Hey y'all!
I hope you are all doing well! I know, I know, long time, no post- but hey, I'm finally done with classes for the school year! Since it is now summer for me, I am hoping to post more frequently! I've been thinking of posting some deleted scenes for my various fics, so if you like that idea, or there's a partcular scene you'd like to see, let me know and I'll see what I can do! That should finish up the housekeeping, so without further ado, sit back, relax, enjoy, and on with the chapter!
-Sav
September 5, 1971
The first two days of classes were quite normal– boring, even, to Mia, who had yet to experience a quiet year at Hogwarts. It was almost a relief, really, to have such uneventful classes. There was no gossip over grand entrances, no groundbreaking news, no Ministry oversight, no Death Eaters, no Voldemort. There was a new defense professor, of course, but that was hardly any point of notice. Mia's classes were just that: classes.
While her classes were exceptionally ordinary, Mia felt that the past couple days were anything but. After destroying the diadem, Mia had stayed up into the small hours of the morning talking to Tinky. Admittedly, it felt nice to have someone solidly on her side to be let into her secret. She felt lighter– like she could breathe a little easier.
She knew it was necessary to let Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Pomfrey know her circumstances, but she didn't trust that Dumbledore would keep her best interests at heart. He was more concerned with the well-being of the "Greater Good." She knew how he worked. Dumbledore was willing to sacrifice individuals as long as the overall end point was what was best for the majority. He saw the forest, not the trees. McGonagall and Pomfrey would treat her like they would any other student, and that was just who they were, but Tinky– Mia knew that Tinky would always be by her side, swinging in her corner.
Tinky had insisted on helping Mia with her plans to save her brothers, family, friends, and the entire world; and had even gone so far as to make Mia promise that she wouldn't "do anything stupid" without calling for her first. Tinky was a great help to Mia– one that she hadn't seen coming, and in the short few months she had spent in this timeline, Tinky had quickly become a dear friend.
When not actively working, Tinky had taken to following Mia around unseen. Although Mia knew she was there– her war-honed instincts too sharp for the little elf to go unnoticed– she thought it best not to bring it up, knowing that Tinky was purely doing so out of a fierce, protective need to keep her safe. With the extent that Dobby had gone to keep Harry safe in their second year, Mia considered herself lucky.
It seemed, however, that the one thing Tinky could not protect Mia from was her nightmares, which had steadily grown worse since being back in the castle. At Mia's request, Tinky had not dismantled the silencing charm she had put up around her bed that first night, so while Mia would consistently wake up to the sound of her own screams, her roommates were left undisturbed and none the wiser.
Tinky was always there when she woke, and Mia–still a bit uncomfortable giving orders to her elf– would beg Tinky not to wake Jamie. Mia knew he would be upset if he found out, but not only did she not wish to accidentally wake the rest of his roommates; she didn't want her brother worrying about how bad her nightmares had become. It was one thing to be at Potter Manor– a place free from memories of the future, a place she had come to view as comforting– safe– home. But Hogwarts, as much as she loved the castle, would always be a reminder of war, fear, and everything she had lost. Tinky always stayed after Mia would wake, even though it was very rare that she would actually fall back to sleep.
It was the quiet sound of Tinky popping away to Potter Manor that persuaded Mia to finally leave her dormitory and face the day, regardless of the fact that she had already been awake for hours. Judging by the amount of noise coming from other Gryffindor students, breakfast was well underway. Doing a quick Tempus charm, she found herself proven correct as the results announced the time as eight fifty-seven in the morning.
After dressing and preparing for the day, she headed directly to the Great Hall, knowing her brother would already be there. No matter how much Jamie liked to sleep in, she knew he could never resist the lure of food. She smiled sadly– he was much like Ron in that regard, though at least Jamie had some semblance of table manners. As she had predicted, the second she had stepped into the Great Hall, she was flagged over by her brother, who seemed to already be on his second helping of food– if the uneaten toast crusts on his plate were anything to go by. Taking a seat next to Jamie, she smiled at him in thanks as he passed her a cup of tea– earl grey with a splash of milk, just how she liked it.
Sighing as she inhaled the smell of the bergamot in her tea, she took the time to study her surroundings. Jamie had gone back to avidly discussing the results of Puddlemere United's game the previous night (where they had beaten the Wimbourne Wasps 650 : 110) with Sirius, who had acknowledged her presence with a smile and a friendly nod in her direction.
Looking around the Great Hall, she noticed that while there were still many people who were leisurely enjoying their breakfasts, quite a few people had begun to trickle out of the hall, eager to start their first Sunday of the school term. Most of the teachers had long since left their tables, and the quiet hum of people dining permeated the air, accompanied by the small chirps and fluttering of the few remaining owls that had been let in for the morning post.
