"Ben, come on, wake up."

Ben groaned and simply rolled over, pulling his blanket over his head. "So comfy," he mumbled before someone grabbed his shoulder and violently shook him. He grabbed the pillow from under his head and hit his attacker as hard as he was willing to hit him.

Remus easily ducked the 'weapon' as he did nearly every morning. "I hate you."

"Hate isn't that different from love. So you really love me."

"Shove it up your arse," Ben grumbled as he sat up.

"That would be incredibly difficult considering it is an abstract concept and therefore is not subject to being shoved up my arse."

The look that Ben shot Remus would have scarred weaker mortals but Remus simply raised an eyebrow and continued tying his tie. "Come on, you know that Flitwick hates it when we are late for class."

"But food," his friend whined.

Remus had no pity for him, "If you have woken up when I first tried to wake you up, this wouldn't be a problem. Suck it up." Despite his harsh words, Remus grabbed a plate of toast and jam from the top of his dresser and held it out to Ben. "But I knew you have a weak constitution so I took pity on your poor soul. Oh wait, you're ginger. You don't have one."

"Remind me why we are friend again?"

"Because you would be lost without my sharp wit, condescending tone, clever sayings. Oh, and I call you out on your shit and I'm not afraid of you because your dad is the Minster for Magic."

"You just listed all the reasons you bother me," Ben jibbed.

Remus snorted, "Or it could be that we are both cranky old gits who can barely tolerate each other, let alone others."

"Cranky old gits! Remus, for shame."

"What? You are properly dreadful when you are in a mood."

"In a mood! That's it, I'm off."

The pair shouldered their school bags and made for the door. "Did you see Elyse earlier?" Ben asked Remus as they left the room.

Remus nodded, "She was in the Common Room. She's probably still there."

When they got to the landing, Ben took a moment to pause at the last step and look around his beloved Common Room. Since the weather was becoming more temperate, a fellow housemate had taken it upon themselves to open a few of the arched windows, making the room even airier than it usually was. There was a sense of freedom and calm that was contained in the circular room that Ben would never be able to describe. He looked up and the familiar aching feeling struck his heart when he looked at the domed ceiling, right at the Ursa Major constellation that haunted his dreams and thoughts.

A familiar red head knocked him out of his thoughts by shoving him with her shoulder in an amicable way, ""ello Ben. Woot yeh looking at?"

He shook his head, "Nothing, nothing."

"If yer doin nothin, kin yeh help me wit me tie? I can neva get teh bloody thing right." She requested as they made their way out of their Common Room.

Ben laughed and took the offending blue and bronze tie and loosely tied it over his own head before he slipped it off and handed it to Elyse. Remus, on the other side of Ben, asked as they walked down the hallway, "You know, one day you might just have to learn how to tie your own tie."

"Teh day that comes, I'll be sure teh let yeh say 'told yeh so' but until then, Benny 'ere kin tie me tie fer me."

"You are hopeless."

"Just like Ben 'n teh girl he fancies."

That made Remus pause in the middle of the hallway. He grabbed Ben's arm and honestly looked betrayed, "Who is she talking about?"

Ben glared at the girl he had befriended their first night after the Sorting. He remembered what the Hat said to him that day as if was yesterday.

"Ah, another White I see here. Let's see what I chose the second time around…So much like your mother yet you are definitely your father's son. Where to put you…where to put you? You are brave and honorable, but I know a house that would suit you better. A mind like yours shouldn't go to waste. RAVENCLAW!"

He joined Remus, who was already sitting at the table, and introduced himself to a small, red haired, muggle born who he later found out could see the future. There was something about Elyse that drew both him and Remus towards her. It certainly wasn't romantic. But there was something. Perhaps it had been that none of them felt like they were expecting to end up where they did.

