Author's Note: I don't own anything Harry Potter related. It all belongs to JK Rowling.
Pronouns will follow character usage.
The Great Hall was in sheer pandemonium. Students were gossiping to each other, teachers holding conferences with other teachers, and today's owls started delivering the day's mail. This is all to say, no one noticed that the mystery witch Isolt Peverell had left her chair, right in the middle of the Great Hall.
Susan Bones was furiously scribbling in her journal. As the niece of the current Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, colloquially the DMLE, she had been trained to keep an eye out for anything that might grab her aunt's attention, and hoo boy had she seen something her aunt might be interested in. Susan wrote quick, neat notes, summarizing what had just happened in her journal that was linked to the one her aunt had, safe and secure in her desk drawer in Bones Manor. No one but Susan it seems had even paid attention to the fact that this powerful witch was wearing conjured pajamas, slippers, and an apron, as the sheer weight of her magic was only the second most fascinating thing that they had seen, the first being the verbal thrashing the headmaster had received.
But she wasn't the only one scribbling magical notes to a relative. Draco Malfoy, two tables away at the Slytherin table, was also writing fastidious notes for his father. 'With any luck, my father may know more about this Isolt Peverell.' He gave his note to the owl, glaring at it as the beast seemed to want something from him, before it finally took off with an angry hoot. 'Like I'd ever give a beast a hand out. Tch.'
Daphne Greengrass was also scribbling a letter to her father, ensuring him of her safety, and promising to explain what had happened last night.
It took a few minutes, but McGonagall was able to quiet the hall down, reminding the students that even though today was the last day of the school year, and that tomorrow they'd be heading back home, that it would be prudent of all to pack up their trunks early, so as not to miss the train back to London.
At the Staff Table, McGonagall turned back to Albus and pointed her finger with no small amount of anger, to the Staff Entrance, indicating that he should get moving to his meeting. Turning back to the Great Hall, she walked to the chair that Isolt Peverell had left and without losing a single step in her stride, picked it up and began her trek to the headmaster's office as well.
Back in the Entrance Hall, the trio of Harry Potter, Sirius Black, and Isolt Peverell had barely begun their flight up the stairs to the first floor when Isolt stopped suddenly, turning around to face the space just near the doors to the Great Hall. 'Fuck. That's where Ron and 'Mione were. I promised to bury them. I hope they don't hate that I bailed on them. That I failed them yet again.' She could feel her Occlumency shields fail, and several tears made their presence known on her face.
Her shoulders dropped, and without a word, she took out her holly wand and waved it over herself, transfiguring her pajamas into plain black robes. Silently, she walked back down the stairs, walking past Sirius and Harry, not even hearing either of them call her name, and she dropped to her knees on the stone floor, placing a hand where Ron had been laid.
"I promise, mate, as much good as my promises mean, that I will honor you." Moving her hand to where Hermione had been, "And you too. I'll never forget either of you, or your friendship. May you both rest in peace."
Sirius and Harry watched Isolt just stop in her tracks, turn, and start crying. They watched as she pulled out a holly wand, which caused Harry to pat his in panic, momentarily forgetting that she was him from the future, and transfigure her clothes into plain black robes. Elegant, yes, but plain. Then she just walked past them both, ignoring their questioning, only for her to drop on the ground just ten feet from the Great Hall doors. She stayed like that for several minutes before Sirius walked up to her, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.
Harry couldn't hear what he said, but whatever it was, it was enough to get the witch to stand back up, her face its usual neutral demeanor, and she nodded at the both of them, before continuing back up the stairs.
"So, his office is on the third floor, yeah?" Her voice was sudden, and Harry was startled from his thoughts as she spoke.
"Yes, not too far from the grand staircase. It's got the stone gargoyle out front."
"Any idea what the password is?" Sirius asked. "Last time I was here I didn't really ask for a password for where I was going." The group all laughed, remembering that Sirius had slashed the Fat Lady's portrait to get her to get out of his way.