Across the table from her sat Remus and an older boy, who was quietly reading the Prophet and munching on a scone. As she sent a smile to Remus in greeting, she studied his face, taking note of his pale complexion and badly hidden grimace. He had barely touched the food on his plate, rather he sat stiffly, gripping his cup of tea tightly between both hands. Quickly realizing the issue, Mia went through the past month in her head, double checking her math. Tonight was the night of the full moon.
Setting down her mug, she called for Tinky, who appeared by her side almost immediately. Quietly, so as to not bug Remus's oversensitive hearing, she asked Tinky to bring her some coffee grounds and a muggle filter. At her request, Mia noticed that she had piqued the interest of Remus and the older boy next to him. Ignoring the feel of their eyes on her, Mia silently took a spare mug from the table before reaching into her beaded bag and pulling out a few squares of chocolate. Placing the chocolate on a clean plate, she then proceeded to chop the chocolate into fine shavings, finishing right as Tinky returned with the coffee and filter paper.
After thanking Tinky, Mia scraped half of the chocolate shavings into the empty mug before starting to filter the coffee. When the coffee had finished filtering, she stirred the rest of the chocolate into the mix and added a touch of milk. Once she deemed it to be done, she softly set the spoon down on her plate before reaching across the table to Remus and gently prying his cold tea from his grip. Remus furrowed his eyebrows as Mia passed him her mug.
"Drink this," she said kindly, keeping her voice low. "You'll feel better."
"A mocha?" Remus asked, surprised that she had made the muggle drink.
"It's hard to go wrong with chocolate and caffeine. Plus– you look like you could use it. At the very least, it will give you some energy."
Remus smiled slightly in thanks before taking a sip. He sighed as he felt heat rush through him, followed by the flavor of the coffee and chocolate. She was right– it did help. The boy next to him, finally unable to hold his curiosity any longer, spoke up.
"What's that?"
"It's called a mocha," Mia responded. "It's a popular muggle drink made with coffee, chocolate, and milk. I find it to be a rather helpful pick-me-up when I'm feeling a bit poorly."
"Muggles put chocolate in their coffee?" The boy asked, seeming astonished.
"Quite frequently. Muggles do all sorts of things with their coffee. So much so, that there are entire restaurants dedicated to making different types of coffee. They're called coffee shops."
"Really? Fascinating!" He replied. "I'm Frank, by the way. I'm a third year."
Mia furrowed her eyebrows, studying his face. He looked vaguely familiar, but she could not place where she might have known him from. After a few seconds of her staring, Frank started to flounder, drawing the attention of James and Sirius.
"Mi?" James asked, putting a hand on his sister's shoulder. At her lack of response, James looked towards Frank.
"Did I say something?" Frank asked worriedly. James shrugged, but Mia ignored them, rather continuing to focus on how she could possibly know the boy across from her. Finally, it hit her– the day at St. Mungo's in her fifth year. They had gone to visit Mr. Weasley, who was recovering from Nagini's attack. They had run into Neville, who was visiting his parents in the Janus Thickey Ward. Frank and Alice Longbottom. Tortured to insanity in 1981 by Bellatrix, Rabastan, and Rudolphus Lestrange, and Barty Crouch Jr. Her hand came up to cover her mouth, and she tried to hold back her emotions. She had to know.
"Frank?" She asked. "Frank Longbottom?"
"I– Yes? How do you know my surname?" She tried in vain to hold back a shudder at the memory of him in the hospital bed– white haired and barely conscious.
"Are you okay?" He asked in concern.
"Do you know occlumency?" She questioned urgently. She would not allow Neville to grow up in a world where his parents didn't recognize him. She knew how that felt. She refused to let it happen again.
The boys– Frank, James, Remus, and Sirius, all appeared to have been thrown by her seemingly random line of questioning. Losing her patience, she asked again insistently.
"Do you know occlumency?"
"Uh– no? My mother does, though."
"Augusta? Oh, wonderful," she sighed with relief. She resolved to write Madam Longbottom later about lessons for Frank, the Marauders, Lily, herself, and Alice– once she makes her acquaintance.
"Who are you? How do you know my mother's name? How do you know my surname? Why were you staring at me? Why do you want to know if I can perform occlumency?" Frank's tone was more confused than anything else, and upon realizing that she had made an interesting first impression, she blushed and started from the beginning.
"I'm terribly sorry. I'm Mia Potter. It's my first year. You reminded me of someone, and I was trying to figure out who, which is why I was staring. As for how I know your surname and your mother's name– I just know things. I can't really explain it. It's the same with the occlumency. It will help you later on, and the younger you start, the more practiced you will be."
"You just… know things?" Frank raised his eyebrows, clearly skeptical.
"She's a seer," said James, nodding his head matter-of-factly.
"No, I'm not," responded Mia, elbowing her brother in the ribs. "I just know things."
