September 15th, 1976

"Stop laughing at me," Mia grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. The boy next to her chuckled quietly, shaking his head. "I'm not avoiding them."

"Is that why you've willingly spent all of your time with us?" Regulus asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You guys are great," she denied, refusing to look at him as they walked back to potions class to check on her extra credit.

"You can't avoid him forever, Little Lion," he commented, bumping her arm gently. "What exactly did you say to him?"

She sighed as they entered the empty classroom and moved over to her cauldron, sitting down. "I just told him and Remus something… extremely private. I don't know if they can look at me the same anymore."

"What could you have said to them that would make such a difference?" Regulus asked, gently pulling the ingredients from her hands to get her full attention. "Mia, people flock to you. I highly doubt they'd abandon you, regardless of what you said."

Mia sat quietly for a moment and considered her options for a moment. She knew who she was talking to. If anyone would understand, she thought, it would be him. "Regulus, we're at the beginning of war here."

"Yes."

"And… I've been pretty caught up in it, the past few years," she admitted, avoiding eye contact. "And things got pretty bad, and my friends and I, we had to go on the run. We were being chased and there were a few fights, and…" she breathed out slowly, trying to release the bubble of anxiety in her stomach. "I've killed people, Reg." It was a soft whisper, but he heard it.

He was quiet as he moved from his place across from her to next to her. She felt him shuffling a little bit but didn't look up until he gently placed his fingers under her chin and got her attention again. He'd moved up his sleeve, exposing the Dark Mark to her once more. She reached out gently, settling her fingers on top of it and rubbing gently. "Mia, do you know how we get these?"

"I just thought Voldemort picked you and you got it," she frowned. He shook his head slowly.

"Voldemort picks us, yes, but… there's a process. To get the Mark, we have to kill someone - a muggle or a muggleborn - to prove that we're loyal."

Mia's breath hitched as she got a new understanding of why he hated Voldemort so much. He stared at her wide eyes kindly.

"Does that make me… irredeemable?"

"No," she said, her eyes widening more. She covered the Dark Mark with her hand, squeezing gently. "You regret it."

"Yes, I do."

"You didn't want to." He nodded. "Your mother is the most awful and vile woman I've ever had the displeasure of speaking to."

He frowned. "You've met her?"

She paused, biting the inside of her lip. "Briefly. She managed to call me a plethora of horrible names and threaten me - which was actually funny because she literally couldn't do anything - before we parted ways."

Regulus looked at her closely but said nothing, and she wondered if he really believed her.

Mia sighed as she traced patterns on his arm gently. "So, we've both done things we're not proud of, then." Regulus nodded quietly.

"If they… judge you for what you've done to protect yourself," he said slowly, looking at her close. "Then I'm not sure they deserve to be your friend." Mia shrugged halfheartedly. "But that also means you have to give them the chance to tell you how they feel."

Mia frowned, but she knew he was right. "I know avoiding the problem won't do any good, it's just…" She ran her fingers through her hair. "I didn't mean to tell them in the first place is the thing. I was startled, and coming from looking behind my shoulder constantly, and taking everything as a threat… I was on edge. I guess it kinda sent me back to that place. And…" she shook her head. "I'm just worried-,"

"Mia?" Regulus interrupted, sounding worried. She looked up at him, only to follow his worried gaze. It led her to her hand, the one lying on his arm, which had begun twitching violently again. She'd known the potion was going to wear off soon, but she didn't think it was going to happen yet.

"Fuck," she gasped, pulling the hand away, only for him to grab her wrist gently but tight enough that she couldn't grab it back. With his fingers wrapped around her wrist, he could more easily feel the aggressive shaking that had begun.

"What is this?" he asked, looking the rest of her over. She felt her shoulders begin to shake as well, and she bit her lip painfully as the pain came back to her abruptly. It was always there, of course, but pain potions helped immensely, and that had worn off, too. She didn't answer him, wondering how she could get away to the Room to find more potions, but he interrupted her thoughts, speaking louder this time. "Mia, what's happening?"

"I'm fine," she snapped, twisting her wrist sharply and painfully. Still, he held on, his eyes boring holes into the side of her head.

"You are not fine!" he growled, standing to move in front of her so she was backed against the desk.

