June 16th, 1977
Mia pulled Severus into the kitchen, a sad look in her eyes. The pair were alone, and he knew how unusual that was, so it had to be serious. She'd called everyone to the house the Potters had given her, and he had a feeling he knew why. Still, he couldn't figure out why she was so worried. "Sano?"
"Sorry," she swiped at her eyes, pushing tears away. "Do you remember the Vow you took to promise to not change the future, the way you treat me?"
"Yes," he replied stiffly.
"I need something more… I can't risk your care for me getting in the way, Sev. The thought of this is killing you, I can see it. I need to block me out of your memories, bury me deep so you forget me."
"And what am I supposed to do about how I treat you? Or taking the position to begin with?"
"I've done some reading," she told him, fidgeting with the tablecloth. "It looks like a Vow can influence you to do what you're supposed to do. If we add some subconscious messages, you'll be fine."
"You can reverse this though." It was a question, one of concern, and she nodded firmly, a promise in her eyes. "Okay. Okay, we can do it."
"Thank you, Sev. I… cannot tell you how much I appreciate this."
"Anything for you."
OoOoOoOoOoOo
Mia stared at the group gathered in her bedroom. It was Fred, Fabian and Gideon, James, Sirius, Remus, Regulus, and Avery. She'd wanted to bring her other friends like Lily and Marlene, but it was too dangerous.
She slowly passed boxes to Fred, Fabian, Gideon, James, Regulus, and Avery. James received two - one for him and one for Lily, though she wouldn't use it - and Mia already had her ring on her right index finger. Slowly, the group opened the rings and she spoke.
"Everyone that gets a ring dies or, in Avery's case, we're unsure. James got two because it's not safe for me to see Lily, so he has to give her ring to her. The rings are set to a time and place and will take you there when you tap your wand on them and say portus. It'll be Shell Cottage, where I left from. I'd set it for somewhere else but I don't want everyone to think we're… y'know, dead."
"Aunt Muriel's place?" Gideon asked in surprise. Mia nodded.
"She left it to Bill in her will." She looked at the pair standing apart without timekeys. Sirius and Remus. "You guys… I'm sorry. You have to take the long way round."
"Yeah, thanks, kitten," Sirius muttered.
"Where's Snape?" Remus asked her curiously.
"He had to have his memories hidden away for safety," she explained.
"And not me," Remus shook his head, obviously shocked by that fact.
"You all know what you need to do in the future," she told them with a sad smile. "And you all Vowed to do it."
"We know, Sano," Avery bowed his head.
Mia glanced around the room. She'd already said goodbye to Regulus - she knew she couldn't handle doing it right before leaving. "I love you all."
"We love you, too, pet," Fabian promised her. "And we'll be okay. Now get out of here before you grow old in the past."
She swallowed thickly, blinking back the tears and nodded jerkily. Unable to look at them any longer, she tapped her ring with her wand and whispered the magic word, sending her away from the family she'd grown to love and depend on, her heart breaking in the process.
OoOoOoOoOo
April 19th, 1998
Bill stared in horror as he watched Hermione and Fred be enveloped in a bright light. When it faded barely a moment later, they were gone. He could feel the healing bond snap, broken as she disappeared.
"Oh my god," Harry stared with wide, terrified eyes. "Did I kill them?"
"What the hell happened?" Bill questioned as he moved over to the now empty chair he'd left the injured girl in. "You were just playing Exploding Snap! She was reading!"
"Fuck," a voice shouted from behind Bill. He spun on his heel to see a large group of seven people stumbling over each other. He grabbed his wand out but a shield popped up in front of them before he could do anything. His stunner was absorbed and he watched as a frustrated Hermione pulled herself from the group, putting her hand on someone's arm as they tried to hex back. "Relax, Avery, they're friends. I told you this might happen. He won't hurt me."
"Hermione?" Bill questioned sharply. He felt their healing bond slip back in place and gasped. "Merlin, what happened to you?"
"Oh my god," she breathed, diving back to the group of people. "Regulus!"
"Regulus?" Harry questioned with a deep frown. "Mione, he's dead."
"Holy shit," Bill breathed as his eyes fell on three heads of red hair. One was Fred while the other two were the uncles he hadn't seen in years. "Uncle Fabian? Uncle Gideon?"
"Harry!"
"Mia," Avery said as James ran over to his son, who took three large steps back. "Mia, he's okay. Things are getting out of hand."
She got to her feet. "Jamie, we need to do security questions, okay? He thinks you're dead."
"Hermione, what the fuck is happening?" Harry asked, snapping at her. She offered him a small smile before looking over to Bill.
"You know I'm Hermione Granger, right?"
"Yes, but what happened? The bond is… so much worse than before."
"Yeah, it fucking sucked," she waved him off.
"Bill, are you sure that's Hermione? She just cursed," Harry pointed out in shock, looking between the confused group and the man who looked like his dad.
"It's her. Hermione, what's going on?"
"Ask Fred a security question," she requested. Bill considered it for a second before looking at his brother.
"What happened when I bought you your first broom?"
"I crashed it into the window of the attic and broke my arm," Fred grinned at the memory. "Mum is still mad at me for that."
"Mia," Regulus called. She'd been sitting next to him on the floor and whispered quietly as Fred had been talking. "Mia, shit-,"
"Hey, it's okay," she assured him quietly. "You're okay. We made it, Reg. I'm safe, okay?"
"You're safe," he repeated, frowning at her as if it were a foreign concept. She leaned forward and pressed their foreheads together, and he relaxed at the touch. "Safe."
"I need to handle this," she whispered to him, ignoring the looks she received. "Then we'll take care of you, okay?"
"Yeah."
"Mi, where's Lily?" James asked her in worry. "She should be here."
Mia looked up at him with sad eyes. "You gave her the ring?"
"She never took it off. She promised me she'd use it, Mia."
"Why are you guys calling her Mia?" Harry asked, frustrated.
"Shush, Harry," she told him sternly before looking back to her brother. "She didn't use it, Jamie. I thought maybe she could but… she saved Harry. I'm sorry."
"She didn't… use it?"
She shook her head, feeling her heart break at the loss of the strong, kind woman. "Vold-,"
"Hermione!" Bill shouted, interrupting her. "You can't say it!"
She blinked, startled. "Right. I forgot. You-Know-Who cornered her and Harry and she must've protected Harry instead. I'm so sorry, Jamie."
"Hermione," Bill frowned at her. "Fred. What's going on?"
"We can definitely explain, but I need…" she shook her head and raised her hand, silently casting the Patronus. Her fox jumped out and she felt a small smile looking at it. "To Remus. We're back, love. Please come to Shell Cottage before someone hexes everyone. Bring these potions for Reg, please. A pain potion, calming draught, wide-eye, draught of peace, and invigoration draught. He's just left the cave that Dumbledore was in before he died."
As the fox ran off, Harry moved over to her and sat on the ground next to her. "Hermione, did you say he… shit, is that actually Regulus Black?"
"Yes," she nodded once. "A lot has happened, okay? Please just… trust us."
"Sano," Avery said softly. "You have the cup on you. I suggest you move it."
"You have the what?"
Mia winced and reached into her beaded bag with one hand, the other one gripped tightly within Regulus's. The cup was in a box in her bag, and she handed it over to Avery quietly. "Thanks, love. Take it to my house, will you? Call for Tilly to bring you back here. She'll do it."
Avery nodded quietly and tapped his ring. "Portus Potter!"
"What the fuck," Harry said after a long silence. The door banged open and Mia looked up to see a desperate looking Remus. He rushed over to her, not seeing James, and set the potions down before grabbing her in a tight hug.
"Mia," he muttered. "I've been worried about you for twenty years."
