The Broken Day - VelvetInferno - Harry Potter (2024)

Chapter 1: Time Vortex

Chapter Text

“Proximity alarm!” Ron shouted.

The grenade landed at her feet. “GRENADE!” Ginny belted out, apparating behind a concrete slab that would hopefully act as cover. Hopefully- she hadn’t even known they were under attack; let alone which direction they were coming from. The grenade activated with a pulse of blue light moments before she disappeared, and she felt a strong wrenching sensation on her body as she left.

Tracy’s reaction time was a mere fraction slower, and the result was horrific. Part of her had almost made it up to Ginny- but just her head and neck. The rest of her trailed back in path of blood and gore, with much of her being sucked into the grenade’s compression field, along loose rocks, dirt, and anything else that happened to be close by. The field deactivated, sending the compacted material bursting out in an explosive, disgusting spray.

Ginny would not have time to process Tracy’s demise. A flash of blue announced the arrival of a small troop of six behind her position. Fortunately, it took them a moment to acclimate to their surroundings, just enough time for- “REDUCTO!”. The ruined remains of a wall- once part of some long demolished structure- disintegrated, and the shrapnel cut through the men. Only one escaped by diving out of the way. He returned fire- with bullets- and Ginny felt sick as she realized that meant he was probably a forced conscript. She deflected the bullets with a shield while Ron stunned him.

“f*ck!” Ginny cursed “Why the f*ck were we ambushed?” Ron and Neville joined her behind her slab. Neville peppered the other side with spells while Ron checked the gash on his arm. He was lucky to be wearing dragonhide, but Ginny didn't want to think about that.

“They must have had sensors.” Neville said.

“But why?” Ron asked, almost rhetorically. It was a good question, who the f*ck would guard the Time Vortex? It was worse than a death trap, anyone who entered just… froze, if they were lucky.

“I don’t-” Neville’s enchanted eye rotated in its socket, locking on to a speck in the air. “Immobulus!” He froze it in mid-air- it was a person, a shrinker. “f*ck I hate those guys.” He muttered. “We can’t stay here.” His eyes rotated again “Move!” He shouted.

The three apparated to another section of ruined wall, just in time to see their old hiding spot explode. Their attackers had mounted an energy gun onto a turret, its white beam was now carving into the landscape- powerful enough to tear through most wizards’ shields.

Ginny lobbed a spell over, and it struck true. The turret began to morph, but lost steam halfway, remaining a pile of twisted metal. “Never really got the hang of transfiguration.” She grimaced, she had intended on transfiguring it into a wolf, but she supposed she’d been overly ambitious.

"Its fine, it did the job.” Neville said “But we can’t stay here. We were caught flatfooted, Davis is dead, the mission is f*cked.”

“Why would Hydra be guarding the Time Vortex?” Ron asked aloud. “I mean, the Order I could see, we know the old Ministry, Diagon Alley and such are in there somewhere, but Hydra?”

“Well, we should be glad that they aren’t.” Neville rolled his eye.

“No, think about it, Nev.” Ron grabbed his shoulders “They’re guarding something. They know something’s in there and they don’t want anyone even trying to get it. That means the Professor was right, it means-”

“We need to go in.” Ginny surmised, after being through so much together they could easily follow each other’s train of thought. She and Ron met each other’s eyes and they both smirked. “Race ya.”

“You know.” Neville said sardonically “I joined the Professor because I wanted to stop being thrown into recklessly dangerous situations.”

“Its not like they can follow us.” Ron argued “We’re probably safer in there.” To emphasize his point, blaster fire began pelting their position- they’d been spotted.

In any other situation, Ron’s suggestion would have been insane. The Time Vortex was an unpredictable and terrifying thing. She’d been told that even getting close to it could result in you getting caught in an unexpected gust. She’d been told that anyone entering the vortex would be frozen in time, or worse, relive the same moment over and over again for all eternity. But there was a reason why they were here. Professor Riddle had given them a time turner, an incredibly rare artifact from before the war. He had, after years of research and experimentation, modified it so that instead of taking the user back in time, it kept the flow of time constant. Right now, it hung motionless around Neville’s neck. He was technically their team lead, so the decision was his, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t succumb to peer pressure.

“Fine.” He huffed.

They made a run for it, fending off blaster fire as they ran. One bolt struck the ground close to Ginny, and though she managed to put up a shield, she hadn’t had time to guard her calves, and a concrete fragment struck her just above the ankle. This was the world she lived in, where even the slightest slip could mean her death- it only took one miscalculation, one surprise, one lapse in focus to end even the most experienced wizard. She stumbled, but Ron heaved her up and half dragged her along. Neville was having the fight of his life shielding them from the incoming barrage. Until suddenly it became much easier, the bolts of energy had slowed down to a walking pace. At Neville’s neck, the time turner had begun to rotate slowly. Only in the bubble around them did time move normally.

“We should get some more distance.” Neville advised, observing the soldiers’ movements on the other side “They can still get us with lasers.”

“Right.” Ron nodded, hoisting Ginny into his arms “And then we’ll heal up.”

“Prat.” She huffed, concerned for his arm “I’m not six anymore, you know.”

“You act like it sometimes.”

“Oi!” She lightly smacked his shoulder.

“Five minutes of seriousness, that’s all I ask.” Neville intoned. By now, they were deep enough into the vortex that everything appeared distorted, like ripples of heat coming off of pavement, only moreso and in all directions. From the outside, it made it impossible to see the state within, but from their vantage point it felt like being under a disorientation hex. “We’ll have to deal with them when we get back.” Neville said “Probably with reinforcements." They all knew that Hydra had far worse than faceless goons to bring to bear, if they so desired.

“Yeah.” Ron replied “But by then we’ll probably have some secret weapon from the ministry, or something from Gringotts, or whatever Hydra is worried about.”

“Or whatever’s causing the vortex.” Ginny mentioned. That had been what Professor Riddle had been most curious about. Thankfully none of their wounds were so severe that they required professional attention, just a few quick spells and then they were off- following a point me spell to the site of the Ministry of Magic, or whatever was left of it.

At first their surroundings were like the wrecked ruins in the outside world- if perhaps less worn down- destroyed and burnt-out buildings, wrecked cars, and no sign of life. Then they saw the fire. At first, they only appeared as an orange-red glow through the shifting temporal anomaly, but soon enough their path took them through smoldering fires. Some were frozen in time, others seemed to flicker eternally, never spreading, shrinking, or consuming fuel. The three of them shared looks, casting flame freezing charms on each other while judiciously avoiding the flames.

“They’re getting worse.” Neville muttered, noting both how the fires became more intense and prevalent as they ventured deeper, and the intensifying glow in the distance. Ginny frowned in thought. They’d gone to wrecked aftermath to burning rubble, and now were approaching a firestorm.

“It’s like we’re going back in time.” Ginny said. “The vortex spread out from the center. As we get closer to the explosion… we’re also getting sooner to the explosion.” The Time Vortex wasn’t just London, it was London frozen its last, worst, day- a moment of terror, destruction, and torment, and they were delving into the heart of it, each step taking them closer and closer to the moment of destruction.

They had come prepared for obstacles- they had flame freezing charms at the ready and were wrapped in dragon-hide robes, but most importantly they had a plan. They charted a route into the London Underground. Their maps served them well, allowing them to duck into a station and follow a course for Westminster, but they hadn’t anticipated the people. They were huddled together, cowering, clinging to each other, tears streaming down their cheeks and blisters and burns on every patch of exposed skin. At best, they were frozen, but some shook with terror, weeping endless tears, or ran desperately without ever moving. It was horrifying, and they were treated to the scene again and again as they trekked deeper. At one point, the concentration of people was too dense, and they accidentally ‘awoke’ a frozen woman. She immediately screamed. The noise was hoarse, raw and blood-curling. It reminded Ginny of her mother- how she’d screamed and screamed over the body of-

The woman whirled around, not fully comprehending her surroundings, and startled when she saw them. No doubt, from her perspective they had appeared out of nowhere. Unbalanced, she stumbled out of their little bubble, returning to stasis. None of them spoke, or even dared to move as her screams rang distantly in their ears. They didn’t talk for a long time after that, and from then on studiously avoided people. They couldn’t save them. Even if they, by some miracle, stopped the vortex, they would just die in fire. Even if they somehow got them out, the world out there would just chew them up.

They exited at Westminster station and found that they’d bypassed the inferno entirely. They could see it in the distance, a ring of blue fire that enclosed them on all sides, but whatever had triggered the vortex had happened before it could reach this place. The people around them were running terrified, hugging each other, and sobbing, but they were not blistered and charred, they’d been spared that. The time turner around Neville’s neck had begun to spin faster and faster as they’d approached the center of the vortex, and now it was whirling in almost a blur.

This was it; this was the start of the War, this was doomsday. While that wasn’t entirely true- both Hydra and Grindelwald were making their bids for power before the bombs fell- it might as well be. After that day, nothing would ever be the same again. This moment in time was the barrier between her world and the untouchable past. She couldn’t imagine what it would have been like, before. The War was all she knew, all she’d ever known, it was all her parents had ever known. It consumed everything, pervaded every aspect of life, left its scars everywhere and on everyone. Ginny couldn’t accept that this was how things had to be, she had to believe that there was more- that was why she was here.

The Professor had told them what they’d need to do. They located an innocuous phone booth at the brink of the ring of fire, and it took them down. The atrium was in just as much chaos as the streets above. Wizards and witches scrambled for the fireplaces, fighting each other in desperate skirmishes to be next. Others were sprinting for the apparation spots. Above them, the ceiling was in the process of shattering, a dome of blue fire breaking through. These people were all doomed. The only difference from what they’d seen before was that here, nothing moved. They were getting closer to the center.

“Merlin.” Ron whispered. Finally breaking the silence.

“Yeah.” Ginny said, shuddering. “This is…”

“Horrifying?” Neville offered.

“Yeah, pretty sure I’m going to have nightmares about all this.” Ron said.

Next on their path was another elevator, but this was so choked with people streaming out that they couldn’t hope to use it. Neville withdrew a small potion vial from his pack. “The professor gave this to me, apparently it’s incredibly corrosive.” He tipped the vial, letting a few drops fall to the ground. The potion carved through the floor and any protective enchantments it held in seconds. It was only stopped when it left their bubble.

“Blimey!” Ron said “Just don’t spill any of that on me.”

It was a poor excuse for a joke, and they all knew it. Still, Neville chuckled wryly. “Not planning on it.” With careful use of a levitation charm, they were able to descend through the floors, the potion eating through each one until…

“Well, this is it.” Neville announced, “The Department of Mysteries.” The air seemed especially heavy here. The time turner whirred at a blinding speed, and the bubble around them had shrunk down until it could just fit the three of them. Somehow, Ginny could feel that this was the epicenter of the vortex. They ventured slowly, taking each step carefully so as to not stumble out of their bubble of protection. Around a particular door, the temporal distortions were so intense that even at a meter’s distance the door appeared contorted.

“I think this is it.” Neville murmured, his enchanted eye surveying whatever was behind it “I think… it’s a person.”

And it was. The explosion had breached this room, engulfing half of it in a wall of fire. Shards of stone, flung outward by the force of the blast, were halted in mid-trajectory. Shattered time turners and dismembered Unspeakables alike were held motionless in an invisible prison, and in the center of all the chaos was a man. He was clearly frozen, yet temporal energy flowed around him, hugging his body in shifting strands, running in streams along the slope of his musculature. Some insane part of Ginny blushed, unable to take her eyes off this man. Despite herself, she crept forward to get a better look at him.

“Uh, Ginny?” Neville asked. She ignored him. There was something compelling about this mystery man. It wasn’t just that he was attractive- though he was- there was something… familiar. On instinct, her hand lifted to his brow to brush her raven locks back over his fringe. It felt like a well-worn motion, even though she never met this man before in her life. She touched his forehead- was there a scar on his fringe?- and her mind exploded.

She was hit with a barrage of visions. She was eleven, shivering and crying in some darkened chamber. The man was there, also now just a boy, and he was hugging her. His arms felt strong and comforting, like home. She was fifteen, and they were kissing in the Gryffindor common room. She could feel the warmth of their embrace, and the keenness of her desire for him. It was a dream come true. She was sixteen, and they were having sex. Even though his body was not as impressive as the one before her, her teenage self had been every bit as wowed. She felt an intense moment of connection and completeness as he entered her and she embraced his co*ck, she wanted it to go on forever… She was sixteen, and she saw his dead body at the feet of a pale shadow of a man. She screamed.

Ginny fell onto the floor, yanked back by Ron. “What were you thinking!” He shouted, furious. Ginny couldn’t respond, her mind was still swimming with the images, sensations, feelings… memories?

“I don’t know!” Ginny fumbled “I don’t know!”

“I think I have an idea.” Neville snarked.

Thump.

The trio choked on their words simultaneously. The man Ginny had touched was no longer frozen. He’d fallen heavily to the floor, heaving in breaths. His eyes open, a gorgeous shade of emerald green. He looked at them with an unfocused gaze, and squinted as if he couldn’t quite make them out. Finally, his voice gravelly from disuse, he spoke “Ron? Neville? Gin?”

What the f*ck?

-----

Far away, in an office in Hogwarts, a gently rotating device jerked from its lethargy, spinning with sudden urgency. Headmaster Albus Dumbledore raised his eyebrows curiously at the instrument. The device was meant to react to temporal energy. He had designed the device himself and if he had done so adequately (which he daresay he did more often than not) then that indicated a massive shift, greater than any event since the vortex had formed.

He didn’t have much time to devote to academic pursuits, so he did enjoy when circ*mstances made the more esoteric branches of magic practical in the war. Gellert had rolled his eyes while Albus had immersed himself in the project, chuckling and saying that if it ever became useful it would mean their deaths. Albus would enjoy rubbing it in his face later, but first there were more urgent matters to attend to. He summoned his patronus, and sent it off with the message “Shacklebolt, have a response team drafted. Await my orders.” It would not do for Shaklebolt to know that the team he’d be sending off was to the edge of the vortex. If he did, he might only recruit his most expendable wizards, which would leave the possibly critical mission fatally compromised. Rapid-fire, he sent another patronus “Lily, there has been a development with the time vortex. I would be most interested to hear your theories.”

Chapter 2: The Heart of the Storm

Chapter Text

Hydra Headquarters, Swiss Alps, 1944

Zola looked at the five newcomers uncertainly. “I’m sorry gentlemen, I wasn’t aware that I would be having visitors today.” His lab had been a hive of activity since the tesseract had been recovered, as Zola and his assistants had worked on more and better ways to harness its power for the war effort. The visit by some of Hydra’s top military commanders left him nervous. Up to this point Zola had existed outside the chain of command, reporting only to the Red Skull himself.

“We were given directs orders from Schmidt.” One of the officers said. “We were told that you had a solution to our predicament.”

Zola raised his eyebrows. It was true that he had shared some of his speculations on the nature of the Tesseract with Schmidt just yesterday. But if he was intent on acting on that… the situation must be worse than he knew.

“My apologies, Zola.” Red Skull entered the room, and the officers snapped to attention with a ‘Hail Hydra!’ Zola followed them a half second later. “I did not hive time to inform you. The developments in the war have been going… poorly.”

“But the Valkyrie’s mission was successful, surely after deploying our super-weapon, we have no enemies left standing?” Zola had a hard time imagining how anyone could be left fighting their will after the destruction of almost every major population center on the planet.

An officer scoffed “Tell that to the wizards.”

Zola looked down. Ah, yes, the wizards. They had erupted onto the stage with terrifying speed. Three days ago, people all over the world had woken up to find that their governments were ‘under new management’, that all along magic users had lived in the shadows, living as the ultimate secret society. Now they were stepping into the light, as bringers of peace and order, to exercise what they say as right to rule over those without magic. It was a bitter irony for those in Hydra. This ‘Wizarding Order’ had just managed everything that Hydra had been striving for- a world where freedom had been eliminated, where all existed under the guiding and protecting hand of those who were superior.

The only problem was they weren’t the ones who had taken power, and that was unacceptable. Knowing that Hydra’s existence could be ended at any moment, Schmidt had ordered their ultimate weapon to be deployed. The bombs dropped all across the planet, utterly destroying every government that wizarding kind had just taken over. It was a rash and brutal move, but it was likely their only option other than surrender.

“While we likely inflicted massive damage on the Order” Schmidt explained “It seems they have strongholds outside of the large population centers. It may take months or even years of research to hunt them down. In the meantime, the situation on the front has deteriorated.”

“Ah.” Zola uttered “How long do we have?”

“I believe there may be a mole.” Schmidt said “As they’ve been attacking our secret facilities with rapid speed and precision. Our defenses are strong, and while we may be able to mount a defense against their foot-soldiers, there are clearly some very powerful individuals involved in these attacks as well.”

“We’ve observed two such individuals.” An officer offered “We believe they have a leadership role in the order. Given their statements, its likely that the most powerful among them are afforded the most respect and authority.”

“But surely you can handle two men.” Zola asked.

The officer shook his head “You don’t understand. You didn’t see one of them in action. Its unreal, its terrifying.”

“That is where we come in, Zola.” Schmidt said “The only solution is our own trump card. We need a champion of our own, something of the same overwhelming power that can carry us to victory.”

“What I said, about the Tesseract acting as a portal, it was just speculation.” Zola hedged.

“Ah, but your speculations have normally been astute.” Schmidt said “And its not like we have other options.”

“Even if I am correct, sir, I don’t have the equipment-”

“We don’t need equipment.” Schmidt interrupted “All I need is intent and will.” He stepped to the reactor, where the Tesseract was housed. “I will bring us our champion. Someone who was the strength and the desire to defeat our enemies.” With that, the Red Skull grabbed the Tesseract and gasped, falling to his knees “Or… die… trying….”

He screamed, and the room was bathed in blue light. Zola was convinced that he would fail, that this was little more than an elaborate suicide, until a beam of energy lanced out from the cube, hitting the floor in front of them. The light intensified until it was blinding. Only Zola with his shielded goggles could continue to observe the process. There was an explosion and blue fire spread across the floor from the spot the beam struck. Then the light receded, and Schmidt’s screaming cut off.

None of them dared speak, unsure of what exactly had happened, if their leader was alive, if his gamble had even succeeded. Then a figure stepped out of the flames, dark against the blue backdrop. “Red Skull’s plan worked!” One of the officers shouted.

“Is that so?” A feminine voice asked, the figure came into view. She was tall, regally elegant, certainly not what Zola had expected.

“A woman!” An officer barked “Perpost-” The man fell limply to the ground, his head severed from his body. She had struck faster that Zola could even see, with a blade that hadn’t been in her hand moments before.

They’d summoned someone with power, yes. But Zola could now see the massive flaw in Schmidt’s plan. Hydra could not possibly hope to control her.

“For what purpose did you bring me here?” She asked.

“We- we are at war.” Another officer managed “Against the Wizarding Order.”

The words seemed to infuse the woman, her eyes glinted malevolently. “Then you have chosen me wisely. Their kind is an abomination of nature, which I will happily cleanse for you if you swear fealty to me.”

Red Skull, not quite dead, pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. “You will serve us.” He rasped “You are our champion, and you will do our-” He died, a spear lodged through his head. A man fired at her, but even Hydra’s tesseract powered weaponry had no effect, in the blink of an eye, he met the same fate.

“You don’t appear to understand.” The woman hissed “I am Hela, the Goddess of Death. I am no mortal's servant. I am no slave. I am no champion. I am nothing less than a Queen. And you. Will. Kneel.”

They had merely exchanged one master for another, Zola realized. But it wasn’t so bad. He had served Red Skull, despite his erratic and reckless ways. Serving Hela would not be such a leap. Perhaps by submitting to her first, he would gain some favor with her.

He knelt. The remaining officers followed him.

-----

Harry’s vision without his glasses was a blur, but even with ten years of separation he recognized their voices in an instant. Ron. Neville. Ginny. His friends, they were his friends. His mind reeled as he tried to piece events together. He remembered… sacrificing himself for the Soul Stone, meeting Death again, the battle with Voldemort, Hela, the time stone…

Harry groaned and got up to his knees. “Hey mate, you okay?” Ron said as a redheaded blur approached. Harry took stock and found that he actually felt… fine. He closed his eyes and focused, and after a few seconds of visualizing his intention, produced a pair of glasses in his hand.

"Bloody hell.” Ron uttered.

“Was that wandless?” Neville asked.

“Does he look like he has a wand?” Ginny returned.

“How would you know? You’re clearly too busy looking at his other wand.” Neville teased. Ginny squeaked.

“I really don’t want to hear about it.” Ron grumbled.

“Oh please, you think I enjoyed watching you shove your tongue down Lavender’s throat?” Ginny returned.

The banter was familiar and comforting. He loved them so much. “I missed you guys so much.” Harry said, smiling as he put his glasses on. He wasn’t sure how this had happened, but it was something out of a dream. He’d found his friends again. He was sure that this would come with its own host of problems, but for the moment he let the joy blossom within him.

He blinked, and took in the scene, and that joy was stunted. Physically, he appeared to still be in the time room of the Department of Mysteries, which tracked with his memories, but it seemed… off. Everything outside of their little bubble was frozen in place. He had hoped to use the time stone to fix everything, but it seemed that he’d failed. Moreover, none of his friends were as Harry remembered them. Ron and Ginny looked… worn down, and there was a faint trace of a scar along Ron’s cheek. Neville looked like he was modelling himself off Alastor Moody. His enchanted eye wasn’t identical to the old aurors’, but it followed the same principle. His face was laced with scars, including a nasty looking burn that ran down his neck and probably lower.

At his words, the three resumed staring at him. Ron looked confused but was still kneeling down to his level. Ginny was keeping her eyes defiantly locked to his face, despite her fierce blush. Neville’s enchanted eye was examining him in an uncanny manner. Finally, Neville broached the question “You know us?”

“Wait, you don’t know me?” Harry stood up, and Ginny’s face impossibly turned an even darker shade of red. In a normal situation he would have loved to tease her about it, but his world was in the process of being reordered. They didn’t remember him, didn’t know him. Whatever the time stone had done to the timeline, it had erased his history with his closest friends. The hope that had sprouted in his chest wilted, but he consoled himself. He’d never thought he’d see them again, there was a time where he would have given anything for just the chance to see them one more time. Even this was a gift. Besides, by the way Ginny was acting, he almost wondered…

“Well… no.” Ron said honestly “This is the first time I’ve seen you.” He turned to his friends. Neville nodded in agreement, though Ginny was non-responsive. Harry took pity on her and took a few seconds to conjure a simple set of robes, which he wrapped around himself. Ginny let out a sigh of relief.

“Merlin, how can you just do that, like its nothing?” Neville muttered. Harry blinked and remembered that accomplishing anything greater than party tricks with wandless magic was almost unheard of in the wizarding world. It had become second nature to him after having to go without a wand for so long, and it hadn’t even occurred to him how shocking his little display would be. Maybe he shouldn’t have tipped his hand so soon, but it hadn’t occurred to him to mistrust them.

“Err, practice?” He said “I spent years without access to a wand, so it was either learn or nothing.” He shrugged.

Ron just blinked and asked “Who are you?” The bewilderment in his voice would have been funny in other circ*mstances. His question was simpler to ask than to answer, how could Harry even begin to explain his life to them?

“My name is Harry Potter.” He answered “But- ” Before he could continue, Ginny’s fiery personality- no longer cowed by his state of undress- came roaring back.

“Okay, what the hell was that?” She asked, snappish and flustered.

“The wandless magic? Well-”

“No! When I touched you.” Ginny shook her head “I saw things, like… like… memories! What did you do to me?”

There was that hope again, blooming anew. “Could you describe them to me?” He asked, fighting a smile.

“I remember being a kid, waking up in this… cavern? You were hugging me. And then there was…” She blushed “You know what, you don’t need to know the rest.”

The smile came bursting through. He could take a guess at the other memories she’d seen. Ron and Neville’s scrutiny couldn’t weigh him down, just the knowledge that Ginny remembered something was enough for him. “Well, I have answers to all your questions, but I have to warn you… its weird.”

“Try me.” Ginny challenged with that blazing look in her eyes that he so adored.

“Right. Well, I have no clue what your lives are like or how you got here, but I lived a life before this. That's where those memories are from. You guys were some of my closest friends. The fact that you don’t remember me tells me that events for you were different, which means… I don’t know. My guess is that something’s happened to the timeline, or maybe I’m in another universe.” It wouldn’t be the first time, he supposed. Ron and Neville were looking at him as if he’d grown a second head, and Harry couldn’t blame them.

Neville rubbed his temple “Okay… and you’re in the center of the time vortex… how?”

“What’s the time vortex?”

“You know our names, but not about the temporal storm that has ravaged London for the past fifty years?”

“Look, let’s just assume that while I personally know you, I have no clue about current events, so how’d this time vortex happen?” Harry had the sinking feeling that this ‘time vortex’ was only scratching the surface on the differences from the worlds he’d known.

“We were hoping to figure that out. The working theory is that when something in the Department of Mysteries went wrong when Hydra dropped the bomb on London.”

“What?” Harry choked. It was a vicious piece of dissonance, to hear a wizard refer to Hydra as a matter of course. He hoped desperately that this didn’t mean what he thought it meant. The implications were too terrible, that Hydra had pulled off its genocidal plan at the end of the second world war. Either Steve hadn’t been able to stop them, or he’d never existed, or never had the opportunity to become Captain America. How many people had died?

“When Hydra dropped the bomb?” Neville repeated unsurely.

“Right, I heard that.” Now Harry was the one rubbing his temples “How many cities were hit?”

“All of them?” Neville said, and Harry's face crumpled “Well, not all of them, but I don’t exactly have a detailed history on hand.”

“Yeah, I get it.” Harry sucked in a breath. Something else occurred to him. Hydra existing in the same universe as the wizarding world had some implications. “Wait, why didn’t the wizards stop it?”

“Well, there was a war on.” Ron said.

It took Harry a moment before he caught on. “Right, Grindelwald.” It was odd to think of it, World War 2, Hydra’s war, and Grindelwald’s war all happening simultaneously. He could see how that could go very wrong.

“Yeah. It broke the statue of secrecy.” Neville nodded “Which… might have triggered Hydra’s attack. Dumbledore and Grindelwald struck back of course-” Harry didn’t even want to touch on the implications of those two working together “-but they weren’t prepared for her.”

“Her?”

“The Goddess of Death.”

-----

She believed him.

The memories had been confusing and overwhelming at first, but they had been nothing next to the emotions that came with them. The fear, the grief, but most of all the love. She’d never felt love quite like that, not even with Luna. It was scary, how powerful the emotion was, and she wondered if it was affecting her judgement. That was why she’d snapped at him, it was just too much, all at once.

Now though, as things began to settle, Ginny felt her heart go out to Harry. His affection for them was obvious, and his horror and pain as he’d learned about their history was raw and real. He really was learning about all of this for the first time, and every revelation seemed to hit him like a hammer blow, creating new painful cracks for them to see.

She couldn’t not believe him.

"Hela?” Harry clarified.

Neville just nodded “We don’t like to say her name.”

“Course.” He mumbled to himself “Wizards.”

“We’re not sure on all the details, but she took control of Hydra after the bombs dropped.” Neville continued “She’s a monster. She wants to kill all of us, anyone with even a scrap of magic. That was how the war started. Hydra and the Order fighting over the ruins of the world.”

“The Order, being Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s people, then? Do you work for them?” Harry asked.

“Hell no.” Ginny snorted, and Harry sagged with relief. Ginny wondered what significance those two great and terrible wizards had for Harry in his timeline. She wanted to know everything about him, the life they’d had together, their relationship, just… everything.

“Why not?”

That was a long story. Perhaps not as long as the one Harry likely had for them, but still. How could one distill down how the Order treated people? Witches were breeding cattle and wizards were like pigs for slaughter. It was all justified as necessary, a sacrifice to save their people. That was enough for most, but not Ginny. She’d lost every one of her brothers, save Ron, and if she and Ron hadn’t defected, she was sure she would have lost him too. He would have died, and she would have become a consort to whichever man was well connected enough to arrange for it. She knew that Lucius Malfoy had his eyes on her, and the prospect of being forced to bear his children, only to watch them grow up and either be killed or suffer the same fate as her… it was intolerable. She’d rather die.

She was grateful that Professor Riddle had given them another option. Working for him was still dangerous- it was a war- but everyone was there of their own choice. Witches weren’t breeding stock. Witches and wizards alike bore the burdens of the war. Werewolves, giants, vampires, and all the others that the Order considered subhuman were welcomed.

While Ginny was lost in her thoughts. Neville glanced between them. She knew him well enough to know what he was trying to communicate. Harry was obviously powerful, to an extent they were likely only scratching to surface of. They needed to recruit him, and make sure that he would never consider joining the Order. Ron answered first. “Did you know my brother, Bill?” He asked.

Harry smiled “Yeah. Brilliant curse breaker, effortlessly cool.” Ginny and Ron both grinned faintly, that sounded like him, alright.

“He was a werewolf.” Ron said “Got bitten by a rogue pack on a scouting mission.”

“One of my closest mentors was a werewolf.” Harry said. “They’re victims of a disease, not monsters.”

“Damn right.” Neville approved.

“If only the Order thought the same way.” Ron shook his head “The next full moon, they portkeyed him into a Hydra base. Like he was some rabid dog. We never even got his body.”

“Oh.” Harry looked heartbroken.

“You want to know how I got this eye?” Neville said next, and without pause continued “It wasn’t fighting Hydra, no. It was fighting Goblins.”

“Why?”

“What else? Prejudice, hubris, greed.” Neville uttered “Dumbledore was so persuasive, though. Spun us tales of bringing back the Sword of Gryffindor, of us being a heroes. He was certain that they held some war winning artifact.” He scoffed bitterly “I lost count of how many good people died for nothing in those caves. I’m lucky to be alive myself.”