It admittedly hadn't been that much of a shock. His mother a Hufflepuff, his father a Gryffindor, his sister in Gryffindor…it was only natural that he follow in the majority of his family's House. Thinking of Annabelle, he realized that he hadn't written to her about his most recent Quidditch win against her former House. She told him last time they spoke that little Ron loves hearing stories about his Uncle Ben.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. He would get to that later. He turned his attention back to Elyse, "Thanks for that. I told you in confidence because you are her friend."

"Sorry," she apologized but she didn't sound really sorry.

Thankfully, Ben was saved from an interrogation by Remus when they walked into Charms. They found their usual spot, neat the middle of the room, Ben on the aisle, Remus in the middle, and Elyse on the other side.

"So you told Elyse you fancied her but you just leave me to speculate?" Remus asked quietly, mindful of the other people in the class.

Ben flushed slightly and shrugged, "I just…I don't know."

"You still should have said something. I could have put in a few good words for you when we had rounds together."

"It's not like you can change that fact that she probably has no idea I exist."

"And whose fault is that? 'Not I' said moon-boy."

"Shut up," Ben growled.

A loud bang from across the room effectively ended the argument as they all looked over to see that all of Alice's books had fallen from her desk. She had been frantically flipping through her books to find her homework that she could have sworn she had done but couldn't find. The already stressed and frazzled girl looked like she was about to lose all composure and cry but out of nowhere, two Hufflepuffs got up and started collecting her fallen things.

She sniffled when James handed her a stack of books, "Thank you."

He shrugged it off while Sirius handed her a bunch of papers and quills. "Just so you know, you actually did the homework. It's on the back of your transfiguration parchment." Sirius told her kindly.

Alice looked as though she was about to collapse from relief. "Thank you so much Sirius."

Like James, he just shrugged but he smirked the slightest bit, "Say what you want about Hufflepuffs but we actually are particularly good finders."

Alice laughed and offered them a seat at her usually all Gryffindor table. James and Sirius declined and went to sit with their fellow Hufflepuffs on the other side of the room. Elyse shook her head at the two, "Yeh know, there's somethin' aboot teh two o' 'em…I just can't put me finger on it."

"I know what you mean," Remus agreed.

Ben thought the same as them but didn't say anything. It felt like he knew them which was ridiculous since they had barely had five conversations. Sure, Elyse was friends with Sirius's sister but that was the only connection between the two but that didn't warrant feeling like they had been best friends with each other.

"Oh, knock it off Sirius. You're making a fool of yourself."

Ben felt his heart painfully thud against his ribcage. He turned and saw the witch that haunted his dreams and thoughts ever since he came back from summer break third year and saw her on the train. Ursula Black was certainly a sight to behold. Her lion's mane of thick black curls was pulled back from her face with a simple bun. That didn't do much to control it. No, much like her personality, the curls refused to stay contained and some lose strands of hair fell into her hooded grey eyes that could pieces a person's soul.

She noticed Elyse and smiled as she walked over. Ben felt the palms of his hands grow sweaty and his mind scramble to say something as she walked past him. Just as she walked past him, he was able to manage something that resembled a sneeze. With a quick glance, the Ben's mortification, she looked at him oddly. It was almost like she was concerned for him? Ben shook his head, realizing it was just wishful thinking on his part.

Ursula jumped onto the table behind him, "'ello Elyse."

Elyse faux rolled her eyes in agitation, "I'm still not talking teh yeh."

Ursula's head flew back as she laughed loudly, "Honestly!? You're still on about me winning that Quidditch match?!"

"I almost 'ad teh snitch."

"Doesn't count when my Seeker actually catches it. Almost doesn't count in Quidditch."

Elyse huffed but still looked put out. Ursula rolled her eyes, "Bloody hell, why do I even try to get along with you eagles? You're more stubborn than the Gryffindors."

"Oi!" Remus protested.

"Oh, Remus, you know I don't mean it. Elyse is just being a sore loser. Ben isn't holding a grudge over the last match, are you?"