"I'm fine," she laughed, hugging him back as Fabian grabbed the potions and began giving them to Regulus for her, much to her relief. "I thought you'd be the best person to help confirm who I am and what happened."
"Mm," Remus frowned, grabbing his wand and sending off a couple of Patronuses. "We may need more."
"Why would Kingsley know?"
"Besides the fact that you two danced at the Ball," Fabian reminded her. "He was there while we were looking for you."
"I sort of forgot Emmaline was still alive," she admitted sheepishly. "With Marlene and Mary gone and Alice the way she is…"
"Someone tell me why you're all calling her Mia," Harry snapped loudly. "And why the fuck is my dad here?"
"James," Remus gasped, his head turning to spot his old friend. "Oh my god."
"Good to see you, Moony."
"I didn't… I didn't think she could do it," he admitted, leaving Mia's side to hug James tightly. "You're here."
"No one answered me," Harry complained to Bill, who looked just as confused and frustrated as he did. Avery popped back in with an excited Tilly, who popped back out when Mia told her quietly to do so and that they'd come find her later.
There was a knock on the door, and Mia opened it with a wave of her hand. Kingsley walked in first, followed by Emmaline, who stopped short at the sight of her.
"Oh, motherfucker," the girl said with a laugh. "I knew you were powerful but immortal? That's not fair, Potter! They all said Dolohov killed you!"
"No, I'm not, I'm- I'm not…. I'm not immortal."
"Hermione Granger," Kingsley stared at her. "How did I never notice?"
"Dumbledore, I assume," Mia rolled her eyes bitterly as she helped Regulus sit up. He looked leagues better. "Okay. Before Harry hexes us all, I think I should explain."
"Well, shit," Emmaline interrupted. "At least all my friends aren't dead. Isn't fair that you look like you're two, though."
"Oh my god," Mia groaned. "I'm going to hex you, Emma, shut up."
"Definitely Mia Potter," was all the woman said, though she laughed.
"Who the hell is Mia Potter?" Harry asked.
"James," Mia nodded. "Have Remus and maybe Kingsley ask some security questions."
"Right," Remus nodded. "What was the last thing you said to me before I went to look for the werewolf packs?"
"I told you that you better not find a new pack because we're the best one you could wish for, and then I used that charm Mia used on me when I levitated Snivellus-,"
"James!"
"Snape and covered you with goo. Took me forever to figure out how to cast it, though."
"Definitely him," Remus rolled his eyes. "It took me a week to get that stuff out of my shoes."
"Let's see," Kingsley hummed. "What did you say to me when you joined the Order?"
James looked to his sister and back to the man. "For Mia, because she did so much for us."
"That's him alright," Kingsley confirmed.
"How?" Harry asked hesitantly. "He's dead."
"That's on Mia," James nodded to the girl, who was helping Regulus finally to his feet. Avery came to her other side, a sight that made James smile. "Just missing Snape, huh?"
"Snape killed Dumbledore," Harry stared at Mia in horror. She nodded sadly.
"I know, Harry. It's all a very long story, okay? Just let us explain."
"I'd appreciate that," Bill nodded, his eyes moving to his uncles.
"You guys saw Fred and I disappear, right?"
"Yeah, it was weird," Bill confirmed.
"When he lost Exploding Snap, the explosion hit my cracked time turner," she told them. "Remus and everyone else here - except for Kingsley and Emmaline because I never told them - will confirm what I'm about to say. When the time turner exploded, it sent us to the past. To 1976."
"It's true," Remus nodded quickly when Harry looked to him. "They appeared in the Forbidden Forest. James, Sirius, and I found them and took them to Dumbledore."
"Important question," Harry frowned at her. "How can you even stand? It's barely been a week since…"
Mia shrugged. "A lot of shit has happened. It's been nine months, Harry."
"That makes so much sense," Emmaline commented. "All of the things you knew that you shouldn't have known. Your arm. It was Bellatrix, wasn't it?"
"You heard about that?" she asked in surprise. The woman nodded.
"The entire Order has."
"That's shit."
"Sano," Avery shook his head. "Get back on track. We have a lot to do."
"Yeah. So, we spent a lot of time there. I'll explain in more detail when we call a full Order meeting, but basically, I found a way to get home and gave it to some people. I wish I could've given it to more like Marlene or Mary but I just don't know enough about their deaths."
"Dolohov killed Mary."
Mia tensed, suddenly feeling breathless. "What?"
"A few months after you," her friend nodded quietly. The guilt that filled Mia was overwhelming, and it refused to disperse even when Regulus touched her arm gently.
"She gave us all ways to live," Regulus continued for her. "And then sent her and Fred back here."
"And my dad…" Harry said, glancing at the man, who offered him a smile.
"Sirius got badly injured at Christmas that year and we were sent to bed while your grandparents took him to St. Mungo's. While Fred was asleep, Mia told me that your mum and I died. She begged me to make an oath that, when the time came, I'd save myself. She told me you'd be safe. I made a Vow and I upheld it."
"And mum?"
Mia frowned. "I know what magic she used to save you," she admitted. "It called for a mother's sacrifice. It would've meant her death. I made sure she got a ring as well, but she didn't use it. I'm sorry Harry… Jamie. I tried."
"I know, Mia love," James told her softly. She saw the grief in his eyes and knew that he knew it wasn't the time. She feared for when the war was over. She feared for how badly he'd break down. He loved Lily so deeply when she'd been there, and she couldn't imagine how that love had progressed over the years, nor how it felt to know he'd never see her again.
"My uncles?" Bill asked. Mia scowled.
"Frederick is an arse."
"It worked out fine!"
"It could have not!" she shot back before sighing. "He made me tell them, as well as the Marauders because he was pissed at me, and then Regulus held me at wand point, which left only a few of them my fault."
"And you can't count Dodd because he figured it out for himself and told you in front of Gibbon," Avery added. She nodded firmly.
"So I only told three people myself."
"Back to the point, Little Lion," Regulus suggested.
"Yeah. So I told Fred we couldn't save them because that's not how time works. He was… upset. After forcing me to tell the Marauders - not Peter, because fuck Pettigrew - I found a book on time turners and found a way to manipulate them to send Fab and Gid back here. Fred realized it could send us, too, and I then made some for Reg, Avery, and Jamie and Lily."
"I have a question," Emmaline called. Mia prepared herself for whatever tactless question would come. "Are you two engaged yet?"
"Oh my god," Mia rolled her eyes. "I'll fucking hex you, Vance."
"Is that a yes?"
"Why would they be engaged?" Harry asked his father, who let out a small laugh.
"They have a sealed soul bond," he told his son. At his confused look, he shrugged. "It basically means they're soulmates."
"Ew."
"Yeah, we thought so, too," Remus assured him. "The ball was a rather traumatic experience."
"Remus!" Mia snapped loudly. "Say any more and I'll make sure Teddy is the only child you can have."
He threw his hands up. "Not like I particularly want to dwell on the experience, Mi."
Mia froze, her eyes snapping to Regulus. "We need to go."
"Why?" he asked with a frown. Her eyes slid down to her wrist and he nodded slowly. "Now?"
"Yes," she said sharply. "I promised him, Reg. I promised Remus, I promised you, I promised myself. Now."
"Hermione- er, Mia, you can't go," Bill shook his head. "Where exactly are you planning to go?"
"Just to… retrieve someone."
"You're going to bring back Black, aren't you?" Kingsley asked her. She shot a glare at him.
"How the hell would you know?"
"He told the entire Order when you died," he explained, making her wince. Remus sighed at the man.
"That was only a few months ago for her, Kings."
"Oh."
"Mione, you died?"
"Okay, bye," she said in a hurry, grabbing onto Regulus and Avery and pointing at her ring. "Portus Potter!"
They all stared at the empty spot the trio had just stood in.
