uncontrollable shiver through Ava. The magic washed over her like a oily substance, clinging to her.

Moody grunted from beside her and shifted on his feet. "Can you feel it, lass?"

"Definitely." Ava hazarded a guess that it was because of her training with Moody. The dark magic emanating from the small box was like a beacon, drawing her attention. Her magic had already swarmed to her fingertips on its own, sensing the disturbing presence.

The others stood still, watching Dumbledore, waiting for him to destroy the diary.

"Get rid of it," she ground out, clenching her fists. Her magic was itching to launch a defensive attack towards the mounting danger, regardless of the fact that she wouldn't actually be able to accomplish much against the Horcrux.

Her words spurred the Headmaster into action. He stepped towards the Horcrux and lifted the vial.

Ava had barely noticed that Dumbledore hadn't removed the cork stopper before a shadowy figure emerged from the diary. You've got to be shitting me. She didn't hesitate to leave the other adults at the edge and approach Dumbledore and the Horcrux. Ava sludged her way through the oppressive dark magic just as the black wisps started to take form.

"Open the vial," she snapped, coming to a stop at the old wizard's side. Casting a glance at Dumbledore, she saw that he was slack-jawed, apparently frozen by whoever or whatever the Horcrux had seemed to conjure before him. She risked a look.

Hovering above the diary was the phantom of a witch Ava didn't recognize.

"Ariana?" Dumbledore whispered.

She definitely knew the name though, and she leapt forward when Dumbledore's hand holding the vial of venom started to lower. She snatched it and pulled out the stopper as she moved practically on top of the Horcrux.

The shadow of the Headmaster's dead sister swiveled to look at Ava.

The dark magic became suffocating, making her stomach churn as her skin crawled.

The black wisps swarmed, readying to show a figure just for Ava.

"Fuck off," she whispered, pouring the entire bottle of venom onto the diary.

A piercing shriek ripped through the air as the shadows were sucked back into the Horcrux. The Basilisk venom ate its way through the pages of the diary, leaving a smoking hole behind as the scream of agony died out.

Panting, Ava wiped sweat from her brow but refused to take her eyes off the Horcrux until all signs of Voldemort's soul were gone. None of them spoke, silence echoing around them.

"Thank you," Dumbledore said softly. "I was quite taken aback by the specter. The ring didn't protect itself quite this way."

Since her interference kept the Headmaster from spilling his guts about his sister in front of his lieutenants, she figured she might as well collect an IOU from Dumbledore. Could come in handy, she mused. Ava turned and held his gaze. "You owe me one."

The powerful wizard pressed his lips together, eyes flashing, likely in anger, she thought. But he nodded, accepting her declaration of a debt owed.

She spun away swiftly, hiding her smirk.