"What do you know?" Frank asked, curiously.
Mia took a moment to think before responding. "Your Uncle Algie– he's rather fond of toads, isn't he?" Frank's jaw dropped and his eyes bulged, but Mia continued. "Your favorite classes are Defense and Herbology. Your mother failed her Charms O.W.L., and she keeps a mousetrap in her handbag because of a prank your father played on her, involving a fanged gerbil. Your son–" She closed her eyes tightly, trying to dispel the image of Neville's mangled body from her mind. "Your son will be brave," she finally said, "so, so brave."
"…My son?"
"Yes," she smiled. "Your son."
Frank tilted his head, as if the very idea of being a father confused him. To be fair, it probably was a tough concept for a person to wrap their head around– especially if that person was only thirteen. Finally, Frank grinned.
"You know, I'm pretty sure you're a seer."
As if on cue, the Potter siblings spoke at the same time.
"Thank you!"
"I'm not a seer!"
"Sure, you're not," Frank said, standing up from the table and grabbing his bag. "It was nice meeting you, Mia Potter."
After watching Frank leave the Great Hall, Mia turned her attention back to Remus. Realizing that he was still sipping his mocha, and noticing that some of the color had started to return to his face, Mia smiled.
"Are you feeling a bit better, Remus?"
"Yeah, I am," he replied, managing to muster a genuine smile. "Thanks, Mia."
"Anytime."
Having finished her tea, Mia took a fruit scone off the platter in front of her and began to meticulously spread on the jam and clotted cream, tuning out the rest of the Great Hall as she made a start on her breakfast. It was a few minutes later when she was startled by the sound of someone yelling. Acting on instinct, she had launched to her feet, wand in hand, and raised a shield covering both herself and the boys before she had even realized what she had done. She was about to fire off a counterattack when she felt her brother stand and gently push her wand hand down. She spared him a glance, looking at him in worried confusion, before turning back, trying to pinpoint the source of the shouting.
"Jamie, what are you doing?" Her voice was tense and panicked. She could hardly hear herself think over the continued yelling. She tried to raise her wand again, but her brother kept a hold of her hand.
"Jamie– "
"Mia, it's okay, you're safe. We're safe. It's just a howler, love." Upon seeing that her stance did not relax, James tried again. "Mi, breathe. We're safe."
She nodded her head slightly, and took a deep breath, forcing herself to relax. As she did so, the shouting gradually turned to decipherable words.
"–DISGRACE TO THE FAMILY! I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE THROWN YOU OUT ON THE STREETS YEARS AGO! DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT CONTACTING MY REGULUS! YOU WILL NOT BE POISONING HIS MIND! IT IS BAD ENOUGH HAVING ONE BLACK IN GRYFFINDOR, YOU WORTHLESS SWINE, BUT I–"
Mia's hair sparked. She took one look at Sirius, his face pale but surprisingly stoic, and she snapped. She pulled her wand arm free from her brother's grasp and shot off an Incendio before Walburga Black's grating voice could scream another word. Her spell struck true, and the howler burst into flames before anyone had realized what had happened. The remaining occupants of the Great Hall had fallen quiet, and many were now looking over towards Sirius. Determined to not let her friend feel more uncomfortable than he likely already was, Mia removed a chocolate bar from her bag and passed it to Sirius, who took it silently.
"Sirius?" His eyes darted to hers, and she smiled kindly. "You said earlier that Puddlemere won their most recent match? They have a new keeper don't they?"
"Y-Yeah," he said, nodding slightly, before taking the distraction, "River Williams. The press has been all over her lately, they even tracked down her husband. He's a muggle healer of some sort. Anyway, she's one of the best keepers they've had in years. Apparently a talent scout happened on a pickup game she was playing in— she was signed to the team four hours later. I think she's going to be the one to get Puddlemere to the World Cup in three years. Her statistics are too good to not get them at least into the semi-finales."
"What happened to the previous keeper?"
"Retired for his health. Rumor is he's one good bludger to head from a coma."
"And you and Jamie wonder why I refuse to play…"
"Aw, come on, Mi," James interrupted, "quidditch is right good fun! Plus, nobody has died in years!"
"Er– James, mate," said Remus, looking somewhat amused, "I don't think that is really something that's going to fill her with confidence."
"Why not?" James asked with a frown. Remus merely shook his head.
After a few more minutes of making conversation with the boys, and ensuring that the howler had been forgotten for the moment, Mia excused herself, explaining that she had something she needed to do in the library. The too-sweet smile she wore should have tipped them off– being trouble makers themselves– but then again, there was no way for them to know that her smile was the same one she wore when trapping Rita Skeeter in the jar, when jinxing the DA sign-up sheet, and when leading Umbridge into the forest. That too-sweet smile of hers– that was the warning.
"Mi?"