Harry’s eyes turned to Ginny next, and finally she said “I just didn’t want to be Lucius Malfoy’s breeding mare.” She said, and Harry looked ill. “While the wizards are sent off to die, the witches are meant to make as many babies as possible.” She shot him a rebellious look “I’m worth more than that.”

“Damn right you are.” Harry agreed vehemently.

-----

They set off after that. While they still didn’t have a full explanation of Harry’s past and there was still plenty to tell him, the middle of a temporal storm was no place for long discussions. He did give them the broad outlines as they ventured out- how he’d grown up in a war against a Dark Lord by the name of Voldemort, how he’d died and found himself in a different universe, how he’d died again and had a final battle with Voldemort and Hela in the Department of Mysteries that had caused the destruction of a powerful artifact. It all seemed surreal, but at the same time she could feel that he was holding back.

Perhaps they should have pushed him for more information, for specifics, but they didn’t. In just a few minutes, Harry had slid into their team like he was meant to be there, like he had always been there. Ron liked him, seemingly instinctively. He’d had no reason to think that Harry would be friendly, yet his first reaction to seeing him was to kneel down and ask if he was alright. He never would have told Bill’s story, something so raw and personal to them both, to a stranger. Neville had been cautious at first, but for a grizzled veteran like him to let his guard around an unknown like Harry so soon spoke volumes. Even now, he led the way with his back turned to Harry and his enchanted eye mostly fixed ahead. But most telling of all was that they- all of them- believed him. Somehow, they all felt that Harry’s ridiculous story was the truth.

Perhaps some of it was that she wanted it to be true. The idea that there was a better world out there- that this world was not how things were meant to be- was comforting. But Ginny felt that it ran deeper. Some part of her knew that he was telling the truth, that what she had seen and what she had felt was real. She was still trying to sort out her feelings, but it felt an awful lot like she loved him. Whatever emotions those memories had implanted in her weren’t fading, if anything they were solidifying. He was genuine, empathetic and kind. His pain and his warmth were real and unguarded, and those emotions shone through his beautiful eyes. His smiles were enchanting, and his grief had her wanting to smother him with affection. He was far from naïve, but he didn’t let his experiences turn him into a stoic soldier- the trap that Neville and so many like him fell into. She had no idea what to do with these feelings, they were so sudden and so powerful, but at the same time they slotted into her perfectly, like they were meant to be there, like Harry was meant to be there. She wanted to hold him in her arms, she wanted to run away screaming, she wanted to grill him for every detail of his life, she wanted to rip off his robes and f*ck him.

Harry was grim as he observed the frozen moment in the atrium, and his despair only deepened when they reached the surface. “We need to stop this.” He murmured. She wished she knew what he was thinking, what was behind that turmoil in his eyes. She wanted to comfort him, but what could she do in the face of all this destruction?

Then Harry paused, his gaze was riveted to a figure amidst the chaos. It was a woman in a military uniform, she bore a shield that displayed the Union Jack, the old symbol of muggle Britain. She was frozen in the process of shepherding a small group of people down into a shelter. The trio had barely noticed her on their way in, but to Harry she was an object of fascination. He scrutinized her, as if trying to place her. “Huh.” He said. Then he stepped out of their bubble.

Neville turned and shouted “Wait!” too late. Harry was out, but instead of freezing, he just… kept walking. The three of them gaped as he made his way to the woman, completely unaffected by the vortex. After a moment’s hesitation, they followed him in their bubble. When he reached her, he touched her arm, and just like that she reawakened.

The woman panicked, but Harry was patient as she thrashed and shouted. He kept a hand gently on her arm as he assured her “It’s okay. I’m a friend of Steve’s. You’re Peggy Carter, right?”

The woman stilled, taking stock of her situation and her rescuer. Finally, she said “You know Steve?”

Chapter 3: Binary

Chapter Text

They made ‘camp’, such as it was, in a subway tunnel. Neville, Ron, and Ginny had entered the vortex with several weeks of rations and supplies, fully prepared for a thorough search of the ministry, Diagon Alley, and Gringotts. It would have been a miserable experience. No matter how powerful a cushioning charm you placed on a bedroll, you were still sleeping in a bedroll in the middle of a hellscape. For better or worse, the latter two targets had been frozen in the midst of the explosion’s shockwave, rendering them nigh unreachable. None of them wanted to sleep here of all places, but after a day of walking and climbing, Neville Ron and Ginny needed it.

Peggy stared down the gloomy tunnel, her eyes distant. Explaining their situation had been difficult enough when it came to Harry and his friends, but at least they all had some context. Harry knew well just how hard waking up in another time had been for Steve, and the world Steve had found was much kinder than the one that was waiting for them. Still, Carter bore it all with a steely determination. He admired her fortitude, but he knew that it must be taking a toll on her.

“You should get some rest, Harry.” She said.

Harry shrugged. He had no way of figuring the last time he’d slept. He thought back, waking up here… the fight with Voldemort and Hela… meeting Death… sacrificing himself at Vormir… saying his farewells to the other Avengers as they all set out to retrieve the Infinity Stones… he remembered dozing in bed, sandwiched between Nat and Carol. His and Nat’s relationship, spanning the better part of a decade, was so familiar to him that waking up with her felt natural. And while he and Carol had never cemented their relationship, there was something there, and it was so easy to take comfort in each other’s physical presence.

Were they okay? Were they even alive? Had they been wiped from existence entirely? He couldn’t know, and that last pleasant morning felt like a lifetime ago. “I can’t, my mind’s too busy.” He settled on. There was just too much for him to process, he didn’t even want to stop, he wanted to keep going until he could piece everything together and find a way to fix it.

He already had the beginnings of a plan for that. ‘Reuniting the Infinity Stones’ was far easier said than done, but it was good to have a goal, even if he knew he’d be improvising most of it.

Harry sat beside her, joining her in staring ahead. After a few minutes of silence, she said “Can you tell me about him?” Though Peggy, and not Steve, had been the one to receive the serum in this world, she had still known him and befriended him- if not more.

Harry smiled bittersweetly as he cast his mind back. What could he say about Steve Rogers? “He was brave. I mean, you knew that.” He chuckled “He was stronger and more adaptable than he’d ever admit. He always picked himself up, even after waking up in another time and losing all his friends.”

“That sounds like him.” She said, a curling fondness in her voice.

“He was… lonely.”

“Oh.” Peggy breathed sadly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

“He always kept a picture of you, inside a compass.” Harry continued “He never dated, even though he had women- and some men- throwing themselves at him. As long as I knew him, he was about the mission, about helping people, but he never thought about himself. But… at least he found Bucky eventually.”

“He did? What, did he travel through time as well?” It was a reasonable guess, given… everything.

“No, it was bloody Hydra. They brainwashed him and kept him on ice.” Harry shook his head “We had a hell of a time freeing him of the conditioning. Shuri- err, a brilliant scientist- managed it.”

“You know, for every detail you mention, the crazier all of it sounds.” Peggy shook her head. “I would have called you insane if it weren’t for the fact that London is frozen around us.”

“I can imagine.”

“Just yesterday, all I had to worry about was fighting Hydra.” She said “Then, the world turns upside down.”

“The bombs?”

“The wizards.” She shook her head “They launched a coup, against His Majesties Government, and every other nation in the world.” She looked at him curiously “You didn’t know this?”

“I’m just as new here as you are.” Harry said. Neville had mentioned that the statute of secrecy had been broken, but he hadn’t realized he meant this. Dumbledore and Grindelwald had actually done it, they’d tried to take over the muggle world, and it had backfired on them spectacularly.

“Then, the bombs dropped. And now I’m here.” She shrugged helplessly.

What could he say? Harry hesitantly put a hand on her shoulder "I'm sorry." The quieter, almost to himself. "We're going to fix this."

-----

Hydra saw them coming, despite their best efforts. They took care to take a different path out than they had come in and had disillusioned themselves. Disillusionment charms, however, only colored and textured the user identically to the environment. It wasn’t true invisibility, and so Hydra would be able to spot them with infrared.

They had talked strategy for their inevitable confrontation, with Ron suggesting an aggressive strategy of cutting through the Hydra forces ‘like a knife through butter’. “Shouldn’t we just apparate out?” Harry had asked the group at large as their surroundings transitioned from burning rubble to inert rubble.

“We need to be clear of the vortex. And if Hydra is waiting for us, they’ll probably have set up anti-apparation wards.” Ron answered.

“They have anti-apparation wards?”

“Asgardian magic.” Neville shrugged “Go figure.” And Harry did. Runes probably, but engraved in what? Vibranium was an option, but Asgardians normally used Uru, the metal that Mjolnir, Stormbreaker, and the Infinity Gauntlet were crafted from. It was incredibly durable, but its most potent property was its ability to channel magic. It was a go to for Asgardian magical defenses, and for their most deadly weapons. Mjolnir had been an incredibly powerful focus for Harry’s magic, far better than even the Elder Wand when used for its preferred element- lightning. From what Thor had explained, the Asgardians had an entire star system dedicated to its production. He had no idea what the situation up there was like- if Hela was restricted to Earth or if she’d taken over Asgard itself. He didn’t know a lot of things.

At first, it seemed to go well, and once they were a respectable distance from the vortex, Neville tried to apparate. If he could make it, they would follow him to a safehouse- Ginny side-alonging Harry and Ron taking Peggy. It was not to be, as Neville merely flickered in place. “sh*te.” He muttered “We’re going to have to fight our way out.”

It was then that the trap sprung. Multiple groups of men teleported in with flashes of blue light. Harry didn’t need to think, he was running on pure instinct and adrenaline. He lunged towards the group of a dozen that had dropped in directly in front of them, using a burst of magic to push himself off with sudden speed.

They were not prepared for such a sudden move, nor for the blasting curse that he flung into their midst, but they were clearly experienced and hadn’t been caught completely flatfooted. Most were able to dive out of the radius of the blast, and some fired haphazardly at Harry as he closed on them. Harry was able to dodge and deflect the incoming fire, leaping over a final desperate shot from one of the men and landing on the patch of ground his blasting curse had cleared. Coming out of his roll, he threw out a pair of stunners that downed their targets.

Hydra weapons were deadly at range but tended to be unwieldy and dangerous to use up close. Any of his opponents’ attacks could easily hit one of their own, instantly killing them. Of course, they could hit Harry as well, but he was prepared. The soldiers were off balance still, and Harry was going to take full advantage. Though he was confident that his shields could deflect their attacks, it was key in these situations to be aggressive. He needed to keep moving, relying on evasion and offensive power rather than letting his opponents take the initiative.

He sidestepped another hastily shot beam, rushing the shooter and stunning him point blank. He’d had two comrades at his side, and one lunged at Harry with a knife. Harry blocked him with his arm, summoned the knife, kicked out his leg, and leveraged the man into an incoming beam, all while stunning the other nearby soldier with his off hand. A Hydra officer correctly gauged that shooting was getting them nowhere and activated a grenade. Harry severed his wrist before it even left the man’s hand. The grenade landed at his feet, and he had just enough time to register his shock before it killed him and four nearby soldiers gruesomely. Harry’s companions had explained to him what sort of weapons Hydra used, but it was different, seeing these ‘compression grenades’ in action.

Peggy had charged in right behind him. He could see a lot of Steve’s fighting style in her, and he remembered that she’d had a hand in training him. It made it easy for him to adjust to working with her, and the two quickly mopped up the latecomers that trickled into range. Harry looked back at his companions- they had followed him as well, putting up a careful rearguard defense. Hydra’s numbers were overwhelming, and his friends were unable to mount an aggressive attack without having their heads blown off. This was fine. They didn’t need to take out every Hydra soldier, they just needed to get out alive. This was Ron’s ‘a knife through butter’ strategy in action- cut quickly and effectively through whoever got in their way and avoid everything that didn’t.

“Where did you learn to fight like that?” Neville asked.

From Nat. She’d gone through great pains to drill combat strategy into his head after a close call in Mexico City. She’d taught him situational awareness, tactics, physical combat, all things that none of his Defense Against the Dark Arts professors had even hinted at. Those lessons had never stopped being useful. “It’s quite a story.” He said, instead of answering. “On the signal, make a run for it.” Before they could ask what the signal was, he stretched his hands out and cast a pair of overpowered lumos charms to their flanks. The burst of light dazzled the Hydra soldiers, and the brief lull in their attacks allowed them to pull away unmolested.

They’d only been running for perhaps a minute when Neville grabbed Harry’s shoulder. “We have company ahead. It’s the Order.” He said. “We must be close to the edge of the wards.”

“Good.” Ginny said decisively “They’ll fight each other, and we’ll sneak out.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Harry agreed. Applying disillusionment charms, they slipped behind cover and crept forwards. Around them, fighting erupted with colored lights, explosions, shouts and screams. Drones hovered overhead, firing from distance to avoid spellfire. Occasionally, one would veer downward sharply- probably summoned by a wizard- and then be taken out by a spell. It was pure chaos, but it worked to their advantage, as it seemed everyone was too preoccupied with fighting each other to worry about them. From what Harry could see, though, the Order had the decisive advantage. While Hydra had firepower, magic was just too versatile. Once wizards appeared in force, Hydra was outmatched.

Harry felt a frantic tapping on his shoulder. “Finite.” Their camouflage melted away, revealing that the warning had come- too late- from Neville. “Thought I saw something.” The voice crowed. He sounded so familiar, Harry could almost place him…

“Good job Wood.” Another wizard said, his eyes lighting in recognition as he took a look at them. “Well! Looks like we caught some deserters.” He sneered. “Thought you three had died.”

Oliver Wood and Marcus Flint. Harry had known them as bitter quidditch rivals and seeing them working together felt unholy. Harry remembered Fred and George cracking jokes during practice until even Oliver was forced to laugh. He remembered him launching golf balls to help Harry train in his first year. He remembered the older boy hugging each of his teammates after they’d won the cup in Harry’s third year. He could only just see that boy in the man before him. His features were scarred and hardened, and all of the Order men were all dressed in uniform sleek grey that seemed to minimize their individuality. The only notable detail on their clothing was an armband that showed the symbol of the Deathly Hallows- Grindelwald’s symbol, and perhaps now Dumbledore’s too.

With the pair were four other wizards, who had fanned out to hem them in “Now, you can go with us quietly or-” As one, Harry, Ron, Neville and Ginny struck. One of the wizards crumpled to the ground, but Oliver and Flint both remained standing. Peggy was slightly out of synch, firing with an acquired Hydra pistol after a few seconds of delay.

“Crucio!” Flint spat. Ron leapt out of the curses’ path but landed awkwardly. Harry stepped in front of him while he recovered, batting away a series of stunners. When those spells were followed by a killing curse he intercepted it with a levitated rock. He formed a shield to deflect the shrapnel back at the caster, who went down clutching his arm. Ron surged back to his feet, but neither would get the chance to go on the attack.

A streak of golden light arced down from the sky, landing in the center of their brawl- hard enough to indent the concrete and send cracks outward. The figure was wreathed in golden energy that coursed and pulsed around her body in shimmering streams and currents.

“f*ck!” Flint cursed.

“f*ck!” Ginny echoed vociferously.

Harry was dumbstruck. He’d wanted to find his friends, but he’d never wanted to find them like this. She was wearing a black suit with the red of Hydra’s insignia on her chest instead of her usual red, blue, and gold, but it was undeniably her. “Carol?” He breathed.

“AVADA KEDAVRA!” An Order wizard screeched, undone by panic. It wouldn’t work, Harry knew that Carol was too fast to be hit by traditional spells. Hell, most basic spells would glance off of her, and she surely knew to avoid unforgivables. She leapt into the air, almost too fast to see, easily maneuvering past the volley of spells sent her way. There was a sound like a thunderclap as she unleashed a plasma bolt. The man who’d cast the curse at her ceased to be. Neville was her next target, but Peggy stepped in that path of the bolt. Her shield held, but she was sent flying back. Harry cast a cushioning charm to soften her impact.

None of them could take her on. Hell, if he was going to fight her, he’d need one hell of a magical focus. Mjolnir or the Elder Wand was clearly too much to ask for, but he’d take any wand at this point. “GET OUT OF HERE!” Oliver shouted, waving his men back. Harry had his target.

Oliver didn’t see him coming, logically thinking that everyone would be concerned with the far greater threat. In rapid succession he stunned him and disarmed him. With wand in hand, Harry could tell that it wasn’t a great fit. It would probably slow him down when spellcasting speed was required, but it would still help him with power. After a moment’s hesitation, he disillusioned Oliver’s body. It was foolishly sentimental, but Harry didn’t want to be responsible for his death.

“Run!” Neville shouted, and they all made a break for it. The Order’s propensity for unforgivables seemed to make them higher priority on Carol’s radar. Each searing crackle heralded another death as she eliminated them with merciless efficiency.

Ahead, Harry spotted a wizard disapparating. In moments, the Order had gone from confident advance to full retreat. They put on a burst of speed to cross the threshold, but they were intercepted at the last moment, as Carol landed in front of them.

“You two go, we’ll distract her.” Neville hissed, gesturing to Harry and Ginny, who gripped Harry’s arm, intent on dragging him away. He resisted her pull and her pleading gaze. Like hell, Harry thought.

“That name.” Carol asked unexpectedly “Why did you say it?”

“It’s your name.” Harry said, a flicker of hope igniting in his chest. He had no doubt that she was a victim of Hydra's conditioning, and Steve had gotten through to Bucky, hadn't he? “Carol. Carol Danvers.”

Carol shook her head “No. You’re wrong. I am Binary.” She lifted up her first, it glowed golden.

"Go!” Neville shouted. Harry reached for his friend’s chest, grabbing the time turner and banishing it at Carol’s feet. Her instincts were sharp, and she veered back. The time turner broke on impact, and just as in the Department of Mysteries battle, the result was… chaotic. A car, a crudely built section of wall, and several trees appeared at the site of impact and exploded violently. Carol was thrown back, and the group dashed out of the wards. Ginny looped her arm through his and whisked him away.

-----

They touched down at the safe-house, and Ginny breathed deeply, calming the pounding of her heart.

“That was close.” She said. Binary was a legend, the kind that she’d first hear in frightened whispers in the halls of Hogwarts. The rumors somehow failed to live up to seeing one of Hydra’s most terrifying creations in action. She had been fast and powerful, burning through wizards like straw. When she’d confronted them at the ward line, Ginny saw that her eyes were locked on Harry, and her heart had frozen. She was nearly taken by the impulse to place herself between them, even though all that would do was get them both killed.

“Yeah, it was.” Harry agreed, wrapping an arm around her waist. It was only then that she realized that she’d been leaning into him. After a moment of indecision, she relaxed back into him. It just felt so… right. “So what is this place?”

“Safehouse.” Neville said. “We’ll stay here for a day to make sure no one’s tracking us.” It was one of several safehouses that they used as a checkpoint after missions. The nature of their work required absolute secrecy. If anyone knew who they worked for or what they were doing, it’d be the end of them all. They didn’t have the resources or the people to take on Hydra or the Order head on. The Professor’s plan was to work in the shadows, to gather strength slowly while their enemies weakened themselves on each other. The fact that Flint and Wood had identified them would have seriously undermined that plan, if it were not nearly certain that Binary had killed them.

“It seems… nice.” Harry said.

“It is.” Ginny agreed. It was nothing more than a quaint cottage in the forest, far away from war zones or people. That simplicity is what appealed to her- the war and everything that came with it never felt more distant than it did here.

“So, what happens tomorrow?” Peggy asked. “And who do you work for, exactly?”

“Good question.” Harry seconded.

Ginny, Neville, and Ron shared awkward looks. “Here’s the thing about that…”

-----

“What do you mean you can’t tell us?” Harry asked, a hint of challenge in his voice as he took a step back. He instantly missed the contact with Ginny, but there would be time later to sort things out between them.

“We literally can’t.” Ginny said, pouting slightly. It was adorable. “It’s protected by a fidelius charm.”

“A what?” Peggy asked.

Harry frowned thoughtfully “It’s a charm used to protect a location. Only people told the address by one person- the secret keeper- can access the protected place. But it’s only supposed to work on places. Not names.”

“_________ modified it.” Neville said. Ah, that was the charm at work, obscuring identifying information. “It doesn’t protect his name, per se, but his involvement with the Organization.”

“But why this level of secrecy. What happens if someone finds out this guy’s name?” Harry asked. Whoever this person was, he was powerful. He’d modified both a time turner and a fidelius charm, and that was something Harry reckoned was on Dumbledore’s caliber. Harry was drawing a blank on who he could be, but it wasn’t necessary that he’d even recognize him.

“Its hard to explain, without invoking the fidelius.” Neville smiled sheepishly “But lets just say that the fact that _________ doesn’t need to hide in the shadows like we do has its advantages.”

“Okay, so what can you tell us?” Peggy asked practically.

Neville shrugged “Honestly, a lot, we could be here all day.”

“We will be here all day, mate.” Ron said.

Neville rolled his enchanted eye “So what would you like to know about… anything really- us, the world, magic the Organization. If we can, we’ll answer.”

“The Organization?” Harry queried dryly.

“It’s a sh*te name.” Ginny admitted “But the blandness is the point, we’re trying to be under the radar.”

“She had about a dozen suggestions.” Ron snickered “But _________ shot them all down, hard.”

Harry chuckled, remembering Ginny’s unfortunate naming of Ron’s owl ‘Pig’, and her rather brilliant naming of ‘Dumbledore’s Army’. He was sure whatever she came up with was creative, if nothing else.

“Okay, then.” Harry said “I have a question.” It was one that weighed heavily on his mind, but he didn’t see a reason why they wouldn’t be able to answer it, if they knew.

“Shoot.”

“Do you know Hermione Granger, or Luna Lovegood?” They were the notable absences from their little group. Harry had hoped that they were involved, maybe on a different mission or working on some project. Those hopes were dashed as the three exchanged pained looks. Harry’s heart dropped. “Just tell me. Are they dead?” Maybe if he ripped the band-aid off fast, it wouldn’t be so devastating.

Who was he kidding? He was waiting on pins and needles for an answer, with every moment of silence from them dragging out longer than the last.

“Harry.” Ginny finally said, her voice thick. There was a well-worn grief in her eyes. “We don’t know.”

Chapter 4: Interlude

Chapter Text

7 Years Ago

“You’re top of your class, Miss Granger.” Professor Snape said, and Hermione beamed at the praise “Your intellect and work ethic are clear for all of your professors to see.”

Professor Snape, Professor Lily Snape, that was, was perhaps the favorite of her teachers. In many ways, she was the person Hermione wanted to be. Most of her teachers were grizzled war veterans, or older women past their child-bearing years, but Lily was the exception. She was young, energetic, passionate, and brilliant. While she’d been married off like all women were, she’d been allowed to only bear one child so long as she focused on her work.

Her husband, the other Professor Snape, was another matter. The man had a cruel streak, going out of the way to antagonize students and play favorites. While he was a brilliant potions master, which had no doubt saved him from the front lines, he wouldn’t be a role model for any decent person.

“Thank you, Professor.” Hermione nodded, trying and failing to suppress her pleasure at her role model’s compliments. “It means a lot to me, to hear you say that.”

“It’s a shame, isn’t it.” The professor continued.

“What’s a shame?”

“That your obvious talents will be so wasted.” Hermione sucked in a breath. She’d longed for a way to get out of what seemed like her unavoidable fate. At first, being a witch had seemed like a dream come true. She’d been plucked from a struggling clan of muggles making a meager living at the edge of existence, and she’d been given the opportunity to learn. Before, she’d hoarded books she found in old ruined houses like treasured relics, but now she had a full library at her fingertips. Hogwarts, with its moving staircases, talking portraits, the wondrous dining hall with its enchanted ceiling, and its picturesque grounds felt like something out of a fairytale. But beneath that sweet exterior was a jagged hook, the truth about being a witch. Women were meant to bear children and keep the household. They were meant to be rewards bestowed upon men skilled enough win victories in battle. While the boys were being enrolled in intensive combat classes, she was learning household charms, potions, and herbology. Not that her extracurricular studies were limited to those topics, mind you. “You are meant to be so much more than a housewitch, Miss Granger.”

Hermione nodded “I always wanted to be like you, Professor.” She admitted “I thought, if I did well enough, worked hard enough, I might… I might…” Escape, be granted a reprieve. It had been a vain hope, but it was all she had to cling to.

“I understand, it’s okay.” Lily said, her voice solid and soothing “I’m here to offer you another way.”

“What do I need to do?” Hermione asked, and the Professor chuckled.

“At least hear what I have to say before agreeing, won’t you?” Hermione nodded eagerly along with her. “Alright, alright.” She pulled out a roll of parchment and slid it over to her “Read this over, and sign at the bottom.”

“What is it?” Hermione asked.

“A contract.” Lily explained “You know that I’m involved in research. My work is important, important enough that I have the Headmaster’s ear. If I tell him that I need you, he’ll override all objections and give you to me.”

“Do you? Need me, that is?” Hermione asked, eyes wide as she scanned the dense wording of the document she’d been handed.

“Yes.” Lily said firmly “Or rather, I need people like you. Young, bright, passionate people to help me with my research. You would play a crucial role in advancing our understanding of magic, you might even help us win the war. For obvious reasons, I can’t disclose the full details of my research or what you would be doing until you sign. But I can promise you that this is more important than what any of your classmates will be doing when they get out of school.”

Her words were impassioned, and Hermione was swept up in them. She browsed through the contract. The signer solemnly swears on their life and magic… will assist Lily Snape in her research in any way she requires… will be exempted from childbearing quotas… The wording was vague, particularly on what she’d be doing, but Hermione pushed that niggling thought aside. She trusted Professor Snape, and besides, it wasn’t like she had another option. Even if her position wouldn’t be as glamorous as in her fantasies, it had to be better than the alternative.

She picked up a quill and noticed that there was no ink. “You won’t need it.” Lily assured her. Self inking? Hermione mused, it’d be like the professor to use such convenient innovations. She signed at the bottom and winced as the back of her hand stung. Her signature had been traced in raw red along her hand, she rubbed it reflexively and glanced back down at the paper, realizing…

She had signed her name in blood.

-----

“We’re secure, Sir.” Neville said into the mirror.

Professor Riddle nodded in acknowledgement, flashing him a small, approving smile. “You made it back faster than I expected. What have you found?”

“Unfortunately, we were ambushed by Hydra on the way in, and Davis was killed. We were able to escape into the Time Vortex. We found something in the center of it, in the time room of the Department of Mysteries just like you predicted, Sir. But it isn’t an artifact or weapon, sir, it’s a person.”

“Interesting.” Riddle said inscrutably. “Tell me more.”

“His name is Harry Potter. He was clearly affected by temporal magic of some sort, it was visible on his body. He was being held in a stasis of some sort, but awakened when he was touched. He can navigate the vortex without the aid of your time turner. But there’s more…” Neville paused, at a loss for how to explain this. Riddle merely raised an eyebrow, a silent indication that he should continue.

“He, er, knew us. He said he was from another timeline, where events unfolded differently. In his world, there was never a war between the Order and Hydra. He’s also powerful. He can perform conjurations wandlessly and wordlessly with only a few seconds of preparation. He was able to defeat a Hydra squad in under a minute, without a wand and with minimal support. His fighting style is unique. He’s a wizard, but he moves like a super-soldier.” That was an understatement if anything. He wielded both his body and magic naturally- striking, dodging, rolling, parrying in fluid motions. Neville had considered himself to be very experienced in combat, but Harry made it clear that he still could learn a lot.

“Remarkable.” He said, after a moment, and Neville felt the tension in his gut relax “We’ll need as much information from him as possible on this timeline and how he came to be here.”

“He’s been pretty forthcoming, so far.” Neville said.

Riddle shook his head “Everyone has something to hide, Neville. And if half of what he says is the truth, then you can be sure that he’s keeping even more from us. We will need to get that information from him, by any means.”

The logic was sound- Neville was confident that Harry had left out parts of his story in his abridged retelling. Nevertheless, it sat wrong with him. Riddle was ruthless to their enemies, and that hardly set him apart from anyone. But Harry was a friend, or a potential one, at least. They couldn’t afford to alienate him, and Neville didn’t want to alienate him.

“We wouldn’t have gotten out of there without him, I think he deserves some amount of trust.” Neville said “With respect, Sir, I don’t want to alienate him by treating him with suspicion.”

“Do you think that he may defect to the Order?” Riddle asked.

“No, not at all. He hates them.” Neville said. They’d made sure of that.

“Then he really doesn’t have any other option, does he?” The Professor said “Neville, we have all the cards right now. We can set the terms.”

Riddle was right, Neville realized. He couldn’t see Harry joining the Order, but he doubted that even Harry could survive in this world on his own, especially with his limited knowledge of it. There were other groups out there- mutants, muggle resistance groups, clans of magical beings like the goblins Neville had lost his eye to- but they were mostly small and highly exclusive.

“I know that it’s harsh, but we cannot afford to relax our guard. Our situation is delicate, and what this Harry Potter has is incredibly valuable- information.” He sat back, thoughtfully “I’m going to tell you something important, Neville. I trust that you will never speak of it.” Neville nodded vigorously, his doubts unwinding at the show of trust. Even if he couldn’t always see why, Neville knew that Professor Riddle had good reasons for everything he did. “There is more to this world than it seems. It is something that I believe Dumbledore has noticed, and if Hydra’s interest in the Time Vortex is any indication, they have too.”

“What do you mean, Sir?”

“Events don’t quite add up. Oh, in the big picture, everything makes sense, but if you get down to the granular details…” He let the statement hang.

“I- I don’t understand.” Neville said, feeling lost.