"I just- I got hurt, a couple weeks ago, I'm fine. I just need my potions…" she paused, horror written across her face. "I think they're with Sirius." He'd camped out in the Room, waiting for her to return when they weren't in class.

Regulus whipped out his wand and, to Mia's surprise, cast a patronus. A jaguar jumped out of it and walked in circles around them, nudging Mia, his snout disappearing through her to reappear again once he'd moved. "Sirius. Mia is shaking and says she needs potions. Bring them. Potions classroom."

The jaguar ran off, disappearing as it left the room. Mia breathed in deeply, trying to calm herself down. "You can't bring him here!"

"Why?" Regulus asked harshly. "He has what you need."

"Because… I just can't see him," she sighed, shaking her head. She swore softly as she felt the potion wear off completely, leaving her entire body shaking violently. Regulus's lips thinned as he watched her shake. They were quiet for a few long moments while Mia tried to contain the pain. She wrapped her arms around herself and Regulus let her, having let go of her wrist when he moved in front of her. She was sure she wouldn't make it out the door before he caught her if she tried to escape, and she wondered if there was any point anymore. He'd already seen it, and she was certain he wouldn't just let it drop.

"Mia!" Sirius gasped, turning the corner abruptly as he ran into the room. Her head shot up as he stopped short next to them, his eyes taking in her state. "Fuck, Mia, you said you were better!"

She shrugged. "I am, when I take the potions."

"That's not better!" He yelled. "Not after her. It could take you months to heal, and that's only if you do the physical therapy that I told you you needed."

Regulus looked between them before his eyes settled on his brother. "What happened to her?"

"Bellatrix," Sirius snapped the name before she could stop him. "Spent hours torturing her. She doesn't even know how long it really was."

Regulus took in a sharp breath as he turned to her again, but she wouldn't look at either of them.

"Do you have the potions?" she asked quietly, tense from the two brothers next to her.

"Mia, you can only take these for so long," Sirius told her, rubbing a hand across his face. His voice was softer, though he was still obviously upset. "They'll poison you if you keep taking them forever."

"I don't see another choice," she said stiffly. Sirius sighed, grabbing two potions from his robes and handing them to her.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Regulus asked, his eyes boring into her. She shifted uncomfortably.

"It's not really polite conversation," she shrugged. "'Hey Reg, how are you? By the way, your deranged cousin tried to torture me to death, but hey, at least I didn't tell her what she wanted.'"

Regulus stared at her. "She tortured you for hours and you never gave in?"

She shrugged. "It was… too important. I'd rather have died. I still would."

The Slytherin paused, and she could see him thinking about something before his eyes fell on her arm. "Did she give you that scar?"

She stiffened. "Yes."

"You showed him?" Sirius's eyes widened. She shook her head slowly.

"Just… just a little bit." She hated this conversation. She hated feeling so weak here. She was already at a disadvantage, being out of her time, not to mention emotionally. And now they were just openly talking about one of the most traumatic days of her life.

"Why?" Regulus looked between them. "It's just a scar, isn't it?"

Sirius's eyes flashed darkly. "No."

"Sirius," she begged. "Please, stop."

"You trust him," Sirius told her. "Do you trust him with this?"

She shook her head. "It's not about trust, Sirius! You saw it. Do you think I like people seeing that weakness on me?"

Sirius froze. "The scar, or what it means?"

"What is it?" Regulus asked, frustrated. Mia looked between them a few times, seeing Sirius's frustration and fear, and the same emotions on his younger brother. She wondered briefly on why they cared so much about her when she'd only been there a few days, but set the thought aside for later. She had a crisis enough right now.

She locked eyes with Regulus as she slowly pushed up the sleeve on her robes and shirt, revealing the dark, scarred skin. Her stomach flipped as his eyes left hers and settled on her arm.

He didn't scream, or curse, or throw spells everywhere. She just saw, for the first time, the family insanity flash dangerously through his eyes. His lips thinned into a line as he stared for longer than she felt comfortable at the horrible word scratched into her skin.

"It was a cursed blade," she whispered. "They couldn't heal it anymore. It can't be covered up." She felt a humorless laugh bubble up in her chest. "I don't cover any of my scars - I don't mind them - but when I find one I want to cover, I can't."

Regulus reached over gently, the same furious, unstable look in his eyes, and settled his fingers on her arm in the same way she'd done with his Dark Mark. "The scar, or what it means?"