"I'd say that's a sore spot for her," James muttered. "It sucked."
"But really, she died?" Harry asked with a frown. James and Remus exchanged a glance before nodding.
"Voldemort caught her and had her killed," James told him. "She's handled the entire experience very poorly. I highly doubt she's fully healed, or even mostly healed. She's been through a lot with us, Prongslet."
"I forgot about that," Remus laughed when Harry's eyes lit up. "Sirius called him Pup."
"Traitor," James gasped. "That traitor!"
OoOoOoOoOoOo
"Mia, slow down," Regulus called after her as she ran up to her bedroom to change her clothes. "You know Fred, Remus, and James can all follow us here, right?"
"They won't," she replied, throwing her shirt off and onto the bed. Avery's eyes widened and he sped out of the room at the sight, luckily just in time for her to take off her shorts. "They want him back too, Reg."
"But take a moment to think about this," Regulus sighed, grabbing her arm gently when she tried to put on sneakers after pulling on clean shorts and a tank top. "How do you plan to get in there?"
"Harry's cloak is in my bag," she explained. "I summoned it while everyone was distracted. We use that to get down to the Veil room and then use the ring to get out of there."
"What if he's hurt?"
She looked at him and put on the shoes, tying the laces. "You know he isn't. Why are you against this, Reg? He's your brother."
"I know that," he sighed, rubbing his face. "I don't know, Mia. What's the plan after that? Do you plan to rest at all?"
"While we're doing this, the Order is going to come, and when we get back, we'll explain it all to them. After that, the DA. Then I have to find Draco and ensure he's on our side and maybe get his help. Why?"
"I'm scared for you," he told her softly, making her pause. "Once the Dark Lord knows you're alive, he will be after you."
Mia blinked guiltily. "Um, about that…"
"Mia? What did you do?"
"Well… he already knows. I asked Narcissa to tell him today that I'm back."
"Mia! Fuck, Mia!"
"It's fine!" she grabbed his arms to push them down after he threw them up in frustration. "It's fine. I've got good places that he can't find me, okay? I'll be fine. That's why I'm moving fast, though. We have to get this done as soon as possible. I… Reg, I need Sirius. I need to know it worked."
Regulus stared at her, angry but fully understanding of her desperation. "Fine. Okay, fine. We will go."
"Thank you!" She grinned at him and raised her hand, casting a patronus. "To Bill. Get everyone that shouldn't be alive to the room I was staying in. I'm calling an emergency meeting with every Order member I can and I'd appreciate it if you did, too. It's incredibly important that I share some information with everyone. Please trust me and help me."
The fox ran off, and she cast it again and began summoning members to Shell Cottage as she walked out of the room with her boyfriend. It was ten minutes later when she'd finished and she draped the cloak over all three of them and sent them off to the Ministry.
OoOoOoOoOoOo
The Veil was as terrifying as she remembered it. She remembered standing in the corner and Dolohov's lips touching hers and gasped sharply, biting down on her lip. She jumped when a hand touched her but relaxed upon seeing Regulus. "Okay. You should both back up. I don't know how this works exactly."
"Be careful," Avery told her quietly, stepping back with Regulus.
"Sirius Black, son of the Houses of Black and Potter, you have sworn to heed my call from the Veil of Death. I am here to demand your return to this world. Heed my call, Blood Brother."
After a much too long moment, Sirius was thrown out of the Veil and onto her, knocking her to the ground. She ignored the pain she felt and waved her hand over him, checking for damage. She was interrupted by him grabbing her arm and twisting it and she let out a groan. "Sirius!"
He paused, holding her in place. "Mia?"
"Let go of me, asshole," she huffed. He let out a laugh and released her arm, only to roll off of her and pull her into a tight hug.
"Mia!"
She hugged him back, tears welling up. A short sob escaped as she held him tightly against her, unable to speak. Relief flooded through her at the sight of his long black hair tied back the way he had refused to do as a teenager. Sirius was back, alive. Her Sirius, the one that had read to her when she had gotten ill the summer before fifth year, the one that had let her stay with him nearly the entire summer and that had taught her to protect herself to the best of his ability. The one that had died in front of her.
"Shh, it's okay," he assured her, stroking her hair softly. "I'm back, love. It's okay. You did it, yeah? You promised you would and you did."
Regulus stepped forward quietly. "Mia, we have to go. We don't have time. Everyone will be there by now."
"He's right," she nodded, wiping a tear from her eye. "Portus Potter."
Regulus rolled his eyes as she disappeared and looked to Avery, who was shaking his head. "Let's go."
OoOoOoOoOoOo
"Sirius!" Remus exclaimed, overwhelmed. He'd regained his best friends that day, all thanks to the small witch that had changed all of their lives. The man threw himself into a hug and jumped when James hugged him from behind, startling him.
"James!" Sirius gaped. "Holy fucking shit."
"Okay," Mia rolled her eyes. "You guys have fun. I'm late to the meeting. Stay here in the kitchen until we call for you guys."
"You got it, chief," Sirius winked at her. She shook her head with a soft smile and left the room, leaving a nervous Regulus and Avery behind.
The living room was full to the brim of Order members. She saw Harry sitting with Ron, who had been visiting his parents while Fred was over. The twins were with them, as well as the rest of the Weasley family, including Charlie, who she was surprised to see. Molly had begged him to stay out of England for the duration of the war, and he'd mostly agreed.
Aside from them, she saw Emmaline with Hestia Jones, Deadalus Diggle, Kingsley, Elphias Doge, Tonks, Andromeda, and a few others that she didn't recognize. There were some from the graduated class that she assumed Fred called, including Lee Jordan, Oliver Wood, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell, and Anthony Goldstein.
"Oh boy," she breathed. "Right, okay. Before we start, I'd appreciate if you all ask me as many security questions as you want."
"Okay," Charlie grinned at her. "When did we first meet?"
Mia scowled. "My fourth year. I was walking through the woods because I was annoyed and I stumbled on you and the dragons. I screamed so loud you thought I was dying and came to help me."
"It was hilarious," he laughed. She resisted the childish urge to stick her tongue out at him.
"I can confirm, because of our healing bond, that this is Hermione Granger," Bill added.
"And here," Mia muttered, raising her wand. "I do swear on my wand and magic that I am Hermione Granger, as well as that everything I'm about to tell you about my recent… adventures is the truth."
"I don't understand what's going on," Molly told her. "We don't doubt who you are, Hermione."
"Well, you're about to doubt her sanity," Emmaline laughed, earning herself a glare from Mia. "Man, I really can't believe I never saw it. You definitely glare like Hermione Granger. She glared at Sirius a lot."
"What does that mean?" Lee spoke up curiously. Mia rolled her eyes and raised her wand again.
"I swear on my wand and magic that my name is Mia Potter and Fred and I were accidentally sent to September 1976."
At the light on her wand confirming this, a few people swore while most stared.
"But you're just Hermione," Angelina said. She shrugged.
"Bill, my eyes were normal earlier, right?"
"Completely normally brown," he confirmed, confused. She'd heavily glamoured her eyes before even returning to her time, so no one had seen them yet. It had been difficult as the magic in her eyes fought the glamour, and it had given her a headache to put it on, something she wouldn't be doing again. With a wave of her hand, she removed the glamour, revealing the golden eyes. "Holy shit."
"I don't understand," Arthur admitted. "You and Fred went to the past?"
"I had a cracked time turner on my neck and Fred decided it would be a good idea to dive toward the injured girl," she scowled. "Why did you do that, anyway?"
"I was trying to protect you," he lied.
"Bullshit, you were trying to escape it," she scoffed. "Anyway, we went back and Dumblec-,"
"Mia," a voice called from the kitchen. She looked over to see an amused Remus stick his head out. "Come on."