It was then that she spoke directly to him and for the love of all that was Ravenclaw, Ben's mind went blank and he tried remember how to speak when he simply settled for shaking his head.

Ursula cocked her head to the side and looked at him in legitimate concern, "Remus, is your friend okay?"

Remus shrugged, "Eh, you might have broken him when you sent that Quaffle directly at his head. I would think brain damage but I'm not completely sure there is a brain to damage."

"Ouch, that was harsh. Are you sure that the Sorting Hat didn't mean to put you in Slytherin?"

Remus snorted and shook his head, "Not all of us can live up to the greatness that is Slytherin."

Ursula laughed at the pure sarcasm that seemed to saturate his words. "Damn straight. Well, I need to head over to my seat before the Ravenclaw starts to infect me. I'll talk to you later about when we are doing rounds this weekend."

And with that, Ursula walked over to sit at her usual seat, three in front and two to the left. Ben was staring at her back until Remus hit him not so gently on the shoulder.

"What in the name of wit and knowledge was that? I've seen candlesticks be more articulate than you."

"Shut up," Ben childishly shot back.

Before Remus was able to respond, their Head of House walked in an began class.

Later that evening after Quidditch practice, Ben was sitting in the library with Elyse since Remus had abandoned them to go do his rounds. Ben was so engrossed in his book on the theory of vanishment and the location of what has been vanished that he didn't notice the three people sit down at his table until Elyse said, "Wotcher, Ursula, Sirius, James."

Ben jumped and his mouth felt like cotton as he tried to respond back. Thankfully no one noticed and it was James that said, "Alright, you're Remus's best friends, right?"

Instantly suspicious, Ben nodded, "Yeah. What's it to you?" He asked with defiance he didn't know he possessed.

James simply raised an eyebrow but continued, "Well, we have an idea that might help him with his…well, let's call it a furry little problem."

Elyse's and Ben's backs were instantly ramrod straight. The mention of Remus's traumatic…condition…was something the pair had sworn to take to the grave. They had found out quite quickly. It wasn't that far of a leap to make when the noticed him missing class on full moons. The straw that broke that camel's back was when Ben saw Remus's scar when they were changing for bed one day their first year. Remus had confessed and screamed and threw things and cried as he thought that they would be just as disgusted with him as he was with himself.

To his shock and amazement, Elyse stared at him for almost a full minute before shrugging and nonchalantly say, "So? I'm a seer. Yeh ain't that special."

In that moment, their friendship had been solidified for life. At eleven, they just knew. They didn't need Elyse to look into their future to know that. It was just a feeling that they all recognized.

It was something that they felt when they were around James, Sirius, and Ursula.

"What are you talking about?" Ben tried to deny. "You make it sound like he has a misbehaved rabbit."

Ursula rolled her eyes, "Really? Remus Lupin. Remus as in Romulus and Remus who were raised by wolves in the Rome creation myth? The same one that got stabbed for being a sassy bitch to his twin brother? Don't even get me started on Lupin. Not to mention the scars, the fact he misses class every full moon, and how right now the three of you look like you are going to pass out while your Ravenclaw minds scramble desperately to think of a pathetic attempt at an excuse that we won't believe."

"How long d'yeh know?" Elyse questioned, not even trying to deny it.

Sirius titled back in his chair, "I would say around Second Year. James had an idea right from the start but he didn't say anything until he was sure. Ursula's the one that told me and then we set out on a way to help him."

"Why?" That was the only thing that Ben could think.

Sirius cocked his head to the side, not that much unlike a dog would, "Why what?"

"Why do you two want to help Remus? I kind of understand Ursula since they are prefect friends—"

James interrupted him, "That's exactly why. Ursula's our sister, Remus is her friend, therefore we want to help. Is that so hard to believe that someone just wants to do something nice for someone who doesn't deserve to live with such a terrible curse?"