“What happened to your parents, Neville?”

“They were tortured to death.” He said dully. He had been just a baby, he barely remembered it outside his nightmares. Their screaming, the dim flicker of a red light…

“Ah, but by who, and why?” Riddle pressed, and Neville felt like he’d been dumped into the sea, set adrift.

“I- I-” He fumbled… why had they been tortured? For information, right? By who? It must have been Hydra, who else could it have been? His confidence returned as suddenly he remembered being told as a child by his gran what had happened to them “They were tortured by Hydra for information.” He said firmly “Why did you ask me that?”

“You didn’t see what just happened there, did you?” Riddle said, pressing at the cracks of his memory. “You didn’t know, not until you thought about it, and when you did, the answer was given to you.”

-----

Harry barely noticed the goings on around him- Neville walking off, Ron checking the perimeter of their clearing, Ginny hanging near him indecisively until deciding to leave him to his thoughts.

His thoughts were a formless storm, pinging around from one topic to another. So much had happened, so quickly, and the weight of it all threatened to crush him. He wouldn’t let it, too many people were counting on him, even if they didn’t realize it. He needed to center himself, to make sense of what had happened and where he was.

The time stone had gotten caught in a feedback loop, one that he’d exacerbated in a desperate attempt to stop Hela from uniting the Deathly Hallows and opening the material world (and Harry) to Death’s control. Space and time had fractured. He’d seen parts of the past of both of the worlds he’d lived in. Did that mean that the two universes had been interacting even before he’d summoned the time stone? Was that what had happened to cause this, the two worlds he’d known merging into one? But why? Why not just the universe he’d been in? Why not other universes?

He didn’t know, and these questions were doing nothing but giving him a headache. Hermione would have been gleeful at having a problem like this to tease out, but Harry didn’t work with theories- he needed a plan. Thankfully, he already had the beginnings of one in mind. It was an incredibly ambitious plan, but a plan nonetheless.

• Collect the Infinity Stones and restore the world to how it should be.

That was the only way he could see to fix this mess, but it was far easier said than done. He knew where the Infinity Stones might be in another world, but not here in this one. The Tesseract, clearly, was in Hydra’s possession, but nearly everything else was in question. Unfortunately, the Infinity Stones weren’t the only problem.

• Do not let anyone unite the Deathly Hallows.

It was a miracle that after over fifty years of trying, Grindelwald and Dumbledore hadn’t managed it, but Harry knew that if they, or Hela, ever did, it would open the door the Death herself. That would be the worst possible ending for this world, and for Harry personally. Harry set aside the possibility that even if he achieved these two goals, Death still might enforce her claim on him. He'd traded his soul to her in exchange for the Soul Stone, but that was in another world. If that world was gone, was the contract still in force? He didn't know. Frankly, he was a touch fatalistic about it. He'd fix the universe, and if it ended up dooming him, so be it.

But as important and difficult as those two goals would be, the third item on his mental checklist weighed the most heavily for him. It was the one that kept his thoughts whirling, causing uncertainty and anxiety to boil up.

• Find and save his friends.

He’d already found Ginny, Ron, and Neville, and he was willing to bet that more were out there. Hermione and Luna, Ginny had explained, had disappeared during each of their fifth years at Hogwarts. The professors didn’t even acknowledge their disappearance, acting as if they’d never even existed. The Order was the obvious culprit, and it seemed like a fool’s hope that they were still alive. Perhaps that made Harry a fool.

Then there was Carol, a victim of Hydra’s conditioning, he was certain of it. Shuri had developed an antidote for it once upon a time. Harry didn’t have the foggiest clue how she’d done it, but at least it proved it was possible. Steve was likely dead, and Thor… well he had no idea what the situation in Asgard was, but Hela's presence didn't bode well. Tony, Bruce, Clint, Stephen… he could only guess at what had become of them.

He hoped that Wakanda, and so Shuri, had been spared from Hydra’s bombs and the worst of the war by its secrecy. But Nat, Skye, and Wanda… he didn’t even know where to start, and any speculation on his part led him to grim thoughts. They had all had tough lives even when the world wasn't a war torn hellscape- he shuddered to think where they might be now. He hoped, desperately hoped, that they were out there, and had somehow slipped through Hydra and the Order’s grasps.

He could admit to himself that his intentions weren’t entirely selfless. As much as he knew he could help them, it was just as true that he needed them. He knew himself better now than when he’d foolishly tried to convince his friends that he should save Sirius alone. He’d grown up as ‘the-boy-who-lived’, but he’d become an Avenger. He needed his people, and even if he didn’t go mad with despair on his own, the odds against him were too great. He needed all the help he could get. He needed the people he loved, his friends, his family, and he was going to get them back.

Harry stood up, a new resolve coursing through him. He already had found some of those people, even if they didn’t know him. He could find more. “Feeling better?” Ginny asked, startling him. She’d been sitting on the other side of the porch the entire time. Letting him think in silence.

“A little less overwhelmed.” Harry allowed.

“I can’t even imagine.” Ginny said “Being dropped into this, its got to be maddening.”

“Well, everyone here has it pretty terribly.” Harry shrugged “I’m just focused on setting things right.”

“Yeah, you mentioned something like that.” She was clearly leading the conversation somewhere, and Harry was fine with letting her. “Do you really think its possible, to set the world right, to how it was… before?”

“I can’t make you any promises, Gin, but I’ll do everything I can.” The nickname slipped out unintentionally, but it had gone over well, judging by the pleased flush on her cheeks. There was also something in her eyes, a burning curiosity, something light and lively. After learning of just a fraction of what she’d gone through in the world, he wanted to nurture that look.

He grinned coyly “You can ask.”

“What was it like, the way things were before? What was I like? How did we know each other?” Her questions spilled out one after another, and Harry grinned at her enthusiasm.

“Well, the world I grew up in wasn’t… great, but it was a damn lot better than…” He waved his hand around vaguely “…this. There was a war that lasted three years when I was in my teens, and a lot of people died, but there were also good times. Like… do’you have quidditch?”

“My brothers used to play pickup games out back.” Ginny said “But I was never allowed to.”

“But you did sneak out to fly at nights, didn’t you?” Harry teased.

Ginny grinned “You bet I did. But you were saying?”

“Well, I reckon you’ve never been to a Quidditch World Cup…” Ginny’s eyes gleamed, and Harry knew he’d chosen a good topic. No matter what universe, Ginny Weasley was a quidditch fanatic. Harry went on to describe everything- the bigger-on-the-inside-tents, Fred and George’s bet with Bagman that the Irish would win but the Bulgarians would catch the snitch, a bet which actually paid off, the Veela and Leprechaun mascots, watching the game with the help of ominoculars, the after party… he left out the Death Eater attack. Ginny was entranced by the scene, her eyes growing distant as if she were reliving it along with him.

“That sounds amazing.” She breathed. “I wish I’d gotten to see a proper game.” He took it that Hogwarts no longer held quidditch matches.

“Well, when I was growing up, Hogwarts had quidditch house cups. You not only watched plenty of games, you played in them.”

"Really? What position did I play. Wait! Let me guess, chaser, right?” Her words tumbled out, one after another. When she was like this, he could almost pretend she wasn’t a traumatized survivor of a war, that she was the girl he’d left. Of course, that was a vain and pointless fantasy. After everything he’d been through in the past ten years, if she had been exactly how he’d left her, how could a relationship between them possibly have worked? At least now they were both different people, trying to find their footing in a new, old dynamic.

“Right in one. Though you were also a damn good backup seeker.” He said with pride.

“I remember…” She said thoughtfully “A quidditch trophy, a party in the common room… kissing you. Was that…”

“Yeah, that happened.” Harry confirmed “Want to hear it?” Ginny nodded eagerly. He’d been worried about pushing expectations about their past relationship onto this Ginny. She might resent being held to the standards of someone she’d never been. It seemed to be the exact opposite- Ginny wanted to know everything about the life she had once lived, to try to live vicariously through it.

“Well, I’d gotten barred from the game. I’d seriously injured Malfoy.”

“Draco?” Ginny clarified, and when Harry nodded she snorted “Good. Shame you didn’t kill him.” That was a more vicious response than he’d expected, but he could understand why this Ginny would have more hard edges. And it was entirely possible that her murderous animosity towards Malfoy was completely justified.

“So, you had to take over for me as seeker. You won the game for me, of course.”

“Of course.” Ginny agreed.

“I walked into the common room to a massive party. We’d won the house cup because of that game. You ran up to me… and it just happened. It was amazing.”

Ginny beamed “I wish I could just… remember it. I only got a snippet, but I remember being so happy.”

There was such longing in her voice that it made his heart ache. “I can show you it from my perspective, if you want.” Harry offered. He was quite proficient with legimancy after training so intensely with Wanda, he should be able to show her his memory of that kiss.

“… I’d like that.” She said. So, he touched his hand to her forehead, and gently unfolded that memory from a cherished corner of his mind. Together they shared a happy moment from another world, another life.

-----

Peggy made straight for the tree line, veering away from Ron, who was doing a check of the perimeter. Once she felt confident that she was out of sight and earshot, she fell heavily to her knees. The dried leaves crinkled and a stick snapped under her weight, and she drove a fist into the ground, churning up a swath of loose dirt.

She sobbed. It was a choked sound at first, but as the hot tears slipped down her cheeks, the floodgates open and she began to cry. When even that wasn’t enough, she wailed, keening out her grief into the empty forest.

She’d lost everything- her friends, her family, her country, the man she loved. And there was no silver lining. Everything she’d worked for in her life had come to nothing, her country was no more, its people dead or in chains. The world she’d stepped in through was worse than her grimmest nightmares. She wanted to wake up, desperately wanted to wake up to Howard knocking at her door, barking at her to suit up because they had another mission, to a world where wizards were still fairytales and time travel was impossible.

It was only through necessity and a feat of sheer will that she’d held it all in for so long. She nearly broke down when Harry told her about his Steve, but somehow, she’d held it in. She didn’t want to put him in that position- of dealing with his own grief and trauma and having to comfort a stranger. She didn’t want to seem weak. Above all, while she had a mission, a purpose, she could put it all in the back of her mind.

What would she do with herself now?

Slowly, she put herself back together. Sniffling still, she pushed herself to her feet, and wiped her cheeks. It’d be obvious that she’d been crying, but she hoped that no one would call her on it. She didn’t want to talk about it, not with these near strangers.

Harry at least, she felt comfortable with. Strangely enough, she trusted him. Like her, he had been thrown into this world, and for better or worse it had been his decision that had brought her here, given her another chance. She could tell that he was a good person, maybe a little too good of a person for this world, she hated to admit.

The other three wizards, she was less sure of. She could tell that they had good intentions as well, but even decent people could have hostile motives. They were deliberately hiding crucial information about who they worked for and what their ultimate goals were. That was suspicious, no matter how they dressed it up in the language of magic. Harry trusted them blindly, because they had been his friends in another life. Peggy did not, and she worried that Harry’s faith in his friends was going to get him into trouble.

Maybe that was her new goal- to make sure Harry didn’t stumble into a trap, or to help him escape if he did. And if they all got killed… well, it wasn’t like she had anything to lose.

-----

“Hey.” Ron said.

Harry turned to the man who had, in another world, had been his best friend. Now… he wasn’t sure what he was. “Hey, what’s up?”

“I need to talk to you about my sister.” Ron said.

Harry stifled a groan. “Alright.” If this was going to be an ‘older brother talk’, then Ron could just stuff it. He was expecting this, though. He and Ginny had worked together on dinner- unlike the Ginny he’d known, this Ginny had been taught how to cook- and she’d made a point of sitting next him while they ate. More than once, he’d felt Ron glancing speculatively, though not with any hostility, at them. Still, Ron hadn't attempted anything more than small talk that evening. The morning, it seemed, would bring something different.

“Just… be careful.” He cautioned.

“Look, I’m not going to hurt her. And I think that Ginny can take care of herself.” Harry said shortly.

Ron held his hands up defensively “Oh no, I know that. I’m not accusing you of anything.” Harry examined Ron for a moment. Ginny was probably the most similar to how he’d known her. Neville he could easily see in the man he’d grown into at 17 rather than the boy he’d met at 11. Ron felt different. He no longer had any older brothers to live up to, Harry had no wealth or fame to be jealous of but by the same turn there were no shared experiences of camaraderie to bind them. Even their shared passion for quidditch was much less salient now. This Ron did seem to have a mind for strategy, but everything else Harry had known about him had been stripped away. Leaving… what exactly? “It’s just, none of us are exactly… emotionally stable.”

“Understandable.” Harry said “But that’s no reason not to try to make something work, is it?”

“No, it’s not. I’m just worried that Ginny’s going into this too fast, and she’s going to get both of you hurt.” Ron cautioned “She spent years hung up over Luna-”

“Wait, she… and Luna?” Harry asked, hesitantly.

“They weren’t a thing in your world?” Ron raised an eyebrow. Harry shrugged, thinking back to Ginny and Luna’s friendship. There wasn’t anything between them that felt like a giveaway, even in hindsight, but still, he could see how it might happen.

“She’s basically shown zero interest in anyone since Luna disappeared.” Ron shook his head “Not that she had the legal ability to choose for herself, but even once we broke off, she kept to herself. And then she meets you, hears about what you had in another world, and now she’s…” He waved his hand “I just think it’s too much all at once.”

That was actually a good point. “I see what you’re saying.” Harry nodded “But, counterpoint. None of us know if we’re going to live another week. Let alone long enough to get all our sh*t together. Is it wrong to want to find happiness wherever we can?”

Ron snorted “Fair enough, mate. I just wanted you to know.”

“Thanks.” Harry said “Any word on when your benefactor will be ready to meet us?”

“No.” Ron sighed “He sent Neville a message, said that something… came up. I’m sure it’s important.”

Chapter 5: The Lord of Lies

Chapter Text

“It is good to see you again, Albus. I suspect this is an update to the time vortex situation?” Tom said. While most referred to the man as ‘Headmaster’ or ‘Sir’, Dumbledore’s inner circle had no use for such formalities.

“Astute, as always.” Dumbledore said coyly. Tom did not reveal his unease. The topic was dangerous ground for him, considering his followers’ involvement. But one did not work directly under one of the most accomplished archmages of their time while secretly betraying that same man without being a remarkably good liar, and Tom Riddle was the best.

The meeting was held within Hogwarts, in an innocuous but heavily warded, unused room on the sixth floor. Hogwarts was the logical meeting place, both because of its security and because most of Dumbledore’s inner circle were professors, not by coincidence. The Headmaster had gathered together renowned experts in their fields- defense and dark magic, charms, potions, and transfiguration- both to teach the next generations, and to aid him personally in the war effort. Also present at the round table were Lily Snape and an exhausted Kingsley Shacklebolt. Shacklebolt was normally not present at such meetings, but his role in the response to the time vortex made his account important. “Will Severus be joining us?” Tom asked Lily.

“He should be right-” The doors opened, and Severus Snape entered, his robes billowing behind him. Lily flashed him a plastic smile as he sat next to her. For all her talent, she’d still hadn’t been given a choice in her marriage partner. By all accounts, Severus was smitten by Lily, while Lily merely tolerated him. After years of observing them, Tom wouldn’t have been surprised if they’d only ever been intimate the nights required to have their son- Septimius. Regardless of the exact truth, the lack of intimacy obviously rankled Severus. If he had married a lesser woman, he could have enforced his will upon her, but he hadn’t. He had married Lily- Dumbledore’s favored pupil and confidant, and one of the most talented magic users of her generation. Tom had no doubts who the Headmaster would support in a dispute between her and Severus.

Minerva McGonagall followed on Snape’s heels. It took a formidable woman to become more than glorified breeding stock, and McGonagall was such a woman. The transfiguration professor was out of her prime childbearing years, and her lifelong dedication to discretely honing her transfiguration skills had landed her the professorship, and eventually the headmaster’s ear. With his closest confidants present, Dumbledore called the meeting to order. He briefly summarized the situation- the disturbances with the vortex and the response team Shacklebolt had assembled. He then opened the floor to the man.

“Casualties were… high.” Shacklebolt said wearily “Not only was Hydra also present, but also a group of rogue wizards.” That wasn’t good, but as long as they hadn’t been identified, it wasn’t a disaster. “One of the survivors was able to name three of the four wizards involved- they are all former Hogwarts students- Neville Longbottom, and Ron and Ginny Weasley.” Damn it!

There was a stir at the names “I thought they were dead.” Minerva said. “We mourned them!”

“Yes, and now it appears the brats have betrayed us.” Severus sneered “The only question is why, and how.”

“Indeed. But what I’m most interested in, is how they knew about the temporal disturbance.” Dumbledore said. Wait. “It would take some remarkable magic to detect it.”

He didn’t suspect that they’d been inside the vortex. This was good, he needed to foster that. “How many people were informed about the activity, Albus?” He asked.

“You’re suggesting a mole?” Minerva asked.

“It’s a possibility we need to consider.” Tom shrugged.

“Indeed.” Dumbledore agreed “But I hope I can assuage your concerns, Tom. The only people who knew of this are currently in this room. I trust all of you implicitly.”

“Do we have a memory of this event?” Lily asked.

Albus nodded “Capital idea, Lily.” He tapped his wand to the table, and the center opened up to reveal a pensieve. “Kingsley, if you will.”

They observed the memory, from Oliver Wood’s encounter with the wizards, through Binary’s interruption, to his take-down by Harry Potter. “Longbottom’s wearing a time turner.” Lily noted. “That must be how they knew. But I’m shocked that any still exist, weren’t they all destroyed?” That time turner had been lent out by the British ministry to the Americans before Britain had flipped to the Order, and it had taken him many years to track down. No one would be able to connect it to him, Riddle had made sure of that. If Dumbledore investigated, he would only find dead ends and dead bodies.

“It’d need extensive modifications.” Dumbledore mused “It’s possible, but it’d require a powerful and knowledgeable wizard to pull it off.”

“So, they have a benefactor.” Snape surmised “Neither of those three have what it takes to manage such a thing.” They were getting uncomfortably close to the truth, Riddle needed to throw them off, now.

“Do we know who that fourth wizard is?” Tom asked, to silence. He knew that none would, he was after all, the man his team had recovered from within the vortex. “I ask because you can clearly see him doing wandless magic. Not just casting and deflecting spells but levitating an object to intercept a killing curse.” Tom said “That takes remarkable power and precision.” It was easier to lie when there was a grain of truth behind the deception. He truly was interested in this man, who’s origins were so mysterious, who wielded such power, who seemed so hauntingly familiar… There was no doubt in Tom’s mind that Potter was important, that he could solve the mysteries Tom had spend much of his life speculating on.

“He looks no older than Longbottom and the Weasleys.” Minerva said "How could be manage something like this?"

“Prodigies are rare, Minerva, but we know they exist.” Dumbledore said. “Or else we wouldn’t be here today.”

“And we know that one’s apparent age can be deceptive.” Tom said with a nod to Dumbledore, who looked nowhere near his over a century of age. Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s apparent agelessness had been the topic of much speculation. Tom, naturally, was intensely curious about their methods, and had concluded that they’d likely gotten their hands on the Flamels’ Philosopher Stone.

“What are you suggesting, Riddle?” Snape said, derisively “That he’s used magic to make himself younger?”

“I’m suggesting nothing.” Tom said “Only that we keep our minds open to the possibilities. After all, he apparently dapples in temporal magic.”

“Well, we are fortunate that Wood was able to survive the encounter.” Minerva noted.

“How… did he manage that, anyway?” Tom asked, nudging the conversation to a safer topic.

“Apparently, this mysterious prodigy saved him.” Kingsley said.

“What?”

“Put him under a disillusionment charm and left him there.” He shrugged “Damned if I know why.”

The conversation continued, speculating about this man’s motives. Was this his way of announcing himself? Or was it an attempt to recruit Wood? Or perhaps a peace overture to the Order? Riddle remained silent, his mind contemplating the man, this Harry Potter, who had in a single day nearly caused the undoing of everything he had worked for.

-----

“I hope you enjoy the demonstration, Tom.” Lily said.

Tom nodded, looking down over the arena. He had intended to slip out of Hogwarts after the meeting with Dumbledore, but when Lily had mentioned a ‘testing session’, the opportunity to get a look at her research was too tantilizing to ignore. His followers could wait a few more hours.

Already, Lily’s subject had been ushered out. Much of her was obscured by a dark cloak, but he recognized the blonde hair of his former student. “Lovegood?” He asked unnecessarily.

Lily nodded “We’ve made some more enhancements since the last test.” She said, “I hope she’ll be ready soon.”

He politely asked about the enhancements, and her other research. He knew that Lily wouldn’t be able to refrain from talking about her passion, and in more detail than she perhaps should. Tom had kept a careful eye on her studies- particularly on her attempts to create the Order's own super-soldier, something that would be superior to anything Hydra could field- save perhaps Binary and Hela herself. Any progress they made on this front, particularly with regards to Luna and Grangers’ enhancements, would only be good for him. The two witches would be natural allies thanks to their connections to three of his followers.

He’d hid the knowledge of what happened to their friends from Longbottom and the Weasleys. If he had told them, they would go rushing in blindly, likely exposing him in the process. At the same time, the longer he waited, the more capable the two witches would become. Once they were out in the field, recovering them would be much easier, if he could break the method that the Order used to control them. For all her brilliance, Lily's control over her test subjects was tenuous. As vicious as she could be at times, she was still soft. The blood contracts she had them under could compel obedience, but not loyalty, and they could be worked around through loopholes and technicalities. It might also be possible to negate the magic of the contract altogether, though it would take some advanced magic and getting his hands on the signed document.

But that was a question for another day. For now, he was most interested in seeing what progress Lily had made. “You’re doing good work here, Lily.” Tom said “Those two will change the world once they’re out in the field.” Though not in the way that you’d hope. The prospect of two powerhouses flipping to him was tantalizing. It would be a big step in building a team that could begin to challenge Hydra and the Order on equal terms.

Her reply was uttered almost too quietly for him to hear “I didn’t do it for the world.”

-----

Professor… professor… can you hear me?

Her mental pleas went unanswered, as they always did. Wherever they were being kept, it was beyond the reach of Xavier’s abilities. Still, Rogue tried, for lack of better options.

They’d been captured by wizards, for long enough for the days to bleed together. It could have been a few days ago or a couple weeks. It had been long enough for the corpse to start stinking, requiring Pyro to burn it away. That hadn’t been pleasant, but what that man had been doing to them had been much worse.

Magic, she knew, could do many things. She’d seen it enough, though thankfully at a distance and always on the wrong side of it. Knowing, and experiencing for herself was another matter. She knew that magic could cause pain, but now just the word 'crucio' had her body tensing in fear and in preparation for the agony that was to come. She knew that magic could manipulate people, but the memory of 'imperio', of being led into a cell like a happy little lamb to slaughter, haunted her. She had spent her life living on the edge of existence, as all mutants did. They were trusted by no one, and hunted down by the two most powerful factions in the world. When her powers had manifested, she had run. She had killed someone, and she knew her community wouldn't stand for it. Even if they loved her still, they wouldn't let themselves be targets of the Order or Hydra. She was lucky to be alive, lucky that Professor Xavier had found her, lucky to be an X-man. She had taken on a new name- no longer Anna, but Rogue.

Nothing in her hard life could have prepared her for the pain of 'crucio'. She had lashed out at one of their torturers unthinkingly, just wanting to make it stop, grabbing the wizard’s ankle. Immediately he’d stilled, his wand slipping through limp fingers. She could feel the power course into her. It felt good. She hated her ability, despised what it had done to her life, her friendships, and relationships, and she hated that it felt good when she killed people. It didn’t take long, less than a minute, for the man to collapse, and about as long from there for his pulse to stop.

They'd braced themselves for reprisals from their captors. But none came. They didn’t even bother retrieving the body. It was odd. She knew that their friends were out looking for them right now, even if they probably believed the search was hopeless. That their captors didn’t even care about one of their own dying… it was terrifying. If they could be so cold to their own people, what did that say about how they’d treat their prisoners?

“Hello, don’t-.” A woman said, jolting Rogue from her thoughts.

“Ha!” Jubilee shouted, sending out a streamer of light that detonated next to the woman. Her image distorted with the explosion but was not noticeably hurt. She wasn’t really there; this was just a projection.

She tutted “I’m not here to hurt you.” She was a redhead, perhaps middle-aged, with striking green eyes. She wore the robes of a wizard, they seemed designed to cover as much skin as possible, from the fabric that covered the back of her hands to the high collar of her neck.

“Funny way of showing it.” Pyro snorted, eyes drifting to the pile of bones they’d shoved in the corner.

"What do you want with us?” Colossus, the fourth and final member of their group, asked. “Why did you capture us, rather than simply kill us?”

“That is why I am ‘here’.” She said, smiling in what might have passed for reassurance “To explain your situation to you. In a few minutes, you will be put into combat as a capability test. If you defeat your opponent, you will go free.”

The four looked at each other uncertainly. Was the offer genuine? Were they being set up? In the end it was irrelevant, they had little choice. They could fight and die with honor, or refuse to fight and be killed anyway. Suddenly, their cell jolted into motion. The entrance, which had been covered by a barred door, slid away, replaced by stonework. “I hope you’ll do your best.” The woman said, before flickering out of existence.

The cell then opened into an enclosed arena. There were no seats or stands, no audience, at least none that they could see. It seemed to be entirely underground, with a ceiling of unhewn stone. On the other side of the arena, perhaps fifteen feet away, was their opponent. She was dressed in a black robe that covered most of her body, which contrasted with the pale skin of her face and long, blonde hair. Her skin seemed to be blemished, somehow, but Rogue couldn’t make out the details.

“What do you think she is?” Rogue asked.

“Some sort of witch, probably.” Jubilee snarled “Let’s take her down, before she takes us.” They’d had nothing but bad experiences with wizards. Hydra’s position on mutants was to capture them and recruit them, by any means necessary. The Wizarding Order just wanted them dead. It was why she’d been shocked to be alive, and it was why she doubted they’d be freed if they succeeded here.

Jubilee launched an explosive barrage, but the witch propelled herself forward with sudden speed. Jubilee’s explosions burst harmlessly behind her, little more than a multicolored light show. Pyro intercepted her with a gout of flame that she didn’t even try to avoid. The seconds ticked by with her form obscured by the fire, then a hand reached out from the inferno, grabbing his outstretched palm. The flame choked off, smothered, and Pyro gasped in pain at the strength of her grip. With the fire dissipating, the witch came back into view. Her robes had been burned off, leaving her nude, but she wasn’t fazed at all. It wasn’t her nudity that shocked Rogue, though.

Her entire body was tattooed with symbols she couldn’t even begin to decipher. They were arrayed in shapes- a triangle formation on her abdomen, concentric rings around her thighs, lines that ran the length of her arms and legs and up her spine. They were on her hands, her feet, her neck, her face, her chest… every part of her that Rogue could see. A few of these symbols glowed with a blueish-white light, a cluster just below her breast that Rogue figured protected her from fire, and one on the back of her hand.

She flung Pyro back with telekinetic force, and he collided heavily against the wall. Colossus charged straight at her. A series of spells formed from her hands and glanced off his metallic body, and his fist pummeled into her head. It snapped backwards, her neck clearly breaking, but then the tattoos on the back of her neck, one for each bone of her spine, flared to life, and the witch’s neck whipped back into place. She held a hand up to her bruised and gashed face, her fingertips lighting up with their own set of tiny symbols. As she ran her fingers across the wounded area, it healed.

Colossus was momentarily stunned, but then began swinging away. The witch ducked away from each blow, igniting runes along her arms and legs that gave her sudden bursts of speed and strength. Rogue ran after them but was repeatedly forced back by spells that the witch formed from her palms. Rogue had a plan, a secret weapon of sorts, but if she used it at the wrong time, it would be wasted. She needed to take her by surprise.

“You know, you could just give up.” The woman said.

“And let you kill us, witch?” Jubilee spat the word like an epithet “Not likely!” Jubilee was in a terrible position. As long as the witch was close to one of them, she couldn’t attack without risking hurting them.

Colossus finally pinned her down, but as he brought his arm down on her, the witch blocked it with a translucent shield. He grunted as he strained to overpower her, but to no avail. “I won’t be the one to kill you.” She said, and then her eyes flared.

Her eyes, Rogue realized, they’d been modified too, a white rune imprinted onto each pupil. They were glowing now, and Colossus staggered back, clutching his head with a pained scream. The witch just looked down pityingly. “You can stop now. It’ll be easier.”

“Like hell!” Jubilee shouted, launching an explosive blast at her. The witch crouched, another faint shield forming around her as the explosion sent Colossus flying back. Rogue winced. They’d discussed this, what she had to do if enough of them were taken out of commission. She hated it, but it made sense. There was no way she could get close enough, not without their abilities. She found Pyro first. He was trying to push himself to his feet. “I’m sorry.” She said.

“Don’t be.” Pyro grunted “Kick her ass.” She placed her hand on his arm. It was the first time someone let her touch them in years. She took as much as she dared and watched him slip unconscious. She wouldn’t go further. However much he’d given her would have to be enough. She found Colossus next. He didn’t say a word, he just met her eyes and nodded.

Jubilee, seeing what Rogue was doing, launched a massive explosive barrage at the witch to distract her, but the exertion had clearly taken a lot out of her, and the witch seemed to be no worse for wear. Her return fire- a shower of spells that sprung from her fingertips- downed her instantly. That left Rogue, and the final trick up her sleeve. She brought a hand to the waistband of her jeans, where she had stashed that long dead wizards’ wand. As her fingers closed around the wooden shaft she’d stolen from the wizard, she felt the tingle of magic she had taken from him as well.