"Fine. Dumbledore placed us with Charlus and Dorea Potter. We were there for nine months. A lot happened, and I think it important that I bring a few people out first."
"Is that the best idea?" Harry asked with a frown. "They'll all hex them."
"No one is going to touch them," she glared at the crowd. "If you hurt my boys, I'll hurt you."
"You have a lot of boys," Fred laughed at her. "You can't protect them all."
"Fuckin watch me, Fred."
"Language!" Molly scolded.
"Fine, I'll explain first. Fred and I found a way to come back by manipulating the sands of time," she told them all. "It's why my eyes changed. I gave them to a few different people aside from Fred and I. I expect you all to remain calm or I'll hex you until you can't see."
"They're going to curse them," Emmaline told her with a snort. "I nearly hexed you. I was so certain you were dead. Dolohov was-,"
"Let's not talk about him," Mia interrupted sharply. After being in the Veil room, she wanted to avoid the subject for as long as possible. "So while we were there, I became close with Sirius. I didn't want to let him die so I found this… bond-,"
"Tell them what it really is," Kingsley shook his head at her. "No normal bond could do what yours did, Potter."
"Fine," she scowled. "It's dark blood magic. I formed a bond with Sirius and brought him back."
"You what?" Molly asked her, speaking before anyone else. "Hermione, that is illegal! You could be arrested!"
Mia let out a laugh. "I think the Ministry has more important things to focus on, like arresting muggleborns for stealing magic. I don't think they care. They'd kill me for a lot less than this."
"What sort of bond could bring someone back to life?" Katie asked her with a frown. Mia pushed her arm out to show them all the black band on her wrist.
"A rather dark one. So… you can come out, Star Shine," Mia called, throwing up a shield wandlessly as the door opened to reveal a grinning Sirius. A few curses were absorbed as he came and wrapped an arm around her. She relaxed with him at her side but glared at the crowd. "You all suck."
"To be fair, Mia Mine, I've been dead for a couple of years," he reminded her gently. He rolled up his sleeve and showed them all his matching bond mark. "She wasn't kidding. This is a bloody dark and strong bond."
"Are you all done attacking him?" she asked, holding the shield lazily in front of them. At a few cautious nods, she released it. "M'kay. So, what brought us to the future again were these rings with sands of time in them. I gave them to many people. I'll remind you not to hex them."
"Who could you bring to the future?" Charlie wondered with a frown.
"Well, your uncles for one," she shrugged as the door opened again. She put up a cautionary shield again, grateful when no one attacked them. Molly got to her feet and ran to hug them, and she smiled at the reunion before moving on, letting them continue.
"Then James Potter," she told them. The door opened, and she put up a shield to block the hexes that came. "Hey! Stop that! Merlin's sake."
"To be fair, kitten, he's famously dead," Sirius reminded her. She made a face at him that only made him laugh.
Once James had moved to hug Harry again, who had reacted much calmer than Molly considering he already knew, she shrugged and raised her other hand to reinforce her shield.
"Okay. Lastly, we've got - I'm going to be really fucking pissed off if you hex them - we have Regulus Black and Frederick Avery."
Before the door had even opened, hexes were being shot, and Mia shot a nasty glare when she caught Dung with his wand out. "Fletcher, get the fuck out. I don't even know why you were invited."
"They're Death Eaters!" he argued.
"You sell shit to Death Eaters!" she shot back. "Seriously, get out."
When no one stood up for him, the man glared at her and left, leaving her more relaxed. Regulus took his place on her other side, taking her hand within his own. Avery stood next to Sirius, eyeing the Order.
"Dung's got a point, though," Ron called, earning himself a deep glare. "They're Death Eaters, Mione!"
"And you're a prat!"
"Mia," Regulus sighed.
"Fine. I get that, but they're already protected by the Order. Dumbledore knew about them and they're on our side."
"We're on Mia's side," Avery corrected loudly. "We're loyal to her."
"Yeah, and you're both prats," she scowled, making the boy laugh.
"They're… prats for being loyal to you?" Bill blinked at her.
"She is just upset because all of her Death Eaters pledged our fealty to her."
There was a beat of silence.
"You what now?"
"They're all fucking stupid," Mia huffed.
"Language!"
"You have to get over that, Mia," Sirius laughed.
"Your stupid fucking brother pledged fealty to me in the middle of a fight!" she glared at him. "And then I tried to complain to Sev and Avery and their dumbasses did it too! And then Rodolphus, the most sensible of all of them, did it too! And fucking Gibbon and Dodd-,"
"Merlin, Hermione," Harry interrupted. "How many Death Eaters did you collect?"
She counted in her head. "Reg, Avery, Sev, Rodolphs, Gibbon, Dodd, and one unofficial, plus the one I need to speak to later… so eight, I guess."
"Merlin."
"Why were you fighting?" Harry wondered.
"Mia and I were fighting because she did something reckless," Regulus told him. "And I decided that it would be best to prove to her that I will always protect her. It is not my fault that Avery and Severus followed suit, along with some others."
"It was not reckless!" she snapped heatedly, the old argument irritating her as it always did. "I trust him completely!"
"You had no way of knowing that he wouldn't have made a mistake. It was reckless."
"For Merlin's sake, Regulus, he is so careful around me, he wouldn't have-,"
"Guys," Avery interrupted sharply. "You will never agree. Move on."
"You said Dumbledore knew," Arthur called. "Are you talking about that mark?"
Mia's eyes lit up and she grinned, looking over to Avery. "Shirt!"
Avery groaned. "You have a problem, Potter."
"Fine, Regulus can do it."
"No, thanks," Remus called. "I don't want to see her stare at him. I've been scarred enough."
Avery shook his head and lifted his shirt up to reveal the mark.
"Oh, that's the good Death Eater thingy!" Tonks called excitedly. "I didn't think it was real, honestly."
"No, yeah, they belong to me," Mia nodded. "Aside from Reg and Avery, I've given one to Rodolphus Lestrange-,"
"Really?" Ron stared at her. "He was there when Bellatrix tortured you, Hermione!"
"Thanks, Ron," she glared. "Believe it or not, I remember that. I trust him completely. I made him Vow not to interfere to uphold time. I also made Severus - Snape, that is - Vow to treat us all like shit while we were at school. He joined the Order and started working for Dumbledore, obviously."
"But he killed Dumbledore!"
"Which he would never have done if Dumbledore hadn't asked him to," she snapped at him. "Seriously- Sirius, shut up - seriously, Ron, I know better than you do."
"Snape really killed him?" James asked her with a frown. She nodded quietly.
"Yeah, but fuck Dumbledore," Sirius shrugged, earning himself a good number of glares. "What? He could have pardoned me at any time! That bastard is the only reason I'm still a wanted man!"
"Actually," Harry spoke up. "Fudge declared you innocent before he stepped down. Wanted to be seen as a good guy or something. It didn't work, but you're free."
"Shit!" Sirius exclaimed with a grin.
"Wait, hold on," James shook his head. "Why wouldn't you be free? What happened, Pads?"
"Oof," Fred winced. "Mate, you're gonna be pissed."
"Okay," Sirius sighed. "When you guys… everyone thought I was the Secret Keeper. I realized Pettigrew had betrayed you and I went after him but he fucked it all up. He blew up the street, loudly accused me of betraying you, and faked his death."
"Yeah, and no one bothered to give him a fucking trial," Mia added. "So he sat in Azkaban for twelve years until he broke out because he saw a picture of Pettigrew and- it's a long story. He's fine now. Not dead and free. Pretty good in my opinion."
"Mia," Kingsley called. "Perhaps you can explain the events of your time in the past. I'm sure it's all important."
"Right," she made a face. "Okay, so I was Sorted into Slytherin, much to my shock and horror. Things were generally calm - barring Fred telling the Marauders and Fab and Gid that we weren't from that time, which was a bad idea that I'm still upset about."
