Disclaimer- I wish everything here was mine… and if wishes were hippogriffs we'd all fly to the office on Mondays.

AN- Just to clarify, Lyra and Harry's relationship will be like Ron and Ginny's except maybe just a little closer since they're the same age.

And there is a very good reason for the Sirius situation- even if it's going to take a few more chapters for me to get to it.

The chapters are probably going to get really long from here on out.

Chapter 13- First Year (part I)

Hogwarts Castle-September-1991
Age 11

Lyra's POV

Maybe I should have been more discreet…

Well nothing I could do about it now. Next day, walking down the halls, I got a fairly good idea what Harry was in for. All that whispering and pointing was going to get old really fast.

At least Harry seemed cheered by the whole thing. "As long as I'm not the only one they're staring at".

Jerk.

Anyway… my fellow Hufflepuffs had gotten over the shock by the time we were in the dorms. There were still a few polite questions though - "So, have you always been able to do that?" "Is there anything else you can do wandlessly?" "Are you really a muggleborn?"

I didn't really have a reason not to answer their questions. Besides, I figured the more open I am about myself, the less likely it is that people would grow suspicious.

After a night of answering innocuous queries- everything was back to normal. At least as far as my year mates in Hufflepuff were concerned. The rest of the school though, that was another story.

The Gryffindors kept patting me on the back, the Ravenclaws kept trying to figure me out, asking as many questions as the Hufflepuffs had (and a lot less politely) and the Slytherins seemed torn between glaring at me and being afraid of me.

Seriously… The Slytherins were scared of a little girl. A little first year Hufflepuff girl.

I think that's probably why I'd been getting so much praise from the Gryffindors.

Oh- and I'd finally come to appreciate exactly what it meant to be a Hufflepuff. Every time anyone from another house became too pushy, an older Hufflepuff would mysteriously materialize by my side and sort things out (read- glower and look menacing until whoever was badgering me got a clue and scrammed)

I was really starting to love my house.

Every minute I got to spend away from Harry or the Hogwarts library (more often than not in Hermione's company) I spent reading or socializing in the Hufflepuff common room. That place was a curious mix of homely and wacky that, oddly enough, reminded me of home. Mum would have loved this place. The common room's entrance was through a bunch of barrels, stacked a little ways from the Hogwart's kitchen. The room itself was wide with a low ceiling, decorated in earthy tones and bright, colorful and occasionally musical plants. Despite being underground- it was surrounded by enchanted windows that showed off plain, open, wind-rippled grass fields.

The dorm room I shared with Susan, Hannah, Megan and Leanne was just as homely as the common room. Our beds were surrounded by deep yellow, almost ochre curtains. The walls were an earthy brown and covered with the occasional tapestry depicting bright scenic views … that were sometimes reflected in the ever changing views visible through the ceiling-high enchanted windows beside every bed.

The girls and I got along pretty well. Megan and Leanne were alright once you got to know them. A bit vain and air-headed, but still likable… Most of the times.

I did prefer Susan and Hannah's company though. They had known each other all their lives- Hannah's father worked in the same department at the ministry as Susan's Aunt. Hannah was the loud and boisterous tomboy, and Susan was the quiet, studious and graceful presence that grounded Hannah's rather childish nature. Their interactions were always fun to watch- sometimes comic and sometimes soap-opera worthy. There was quite a bit of friction there too. They had obviously never spent this much time together before, and keeping up with each other despite such conflicting personalities was taking its toll on their friendship. My somewhat (self-admittedly) chaotic presence seemed like a welcome distraction. And before I knew it- they had become my friends.

Draco's POV

The curiosity was killing me. Who the hell was this girl? She wasn't supposed to be a powerful snarky Enigma; she was a Hufflepuff for heaven's sake! And why did people keep asking me if I knew her? I mean sure we looked a little alike- but that didn't mean anything… Right?

That's it- it was time to confront her directly- So when Charms with Hufflepuff came along- I knew what I had to do.

"Who are you?" Okay, so maybe I could have phrased that more eloquently.

"Hmm… took you long enough" She actually looked slightly amused.

I wasn't going to let her bait me- not again.

"Well?"

She looked slightly disappointed, and I gave myself a mental pat on the back for not responding like I had wanted to (and like how she had expected me to) with a sneer and a retort that would have my mother wash my mouth with soap.

She shrugged. "Ask your mum"

"And how would my Mother know you?" I asked, curious.

"She wouldn't" She replied looking smug.

Before I could lose my temper, she said "But she would know my mother, ask her about Alhena Black"

And that was that.