-----

The two observers watched as the battle progressed. Lovegood certainly had come a long way, though some of her takedowns were… inefficient.

“She could have ended this much sooner.” Tom noted.

“I think she’s going easy on them.” Lily sighed “She knows what will happen to them if their abilities aren’t useful, so she’s trying to… I don’t know, make the fight look more impressive.”

There was only one mutant left standing, and Tom couldn’t figure out her plan. She’d barely participated in the battle up to this point, until she’d crouched over two of her fallen teammates.

Then she created a massive wave of fire from her palm, and he realized. She could take other mutants’ powers. Lovegood fired blindly outward, but the mutant had turned metallic, and the spells bounced off her. She charged into the flames as they dissipated, and Tom idly wondered what she was hoping to accomplish. Lovegood would not be defeated by another punch. Then she drew a wand, and Tom’s jaw dropped. “IMPERIO!” She screamed. The spell crackled from the wand, and the mutant nearly dropped it in shock. Lovegood, taken completely flatfooted, stiffened as the spell struck true.

“What.” Tom said.

“Merlin.” Lily breathed.

The two women in the arena stared at each other and nodded.

“They’re going to make a break for it.” Tom said, instantly assessing the seriousness of the situation.

Lily’s eyes went wide as his words registered “sh*t.”

-----

Luna hadn’t expected the imperious curse. Hadn’t expected the mutant to be capable of magic, somehow.

But she wasn’t upset. As she felt the haze wash over her mind, she only put up a perfunctory struggle. The contract she had signed all those years ago stipulated that she help Lily with her research in any way necessary. It was an incredibly broad and vague mandate, that had forced her to comply with… a lot.

At first, she’d been willing, hoping that these experiments and enhancements would eventually give her freedom and allow her to help people. She’d long since stopped believing in that. She didn’t want to go through another torturous ‘enhancement’ just to fight some other poor, captured soul in this dungeon. But what else was there? There was no hope here, no hope that anything she did mattered or could change anything. And if she died… she’d be leaving Hermione, the only friend she had left in the world.

With the imperious, however, she wasn’t in control of her actions. It wasn’t her fault if she followed her commands. And if she followed them with a little more relish than necessary, well, the vagueness of the contract worked both ways.

Hi, um, I’m Rogue. I’m sorry to do this and I really don’t know what I’m doing here. The woman's voice spoke in her mind.

Luna almost laughed with relief. Hello, I’m Luna. It’s nice to meet you. Since you have me under your spell, all you need to do is ‘think’ a command and I will be compelled to obey. You don’t need to worry about me fighting you. I’d very much like to get out as well.

Then let’s break out! Rogue ‘shouted’. Luna grinned, held her hand up, and carved a hole into the wall. Rogue looked shocked as the beam of light ate away at the stone barrier. Could you do that all this time? How did you not just kill us?

I was holding back. Luna replied, stepping through the hole. I didn't want to kill you, but I was under orders to fight. Maybe if they were fast enough, they could-

Ah, it was not to be. Of course. Lily Snape was waiting for them, and she was sure reinforcements were coming.

“You need to stop this foolishness, Luna.” Lily said.

“I’m sorry Lily, I’m just following orders.” Luna replied serenely. “Would you like to test out my abilities, Professor?”

Lily didn’t utter a sound, but she twisted her wand in a well-practiced motion. Luna held up her hand, conjuring a shield to block the incoming spell. She did not expect it to materialize out of thin air, behind them. It struck Rogue, and the imperious’ effects fell away. Luna slumped her shoulders and looked down. Without the impetus from the imperious, the will to fight was gone.

“Remarkable.” Lily said, approaching Rogue’s body. Luna shuddered at the look in her eyes. It was the one that terrified her more than anything else- curiosity.

-----

It had been positively domestic until they received the call. They’d had a quiet dinner, a good night’s rest, and a bustling morning. Harry had dreamed of this, of just spending time with his old friends. The tranquility of the cottage had lulled them all- even Neville, Ron, and Ginny- into a state of relaxation. They’d been discussing lunch when Neville stepped aside, fishing a handheld mirror out of his coat pocket. After a quick discussion, he announced to the group that ‘he’ was ready for them, and that they’d be portkeying to their destination. The relaxed atmosphere was instantly punctured, and everyone sprang into formation around Neville, who had produced a small figurine- a snake with emerald eyes.

Hmm.

Their benefactor was likely a Slytherin. That shouldn’t be concerning, Harry should have been beyond petty House prejudices, but something about this bothered him. He couldn’t put his finger on it, though, and there was no time to think it over.

A Slytherin. A powerful wizard, on par with Dumbledore… for some reason his mind would not put the pieces together.

The portkey took them away and deposited them in a sitting room- complete with fine carpeting, furniture, and a small table. “My apologies for the delay. I was held up with my other responsibilities.” Their host said, and Harry knew him. How could he not? Not even the magic of the fidelius could prevent it. He hadn’t seen him appear so human, not since their encounter in the Chamber of Secrets all those years ago. He was seeing it again like it was yesterday. The gloating image of Tom Riddle, revealing how he’d tricked him. Ginny’s cold body, curled up on the ground. His laughter as the Basilisk’s venom took effect… Tom Riddle was older now, with a dignified dusting of grey in his hair, but it was unmistakably him.

Voldemort.

He just stared, no words coming as horror seized his chest and ice flooded his veins. “I’ve been very interested in meeting you, Harry Potter.” Tom Riddle said “I’m Professor Riddle. I teach Defense Against the Dark arts at Hogwarts, and I’m in control here at the Organization.”

He couldn’t think, he couldn’t breathe. He felt like he’d been dropped into a nightmare, and his friends were just standing there, like this was normal. Riddle sat down at the table, gesturing for Harry to sit opposite him. His manner was gracious, but his eyes were calculating. “Why don’t you have some tea?”

Chapter 6: Tea with Voldemort

Chapter Text

Focus.

A voice cut through the static in Harry’s mind. It was Nat’s.

Evaluate the situation- enemies, allies, unknowns, tools.

This was Tom Riddle, but not quite as Harry had known him. He did not seem to want Harry dead, at least not right away. Still, Harry’d be a fool to trust him. He needed to get out of here as soon as possible. Clearly, Riddle had won over Neville, Ron and Ginny’s loyalty, and while Harry liked to think they’d grown fond of him, he didn’t want to bet on who they’d side with if it came down to a fight.

Harry had one advantage over him. Harry knew who he was, while Tom did not know him, did not know the significance of this meeting, of the prophecy between them. Harry needed to keep it that way.

Make a plan, put it into action.

Ginny was looking at his paling complexion with concern. “Harry, is everything alright?” She asked. Peggy had noticed his reaction too. She was tense, clearly bracing for a battle. Maybe it would come down to it, but not quite yet. Harry took Ginny’s hand, and as he’d done yesterday, imparted a few select memories.

Ginny staggered back, and Ron caught her. Harry forced his face to adopt a neutral expression and took the seat Riddle had offered him. “I’m fine, thanks.” Harry said, as diplomatically as possible. If he was lucky, the tea would merely have been laced with veratiserum. He wasn’t going to take any chances.

If Riddle was disappointed by his refusal, he didn’t show it. Instead, he took a sip of his own cup and asked “Could we have some privacy? I suspect this conversation will address some delicate topics.”

“Of course, Sir.” Neville said unquestioningly, and Harry hated the deference in his voice.

Ginny was clearly out of it, and Riddle had taken notice. Harry had to hope that he didn’t question it. “So, you wanted to speak to me. What about?” Harry lured, and Tom’s attention was drawn back to him.

“Don’t play coy, Harry.” He said with a curving smile. “We both know about your unique situation. Found at the heart of a temporal anomaly, with knowledge of another world, with impressive magical abilities. Of course I’m curious.”

Harry shrugged “Fair enough. I’ll do my best to help, though I should warn you that I can’t give you all the answers.”

Ron and Neville ushered Ginny out of the room, while Peggy lingered. Harry shot her a brief, tense, nod- hoping that the simple motion had communicated their precarious position and what he needed from her.

“Anyway, as you can probably tell, I’m new here. So I’d very much appreciate some background about this world and your organization. While Dumbledore and Grindelwald were well known in my world, I can’t say the same for a Tom Riddle.” And there it was, the gentle press of a legimancy probe. Harry didn’t even blink as he swatted it aside. Harry didn’t know how he’d fare against Riddle in an all out legimancy battle, but he was far better prepared now, after years of honing his abilities with Wanda, than he had been at 17.

“I’m not surprised.” He said, not missing a beat “I’ve always preferred to work from the shadows.” That was one way of putting it, Harry mused. “As for you, I am familiar with a Potter family. Fleamont Potter was a talented wizard, though sadly he and his family were killed by Hela in 1971.” Harry couldn’t hide a wince. If Hela had killed the Potters in this world, she probably had the Invisibility Cloak. sh*t. Tom noticed his reaction but misinterpreted it. “Were you close to him?”

"My grandfather.” Harry answered. “Guess I don’t exist in this world.”

“Well, now you do.” Riddle said, folding his hands together on the table “The question is, how?”

“Err.” Harry uttered, and Riddle pressed again, more firmly, with his legimancy. “There was a battle, with Hela in the Time Room of the Department of Mysteries. There was a powerful artifact, the Eye of Agamoto, stored there, and it was destroyed during the battle. That’s the last thing I remember before Ginny woke me.”

“I’m not familiar with this artifact.” Tom probed.

“It was an amulet with a green gem housed within. It granted the user the ability to manipulate time- to freeze it, rewind it, even looping time.”

“That’s… terribly powerful.” Riddle mused, and Harry could swear he sounded wistful “I’m surprised that I haven’t heard of it.”

Harry shrugged “Maybe our worlds just differ in that way. Or perhaps it was kept secret.”

“Perhaps.” Riddle said “But I can tell that you’re leaving something out. Could you explain exactly what happened in this battle?”

“Err.” f*ck, he wasn’t that good at lying. Nat could have spun something convincing without skipping a beat, if her mind had been secure. “Well, you see…” Riddle struck his mind again, this time with sharp force. Harry reeled at the sudden assault, his defenses giving a little before snapping back. That small amount of give was enough, however, for Riddle to detect his deception.

“I don’t think you understand, Harry.” Riddle sneered “I expect full disclosure. You do not have the liberty to keep secrets, not when lives and the world is at stake.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Harry snapped. “You can’t just-” He struck again, in a different location, but this time Harry was prepared. His defenses held, and Harry retaliated. Riddle himself was not expecting the counterattack, and his defenses nearly gave in before reforming. With effort, he pushed Harry back, inch by inch. They were very closely matched, it would be difficult for either one to overwhelm the other.

“You’re… really sh*te at making allies.” Harry grunted.

“Oh, I don’t intend on you remembering this, Harry.” His next attack struck Harry head on and… something shifted. Like a scabbed over wound opening up, his lightning bolt scar flared in sudden pain. Riddle reeled back, as thrown off as Harry was by the rupture.

It was the horcrux.

Harry had destroyed it when Voldemort had killed him all those years ago. But then, when he’d used the Time Stone to bring him back… specifically intending to bring his horcruxes back…

f*ck! Almost reflexively, Harry lashed out. In his pain and desperation, the attack wasn't a spell, but a glowing lance of pure energy. Voldemort deflected the attack, letting it crash violently into the wall. "Impressive." He said. Like a shark sniffing blood in the water, Voldemort realized the opportunity that had just fallen into his lap. His next attack struck true, burrowing and tearing its way through the connection, bypassing all of Harry's normal defenses. Blood dripped down from Harry’s forehead, and he screamed.

-----

Ginny was only vaguely aware of Ron’s grip on her shoulders as he pulled her out of the room and into the hall. Neville and Peggy’s voices were background noise echoing in her ears. She could barely even think through her piercing headache. When Harry had shared his memory of their kiss in the common room, he had been gentle. This had not been. The memories he’d shoved into her brain were a tangled bundle that hit her all at once.

Tom Marvolo Riddle – I Am Lord Voldemort.

She was with Harry as he ventured into the Chamber of Secrets, as he found her unconscious body. She could feel his fear for her. She watched as he talked to Tom Riddle- much younger than she knew him now, but still undeniably him. She watched as he revealed his true intentions. He was going to kill her, kill Harry, and return to life as a dark lord. There was more. A battle with a basilisk. A resurrection ritual in a graveyard. Death, murder, war. All at the hands of Tom Riddle, the self-styled Lord Voldemort.

Perhaps the worst thing was that along with the memories, Harry had given her a hefty dose of his emotions. He was terrified right now, the kind of fear that would leave most gibbering in the corner, but he was keeping the fear at bay with an indomitable force of will. He only had the barest scraps of a plan, and for that he was counting on her.

He was counting on her.

She felt like she was unravelling. The memories had struck her mind with force, and it was as if the impact had left spiderwebbing cracks across her psyche. Something was bleeding through, not memories, but pure emotion.

She loved him.

She couldn’t let him face Riddle alone.

She rushed for the door. “Woah, Ginny, what are you doing?” Ron asked, catching her arm.

“We have to stop him.” She rasped.

“What are you talking about?”

“You don’t understand, he- they-” Peggy displaced Ron and gripped her shoulders, centering her.

“Ginny, breathe, focus.” She said “What happened?”

“Harry showed me memories from his world. Memories of Riddle. He was evil, he tried to kill both of us!”

“That doesn’t mean anything about our world.” Neville argued “Don’t do something reckless.”

Ginny raised her eyes to Neville’s in challenge “And what, exactly, is Riddle planning on doing to Harry?”

Neville faltered. “Well?” Ginny pressed.

“Get information from him.” He admitted “By any means necessary.”

Ginny turned back to the door, Peggy right at her side. “Wait!” Neville yelled, seconded by Ron’s “Are you mad?”

“And what do we have here?” Ginny turned to the new voice- Bellatrix Lestrange. She was a formidably talented witch, and perhaps the closest of Riddle’s followers. Ginny also knew that Bellatrix wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone she suspected of betrayal.

“Please, wait. We can sort this out.” Ron pleaded, placing himself in front of her. They were the only family that they had left. No matter what, Ginny knew that Ron would stand beside her.

“I’ve heard everything, Weasley. While you and Longbottom are in the clear, your sister…” She sneered in disgust “Is a traitor. Stand aside.”

“No.” Ron said, defiant.

For a moment, there was a standoff, with neither party willing to make the first move. Harry’s scream shattered that moment, and without thought Ginny pushed through the door.

“Avada Kedavra!” The spell streaked through the air, but before it could hit either Ginny or Ron, Peggy intercepted it. The curse struck her shield not with an explosion, but with a muffled thwap. The force of the spell still pushed her back, sending her toppling into Ron and her shield clattering to the floor. The shield had not survived unscathed, marred now by cracks radiating outward from where the spell had struck. It was miraculous that it was in one piece at all.

“God damn it!” Neville cursed, drawing his wand. “Fine! I guess we’re doing this!” Neville drew his wand and sent a barrage of spell-fire at Bellatrix. “Go!” He shouted to Ginny.

She didn’t need to be told twice. Rushing through the doorway, she found Harry on the ground- having fallen out of his chair. His face was streaked with blood as he moaned and writhed in pain. Riddle didn’t even notice her presence, so consumed with whatever mental battle the two were engaged in. Ginny ran to Harry, kneeling in front of him and cupping his cheek with a shaking hand. “Harry.” She whispered, doing her best to wipe the blood from his brow. “Oh, Harry.”

-----

Riddle showed no mercy. As soon as he had his opening, he exploited it for all it was worth. He sunk his fingers into every memory he could, it terrified Harry, the knowledge that he knew he was giving up-the Deathly Hallows, the Infinity Stones, the Horcruxes… but the sheer pain made it impossible to resist him. Mental defenses required focus, and that was impossible when it felt like a hole was being burned into his skull. It was all Harry could do to shove his knowledge of the prophecy into some dark corner of his mind and hope that Riddle wouldn't notice.

But then the storm broke, the pain releasing with a soft touch to his cheek. “Harry, I’m here.” He heard Ginny’s voice, as if wafting through a breeze. Suddenly, the pressure relented. Love. The last time Voldemort had been in his head, he’d been driven out by love. Maybe it would work again…

With renewed resolve Harry gathered together some of his most cherished memories- cementing his friendship with Ron and Hermione after defeating a troll, kissing Ginny in the common room, losing his virginity to her, his first night with Natasha, his first time with Skye, making love to Wanda, their minds coming together as they did, learning that Nat was pregnant, cuddling between Nat and Carol as they found solace in each other after losing everything. He bundled all of them up and more and shoved them right into Riddle’s face.

All pressure dissipated, and the world around him recrystallized. Riddle had jerked back as if physically shoved by the force of Harry’s memories, falling out of his chair with a scream of his own. Ginny helped Harry to his feet “We’re getting out of here.” He rasped. He’d never created a portkey before, but after getting a feel for how its magic work, he was reasonably confident he could recreate one. Peggy, Ron and Neville burst in from the hall, with Bellatrix Lestrange hot on their heels. She was viciously throwing curses at them, but Peggy deflected them with her shield, resulting in chunks being blown in the ceiling and walls. Neville and Ron, meanwhile, kept her occupied with counter-fire, preventing her from over-committing to the attack.

Riddle rose unsteadily to his feet, obviously weakened by what he had experienced “You will-” Harry sent a blasting curse at the table. Riddle, even in his current state, was able to freeze the shrapnel in mid-air. Harry had known the attack wouldn’t take him out, but he used the scant time it gave him to the fullest. Pointing his wand at an overturned teacup, he focused on the feel of the earlier portkey’s magic, and then on his intended destination. “Portus.”

Three more people, drawn by the sounds of the fight, filed into the room. Harry only recognized one face- Susan Bones. They avoided the fight between Bellatrix and their comrades, focusing a barrage of spellfire on him. Worse, Riddle was up again and there would be no more stalling him. Seeing his quarry escaping, he didn’t hesitate. The hail of shrapnel rebounded back at Harry. Riddle immediately followed it with “Avada Kedavra.” The words were spoken softly, but with a poisonous fury.

His focus on creating the portkey put him on the backfoot. He ducked and batted away the incoming spells and was able to vanish the rebounding shrapnel just in time, but he was left with little choice but to throw himself to the side and hope to dodge the killing curse and its blast radius. It would never come. Peggy threw her cracked shield into the curse’s path. With an ear-splitting crack, the shield broke in two, rent by a deep crack along the center. The two halves fell to the floor, vibrating with a slight hum.

“sh*te!” Peggy cursed. "Please tell me we have a plan."

Harry reached out his arm and wordlessly summoned them all- Ginny, Peggy, Ron, Neville, and the broken shield. As they all pilled haphazardly into him Harry shouted “Activate!”

-----

Bellatrix stayed on her knees, the escape of Harry Potter and three of their former allies weighing heavily on her. “I’m disappointed in how you escalated the situation, Bellatrix.” Tom said at length. She had rarely failed him, and never due to a lack of loyalty or conviction. Of all his pupils, she had been the most eager to follow him, forsaking her family and old life without hesitation.

“I’m sorry sir.” Bellatrix said “I may have acted rashly.”

Tom considered her. Perhaps it wasn’t entirely her fault. He had asked her to ensure that they didn’t intervene, after all. He couldn’t have anticipated that Ginny Weasley would betray them so easily. Still… “Weasley was clearly going to side with Potter, but that did not mean the other two were lost to us. You were… overeager.” Tom said. “But this is not the worst outcome.”

“Its… not?”

“I’ve gotten what I wanted from him, and more.” Tom waved a hand dismissively. “Potter will be a problem, but he will be a problem for our enemies as much as us.”

“What did you get from him?” Bellatrix asked.

Tom smiled “Answers.”

“To what?”

“Everything.”

He was still not at full strength. The pain he’d felt upon Potter’s counterattack had been immense. He had been overconfident and had left himself wide open, thinking that Potter was in no position to do any damage. Their two psyches were physically incompatible in a way that provoked a violent reaction in him. It was something to consider, but secondary to the impressive trove of memories he’d scraped from the man’s mind. He would be spending weeks dissecting these memories and contemplating their implications.

He dismissed Bellatrix and made his way to his personal study. He ignored his desk, neatly arrayed with papers and books, and went to a disused set of drawers. There he kept a collection of trinkets and artifacts that he had little use for but was disinclined to dispose of. He pulled out a drawer and summoned the ring to his hand. It had belonged to his mother’s family, passed down from generations. Tom felt little attachment to his mother, her family, or the Gaunt Ring, but had seen no reason to dispose of a piece of history. He turned the ring over in his hand, his eyes tracing its obsidian black jewel.

To think, all this time, he’d had an Infinity Stone.

-----

“He knew me.” She whispered.

Those three words had not quite become a mantra for Binary, but she said them often enough that it had become disturbing, beyond disturbing. It was one thing if one of the Winter Soldiers got uppity, but if Binary got loose, it would be irreparable.

“Why do you not simply reinforce the conditioning?” Zola asked. He was nothing but a pixelated face on a screen, but also so much more than that. He was the ghost in their walls, never present, but never far away either.

"This is after the reconditioning.” Vasily Karpov told… him, it, whatever. “Its effectiveness has… diminished.” Binary blinked owlishly up at him, as if trying to decipher what he was saying. It was uncanny.

"It is remarkable, how much you committed to an operation that obtained no results, and damaged one of our key assets."

Karpov bristled under Zola's dissaproval. “I had to.” He said “Wizards entered the vortex. I had to catch them.”

“You received the Goddess’ instructions just as I did.” Zola said “You know very well what her orders were, if someone were to break the vortex.” Karpov froze, a sliver of fear tracing down his spine.

“You don’t understand. If she knew that I’d ‘let’ someone into the vortex. That my failure drew her from her war in Asgard, she would have killed me.”

“What lied at the center of that vortex was far more important to her than some rebel prince. If you had followed orders, you would have delivered to her the prize of a lifetime. Instead…” He let the statement hang. It was unnecessary to list his failures, the botched mission, the escape of Peggy Carter and a man with remarkable abilities, and on top of that a damaged asset. “I do not know what she will do to you, Karpov, but if I were you, I would pray for death.”

Zola withdrew his presence, leaving Karpov alone in his shame. He did not know how long he had to make this right, but he was going to try. He would have to capture them, by any means necessary. “Put her under again.” He barked.

“Sir…” His aide was pale faced, no doubt spooked by the conversation he’d just overheard. Karpov had no patience for his sympathies or his doubts “Again!”

Chapter 7: The Lost Daughter

Chapter Text

They landed hard, with grunts and breathless cursing. Harry, at the bottom of their haphazard pile, was just relieved that the portkey had worked, that they’d all gotten out of there alive. It was the only silver lining.

Natasha would be scolding him for his complacency, his blind trust of people who weren’t the friends he’d known- not quite. He’d let himself be led straight into a trap, one that he was lucky to have escaped alive. Harry wasn’t a schoolboy out of his depth. He knew that he could have escalated the fight far more than he’d had. But for everything he’d done- Tom Riddle was still a magical prodigy with decades of experience on him and no scruples. Not to mention, loyal followers.

That was something Harry was perilously short of- not followers, but friends. He wasn’t even sure where Neville and Ron stood. They’d fought Bellatrix, but that didn’t mean they might still have some loyalty to Riddle. But damn them, Harry loved them, and Riddle knew it. And Harry knew Riddle, he knew exactly what he would do if Harry had drawn the fight out. He’d use his friends against him, and Harry didn’t think he’d be able to protect them all. Even if Harry could beat Riddle, it would be at a cost. Harry had already lost enough, too much. He wouldn’t be letting them go again, even if it damned him.

Neville, Ron, and Peggy stumbled to their feet, but Ginny had latched onto him and refused to let go. “I’m sorry.” He told her “I’m sorry I had to do that to you, I know that was hard.”

“Shut up.” She sniffled. 'Don't apologize' went unsaid.

“Yes ma’am.” He snarked, and Ginny giggled wetly against his chest. “Are you okay?” He continued, more seriously.

“Yes, it’s just, a lot.” She admitted, but she didn't let go.

“At least get a room.” Ron said, making a disgusted noise.

“Or tell us where you took us.” Neville added.

“That’s rich, considering you just led me to my arch-nemesis’ lap.” Harry said. Reluctantly, he stood up, but neither he or Ginny were inclined to part just yet.

“How was I supposed to know you two had a history?” Neville challenged “You never mentioned him.”

“He was the dark lord in his world.” Ginny said, placing a protective hand on Harry's arm “The Voldemort who killed his parents and tried to take over the world. He didn’t go by Tom Riddle, for the most part.”

“If you’d just cooperated, we could have avoided it all.” Neville argued, to Ginny’s squawk of outrage.

“If I’d cooperated, he’d have killed me as soon as he got what was in my head.” Harry said testily “I’m too dangerous for him to leave alive.” No matter how it went down, the instant that Riddle learned the prophecy ‘neither can live while the other survives’, Harry would not have been allowed to live. That scrap of knowledge was one of the few things he’d managed to keep from him.

“How can you know that?” Neville asked.

“Can I really trust you with that information, Neville?” Harry returned.

“What’s done is done.” Ron intervened, standing between them. “If you really do know Riddle, then you know that by throwing our lot in with you, there’s no going back.”

“Why did you throw your lot in with me?” Harry asked.

“Ginny.” Ron said, as if it explained everything.

“I don’t abandon my friends.” Neville said heavily “Even when they do something dumb and reckless.” He glanced at Ginny and Ron with exhausted frustration “I’ll give you whatever you need from me to be sure of my loyalty. If you want to read my mind, or want an unbreakable vow, you can have it.”

Ron seconded Neville’s offer, and it occurred to Harry that such loyalty requirements must seem normal for them. Harry frowned with distaste. He didn’t like either option, but he didn’t like that he couldn’t trust them either. Peggy looked dubious but was keeping well clear of this conversation.

“You should think about it.” Ginny told him “Using legilimency, I mean. It shook a few things loose for me, it might for them as well.”

-----

Thankfully, Ginny, Ron, and Neville had enough supplies from their expedition to last for weeks, along with tents and gear. Neville and Ron dutifully set up camp while Harry, Ginny and Peggy discussed their options. Harry had reluctantly put some space between him and Ginny, to Ginny’s disappointment. They really needed to talk- about what she remembered and what they were, and Harry’s previous relationships, but they had far more immediate problems than the mess that was Harry’s love life.

“So where are we, really, fearless leader?” Peggy quirked a smile.

Harry rolled his eyes. The landscape here looked as desolate and war torn as London had, which didn’t bode well. Still, he held out hope. If anywhere on Earth could survive half a century of war- Kamar-Taj was high on the list.

He’d thought quite a bit about where he wanted to go next over the past day. It had made his decision on the portkey destination a split-second one. Wakanda had crossed his mind, but considering how xenophobic they were, and how much worse that was likely to be in this timeline, he didn’t want to take his chances. The sorcerers, if they existed, were his best option. They’d might even be able to give him answers about… everything.

“Wait, you know where the Sorcerers are?” Ginny gaped. That was good. The Sorcerers existed in this world and were apparently out of Riddle’s and the Orders’ reach.

“I know where they were in another world.” Harry shrugged. “But that doesn’t mean…”

“Yeah, yeah yeah.” Ginny waved her hand “You know they probably won’t be happy to see us.”

Harry grimaced. “Well, the reception can’t be any worse than the last place.”

-----

They only had three tents, and Neville guessed that he and Ron would be sharing theirs. Harry trusted Peggy and Ginny, for good reason, but he didn’t have the same reason to trust them, except for memories from another life. He was expecting another difficult conversation with him and wasn’t particularly surprised when it came that evening.

He and Ron were sitting outside, enjoying a cool breeze that swept down from the mountains. “I’ve thought about your offer.” Harry told them without preamble “And I’d like to take you up on it, the legilimency. I won’t be requesting a vow from you.”

Ron and Neville looked at each other and nodded. It was about what they were expecting. Severus Snape had probed his mind for any hints of treachery on the Order’s behalf, and Riddle had done the same when he’d defected. It was how the world worked; you couldn’t trust anybody, especially not a proven traitor.

“I’m ready when you are.” Neville volunteered, making no effort to shroud his mind. He had no occlumency training to speak of, but hopefully keeping his mind as open to Harry as possible would earn him some goodwill. As far as Neville was concerned, his bridges with Riddle were burned. Even if he had any inclination to turn against Ron and Ginny, and even if he could somehow work his way back into the Organization, he’d always be the target of the Professor’s suspicion, and that wasn’t something he wanted to subject himself to. The Order would also never take him back, and he’d rather die before trying. By process of elimination, Harry was his only option, so he’d have to make the most of it.

“We need to talk about what we’re going to do first.” Harry said with a small shake of his head “I want you to bring your memory of that fight to the front of your mind. I want to be able to see why you decided to do what you did. I’d also like memories of the last couple days, both our interactions and your conversations with Riddle, and any memories related why you joined Riddle in the first place If you keep those at the front of your mind, I shouldn’t have to go rooting through and stumble across something private.”

“I appreciate the consideration.” Neville nodded.

“Take your time, but if you try to fiddle with them, I will know.” Harry said with a knowing smile.

For the most part, which memories to choose were obvious. It was with Harry’s last request that gave Neville pause. His decision to join Riddle hadn’t been made overnight. It had been a lot of little things. Did Harry want all of them? Did he want to see the brutal battles with the goblins that had cost him his eye? Did he want to see all the friends Neville had lost as the Order threw their lives away? In the end, Neville aired on the side of inclusion, figuring that it would make him seem more forthcoming. “I’m ready.”