She blinked, confused. "What?"

"You didn't answer his question."

She frowned as she understood and considered it. "Both, I guess."

"Mia," Sirius whispered softly. "Being muggleborn isn't a weakness."

"It is right now," she said firmly. She gently shook Regulus's fingers off of her arm and stood up, stepping around the boy. "I need to go back to my dorm. We can… finish the potion tomorrow. Put a stasis spell on it, please."

Before they could argue, she rushed out of the room, hurrying back to her dorm.

Sirius looked at Regulus, suddenly left alone in a room with his brother. "You called for my help."

"She wouldn't have gone to the infirmary," Regulus shrugged, putting the spell on the potion again and gathering the things she'd grabbed from the shelves. "She said you had them."

Sirius shifted uncomfortably, fidgeting with a loose button on his robes. "I was waiting for her so we could talk."

"She told me," his little brother sighed, looking back at him. "She was worried you hate her."

Sirius blinked. "She thinks I hate her?"

Regulus shrugged. "She seems to think you wouldn't be able to understand killing for any reason."

Sirius snorted. "I want to fucking kill Bellatrix. And I would. I don't care about that." He saw the dark look in his brother's eyes at the name. "Why do you care about her so much?"

"Why do you?" Regulus shot back, uncomfortable with the question.

"When she got here, we were leading her back to Gryffindor Tower, and she had a small breakdown," he sighed. "We talked. That night, she told me about Bellatrix, and showed me the scar." He paused. "You took it a lot better than I did. She had to put up a shield around me because I started shooting every spell I know."

"I hope you're not being literal," Regulus snorted. "You know plenty of dark spells that'd get through a shield."

Sirius looked away. "I was. I did. One nicked her, and I stopped." Regulus's eyes flashed darkly, but he didn't defend himself. His temper had gotten out of hand and he'd hurt Mia. He was only lucky that it was simply a spell made to go through shields and not one of the much darker ones, like the one that'd turn her organs to stone. "She was fine."

"Merlin," Regulus sighed, sitting next to his brother. "Who is she? Why does she… matter so much?" He rubbed his forehead. "I can't… Sirius, I've never gotten angry like I did when she showed me that scar."

"I think she has that effect on everyone," Sirius shrugged. "James and Remus already care for her, too."

"She's only been here for a few days," Regulus glanced at Sirius. "And I feel so… protective of her. And beyond that, we're talking… civilly."

"She said she knows better than I do," Sirius rolled his eyes. "And then she told me you're a Death Eater and she's still your friend." With a long look at his brother, he tried for a smile. "She might be right."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

September 16th, 1976

Mia sat in potions the next day and felt three pairs of eyes on her. She'd arrived early and run into Severus Snape. She'd spoken to him for a few minutes, glad for the excuse, and asked if she could sit with him for the day. He'd agreed easily, and she had been working ever since.

The events of the day before weighed heavily on her mind. She knew Regulus had tried to find her later that night, but she'd stayed in her dorm, claiming period cramps to the other girls, and they'd brought her dinner to her so she didn't have to leave. It had actually been very good bonding time with them, and she couldn't help but feel like maybe she'd have some female friends here, too.

She knew avoiding them wasn't going to work forever, but she could damn well try.

She had a free period after potions, though, and she planned on using that to her advantage to get away from them.

Class ended after what felt like an eternity, and she rushed out of the room. She was nearly halfway to the DADA classroom when someone called to her.

"Mia!" James yelled. "Hey, slow down."

"Don't you have History of Magic?" She questioned, not slowing down. She felt him catch up to her easily and resigned herself to whatever conversation he wanted to have.

"Yeah," he shrugged. "I don't care. Binns won't notice I'm gone."

She knew he was right and sighed, stopping to look at him. "What's up? I've got things to do."

"Sirius wants to talk to you."

"I know."

"Yeah, well, Sirius wants to talk to you," he said again, looking slightly apologetic. "And I own an invisibility cloak."

"What?" Her eyes widened. "James-,"

"Hey, kitten," Sirius grinned, pulling off the cloak and handing it back to his friend, who gave her a small smile and took off down the hall, probably afraid of being hexed. "I thought we should talk."

"I disagree," she replied shortly, beginning her escape route to DADA once more.