"Remus is a good person," Ursula said softly. "He is one of the kindest people I know. He's never once judged me for the actions of my Housemates. So I'm going to do what a true Slytherin does best. I am going to move hell and high water to take care of my own. God help the person that gets in my way or speaks out against him. I know you 'claws are supposed to be the smart and creative ones and I know you two are but maybe you need some resourcefulness and drive to fix this. James and Sirius are resolute about this and they will persevere forever until they fix this. Sure our Houses may not be on the best of terms all the time but the hell to them: I've chosen a long time ago which side I'm on and it's yours."

Her eyes were flashing with determination and passion. Her lips were pressed together tightly and there was power simply radiating from her gaze, as if she was challenging the pair in front of her to challenge what she said. All she was met with in return was awe and admiration.

"Are you serious about this?"

Ursula and James both threw their hands against Sirius's mouth, stopping him from saying what he was about to. Ursula leaned forward and said, "Rule one if we work together – you are not allowed to say the s-word in front of him. All you get will be horrible puns that make you want to jump off the clock tower."

"That's a bit drastic for a bad pun, don'cha think?" Ben quipped.

Ursula simply raised an eyebrow, "You haven't spoken at length with my twin, have you?"

When Ben shook his head, she laughed and he thought it was more beautiful than any sonata or aria or concerto he had ever heard before. "I can't say I have."

"Well," James said as he pulled away from a grumbling Sirius, "let's get started." He pulled a large book, at least a couple thousand pages, and a few scrolls of parchments with notes before loudly dropping them on the table.

Elyse read the title out loud, "Advanced Human Transfiguration: How to Become an Animagus and Other Astounding shapes." She looked up at them in awe, "Yer insane."

James just shrugged, "Insane, maybe. Impossible, probable. Brilliant," he smiled wickedly, "definitely."

Ben slowly nodded as he quickly scanned through the notes they had, "This is mad enough that it just might work."

James clapped Ben on the shoulder enthusiastically. "See! You don't have to be a Ravenclaw to be smart! For all your creativity and ingenuity, you lot can be dense sometimes."

And that was that. For the next three days, any free moment Ben or Elyse had, they spent it with James, Sirius, and Ursula. Most of the time it was in the library during the hours it was open. Sometimes it was in the restricted section that Ursula somehow always got passes to go into. The next biggest shock was when James showed up after a Ravenclaw practice to go research with Ben. James wanted a book from the restricted section so they were in there when the librarian heard the shuffling of books. Before Ben had the chance to run and hide, James pulled something out of his bag and threw it over them both.

Ben watched in awe from under what must have been an invisibility cloak as the librarian looked right at them and continued past in search of what made the noise.

"Is that…?"

"Come on, I thought Ravenclaws were supposed to be intelligent. Can't you recognize an invisibility cloak."

"Not when that invisibility cloak looks like the one that is supposed to be a Deathly Hallow."

The look on James's face said it all; he knew perfectly well what object he held in his hands. He had willingly pulled out what some would consider the most priceless magical artifact in the entire world. And he chose to show it to someone he had only begun speaking to three days ago.

"I know. Call it the Hufflepuff in me but I trust you with this."

But it wasn't just him being a Hufflepuff. If James would have spoken candidly, he would have told Ben that he felt like they had been friends for years and that he would put his life on the line in a heartbeat, for any of his friends both new and old. But there was something missing…something off. But he didn't comment on it and the pair went on to research the rest of the night.

It wasn't until after coming back from a Quidditch practice with Elyse late Saturday night that he thought he had officially lost his mind with all the all the late nights when he saw a certain Slytherin sitting in the middle of the Common Room.

"Elyse, you're seeing her here too, right?"

Elyse sighed and walked over to Ursula and jumped onto her lap and wrapped her arms around her, "Ursula, yeh need ter stop breakin inter me tower."

Ursula chortled and shoved Elyse off her, "You just have to clever to get in. It's not that difficult."

"You figured out the riddle?" Ben asked, astonished.