Harry’s touch was far gentler than he was expecting. When Riddle and Snape had come knocking, there had been no pretense of care. They hadn’t gone out of their way to be cruel, but their explorations were sharp and efficient, yanking Neville from one memory to the next in a disorienting sequence. With Harry, it felt far more natural, like Neville’s mind was a pool, and Harry was slipping in, letting the memories envelop him rather than forcing his entry into them. He viewed Neville’s memory of the battle and then his recent conversations with Riddle. He could feel Harry’s interest spike when Riddle asked Neville about his parents’ fate and concluded that something was off with his memories. He rewatched that moment twice, trying to decipher Riddle’s meaning just as Neville had. The Professor had always been… enigmatic.

After a minute of contemplation, Harry pressed onward, slipping into another memory- the first that led him on the road to leaving the Order.

-----

At first, the opposition had been light, so Commander Dawlish had led them deeper in hopes of flushing out their prey. Neville had been nervous about this, about venturing so deep into a protected Hydra bunker. They wouldn’t be able to apparate out, which meant that if they were put in a tight spot, they’d be trapped.

It quickly became clear that Neville’s worries were founded, and that they were the prey.

Once they’d passed into a large, central room, the trap sprung. From three doors soldiers poured in, and more teleported around them with flashes of blue light. The sheer volume of firepower that was thrown at them, and the suddenness of the attack was too much. Nearly half their team died instantly. Many new recruits found that their shields could not sustain a direct blow from more than one beam. For others, their shields failed to cover their entire body, allowing shrapnel to circumvent their defenses. Neville didn’t need to look, he’d seen it before, and he didn’t want to know how many friends he’d just lost.

He and Ron ducked into a hallway and ran. Behind them, he heard the sounds of spellfire and explosions, the Order was fighting back, but after the losses they took there was no salvaging the mission. They took down anyone they ran across, until they were truly lost within the monotonous concrete corridors of the base. “We’re f*cked.” Neville muttered, despair overtaking adrenaline “This is it.”

Ron grabbed his shoulders “No.”

“What are we supposed to do? Fight our way out by ourselves?” It was hopeless, completely hopeless.

“No” Ron said, a manic gleam in his eye that told Neville he had a plan “Not by ourselves.”

He didn’t exactly have anything to lose, so Neville joined Ron in blasting their way to the lower levels deep underground, where any prisoners would be kept. It wasn’t entirely mad. Intel about a prisoner was the motivation for attacking this base, after all. A hydra officer had revealed, under veratiserum, that a witch was imprisoned here, though before he’d been forced to elaborate, he’d killed himself with a poison pill. Hydra didn’t capture wizards. They killed their kind on sight and almost never took prisoners, not unless they had a very specific goal in doing so. Freeing one of their own was within this base then wasn’t merely a matter of honor, it would be a tactical coup.

Neville figured that they’d have no chance of reaching the dungeons, but it turned out that Ron had been onto something after all. Nearly every Hydra soldier was still concentrated at the point of ambush, and Ron and Neville were moving fast enough to stay ahead of the guards. It made Neville wonder if a covert operation would have been better. Instead, they’d arrogantly kicked down the door and found that their target was far more well defended and expansive than they had imagined.

For all of Ron’s cleverness, there was one massive flaw in his plan. They were flying blind. They had no clue where they were going, and basically just hoping that if they blasted through enough floors and walls, they’d eventually find captives. It would only be a matter of time before they were cornered.

Two doors up and to the left. Neville nearly tripped over himself. The voice was in his head, indistinct, spoken as if muffled by several layers of cotton. Who are you? He tried.

Who do you think? She replied.

You’re the witch. Neville let out a shaky breath. If she was capable of legilimency at such a range, she had to be a powerful magic user,very powerful. He grabbed Ron’s arm “I know where to go.”

He followed her instructions, which conveniently led them around a patrol. There will be guards outside my cell, be ready.

“Prepare for contact.” Neville said. Ron nudged his arm and produced a packet of explosive fireworks.

“Fred and George want me to test them.” He said with a slight grin. Neville nodded and gave the signal. Neville blasted apart the door while Ron threw the packet into the room. There were indeed a group of seven guards. While they were alert and ready for combat, they weren’t expecting the frenzied assault they received. Fireworks exploded with multicolored brilliance, bouncing around the room, casting sparks into the air, before exploding with a shower of spells. Neville and Ron added their own spells into the mix, and quickly six of the seven were down.

Only one remained. Though the fireworks had forced him to the ground, the spells had pinged off his heavy armor with little effect. He rose to his feet, levelling his gauntlets at them. The armor was unlike anything Neville had seen before, and he would have sworn it was magical if not for it being used by a Hydra soldier. In the center of the suit’s chest was a glowing ring of light that seemed to charge the entire suit. The gauntlet lit up with that same energy. The blast clanged heavily against Neville’s shield, and though it didn’t hurt him directly, the force sent him flying back into the wall.

Neville rose to his feet as quickly as he could while Ron set a series of cutting and blasting curses at the armored man, he needed to-

-----

The memory cut off suddenly, and Neville was momentarily disoriented. Harry cursed.

“Er, is everything alright?” He asked. Normally, it probably should be Harry checking in with him, but Harry seemed far more disturbed by what he had seen than Neville. They hadn’t even gotten to the important part.

“What the f*ck are you doing, Tony?” Harry muttered to himself, pacing back and forth furiously.

“Who’s-” Neville shook himself, it wasn’t important right now “Never mind.”

Harry let out an explosive breath. “Yeah, sorry. Just realized one of my old friends might be working for Hydra. You know, not the worst revelation I’ve had today.”

Neville cringed “Sorry?”

“No.” Harry sighed “Its better I know now, so I should be thanking you for showing me.”

“Harry, you haven’t even seen the half of it.”

-----

They took down the armored man with a precision strike to its reactor, which exploded with blue fire and arcing electricity. “Bloody hell.” Ron cursed.

The two of them gave the burned out wreck a wide berth, heading to the heavy set of doors opposite them. The doors, predictability only opened with liberal application of the blasting curse. The door opened into a long hallway, with a series of empty holding cells on each side. Are you here? Neville asked the witch, a distinct sense of unease kicking in.

I’m at the end of the hall. You can’t miss me.

The hall ended with a small circular room. There was a hole in the center, covered by a grate- an oubliette.

The hole opened into a larger room, where the witch was kept, chained by each of her limbs. On the walls of her prison were engraved runes, runes intended to suppress and block telepathic power. To think that she’d been able to speak to him through all of that, no matter how faintly…

You’re not a witch, are you?

She looked up, not a hint of apology in her eyes. No, I’m the witch.

-----

Neville could sense Harry's reaction. His emotions ran high, close enough for Neville to feel for himself. The affection, the worry, the intense longing… he loved her. Harry leaned into the memory, gleaning everything he could from it, every detail of her face and inflection of her voice.

-----

Ron vanished the grate. “Wait.” Neville said “She’s not a witch. She’s a mutant.”

“Like I care.” Ron grunted.

“But…” Though he hadn’t fought them yet, they’d both heard stories about mutants. They were savages, abominations that thought they could mimic true magic, but lost their humanity instead. There were stories of them killing babies, desecrating the dead, of going on mad, blood hungry rampages and destroying everything in their path.

But then, this girl- and she was a girl, she was at least a few years younger than them- she looked so human. She looked small and cold, and hungry. And she was asking for help. Maybe the stories were wrong. They were just stories, after all. It wouldn’t be the first time Neville had been lied to. “Neville.” Ron said with conviction “I promised my family that I’d make it back. I don’t care who we work with. I’m not going to leave them.”

“You’re right.” Neville relented. They made quick work of the chains that bound her. “Do you need-” He began to ask, only to stop himself when the witch propelled herself through the air, up to them.

“Thank you.” She said, her voice bearing an accent Neville couldn’t quite place. “I promise you’ll make it out of here alive.”

“That’s bit of a tall order.” Ron said “But I like the spirit of it.”

The witch chuckled “Don’t worry. Help is on the way.”

“You used your legilimency-” He began.

“Telepathy.” She corrected.

“-telepathy…” Neville allowed “To call for reinforcements?” That was incredible range, unless the mutants were already nearby. Not even Dumbledore would be capable of it.

“Well, I’m not about to reveal all of my secrets.” She demurred. “But we mutants have our fair share of tricks.”

Before Neville could inquire further, they were rudely interrupted by a squad of Hydra soldiers. Neville was given a glimpse of their new ally’s fighting style, a brutal and powerful form of telekinesis. She used her former chains as a lash, wrapping them around a soldier’s neck and whipping him into the wall, knocking over half of the squad. Then she laced the chains around the soldier’s limbs, suspending them as a tangled string in the air. Ron and Neville took out the rest, but he knew that more were on their way.

“I hope your friends really are coming.” Ron grunted “Because we can’t survive here forever.” Hydra was far less limited in manpower than the Order. They could afford to round up a bunch of muggles, strap guns to them, and run them to their deaths. The Order had probably killed twice as many people as they’d lost today, and it would still be a horrible blow for them. Despite their best efforts to boost fertility, it was a constant fear that one day the attrition would bleed them dry.

“They’ll come.” She said with complete assurance.

Another squad of Hydra soldiers rounded the corner, but before either side could attack the other, flames erupted in the center of the room. Neville jumped back reflexively, bracing himself. Across from them, the Hydra soldiers hesitated as more filed in behind them, all keeping their guns at the ready.

Then Neville heard it, a song that pierced through the rush of flames and set his heart at ease. Doubts, fear, and suspicion melted away, and Neville was left with the strong sense that everything would be okay. The Hydra soldiers flinched back from the song as if in pain. The flames receded as quickly as they’d appeared, revealing two people. At the center was a redheaded woman about their age, and on her shoulder was perched a bird. It was unmistakable- the brilliant orange and red plumage, the song, the fire… it could only be a phoenix.

Behind her was an older man. He was tall, dressed in black and red, and though his hair was streaked with grey, his eyes were sharp and fierce. He lifted his hand to the air and wrenched the guns from Hydra’s grasp. “You should be grateful that your deaths will be quick.” He snarled. The guns turned on their former wielders, charged up simultaneously, and disintegrated the lot of them. The combined explosive power of the weaponry collapsed the wall and ceiling behind them. Just like that, the immediate threat was gone, and with the help of a phoenix they could escape from anywhere.

“Dad!” The witch called, running up to him. His harsh features softened in an instant as he turned and wrapped her in his arms.

“Wanda.” He said, his voice tender “I can’t believe it. When Charles couldn’t find you with Cerebro, I assumed…”

“Father…” She said, her voice hushed “Not here.”

The man returned to alertness, his focus turning to the two wizards, the levitating guns pivoting in the air to aim at them.

“Wait.” The redheaded woman interceded “Don’t kill them, didn’t you see how they reacted to Fawkes’ song? They both have good hearts.”

“Jean, they’re wizards. They’re from the Order. They’re trying to exterminate us. How many of our kind have these two killed?”

“None!” Neville said, honestly.

“They’re lying, of course.” The man sneered.

“No, they aren’t.” Jean countered.

“Dad.” Wanda grabbed her father’s shoulders “They saved me.”

Once again, he softened as he looked at his daughter. When he returned his gaze to them, Neville felt as if he were under a microscope. After a long moment of consideration, he said “Until moments ago, I thought my daughter was dead. You brought her back to me. Thank you.”

Neville didn’t know what to say. Part of him was compelled to apologize for everything his people had done to theirs. He wanted to beg for his mercy and help, even though few of his comrades would have given the same aid. He wondered just how much of his thoughts were exposed to the telepath in the room.

All of them, sorry. Jean’s teasing voice broke into his mind, nearly startling Neville out of his skin. You’re an open book.

“Jean.” The man, who’s name Neville still didn’t know, said “Take us out of here.”

-----

Neville shook himself as Harry stared straight ahead, his eyes misting. “Harry… are you okay?” He’d felt much of Harry’s emotional rollercoaster, even if he couldn’t fully understand it.

Then, suddenly, Harry pulled him into a hug “Thank you.” Once again, Neville found himself at a loss for words. He wasn’t sure he was worthy of Harry’s gratitude.

Harry remembered himself and pulled back. “I’m so glad that she’s safe. That she’s with people who care for her.” He ran a hand through his hair, relief shining in his eyes.

“I didn’t do much.” Neville shrugged.

Harry shook his head “You did enough. Neville, I want to show you something, memories from my world.”

“Memories of what?”

“Of you.”

-----

Harry let out an exhausted sigh. It had been one of the longest days of his life, and that was saying something. He hadn’t expected Neville and Rons’ memories to be so… much.

Wanda was out there, and she was okay. She still had her father in this world, she had people who cared about her and were watching out for her. He could only hope that this timeline had been as kind to Natasha and Skye.

Neville and Ron both looked overwhelmed after Harry had shown him a carefully curated selection of memories from his world. He showed Neville some scenes of their friendship, but he focused on the fight in the Department of Mysteries and the final battle at Hogwarts- both of which he had carefully edited for sensitive information. Ron had gotten more- including rescuing Hermione from the troll, his sacrifice play during their attempt to protect the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry’s experience with Riddle in the Chamber of Secrets.

He hoped that the memories would have some impact on them, as they’d had on Ginny, but he was preparing himself for the possibility that Ginny was just special, and he’d never fully get his two friends back. As for Ginny, they still hadn’t really talked about their relationship. Harry knew he loved her, but it wasn’t that simple. Wanda was out there, and Natasha, Skye, and Shuri could be too. Could he really choose Ginny over any of them? Ginny had been his first love, but what he had with Wanda, Skye, and Nat was much stronger than his brief relationship with Ginny. He’d been planning a family with them, a future. He’d had years with them.

Of course, that assumed that they were the same people in this world, that they were still alive, that weren’t in relationships, and that they even wanted anything to do with him. It was a mess. So, Harry put it off. It was true that they had more important things to worry about. He just hoped that answers presented themselves soon, or he and Ginny would be forced to have a very frank discussion about his romantic history.

Really, he should just be grateful that he had them all back, that he had a chance at a love that he’d lost. The complications he could deal with, he would deal with. With another, more wistful sigh, Harry turned back, passing back through their camp’s temporary wards.

“sh*t!” A voice hissed.

In an instant, Harry was on full alert. Harry turned casually, as if he were just taking in the view, and a silent homenum revelio revealed another person, someone who had been tripped up at the boundary of their wards. They were under a disillusionment charm and were trying to creep away, but they’d been a little too quick with it, causing a telltale ripple in the air.

A few things were immediately apparent. This was a wizard, that meant either Riddle or the Order had found him. He’d put the Sorcerers at risk. He needed to take care of this now. With any luck this was a lone patrol, and he could obliviate them.

With one swift motion Harry dispelled the disillusionment charm and sent out a series of stunners. Instead of shielding, his opponent rolled away from them. Her form and technique were familiar, and Harry was hit with a sense of déjà vu as she sprang to her feet. She struck back with a stunner of her own that Harry batted to the side without effort. She was dressed practically, but not for combat. She had a wand in one hand, but the other bore a sling ring.

sh*t. He’d just attacked one of the people he was trying to win over.

The sorcerer brandished a rope of golden magic from the sling ring and swung it awkwardly at him. Harry dodged, observing as she tried to get away. Whoever she was, she clearly wasn’t that experienced, perhaps a trainee? But then why was she out here? Either way, he needed to make amends. “Wait!” He called out. Of course, she didn’t listen. The girl ducked behind a boulder and began forming a portal, though her lack of skill and blind panic were making it slow going.

“Come on, come on.” She chanted under her breath as sparks formed in the air, not taking full form.

“Hey, I’m sorry about that. You startled me.” Harry called again “I don’t want to hurt you; I just want to talk.” There was silence, so Harry continued. “We’re not with the Order, or anyone else, but I have some information that the Sorcerers could use. Could you go back to them and tell them that Harry Potter is waiting for them?”

Harry stepped around the boulder to take a look at the girl. She couldn’t have been older than fourteen. Just as her fighting form was familiar, so was she, achingly so. Her hair and the shape of her face reminded Harry so much of Natasha.

But not her eyes. She had his eyes.

Chapter 8: The Miracle Child

Chapter Text

“You don’t tell me anything! You don’t let me do anything! I hate you!” Her daughter’s melodramatic words had certainly been fueled by teenage angst and hormones, but Natasha couldn’t deny they had an element of truth to them. Ostensibly, Lily was upset about not being allowed to go to the nearby village during her free day, but she knew that there was more to it than that, that her frustrations had been festering for a while.

She’d never been completely honest with Lily. Her oldest lie had started at the very beginning- how she was born. Early on, Lily had asked about her father. Natasha had lied. “He was a good man, and loving man. But he’s dead now, I’m sorry.” It was a harsh lie, perhaps, but it was the best one she had, because the truth was worse. The truth was that she had no idea. The truth was that Lily’s existence should have been doubly impossible- seemingly an immaculate conception from a sterilized mother. There weren’t many explanations that Natasha could contemplate, and none of them were pleasant. The knowledge was dangerous, and she hadn’t told a soul, not until she’d met the Ancient One. She didn’t want her daughter to believe that she was unnatural, or that she was the reason why they were on the run, so she lied.

But that lie had led to more lies. Lily had asked for stories, for details, and she’d asked with a yearning that Natasha couldn’t deny. She was all too good at fabricating them. Her father, Natasha said, was noble, too noble for his own good, reckless with his own life but protective of others. The two of them had fought together for many years, until he’d sacrificed his life while she’d been pregnant- saving both Natasha and Lily. Lily had pressed for more, so Natasha told her of his deadpan humor. She told her he was British, that he wore glasses, that he had scars. She told Lily that she had his eyes. She told her a thousand little details, all of them lies.

When Lily was seven, Natasha was forced to spin another deception. They’d been a day out from a settlement in Turkey when they’d been attacked by Hydra soldiers. They weren’t even after them, specifically, hadn’t known who she was, that she was a traitor and that there was a high price on her head. It had just been bad luck, but sometimes that was all it took. They’d grabbed Lily, and Natasha thought that was it. She was willing to bargain her life away for her daughter’s, but she knew how Hydra worked, as soon as they figured out who she was, they would both be dead.

But instead, something completely unexpected happened. One minute Lily was screaming and thrashing in the arms of a Hydra soldier, the next she was curled in a ball at Natasha’s feet. All combatants blinked in stupefaction, but Natasha was quicker to recover. None of their attackers survived.

There had been no time for questions in the moment. Natasha had revved up the bike and Lily had hopped on, and they rode in silence all through the night, Lily clinging to her back and shivering.

The next day, Lily dared broach the question “Mom… what happened to me?”

“I don’t know, but we’ll find out.” She lied. Because what was she supposed to say to her? How could she explain that she was a witch, that she was one of the monsters that haunted her nightmares? That because of her abilities the Order would hunt them down, abduct her, and separate them forever? She didn’t dare tell Lily what her abilities said about her parentage, because some things had begun to make a frightening amount of sense. Natasha had been sterilized, but a wizard could get around that. She didn’t remember the conception and never would have consented to such a thing, but a wizard could get around that as well.

From there, their travels took on a new purpose. Natasha was no longer merely trying to keep their heads down, beneath the notice of her former masters in Hydra. It was only a matter of time before the Order found Lily. They always found their own when they were born to non-magical people. They ripped the children away from their families, who would never see them again.

That wouldn’t happen to them, Natasha would make sure of it. They needed somewhere to hide. They needed protection. Thankfully, Natasha was connected, and not all of her contacts would immediately report her to Hydra. She called on smugglers and cartels, cashing in every favor she had to get them across the continent. She chased a ghost of a rumor. Hydra had investigated it and found nothing, but Natasha hoped that for the two of them, their quarry would allow themselves to be found.

They spent the better part of a year wandering through Nepal and Tibet. The mountainous terrain was among the hardest they’d traversed, and all they could really do was go from village to village, asking about the rumors and receiving only the vaguest answers. In the end, they didn’t find Kamar-Taj, Kamar-Taj found them. Another display of accidental magic, in which a local mercenary had tried to intimidate them and been thrown off his feet by an invisible for, had drawn attention to them. A hushed discussion with the sorceress who had confronted them was enough to grant her an audience with the Ancient One.

That was where they had lived for the past five years, and while Natasha had tried to give her daughter space and privacy, she knew that the new environment must be stifling for her. The regimented training, the workload, the lack of freedom, all of it grated on Lily, and Natasha knew that the secrets that she still kept from her weren’t helping. By this point, Lily had to know that she wasn’t like the other students, that her magic was different. The lie was wearing thin. Maybe it was time to dispense with it altogether. She just… didn’t want to hurt her any more than she already had been. It seemed like Lily was destined to be drawn into the war between Hydra and the Order, a war that Natasha had spent Lily’s entire life running and shielding her from.

Natasha gave Lily a few hours to cool off. Lily had quite a temper but wasn’t one to hold a grudge or spend days sulking. Perhaps Natasha could give her an olive branch- not a trip outside, but maybe something from the shopping district, perhaps more books for her to read. But when Natasha called on Lily, she found her bedroom empty.

Her heart froze, and Natasha saw the full foolishness of her deception. Lily was not safe outside the Sanctum, where the Order could pick her up and steal her from them. But they had not explained that, not explained why the Order would be after her specifically, and why they might be able to track her. And now she was gone.

But her inaction only lasted a moment before a new resolve overtook her. The chances that Lily had run into wizards in the few hours she’d been out were slim. She would find her daughter, bring her back, and finally be honest with her.

-----

Stupid, stupid, stupid. Lily berated herself. Why’d she have to go investigate? She should have just been smart and avoided the camp altogether.

It wasn’t like she was a stranger to the outside world, she’d spent most of her life out there, before she’d been cloistered away in the oppressive walls of the sanctum. She wasn’t afraid of what lay beyond, no matter how her mom wanted her to be. Her previous excursions outside had all gone off without a hitch. She’d made several trips to nearby villages, where she’d pilfered, bought, and bartered for trinkets, including her second most treasured possession- a spell book.

She had access to more spell-books than she could name, but this one was different. This wasn’t the magic of the Sorcerers, but of the wizards. Lily had struggled with her lessons at the Sanctum. While her instructors insisted that she was a natural at magic, Lily knew that she lagged behind the others. She’s spent weeks fruitlessly attempting to open her first portal after everyone else in her class had picked it up. It just didn’t feel natural, like jamming a key into a lock it wasn’t meant for.

She knew she was meant for something different, because she’d felt it. She’d known for years, since an operation her mom had run in Iran. They’d linked up with a resistance cell, and in exchange for safe passage they’d asked for her mom’s help in ambushing an Order cell. Lily had not gotten to see the inner workings of the operation, but she knew that it had involved luring the wizards into a building that was rigged with a lot of explosives. It had gone off without a hitch. The wreckage was unrecognizable, and the rebels had written it off as a victory, albeit one with no spoils.

But Lily had managed to find one thing a value in aftermath, a shaft of wood that could easily have been dismissed as part of the destroyed building had it not called to her. The moment Lily grasped the handle, she’d felt the rush of magic, and she’d known what she was.

She was a witch. She was one of them. If anyone found out what she was, she’d be hated and feared. If Hydra found out, she’d be dead. If the Order found out, they’d turn her into one of them, and that sounded like the worst fate of all. She also realized that her mom must know, she had to know. The more time passed, the more the lies hurt and the more it became clear that she didn’t belong anywhere. She didn’t belong with the Sorcerers. She didn’t belong with the Order. She was alone.

When she’d started sneaking out, she didn’t think she’d actually run into a wizard. Her curiosity upon seeing the man standing outside that heavily warded camp was too much for her to resist. After all, she knew that their kind was the key to… what she was, even if her mom and the sorcerers wouldn’t admit it.

For a moment, it seemed like something out of her mother’s direst warnings. She was no match for him in a fight, and blind panic had paralyzed her. She was incredibly lucky that he wasn’t trying to kill her. She knew he could have done anything to her he wanted if he were so inclined. But he hadn’t, he was letting her go with nothing but a promise.

In a way, this was what she’d never even dared dream of. A wizard who wasn’t evil, who might be willing to teach her. Who might show her a place where she belonged. It was an impossible fantasy that Lily had always dismissed, but for the first time it seemed… almost possible. She desperately wanted this to be real, to not be a trick, for this Harry Potter to really be what he said he was.

Nevertheless, he had just put her into a very awkward position. In order to fulfill his request, she’d have to come clean about her nightly excursions. Her mom would have a fit. On the other hand, she could just lie, say that she’d pass the message along, and forget about it. But it would be only a matter of time before he contacted the sorcerers anyway. At that point her cover would be blown.

So if she was going to get in trouble anyway… why not?

“Who are you?” He asked. His words weren’t casual, they were filled with awe and confusion. She’d never had someone look at her with such longing. It should have made her uncomfortable, but somehow it didn’t. She took him in, his hair, his eyes- so similar to her own. She could hardly explain it, but he looked warm and kind, he felt comfortable.

“Lily. Lily Romanoff.”

“Lily.” He breathed, breaking eye contact “Of course.” He wiped a hand over his face “Of course you are.”

“Wh-what’s going on?” She asked “Who are you? Do you know me?”

With a tearful half-laugh, Harry shook his head “It’s complicated. I-is your mother…”

“She’s here.” She said.

Harry smiled in relief “Thank Merlin.” Then he looked at her shrewdly “Does she know you’re out here?”

Lily cringed, feeling like she’d been caught out by a teacher “Not… exactly?”

Harry chuckled “Is that so? You sneak out often?” Now he was looking at her with something akin to pride, and it made her feel warm inside.

“I’ve been doing it for months. No one even suspects me.” She couldn’t help but preen. “I’ve even gotten…” She hesitated, should she really be sharing her exploits with a stranger? No matter how safe he made her feel?

Thankfully, he didn’t press her. “Well, I hate to ruin a good thing, but I really need to talk to the Sorcerers. Is there any way-”

At that moment, a portal opened in front of them. Her mom dove out and snarled “Get away from her!” She brandished rope of golden magic at him, sending Harry’s wand clattering to the ground.

Harry barely responded to the attack. He looked stupefied to see her. “Look, I’m not here to-”

“Shut up!” Natasha shouted, lunging forward lashing at him again. Harry ducked backwards, still not fighting back.

“Mom, stop!” Lily shouted, stepping between them “He wasn’t attacking me. He was actually nice!”

That only seemed to infuriate her further “Don’t listen to him.” Natasha hissed, a desperate energy behind her words “He’s trying to take you from us. You’ll never see me again if you go with him. Please.”

“Why, mom?” Lily snapped “Because I’m a witch?” Natasha gaped, and Lily plowed on “What, you think I didn’t know? I’m not stupid, mother, I know that I’m not like anyone else. Just because everyone refuses to talk about it doesn’t mean its not obvious!”

“I’m not with the Order. I’m not here to kidnap anyone.” Harry said. Unfortunately for him, five more portals opened up around him. Sorcerers filed out and took defensive positions- forming shiels and weapons composed of their magic. Harry gave a long-suffering sigh.

“Then explain yourself.” Her mom said, her voice venomous “Ten words or less.”

It took Harry only a moment to formulate his response “I’m from another universe.”

“Bullsh*t.” Her mom spat. She took a step forward and grabbed his arm. Lily had seen this many times before. In seconds she’d have Harry in a submission hold.

Or at least, that was how it was supposed to go. By all rights, without his wand Harry should have been defenseless. However, the instant she touched Harry, green energy lanced between them, so bright that Lily saw spots. Her mom went limp and tumbled to the ground, Harry reacted quickly, outstretching a hand to slow her fall, so that she landed softly on the ground.

There was a moment of silence, punctuated only by a faint moan from her mom. “sh*te.” Harry muttered. The remaining five sorcerers attacked, and Lily got a front row seat as Harry dismantled them. One rushed him, bringing his sword, composed of luminous magic, down in a wide arc. The sword smashed against a magical shield, sending orange sparks flying. Harry responded with a stunner that he formed from his fingertips. The sorcerer was too exposed and off balance to avoid it.

The next sorcerer was more prepared, and when Harry sent a volley of multcolored spells her way, she created a set of portals to redirect them back at him. Harry, however, was prepared for this, and apparated the instant the portal opened up. He appeared behind the sorcerer, stunning her instantly.

The remaining three tried to take him on simultaneously. One formed shields from his hands, using them to deflect Harry’s spells. The second flung bolts of energy at Harry, but while she did this far more effectively than Lily’s earlier mangled attempt, she had no more success. Harry ducked, rolled, and weaved with ease, all while keeping up a steady stream of return fire. The third sorcerer got creative, opening a portal behind Harry that unleashed a deluge of water at him. However, Harry parted the torrent and sent it streaming towards his opponents, blasting two of them off their feet and forcing the third to take cover.

“Can we stop, now?” Harry asked.

Another portal opened, and the Ancient One stepped through. “I think that’s enough.” She said. Without a thought, Lily put herself between her and Harry.

“Wait!” She said “We don’t need to fight! We were just talking. He said he has important information for you! He said-”

The Ancient One held up her hand “I heard.” She nodded to Harry “I’ve been waiting for you, Harry Potter. Kindly reawaken my students.” Harry waved his hand, and at once the stunned sorcerers began picking themselves up, looking chagrinned.

“I really am just here as… hopefully an ally.” Harry said “I’m not with the Order. Not with Hydra. Not with anyone, really. I didn’t know where else to turn.”

“And you came here?”

“I was friends with some Sorcerers, in another time.” Harry said.

The Ancient One nodded “I think this is a conversation better had in private.” She turned to her students “Please take Natasha back to her room.”

“I want to stay with her.” Harry said “If this is what I think it is, she’s going to have a lot of questions. And I… need to make sure she’s alright.”

“What about me?” Lily asked, fully expecting to be excluded, as always.

“She deserves answers, too.” Harry said without hesitation.

“Is she?” The Ancient One’s looked inscrutably between Lily and Harry.