"Regulus thinks you think I hate you or something," he tried. She turned to look at him, her face tired. "I don't, Mia. I told him and I'll tell you - if I could, I'd kill Bellatrix."

"Sirius," Mia snapped. He shook his head abruptly, cutting her off.

"I'm serious," he promised. "I've seen what she does, I've even felt it once. And she did it to you for hours. She's the worst kind of person."

"I'm sure she'll get what she deserves," Mia shrugged. "We were at war, and someday she'll hurt the wrong person, and it'll get her killed."

Sirius shrugged noncommittally. "Regardless, I don't judge you for having killed."

"That's not… so much why I'm avoiding you," she sighed, rubbing her hair out of her face.

"Then why?"

"Because I don't like feeling weak like that," she admitted. "And too many people know too much about what's happened to me."

"You can trust me with it," he promised softly. "I won't judge you for being weak sometimes."

"I can't be weak ever," she shook her head.

"That's impossible, kitten. You know that."

She shrugged softly, making a small noise of frustration. "I don't know what else I can do."

"Just relax," he offered. "And ask your friends for help when you need it. We'll be there."

She stared at him for a long moment. "I'll try."

"That's all I can ask," he winked, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "Now, where were you headed?"

"To see Professor Prewett," she answered as they walked. "I need his help on something."

"Anything I can help with, kitten?"

"Nope," she replied, shoving his arm away. "Now get to class, I'm sure there's a great goblin war you haven't learned about yet."

He rolled his eyes at her but nodded. "I'll see you later, Mia."

"Bye, Sirius."

She breathed a sigh of relief when he walked off in the other direction. She appreciated his words and she meant what she'd said, but she didn't think she could handle being around him at the moment. Maybe he was doing it for her own good, but he'd still revealed a weak part of her and that was not something he had any right to do. She needed a little space.

She found herself in the empty DADA classroom and moved to the office, knocking as she entered. "Hey, I was wondering if I could talk to you about something."

Fabian looked up at her, a smile sliding onto his face. He set his dark wand on his desk, and his paper and quill slowly fell as well. "Sure, pet. What's up?"

She set herself down in the seat across from him and blew out a long breath. "It's just been… a long couple of days." She shook her head, shoving away the thoughts. "But I found something!"

"What's that?"

She reached under her robes and pulled out the time turner, pulling the chain from her neck and setting it in front of him on the desk. "It's a time turner."

"That's what sent you back here?" he asked, plucking it off the desk gently and turning it over in his hand. The white sand inside shook softly, a soft magical light coming off of it.

"Yep," she nodded, relaxing into the chair. "Fred and I went to the DOM and, er, stole one."

Fabian's eyes shot to her and he grinned. "Gideon said they had to tighten security because someone had broken in."

She shrugged. "I found a spell, but it's dangerous and I don't think anyone but the Unspeakables have mastered it."

"And you want to," Fabian guessed, sighing. He set down the time turner and looked at her. "How did you find it?"

"Um," she frowned. "There's this… room, and I found it in a book in there. It's not important. But what it does is it moves the sands of time," she explained before waving at herself. "We've seen what happens when it actually touches someone, and it said there were issues with just using wingardium leviosa because it would attach itself to a person's core through the spell being cast by the wand - it has to be wandless. Regardless, they created this spell to help them make the time turners. I want to use it to take a sand out, place it in an object, and then charm it to a time and place - a timekey."

He took in the information slowly as he considered the pros and cons. "You said it was dangerous?"

"There were some… explosions," she winced. "But I think that with some supervision, I can do it."

"Supervision," Fabian repeated. "And that would be…?"

"You?" she asked, smiling shyly. He shook his head, smiling back at her.

"Of course, pet. We'll find a good room to work in. Do you know how long it'll take?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. It didn't say anything about that."

"Well, of course I'll help you. Is that the only thing you wanted to talk about?" He raised an eyebrow at her and she shrugged uncomfortably.

"Sirius and I had a… misunderstanding," she rolled her eyes. "I'm just overwhelmed. I can't go back to Gryffindor Tower, because the boys are there, and I can't go back to Slytherin, because Regulus is there-,"

"What happened with Regulus?" Fabian wondered, watching her small crisis.

"Well, he was… sort of involved in the aforementioned misunderstanding."

"Sirius and Regulus Black?" Fabian laughed shortly. "You got them in the same room?"