"Yeah, I don't think cutting a gargoyle is gonna get us in, Padfoot. But lucky for us, I do know the password." Harry laughed.
As the group made their way up the stairs to the third floor, Isolt called out, "Harry, I'd like to apologize. I didn't intend for your history with the Dursley's to come out. I'm sincerely sorry."
Sighing, Harry ran a hand through his hair, before turning to look at her. "It's fine, really. I didn't really want it to come out, but hopefully something good comes of all this. At least, now they know I'm not some stuck-up spoiled ponce like Malfoy."
The group finished their trek to the third floor, walking about forty feet down the hallway and turning right at the first intersection. On the left wall was a statue of a gargoyle, which Harry walked up to and gave the password, "Habberdash."
"Harry, before we go in there, just know that I will always have your back, and that I will probably be revealing some information that will seem fairly shocking."
"Well, can't say I don't expect that. Not after our talk last night and the Great Hall this morning. I'm glad that you and Sirius are here though."
"Of course, pup! Hopefully we can get the headmaster to agree to have you spend the summer at Grimmauld Place with Isolt and I!"
"Woah woah woah. Hold up. When did we talk about me staying at Grimmauld Place, Sirius?" asked Isolt.
"Well, we didn't. I asked this morning, but you didn't answer. But I also figure you don't have a place to stay at the moment, so I hope you don't mind." The older wizard replied, with a cheeky grin on his face.
"Take this as a lesson, Harry: never trust the grin of a Marauder." Isolt glanced at Harry, a small smirk on his face. "But yes, Sirius, I'd love to stay with you. I'll make sure to earn my keep."
"No need to do – " Sirius started.
"Of course there is. I saw how you eyed my cooking this morning. Plus, I never got to live with my godfather, I figure why not do it this time around. Oh, and Harry, you're not going back to the Dursley's, whether or not Albus too-many-names Dumbledore gives his permission."
The group chuckled, before making their way up the spiral stone staircase, before coming to a wooden door, seven feet tall, with a brass knocker on it.
Isolt quickly grabbed the knocker, and gave it a couple of knocks, before turning to the group. "Always wanted to do that. Damn door always just opened for me, before I could touch the knocker."
The door opened, and inside the foyer to the office could be seen Severus Snape, Albus Dumbledore, and Minerva McGonagall.
"Ah, Ms. Peverell, Mr. Black, and Mr. Potter. Thank you for meeting with me. I trust you know Professors McGonagall and Snape?" Albus exclaimed in his grandfatherly tone.
"Yes, yes, I know of them," Isolt addressed the headmaster, before turning to the two professors and introducing herself, "My name is Isolt Peverell, last of the Peverell's, as far as I know, that is. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."
Snape just glowered at Isolt, before turning to Sirius and glaring at both him and Harry. "Ah yes. And pray tell, Ms. Peverell, how did you come to Britain."
Isolt thought for a moment, before snapping her fingers. The six people in the room could feel a thrum of magic surround them before she turned to the potions master.
"Well, magic, of course!" She met his gaze with her own, and after a brief moment, the potions master could be seen wincing in pain. Albus turned to him, but before he could say anything, Isolt cut the connection off, forcefully, as she wasn't the one who had established the Legilimency connection.
"I would advise if you didn't try to force your way into my mind, Severus. I know many of your secrets, it'd be a shame if everyone were to know that you had an unrequited schoolboy crush on Lily Evans. Oh, oops." Isolt smirked as Severus's face had a look of pure shock on it.
"How did you know?" the potions master all but demanded, the veins in his face threatening to burst from his face.
"Well, to be honest, I was acquaintances of the late Lord and Lady Potter before they died, and she told me herself. Told me she was glad she never dated you, as you ended up a right bastard. And look, she was right."
At this, the rest of the group, who had been watching this verbal back and forth, was mixed in their reaction. Dumbledore winced, as this was knowledge that he didn't want to get out. Harry was slightly in shock, though he seemed to be putting several puzzle pieces together. McGonagall and Sirius both had massive smirks on their face.