"But if we hadn't known, we wouldn't be here, kitten," Sirius reminded her. She made a face at him and he let out a small laugh.
Mia exchanged a quiet look with Regulus before she steeled herself and kept going. "It was calm until I had a run in with another Slytherin, Dolohov."
"That's why he took you at the DOM," Tonks realized. "He knew you as Mia."
"Yeah," Regulus's eyes darkened. "He did."
"You saved Mary in the library," Emmaline cut in. "From him and Lestrange."
"Rabastan, yes," she agreed. "I was so mad. I ran so fast to Regulus that I ran into him, fell, and sprained my wrist. That was the night that we looked into my memories and figured out that it had been Dolohov who had held me back at the DOM."
"Yeah, you disappeared for like two days," her friend nodded. "Me and Marls looked for you everywhere."
"Yeah, well, seeing Sirius die again wasn't exactly relaxing," she shrugged. "Sirius and Regulus stayed in the Room with me for a couple days after that."
"It was shit," Sirius nodded. "That was when I found out I'd die at the DOM."
"You knew?" Harry asked him in horror, looking betrayed. The man winced.
"I'm sorry, pup. I'd taken Vows. I couldn't tell you, not until now. I knew Mia would bring me back. She worked so hard to find that bond and we knew it worked."
"Anyway," Mia interrupted. It was a conversation she knew they'd have later, but there wasn't time now. "Dolohov was fucking pissed. I'd stunned them and hit them with a stinging hex, so he thought, you know, it was only fair to corner me in the Restricted Section and hit me with Sectumsempra. Asshole almost killed me. He got blood on the books."
"Shit," Harry whispered. "How did you survive?"
"Severus," Regulus answered. "We found her pretty quickly and since he'd made the spell, he knew how to heal her. She had a lot of blood loss and a concussion, though."
"Right. So we were at the Potter's New Years' Ball, and… well, it was an eventful night-,"
"That's one word for it," Remus screwed up his face. "I had to smell both of you for the rest of the night."
"Remus Jacob Lupin," Mia said, her voice low and threatening, irritated he'd brought it up again. "If you keep talking, I will destroy you."
"Yes, mum."
She scowled. "Anyway, Dolohov threatened me and I found out that, contrary to Sirius and Regulus's beliefs, Orion is not an asshole."
"Orion is…?"
"Our father," Sirius answered, making a face. "I deeply disagree with her."
"As do I," Regulus added.
"He interrupted my dance with Dolohov, who was bruising me, and told me I looked uncomfortable. Chill. He had plenty of chances to hurt me and he never did."
"If you'd like to discuss your reckless meetings alone with the psychotic man, we can do that," Regulus raised an eyebrow at her. She huffed at him but didn't reply.
"I left when Reg decided to be an overprotective prat and Rodolphus followed me. He told me he'd been forced into his marriage and that Bellatrix Imperiused him so that he'd agree with her politics in public. I taught him to throw off the Imperius and gave him my mark."
When Mia paused, Regulus spoke for her. "Soon after that, Bellatrix caught Mia in a bookstore because Sirius couldn't fucking watch her like she was supposed to."
"It's not his fault, love," Mia reminded him softly.
"It bloody well is," Regulus growled back. "It wouldn't have happened if he'd had a shred of responsibility."
"He was suffocating me, Reg."
"He shouldn't have left your side."
"It could have been worse, honestly."
"It could never have happened if he'd given a single shit!"
"What did Sirius do?" Harry asked James quietly. His father shook his head, remembering the day he'd followed Sirius into the bookshop to find Mia nearly dead.
"We were supposed to be watching her. It wasn't safe for her. She played hero and Bellatrix tortured her and we didn't know until we finally went to check on her. It's my fault as much as it is Sirius's."
"No, it isn't," Sirius told James, speaking for the first time. "It was my job. I knew Bella had hurt her before and I didn't watch her. It's on me, not you."
"While she was healing, we talked," Avery spoke up, ending the disagreements. "The signs were all there, and by the time she left, everyone knew. She's a Light Lady."
Unlike Mia expected, there was silence before Harry spoke up.
"Okay, but what's a Light Lady?"
"You know what a Dark Lord is?" Regulus asked. Harry nodded, though he didn't look sure. "Well, a Light Lady is the opposite of that."
Avery was kinder to Harry and offered a short explanation, detailing the way Light Ladies matched Dark Lords and the signs of them.
"But wouldn't Harry be a Light… Lord?" Ron asked. "He's supposed to face You-Know-Who, after all."
"No," Mia shook her head. "The prophecy just says 'neither can live while the other survives.' I think that… it's got something to do with me. The prophecy had to exist so I'd meet Harry and live this life and go back in time and become the Light Lady I was supposed to be."
"Someone also mentioned that she's probably a Legendary," Avery added. "But that's neither here nor there."
"But you guys think Mia is supposed to defeat You-Know-Who and not Harry?" Kingsley clarified. The three nodded reluctantly.
"Even if we didn't want to accept this, You-Know-Who knows about me and knows I am a Light Lady," Mia told them. "He knows I'm not dead anymore now, too."
"What?" James exclaimed, jumping up. "Mia!"
"It's fine," she waved him off. "I'm safe here for now and I have a plan. I asked her to tell him."
"Can we go back to the thing about you being dead previously?" Charlie requested. She looked away quietly.
The small group of three shifted and Mia found herself pressed closer between her boyfriend and her friend. "In March," Avery said, knowing neither of them would be able to. "Mia and Regulus had a fight. She left to Diagon Alley and found herself in the middle of a raid. She managed to call for help from Fabian and Gideon and Moody but she was captured by… well, we don't know who, exactly."
"I do," Mia said softly. Everyone that had been there in the seventies while she was missing stared at her. She'd been rather quiet on the details of the raid and what happened after being captured, and no one had wanted to push her. "It was- it was Rabastan and…"
"Dolohov," Regulus guessed in a whisper. She nodded and felt his hand tighten around her waist.
"They took her to the Dark Lord," Avery continued shakily. "He'd heard about her eyes and the fact that she could control the sands of time, plus that she was from the future. She- she was gone for almost a week. She was tortured by Bellatrix and Dolohov in turns through different methods before the Dark Lord finally entered her mind and decided she needed to die."
Mia squeezed Avery's hand. He wasn't usually one to show his emotions like that, but she could tell that talking about it was hard for him, too. There was very little left, and she could handle that. She was pretty sure, at least. A little bit sure.
"He gave me to Dolohov," she told them all, her voice near whisper. "Left me to him as long as he killed me by the end of the night."
She stopped there and everyone watched her for a long moment before Ron spoke up.
"How'd you escape?"
"I didn't," she shook her head. "By the end of the night, he cut me up again and killed me. I died."
Everyone was quiet.
"What?" Tonks asked.
"She did," James told them softly, the memory still painful for not only him but everyone in the room that had been there.
"But she's here."
"No, she died," Kingsley agreed. "Regulus there nearly died with her."
"Why?" Ron frowned.
"Because they've got the strongest soul bond I've ever heard of," James told his son's friend. "They sealed it, so when she was injured, he got hurt, too. If Snape hadn't healed Reg, he'd have died."
"Snape was there? And he saved you?" Harry asked Regulus. He nodded once.
"That's what I've heard."
"You were there."
"He passed out," Remus told him. "It was really bad for him. The paw print burned him and his soul bond was breaking, not to mention the blood loss."
"So you died," Bill spoke up. "Your bond with Sirius?"
"Yep," she nodded, turning to Regulus. "Am I missing anything?"
He considered it before recapping everything. "Dolohov hates you, Bellatrix tortured you, Voldemort knows you're a Light Lady, you died, Sirius brought you back-,"
"You're soulmates-," Harry cut in. Regulus ignored him.