"Not by choice," she muttered angrily. "Things got out of hand. It was ridiculous."

"Of course you'd be able to accidentally get those two to cooperate."

"Regulus called for him before I could stop him," she pouted. "It wasn't what I wanted." She paused. "How'd you know about their issues?"

Fabian shrugged. "We were in school a few years ago. Sirius pulled a few nasty pranks on his brother. It was fairly obvious they hated each other."

Mia leaned back in the seat, resting her head against the wall. "I don't know why they care so much, Fab. Especially Regulus. I can kinda understand Sirius and Remus and James, you know, because they know. But he cares just as much, maybe more. It's weird, it's like there's just something there, and I am so annoyed because I don't know what it is."

Fabian shrugged. "Just go with it, pet. He's important to you, yes?" She nodded a little. "Then what's the problem?"

She thought for a minute before she realized he had a point. "I guess there is none."

"Good!" He grinned. "So, do you wanna go find a room and get started on the spell?" Mia grinned and stood, picking the time turner up and stepping out of the room with the redhead behind her.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Mia," Regulus blinked as she sat down. They were in the Slytherin common room, which was mostly empty, and she'd placed herself next to him.

"I am… uncomfortable," she said slowly, picking her words carefully. "With feeling weak, and exposed."

"I know," he nodded.

"And yesterday, you and Sirius put me in this position where I felt so out of control," she sighed in frustration. "I don't… mind you guys knowing, okay? I just minded you knowing without my consent."

"What happened yesterday," Regulus said slowly. "Was not supposed to happen. I… saw you like that, well, I recognized the signs. It just didn't make sense because I've been sitting next to you every day in class, and you've been fine. So I was confused, and worried, and Sirius did nothing but make it worse." He paused. "I got… emotional. I apologize."

Mia considered him. She knew it shouldn't be important, but it was bothering her. "Regulus, why do you care about me?"

He paused as someone - Rowle, he thought - passed by them slowly. When he was gone, he leaned a little closer, whispering. "Would you like to know a secret?" Mia nodded, looking at his sharp silver eyes. "I truly don't know."

She sighed, sitting back. "Does it confuse you, as well?"

"Of course," he shrugged. "Like a little… tug." Mia nodded furiously.

"It reminds me vaguely of the way I felt when I met my best friend, but… different," she sighed. "I've never done much research into it because we had bigger problems, but now, I've got time."

"Are we okay?" he asked gently, bumping her shoulder. She nodded a little, smiling.

"Yeah. Of course."

"So you'll sit with me again in potions?" He raised an eyebrow. "Parkinson got shifted next to me. Don't do that to me again, please."

"I dunno," she laughed. "Severus was a great partner."

He stared her down. "If you abandon me again, Potter, I'll drop a fairy wing in your draught of living death."

"Hey!" She smacked his arm. "I've worked hard on that."

"So have I," he replied. "I took care of it while you were pouting."

"I was not pouting."

"There was some pouting, Little Lion."

Mia grumbled, picking herself from the couch and flicking his forehead. He laughed at her as she absolutely did not stomp up to her dorm.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

September 18th, 1976

"Mia," a voice called. She glanced behind her to see Lily Evans catching up to her. She slowed down and smiled at the girl. "Marlene mentioned you. I didn't realize you were in their dorm."

"Yeah," she nodded. "Apparently it's pretty full. She's super sweet, though, and so is Emmaline."

"I was worried about you being in Slytherin," Lily admitted as they reached the Gryffindor common room. Mia had been spending some time there, and no one really seemed to mind. She suspected interference from the Marauders in that respect, but she didn't care as long as they didn't bother her. It felt too much like home to abandon it. "They can be so cruel sometimes, and you're so sweet. But they'll look after you."

Mia dropped herself down on the floor next to Fred. There was some music playing and the room was rather full. There was a great energy in the room that reminded her of her fifth year when the twins were using first years to experiment on their treats. She nudged him gently. "Remind you of your awful treatment of the first years?"

"We paid them!" He replied defensively. She rolled her eyes, turning back to Lily.

"I can hold my own Lily, I promise," she tapped the girl's knee. She'd sat down with them and had pulled out her books to study.

"Yeah," Fred nodded seriously. "She could probably destroy any one of them. She's scary."