Ursula met his surprised look with a challenged one, "Do you think a Slytherin can't be clever? It's basically a requirement for us. But I'm not here to debate House differences. I want to do some late night research. You both up for that?"

"Hells naw," Elyse yawned. "I'm beat. 'night." With that, she climbed up the stairs.

Ursula turned back to Ben with a smile, "Looks like it's just the two of us then."

Ben tried to return the smile but it ended up looking more like a grimace. Nerves shook his entire being and during their walk to the library, he struggled to think of anything to say. Thankfully his companion broke the silence first.

"You know, I'm not surprised that James showed you his invisibility cloak."

Ben looked at her in shock, "You know about that?"

Ursula snorted, "Of course I do. James is basically my brother. Odd, I know. A Slytherin with a twin Hufflepuff and another adopted Hufflepuff brother. Seems ridiculous."

"Not ridiculous…just rare."

"You can say that again," Ursula muttered as they entered the library and they walked towards the back where the books they needed were. Ursula shed her previous melancholic look and smirked, "You feel right at home here, don'tcha?" She teased.

Ben looked around at the books that went over a hundred feet above their heads. It was overwhelming and he knew it should have brought him some great feeling but…"Honestly, it doesn't."

One of her eyebrows quirked up, "Odd." She commented.

Ben shrugged and then surprised himself when he asked, "Do you ever feel like maybe…maybe you got sorted into the wrong House?"

Ursula was silent as she flipped through the book. Ben flushed slightly at her silence in response to his question. It was a stupid question to ask her. He knew that. Everyone knew of the Black family saga. A traditionally dark family with strong roots in Slytherin that had the heir sorted into Hufflepuff. Then there were the reports that both twins had run away almost two years previously. It had apparently caused quite the uproar in many of the pureblood circles, especially with the war being raged around them.

"I've always felt that," Ursula began softly, "that there was something…different about my Sorting."

"What do you mean?" Ben asked.

"I…I remember two different things. But it is very much like a memory from childhood; like it could have been a dream. But I know it is false but there are moments that I feel like I truly do not belong in Slytherin. I have never felt like a true Slytherin. There was always something that held me back from being fully accepted into my House because they aren't my House. But I realized that was a fool's dream so I did the most Slytherin thing I've ever done; I acted like a Slytherin as possible."

Ben nodded, taking in his words before inquiring, "If you don't mind me asking, what was the other House?"

The corner of her mouth quirked up, "Gryffindor." She looked at Ben like she expected him to laugh but instead all she saw was understanding and a little bit of awe in it. "You too," he breathed.

"What?"

Ben quickly put the book he was looking at back on the shelf and turned to sit across the table from Ursula, "I've had these dreams. I was sorted into Gryffindor. There are always six other people with me but I can never make out their faces. I used to think that I would be sorted into Gryffindor but when the House shouted Ravenclaw, I thought it made sense. But now…"

"Now you can't help but question everything. Especially now."

"Exactly. Have you noticed…?" Ben trailed off, gesturing between the two of them. "I've never met you before but—"

"We trust each other like we've known each other for years. The same with Elyse and I when I first met her, along with Remus. The same thing happened to James and Sirius their first night here. There was someone I was with for the first few days here but he disappeared. And now it feels like—"

"Someone's missing. There is supposed to be one more—"

"It is someone else we trust inexplicably, which shouldn't make sense."

Ben smiled and shook his head, "No, it doesn't. There is something wrong here."

"Properly, properly wrong."

Ben, in a moment of courage, reached across the table and took her hands in his. They just sat there, fingers intertwined without speaking for five minutes.

"This should scare me," Ursula said. Ben tried to pull his hands back but she tightened her grip. "It should but is it too forward for me to say that I find great comfort in this and I think that I am not the only one who thinks the same way."

He nodded, "This shouldn't be this easy. I was supposed to—" he cut himself off and flushed.

Ursula caught that and smiled slyly, "What were you going to say?"