"Well, you were in a coma for a month after you came back, and then you spent time healing. You're still not healed and might never be. I walked away for about ten minutes while you were working with Fabian and came back and you had finished five rings and you left the next day."
"Wait, you did five rings in ten minutes?" James gaped. "You never told us that."
"Yeah," Fabian cut in. "It was weird. It was like she was fighting to control them for the first three, and every other time she tried the spell, but then she just… could do it. She had complete control and she didn't even have to use her wand."
"She doesn't ever use her wand," Emmaline pointed out.
"What are you talking about?" Ron asked. "Hermione doesn't know wandless magic."
"Ron, Hermione and Mia are very much not the same person," Remus told him gently.
"But they are," Ron argued. "Look at her, it's Hermione, it's our friend."
"We're really not the same person."
"Oh my god." Mia breathed tiredly. "You really just have no care for when you talk, do you?"
"He doesn't believe them!" Hermione defended. "I figured I'd show them."
Regulus sighed.
"Okay, who the fuck is that?" Ron asked. Molly didn't even try to scold him. Most people stared in wonder, though Remus, James, Fabian, Gideon, and the two boys by Mia's side looked perfectly at ease.
"I'm Hermione," Mia's magic told him. "And I'm not really the same person as Mia."
"When did you… split in two?" Ron asked Mia, his voice growing louder.
"We didn't," Mia denied. "She's… um, my magic."
"She's your magic."
"I've been taking a physical form since Sirius brought us back to help her heal, physically and mentally," Hermione explained to them. "Aside from after Bellatrix in the shop with Regulus, I've never had a reason to, though I've always been able to."
"Why would she need to heal mentally?" Ron argued. Mia shifted uncomfortably as James gave the redhead a sharp look and Fred smacked his brother over the head.
"She died, you asshole!" Fred told him. "We can cut you in half, bring you back, and see if you're perfectly fine afterward if you'd like."
"Oh."
"Can you go away please?" Mia asked Hermione with a sigh. The girl just rolled her eyes and disappeared.
"So, a lot has changed," Remus said diplomatically. "There's new people here, and Mia is not Hermione. We need to assess this situation in what it means for the endgame, for Harry and Mia and who is supposed to fight You-Know-Who."
And so, with the calm direction of Remus and Kingsley, the group began fighting.
It was nearly twenty minutes before Mia, tired of the loud arguing, sent sparks around the room to quiet everyone. They turned to her and her boys, who had stayed in the same spot the entire time, and fell silent.
"Riddle knows I'm back," she told them sharply. "He will want Harry dead, yes, but he knows I'm a Light Lady. He knows I'm his true match. There's no going around it. We both have to face him."
"Why would Harry have to face him if you're supposed to kill him?" Oliver questioned in confusion. Mia hesitated.
"Ah. I can't exactly… tell you all that, mostly because the only person I've talked to about it no longer remembers me, so…"
"Mia," Regulus frowned. "What did you tell Severus?"
"Harry," she bit her lip. "Those things we're looking for?"
"Yeah?"
"You're one of them."
Harry's eyes widened in horror and he stared at her. "How?"
"Your mood swings make sense," she shrugged. "Bill would be able to confirm - we should tell him about it anyway - but Severus and I believe we're correct. Good news, though, you'll be fine."
"You know how we destroy them!" he argued. "How would I be fine after that?"
"Well, aside from the fact that you lived in second year," she shrugged. "I did some reading. Riddle will hit you with a Killing Curse, you'll die, and then you'll come back. Just gotta play dead for a bit, maybe."
"What the hell are you two on about?" Lee interrupted.
"Ah, nothing," Mia waved them off. "Just take my word for it. He'll be fine."
"Mi, you're talking about my son dying," James reminded her. "How do you expect me to just trust you on it?"
"I promise, James," she told him seriously. "I swear to you, he will be fine."
"...okay."
"Important question, though," Fred spoke up. "How does he know you're back?"
Mia looked at them. "I had a meeting with Narcissa before we left and requested she raise Draco as a spy. She agreed to do it simply because she didn't want him to be raised a bigot."
"You're telling me Malfoy is a spy?" Harry snarled. "That's impossible! He's been a royal prat our entire lives!"
"Harry, that's- that's literally part of being a spy," Mia explained. "He has to be awful to us or he'd be exposed."
"This is insane."
"It's true though," Mia promised. "But it's also not the point. Riddle knows I'm back and he will be preparing to fight me, not you. I've made sure of it."
"Hermione, you can't just fight him!" Harry argued. "I've been preparing to do it since I was eleven."
"And so was I," she replied. "And going to the seventies made me a Light Lady. It's just not a choice, Harry. He knows I'm alive, and he'll want to fight me. Not you."
"She's right," Regulus told him. "Riddle will prefer to kill her first because her power is guaranteed to match his, and he doesn't even know she's a Legendary. Not to mention the fact that he will believed he failed to have her killed before. With any luck, he'll kill Dolohov for it."
"What is a Legendary?" Ron cut in.
Avery looked at the large group. "Think Merlin, Circe, Morgana. She's got that sort of power."
"How can you know that?" Charlie wondered.
"She's got the sign of being one," the boy drawled. "She's a Light Lady and she died and came back."
"But what does it mean?"
"She'll likely be there to fight more than one Dark Lord. She did notice a power increase after coming back, and she'll also have immense political power. She's already extremely charismatic, and that'll help her."
"This is insane," Harry said for the second time.
"Yeah," Mia agreed. "It really is."
"Fine," Harry started. "So she fights Riddle, then."
"But what does that mean?" Bill asked. "What changes?"
"Well, there's a few people I need to get into contact with," Mia told them. "And some that I need to talk to for the first time. I need to take care of something at St. Mungo's, and then we need to prepare the school. Get the students out, take out any Death Eaters there, put up protections, that sort of thing. Aside from that," she said, looking at Harry. "Rodolphus retrieved the next… item for me."
"Are you- Mione, are you kidding me?"
"No," she smiled. "It was a good opportunity. He got it with no problems. Bellatrix never noticed."
"So we destroy that and get you to the people you need to talk to," Regulus told her before looking at Bill. "We'll move to the house Charlus and Dorea gave Mia. It's well protected and keeps you out of danger."
"You don't have to-,"
"Yes, we do," Mia argued. "We need to keep them as far away from you guys as possible. We don't need to put you in more danger than you already are in."
"Fine, but you'll keep us updated?"
"Of course."
The meeting lasted a little longer after that as people exchanged information that they normally wouldn't share but could since they were all there. Mia was relieved at how easily they accepted Regulus and Avery, and spent fifteen minutes explaining to the entire group the way she'd made Severus swear to act until she got back. In the end, they reluctantly agreed, and Mia felt much better about when she eventually managed to get to her friend.
Still, two hours later, she managed to slip from the meeting with Regulus and Avery behind her and floo back to the Potter house. Once there, she sent a Patronus to three Death Eaters and hoped with everything she had that they were all alive and well.
Another half hour later and there was a knock on the door. Mia opened it, smiling at the sight of Rodolphus staring back at her. She braced herself as the man wrapped her up in a tight, unexpected hug. She hugged him back awkwardly as she struggled to stay on her feet since he was nearly lifting her in the air.
"Okay, breathe, I need to breathe," she managed. He let her go gently and she moved back to let him inside. He moved in and followed her into the living room nearby to find Regulus and Avery talking to someone else - Gibbon. "Leon!"
"Mia," he grinned. He still looked young, though a few years older than when they'd met, pureblood genes and magic helping him greatly. "You're back."
"Just got back a few hours ago," she nodded, waving for everyone to sit. They did, and she was sandwiched between Reg and Avery, not surprising anyone. "We talked to the Order and then I sent for you guys." She paused. "What about Dodd?"