“Yes.” Harry’s answer was just as indecipherable to Lily. Despite the promise of answers, it was frustrating to be so lost in the conversation.

The Ancient One raised her eyebrows. “If you insist, but you will have to answer to Natasha. Believe me, you don’t want to be on her bad side.”

Harry looked down fondly at the woman. “I know.”

------

Natasha remembered.

It didn’t feel like the memories were being forced on her, pressed into her mind from outside. That would have made it possible to dismiss them as a trick. But it wasn’t like that. She wasn’t being forced into anything. She was remembering. And each new memory felt like it was always meant to be there.

She remembered meeting him. They were in a bar, and she was on a mission. She’d seduced him against her better judgement. It was so visceral- how tempting it had felt, how sweet and earnest and gorgeous he’d looked, the crackling chemistry between them. She remembered the sex. God, she remembered the sex. There had been so much of it over those first few days and relived it in detail. She remembered the thrill of taking him to bed the first time, the desire as his body was laid bare for her, she remembered her surprise and endearment as he eagerly pleasured her. She remembered how incredible his mouth had felt against her sex, and how desperately she’d wanted him inside her. She remembered riding him. It was utterly unlike anything she’d experienced in this life. She hadn’t known that sex could feel that good, that it could be fun and wonderful. She remembered drifting off, blissed out and tangled together with him. She remembered coming back to him again and again, unable to resist. She remembered coming to care for him.

The memories came faster, but she felt them all. He’d told her he wanted a family, and she’d pushed him away. She’d lied again, and it had hurt them both. She remembered Skye and Wanda. She remembered fighting by his side, saving the world together, as a team. She remembered being given a second chance with him. She remembered going to bed with him again, finally. She remembered the sex. There were too many times to count, and the scenes began to overlap with each other. Harry, her, and their lovers, pushing each other higher and higher. She remembered loving him. She'd trusted him with her life. She'd cared about him with passionate intensity. She desired him like she'd wanted no one else. She'd wanted to spend the rest of her life by his side.

She remembered Lily, discovering that she was pregnant. She remembered the joy and love that they’d shared. She remembered naming her. She was named after Harry’s mother, who had died to save him. It had been a tribute Natasha had been happy to make, honoring the woman who’d made it possible to bring this wonderful man into her life. She remembered being so incredibly, indescribably happy- starting a family with the man she loved, with her sister and the best friends she could ask for by her side.

And then she had lost it all. Thanos. Her friends, her sister, and her unborn daughter vanishing to dust. She remembered pushing Harry away again. She remembered Harry’s love persevering. He’d never given up on her. She remembered coming back to him, falling asleep in his arms once again. She remembered the plan to reverse it all, to bring everyone back. She remembered him killing himself for it, for her, for their daughter. She remembered lying on the cold ground helpless, feeling like she was being physically ripped apart by despair as he fell.

Natasha woke up.

She was back in her bedroom. He was right there, looking at her with cautious, concerned eyes. “Hey, I’m sorry about that.” He said “I know you have no reason to trust me, but I’m not here to take Lily from you. I swear.”

She felt the world swirl around her as her mind tried to reconcile the two sets of memories, the two very different lives she had lived. Neither life had been easy, but in one of them she’d known love and friendship and joy. She couldn’t make sense of it all yet, and she knew there were still massive gaps that she was missing, but she knew one thing for certain.

She loved him.

She looked at Harry with new eyes, taking him in. He felt so familiar to her now, and it was comforting. Her love for him rose up, an uncontrollable tide. She couldn't fight it, and more importantly she didn't want to. "Nat?” He asked, using a nickname that made her heart flutter “Are you alright?” He was careful to respect her personal space, keeping several feet of distance and not reaching out. It was considerate of him, but Natasha wanted nothing more than to eliminate it.

She beamed at him. “Harry.”

“Nat?” She could hear the hope in his voice, but it was closely guarded. He didn’t want to get his hopes up, he didn’t want to get hurt. It wouldn't have been the first time she'd hurt him, she realized. Too many times she'd let grief and fear ruin their relationship, but no more. She was going to wipe that doubt from his mind.

She kissed him.

Chapter 9: Found

Chapter Text

She kissed him, and Harry lost himself. Her lips claimed every bit of his focus and awareness. In a well-practiced move, he pulled her to him, and she reciprocated in kind, deepening the kiss, pressing in with her tongue.

God he’d missed this- missed her. He’d known he missed her, but since being dumped in this world he’d barely had a moment to ruminate on it. When he’d set his eyes on her- passionate and protective and wielding magic- the ache had hit him all at once. He wanted to fall into her forever. It was more than the mere physical sensation- her mouth against his, the press of her body feeling so right against him- it felt like coming home. Natasha pressed her pelvis against his and moaned. It had always taken very little for them to lose control with each other.

“Oh my god, stop!” Lily cried.

Reluctantly, Harry and Natasha parted, both panting for breath. He glanced down at her lips, and then her darkened eyes which stared right back up at him. “Hey.” He said.

“Hey.” Nat whispered back.

Lily made an indecipherable distressed noise, and Harry finally turned to his daughter.

He had a daughter. It felt like a miracle. It was all so much, and he couldn’t even bring himself to be embarrassed about their lack of restraint. Harry’s entire world was Natasha and their daughter. Natasha’s room- which was as spartan and nondescript as they’d come, with bare walls and an unforgiving stone floor- might as well have disappeared. Even the Ancient One- watching on with a faint trace of amusem*nt- barely merited a thought.

Lily was currently facing into the corner, hands clapped over her ears. Harry couldn’t help but chuckle. Harry and Nat shared a look, silently communicating that she would take the lead. “Its okay Lily, you can turn around now.” She said. Lily let her hands fall from her ears, but stubbornly refused to budge from her spot. “We’ll do our best to avoid making out in your presence from now on.” Nat vowed.

Lily let out an indignant sound. “From now on?” She whirled around “What, so that’s just going to be a regular thing? How could you?”

“Now Lily, we’ve had that talk before…”

Lily made another distressed noise. “You’ve just met him, and you were just trying to kill him!”

“I wasn’t trying to kill, exactly.” Natasha winced, glancing apologetically at him. “But… well…”

Lily scoffed “Oh, is this something else you won’t tell me. Typical.” Harry hoped he hadn’t sounded like that when he was her age. Even though he had no doubt her complaints were justified, there was a sizable injection of melodramatic teenage angst in her voice.

Natasha sighed “You’re right, I have been keeping secrets from you. But not anymore, Lily the truth is… the truth is…” She was struggling, and Harry would always be there to save her.

“Lily, I’m your father.”

Harry knew something of what she must be feeling right now. At her age, he would have given anything to see his parents again. He remembered meeting Sirius, and realizing he had a Godfather, and having the hope that he might be able to escape the Dursleys and live with him instead.

Lily was speechless, her eyes roving over Harry as if drinking him in. Finally, she spoke “D-dad?” Her voice was small, tremulous, filled with disbelief and hope.

Harry held her gaze “It’s me. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there sooner. I’m sorry-” With a sob, she latched onto him with a fierce hug. Several more sobs followed, and Natasha came up behind her. She leaned her forehead to Harry’s as they cocooned their daughter in a collective embrace.

“Mom.” Lily said eventually “You told me my dad was dead.”

“I lied.”

Lily wriggled away from them, looking offended. “You think I wouldn’t like to know that my dad was alive?” She snapped, eyes still wet.

“That’s not what I meant.” Natasha said patiently “I lied about... knowing who your father was, knowing how you were born at all.”

That took the wind out of Lily’s sails, now she just looked lost “What do you mean?”

“Until today, I didn’t know how you were conceived. I thought… I thought… well, it doesn’t matter now what I thought.” Nat shook her head.

“That doesn’t make sense, how could you not know?”

“I believe I can help with that.” The Ancient One made her presence known for the first time. “Please don’t judge your mother too harshly, Lily. She did not know the full picture. In fact, neither did I.” She turned her inscrutable gaze to Harry “But I suspect that you do, don’t you Harry?”

“I can explain a lot.” Harry allowed “But it’ll sound unbelievable.”

“If it helps, I know that the world is not what it seems. It is the unstable merger of two universes. I already knew this when Natasha came to me with Lily, and with the inexplicability of her pregnancy, I suspected that she had been conceived in one of the pre-merger timelines.”

Lily looked completely lost, and Harry didn’t blame her. “How do you know that?” Natasha asked “And why didn’t you tell me?”

“Would you have believed me?” The Ancient One returned “I know, because Steve Rogers had returned the Time Stone to me- or a version of me- just before the merger happened. ‘I’ was able to send a message to myself using the stone, which I received the day that Hydra launched its attacks on the cities of the world.”

“Can we start at the beginning? Please.” Lily asked, looking overwhelmed.

“It’s a long story.” Harry said.

“We have time.” The Ancient One told him “And I am very interested in hearing it.”

At this point, the story of Harry’s life was long, convoluted, and frankly confusing. After some consideration, he decided to hold off on sharing certain secrets. While his encounter with Death was monumental, he couldn’t bring himself to tell them about her. Something about it felt too big to share so casually. There was little to be done about her, regardless. Harry wasn’t sure if there even was a way to escape her grasp forever, but even if there was, he had his priorities- fix the world and protect the people he loved.

Talking about his childhood had been difficult, and nothing moreso than the end- the horcruxes, the realization that he had been a horcrux, and his walk to his death. Natasha had been able to help once the narrative had turned to his time in their shared universe, and the two of them had started up a lighthearted banter about their adventures there. Lily looked enraptured by this, drinking in the story of how her parents had met and fallen in love with an earnest hunger. It was a far cry from her earlier disgust at her mother making out with a stranger.

Finally, the story wound to its conclusion- the sacrifice for the Soul Stone, his awakening back in his old world. His battle with Voldemort and Hela, and how the Time Stone had gotten trapped in a feedback loop. The Ancient One nodded in understanding as he explained how the world seemed to fall apart around him, and in a last-ditch effort to fix things, he’d summoned the stone to him.

“And then?” She asked.

“I woke up.” Harry shrugged “I was in the middle of the Time Vortex in London, and some of my old friends from my world had found me.” He briefly explained his short, eventful time in this world, including the battle with Tom Riddle and their narrow escape, though leaving out the detail that he was still a horcrux. If the Ancient One was clever enough, she’d figure it out on her own, but he wasn’t in a hurry to spell out for everyone just how doomed he was.

“And your friends, do you think they’re still trustworthy?”

Harry hesitated. “Peggy and Ginny, absolutely.” He finally said “I’ve looked into Neville and Ron’s minds. They’re both good people. They’ve chosen to do the right thing over the easy thing. But they don’t know me like they did in my time.” Harry shrugged helplessly. He’d felt both of their intentions, and he knew neither was planning on betraying him. He’d been satisfied with that an hour ago, but now… “I don’t know. The stakes are so high. It’s one thing to trust my own safety to them, but…” His eyes drifted to Lily. “It’s different now.”

“Ginny, like Natasha, has recovered some of her old memories. That isn’t true for your other friends?” The Ancient One probed.

“No.” Harry shook his head “I don’t know what makes Ginny and Nat special.”

“Well, I can think of something.” Natasha said, with a teasing note in her voice “Your relationship with the two of us is different than it was with your other school friends.” Harry fought a blush, cognizant of his daughter’s presence. “As for your friends… I think you should give them a chance.”

“Really. You’re the one telling me to trust people?” Harry asked skeptically.

“Yeah, and I know something about how keeping people at arm’s length can ruin a relationship.” She said meaningfully “If they’re your friends, I’m sure they’re worth trusting.” She really was the Natasha he’d known at the end. That had been a lesson hard learned. Then she smiled wryly “And if they do try to betray us, we can always kick their asses.”

-----

“He said he was just going for a walk! How can he be missing?” Neville barked. It was clear his nerves were fraying, and it wasn’t like he didn’t have good reason to be on edge. She didn’t think Harry really appreciated the position he had them in. None of them had anything without Riddle. Hydra wanted them dead, they’d betrayed the Order already, and no non-magical group would trust a group of wizards as far as they could throw them. They all just had to hope that there was a method to Harry’s madness, or else they were certainly dead.

For Ginny, her faith wasn’t so blind. She knew how Harry had pulled victory- or at least survival- from the jaws of certain death time and time again. She had attempted to explain this to Neville and Ron, but she felt like they didn’t really get it, not like they had when they’d really known him. It was sad, she thought. They didn’t even know what they’d lost, though perhaps they were starting to, if they’re quiet contemplative mood after exchanging memories with Harry was an indication.

But Ginny’s experience with Harry also informed her that he attracted trouble like a magnet. Sometimes all it took was for Harry to take a walk to get accosted by dementors, or meet his convicted felon godfather, stumble across some ancient artifact. Knowing him, it had happened again, and she’d missed it… again.

She groaned, partially worried, but mostly frustrated. Harry could take care of himself, she knew, she just wished she could have helped him. Neville, Peggy, and Ron were planning a rescue expedition – but to where? From who? She knew that any of them could die at any day, she knew that intimately well. That wasn’t what kept her up at night. It was the uncertainty, the powerlessness. She’d been completely powerless while her family had been picked off one by one. She never wanted to be left sitting on the sidelines when someone she loved died, not again.

All discussion halted when a portal opened. Instantly, everyone snapped into combat position- diving behind tents and raising their wands (or for Peggy, her pistol). Then Harry stepped through, and the tension was released as quickly as it had come. Ginny was the first out, throwing Harry into a fierce hug. Harry laughed and spun her around. He was happy, very happy. “What happened?” She asked.

“I found a friend.” He said.

Behind him, a woman stepped through. She was a redhead, but a deeper auburn than the Weasleys’ distinctive color. She looked strong and capable, with a precision in how she handled herself and an alertness in her eyes. Like Ginny, she was a warrior. The woman stepped up to Harry’s side “A friend?” She teased, and Harry blushed.

“Family.” He corrected, a warmth in his voice.

Oh.

Ginny stepped back and surveyed the couple. Harry had lived another life without her, ten years to meet new people, fall in love… and maybe, start a family. She shouldn’t have been surprised. He was so lovable, and he had so much capacity to love people. Of course he would find someone who made him happy. This must have been that lucky woman. Across universes and timelines, they’d found each other again.

Ginny had thought that maybe, that would have been their story. Only when that fantasy had been ripped away did Ginny realize how dearly she’d been holding it, how bereft she felt without it. Harry seemed aware of Ginny’s inner turmoil, and he shot her a regretful look. “I’m Natasha Romanoff. Harry’s told me a lot about you.” Natasha looked at Ginny first, before glancing at Ron and Neville “All of you. Welcome to Kamar-taj.”

Ginny ruminated as Natasha led the group into the home of the legendary sorcerers. Much like centers of wizarding society, it consisted of a confusing network of corridors with an archaic style and no logical underpinning to their design. The circuitous route they took gave Ginny plenty of time to think while Ron, Peggy, and Neville peppered Natasha and Harry with questions.

Because of the deaths of wizards in the war, the gender ratio of wizarding society was incredibly skewed. In the Order, it left witches playing the roles of concubines to whichever men were influential, rich, talented, or powerful enough to survive (or earn exemption to military service). Even in Riddle’s more egalitarian vision of wizarding society, women would still have had to share men. It was simple math.

Ginny could share Harry, she could even accept not being his primary partner. She’d long accepted that whoever she ended up with, that might be the case. Hell, if it was the right woman, Ginny could more than just accept it. She and Luna sharing a wizard and each other would have been the dream. She didn’t know Natasha Romanoff, or love her the way she loved Luna. Still, Ginny couldn’t deny she was attractive, incredibly attractive. And this was Harry, she knew that he’d never let her feel neglected or unloved. He had enough love in his heart for two and wouldn’t begrudge if his partners found love with each other. Frankly, she’d take whatever she could have with him. Even if it meant playing second fiddle to a woman she barely knew.

But that was the problem. She didn’t know Natasha Romanoff, and what were the chances that she’d be willing to share Harry with a woman she didn’t even know? Muggle society was different than the wizarding one. Ginny confessed she never paid that much attention to muggle standards and traditions. She knew that muggle women were much more exposed to the war than most witches were- along with disease, famine, and the dangers of childbirth. While muggle men still played the role of soldiers, the gender ratios weren’t quite so skewed.

Ginny had to accept that probably, Natasha wouldn’t want to share Harry with her. Perhaps even Harry wouldn’t be willing to have multiple partners. She’d have to live with being his friend and nothing more. It was a role she’d played once, and if it made him happy, she could do it again.

But despite her attempts to convince herself otherwise, there was something about the way that Natasha kept glancing at her, her eyes sparkling with playful mischief… that gave her hope.

-----

“I think we just hurt Ginny.” Harry said regretfully, as soon as they returned to her room, which would also be serving as Harry’s room for the time being.

"You think?” Natasha quipped “I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen someone so smitten with you, and that’s saying something.”

"Pot, meet kettle.” Harry teased.

Natasha rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t deny his point or contain the beaming smile spreading across her lips “Yeah. So, want to invite her in?” Nat proposed.

Harry huffed, amused. “You move fast.”

“I just don’t want her to wallow in her misery any more than she has to. It just seems cruel.”

“You don’t even know her.” He pointed out “Maybe you’ll hate her.”

“You love her.” She countered “That counts as a character reference. Besides, I can’t wait to see you wreck her.”

“You’re forgetting one thing.” Harry said “You’re assuming she’d be okay with sharing me.” He was quite sure she wouldn’t be interested. The notion of sharing him would have been an affront to her in his original world. She'd want him to make a choice, and as much as it pained him, it was an easy one. Ginny was his first love and would always have a place in his heart. He'd always treasure the time they had together. But Natasha was his partner and the mother of his child. He'd spent years with her, he knew her as well as he knew himself.

“We’ll see.” Natasha smirked, telling him she knew something he didn’t. Then she kissed him. Harry’s friends were settling in (under a discrete watch by the sorcerers), and Lily had excused herself to ‘think’. That meant that they finally had privacy and could pick up where they left off.

She was ravenous, and Harry had a hard time keeping up. She feasted on him like a starving wolf. She plundered his mouth, but before Harry could properly respond, her lips were attached to his jaw, then she was nibbling at his ear, and licking down his neck. “Fuuuuck!” She moaned, eyes wild. Harry took that brief window of opportunity and seized the initiative, kissing her soundly. She moaned again and wrapped a leg around his waist. He realized what she was about to do the moment before he found himself flat on his back in her bed. Then she pounced, tugging and tearing at his clothes. They were still his summoned robes- fairly cheap and flimsy- and they stood no chance.

“You’re normally not this… enthusiastic.” He managed while she lavished his chest with her mouth.

“Do you know how many times I’ve had even decent sex in this body?” She asked “Never. Its like I’ve had a decades long drought and its hitting me all at once how thirsty I am.”

“f*ck.” Harry breathed, then she palmed his crotch, and he repeated the sentiment more enthusiastically.

“I missed you so much, even though I didn’t know it.” She said, no longer talking just about sex. “For you it was a few days. For me it was a lifetime. There was always something missing, a piece of my soul. I’m never letting you go again.”

His trousers were the next casualty, and his boxers lasted only seconds longer. “f*ck I missed this.” She breathed, gazing at his co*ck with pure lust. “Vanish my clothes.”

“What?” Harry uttered.

“I can’t f*cking wait anymore, just vanish them!” She said, a note of desperation in her voice. Harry did as he was told, and Natasha was already mounting him. Her body was different than he remembered. Less curves and more muscle and scars. Harry didn’t care in the slightest. She was incredible, every bit as sexy as he remembered.

She sheathed him and gaped like a gutted fish. He felt her flex around him, something he associated with her climax, or when she was trying particularly hard to get him to cum. “Oh, f*ck!” She whimpered, grinding her hips minutely against him. He thrusted upwards dutifully, knowing exactly the spot she wanted him to hit, and she came apart. She whimpered and moaned as she collapsed against him. It wasn’t so much the strength of her org*sm that was remarkable (with the help of Wanda, Skye, and Shuri’s vibrators, he’d given her some spectacular org*sms), it was how quickly she’d had cum- just one thrust. She was right, for him it had been a few days, for her it had been decades.

If she was anywhere close to as pent up as that implied, he had his work cut out for him. He flipped them over. “Harry.” Natasha moaned “What-ooooh.” Without missing a beat, he buried his head between her thighs. It was a position he’d taken many times before, and it felt comfortably familiar.

“I’m going to spoil you, Nat.” He told her. “You’ve had one hell of a dry spell, so I’m going to make you cum until you can’t stand it anymore.”

Her body spoke for her. He felt the quiver in her thighs as they parted wider for him. Her sex was dripping, he’d never seen her so wet. He kissed up her thigh teasingly, but Natasha intervened. Her hand wove into his unkempt hair and pulled him up insistently, until he was right against her slit. She moaned again, and Harry was enthralled by her expression- blown out eyes stared down at him with blatant desire, her cheeks were beautifully flushed, and her teeth were clamped firmly on her lower lip.

That wasn’t enough, he decided. He wanted to make her scream.

Chapter 10: Love and Loyalty

Chapter Text

Harry awoke to a slick warmth around his co*ck. It was far from the first time that night, three times before he’d stirred to wakefulness to find Natasha straddling him, her hips pumping up and down. She'd never lost the passion of a starved woman, f*cking him with a frenetic energy. No matter how many times she came, she always came back for more, and her body remained hair trigger. Each time, she’d lasted under a minute during the first round, though she avoided cumming on the first thrust again. She had moaned in his ear how much she missed him, how she'd woken up, felt him next to her and couldn't resist, how good his co*ck felt inside her, and how she was about to cum.

This time was different. This time Harry saw the blurry shape of her head- her hair cascading over his thighs. The slick warmth that he’d felt were her lips around his co*ckhead. He fumbled for his glasses, and her eyes flicked up to his, radiating a potent mixture of love, lust, and adoration. Harry moaned “Nat, you don’t have to.”

“Mmm, want to.” She moaned, her words muffled by his flesh. She began bobbing her head, taking more and more of his shaft as her tongue began to ravish him. She’d always been so good at this, from the very first, but she’d only gotten better as she’d read every weakness of his body. She took him to the base, her lips pressing against his crotch, before she released him suddenly. “You know you can’t resist my mouth.”

Oh, now he understood. Her hair trigger so far had her feeling off balance. While she didn’t always need to be in the dominant position, she reveled in it, and this was her seeking to reclaim that position. He saw no reason to fight her on it. “Yes.” He moaned “You’re so f*cking good, Nat. You could destroy me with that mouth.”

Her lips curved into a wicked smile that made him feel like a rabbit cornered by a hungry fox. “That’s right.” She looked down at his co*ck and licked her lips. Harry shivered, and his co*ck twitched in anticipation, a small pearl of pre-cum collecting on the tip. “I’ve only just gotten started.” She said, her eyes not leaving his co*ck “And you’re already leaking for me.” She kissed his tip, her tongue sweeping out to collect the droplet. They gave echoing moans, his soft and wanting, hers low and deep.

She began to work her way back down his shaft. Harry didn’t try to hold back as his noises of pleasure began to slip through. His fists clenched in her sheets as her mouth played his co*ck like a master musician, coaxing ever greater pleasure from him. Her pace was slow and sensual, and she made sure it took time to push him to his limit, but he reached it sooner than he'd liked. At that point, her eyes flicked back up to his, and they held his gaze in a challenge. It was his only warning before she plunged her mouth down his shaft, pulling up, before swallowing him again. She’d… never used this technique on him before, yet she performed it with ease, lodging his co*ckhead into the slick confines of her throat without so much as breaking her intense stare. Her oral skills as he’d known them were more sensual precision than brute force, but this was nevertheless devastatingly effective. “Uhn! Oh god Nat!” He moaned, grabbing the sheets with a white-knuckled grip as he strained to avoid thrusting up into her mouth “I’m going to cum!”

She finished him off with her mouth around his co*ckhead, sucking with just the right amount of force as he released himself into her mouth. It was bliss, feeling as though she were sucking the cum straight from his balls, like she'd fully mastered his co*ck with her mouth and bent it to her will. After she’d drawn the last of the shudders from his co*ck, she gave it several firm, lingering sucks, before releasing it, letting it flop back to his body as it deflated. She opened her mouth to show off her takings, and let Harry stare for a moment, slack jawed and panting, before tipping her head back and swallowing it all with a soft moan. “f*ck.” He breathed, still dizzy from the experience “Where did that come from?” He asked thoughtlessly.

“Here.” Natasha said simply, and Harry felt something icy creep in. What had she had to do here, that necessitated her learning that? Her life in their old world had been bad enough, but it was no doubt worse here.

“I’m sorry, that was stupid of me to say.” He said.

“Its okay, but I don’t want to talk about it.” She said, and he frowned. “Well, not right now.” She corrected herself “We can talk about my life its just… you’re here now, and that alone makes it easier. I just want to enjoy being with you.”

“Okay.” He said “I’m sorry that you always seem to get the short end of the stick. Its not fair to you.”

“Like I said. I'm happier now.” She smiled “And I’d rather focus on you.” She blew a puff of air over his shaft, and it twinged.

“Again?” He asked. He had no doubts that she could do it, too. She’d coaxed him to hardness again and again with her technique in the past.

“I have years of blowj*bs to make up for.” She said, her voice far too serious for her words “I don’t think I’ll be evening to org*sm balance tonight, but… I’m going to give it my best shot.”

-----

Her heart thudded in her chest, a thrill rushing through her veins as Harry looked at her. He’d been happy enough to snog her, just as he had earlier in the day, but once she’d started pushing for more, something for him to truly ‘remember her by’, he’d gotten skittish. He was worried about her brothers, about it being the wrong time, about a dozen things that didn't matter. In a moment of boldness, she’d silenced him by taking off her blouse.

And Harry had stared, his eyes fixated on her exposed cleavage. She didn’t have lingerie, so she’d chosen the most revealing bra she’d had for tonight. It wasn’t the first time he’s seen her like this, but he was every bit as keen. “Like what you see?” She asked, feeling a rush of validation. She wanted the lust in his eyes, wanted him to want her, and it pushed her to release the clasp of her bra.

“Gin.” His voice was low, his eyes burning with an intensity that made Ginny shiver. She'd always been insecure about the size of her breasts, but Harry always had a way of making those doubts evaporate. "You’re incredible. Can I-” he raised a hand, and Ginny nodded jerkily.

“Please.” She said, jerking her head in a nod. She didn’t care if she sounded too eager. She’d do whatever he wanted. She gasped as his hand made contact, fingers reverently caressing her flesh. Oh, how she ached, the spot at the apex of her thighs throbbing with a heat and a hunger that only inflamed further with his touch. Her body had always been attuned to his presence, and that reactivity had only intensified as they’d begun their relationship. Their frequent snogging sessions (there were days where it had been difficult to pry them apart) never failed to leave her hot and aching with want.

His hands fully cupped her breasts, thumbs rubbing her areolas as he stared with that addicting mixture of hunger and awe. She couldn’t take it. As good as it was, she needed more. How many nights had she spent in this very bed, touching herself while imagining this moment? How many times had she dreamed of this, only to wake up just as he was pressing into her with his co*ck, leaving her hot and aching and wanting in her cold, empty bed? She’d spent years pining and crushing and lusting after him, and her patience couldn’t last a moment longer. They could spend hours exploring each others’ bodies in sensuous detail, but one of her overbearing brothers might come barging in to ruin the moment again, as Ron had done.

Was she a Gryffindor or not?

Harry.” She braced herself for what she was about to say. She leaned in, so that she could whisper in his ear in a low voice “f*ck me.”

Harry froze, his breath hitching. She could feel the tremor in his hands, where they still cupped her breasts. “W-what?” He stammered.

"f*ck me.” She said, her voice louder. His reaction only emboldened her, she wanted to push further, to see what other reactions she could provoke. “I want it.” She reached out with her hand “I want your co*ck.” and cupped his crotch. She could feel it, feel his erection clearly against her palm. It throbbed suddenly at her touch, accompanying Harry’s moan.

“Gin.” His voice was so rich, overflowing with desire. His hips twitched forward, and she was only too happy to oblige him by pressing and stroking with her hand. “Uhn! Oooooh!” Harry moaned, and Ginny had never felt so powerful, able to get Harry to lose himself with just a touch.

Then his mouth was on hers, and he was pushing her back into her bed. There was no technique to his kissing now. She’d never seen him so unrestrained, his lust spilling over. She'd done that to him, and she was right there with him. “Get your bloody clothes off.” She hissed between kisses. They tugged the hem of his shirt up together. She’d seen him without his shirt before, of course, but she hadn't become immune. There was something primal and masculine about how he looked bare chested that drew her in. She watched while he worked on his trousers, unzipping, unbuttoning, tugging, until his co*ck sprung out, escaping from its confines like a caged beast.

She stared. Her core gave a mighty throb of desire, and she stared. It wasn’t like she hadn’t stumbled across any of her brothers in a state of undress before but this was different- this was Harry’s co*ck. It looked so ardent, flushed and swollen and overflowing with desire- a desire for her. It projected out from his body boldly, a display of his sexuality that demanded her attention- and she eagerly gave it. As if sensing her gaze, his co*ck twitched. "f*ck." She breathed. It was like it was alive. She wanted to feel his co*ck in her hand, and feel it twitch. She wanted to feel his engorged co*ckhead as it parted her lips and spread her inner flesh. She wanted to feel the thickness of his shaft inside her, and know the satisfaction of having Harry's male girth to clench around.

