And on to the next chapter! (Pairing still as of yet undecided, unknown whether or not there will even be a pairing)

Disclaimer: Yeah yeah, I know, I don't own the stuff that's already been copyrighted. Sheesh.

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Manor of the Zodiac Keepers, Infirmary Wing

Not a sound could be heard from any of the occupants of the small sitting room outside the infirmary. In each of the chairs that had appeared in the room for the six occupants, a wizard or witch was sitting, dumbfounded beyond belief. Nothing the likes of which they had just seen had ever happened in the wizarding world.

Molly Weasley sat back in her armchair, thinking of how to bring the young red-haired woman in the hospital up to speed on what had happened. Ron sat in his chair, in complete disbelief, the same as he had been for most of the past week. Ginny was stunned to a point where she couldn't do much more than stare straight ahead into space, contemplating the situation at hand. Hermione had already run off to the manor's library in search of books, to research what she did not say. Sirius was muttering something to himself, likely rehearsing exactly what he wanted to say to the newly resurrected woman in the next room. How to explain the predicament at hand… he had no idea. The method to the madness at hand eluded him.

Samantha's reaction was the most profound. Tears were streaming down the silver-haired girl's face, mixed feelings of sadness and joy producing the wellspring. The emotions running through her were so profound that her magic was actually broadcasting the emotions to others within a three-foot radius of her, as Ginny found out rather quickly after trying to comfort her. Thoughts were racing through her head. What to say, how to say it, what the reaction would be, best and worst case scenarios, all of these were passing through her thoughts. But one thought predominated all of the other ones racing through her mind: 'My mother is alive.'

At the same moment that Hermione let out a small yelp of triumph, a house elf came out of the infirmary to tell the occupants of the sitting room that the patient was beginning to wake. Sam made a move to get up, but Sirius' hand on her shoulder stopped the action.

"Wait, Sam. It wouldn't do for a girl she's never seen before to rush up to her and call her 'Mom'." What he was saying truly pained not only him, but the silver-haired girl as well. After all, who was he to keep her from the mother she had spent fourteen years without? "I think… perhaps we should explain what's happened recently, and then see what she says. Hermione," Sirius said, turning to the bushy-haired girl, "did you find what you were looking for?"

Hermione nodded, a slight smile gracing her lips.

"Yes; specifically, I found the difference between Heir Transfer and Bloodline Alteration. Heir Transfer causes the recipient to completely disinherit their prior family, while Bloodline Alteration is more like an incomplete adoption ritual crossed with appearance alteration and," Hermione looked at Sam sadly, "in this case, gender alteration. Therefore, Sam is still her child. Actually, it's almost like there's a third parent instead of a completely different family. You're still a Potter, Sam, you're just also a Zodiarkus."

This revelation only made Sam sob harder, but this time the sob was purely joy. Her mother was still her mother by blood, even through the spell she had accepted that gave her a new identity.

"That's good to hear," Sam muttered through the crying. "I just wish… there was a little more family resemblance to help me… I mean, I don't look anything like her! Even something small… like my hair…" Sam went back to crying, and didn't notice the slight gasps that had come from everybody in the room.

As soon as Sam had finished her statement, one of the twelve colored streaks of hair on the left side of her hair, the red streak, faded to silver. Afterwards, the remainder of her hair became the same fiery red as the young woman in the other room.

"Sam," Ron said, voice barely held steady. "M-maybe you should, um, look in the mirror?" She looked up, not certain of what her friend was saying, but one of the house elves had produced a mirror in front of the teen, stealing her breath with what she saw. Her hair had indeed become a fiery red, but that wasn't all. Her eyes had changed to emerald green, with a small ring of silver around the iris to attest to the original color.

"Wow, Sam… you're a Metamorphmagus, just like Tonks!" Sam looked at Ginny oddly wondering what a Metamorphmagus was and who Tonks was. Ginny saw the unspoken questions in Sam's eyes, and answered for her.

"Oh wait, I forgot, you haven't met Tonks yet. Um, she was one of the six who came barging in here… the one with hot pink hair? That's her. Anyways, um… a Metamorphmagus is a wizard or witch who can alter his or her physical appearance at will. Not all of them can do so to the same extent, so your abilities might only be for your hair and eye color. I don't know."

Sam sighed, and Sirius got up, walking into the other room. He wanted to do this explaining… alone.

Sirius walked in to the infirmary, and he saw the red-haired woman leaning up in her bed, taking in her surroundings and eating a bowl of soup. Her first meal in fourteen years, Sirius thought grimly. When her gaze settled on Sirius, she dropped her spoon and could do naught but stare.

"S-Sirius? Where am I? What's going on? What year is it? Where's Harry?" Sirius took in a long, drawn out sigh, any vestige of what made him a Marauder gone from his eyes. He was deadly serious (A/N: Pun not intended), and couldn't have cracked a joke if he tried.

