Draco squeezed Mira's arm, glanced dangerously at Harry, and then walked off down the hall.
Mira stared at Harry, waiting for him to speak. What was wrong with this kid? Everybody with proper vision could see that she hated him. The seething dislike that radiated from her was aimed directly at him, and even those in the sitting room felt the heat from the glare she stared at Harry.
"Mira, I really need to tell you-" Harry began, but Mira cut him off.
"Look Harry, I don't know where in the hell I am, and I don't really know why the hell I've been brought here. In seven days I'm going to Hogwarts to watch my boyfriend, Draco, suck Parkinson's face. I'm going to have no friends, and nobody to watch out for me." Mira stopped, startled that she had spilled this much information to somebody she claimed to hate.
"You'll have friends, Mira, you're Gryffindor's heir!" Harry said.
Mira rolled her eyes. "Look, whatever. What's so pressing that you had to wait to talk to me alone?" Mira asked, sizing up Harry.
"I actually wondered if you….erm, well if you had ever met, you know, Sirius."
Mira's eyes widened at this question. "Of course not, I've been working for Voldemort, remember?"
Harry returned her look. "Voldemort? No Dark Lord, or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"
Mira shook her head. "Please. Only beings who let fear of a stupid name like that affect them bother with that bullshit. I'm the next Death Eater, you know, which makes me wonder why you haven't all tortured me and dragged information from me."
Harry was the one staring now. "Yeah, sure you're a Death Eater….but if you have been to his meetings, you must know Bellatrix Lestrange?"
Mira nodded. "Yeah, sure. Bellatrix is Voldemort's lapdog and resident whore, and you probably already know she's Narcissa's sister, and she's Pansy's cousin once removed or some shit like that. That family just breeds bitches."
"She killed Sirius." Harry said, wondering aloud if Mira knew this or not.
Mira shook her head, sighing. "I swear, I really get tired of explaining something this simple to the people who everybody is either deathly afraid of, or idolizes…First off, Black isn't dead, he's just not here. Bellatrix's curse caused him to fall through the Archway. Falling through the Archway does just the opposite of causing death, on the contrary it gives life. Or, I should say, preserves it." Suddenly, Mira felt exhausted. "Look Harry, I know not having Sirius around is hard, but I've lost my parents too, and you just have to find ways to cope with it."
Harry nodded. "What are your ways, Mira?" Harry knew that Natasha and Foster would have raised their daughter too prude to do anything drastic or dark to ease pain, not like him, who always needed a high, whether it be the easily accessible from any body above fourth year powdered crack, or his drug of choice weed, or a simple pack of cigarettes. Ron and Hermione would, literally, shit a brick if they knew of his distractions, but he'd done an expert job of hiding them thus far.
"Can I see your wand, Harry?" Mira asked, noticing the long stick shoved in the waistband of Harry's baggy jeans. Harry handed her his wand. She tapped her left arm, and then her right. Like spiders spinning webs, like ice skates along the surface of a frozen pond, Mira's arms were weaved in crisscrosses and designs of scars and cuts, as if she had just been attacked with knives.
"This, Harry Potter," She said, turning over her left arm so he could see the mutilated vein on her wrist, "is my way."
She tapped her arms again, and the cuts vanished. She gave a wave of his wand and a small crystal decanter appeared, full of a clear liquid. "And, of course, liquor helps me on the path to forgetting."
Mira handed Harry his wand, uncorked the decanter, and poured all of its contents into her mouth, gave a huge swallow, and grinned. "Night." She said, turning into the bedroom.
---
Harry left the hallway. He knew Mira hated him, if he were in her position, he would hate himself. In fact, knowing all he did about the Dumbledore girl, he was slightly surprised she hadn't jumped his ass when she first saw him.
"No," Said Remus, when Harry confided this in him, after Mira had left the room with Hermione, "That's not Mira's way. Mira is sneaky, calculating, clever and strong. If she does hate you still when you get to Hogwarts, just watch your back."
Harry wasn't sure if he was supposed to feel comforted, but Remus had a point. Mira was different. She was, of course, brash and would kick your ass as soon as look at you if she thought you were looking at her first, but where it counted, where her parents' death was concerned, Mira would plot her revenge carefully.
Harry remembered how the day before Mira came, Dumbledore had called him and Draco into the basement kitchen of Number 12. Sitting down across from the old man, oddly dressed in a muggle coat but his purple wizards robes visible beneath it, he told the boys he expected Mira here.
"Charlie will bring her here, and I must ask you two to make sure she stays here until term. I want you, Mr. Malfoy, to take her on the train with you, and get her to Hogwarts so that she can be Sorted." Draco nodded, and Dumbledore dismissed him.
As Draco left the kitchen, Dumbledore turned back to Harry. "I wonder Harry, if you could please tell me everything you know of Mira?"
Harry shrugged. "Well, she's Foster's daughter, and from the pictures Snape brought she's got black hair and green eyes. Everybody's saying she's Gryffindor's heir."
Dumbledore nodded thoughtfully, entwining his fingers and resting his chin on his knuckles. "Mira does not know the truth, Harry, and neither, I fear, do you. However, one thing you both have in mind, though it is aimed at different parties. Mira has been lied and cheated her whole life of the truth Harry, as have you. Revenge for loved ones' deaths is something that keeps the two of you alive, and able to deal with the agonizing minutes that you are without your families. Revenge, Harry, is the worst kind of greed."