Mia looked up from her workspace at the library. Upon seeing her brother, she hastily put away her red parchment and ink, before making a start on reshelving the spellbooks she had been using for the past few hours.
"Yes, Jamie?"
"Sirius, Remus, and I were wondering if you could help us with something?" He picked up a stack of her books and started to hand them to her one by one for reshelving. "Plus, you've been holed up in here for hours, and all these dusty old books can't be good for your health. Actually–" he paused, looking thoughtfully at the title of one of the books in his arms, "–we could use this one…"
Mia raised her eyebrow, seeing that her brother had removed 1001 Lesser Known Spells and Enchantments from the reshelving pile.
"Dare I ask what you three are planning?"
James froze, realizing that he was not nearly as subtle as he thought he was. Knowing the gig was up, he smiled sheepishly.
"Please, Mia?" He implored her. Mia sighed, knowing her brother had puppy dog eyes to rival Sirius's.
"Fine," she said, rolling her eyes. "But you three better not land me in detention."
"Wouldn't dream of it!" He grinned. Seeing that all the books had been reshelved, James excitedly grabbed his sister's hand and her bookbag, all but dragging her out of the library, only stopping when Mia reminded him that they needed to check out the book before they could leave. "That is how the library works, Jamie," she told him, amusement clear on her face after seeing him pout at the delay.
After finally arriving at the Gryffindor common room, James made a beeline over to Sirius and Remus, tugging Mia along with him in excitement. The boys had somehow managed to commandeer the best spot in the common room– the corner that connected the fireplace and the window overlooking the grounds– and they had even pushed a coffee table, a couch, and some of the good armchairs into the area, completely sequestering off the area from the rest of the room.
"Jamie?"
"Yes, Mia?"
"Though I appreciate your enthusiasm, next time you require my assistance would you please try to refrain from manhandling me?" She asked primly, brushing off invisible lint from her blouse and smoothing out her skirt. "I do have legs, you know."
Sirius and Remus both sniggered as James turned pink.
"Er– yeah. Sorry, Mi."
Mia smiled and shook her head, before taking a seat on the couch and propping her bookbag– which Jamie had handed back to her– against the table leg. "Now, what exactly do you three need my help with?"
"Say there was a way to turn someone into a pig…" The hard edge in James's voice alerted Mia to his plan. She sent a sharp look to her brother.
"Jamie, if you want my help with a school-wide prank, that's fine, but I will not help you fight fire with fire, or single out another student. I am okay. Please, let it go."
James scowled, and made to argue, but Sirius quickly jumped in.
"What we want is to cause mass chaos– we're talking utter calamity."
Mia frowned thoughtfully, moving on from James's grudge for the meantime. "In that case, I would start off small– something that people only notice enough to throw them off their game– and I would build it up over the course of the day, so by dinner, all hell breaks loose."
"I love that brilliant, devious mind of yours, Kitten."
Mia simply rolled her eyes, while James looked torn between agreeing with Sirius's statement and slapping him upside the head.
"But how would we pull it off?" Asked Remus, looking intrigued.
"I think the easiest way to do it would be something that is either exposure based or something with a timed release."
"Does anyone know where the kitchens are? We could slip something in the food…" suggested James.
"But we'd have to convince the house-elves to not only let us mess with the food but to also not rat us out. Once the teachers figure out that the food was tampered with, the house-elves are the first one that will be asked." Replied Mia.
"The house-elves?" Remus questioned.
Mia sighed in displeasure. "They work in the kitchens and around the castle."
"Do you not like house-elves, Mia?" Asked Sirius, picking up on her tone. He frowned, thinking back to the day on the train. She seemed to care a lot about the house-elf that had popped in on them– maybe she only liked a few?
"Here we go…" muttered James under his breath, wincing as Mia slapped his arm.
"I have nothing against house-elves– I'm friends with quite a few of them. I just wish they were paid for all their hard work. I also wish that wizards would treat them better. They're not mindless things, they are living, sentient, beings with real thoughts, and emotions, and cultures, and it's barbaric the way that some people treat them. I've seen vermin treated better than most house-elves! It's disgusting!"
Noticing that her hair was starting to spark, and that Mia looked to be gearing up for a verbal fight, Sirius wisely decided to not push the subject. Rather, he nodded and aired a different idea.
"What if we jinxed or spelled the benches in the Great Hall? We could go with something exposure based, and as we would be pranked too, it would help to take away the suspicion from ourselves." Sirius sighed as the sparks in Mia's hair slowly fizzled out, and her expression changed to one of contemplation.
"That would work quite well, I think. Good idea, Sirius," she responded after a few seconds. Sirius smiled.
"How about we use some sort of clumsiness spell?" Remus suggested. "Since the benches would have the spell, and we're going with something exposure based, people will gradually get more clumsy throughout the day, or in general, just the longer they sit on the benches. Another thing is that people won't even realize there's a prank happening until it's too late– they'll just think they're being clumsy."