"I am not scary!" Mia hissed. Fred and Lily exchanged a glance and she sat back, crossing her arms over her chest. "Shut up."

"Why's she pouting?" James wondered, skipping down the stairs. She glanced up at him and made a face.

"They said I'm scary."

"I've seen you hex Sirius," James laughed. "You're a little scary."

"James!" Mia groaned, rolling her eyes.

"I'm sure he agrees," James grinned. "It took Madame Pomfrey an hour to figure out how to deflate his head."

"What?" Lily asked, glancing between them. "What happened?"

With great reluctance, Mia explained the situation. Lily laughed at her when she explained the hex, and she finished telling her in an annoyed tone.

"So, what you're saying is that I really shouldn't worry about you?" Lily surmised, and Mia shrugged.

"I think I'll be okay. Besides, I've got Regulus looking out for me, and I think Severus has warmed up to me, too." She felt Lily still and looked over. "Lily?"

"Nothing," she shook her head, pressing her quill down on her paper until it broke through.

Mia frowned. "What is it, Lily?"

"He just, he said something awful," Lily shrugged. "We were friends, now we're not."

"I'm sorry," Mia whispered. Lily shrugged again, and despite the loud music in the room, she was sure Lily's quill whisking across the page was the loudest noise in the room.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

September 24th, 1976

"Who taught you potions?" Severus grumbled as they entered their common room. "You know what you're doing, Potter."

Mia choked on her laughter, finding his words cathartic after years of bullying. "He was a very complex man," she assured him softly. He shook his head in frustration.

"Regulus said your professor told you that you were inept," he explained his frustrations, his long black hair sliding in front of his face. He pushed it away gently, tucking it behind his ears. The boy wasn't anything like she'd expected. He didn't resemble the man nearly as much as she'd thought he would. He had a crooked nose and long greasy hair, but she knew that came from his time brewing potions for Slughorn in his freetime. She'd found a charm to help with that, that would act as a sort of invisible, constant hairnet. He'd accepted it grudgingly, and she'd offered it with a smile.

"Regulus has a big mouth," she rolled her eyes. Her friend smirked as they walked through the common room to a large alcove that had a chair and a couch shoved in it with a table.

"I think it's a perfectly normal size," a voice called. She laughed, glancing up at him. He had his bag in his arms and looked slightly ruffled, but happy.

"A big head, then."

"Ah, I'll admit to that."

She chuckled as he sat down next to her, Severus on her other side. She leaned back as Severus brought out his books to work on homework and looked over at Regulus, gently reaching over to flatten his hair a little. "What happened to you?"

He rolled his eyes. "Quidditch game coming up."

Her eyes flashed dangerously. "And?"

"And," he sighed tiredly. "Anything to put the Slytherin Seeker out of commission."

Mia's lips thinned tightly. "Who?"

"Mia-,"

"Regulus, who?"

"Seraphine Burke," he shrugged.

"She's a seventh year!" Mia yelled, her hair sparking with anger. The boys shared a startled look. Severus leaned forward, settling his hand on top of hers.

"He's fine, Sano," he muttered gently. She ignored the use of the nickname - it had been chosen without her there, and both of them had occasionally called her that. Severus had been brought into her plan merely days before, and had been overwhelmingly grateful. He seemed to trust her, though less than Regulus, which was understandable.

"What did she do?" She ignored him, grabbing Regulus's chin gently and turning his face so she could look at him.

"Just threw a fex hexes," Regulus sighed, placing his hand on her arm and gently pushing it down to her lap. He left his on top of hers, for comfort or restraint, she wasn't sure. "I ducked all of them."

"This is disgusting!" She huffed, glaring at nothing in particular. "She can't just… get away with this."

"She didn't actually hurt me, Little Lion."

Mia grumbled quietly to herself, ending the small argument. She did, however, grip his hand tightly in hers.

"Mia," Regulus said softly. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Where'd you learn Occlumency? Your shields are incredible."

She rolled her eyes. He'd still been testing her occasionally, though she wasn't sure why, and she let him, easily pushing back his attacks. "I just read about it and thought I'd try. It's really not that complicated."

He stared at her. "You didn't have anyone to guide you?"

She shrugged. "Is that unusual?" Regulus and Severus shared a look before he simply nodded. "Oh." The conversation ended after that, though she felt Regulus shift his attention to other, odd parts of her shields, and she fought him off just as easily there.