"Last I heard, he went to America," Leon told her. "That was about five years ago."
"I don't blame him for leaving," she sighed, disappointed. "I'm glad he's safe, at least."
"Have you destroyed it yet?" Rodolphus asked, changing the subject. She shook her head.
"Not yet. It's here. We'll be doing that later or tomorrow."
"Destroyed what?" Leon looked between them.
"A horcrux," Mia explained. "Bellatrix had it in her vault. I got tortured a couple days ago - in this time, not the seventies - because she thought I'd been in her vault and stolen it. She might as well, since it's been gone for decades."
"What's your plans?"
"Destroy the horcrux and I suppose the next thing is try and figure out how to meet with Draco Malfoy."
"He's back at school," Rodolphus told her. "We could probably sneak you in, though."
"Okay," Mia nodded. "Whenever you're ready."
Rodolphus nodded. "Let's get going."
OoOoOoOoOoOo
It took transfiguration of Regulus, Mia, and Avery for the plan to work. Leon went first, and then her boys, with Rodolphus coming up in the end. They took the floo straight to Severus's office since he took care of runaway students. The transfiguration was purely in the case that someone was in the office with him. When Mia stepped into the fireplace, she stumbled, tripping as she came out the other side.
She was steadied by a sandy haired Avery, who looked absolutely nothing like his normal self - none of them did. A quick glance around the room revealed a lucky chance. Sat at the desk was Severus, and the sight made her heart constrict. Snape stood and moved to the side of his desk, closer to the fireplace.
"Gibbon," he frowned. "What is this?"
"Some students that had escaped," Leon explained easily. "I'll be returning them to the dungeons and then heading out."
"Be fast," he waved him off. "I need this floo closed within the hour."
Leon rushed them out of the room and they raced down the hall and around the corner, glancing around to make sure no one was around. "We have to find a different way to get you three out."
"I'll disillusion us and take us to Hogsmeade. We can use our rings to get back to the Potter house from there. Meet us there?"
"Sure," Leon agreed easily, glancing around. "I'd guess Draco is in his dorms. Class is over for the day. Just be careful of anyone else around."
Mia stood on her toes and pecked his cheek before rushing off, Regulus and Avery behind her. Her gut twisted as they moved silently, pausing only once to disillusion themselves to avoid any Death Eaters. It was all beginning to set in for her, and the thought that she'd never see Lily or Marlene or Mary again hurt.
The trio slipped into Slytherin common rooms and looked around. She hadn't seen it in second year like Harry and Ron had, and she felt a measure of comfort at the familiar sight. It hadn't changed in twenty years.
It was relatively empty, only Draco, Theo Nott, and Blaise Zabini sitting together on a couch and chairs in the corner. Mia ducked behind a wall and removed her disillusionment, stopping Regulus and Avery when they went to do the same. They got the point - they were to be security. She also removed her transfiguration and took a deep breath before pushing away from the wall and rounding the corner until she came into view of the three boys at the other end of the room. In the moments before they noticed her, she took the time to appreciate seeing the Slytherin boys in their natural element. They looked distinctly normal, something that surprised her somewhat.
And then she watched Draco freeze, terror filling his eyes. His friends followed his gaze and stood abruptly, wand in hand. She put her hands up.
"I'm not here to hurt anyone," she swore. "I swear that on my wand and my magic."
They were shocked with the ease in which she'd done that, theoretically threatening her magic. Still, nothing happened, and they relaxed slightly, their wands falling to their side again.
"I don't… understand," Draco breathed, unusually vulnerable at the sight of her. "You shouldn't be so…"
"Okay?" she finished for him. He nodded numbly and she stepped closer. She could feel one of her boys brush against her side, reminding her that they were there. She stopped in front of the large chair separating her from the other boys. "A lot has happened for me, Draco."
"You have to leave, Granger," Nott told her sharply. She appreciated him. He'd never been like his friends, and she imagined he was genuinely concerned for her. "You'll be caught and tortured."
"I'm so tired of being tortured," she said honestly, though she felt Regulus tense at her side. "I'm not here for that. I'm here for you, Draco. Surely your mother told you I'd come some day."
"My mother doesn't give a shit about you," Draco disagreed. She raised an eyebrow at him.
"I don't know about that. You both looked pretty upset and uncomfortable while your aunt was torturing me. You're a spy, Draco. Your mother made sure of that."
He very carefully didn't react. "You're delusional."
"I trusted Narcissa in my last days," she frowned. "She's a woman of her word. She wouldn't break this promise. Not for me, but for you. That's what she said."
"What the hell are you on about?" Draco asked her, uncomfortable.
She considered how she could show him who she is. She reached down to take the Potter bracelet off her arm, but Draco misinterpreted and whipped his wand out. "Alarte Ascendare!"
Mia gasped in surprise as she was tossed carelessly in the air. She fell roughly to the ground, though her fall was softened by a pair of arms catching her. She took barely a moment to recover before she waved her hand at the person holding her to reveal Avery frowning at her as he set her down. She swiped away the disillusionment and transfiguration at the same time and, that being done, she turned to Regulus, who was holding her arm, and did the same.
"What the hell?" Blaise asked loudly.
"I was fairly certain you might not trust that I'm not here to hurt you," she admitted. "Can I please show you what I was trying to show you now?"
"I… what?" Draco asked, speechless. She rolled her eyes and stepped forward, shaking off Regulus's hand when he tried to stop her. She presented her left arm to Draco, showing him both her Potter bracelet and the betrothal gift Regulus had given her. "Potter… and Black?"
"Yeah," she shook her head, pulling her arm back after he'd had a minute to look. "I more meant for you to look at the bracelet, but whatever."
"So, what? You're engaged to Potter?"
She screwed up her face in extreme disgust. "Oh my god, no."
"She's mine, thank you very much," Regulus muttered, wrapping his arm around her waist. "Just tell him your name, Little Lion. Stop messing with him."
She rolled her eyes. "I wasn't really trying to mess with him."
"You were," Avery disagreed.
She let out a huff before turning her attention back to Draco. "Mia Potter. You've heard of me, right?"
The blonde boy stared at her in disbelief. "Mum said I went to school with her, but… you?"
"Don't be rude," she scrunched up her nose.
"I'm… surprised," he corrected her. "I didn't expect Mia Potter to be a small, violent Gryffindor."
"Violent?" Regulus asked her, amused at the way she was blushing.
"Yes, well," she huffed. "It's not my fault. I didn't know what I know now, and he was saying awful things."
Draco paused. "I was, wasn't I?"
"What the hell is going on, Draco? Who are they?" Theo interrupted. He was calmer, though obviously losing his patience. "Is that not Hermione Granger?"
"No, I was," Mia answered him quickly. "It's a long story and… ah," she plucked her wand up again. "I swear on my magic and my wand that my name is Mia Potter and I traveled back in time to 1976 and befriended Death Eaters like Regulus and Avery here."
After a beat, she lowered her wand and put it back in the holster. She didn't need it, anyway. It had, truthfully, become harder to use than just using her hands.
"Potter," Blaise repeated. "How are you a Potter?"
"I was adopted by Charlus and Dorea Potter in 1976," she explained. "Aside from that, Sirius Black was adopted by them in the same year, and I made a blood bond with him, therefore I'd be a daughter of the House through him."
"But Sirius Black is dead," Theo pointed out. She shrugged.
"Not anymore," she leaned over so they could see the bond mark, pointing at it. "I didn't like him dead, so I brought him back. Regardless, I am who I say I am. Hermione is only a piece of me now."
"And you're really here for…"
"To help you," she confirmed, glancing at Blaise and Theo. "All of you."