So, left without any other option, and a burning curiosity, I wrote to my mother. I had expected a reply along the lines of- Oh, yes there's that distant cousin of mine who lives as a recluse in the Alps which is why you've never heard of her. What I wasn't expecting was-

'She was Uncle Orion's Eldest daughter- but she died years ago, sometime around her eleventh birthday. I can't imagine where you came across that name Draco dear, it's been decades since I've heard anyone speak off her. It was such a tragedy you see- no one in the family liked to talk about it. I doubt anyone outside of the family even remembers she existed…'

Well that didn't clear up anything at all.

Thankfully Slytherin had a lot of classes with Hufflepuff this year.

History.

"My mother says Alhena Black died years ago… how do you even know about her?" I had waited all of five minutes into the lesson before asking her. It seems to me that I end up sitting next to her in all the damned classes we share. Slytherin- Hufflepuff classes had even numbers, which meant two to a table- which meant this was the only time I could talk to her without those damned housemates of hers poking their noses in.

"I wonder if that's really what they told her, or just what she's willing to admit to you" She mused to herself.

"My mother would never lie to me! Not about this!" I knew she wouldn't. My father could have(probably would have) but not my mother.

My vehemence seemed to have taken her aback. And then she recovered and smiled at me. "Alright, I believe you, in fact it's probably likely that she didn't know. After all she was only 11 herself back then"

"Didn't know what?" I asked… but I think I already knew by then.

"She didn't die, she was a squib. They covered it up and tossed her out" She said in a blank voice.

They threw her out when she was 11? I was 11… I couldn't imagine what I'd do if … no that would never happen. I was here. And my parents approved of me. I was the only heir my father had. It would never happen to me… but why did I still feel like there was a lead ball lodged in my throat.

Lyra suddenly looked up as if she'd just remembered something. She started digging into her book bag and emerged with a picture and handed it to me. It was a family portrait. Mentally I compared it to the one I carried of my own family. Both had three people, but where mine was in a formal drawing room, with stiff formal clothes and stiffer formal expressions- her's was set in a garden. Her father was ruffling her hair and her mother (she looked so much like mine) was laughing at the two of them and she had a mile wide grin on her face. I took a moment to let myself feel jealous, and then the moment was gone.

"Why isn't it moving?" I wondered out loud.

She laughed "Muggle pictures don't move silly!" like it was such an obvious fact.

"I've never seen a muggle picture before" I grumbled under my breath.

"Wow… you've really lived a sheltered life haven't you? Remind me to take you out to London someday little cousin… proper London, not just Diagon Alley" she amended when she saw my face.

Was it really alright to feel this happy at hearing her make plans for us like this? I had always wanted a sibling or at least a relative my age. But what would father say? She was the daughter of a muggle and a squib… but she was fairly powerful in her own right.

"And send that picture to your mum, tell her I said that my mum would probably love to hear from her again" She added.

Well that's that isn't it? If mother was going to associate with her family then there was nothing father could say about my spending time with her. And if she choose not to meet her long lost cousin… well I really didn't want to think about that.

Lyra's POV

Things with Draco were developing … oddly.

We had History, Charms and Astrology together.

If I wasn't already sitting with Hannah or Susan, he would wordlessly come and sit by me. We would exchange a few less than pleasant comments on each other's state of intellect. Then one of us would point out something funny, the other would snicker, and then we'd return to pretending that moment of civility never happened. Astrology was particularly amusing- especially since it generally devolved into lessons on family history.

Transfigurations, Herbology and DADA were with Gryffindors. I generally spent those either with Harry or Hermione, with a few conversations with Ron and Neville thrown into the mix.

Potions with Ravenclaw had, surprisingly become my absolute favorite. Sure Snape was a harsh task master… but he had good reason. A single, small, seemingly inconsequential mistake could lead to catastrophic results. He wasn't nearly as biased in the Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff class as he was rumored to be in the Slytherin-Gryffindor ones. He didn't give or take (mostly take) points unless it was well deserved.

I think he was impressed by my work- not that I could tell much from his impassive face, but he did occasionally manage an approving sort of nod in my direction. Coming from Severus Snape, a nod of approval was high praise indeed… especially if you were not in Slytherin.

As for the rest of my lessons- magic came as easily to me as breathing. Hermione and I constantly traded between first and second places in theory. But when it came to practical applications- I was without an equal. Every spell worked on the first go, some times without even an incantation or wand movement. I still wasn't sure why it seemed so easy, but you wouldn't hear me complaining about it. The Professor's didn't seem to know what to make off me.

A couple of months passed this way. Harry had already told me about what he had found about the Gringott's break in and his encounter with Fluffy the cerberus- in between rants of how much Snape hated him and how much he hated Malfoy and how he wished he could be practicing Quidditch all the time because he was so nervous about being thrown off the Gryffindor team for not being good enough- despite my reassurances that nothing of the sort would ever happen.