"Lily… it's been too long. Fourteen years, actually." The black-haired Animagus made his way over to the chair next to Lily's bed, and sat down. He couldn't help but stare at Lily. Because of her death and highly unexpected resurrection, she was only twenty-one years of age physically. Her soul, on the other hand, was thirty-five years old, even though it didn't show. How life had been returned to her… he didn't know, and doubted he would ever find out.

"I'm not really sure where to start, so if you'll bear with me through the whole story without interruptions," Sirius said, and Lily crossed her arms over her chest, "then we'll get through this quickly. Um… let's see where to start." Sirius sat back in his seat, his eyes slightly glazing over because of his thoughts.

"You have been dead for fourteen years. James is still dead, because he died from the Killing Curse, while you apparently used your life force, magic, and love to shield Harry. So much has happened since then. I went after Peter so that I could have my revenge for you, but he set me up, killed thirteen Muggles, cut off his finger, and escaped. I spent thirteen years in Azkaban for his crime." Lily gasped, her eyes misting over from what Sirius said. "I'm not done yet Lily, not even close. Harry was sent to live with the Dursleys—"

"He WHAT?! I specifically said he wasn't to go anywhere near the Dursleys! Why would he—"

"Blood wards," Sirius interrupted. "Because Petunia is your sister, blood wards could be erected that would keep out anybody bearing the Dark Mark. Anyways, Harry grew up at the Dursleys without any idea that magic existed. Hagrid visited him on his eleventh birthday, and introduced him to the world of magic."

Sirius trailed off, and began recounting Harry's various adventures as he'd heard them: the fiasco with the Philosopher's Stone, and Voldemort being a ghastly face on the back of Quirrell's head. He went on to talk about Harry's killing the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, then went on to Harry's third year and his own escape from Azkaban (without failing to mention Harry's repelling over a hundred Dementors with a stag Patronus), and finally rested on the Tri-Wizard Tournament.

"After the tournament," Sirius said, reaching the end of his tale after well over half an hour, "Harry went back to living with the Dursleys. Not long before Harry's birthday, the blood wards were at a… weak point, and a Death Eater broke into the house, took Harry's wand, and murdered the Dursleys with it. The Death Eater was Lucius Malfoy, and he wound up framing Harry for their murders, as well as for the murder of Cedric Diggory at the end of the tournament." Sirius' eyes misted over in sadness. Recounting the tale was difficult; he hadn't expected it to be this hard. The emotions were flooding through him, and he was also more than a little afraid of what Lily would say next.

"Harry was framed, all of the Hogwarts staff dosed with a rage-inducing potion, and Harry's best friends, along with Minister Fudge, put under the Imperius so that Harry couldn't get a trial. He was sent to Azkaban… maximum-security level. There… well, let's just say Trelawney's prophecy wasn't the only thing about Harry's destiny. His stay in Azkaban revealed the 'power that the Dark Lord knows not' portion, that's undeniable.

"Apparently, Harry's birth had been predicted centuries before, and was designated as the heir to a millennia old pureblood house tasked with guarding some ancient power. I don't understand it one bit, but I don't think You-Know-Who will be able to measure up to even a fraction of that power. But… well, there was a catch. In order to inherit the power, and Harry was the only one who would be able to for at least a hundred years, he had to… allow himself to be changed into a girl."

Sirius was expecting a horrified reaction from Lily. When he turned to look at her, the red-head's reaction could only be described as pleasant surprise.

"I know it's weird to think of it this way, Sirius, but… well, my son just became the daughter I never lived long enough to have." A faint smile played across Lily's face, a reaction that was completely the opposite of what Sirius was planning for. Then again, hope for the best, plan for the worst. "What is Harry's name now, Sirius?"

"Her new name is Samantha. I know that if you had a daughter you wanted to name her Rose…"

Lily just shook her head. "I don't care. She's still my daughter, and my daughter by any name will still be my daughter. Besides, Samantha's a pretty name. What does she look like?"

Sirius stiffened a little. "Er… from what I've seen, she has some Metamorphmagus abilities. Her hair and eyes are normally a silver color now, but she was worried about not having enough of a family resemblance when her hair turned the same red as yours, and her eyes the same green. Not sure if she knows how to control it… I'm pretty sure she's going to be able to become an Animagus too." Sirius paused. "Do you, erm, want to see her?"

Lily nodded, but no sooner than she finished nodding did a blur of red hair burst out from the other room, and wrap around Lily in a large hug. She looked down, and saw a near exact replica of herself when she was fifteen.

Sam looked up at her mom, and tried to say something, but started crying, the tears spilling down her cheeks. Lily pulled the crying girl closer, and burst into tears of joy herself.

Sirius, not wanting to ruin the moment, carefully crept out of the room. This was something that wasn't meant for his eyes to see.