"Mira's parents, Natasha and Foster, were both bright students at Hogwarts. Foster was a Gryffindor prefect, and Head Boy. Natasha was his Slytherin opposite. The two forged a love, a connection that the Slytherins--and Natasha's family--did not agree with. Natasha's parents were among the first circle of Death Eaters. After this information had been disclosed to her, she rushed back to Hogwarts to seek Foster's help.
Now, Foster's family was very supportive of the Ministry in those days, as Foster's father was head of the International Magical Cooperation Department, and his mother worked as a Healer in St. Mungo's. I am Natasha's uncle."
Harry looked up, confused. "That's impossible! Sir, Natasha's family were all dark wizards!"
Dumbledore nodded ruefully. "Do you remember me telling you, Harry, that it is our choices that make us who we are? Now please, I must get this over with tonight."
Harry opened his mouth to protest, but shut it again furiously.
Dumbledore nodded his thanks, his blue eyes twinkling. "Natasha and Foster were from very, very different backgrounds, as are you and Mira. However, you and Mira have one thing in common, Harry, and it is of the most importance."
Harry raised his eyebrows, waiting.
"Only you, Mr. Potter, have the power to kill Voldemort. And only Mira can teach you that power."
---
Mira slept in Hermione's bed that night. Hermione turned over to face her, wondering if Mira was still awake.
"I'm up." Mira whispered, grinning.
Hermione smiled back, and kissed Mira on the forehead. "You're beautiful, you know." Hermione whispered.
Mira smiled again, and leaned in to give Hermione a small kiss on the lips for the compliment. As the two girls pulled away from each other, Hermione asked if Mira was scared to go to Hogwarts.
Mira shrugged. "Not scared, just….apprehensive. I don't know anybody but you lot, and I'm going to be in Slytherin, with Draco, and he doesn't give a shit about me, so I'm going to be all alone."
Hermione shook her head. "Mira, you still don't get it, do you? You are a Gryffindor. Your mother was in Slytherin, my love, but you will be in Gryffindor."
Mira rolled her eyes. "Hermione, in case you haven't noticed, I'm not Gryffindor's type."
Hermione sighed. "You'll find out soon enough, I expect. Now let's get some sleep, it's going to be a long week." Hermione gave Mira another kiss, and turned over.
--
The next week went by slowly. Mira spent her days with Charlie, and her nights in Hermione's bed. Hermione was a fantastic lover, a clever and keen vixen who knew exactly what buttons to press and how long to press them for. Charlie, on the other hand, was possibly the sweetest guy Mira had ever known, though nothing more than the occasional kiss ever happened with him.
Finally it was the eve before the journey to Hogwarts, and Hermione and Mira laid down to bed together, though this evening neither girl touched the other.
Mira awoke the next day by Hermione shaking her shoulder. "We've got to get moving, if you don't hurry we're going to miss the train." Mira groaned and rolled reluctantly from the warmth of Hermione's bed.
Mira showered and dressed quickly, applying her makeup and ratting her hair at top speed. Half an hour later, Mira followed the Ginny down the stairs, into the front room of the house, where Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, Remus, Molly and Tonks were standing. Mira suddenly realized who was missing.
"Where's Charlie?" She asked Molly.
"Oh he's in the kitchen dear, if you want to say goodbye you'd best do it now."
Mira nodded, dropped her trunk to the floor, and hurried to the basement kitchen. Charlie was sitting at the table, pouring over charts.
"Charlie, you're not coming to see me off?"
Charlie looked up, and stood. "Mira!" He pulled the girl into his arms. "Mum wasn't supposed to let you come see me. Dumbledore doesn't want us together."
Mira's jaw dropped. "Why?"
Charlie shrugged, glowering. "I don't care what he says, though. I have to go back to Romania soon, the crew needs me."
Mira shook her head. "But Charlie, we could meet on weekends and you even said that you'd make it to Hogwarts for Halloween."
Charlie sighed. "I know Mira, I'm sorry. The only time off I have coming up is Christmas, and you're coming back here for it, so we'll be together then." Charlie kissed Mira's cheek. "Don't hate me, I promise I'll write everyday."
Mira nodded, and lifted her chin to meet her lips to his. His lips, so soft and so tender, met hers in a reassuring kiss. Mira sighed contentedly into Charlie's mouth. No matter how much attraction she felt for Hermione, or even Draco, Charlie would always be able to take her breath away.
"Everyday?" Mira said.
"Everyday." Charlie agreed, kissing her one more time. "Here." He said, remembering something in his pocket. He pulled out a delicate silver chain, and what looked like an emerald fang hanging from the end. "This is a jeweled dragon tooth. The Antipodean Opal Eye gives three jewels for teeth in their entire lifetime. I've been keeping this one for something special." He put the necklace around Mira's neck, trailing kisses around her chin.
"Now go, and have a good term." He whispered, kissing her again.
"Mira, time to go!" A shrill voice called down through the open door of the kitchen.
Mira moaned, but returned Charlie's kiss quickly.
"Send me an owl when you get there." He called to her, she turned back to him and smiled.
"Goodbye, Charlie Weasley."