"Can I?” He asked, drawing her back to the present. Belatedly, she realized that his hands were at the waistband of her shorts. She nodded distractedly, her eyes flicking back to his co*ck as it bobbed and shifted with his movements. Her legs opened, almost of their own accord, once her panties were free. Cool air washed over her slit, which was so molten hot that it seemed to radiate heat. She’d never felt so swollen, or so wet and leaking. His hand trailed along her sex, her flesh rippling beneath his touch. While Harry was prepared to explore and tease her, Ginny wasn't having it. She didn't need or want the foreplay. "Harryyyyy." She whined "I need you inside me."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, and she loved how sweet he was, even if it was delaying her getting what she wanted right now.

She allayed his concerns by lookin him in the eyes and saying "I swear to god Harry, if you don't f*ck me with that thick co*ck I'm going to lose my mind."

Harry nodded mutely, shivering at her words. He positioned himself between her legs, shifted his hips forward, and-

Ginny awoke and stifled a groan of frustration. Just like that, she was back to feeling like a hormonal teenager, pining for Harry even though she had no shot with him. She almost wanted to laugh at the pathetic absurdity of it, but the need between her legs precluded that. She and Luna had been fifteen when she’d disappeared, and while they had explored, they hadn’t been ready to go all the way. It was something that Ginny regretted, that she never got to be with Luna in every way. It’d been five years, and she hadn’t been touched like that since. She’d played the role of the pristine, sex-less maiden to perfection, until she could escape. From then on, her life had been the war.

Now though, she was keenly aware of her lack of experience. At once she was a virgin of twenty, and a seventeen-year old with a sexual experience of one. While her merger of lives was at times confusing and overwhelming, in this case both strands were in complete agreement- she needed more of that. Because she could close her eyes and remember how wonderful he felt inside of her, and how good he’d looked on top of her. Except it was even worse, because she knew how he looked now. On first sight, without even knowing she knew him, she’d been enthralled by his body. She could picture his lean, powerful muscles that rippled across his body in a way that put every other wizard to shame. He was physically strong in a way that wizards never tried to be, and it showed.

Her hand dropped down to her sex and fingers circled her cl*t. That dream- memory- had left her so keyed up that it took her practically no time to near her peak. Hoping to draw it out, she dipped two fingers into her folds. She pressed them inward as she imagined that instead of being alone, Harry was in bed with her in all his glory and instead of her fingers inside of her, it was his co*ck. It was a fantasy so potent she could almost taste it. The change of stimulation, it turned out, was not going to hold off her org*sm. Her core throbbed, clenching around her fingers as fiery pleasure billowed out. “Ha-arry.” She whimpered “Oh, Harry!”

-----

“So, you’re my dad’s ex, right?” Lily asked.

Their little group had been sequestered off in a separate compound, for the sake of both security and privacy. The Ancient One had said that the location was typically used for the more dangerous and experimental spells, and that they were dangerous and experimental enough to qualify.

Lily had gone to bed early, overwhelmed and frankly exhausted by the… everything, that had happened. But then she’d woken up around 3:00 AM and had been positively wired since then. Her dad was alive. She could learn wizarding magic. Her dad was alive. No more secrets. She’d learned more about her life in the past day than in the previous fourteen years! Something about alternate universes? Her dad was alive and he had an uncomfortably affectionate relationship with her mom. Her dad was alive!

She’d listened with rapt attention through his tale last night, soaking in every detail and trying to picture it in her mind’s eye. It was unbelievable in its totality, but her mom and the Ancient One had backed him up. Now, after having the time to settle down, she realized she wanted to know more. She wanted to know the story of her mom and dad. She wanted to know more about magic. She wanted to know more about him. Were the stories her mom had told her at all true?

She’d been the first at breakfast- a room that was far more normal than most in this place, consisting of a table, stove top, and a few other essentials powered by a mix of repurposed technology and clever use of sorcery. Awkwardly enough, Ginny Weasley had been second down, just a few minutes later. Lily only vaguely knew her as her dad’s ex. Awkward. She was used to meeting strangers. Kamar-Taj often played host to sorcerers and students alike, but it had never been like this, with so much history and things left unsaid.

Ginny cringed at her question. “Yes?” Then she rushed to add “But don’t worry! I’m not going to try anything.”

Lily didn’t know what to say to that. “Oh. Good.”

They both looked down at their breakfast- a plain meal of potatoes and eggs- and ate dutifully for a few minutes, until the silence became unbearable. “So, magic, huh?” Lily tried, wanted to smack her head at how dumb that sounded.

“That’s right, you can do magic, our form of magic, can’t you?” Ginny said, leaping for the distraction.

“Not much.” Lily shrugged “I was able to pilfer a spellbook and a wand, though, so I’ve been trying to learn.”

“That’s very impressive, that you were able to teach yourself anything.” Ginny assured. “You know Harry- your dad- is a very good teacher. I bet he’d love to help you.”

“Really?” Lily asked, now genuinely interested. That sounded... like a dream come true. She remembered how he had fought yesterday- there was so much she could learn from him.

“Yeah, he taught a class when we were in school.” Ginny nodded “It’s a long story, but he was brilliant.”

They were saved from having to make further conversation by Peggy Carter. “Good morning. Its good to see you both up early.”

“Any idea when my mum and dad will be out?” Lily asked.

Peggy shrugged “I suspect they had a long night, err, talking. So they may have a bit of a lie in this morning.” Lily was not going to interrogate that further. Instead, she decided to ask a seemingly innocuous question. “So, how did you end up here?”

-----

Perhaps slightly less Valerian root, and more of the sprigs.

Potion-making was an exact art and subtle science, but potion creation put the brewing of even the most delicate potions to shame. It was the birth of something completely new out of the old, straining the brewer’s creativity, precision, and most of all, their patience. Severus’ newest draught had undergone many, many revisions. More lavender. A longer simmer time on the final step. Fewer stirs on the second day. Paradoxically, the addition of a Jaberknoll feather seemed to improve the potion’s quality.

Severus had not spoken of this project. Lily had certainly paid him no notice as he slaved away in the lab. Perhaps she was happy to be rid of him, and for once Severus was glad for it. Because this potion would be the solution to all his problems. He’s spent years contemplating how Hydra had achieved such obedience in its greatest assets. They had achieved something that worked on a far deeper level than the imperius curse. They had rewired the brains of their assets completely, achieving not just obedience, but loyalty. Love potions, the imperius, and blood oaths were child’s play in comparison. They were mere ripples on the surface, with the depths of the mind unaffected.

This potion was the answer. He called it the Draught of Perfect Subservience, and it was nearly ready. It was a derivation of the Draught of Living Death- able to put the drinker into a susceptible, trance-like state, from which they could be guided towards anything one wanted. The applications to the war effort were obvious. Lovegood and Granger would no longer be unwilling slaves, but willing servants, and they would only be the beginning.

But of course, he had his own personal reasons for pursuing this potion. He wondered if Lily discovered what he was working on, whether she would discern his true intentions. Not that he feared that she would, she tried to avoid him as much as possible. He couldn’t remember the last time she’d ventured into his lab.

Her reticence grated at him. There wasn’t a night that he hated going to sleep alone in a cold bed, that he didn’t want for her touch, or imagine their one night together, the night they had consummated their marriage. As stilted and quick as their consummation had been, Severus still treasured the memory. They’d barely even touched during her pregnancy, and when Septimus had been born so frail… well, it was like Lily had been looking for an excuse to shut him out completely.

He could have taken a subservient wife, someone who did her duty and didn’t have the standing to protest. He still could take a mistress if he were so inclined, but he couldn’t bring himself to. He loved Lily, and he wanted only her.

And soon, he would have her.

Chapter 11: Shatterpoint

Chapter Text

“This is the book you’ve been learning from?” Harry- her dad- asked.

Lily looked down at her feet. “It was all I had.” She said. She’d always struggled with the sorcerers’ form of magic. Wizarding magic had felt right. She could feel the buzz of magic when she’d first hold her wand in her hand. She’d had far more success with wizarding spells than with sorcery, but even then she’d struggled. Maybe he was disappointed, as all her teachers were. “I’m probably not very good.”

“Lily.” He said, shaking his head in amazement. “These are all Owl and Newt level spells. And this was the first magic you learned, by yourself, in a few months?”

“Yes?” Lily said tremulously. “Is that… good?”

“Good? You’re a natural!” Lily beamed under his praise. “Many would have a lot harder time learning much simpler spells with a proper teacher.” She could scarcely believe it. She spent so much time being worried that she wasn’t good enough, that she was dead weight, with no talent. The assurance that not only she wasn't, but that she was gifted, was hard to accept.

“Are you sure?” She asked.

Her dad chuckled. “Positive. Look, I’ll prove it to you. Let’s run through some first year spells. You up for it?” Lily nodded. “Okay, brace yourself.” He waved his hand, and on the floor in front of her, appeared a feather. Her dad demonstrated the spell, carefully enunciating the incantation “Wingardium Leviosa.” As he swished and flicked his wand. The feather dutifully rose in the air. Then he had her practice the wand motion, and emphasized the importance of state of mind.

“Self-doubt kills magic.” Harry told her “More often than not, if you don’t think you can cast a spell, then you won’t be able to. If you believe you can do something, and can picture it happening in your mind, your magic will work for you.” His eyes grew distant “When I was your age, I struggled all year with this spell called the ‘Patronus Charm’. I could never get it to work properly. Then, through some weird time travel magic, I saw my future self cast it. Once I realized that, I could cast it no problem, because I knew I could do it.”

“Right.” Lily nodded, torn between trying the spell and interrogating her dad about his story. He was like that, she’d realized. His stories were amazing and impossible, and she always wanted to hear more. Why was he time travelling that time? Did that have anything to do with the state of the world now? What was a Patronus Charm? Those could wait. “I can do this. Its just a feather. It doesn’t stand a chance.” She told herself.

“That’s the spirit.” He smiled. His confidence gave her confidence. She didn’t think she’d ever felt more sure of herself. Before doubt could creep back in, she closed her eyes and pictured the feather in her mind. She imagined it lifting off just as her dad had done. Swish. Flick. “Winguardium Leviosa.”

Lily braced herself and screwed her eyes open. Her dad’s proud smile awaited her, and she belatedly realized the feather was floating.

“What did I tell you, Lils? A natural.”

-----

“She’s amazing.” Harry said, beaming. They had once again fallen into bed and were basking in the afterglow. It hadn’t even been his intention, he really had just wanted to talk to Nat about their daughter… but they had a habit of letting things get out of hand.

“Isn’t she?” Natasha smiled into his chest. “I won’t lie. I’d be happy to forget most of what happened in this life, but… not Lily.”

For the first time, he felt a pang of loss. He’d been so overwhelmed with the fact that she was alive and here, that he hadn’t contemplated just how much he had missed “I wish I could have been there.”

“Me too.” Nat said “But… that’s what we’re here to fix.” Harry took that thought and held it close to his heart. He’d do anything to give Lily a normal childhood. She’d been so happy today, but he knew that this was a rarity. It was just one more reason to fight, to fix all of this.

“Yeah. We’ll fix this.” Harry nodded. With Natasha on his side and with the help of the Sorcerers, it felt much more doable. He wasn’t stranded alone in the wilderness, but there were many more people he needed to bring into the fold.

“Let’s talk about Ginny.” Natasha pivoted.

“Sure.” Harry sighed “Look, I’m just concerned. You barely know each other. I don’t want either of you to commit to something you regret. All you know for sure you have in common is me.” Nat nodded thoughtfully, letting him say his piece “I think you two should get to know each other a little more, before jumping into this.”

“There’s one problem with that plan.” Natasha said gently “Generally, ex-girlfriends aren’t too happy to be making friends with their partner’s current woman.” Harry winced “She probably feels like she missed her chance with you. She’s going to try to distance herself from us so she can get over it.”

“Right.” Harry sighed, feeling like a bit of a berk “It wouldn’t be fair to her to keep her in limbo like that.”

“It is a good idea for us to get to know each other, but she needs to know the score.” Natasha said, coaching.

“Assuming she even wants to join.” Harry added.

“She probably will.” Natasha explained “Wizarding society, as far as I can tell, is different from your original world.”

“I’d gathered.” Harry snorted. That was putting it lightly- Dumbledore and Grindelwald ruling with an iron fist was a bit of a tip off.

“One of the differences is the sex ratio.” She said “Because the magical population centers are so protected, its much rarer for magical civilians to be targeted.”

“And almost all wizards go into the military.” Harry finished for her. “So…”

“So, its very common for a wizard to take several wives or mistresses.” Nat completed seamlessly “My only concern is…”

“How her experiences from my world come into play.” Harry frowned thoughtfully “If anyone knows what she’s going through there, it’s you.”

Nat looked pensive “It’s difficult.” She said, finally “I know its affected me, remembering everything. I’m different now, than before I met you, but… better.” Harry patiently waited for her to sort out her thoughts. He’d been worried about how she, and Ginny, had been coping with having two sets of memories. They seemed to be functioning well, but both his girls tended to tough their problems out “ I like who I was better, in our world.” She said, smiling faintly "Being with you, it made me a better person. But it’s not like there’s two people in my head fighting for control. I can't just forget everything that happened in this world, its a part of me now, too."

They lay together thoughtfully for a few minutes. Finally, Harry said “I’ll talk to her.”

“No, we’ll talk to her.” Natasha’s eyes sparkled mischievously.

-----

Their plan, such as it was, had to be put aside as soon as Harry and Nat ventured out of their room. The Ancient One was ready for them. As eager as Harry was to talk to Ginny, he knew it could wait.

“Thank you all for joining me.” The Ancient One opened, as if she had invited them all to tea. There were no conference rooms in the sanctum, so they had all piled into a training room and were sitting on the floor in circular formation.

“Of course.” Harry said. “We have a lot to talk about.” There were murmurs of agreement. Harry’s haphazardly assembled crew – Ginny, Neville, Ron, and Peggy, were joined by Natasha and Lily, who sat between her parents. The Ancient One had also invited one other sorcerer, and man Harry recognized- Wong.

He wondered if there was a Stephen Strange in this universe. It was his plan, guided by the time stone, that had eventually led Harry to this point, after narrowly skirting disaster several times. He wondered if Strange had foreseen this, or if Deaths’ machinations had gone over his head. He wondered if he’d ever get to ask him.

“Master Wong is aware of the nature of this reality, but remarkably, his knowledge is out of date.” Wong raised a curious eyebrow “And I find that to be as good a place as any to begin. Imagine, for a moment, that you’ve broken two vases. You take the pieces, and reassemble them into one vase. What would the result be?”

“A kludged together mess.” Ron snorted.

“Indeed. That is the world we live in.” The Ancient One said “There are glitches, inconsistencies. Effects without causes.” Her eyes lingered on Lily.

“So does that mean… I’m some sort of glitch, or mistake?” Lily whispered. “I shouldn’t even exist, should I?”

"No.” Harry said fiercely.

“You’re real, Lily. You existed in our world.” Natasha told her “If the universe hadn’t blown up, we would have raised you together.”

She didn’t look like she fully believed them, but easily folded herself into Harry’s arms. He marveled at how natural it felt, how comfortable they both were at the contact. There was nothing more abhorrent to him than the suggestion that Lily might be a mistake. “You’re no accident, Lily.” Then he snickered “Okay technically Nat and I weren’t planning to conceive…”

"Oh my god.” Lily groaned, detaching from the hug to chuckles all around “I get it, I’ll stop moping.” She pouted.

“It isn’t a question of whether someone is real or not.” The Ancient One assured “This isn’t a question of reality, merely causality. Lily’s conception never occurred, as far as this universe is concerned, and yet…”

“_____ mentioned something like this.” Neville said, grimacing as he realized that Riddle’s fidelius charm was limiting him.

“Voldemort.” Harry supplied “A very powerful, psychotic wizard who’s working behind the scenes.” The Fidelius didn’t allow anyone to link Riddle’s name to anything incriminating, but Voldemort? That was a pseudonym that didn’t exist in this universe, and so Riddle couldn’t have accounted for.

“Yeah.” Neville said “He showed me. I didn’t know precisely how my parents had died, until he questioned me about it. Its’... freaky.”

"To those with insight, this is not news. But this knowledge of the world leaves as many questions as it answers.” The Ancient One continued “Care to ask?”

“How the universe was broken, and how its being held together now.” Wong said succinctly.

“Last night, I found the answer to both those questions.” She looked at Harry, her expression inscrutable. It almost felt like being back in Dumbledore’s office as the old Professor dispensed tidbits of wisdom to him.

“Me?” Harry ventured a guess.

“The story you told me last night put the pieces together.” She chuckled “Quite literally, it would seem.”

“The time stone was caught in a feedback loop during my battle with Voldemort and Hela.” Harry said “That’s what broke everything. I tried to fix everything, but…”

“You only did so partially.” The Ancient One nodded “To be fair, it was a tall order. You became the shatter point, Harry. Your timeline, and both universes, reassembled around you.”

“What do you, mean, around me?”

“Do you find it odd, that in a world where events turned out so differently, you just so happen to be running into all of your old friends and enemies?” The Ancient One pressed “Ginny, Neville, and Ron. Voldemort. Natasha. Lily. Carol Danvers. Quite the string of coincidences, isn’t it?” Harry rubbed his forehead, fighting back the dizziness.

“And what about the time stone?” Natasha asked, well aware of how important it would be for their plans.

“Well, it’s a bit obvious in hindsight.” The Ancient One mused “After all, where did you find Harry originally?”

“At the very center of the time vortex in London.” Ginny breathed. “He wasn’t even affected by it.”

"And when you touched him?” None of them needed to answer. Both Ginny and Nat had recovered their memories from him, in a flash of green light. “The time stone, or whatever was left of it, was absorbed into you, Harry. If you can find a way to channel it…” In hindsight, it did make a lot of sense. He wasn’t sure how he hadn’t realized it before. In fairness, he’d had a lot on his mind.

"Whatever was left of it?" He asked.

"Well, tell me Harry. How did it feel, when you absorbed it, do you remember?"

"Like..." He stretched his mind. "Like shards of glass, burning inside of me."

The Ancient One nodded in satisfaction. "Perhaps this is why its behavior seems so erratic. Its possible the Time Stone was damaged- shattered, if you will- when it was caught in the feedback loop."

“Could he use it to fix everything?” Peggy asked. “That seems too easy.”

“No.” Harry shook his head “The Time Stone isn’t enough. We need more.” The Ancient One nodded in agreement.

"Wielding even a single infinity stone is almost unheard of.” Wong said “But several at once, let alone all of them?”

“I’ve seen it done.” Natasha said bluntly. “Carol Danvers can do it.”

“You mean Binary?” Ron grimaced “The Hydra superweapon?”

“My friend.” Harry said “If I can bring her back…” Maybe with the time stone, he could bring her memories back, but he wasn’t sure if that would be enough to break Hydra’s conditioning. He had so many people he needed to find. Wanda, at least, seemed to be safe. Skye was a mystery to him, but the Ancient One’s words had assured him that she was out there somewhere. Hermione and Luna weighed heavily on his mind, but while he had some thoughts about where the Order might have taken them, he had nothing solid to go on. Then there was-

“The conditioning isn’t unbreakable.” Natasha reminded “Shuri managed it, with Bucky Barnes.” Peggy’s eyebrows rose at the familiar name, while Harry’s thoughts stumbled. Wait…

“Who’s Shuri, again?” Ginny asked.

“Princess of Wakanda.” Natasha explained “Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure Wakanda will shoot first and ask questions later, if any of us try to visit.”

“Nat.” Harry said, his voice strained “Shuri was… At the end, Shuri was…”

No one else followed, which was fine. Harry wasn’t in the mood to explain the exact nature of his and Natasha’s relationship just yet. “Oh.” Nat’s eyes went wide, as she too realized. Shuri had been pregnant. She hadn’t yet decided whether to keep it, hadn’t had time to before everything went to hell. If Natasha had had Lily, that might mean… “Oh my god.”

-----

It didn’t hurt as much as she’d thought- seeing Harry with Lily. She knew it was everything Harry had ever wanted. She could see his happiness, the awe in his eyes, just like a father holding his newborn child. She wished she could have been the one to give that to him, but she couldn’t regret his joy. Still, Ginny did her best to avoid Harry and Natasha, but it was easier said than done. Harry had followed her after the meeting. She’d had an excuse on her lips, but it had died when Harry had looked at her so earnestly, hopefully, and said “Ginny, could we talk?”

She couldn’t say no to him, not when he was looking at her like that, so she nodded, and let him lead her away, to an alcove. The room was small, intimate. It reminded her of the nooks in Hogwarts that students would steal away to snog in. “I’m sorry about the way I went about this. I wasn’t expecting to meet Natasha, or for us to reconnect so quickly.”

Ginny’s spirits sank, it was this talk. “You don’t need to apologize, you don't owe me anything.” They were even, technically, broken up when they had last known each other, and she wasn’t egotistical enough to expect his fidelity in his situation.

“I didn’t tell you all the personal details about my time in the other universe.” Harry pushed on “Some of it is painful, but a lot is just… awkward.”

“Is this going anywhere?" She said shortly, letting her temper get the better of her "Because I don’t want an apology. I don’t want you to feel bad for finding happiness with someone else.”

“Nat and I are poly.” He blurted.

What? “What?”

“Nat is bisexual, and we had a few other lovers in our world.” The words kept on coming, and they were perfect English, but Ginny couldn’t make sense of them. Was he saying… what she thought he was saying? “I hope you don’t take this offer the wrong way. If you’re not interested, I fully respect your decision. But, Ginny, I love you.” The declaration took her breath away “If you’re interested in continuing things, of joining me and Nat… well, take your time with deciding, but I’d really like to give things a proper go with you.”

“Is Natasha okay with this? She doesn’t even know me.”

“Sure.” Ginny startled at the older woman’s voice as Natasha sidled into their little alcove. Had she been there all this time?

Natasha’s presence only made the room feel smaller. Ginny could easily see how Harry had fallen for her. She wasn’t just beautiful- though she absolutely was, even battle hardened and scarred, she could put the most pampered pureblood heiress to shame- she was talented, capable, and confident. She wasn’t co*cky, but she had such a complete self-assuredness, a comfort in her own skin that few people embodied so well. She was…compelling, Ginny could see that even after just meeting her. The thought of… exploring things with Natasha Romanoff was not a distressing one in the slightest. She just wasn’t sure what the woman saw in her.

“We’ve only just met, its true, Ginny, but you’re underestimating just how much Harry talks about you.” She shot Harry a sly smile, and he huffed slightly. “I know that as a kid, you snuck out at night and rode your brothers’ brooms, because your parents wouldn’t let you. I know that you’ve had a crush on Harry for as long as you’ve known him. I know that at eleven, you spent a year fighting the mental control of the most feared dark lord of the century on your own. At fourteen, you stood by Harry’s side fighting against evil wizards, when almost no one else would. Your favorite spell causes bats to crawl out of people’s noses and attack them. You were the best chaser on Harry’s quidditch team, and the second-best seeker. I know you refused to work for the Order in this world, and when Voldemort attacked Harry just the other day, you were the first person at his side. Most importantly, I know Harry loves you, and you love him.”

Ginny shook her head, oddly flattered. “You really just told her my entire life story, didn’t you Potter?”

Harry shrugged “What can I say? I loved you, and I missed you. Natasha was patient enough to listen to me ramble about you all.”

“The point is. Even though we’ve never met, you’re someone I respect. You’re strong, resilient. You’ve seen some terrible things, but you didn’t let that destroy you. You still know how to have fun, to laugh and joke, and love. That sounds like someone I’d like to get to know better.”

“Oh.” Ginny breathed. When she put it like that, it felt almost one-sided. What did she really know about Natasha Romanoff? Very little. “You have me at a disadvantage, then.” She said “Where does that leave us? What if we go through with this, and we just don’t have chemistry?”

At that, Natasha’s lips curved upward- it was unfairly alluring. Suddenly, she was right in front of Ginny. Very deliberately, she took hold of Ginny’s shoulder’s and pressed her into the wall. Touch starved as she was, that simple touch made her shiver. Ginny was transfixed as Natasha leaned in, her eyes drawn down to her lips. “Well.” She said, her voice a sultry purr “Lets test that out, shall we?” Ginny jerked her head in a nod, and Natasha’s lips claimed hers. Ginny squeaked as they made contact, and whined as Natasha’s tongue sculpted out her mouth. When she pulled back, Ginny was left breathless.

“I don’t think chemistry is a problem, do you?”

“No. I reckon not.” Ginny murmured, touching her lips absently. In the corner of her eye, Harry seemed nearly as affected as she was. His lips were parted just slightly as a flush graced his cheeks. Most strikingly of all, his eyes burned, and Ginny felt herself heat under his gaze.

“Harry never did tell you our story, did he?” Natasha asked, and Ginny shook her head.

“I met him about two years after he was stranded there.” She said, shaking her head “He was wonderful, but I was an idiot and threw him away. By the time I realized the mistake I’d made, he was with another woman- Skye.”

“Then how did you end up with him?”

“I was lucky. Skye, it turned out, was nearly as attracted to me as she was to Harry. And she wasn’t particularly committed to monogamy. She gave me- us- a chance, and we never regretted it. So, Ginny-” Natasha took a step towards her, and her seductive smile was just unfair “Do you want to take a chance?”

Chapter 12: Returning

Chapter Text

The wind was bitter and strong, it had been since she’d made planetfall. It was like the planet itself was protesting her intrusion, though she knew that this weather was typical for Jotunheim. It had been a fruitless year on this worthless planet, and a fruitless decade putting out fires across the nine realms.

The new arrival took the weather far worse than her, but he persevered, bowing low in acknowledgement. “Goddess.” He said, a fearful worship in his voice. She liked it. She did not know him, but she could tell that he was young. As a captain, he was of low rank to be debriefing her, but given his age, it meant that he’d risen through the ranks quickly. “I bring news from Ear- Midgard.”

“Go on.” She said.

The man hesitated, swallowed his courage and then spoke “The Time Vortex has been breached. A team of wizards retrieved two people from within.”

Hela froze, a frisson of fear lancing through her, before being replaced by anger. “When.” She snapped. The man hesitated. “Answer me.”

“Four days ago.”

“And why am I only hearing about this now?”

“To be blunt.” He said “The Agent in charge was trying to cover his ass.”

Now she understood. He was the messenger. She was meant to take her anger out on him, rather than on the Heads of Hydra. She would not play their game. Regardless, she had more important priorities right now. “So the Order has him.” She murmured. It had to be him- Harry Potter. The man who had killed her in another world, with a weapon that was rightfully hers, and broken the universe in yet another rather than let her win. The situation wasn’t unsalvageable, but she’d need to act fast.

“It wasn’t the Order, my Queen.” The man interrupted. “The Order was there, but they were also fighting them.”

That… complicated things. If killing Harry Potter was as simple as leveling every last wizarding bastion, that was doable. She’d spent decades doing much the same- cleansing the world of those abominations. She’d destroyed schools, towns, and fortresses, one after another. It had been a long, brutal process, but she was patient, and did not care how many of her own followers died. When she had left to finally reclaim her throne on Asgard a decade ago, she’d left the wizarding world on what she'd assumed was the brink of destruction. She had hoped that Hydra would be able to finish them off, but without her they'd only lost ground. The Order, still led vigorously by Dumbledore and Grindelwald, had not been left as weak as she had thought.

Perhaps leaving hadn’t been her best decision, but Odin had just fallen into Odinsleep, and the opening was too tempting for her to ignore. She’d expected a glorious return home, and she’d been disappointed. The prince- Thor- had fought her at every turn, waging a guerilla war across the nine realms. It was why she was at Jotunheim, Prince Loki of the Frost Giants had made a pact with him, and that was an alliance she couldn’t allow to strengthen. But her time here had been spent trying to catch smoke. She could kill as many Frost Giants as she pleased, but it did not give her final victory. She was almost grateful that something more important required her attention. “What’s your name, Captain?” She asked.

“Erics. Captain Henry Erics.” The man said. She appraised him for a moment. She appreciated the regard he held her in, and his composure in what he must have believed was certain death. He wasn’t bad to look at, either.

“Henry, you are my liaison now. We will inform your superiors when we return to Midgard.” She decided. He would make a good pet, she supposed.

“When are we going?”

“Now.” With that, they disappeared in a flash of blue light.

Far away, Heimdal blinked as his vision cleared. Thor would want to know about this.

-----

“Go ahead.” Harry goaded, spreading his arms open in invitation “Let me see what you got.”

Lily’s eyes glinted at the challenge, she seemed to have no compunctions about hexing him. “Expelliarmus!” Harry let the spell hit him, and was pleased that his wand ripped from his grip- though he did not go flying back. Lily snatched the wand out of the air triumphantly. She’d made remarkable progress- wingardium leviosa, lumos, the knockback jinx, and beginner level transfiguration were all a breeze for her. It was clear where to go from there- defense.

“Ah, expelliarmus.” Ron said, walking through the doorway. “Y’know, Harry used that spell to fight Voldemort.”

“Technically.” Harry allowed. It had been a useful argument when teaching the DA, so that they would take the lessons seriously, but Lily certainly didn’t have that problem. She soaked everything up like a sponge, hanging onto every tidbit of advice he dropped. “But you know that’s because of-” Harry paused, something clicking in his mind “Wait, how did you know that?” He asked, with something close to hope.

“Err.” Ron scratched his head “I dunno. It just came to me.”

“Okay, but how did you fight a Dark Lord with a disarming spell?” Lily asked. The only thing that rivaled her enthusiasm for magic was her desire to learn more about him.

Harry looked at Ron with a raised eyebrow, wondering if he would know. “Oh, erm…” He hummed, then snapping his fingers “Priori incantatem!”

“Five points to Gryffindor.” Harry said with a grin. He turned back to Lily. “Essentially, our wands had the same core- a feather from the same phoenix. They refused to be used against each other, it was quite the light show.” He explained “We had a battle of wills, that I managed to win, and his wand began… showing the previous spells it had performed. Which-” He grimaced “In that case, meant showing echoes of all the people he had killed. They helped me escape.”