"That's brilliant, mate!" Exclaimed James. His voice had raised in his excitement, which caused Remus to wince slightly, before recovering quickly and sending James a smile. "Thanks," he replied a bit shyly.
"Let's plan on doing it Friday," said Sirius, nodding decisively. "That gives us about a week to figure out the spellwork and the timing."
James grinned mischievously, looking every inch the troublemaker Mia had always heard him to be. "Hogwarts isn't going to know what hit it…"
Mia almost felt bad for the student populace.
Almost.
"We should probably head over for lunch," said Mia, noticing that the common room had started to empty. They boys voiced their agreement and made to head out, but before they could exit, something caught James's eye, causing the whole group to pause in their steps.
"Hey, wait!" He called out to a boy with mousy brown hair who was about to exit the room. The boy turned around, looking for the source of the noise. Spotting their group, the boy smiled and headed back towards them.
"Hi James, Sirius, Remus. What's up?"
"We were just about to head to lunch. Want to come?" Asked James.
"Sure, thanks!"
"Oh– this is my sister Mia, by the way. Mi, this is our other roommate, Peter."
Mia froze. The color drained from her face. James's words echoed in her mind.
Peter.
Peter.
Peter.
"Hullo, Mia. It's nice to meet you." His tone was friendly. Kind, even. He stuck his hand out for a handshake. Mia didn't move. She didn't blink. She didn't breathe.
Peter.
Peter Pettigrew.
He betrayed his friends. They were like brothers.
He killed her brother.
He killed Jamie. He killed Lily. Harry grew up without parents. He framed Sirius. Twelve years in Azkaban. He killed Cedric. Amos Diggory's screams pierced her skull. He brought back Voldemort. He started the Second Wizarding War.
He's the reason Harry died.
He's the reason they all died.
Everyone died.
It was his fault.
She forced out a harsh breath. Her hair crackled loudly. Furiously. She didn't see Sirius and Remus looking at her worriedly. She didn't process Jamie trying to get her attention. All she could see were the beady, watery, sickly, pale blue eyes of Peter Pettigrew. Her fingertips buzzed with unreleased magic. Little bolts of energy danced violently across her palms. Peter's robes started to smoke.
She could kill him now. She should kill him now. She wanted to hurt him. She wanted him to suffer. She wanted him to feel all the pain that he had inflicted in his pathetic, miserable, sorry excuse for a life.
A face blocked her view of the Rat. She blinked. Jamie.
"Mi? Love, what is it? What's wrong?" Concern was etched into his features. Concern and something else. She furrowed her eyebrows. Fear. Jamie was concerned and scared. She was scaring her brother.
She took a deep breath.
Peter's robes stopped smoking. She couldn't kill him. Jamie would never forgive her. Pettigrew hadn't done anything yet. But he would. Could she really stand to be near him for the next seven years? Could she really stand to let her brother be near him for the next seven years? No. She could not. But she didn't have a choice. They were roommates. She shivered.
Breathe.
Options.
She had two options.
Be kind. Could she be kind to him? The person who single handedly ruined countless lives? Would it change anything? No. She could not be kind to him. Not after knowing what she did. Not after living through what she had. It didn't matter, though. Being kind wouldn't change anything. He had everything. Sirius's broken voice bombarded her brain.
"Then you should have died! Died, rather than betray your friends, as we would have done for you!"
They would have died for him.
He threw it away.
That coward.
No. Kindness wouldn't have changed anything. That left her with one option.
Tolerance.
She stepped around Jamie and grasped Pettigrew's still outreached hand– though it had fallen slightly in his discomfort.
She shook his hand, a stony look on her face. A jolt of electricity ran through her fingers. She let it shock him. Finally after what seemed like some of the longest seconds in her life, she let go.
"Call me Hermione." Her voice was dead. Emotionless. "I'll see you all later. I'm going to my room."
"But Mi, what about lunch? Are you alright?"
"I've lost my appetite."
"Mia? Is everything okay?"
Lily's concerned voice sounded from the other side of Mia's closed four-poster drapes. After the run-in with Pettigrew, Mia had shut herself in her dormitory, closed the silenced drapes around her bed, and had broken down in horrified, gasping sobs. Once she had pulled herself together, Mia had pulled out some of her more interesting spell books from her beaded bag, determined to find some sort of extra protection for Jamie. If he was going to be around the Rat for the next seven years, she would make sure he was protected–Sirius and Remus, too.
At Mia's lack of response, Lily tried again. "Your brother asked me to take this to you– he said you missed lunch."