"Ms. Peverell, allow me to move the discussion to what I invited you up here for. How did you know about Sirius's lack of trial?" Albus said, trying to diffuse the situation before it blew up even further.
"Well, as I said before, magic! I mean, it's kinda a no-brainer, to be honest. Everyone knew that Sirius was Harry's oath-sworn godfather, which, if you don't know, requires the godparent to basically swear to never harm or bring harm to the family of the godchild. And that kind of oath is hard to break. If he did, he'd be dead, not in a cell in Azkaban."
"Ms. Peverell, are you claiming that the entirety of Magical Britain just assumed his guilt because they didn't think?" McGonagall exclaimed.
"Why, yes. Yes I am." The smirk in Isolt's voice could be felt by everyone.
"Ms. Peverell, how did you know about the horcrux in Harry's scar?" Dumbledore asked.
"I forget how little common sense there is in this country. It's a magical scar since it doesn't heal, he gets migraines and visions, but only from the Dark Lord? C'mon people. I know horcruxes aren't common knowledge, thank Merlin for that, but it's obvious there's a link. Additionally, the only way, that I know of at least, for someone to come back from the dead is if their soul is still anchored to this world. Put two and two together, voila: horcrux in his head. There are probably more out there too."
The room looked stunned. With just a few lines of logic, Isolt Peverell had shattered everyone's belief in the so-called 'logic' of the wizarding world, at least in Britain, while also enlightening the entire room about several pieces of information that Dumbledore had been looking to keep secret.
"Isolt, how did you come to know of horcruxes?" Dumbledore asked before adding, "Surely you're not Dark, are you?"
"That I won't tell you. But no, I'm not Dark. Or Light. I see Magic as it is: ever changing, constantly in flux. I defend my loved ones, I kill my attackers, it's as simple as that."
"Harry, I would like to show them something, but it's going to require your consent. It most likely would hurt, but it would be helpful in your future, and for your health." Isolt twitched her fingers again, sending a wave of magic over her elder wand, it wouldn't do for this wand to be recognized, at least not yet.
"Uh, sure. What are you gonna do?" replied the teenaged wizard.
"I'm going to remove the horcrux from your scar."
Harry looked at her, with hope in his eyes and fear in his heart. He could be free of the pain, the torment, the nightmares. But what if she couldn't do it? What if she let him down like just about every other adult in his life had done before? He had to hope. She had power, and hadn't lied to him yet. Yes, he would trust her. After all, they were the same person.
"I consent. Please, Isolt, get this thing outta me."
Internally, Albus was panicking. This witch was claiming she could remove the very thing that Dumbledore was looking to weaponize against Tom Riddle. This would not do. He needed to stop her, but attacking her in front of everyone would not be the wisest course of action.
Dumbledore gasped. "Ms. Peverell, surely you know that you can't do that. This situation itself is highly unusual, as no record of living containers exists! You're unnecessarily putting Mr. Potter's life in danger!"
"What? Nonsense. Watch." She pulled out her elder wand, though everyone else saw a birch wand, and placed it against Harry's scar. Without even a chant, she twisted the wand, and pulled, as if pulling a memory out of one's temple, and a black ooze came with her wand. Once it was all out, Isolt twisted the wand in a counter-clockwise circle, muttering something under her breath, and the ooze just disappeared. She put her disguised wand away, before turning back to Dumbledore, noting with no small amount of glee that he looked absolutely pissed off.
"See? Told you it wouldn't be hard. How do you feel, Harry?" She gave Dumbledore a smirk.
"I feel, lighter? Like a weight in my mind has been removed!" Harry exclaimed, in awe of how powerful Isolt was.
Laughing, Isolt ruffled his hair. "Ah, don't bounce off the walls too much. We should probably visit Madam Pomfrey on our way out, just to make sure."
"Ms. Peverell, do you realize what you've just done!" Albus shouted, surprising everyone in the room.