"Tell me what you'll do. What you can do," Draco demanded. She felt a smile slip onto her lips. She knew she had him.
"I will ensure that if an Order member captures you, you'll be acquitted of any and all crimes and accepted as a spy for the Light. Aside from that, we'll preserve your properties and money, and help you reclaim your social standing once this is all over… except for your father. Actually, only you and your mother. Not Bellatrix."
Draco's eyes darkened. She watched as he struggled to find his words. "I'm… sorry."
She was pleasantly surprised by the apology and simply nodded once in response before turning to Regulus. "Reg-,"
"Mia," Avery groaned.
"Take off your shirt." She chuckled at Avery's expense as her boyfriend did as she asked, but stopped short at the sight of some scars he hadn't had when she left. "Oh my god…"
"Not now," he whispered gently. She ignored him and took a step closer to run her fingers over a particularly deep scar that ran at the top of his chest.
"Regulus," she whispered sadly, her stomach churning.
"Later," he insisted, taking her hand within his own and lowering it. She took a step to the side and sucked in a breath to speak to Draco and his friends once more, all of whom watched her ever move.
"The paw print," she said. "It's my mark. Everyone in the Order knows it and they received a refresher on that fact earlier today. I'll give one to each of you."
Avery shifted uncomfortably, and she looked over at him curiously. "If she… dies, it will burn. It'll feel a bit like you're dying."
"I'm sure that won't be important," she spoke up quickly.
"It may be," Avery argued. "And you never told Dodd or Gibbon, and you saw how they were."
"I get the point," she muttered, looking back to the Slytherin boys across from her. "He's right. The runes, the spell attaches the mark to my core, so when I die, it will die as well. I'll have to replace it."
"But you'll be dead," Theo stared at her. She shrugged.
"Yeah, but Sirius will bring me back. It'll be fine."
"I'm sorry, hold on," Draco called out, gathering their attention. "Do you mean to imply that you've died?"
Mia flat out ignored the question. "I've got a few more things to do today, so I'd really like to get this done now, if that's alright."
"You can't have died," he told her, louder this time. "It's impossible."
"If you can take your shirts off-,"
"Hermione!" Draco snapped, speaking her name for what she thought might be the first time ever. She locked gazes with him and felt him prod at her shields. And then she dropped them, likely the most impulsive thing she'd done in awhile.
Mia laid on the cold stone floor, her bare skin soaked in days old blood. Her matted hair fell in her face, and she didn't have the strength to move it. He was back much too soon. Voldemort had left her to him hours earlier and she was miserable. She just wanted it to end.
Dolohov was talking, he was saying something to her but she couldn't hear it. She didn't want to. He bent down and slapped her across the face, his own face full of untempered rage. His wand was pulled out and he threw spells at her, slicing her up the same way he had in the library. It hurt, and she heard herself scream, but after awhile, it faded. It faded while she cried and begged for it to end, the pain holding her tightly within its grip. Finally, after an eternity, it was over.
Mia stood still, very, very still. She wasn't shaking, she wasn't even sure she was breathing. She was angry, angry with Draco for pushing her over the edge, angry with Dolohov for not killing her sooner, angry once more with Sirius for bringing her back, and angry with Regulus for being angry with her.
"Mia!" Regulus snapped, grabbing her shoulders. "You trusted Severus, you do not trust him! Letting strangers into your mind is what got you killed!"
She took a step back to look at him, her eyes deadly calm. "Regulus. You think I let him in my mind? No. He opened my eyes while I was passed out and forced himself inside." She couldn't process the emotions she felt. Had he truly believed that entire time that she'd just let him in?
"You died," Draco breathed. She wasn't shaking but he certainly was. It only occurred to her then that he could very well have seen more than she meant for him to. "Dolohov-,"
"I'm back," she told him gently. They locked eyes once more, but this time he searched hers to ensure she really was there.
"Sano," Avery placed a hand on her arm softly. "Perhaps we should hurry. Leon did warn us to be quick."
"Right," she shook her head. "So, are you three in, or do we have to Obliviate you?"
"I'm in," Blaise told her easily. "I'm not actually a Death Eater yet, but I'm set to become one in the next round."
"Me as well," Theo spoke up, his voice quiet. "I got the Mark the same time as Draco."
Mia turned to look at the blonde boy, and he only stared at her.
"I never wanted to spend my life being a spy," he told her sharply. "I didn't want to pretend to hate you or Potter- er, Harry. Weasley is a dick, so I didn't mind hating him. I just wanted to be a normal kid. You took that from me."
"I know."
"I'm in."
She looked at him in surprise. "Really?"
"I understand it," he explained. "I could've traded a hard childhood for an easy one, but I'd have traded safety in the future for… something much worse. Give me the mark."
She nodded shortly. "Shirts off."
"For Merlin's sake," Avery threw his hands up. "You cannot do that every single time."
She turned to raise an eyebrow. "You wanna bet on that?"
He definitely did not.
She did Blaise first, lightly tracing the rune on him and watching it glow, burning into his skin. She hissed as it burned hers as well. She moved onto Draco, biting her lip at the pain in her torso when she marked him. Finally, she met a reluctant Theo.
"It's quick," she promised. "It doesn't really hurt that much."
After a beat of silence, Regulus leaned in to whisper to her. "Remember Severus?"
"Ah," she nodded. "Okay, everyone out of the room. We'll do this privately."
"Sano-,"
"Out!" she snapped. She watched her boys as well as Blaise and Draco reluctantly step out of the room, though they were still within shouting distance. Once alone, she smiled softly at Theo. "I have… a lot of scars. Some of them are pretty nasty. If you'll lift your shirt for me so I can do this, I'll do the same. It's only fair."
Theo looked at her for a long moment and slowly lifted his shirt. She held her breath so as not to gasp at the sight of countless nasty scars all over his torso.
"This isn't going to be pretty," she warned him before lifting her own shirt to let it rest on her chest. He sucked in a sharp breath and she nodded, unwilling to look down. "I know. Bad day."
"Can I ask…?"
She considered him. "The big one is from the day I died. He, uh… he's always had an unhealthy obsession with me. He wanted to sort of mark me as his, I guess. I came back to life with all the same injuries and scars as when I died, so it stuck."
"What about this?" he asked, pointing to the scar Bellatrix gave her.
"That's from the night Dumbledore died," she told him. "Bellatrix, actually. It would've killed me, but Remus- er, Professor Lupin, shoved me out of the way."
He was silent for a long moment before he pointed at his general chest. "Most of these are from when I was a child. I disagreed with the whole… blood purity thing, so…"
She offered him a genuine smile. "I always liked you. You were nice to me even when Draco was making fun of me or hexing me."
"In all fairness," Theo grinned at her. "He definitely deserved that punch. It was incredible."
She let out a laugh. "Ready?"
"Sure."
The actual process of putting the rune on was quick, and when it was over, both lowered their shirts once more.
"Reg, I'm ready," she called. The group made their way back in as she dug deep in her beaded bag for something. Or rather, multiple somethings. Finally, she plucked three out and handed them to the boys, not including her boys.
"What's this, Grang- er, Potter?" Draco asked her, flipping over the Galleon. "Present?"
"No," she rolled her eyes. "Communication. We used them for Dumbledore's Army."
"That's how you always knew where we were," Draco realized, chagrined. She just winked at him.
"I'll send a message next time I need to see you, and you can send one to me if anything comes up." She showed them quickly how they worked before saying a quick goodbye and casting the necessary spells once more before slipping from the room, and then the castle and its grounds. With a quick tap on her ring, she sent all three of them back to her house where the spells slipped away automatically as they passed through the wards.
"Now what?" Avery asked her, shoving his hair out of his face. In the short time between her leaving and him leaving, he'd allowed his hair to grow slightly.
"Now, we get to work."
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