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12 Grimmauld Place, Order Headquarters

Dumbledore awoke from Samantha's sleeping charm first, to find himself lying on a very comfortable bed. Panic gripped the old wizard as he scanned through his memories, finding a missing patch immediately after walking into the room where that Samantha girl had been with Ms. Granger and Mr. and Ms. Weasley. And yet, for some reason, he wasn't worried in the slightest. He couldn't place it, but the silver-haired girl wasn't malevolent in the slightest.

Dumbledore rose up from the bed, and made his way down to the kitchens of Grimmauld Place. He conjured himself a bag of lemon drops, as well as a kettle of tea and a tea set before dispelling the sleeping charm from the other Order members that had been with him.

Once again, worry seized Dumbledore as he realized that had only dispelled three sleeping charms, opposed to the five he was expecting. Using his Legilimency, he noted that Molly Weasley and Sirius Black were missing. Were they still at that girl's manor? He just didn't know… but he had to find out.

The venerable Headmaster made his way over to the fireplace, threw some Floo Powder into the fire, and called out a name loud and clear: "Sirius Black!"

The fire turned green, and ten or so seconds later, Sirius' head appeared in the flames. He didn't seem worried or tried at all. In fact, he seemed happier than he had even been, aside from when he had first seen his godson.

"Sirius, thank Merlin you're safe. Where are you?"

"Hang on, Albus, just one moment." Sirius' head disappeared from the fire, to reappear a moment or two later. "Albus? I think it would be better if you came here. Just step into the fire." Dumbledore nodded, and stepped into the fireplace, traveling through the Floo network. He was searching around the network through the gateways until he saw Sirius waving at him through an opening he hadn't seen before. Dumbledore made his way over to Sirius, and stepped out of the fireplace.

"Hello, Professor," Hermione said politely. "Well, Sirius? Are you going to tell him, or do I need to drag her out here myself?" Sirius grumbled something incoherently before making a motion with his arms that would most easily represent 'come on out'. A door opened behind Dumbledore, causing the Headmaster to turn around… and freeze.

Coming out of the door, was somebody that, by all rights, was supposed to be dead. Actually, she had been dead for fourteen years… so how was it possible that Albus Dumbledore was staring at Lily Potter?

"Albus," she said, snapping him out of his thoughts. "It's good to see you. How is Harry?" Dumbledore could only look down at the floor, the twinkle gone from his eyes.

"Harry… is dead, Lily. I'm so sorry that—" The Headmaster couldn't finish. Lily had pulled back her arm, and slapped him across the face so hard that he nearly fell over from the force of the blow. He hadn't expected that…

"I already know that, Dumbledore, and I know that you're part of the cause. How could you? You treated him as though he were your grandson!" Dumbledore could only bow his head in shame, and look away. He didn't want to meet Lily's eyes, afraid of what he may find.

"I'm sorry that I came," the aged wizard said. "I'm glad to know that you're alive, Lily, even though I don't know how. I will be leaving now. Sirius, Molly, don't forget: the next Order meeting is in three days. Lily, if you would like to resume your position as an Order member, you may attend."

"Actually, Albus, I was going to spend some time with the girl responsible for my being here right now," Lily said fiercely. Albus looked up, and noticed Samantha standing at Lily's side. He was shocked to notice, however, that Samantha's eye and hair color were shifting from her own to Lily's every few moments. The older wizard nodded, and then reached into the jar above the fireplace, grabbed some Floo powder, and left.

Lily looked down at Sam. "I guessed you didn't want him to know who you used to be," she said, with a smile gracing her lips. Sam's eyes had misted over, and Lily hugged her close. She didn't want to know what the girl had experienced at the hands of the Dursleys. Lily only wished that they had still been alive so that she might mete out her own justice.

Lily broke from the embrace with her daughter, and placed her hands on the teen's shoulders. "I know you got a Hogwarts letter with your supply list, so why don't we go to Diagon Alley to pick up your supplies?" Sam looked up at her mom, and nodded.

"I don't see why not. Besides," she said, slightly saddened, "I'll finally get to know the mother I should have always had." Tears of joy sprang to Lily's eyes, and the two of them walked over to the fireplace. She pulled some Floo Powder, called out "Diagon Alley" in a forceful voice, and then the two young women stepped through the fireplace, disappearing.

The Leaky Cauldron, Diagon Alley

Lily and Sam emerged from the Floo Network, and quickly brushed the soot off of their clothing. Lily had found the time to change, and luckily the Manor of the Zodiac Keepers could conjure clothing of any type. Of course, that wouldn't stop Lily from dragging her daughter all over the alley in a shopping trip…

Sam pulled out her Hogwarts letter, surveying the supply list she would need to buy. She looked up at her mom, and changed her appearance so that she appeared as a fifteen-year-old version of the other woman.

"Where to first?"

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Okay, not the best chapter, but I'm going to have Diagon Alley be attacked by… well, I can't tell you. But it's going to be a pretty awesome fight scene. Not just spells, mind you, but that fancy spear of Sam's is going to get some use.