The three of them sat there together for a couple of hours before Mia finally stood and stretched. "I have to get to a meeting with Professor Prewett."

"You've been seeing him a lot," Regulus commented gently. "Is everything okay?"

"Yep," she smiled softly, pulling her hair into a ponytail in preparation. She'd shed her robes and gotten comfortable awhile ago, and she quietly levitated the robes down the stairs and into her dorm. "He's just giving me some private lessons. I asked," she explained. "I've never been as good as everyone else at DADA."

Severus frowned at her, having observed her in class. "I'm not sure who you're measuring yourself against, but you're the best in our year."

She shrugged lightly, winking. "Could always be better, though." With that, the two let her go, and she made her way out of the dungeons slowly. She stopped quickly by the potions classroom again to check on her potions - she'd taken to asking for extra credit and extra potions to learn under the guise of wanting to get better. Really, she wanted to know more about the bases of the subject - something that Snape had barely deigned to teach them.

When she walked out of the room, she knocked straight into another student. She steadied herself, eyes wide. "I am so sorry! I wasn't looking."

The student had grabbed onto the doorframe to stay up and looked her over darkly. He was familiar, she realized with a start, though she couldn't say why. "Potter, isn't it?"

"Mia," she corrected with an uneasy smile. He looked to be about sixth year, and in Slytherin, though she wasn't sure if she'd seen him around. She hadn't truthfully been paying that much attention to the other students in her house, aside from Regulus and Severus and the girls in her dorm.

"Mia," he whispered. His hand fell on her arm and she started at the touch. "Wonderful to meet you."

"And you are?"

He gave her a small, apologetic smile. "Antonin."

Still, the name and the face didn't connect. She couldn't figure it out - couldn't tell why he was so familiar. Internally frustrated, she shifted. "Well, it's nice to meet you, but I've got a meeting to get to."

He nodded silently, and she turned quickly. His hand fell from her arm and… promptly rounded to slap her ass. She gasped loudly, whipping around. Her face flushed and she knew her hair was giving off sparks already.

"Oh, you didn't like that, did you, Potter?" Mia winced at his words. They were predatory, and she did the only thing she could think of. The only thing he wouldn't expect.

She pulled her arm up in the air and swung down hard, a sick appreciation rioting through her at the loud smack as her hand connected with his cheek. She pulled herself away quickly, not willing to let him recover, and ran down the hall to her meeting.

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"What's wrong with him?" Regulus muttered, staring as Dolohov entered the common room raving angrily at his friends, who were across the room.

"Bloody disgusting witch! Who does she think she is? Fucking bitch!" His yelled echoed through the large room. "I will destroy her!"

Some brave soul managed to actually speak and used their precious words not on calming him down, but rather on asking who he wanted to destroy.

"Mia fucking Potter!"

Regulus felt his chest tighten.

What had she done?

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Mia returned to Slytherin common room late into the night with a note from Fabian to save her from the prefects. The exhausted, stressed look on her face turned cautious when she caught sight of Regulus sitting in a chair, obviously waiting for her. "Reg? What're you doing?"

"Mia," he breathed, relief coloring his features. "You're okay."

"Of course I'm okay," she said slowly. "Why?"

"What happened after you left earlier?" She blinked at him, but he waited for her to answer. He looked tired with bags under his eyes and stress keeping him tense.

"I went to the potions room to take care of the regeneration potion and then… then I went to see Fabian." He stared at her darkly and she resisted the urge to fidget. She found it extremely uncomfortable to lie to him. With a sigh, she ran her fingers through her hair. "On the way out of the room, I ran into a student. He said hello, and then slapped my arse on my way out." Regulus stiffened. "I slapped him and left."

"Mia, do you know who it was?"

She shook her head. "He said his name was Antonin."

"Antonin Dolohov," Regulus replied stiffly. "He's possibly the most dangerous and unstable person in school."

Mia felt her breath hitch. "You can't honestly expect me to have done nothing? What he did was sexual assault, regardless of how you stupid wizards think of it. It's despicable and horrible and I was not just going to let him touch me without my consent!"

"Sano!" Regulus stood, moving to her. He pulled her into his arms gently, her messy hair tickling his nose. "I don't expect you to do nothing, of course not. I just… wish you'd be more careful. And you need to be, from now on. I think he's planning something."