Mia peeled back her drapes to see Lily holding a napkin-wrapped cornish pasty, an apple, and a glass of pumpkin juice. Mia flinched back as she met Lily's worried emerald eyes. Harry's eyes. She broke eye contact, but managed to recover quickly.
"Thanks." She replied hoarsely, taking the food from Lily.
"He's in the common room. He and his friends saved you a seat in case you wanted to join them. I think they were going back and forth between gobstones and exploding snap."
"Who all is down there?" Mia hesitantly asked before taking a small bite of the cornish pasty. She had been getting a little hungry, but she couldn't stomach the thought of having to eat with Pettigrew.
"Your brother, Remus, Sirius, and another one of their friends– Peter, I think his name was." Mia had to force herself to keep the hatred from her face. "There's also a few people from the older years, but not many. I think Marlene and Dorcas are down there as well, but they were planning on having a walk around with Mary and I. You're more than welcome to join us– it would be fun to do something as a whole dorm."
"Thanks, Lily, but I think I'm going to stay here and study for a little while." She watched as Lily's face fell, and she rushed to reassure her. "Maybe we could have a girl's night or something on Friday or Saturday? I'd suggest tonight, but we've got class tomorrow."
Lily smiled. "That sounds like fun! I'll let the other girls know."
"Would you tell my brother that I might come down later? And thanks for the food."
"Of course."
Taking the hint that Mia wished to be left alone, Lily walked back down to the common room, immediately being met with an anxious James Potter, who had been waiting at the bottom of the stairs.
"Is she okay? Is she coming down? Did she eat anything?"
"She'd been crying– that much was clear. I didn't bring it up, though. I think she stopped a little while ago. It looked like she was trying to study when she pulled back her drapes. She didn't respond right away either– not until I mentioned you. She said she might join you guys in a little bit, but that she wanted to get some more work done. I think she just wants to be left alone for now. She asked me to tell you thanks for the food. She was eating the pasty when I left."
James sighed, before nodding. "Thanks, Evans."
Lily noticed that the anxiousness didn't leave his face, but it had eased a little at the news that Mia was eating. It was sweet how much he cared for his sister. She tried not to think on the fact that Tuney hadn't talked to her in almost two weeks. She didn't come with their parents to drop her off at the platform. She hadn't even said goodbye.
"Anytime," Lily responded before taking her leave.
James ran a hand through his hair and headed back over to Sirius, Remus, and Peter, who were all waiting in the corner spot from earlier.
"Is she coming?" Asked Sirius, his eyebrows furrowed.
"Evans said she might join us a bit later."
"Did I do something?" Peter asked, frowning. "I don't think she likes me very much."
"I'm sure it's not you, Peter," responded James quickly, eager to reassure his friend. "Mia just isn't always great at meeting new people. She'll warm up to you soon enough, don't worry." Peter nodded and smiled slightly in response.
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Remus asked, trying to keep the pain from his steadily growing migraine off his face. He was glad that the common room was reasonably quiet– his senses were already in overdrive and added noise was not helping in the slightest.
"I'll send Rocky or Tinky to check on her in a little while if she hasn't come down. If she does come down later though, don't comment on it– just act as normal as possible. She doesn't like drawing attention to herself."
Remus nodded, as did Sirius and Peter, and the subject was dropped for the time being. A few hours later saw the common room empty aside from the boys, who had eventually decided on playing exploding snap. James and Sirius were lost in their competition to outscore the other– using the most superfluous of moves and rules. Remus, though looking worse for wear, seemed to be enjoying himself, and Peter, who had lost early on in the current round, seemed happy to watch the others play, occasionally pointing out cards that the boys had missed. The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs drew the attention of the four, and they turned to see Mia as she entered the room, looking nonchalant, apart from the near white-knuckled grip on a well-loved copy of Hogwarts: A History.
"Hi Jamie," she said quietly, sitting down next to him on the couch, "Remus, Sirius—" Her voice stiffened. "— Pettigrew."
Peter shrunk back at Mia's frostiness before furrowing his eyebrows. He didn't recall mentioning his last name. James sent him an encouraging look, to which he responded with a tentative smile.
"Hi Mi—" At Mia's harsh glare, Peter hastily backtracked. "—Hermione. I, uh– er, hope– well, have you had a, uh, a nice afternoon?" His voice trailed off slightly as he finished lamely. The boys watched anxiously as her hair sparked once, twice, then–
"Fine. Thanks."
All three boys relaxed with relief, and James jumped in before the tension in the room could become any more palpable.
"Where'd you get that copy of Hogwarts: A History? The version we have at home is much newer. What edition even is that?"
A ghost of a smile graced Mia's face. "It's a fifth edition copy." Her face fell. "Harry gave it to me. It was a birthday gift."
James winced.
"Who–" Sirius was cut off by the sight of James frantically shaking his head. "Nevermind." He ended up saying, taking note of the way James had relaxed afterward.