Harry was aware of my evolving distant-relative relationship with Malfoy, but he didn't seem too bothered by it. When I asked him why that was, he just shrugged and said- "He's your family right?"

Right- I'd forgotten. This was the boy that had forgiven his cousin for a life-times worth of torment over a single acknowledgement and a handshake, years down the line.

"Speaking of Quidditch" I decided to interrupt him before he figured out more ways to cuss at Malfoy and/or Snape. "How's that new broom working for you?"

And that was just the right thing to say. Harry looked up at me with a gigantic smile "It's working brilliantly- Wood said it's probably the fastest model out yet… I… I don't know how to thank-"

"Okay, we obviously still need to work on this – Harry you're family. You don't thank family for splurging on you. In fact, you turn around and say- Can I get that one too? – Understand?"

He looked sheepish and hesitant for a moment, but then he nodded firmly- so I assume I won't have to repeat this particular lecture for another few months.

I had already informed my parents at the start of the year that Harry would be on the Quidditch team(Ah the advantages of masquerading as a seer!) and they had bought him a Nimbus-pro. The slightly (maybe more than just slightly) more expensive version of a Nimbus 2000, designed specifically for Quidditch professionals- with more in-built security than any other version available. Then on the day he got selected for the team- I had asked McGonagall for permission to have Harry's brand new broom brought to the castle- which she had granted of course. The look on Harry's face when Flynn flew up to him with that well wrapped (and obviously broom shaped) package had been priceless. I think the twins even managed to click a picture of the moment- I'm going to have to ask Fred and George for a copy of that.

A week before Halloween, I stumbled upon a book that would change everything.

It wasn't a particularly attractive book. It wasn't even a dangerous one. It was in fact a dull first year's guide to Potions. To be more specific- a guide to different potion bases. A base, was a starting point for creating any potion. It differed depending on the kind of potion you wished to create- Healing potions, Poisons, Appearance altering potions, mind altering potions, potions that were for inanimate objects and so on. They all had their own base potion formulas. But it was the last one that caught my attention- emotion inducing potions.

It was really advanced stuff, and the book contained nothing beyond the base potion formula. I'm guessing if I want to search for more I'd have to look in the restricted section. That or ask Professor Snape.

Potions that messed with emotions were restricted in their use for a reason. Mostly the reason was love potions. But they could be used to control people in other ways too. The imperious curse only controlled people for a little while- and then when the effects wore off- the person could return to being who they were. But potions that altered the way you felt- they changed your perception of the world. And even though the effects of the potion would eventually wear off- you would still be left wondering how much of what you felt was real.

So of course, the instant I asked the Professor about when we would be starting on potions like that, he grew suspicious.

"Why Miss Addison?" And then with his trademark sneer "Do you wish to learn how to make those blasted love potions like the rest of your female generation… I find myself disappointed, I had expected better of you"

I didn't know whether to be pissed that he thought I was petty enough to ask him about love potions, or pleased that he admitted he expected better of me.

"Not love Sir, I wish to know if there's any potion that can induce remorse"

Now I had his attention.

"And why pray tell, would that subject interest you?"

Think fast, think fast, think fast…

"Well… I heard about the justice system in the wizarding world… and Azkaban sounded rather… barbaric. So it got me thinking- there's so much that magic can do, then why would it be impossible to make the guilty realize the error of their ways? I mean… people only do bad things because they don't know any better… right? If there was some way to make people feel remorse proportionate to their crimes, maybe they'd change for the better…" I trailed off. This was just an excuse, but now that I thought about it- it really did make sense.

"How naive" Cue, another sneer.

"I am not naïve! Or stupid… I know that potions aren't permanent… I know that most of them will probably return to being themselves. But even if it works for just a single person… isn't it worth it?" And I felt the conviction in what I was saying. I really did believe this. Even if I had an ulterior motive for the remorse potion.

Snape was staring at me like I had grown a second head. Then he looked away so I couldn't see the expression on his face.

"As… Noble, as that sentiment is Miss. Addison I'm afraid there isn't any such potion in existence" he said in a far away voice.

"Not Yet… But there will be" I said determinedly.

Then he turned to look at me, and I couldn't pin the emotion I saw on his face, but if I had to guess- the closest thing to it would be pride.

"Perhaps" He agreed with a nod.

Okay now comes the tough part … "I want to do it Professor. I want to make that potion. Could you… I mean if you had the time… I mean I'd appreciate it if…"

He looked faintly amused "Yes … I will help you"