"Great," she breathed out heavily. "That's exactly what I needed."

Regulus pulled back but stayed close. The low light of the fire nearby threw shadows over her face and as he stared at her, he felt something tugging at him. It was an almost irresistible tug, but he ignored it, reluctantly stepping back to give them more space. "Please be careful."

"Well he can't do anything, right?" she frowned. "We're in school."

"I'm not sure," Regulus shrugged. "His father is on the board of directors, and he's got a big enough influence that I doubt he'd really get in trouble for anything."

Mia pushed her hair back in frustration. "Great. Okay. I'm sleeping in Gryffindor tonight."

"What?" Regulus blinked, confused. "Why?"

"If I saw him tomorrow morning, do you really think he'd be calm?" She shrugged. "I'm sure they won't mind."

Regulus looked conflicted for a moment before he had an idea. "What about that room?"

"What room?"

"The one you took me to," he shrugged. "It was on the seventh floor. Appeared out of nowhere?"

Mia paused to consider it. "Maybe I should stick to people for a while," she shrugged. "I don't want to sleep in there alone. Maybe if I stay around people and give him some time, he'll forget it."

Regulus highly doubted it, but said nothing. "I'll come with you."

"Reg, you don't have to-,"

"I do," he gave her a small, genuine smile. She considered him for a long moment before agreeing. She pecked his cheek softly and ran down to her dorm to grab a few things. He felt his cheek warm where her lips had touched but forced the thought away as she found her place by his side. The pair of them made their way to the room and entered quietly, surprised to find it already in use.

"Sirius?" Mia blinked. "James? Fred? What are you doing here?"

The group looked up at her in surprise, and then Sirius's eyes fell on Regulus. "What the hell is he doing here? With you? Now? Here with you, now?"

Mia blinked. "I can't stay in Slytherin tonight, so I came here, and he came with just in case."

"In case what?" Sirius frowned, looking between them. His brother still looked utterly exhausted and completely worried, and she just looked frustrated and put out. "What happened?"

"Nothing," Mia said firmly. "That I can't handle."

"Which is why Regulus is here, guarding you?"

"He's not guarding me," she rolled her eyes. "Would you calm down? What are you guys doing here?" They looked at each other before back at her and shrugged. She frowned suspiciously. "Whatever it is, please don't involve me. I just came here to sleep."

"Well," Sirius said slowly. "I think it'd be a good idea if we all slept here tonight."

"Brilliant," Fred agreed brightly. Mia gave him a small smile. They hadn't had much time to talk, really, and she regretted that, but she also knew he had the Marauders so he was probably okay. She promised herself she'd find him sometime soon and catch up.

They sat and talked for a while, and no one missed the way Regulus hovered around Mia, like he couldn't resist. When he would move away, she found her way over to him, too. It wasn't until he finally fell asleep around one in the morning that she pulled herself away, moving to sit with the other boys, all of whom were still awake.

"Are you gonna tell us?" Sirius raised an eyebrow. She scowled.

"You do not have to know every little thing that happens. Must I remind you what happened the last time you got bad news?" She raised an eyebrow and watched as his eyes flicked over her neck, which had been fully healed that night.

"It's that bad?" he asked softly, looking startled.

She shook her head. "No. But something did happen, and you have a temper, and I don't trust you not to lose it."

"I'll stun him if he does," James promised. The four of them were sitting in a small circle with Fred on Mia's right and James on her left, Sirius across from her. She sighed.

"You need to be very clear on this. I don't know where I know him from in the future, but I do. And that has to happen. So you can't do anything about what I'm going to say, okay?" There were three understanding, albeit reluctant nods. "This afternoon, I walked out of the potions room and slammed into Antonin Dolohov." She saw James and Sirius wince, Sirius a little moreso. "He said hello and then said goodbye by slapping my arse. I slapped him and ran off."

"Merlin, Mia…" Sirius took a deep breath. She could see the clear anger written all over him, James and Fred only slightly more contained than him.

"Regulus said he's got something against me now, which is why we came here."

"You're gonna get yourself killed," James muttered, lying back on the blanket underneath him tiredly.

"I am not," she rolled her eyes. "I just need to stay around people for a while. That'll probably mean you and Severus and Fabian, not to mention Reg."

"So you're well covered then," James smiled at her.

"I hope so."

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