"Will you read it to me, Sunshine?"
Mia rolled her eyes at the nickname, before raising her eyebrows. "You want me to read Hogwarts: A History to you?" Her voice was full of skepticism.
"Of course I do, Mi!" An amused smirk made its way onto his face– the kind of smirk one only gets when they know exactly what they're doing. "How else am I supposed to find out all the best places to apparate on and off school grounds?"
Mia took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Godric give me strength– Jamie, you know full well that nobody can apparate to and from Hogwarts. We've had this conversation three times already! Just in the past month!"
James smiled, looking much like a niffler in a jewelry store. "You forgot house-elves," he said smartly.
Mia paused.
"What?"
"House-elves! No one can apparate in or out of Hogwarts apart from house-elves!"
"House-elves…" Mia knit her eyebrows together, thinking for a few moments, before shooting up like a rocket. "House-elves! Jamie, you're brilliant!"
"I am?" Remus and Sirius snickered at James's confusion, and Peter looked like he was trying not to laugh as well. James, however, recovered quickly. "I meant to say of course I am! Er– would you mind telling me why though?"
"House-elves, Jamie! Only house-elves can apparate to and from Hogwarts! It's because house-elf magic is different to that of witches and wizards, and one of those differences is the ability to easily get through wards— and undetected at that! This is perfect!"
Before James could ask his sister to further clarify what had excited her so much, she turned to face Sirius. "Toto, could I speak with you for a minute?"
"Sure thing, Kitten." He responded easily, keeping most of the confusion from his face.
"Toto?" Asked Peter, after the two had left the common room and headed out the portrait door. His question remained unanswered as Remus instead shot a puzzled look at James.
"Should we be worried?"
James was about to answer when Mia came bursting back into the common room.
"I almost forgot–" she exclaimed, pulling out a chocolate bar from her beaded bag and thrusting it into Remus's hands. "You should go to the hospital wing, Remus, you look a bit poorly. Eat that on the way over, though, it should help." Remus smiled in thanks, already unwrapping the muggle treat, and Mia turned to head back out. "Thanks again, Jamie," she said, dropping a kiss on her brother's cheek as she left.
James sat for a minute, feeling the need to catch up with his sister's rapid change in moods, before smiling at the fact that for whatever reason, she seemed to be feeling a little happier. His smile dropped slightly, as he pondered Remus's earlier question.
Should we be worried?
At that thought, a sudden chill ran down his spine.
"Maybe we should be worried, Remus. Just a little. I'm not sure what she's planning to do with the information that house-elves can slip through wards undetected, and I'm not quite sure I want to find out. She's brilliant, you know– but she can be quite scary when she wants to."
Remus nodded, knowing the statement to be true. And, while a bit apprehensive, he had to admit he was curious about whatever she was planning.
Peter merely gulped.
"So Kitten, is there a reason you decided to drag me all the way out here?" Sirius grinned. "There are easier ways of getting me alone, you know."
Mia decided to not dignify his comment with a response. The corridor outside of the entrance to the Gryffindor Common Room had too much foot traffic for her to feel comfortable divulging her idea to Sirius. And, knowing his future self's reaction to any mention of his biological family, she had a feeling that he too would be grateful for a little more seclusion.
Mia had ended up dragging Sirius all the way down to a small cluster of trees that sectioned off a quieter part of the Black Lake from the rest of the school grounds– a spot that she, Harry, and Ron, had often frequented when they needed an escape from the prying eyes of the school populace.
"Sirius," she started, looking at him earnestly. "Your mother is a right hag."
Sirius barked out a surprised laugh, before running a hand through his hair, his expression morphing to that of discomfort. "I can't say I disagree with you, but I'm not sure I want to know where this is headed."
Mia smiled apologetically, but pressed further.
"Your father isn't much better."
"Really, Mia, let's not talk about this."
"No, Sirius. This is important."
He sighed. "Mia, please–"
"I have a way for you to write your brother."
His eyes snapped to her. "What?"
"It's awfully hard to ignore Walburga's screeching. She said she didn't want you writing to Regulus. If she catches you trying to contact him, the best case scenario is that she sends the owl back the way it came. The worst case, well… you get the picture. Point is– I have a solution. Tinky?" Mia called, smiling kindly as the tiny elf popped into view. "Tinky, this is Sirius. He's a very good friend. Sirius, this is Tinky. She's family." Mia pretended not to notice as Tinky attempted to surreptitiously wipe a few happy tears from her eyes. Rather, she watched as her idea seemed to dawn on Sirius. The corner of his lips twitched upwards in a hopeful manner as Mia's next words confirmed what he was thinking.
"Tinky, do you think you would be able to secretly carry letters between Sirius and his brother? Only if you want to, though."
"Tinky would be happy to help Young Mister Sirius and his brother. The bad banshee has no control over Tinky."