With a rush of honesty and bravery, Ben gripped her hands tightly, "I was supposed to win your favor. I was going to try to figure out how a lowly peasant such as I could even approach a queen such as yourself. Then, when I have your properly dazzled on my worth with my charm and grace, I would have won you over. I was going to write a song in your honor and play it for you to try to express how I feel since whenever I find myself composing, you are the only thing I can think of. We would just sit together and you could inspire me to write great compositions; my ultimate and personal muse. Slowly, I would get you to fall in love with me, just in love with you as I currently am, and we would live happily ever after."

Ben wanted to run away and hide after his word vomit but he couldn't bear to look away from the glistening stars in her eyes. She stared at him and then pulled her hands away. Ben felt his heart shatter. Merlin, he should have actually thought for once before he said so much. He had just ruined it all! Any chance he now had was gone.

In his wallowing, he didn't notice that Ursula walked around to the other side of the table. She grabbed his shoulder and roughly yanked him up so they were standing face to face. She grabbed onto his hands and held them to her chest, just above her frantically beating heart.

"You consider me a queen?" she questioned softly. Her warm breath tickled Ben's cheek.

He swallowed loudly, trying to remain cognizant as he was enveloped in the enticing scent of vanilla, old books, biscuits…and something else sweet.

She boldly wrapped her arms around his neck and her lips were so close to his that they just barely brushed his when she said, "Every Queen needs her King."

Any reservation or inhibitions Ben had vanished. His hands tangled themselves in Ursula's hair as he finally pressed his lips against hers. It was…indescribable. He pulled back for a breath, resting his forehead against hers when a terrible shot of pain erupted from his stomach.

He jumped back and doubled over in pain.

"I know I'm probably not the best kisser but don't you think you're overreacting a little bit."

Ben was just about to respond when another wave of pain washed over him and this time he couldn't stop himself from crying out in pain and falling to his knees. Ursula seemed to realize that there was actually someone seriously wrong with him and she fell in front of him and grabbed his face between her hands. "Ben! Ben!" she rubbed her thumb gently over his cheek. "Ben, look at me."

He tried. He honestly did. But his vision swam and then there were three Ursulas, then four, before could no longer keep any semblance of focus on her. His eyes started rolling into the back of his head and his entire body went limp. He fell forward, his head resting on the juncture where Ursula's neck met her shoulder. The warm of her skin felt wonderfully calming on his clammy skin. Ursula wrapped her arms around his shoulder and tried to support his upper body to keep him from falling to the ground. He thought he heard her shouting for help, her voice frantic and panicked.

Ben tried to tell her that he would be okay but his mouth felt like it was filled with cotton balls and he wasn't sure if he had actually said anything or even made a noise. All he could hear was a static sound and the speeding pulse beating away under the skin of Ursula's throat. She pulled him back, trying to get him to look at her but it was to no avail.

He lost the battle with consciousness, the last thing he saw was Ursula shouting at him something that he couldn't make out.

The first thing he was aware of was the voices above his bed. He struggled to open his eyes and was met by the blinding white that was the hospital wing ceiling. Ben groaned, closed his eyes, and tried to move but found he couldn't. Instantly, all the talking ceased.

"Benjamin?"

He opened his eyes once more and saw Professor McGonagall standing on the side of his bed with Professor Dumbledore not too far away.

"Wazz 'appened?" he slurred as he tried to turn his head.

McGonagall's harsh glare softened and she swept some of the hair that was resting on his forehead back, much like a mother would for her child. "You were found unconscious in the middle of a deserted corridor. You all gave us quite a fright. I'm surprised that you didn't wake up when your father came to visit you."

"You should write to them. Let them know I'm okay. Annie too."

The look on McGonagall's face hardened yet looked like it was crumbling at the same time, "Annie?"