"Uh, yeah. Saved a teenager from two idiotic self-proclaimed lords. Duh. Are we done here? Harry, Sirius, and I need to go check in with Pomfrey and take Harry home."
"Home? He's going to the Dursley's! And what's this about two self-proclaimed lords?!" Albus raged.
'Pushing his buttons is almost too easy. Man, I wish I had this courage back in my time. Granted, I didn't have the power I do now, but still. Would've made things a lot simpler.' Isolt thought.
"Albus! Surely you don't mean to send Harry back to the Dursley's! They've treated him horrendously!" Minerva shouted.
Albus, for all his posturing, did have enough sense to at least glance down at his feet when being scolded by his closest friend. But before he could respond, the current bane of his existence spoke up.
"Yes, two lords: you and Tom Riddle. And no, Minerva, I will not allow Harry to go back to the Dursley's." She spat out their name as if the name itself was the foulest thing to have in her mouth. "Harry will be coming with me and his godfather. You don't have any say over it anymore. Not since Samhain of last year. Or did you forget?"
"Uh, Isolt, what do you mean by Samhain of last year?" Harry asked curiously.
"The tournament last year. Once the Goblet of Fire claimed you as a competitor in the Triwizard Tournament, the magical contract emancipated you, since the tournament was for 'of-age' wixen only. Dumbledore neglected to tell you I presume so he didn't lose control over you. But it has a little side effect of you being emancipated, meaning you no longer need a magical guardian."
"Oh. And what's Samhain?"
"The simple version? It's the wixen version of Halloween. Tell you more later, or you could read it about it in the Black Family Library. Anyway," turning back to Dumbledore and Snape, Isolt glared at the two, "neither of you two are to bother him this summer. And Snape, stop with your grudge. Harry isn't his father. And before you claim that he's arrogant like James or whatever, just remember, I know a lot more about you, than you do me. Like how you would jerk off on a magical picture of Lily Evans. Oh, oops, did I spill another secret? I really must get better at that." Isolt said, while glaring daggers at Snape, who just recoiled in fear.
"Minnie, Snivellus, headmaster, is that all?" Sirius added in, finally deciding to add in to the conversation, having just enjoyed watching Albus and Snape get put in their place multiple times.
"There is one thing, Mr. Black," the Deputy Headmistress sighed, pointing her finger at a corner of the room. "That there is the chair that Ms. Peverell brought with you all this morning."
"Oh. Thank you, Minnie! I'd forgotten about that!" Exclaimed Sirius.
"I reckon I should take down the privacy charm then, since we're done here." Isolt stated, with a matter-of-fact tone, snapping her fingers, causing the low thrumming they had felt earlier to dissipate.
Albus and Severus were mad. All of their plans, their scheming, and this witch had just come in and undone years of work. But neither of them could stop this Isolt Peverell from doing what she wanted, especially since every point she brought up was logical, verifiable, and she had the power to back it up. Instead, they just watched as the trio, plus Minerva McGonagall, left the headmaster's office.
It seemed a change was coming to Magical Britain, whether the people wanted it or not.
The group was silent as they made their way to the Hospital Wing, Minerva having promised to drop by during the summer to hand deliver Harry's school supply list for his sixth year, before she left to go to her office, muttering about grading end-of-year essays.
Before they entered, Isolt stopped both Harry and Sirius. "Look, a lot happened up there, and I'll be glad to answer any of your questions back at Grimmauld Place, but not here." They both nodded, understanding that both privacy and security were the main concern whilst in the halls of Hogwarts.
"Also, I can't enter the Hospital Wing. Too many memories. Harry, feel free to ask Pomfrey about what we talked about, okay. And Sirius, make sure that Pomfrey checks for traces of living Dark magic in his scar. I'm going to stay out here."
Sirius and Harry looked at each other, before grinning. Walking up to Isolt, they both put a hand on her shoulder, giving her a gentle smile, before they walked into the infamous 'Domain of Pomfrey'.