Sirius snorted at Tinky's accurate description of Walburga, but a frown quickly took over his face when he realized a potential hole in their plan.
"What about Kreacher? He's the Black Family house-elf. Won't he be able to tell if there's another elf inside the wards?"
"No, Young Mister Sirius. House-elves can stay undetected even from other elves."
"You'd really be willing to help my brother and I? You don't need to…" Sirius trailed off at the sight of Tinky, hands on her hips, wearing an unimpressed look that rivaled McGonagall's.
"Tinky helps." She replied firmly, nodding her head with such finality that she could have ended a heated argument in the Wizengamot if she so pleased.
"Thank you, Tinky, so much." Said Sirius, kneeling so he was eye-level with the small elf. "You've no idea how much this means to me."
"Tinky helps." She said again, smiling, before popping away, leaving Sirius and Mia alone again.
"Thank you too, Mia. Really."
"You don't need to thank me, Sirius. There's very little I wouldn't do for my friends, so you better get used to it. I'm afraid you're stuck with me, Toto."
"I'd happily be stuck with you forever, Kitten."
"Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to send an owl to my Mum. She'll be happy to hear that you're spending the holidays with us– she likes to plan things in advance, you see. Do tell your brother that he is welcome to join us as well."
"Wait– what?" Sirius tilted his head in confusion, looking much the way a puppy would.
"You're spending the holidays with us." The tone that accompanied her words made her sound like she was stating the most obvious fact in the world. "Honestly, Sirius, what part of 'you're stuck with me' do you not understand?"
September 8, 1971
Breakfast that morning found the four friends, with the addition of Peter, and Frank, who had taken to enjoying his mornings with the younger group, all eating quietly at the Gryffindor table. The atmosphere was quite mellow, especially for it being the middle of the week, with classes to attend, homework to complete, and a prank to be pulled off in just a few days (though, only the four of them knew that). However, the easy mood was broken by the arrival of the daily mail. Well, it wasn't the mail itself that had garnered the attention of the entire group, but rather James's spit-take upon opening the letter that his parents had addressed to him and his sister.
"Mia, love?"
"Yes, Jamie?"
"Why is Mum under the impression that you sent a howler to Walburga Black?"
Sirius choked on his toast.
"Oh. Because I did."
A smile— that lovely too-sweet smile of hers– crept its way onto her face. Upon being met with incredulous looks from all five boys, Mia rolled her eyes.
"What? Walburga clearly enjoys Howlers—that is if breakfast the other day is anything to go by. I just wanted to return the gift. And, since she seemed to be worrying about how Sirius being sorted into Gryffindor would reflect on herself, I programmed the howler to read off a book that I thought she might find helpful. In addition, because the howler she sent was– unfortunately– flammable, I made sure to fireproof the one I sent, so that she'd be able to listen to the entire book. After all, it wouldn't be very useful if the howler had to stop halfway through."
Sirius broke the silence first.
"Marry me."
He winced as James slapped the back of his head.
"Dude! What'd you do that for!"
"You're supposed to ask me that first!" Replied James, crossing his arms, managing to look rather put out.
Sirius raised his eyebrows. "You want me to ask you to marry me?"
James tried to slap him again, but Sirius, anticipating the move, was able to dodge.
"As Mi's brother, you're supposed to ask me for her hand in marriage."
Mia rolled her eyes. "Jamie, you know that's not how that works. Even so, I will marry whoever I want to, regardless of whether or not you 'grant them my hand.'"
Her objection was ignored as Sirius turned back to James, a serious expression on his face. "My deepest apologies, Mr. Potter. I find your sister, the lovely Hermione Potter, to be quite wonderful–and devious. As it is clear to me that no other could possibly hold my heart, I humbly ask your permission for your sister's hand in marriage."
Before James could reply, Mia slapped both his and Sirius's arms, and ignored the way Remus was attempting to hide his amused smile in his morning cuppa.
"Wait a minute," said Frank, interrupting the antics of the three, "I'm still stuck on the fact that Mia sent an indestructible howler to Sirius's mum, and got it to read off an entire book. I understand that Mrs. Black sent a howler first, but isn't that a bit much?"
Mia snorted, feeling absolutely no regret whatsoever. "Please, that was nothing. Tinky wanted to send her a few mandrakes– she said that 'the Banshee should feel right at home.' I had to talk her down to a less fatal option." She shrugged. "This was the compromise."
She once again ignored the various looks of shock from the group– and the slight trace of fear that flashed across Pettigrew's face– in favor of returning to her Full English Breakfast.
Finally, Remus spoke up.
"Out of curiosity, what book did you have the howler read?"
"Oh– a muggle one," Mia replied nonchalantly. "I believe it was titled 'Parenting for Dummies.' I do hope she enjoys it."