He nodded and closed his eyes, feeling more exhausted than he had ever remembered being, "Yeah. I know she's busy with Ronald and…stuff…but I—" he cut off as memories flooded his head. The crushing pain that he would sometimes forget about when he first woke up every day came rushing back. He shook his head, "Never mind. Sorry. I know what happened. I just forgot a moment."

"It is alright, Benjamin. Now would you mind telling me why Miss Evans happened to come across you and the rest of your self-named group of Marauders unconscious in the middle of the seventh floor corridor?"

He sighed, "It was an innocent prank. We snuck a first year's hair from the Sorting Hat. We thought we would walk around all as the same person and see what happens. Something must have gone wrong."

"It is because you didn't grab a hair," Professor Dumbledore ambled over. "What someone mistook as a strand of hair was actually a piece of thread of the Sorting Hat. I'm curious to see what the effects were. Mr. Pettigrew wasn't able to remember much since he was unconscious such little time."

That instantly caught Ben's attention, "Wait? The other's haven't woken up yet?"

McGonagall shook her head, "It was only Peter. He only had a sip when he saw James collapse so he stopped before drinking all of it unlike the rest of you."

Ben scooted up the bed a little to try to find his friends. Ursula was in the bed to his right, with Sirius on the other side of her with Elyse on his other side. James and Remus were across from them and clearly all of them were unconscious.

"How long have we been out?"

McGonagall's lips pursed, "Peter awoke a couple hours after you were found. It's currently been almost a full week."

Ben nodded slowly, remembering the alternate reality he had been in, "That makes sense."

That caught both professor's attention. "How does that make sense?" Professor Dumbledore asked.

"Being gone a week because I lived that week. At least, I lived it in my head, if that counts at all."

"Ah, but why wouldn't it count, Mr. White?" Dumbledore said. "How about you tell us what happened."

Ben tried to think of everything that happened in such a short period of time. "We all got resorted," he settled with saying. "I was in Ravenclaw."

"Curious."

And that was that. Once Madame Pomfrey checked him over, he was allowed to go back to his dorm to try to catch up on all the homework he had missed. Later that day, Remus groggily joined him before he decided that more sleep was better. Peter came in and after asking if he was alright, he too opted to go to sleep. Sirius and James trailed in a few hours later and sat down with Ben near the foots of their beds.

"Ravenclaw, huh?" James said.

Ben rolled his eyes and retorted, "Hufflepuff, huh?"

And that was that. No one seemed to want to talk about the other reality they had been thrown in.

Later that night, Ben was laying in his bed when he saw that the light to the Gryffindor girl's balcony was lit. Knowing that meant that Ursula was there, he grabbed his spare broom and quickly jumped out of the window and flew to where his girlfriend was.

The second he landed, he gathered her up into his arms. She didn't respond. He kissed the top of her head, "Are you alright?"

She shook her head infinitesimally, "No. No I'm not."

"Why?"

"I was sorted into Slytherin," she spat the word like a swear word. "Maybe my entire family was right, maybe everyone was right about me and I am just buying time before turning dark. I'm just playing a charade because we all know what lies underneath me now. I'm just like the rest of my twisted, psychotic fami—"

Ben cut her off in the most effective way he knew how. He kissed her. She shoved him back, "Don't you dare try to stop me from saying this! You must all be thinking it!"

"No!" Ben shouted back. "You know what I keep thinking about? How in that world Annabelle was still alive with her son alive too! The only thing that was different was me being in a different House so now I have to think that somehow me being in Gryffindor got my sister killed! I'm partially to blame!"

"How could you think that?" Ursula spat. "You had nothing to do with your sister's death were as I'm liable to join the very same people who offed her! How does that make you feel that you are kissing someone who is like them?! When-"

Ben once again silenced her by placing his lips upon hers, this time he was albeit more forceful but she had the same response and shoved him back.

"How the hell can you still kiss me after everything. I know we all had the same vision and as we woke up, our other selves disappeared."

"I can still kiss you because I always knew. You are not just Gryffindor. You're sometimes a bit Ravenclaw with your idealism, intelligence, beauty, open-mindedness, and sometimes arrogant personality. You're sometimes Hufflepuff when you're kind, strong, patience, compassionate, warm, dedicated, inclusive, loyal to a fault, just, and resolute. And you know what? You have a strong Slytherin personality sometimes when you are charming, resourceful determined, you have self-preservation, you're mischievousness, driven, resolute, ambitious. Guess what? I always knew those sides existed. I love you as a Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, or Slytherin. You are not your House. You are my Queen," he smiled as he remembered what he said in the other reality. "The other me knew that too. He—I—love you, every part of you."

Throughout his speech, Ursula's eyes had been slowly filling with not just tears, "You love every part of me? Even the dark side of me?"

Ben nodded and pulled her tighter into his embrace, "I swear to you, on the grave of my sister, I will never not love you because of the dark side that exists in you. Because I have one too but it's taken a Black to pull me out of it. I love you."

Ursula gulped and wrapped her hands around his neck and pulled him down just a couple inches so he was nearly eye level with her.

"You know what I think I realized in all this?" Her voice was soft, traveling through the air like a light summer breeze. It was refreshing and calming and positively addicting.

"What?" He asked her just as gently?

"Every Queen needs a King to love. I think I've found mine."

Ben's jaw dropped, "Think?" he squeaked.

Ursula shook her head and brushed some of the fringe out of his eyes so there was nothing between them.

"No. I am in love with you Benjamin William White. And I think I have been for a while."

Ben laughed and swept her up into his arms, pecking her face full of kisses. She giggled – honest to God giggled – at his antics. "Ben! Put me down!"

"As my Queen commands," he set her gently down on her feet before kissing her so sweetly her knees almost buckled. If it hadn't been for his arms wrapped around her, she certainly would have introduced herself intimately to the floor.

"What made you say it?" Ben questioned when he pulled away and nestled his face against the side of her throat and shoulder. Ursula sighed contently as she rested her other ear against his chest, listening to his strong heartbeat away rapidly.

"Because for the first time in a very long time, I feel safe and loved. I've been in love with you for a while."

Ben laughed and kissed the ticklish spot just under her ear and said, "I know," using the line she had been using on him the few months, one that had been unwittingly quoting from a muggle movie franchise.

"Ben," she said softly in a moment of innocence and hope, "can this never change?"

"I swear it," he promised vehemently. He knew it was an empty promise. But at that moment, if she had asked for the moon he would have figured out a way to get it. But until he breathed his last breath on this Earth, he would do everything for her because he knew he lived for her and in return, she lived for him.

And that was more than he had ever dreamed of having so he wouldn't complain.

So there you are folks. It's one of those twist chapters I got the idea from when I discussing House values with some people on my floor and how some people are different Houses than the one they show or value traits from. I thought that switching up their Houses, especially with everything going on with the War, would be an interesting concept. It was difficult to decide where to put them.

You guys know where I placed them but I am curious to know if where I put them lined up with where you might have thought they belonged. It is purely out of sheer curiosity.

Sorry this chapter took so long. I am right in the middle of finals week and I already had two in the past two days, five papers written, and one film watched for one of said papers. I still have two more papers to write, a book to read, and another actual test midterm. So do not expect an update for a little bit because I need some brain recovery time.

And since I am a history major, I feel like adding this random fact: How Ursula sarcastically talks about Romulus and Remus is true. After the brothers founded Rome, they decided to split it in two and build a wall to separate their halves. When they were breaking ground, Remus was a little sass and kept on putting his foot over the broken ground where the wall would be build. He kept on teasing his brother about how effective his wall was when Romulus got sick of it and stabbed his twin in the gut. If it is actually true, no one knows because the founding of Rome is just a myth and there are a few others versions.

Anywho, that's all I have for you guys right now. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and the small twists and turns I put into it. That is all.