“That’s possible?” Lily asked “Bringing people back?”

“Death’s… a tricky subject. Officially, there’s supposed to be no way to bring people back from the dead.” Harry explained, going fully into teacher mode. Ron too, seemed interested “But there are ghosts at Hogwarts.” Lily blinked in surprise “As well as portraits of dead people who can talk and interact with you. And then there’s the resurrection stone.”

“Isn’t that just a fairy tale?” Ron asked “The Tales of Beedle and Bard?” Clearly, he didn’t remember everything.

“Legends often have a basis in truth.” Harry said enigmatically “The Deathly Hallows exist. Though they certainly do not give one the power of life and death, as the legends say. The Resurrection Stone doesn’t fully resurrect people- again, they’re like echoes. Of course, there’s time travel, which is its whole other can of worms.”

"I wanted to ask about that, actually.” Lily broached “You said you time travelled another time, at school?”

Ron put a hand on his forehead “Oh Merlin, I remember. We were bloody saving Buckbeak.”

"Buckbeak?” Lily asked.

“We had Hermione researching legal precedent.” Ron continued, seeming to relive the whole saga “Bloody hell! Hermione punched Malfoy in the face.” Harry snickered, even after all these years, it was a treasured memory. Lily’s curiosity had only grown more intense, so he committed to telling her the story, letting Ron jump in when he remembered something.

“-and then this one.” He jabbed a thumb at Ron “Who could barely stand from his injury, told the wanted mass murderer that if he was going to kill me, he’d have to kill him too.” Ron blushed. “I really have the best friends.”

At that, Lily grew wistful, and Harry felt like a cad. While Harry had eventually been able to make friends, Lily was still isolated. Her life had been lonely, even lonelier than his on balance. He hadn’t meant to rub it in her face. “Hey.” He said “You will too.” He felt helpless. He had nothing to back up his words, no practicable way of achieving them. Parents couldn’t force other teens to make friends with their children. In a very real way, she was utterly unlike any of her peers. No wonder she was clinging to him- he and Natasha were all she had.

“Hogwarts, sounds amazing.” She said.

“It was the first place that felt like home to me.” Harry admitted “Before, I always felt like an outsider, unwanted. It wasn’t the magic though; it was the people.” Lily nodded, and he had no doubt she related to that immensely.

“Its not the same, now.” Ron said, darkly. “We make it sound like a fairytale, and in some ways it still is, but… ” He shook his head “The entire place is a factory now- training people to kill and die.”

Lily looked downcast, and Harry knew what she must be thinking. She’d hoped that Hogwarts might have been a place where she could find people like her, people she could be friends with, and that hope had just been crushed. Grasping, he hit upon something to lift her spirits “We’re going to be looking for more friends and allies, Lily. A lot of us are misfits in our own way. It’ll get better, you’ll see.” He desperately hoped so, because as much as he wanted to nurture the bond between them, Harry knew that there was a very good chance he might not make it out of this alive. She couldn’t cling to him forever.

She digested his words, and though she didn’t look so morose, she didn’t look convinced either. “So, the story?” She asked tentatively.

Harry seized on the distraction “Right, so it turned out that the wanted mass murderer was innocent, and my godfather. The real traitor all along was…” He paused for dramatic effect “A rat.”

“A rat?” Lily repeated “Is this, like, a metaphorical rat?”

“Oh god, I just remembered.” Ron groaned “It was f*cking Scabbers.”

-----

Ginny was doomed, truly utterly doomed. Natasha had followed up on their decision to get to know each other better, and she wanted a refund. It was bad enough that Harry’s partner was hot as hell- she also knew exactly how to use it and could see through Ginny’s every attempt to hide how affected she was. The conversation was easy enough- between Ginny’s time at Hogwarts and Natasha’s as an Avenger they had plenty to talk about. Natasha talked at length about her adventures with Harry, and Ginny listened with a hint of longing. She’d missed so much of his life, and he’d missed so much of hers. Could they really bridge that gap?

Ginny’s real problem, though, was that Natasha spared no opportunity to tease. As soon as she’d managed to maneuver Ginny into a cloistered sitting room to ‘talk privately’, all bets were off. Yes, Ginny was aware of the way Natasha’s outfit complimented her cleavage. Yes, she saw the sway of Natasha’s hips as she walked. Yes, she was aware of how Natasha touched her- on her forearm, on her shoulder, and on her thigh. She couldn’t deny that each touch affected her. It made it very difficult to feel sorry for herself over the time she and Harry had missed.

More devastating than her physical touch, were Natasha’s words. She went out of her way to praise Ginny, whether to compliment her quick thinking in one of her stories, or to tell her how cute she was when she blushed- which was good because that blush was a near constant feature right now. Ginny knew what Natasha was doing. Her insecurities around the older woman must be obvious. Knowing why Natasha was acting this way didn’t mitigate it’s effectiveness, and Ginny found herself feeling butterflies several times.

Naturally, their conversation often revolved around Harry. He was the main thing they shared- other than trauma- and Natasha turned out to be an excellent sounding board. They talked about his recklessness- Natasha bemoaned it. And while Ginny could sympathize, she couldn’t bring herself to agree. “Natasha, its just… yes, he’s reckless. But he’s also decisive.” Ginny said “Without that, I’d be dead. No sane person would have tried to save me. He fought a basilisk with no hope of backup. You might call that stupid, but he saved my life. He’s saved other people’s lives like that, too.”

Natasha had softened, and conceded that sometimes Harry’s decisiveness was exactly what was needed in an emergency, and Ginny had extended an olive branch by explaining that she’d had always just wished he’d stop trying to go it alone- that whatever daft plan he came up with, he’d include her, or at least Ron and Hermione. Natasha had easily signed on to that. But naturally, Natasha managed to steer the conversation to more licentious topics. “So, I know you two lost your virginity to each other.” Ginny ducked her head, while Natasha chuckled “That’s sweet. How was it?”

Ginny hesitated for a moment, but realized that she’d never actually gotten the chance to talk about it. Her regular sounding board for all things Harry had been Hermione, but Ginny’d had a feeling that Hermione would not have been interested in hearing Ginny gush about getting laid by her best friend. Regardless, Hermione had left not long after, and in the following year, it had been wise to keep shut about just how close she and Harry’s relationship had been. “It was brilliant.” She said, not bothering to keep the enthusiasm out of her voice.

“No first time awkwardness?” Natasha probed.

“I was expecting something to go wrong.” Ginny confessed “But really, the hard part was us finding some time alone. It was in the runup to my brother’s wedding, so the house was hectic, especially with a family like mine.” Natasha smiled, nodding along as Ginny told her tale “It was Harry’s ‘birthday present’, you see.”

“Clever.” Natasha said “Harry loves his presents.”

“But then Ron walked in on us, on purpose! He didn’t want Harry ‘leading me on’ or some rubbish.” Ginny rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. “Like I couldn’t take care of myself. I had to beg Hermione to ‘take a long walk’ so that Harry and I could get some private time in my room.” It was a relief, finally getting to talk about it, and once the words started they didn’t stop.

“You gotta do what you gotta do.” Natasha nodded sagely “So it was worth it?”

Ginny snorted “Of course it was! I mean- I’ve heard stories from other girls, about their first times being… a little underwhelming. I’d been like, obsessed with Harry for years… I thought about it a lot. I was worried it’d never live up to expectations, but it was good, it was so good.”

“Harry’s very attentive.” Natasha agreed, rubbing her thigh. Ginny shivered, the topic of conversation was only exacerbating her… condition. Thinking about that night never failed to get her keyed up. “Though I wondered how much he had to learn his first time. Was he just a natural?”

“Er, it was more like I was easy. I guess.” Ginny huffed. “Like I said, he was my first crush, and I crushed hard. I could barely get words out around him for a couple years. So this was like, my ultimate fantasy. Like I said, I thought about it a lot. And when we got in bed together…” She remembered it so clearly. His broad shoulders and firm chest over her- his strength and solidity, and the heat of his body. “…and I just remember how he looked at me, like...” She breathed.

“Yeah, its intense.” Natasha said, her voice growing husky. “It’s his complete focus. Like he's completely consumed with you, and you’re the only thing that matters in the world.” The two of them sat in contemplative silence for a moment. Then she gave her that coy smile “So, tonight? Or do you still need to think about it?”

They both knew her answer.

-----

Ginny hadn’t been nervous during her first time with Harry, but her second first time with him brought out the nerves. They weren’t both virgins sharing their first time together. Maybe they’d no longer have chemistry. Maybe she’d never be able to measure up to Natasha’s experience and skill. Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be.

She knocked on the bedroom door, and Harry called for her to come in. She saw him, and her doubts slipped away. Since they’d initially discovered him in the nude, he’d dressed in simple robes fit for battle. Here, though, he’d dressed down- just in boxers and a T-shirt. She liked seeing him like this- so different from how he presented himself outside this room. It already felt private, intimate.

“I’m glad you’re here, Gin.” He said, his eyes warm and his voice brimming with affection. “I missed you.” She didn’t hesitate to wrap him in a hug. “Every day.”

“Me too, even if I didn’t know it.” She said. She’d always known that something was missing from her life, she’d just hadn’t known it was him. God, she loved him. Being in his arms felt right. Even when she was eleven on the worst day of her life, it had felt right. “I love you.” She said into his shirt.

“I love you too.” She could feel his words rumble in his chest, and it sent a thrill to her. Unthinking, she tilted her head up to kiss him. It took only a moment to find their rhythm. Harry had been a quick study under her careful tutelage during her fifth year, and they’d had some spectacular private moments together. She had worried that it wouldn’t feel natural after all these years, but it did. It felt so natural that all other thoughts began to melt away. Her hand wove through his hair- oh how’s she’d missed running her fingers through it- to tug him closer. Harry obliged, his tongue pressing and swiping skillfully.

If anything, it was even better than she’d remembered. When they’d been together, Harry had tended to wait for her to make the first move. It was sweet, but his overly cautious attitude, so at odds with his method in every other aspect of his life, was a bit of a hindrance at times. Now, he didn’t have such compunctions. He felt so much more self- assured. Confident in himself, but also in the fact that she wanted to be here. Harry had always had trouble accepting love and affection. It had broken her heart just a little and had inspired more than a few fantasies about bursting into Number 4 Privet Drive and exacting vengeance on the Dursleys.

Case in point, instead of waiting for Ginny to advance the plot, Harry took matters into his own hands, quite literally. His hands wandered freely down her back, with one moving down to cup her arse. Tingles shot up her spine, and Ginny whimpered into his mouth. She could feel his erection pressing prominently into her abdomen. It was maddening, and a heat throbbed in her core in response. Ginny hiked a leg up, and Harry lifted her, allowing her to wrap her legs securely around his waist. Her robes bunched up, and Harry sculpted his hand up the bare skin of her thighs. Her skin tingled at his touch, and he slipped his hand beneath her robes to re-take its place at her bum.

Her hips spasmed erratically against his hardness, but when Harry re-established his grip on her bum, he grinded against her with a firm, deliberate pressure. His hardness rubbed right against her cl*t, and Ginny saw stars. “Fuuuuuck!” She moaned, tearing her mouth from his as she shuddered. With Harry’s guidance, they repeated the motion, each time drawing another pulse of hot pleasure.

“You want my co*ck, Gin?” Harry teased, his voice curling with desire. She nodded, a broken whimper escaping her lips. “What was that, Gin?” He pressed, as he also pressed his hips forward.

“Fuuuck, I want it!” Ginny burst. “I want your f*cking co*ck!” Harry tossed her onto the bed, and the casual display of strength did things to her. He shucked off his shirt in a well-practiced motion, and Ginny stared. Her eyes roved across the expanse of bare skin, drinking in his musculature in a way she hadn’t been able to when they’d found him in the time vortex. Then her gaze dipped down, she could see the shape of his co*ck as it strained against the thin layer of fabric that contained it.

“Impressive, isn’t he?” Natasha commented. Ginny startled, just now noticing that the woman had joined them. She was wearing a simple nightgown, and had taken a seat on the bed next to Ginny.

“Nat.” Harry huffed good naturedly.

“What? She was literally drooling.” Natasha said, and Ginny, blushing, rushed to swipe at her chin. “Not that I blame her.” She winked.

Natasha’s entrance had broken the moment, and Ginny was forced to wonder how things would work with the three of them. Was the night supposed to be about her and Harry, or did Natasha want to take an equal role? Were Ginny and Natasha going to both focus on Harry? Or was Natasha planning on following up with her flirting?

"How is this supposed to work?” She asked “I’ve never actually done anything like this, and well, you’re the expert.”

“Yeah, you’re the threesome expert, Nat.” Harry teased “Please guide us.”

“I do happen to have a plan.” She admitted.

“Of course you do.” Harry said warmly.

“Oh, hush.” Natasha huffed. She turned to Ginny “You’ve only had sex one time, right?”

"What about it?” She asked, defensive.

“Well, with Harry taking such a shine to teaching, I thought I’d prepare my own course.” Her eyes glittered with mischief “Let’s call it, Harry 101.”

-----

“We have news.” Albus Dumbledore said gravely “It is imperative that this stays between us. We don’t want to cause a panic.”

There were days where, despite his daily consumption of the elixir of life, he felt every bit his age. This was one of them. Looking out at the concerned faces of his most trusted, and talented lieutenants.

“Don’t leave us in suspense, Albus.” Minerva chided, covering for her own anxiety.

“I have heard from a source within Hydra that Hela.” Everyone in the room, save Tom, flinched “Has returned to Earth.”

“sh*t.” Lily said eloquently.

“Indeed.” Albus agreed. He had already discussed the news with Gellert. And their consensus had been much the same. They’d stood against Hela together, the self proclaimed Goddess of Death, Queen of Asgard, the ‘Wizard’s Bane’, and they both knew how dangerous she was. She was terribly fast, impossible to pin down, resistant to magic, physically strong and resilient, and able to conjure weapons faster than any wizard alive. Bastion after bastion, no matter how heavily warded or defended, had fallen to her. Albus still dreamt of stumbling down the halls of Beauxbatons, tripping over the bodies. Hogwarts and Nurmengard were the few bastions left, and the only ones that had proven to withstand a direct assault from the goddess herself.

“We’ve benefited greatly from her absence.” Tom said “But we knew it couldn’t last forever.”

“No, it could not. But one would always hope for more time.” Albus said wearily.

“What plans do we have in place for this?” Lily asked.

He and Gellert had discussed this at length. At times, it felt like the war had consumed the entirety of their relationship, just as it had consumed the world. They both spent most of their time apart, putting out various fires wherever they could. When they did meet, their conversation was about the war. There was little room left for affection, or even sentimentality. Perhaps one day…

“Yes, that is why I’ve called you here.” Albus said “Any projects you have in the works should be implemented as soon as possible.” His eyes focused on Lily “I understand you’ve been working with some former students.” That was an incredibly charitable description of her work, he knew “It is time for them to be ready for action.”

“There is also the Asgardian.” Severus mentioned.

“We don’t have a way to make her compliant.” Lily said shortly “She can even throw off the imperius.”

Severus just hummed, a tight-lipped expression that gave nothing away.

“Perhaps… I could have a go with her.” Tom suggested. Indeed, his imperius was perhaps the strongest of any in the room.

Both Lily and Severus hesitated, for once they seemed to be in agreement. Neither one wanted Tom encroaching on their ‘territory’. “This is not the time for territorial squabbles.” Dumbledore snapped “You will work with each other, and share all relevant information.”

“Of course, sir.” Severus nodded. Tom looked pleased with himself.

“Albus.” Lily redirected “I’m not sure that my subjects are ready.”

“Then you will ensure that they are.” Dumbledore returned, brooking no argument. “The survival of our species, and the life of your son, depends upon it.”

Lily flinched, cowed. “Yes, sir.” She said. The discussion did not last much longer, and the three walked out to return to their work, leaving Dumbledore alone with Minerva.

“Albus.” She asked “You’ve always said that you appreciate my candor. Is that still true?”

“Of course.” He replied.

“You are making a mistake.”

“I know that there are risks in accelerating these projects, but…”

“That’s not what I’m referring to.” Minerva said. “Do you really think that we can defeat her?”

Albus shook his head “I don’t know.” He’d spent decades looking for the Hallows, sure that they were the key to defeating the Goddess of Death. Gellert wielded the Elder Wand, but the stone and the cloak seemed to be beyond them. That had been the goal of the ill-fated war on the goblins. He had hoped that the race had acquired one of the hallows for themselves, but while they had recovered many valuable artifacts, the hallows had not been among them.

With his life’s work coming to nothing, Dumbledore was forced to confront a hard reality. Perhaps Hogwarts, Nurmengard, and the other remaining wizarding bastions could withstand Hela’s fury, perhaps he and Gellert could win the upper hand on her in a duel. But even if they did, it would be at an immense cost. Even if they won, they would lose.

“Then why not find allies?” Minerva argued “The merfolk, the centaurs, the goblins. Even the sorcerers and mutants. They are all enemies of Hydra, we could work together.”

Albus sighed, a bone deep weariness settling in. It was an argument that Minerva could make because she was a woman. She hadn’t been a recruit, hadn’t experienced the realities of war. While she knew of the things that they had done, she didn’t know. Lily had once suggested something similar, when she had first been brought into his circle. She didn’t anymore.

For everything they had done, there was a reason, or at least a justification. The mutants were a threat, the Goblins and Sorcerers could have held the Hallows. It had all been for the survival of their race, and yet…

“Minerva.” He said, deciding to match her candor “If they had done to us what we have done to them, we would let them die too.”

Chapter 13: Harry 101

Chapter Text

“Oooh, professor!” Ginny tittered playfully “Are you going to teach me how to hold a wand?”

“Among other things.” Natasha purred “It’s a very intense course, are you sure you’re up for it?” Ginny nodded, her eyes trailing speculatively at Harry’s crotch. “I see you’re eager to get started.” She said. Her tone was overly formal, almost jaunty. “Harry will, naturally, be my assistant for this class. If you would.” Harry understood her meaning and slipped off his boxers.

Ginny stared, wide eyed. She’d seen him nude before, in another life and just a few days ago, but it didn’t take anything away from the impact that seeing him now had on her. He really was gorgeous- lithe and muscular, and with that final scrap of fabric gone... His co*ck jutted out boldly from his body in a way that felt distinctly masculine, like it was projecting his masculinity to the world. Though she didn’t have anything to compare it to, he looked big- big, and thick, and flushed with desire. She felt arrested by the sight, heart pounding in her ears, unable to do anything but stare.

“Go ahead.” Natasha encouraged, eyes gleaming “Get a feel for him.”

The words spurred her into motion, her hand jerking forward to almost grasp him. She hesitated for a moment, but Harry gave a nod of assent, and with a surge of conviction her fingers laced around his shaft. “Oh.” Ginny breathed, her eyes darkening.

“Feels good, doesn’t it?” Natasha prodded, as Ginny explored the contours of his length with curious fingers. She’d heard guys described as being ‘rock hard’, which didn’t do justice to how soft the skin felt. Beneath the silky skin was firmness that felt so enticing as her fingers flexed around it.

“Yeah.” Ginny murmured in a low voice. “Does this feel good?” She asked Harry, acutely aware of her inexperience.

“It feels nice.” Harry said sincerely, but Ginny was underwhelmed. She wanted it to be more than nice, she wanted him to beg and moan for more, to lose himself completely in her.

"Oh, you’ll need more than a little stroking if you want to blow his mind.” Natasha told her, seeming to read her mind “Now I’m sure that if you asked Harry, he’d say that he wants to flip you over and eat you out until you cum.” Harry raised an eyebrow at her “But I’m calling the shots right now, and I bet that you want to prove yourself. So-” She lowered her voice “How would you like to learn how to give a blowj*b?”

Ginny licked her lips and Harry’s breath caught. She liked the sound of that. “What do I do?” She asked.

Natasha guided her on, instructing her to press teasing kisses up his length, and then to focus on his tip. It was addictive, feeling this intimate part of him tremble beneath her touch and the heat of his flesh against her lips. Harry let loose a moan as her lips wrapped around his co*ckhead. “Gin.” He breathed.

Ginny felt Natasha’s hand at the back of her head, gently pushing her down and up his length in a bobbing motion. “That’s a good girl.” She praised “Worship his co*ck. Show Harry just how much you want him.” Ginny gave a muffled whine “How desperate you are for him. Channel all those nights lying awake in your bed, wanting him into this.” It was true, of course. She couldn’t count how many nights she’d imagined this, wanted this, dreamed of this.

With a renewed determination, Ginny began to bob her head more vigorously until she gagged audibly. Harry winced and pulled her up. “You don’t need to do that.” He said apologetically.

Ginny pouted, the only part of her hurting being her pride. Ignoring him, she turned to Nat and asked “How do I do that?”

“Lots of practice.” Natasha said “For now, focus on the tip. That’s the most sensitive region. Like so-” She dipped down and took him in her mouth. Where Ginny had been brash and enthusiastic, Natasha was skilled and precise, providing the perfect pressure and suction to draw a whine from him. Natasha’s mouth released him, and Ginny’s took its place as she did her best to replicate the motion.

“f*ck.” Harry hissed as her tongue swept across his frenulum. Feeling validated by his response, Ginny repeated the motion, bobbing and sucking and swiping with a single-minded determination. Soon, Harry’s hands were clenched in the bedsheets. “Gin. I’m close.” He warned, his voice straining.

“Be a good girl and swallow.” Natasha purred in Ginny’s ear, and her voice sent a shiver down her spine. Moments later, Harry tipped over the edge. Ginny could feel it in how his co*ck throbbed and hear it in how his breath hitched before he let loose a deep moan. Ginny tried to follow Natasha’s instructions but found herself utterly unprepared. His essence pooled on her tongue, and she barely had time to register the strong, male taste of him before another pulse was filling her mouth. She swallowed hurriedly, nearly choking on the unexpectedly thick consistency of him. More and more of his sem*n pulsed in, and she was quickly overwhelmed. Her next attempt to swallow ended with her coughing. His seed spilled out of her mouth and onto her chin, while his co*ck twitched free. Natasha was there to take it in her hand and milk the rest of his org*sm, letting it fall in strings across her face. Ginny could only pant for breath, feeling almost intoxicated. She hadn’t imagined that there’d be so much, that he’d be so virile.

Before Ginny could regain her bearings, and perhaps contemplate that she’d failed in the task she’d been given, Natasha kissed her. Ginny squeaked against her lips as her mouth was thoroughly plundered. Natasha then swept her tongue across Ginny’s cheek, collecting a streak of cum. “Hey!” Ginny protested playfully “That’s mine.” Natasha stuck her tongue out, displaying her takings, and Ginny responded by kissing her. They ‘fought’ over the rest of Harry’s essence, while Harry watched, poleaxed.

“f*ck.” He said under his breath, looking stunned. Ginny could live off that look.

“Come on.” Natasha said, sending a smirk Harry’s way “Let’s get you undressed.” Ginny nodded dumbly, and Natasha helped her slip out of her clothes, until she stood bare. It almost felt like Natasha was presenting her to him. Ginny felt exposed, she wasn’t particularly proud of her body. She’d never been particularly curvy- she was an A-cup at best- and she had her fair share of scars, the worst of which was a nasty burn on her thigh. She couldn’t help but feel slightly inferior next to Natasha and Harry, but the way Harry looked at her had a way of making her forget all of that. There wasn’t a hint of reservation in the way Harry’s eyes caressed her. She could almost feel the heat of his gaze against her skin, and her body physically responded. Her nipples hardened in the cool air, and a new surge of arousal began to leak from her sex.

Even if he could have faked the lust in his eyes, the stirring of his co*ck as it engorged again was a pretty solid indicator.

“Wow.” He whispered, and then louder, this time for her ears “You’re incredible, Gin.”

“So, what now?” Ginny asked, shifting her weight from foot to foot.

“C’mere.” Harry said simply. She let out a breathless gasp when Harry flipped her onto her back. His body pressed against hers, and the skin to skin contact felt incredible. She felt small beneath him, small, and cocooned and protected by the warmth and solidity of his body. He kissed her, far more gently than Natasha had. It was almost with a reverence, and combined with the tender way he caressed her cheek it made her feel… loved.

“I’m going to take care of you now.” He said. Ginny could only nod breathlessly. She was beyond ready for him. She felt hot, all over, but especially in her core, which had been taken by an aching emptiness that she instinctively knew could only be filled by his co*ck.

Then he began to kiss his way down her body, and Ginny realized he had other plans. “Told you.” Natasha snickered.

“Harry.” She whined “I’ve never- never… eep!” She squeaked as his mouth found her breast, tongue worrying her nipple. “I- oh!” What had she been saying?

“Don’t worry.” Harry murmured between kisses “All you need to do is-”

“-lay back, and enjoy.” Natasha finished for him, as his mouth had become preoccupied. Harry moved lower, but with excruciating patience. No matter how Ginny whined, he was not to be rushed. He peppered kisses up her inner thigh, pausing at the splotchy scarring to press a few, tender kisses to the marred skin. Natasha pulled Ginny’s head into her lap and began stroking her hair as Harry drew closer and closer to her core.

Ginny, finally, found frustration breaking through “Just eat my f*cking c*nt, Potter!” She snapped, tugging him up by his hair. Natasha chuckled. “Just stop bloody teasing me and-” His tongue swept up along her slit, and the words were strangled in her throat. Then he found her cl*t, and his tongue felt so good as it circled it again and again. His mouth was so much better than her fingers, supple, warm and pliant. Her cl*t was like a livewire, and it was hooked up directly to her brain, shorting out her thought processes and rendering her incoherent. “Guh!” Ginny moaned “Unh! Oh god!” She threw her head back into Natasha’s lap, unable to bear the sight of Harry’s head between her legs.

“What was that, Gin?” Harry said, after an indeterminate period of time. He’d paused to say this, much to Ginny’s distress “Is this what you wanted?”

“Oh, pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!” Ginny whimpered. She was fully prepared to beg even more profusely, if that hadn’t been enough, but thankfully for her pride Harry had accepted her plea. He found her cl*t again, but this time he wrapped his lips around it and sucked, ever so gently.

It devastated her. A wail exploded from her throat as her entire body trembled. The hand that had initially tugged his head up to her was shaking like a leaf. She was falling apart… coming apart… cumming.

-----

“Wakanda? Not Nurmengard, not Hogwarts?” Zemo asked. “Do we even know where they are?”

Hela, had quite deliberately, ensured that no one person within Hydra could claim a position of dominance over the organization. Zemo was one of the heads of Hydra, but only one of them. The more disparate the organization, the less likely it would be able to rebel from her control. Despite this, she did appreciate Zemo. He had a certain flair. The location of his fortress- in the heart of Germany- was such an example. He'd planted his flag right at the enemy's doorstep, a constant reminder to them that they were never safe.

"I’m sure you can figure it out. Unless that’s a problem?” Hela asked. Nevertheless, she would never stop challenging her subordinates. Her long absence made re-asserting her authority all the more important.

“No, of course not.” Zemo rushed to assure her “It was just, an unexpected change in tactics.”

Zola took the moment to pipe in “I have an analysis prepared- a likely location based on the pattern of previous sightings.”

“Good.” She nodded, before turning back to Zemo “My broader strategy is not of concern to you.” Hela told him. She certainly wasn’t going to reveal her true motivation for attacking Wakanda. She would have been content with leaving the nation to its isolation- at least until the wizarding problem was dealt with – but Harry Potter’s arrival had changed things. She couldn’t afford to let him hide in the shadows, to make plans and allies undisturbed. Even if capturing his Wakandan friends didn’t draw him out, destroying the city would pre-emptively deprive him of his allies.

And while there were several potential targets in the end the choice was obvious. The Wakandans were isolated. No one would come to their aid, and they had no one on par with Dumbledore, or Grindelwald, or the Sorcerer Supreme. “Just ensure that your forces are ready, understood?” She concluded.

Zemo saluted in that ridiculous Hydra fashion. Zola, who was not physically a person, acknowledged her with an- “Of course, my queen.”

She turned to her new pet “See, wasn’t that fun?”

“Yes, my queen.” Erics said obediently.

She paid no mind to the fly on the wall. It had remained perfectly still throughout the conversation, but as soon as Hela’s back was turned, it alighted in the air and buzzed away.

-----

“Ah, Severus. Thank you for having me on such short notice.” Tom greeted.

“Of course.” Severus said cooly “Frankly, I’m surprised that you’ve never taken a full tour of the facility before. Perhaps you will find something that we have missed.” Tom knew that Severus was not being entirely genuine. While Tom didn’t doubt that the Potion’s Master respected him, after a fashion, all within Dumbledore’s inner circle had a certain sense of rivalry with each other.

“I suppose we should start with the Asgardian.” Tom suggested “Before discussing other matters of collaboration.”

Severus nodded curtly, and led him down a series of corridors, carefully bypassing the potions lab. Tom was quite curious as to what the potions master was brewing up, but knew that it’d take some tact. Instead, he danced around the subject, inquiring about ingredients and techniques, careful to defer to the man’s expertise and stroke his ego.

They passed Lovegood’s cell, and next to her, Grangers’. Both women were covered head to toe in tattoos, but their design and function were quite different. Lovegood’s runic inscriptions imbued her with powerful wandless magic, while Granger’s skin was marred by an intricate network of lines and nodes that acted- as Tom understood it- as an extension of her mind. As Tom passed by her cell, Granger looked up suddenly, her eyes staring so intensely at him it seemed as if she were looking straight through him. Unnerved, he moved along.

It was imperative that Potter not meet either of them. They’d been his allies in a previous life, and no doubt they would again if given the chance. With Hela’s return to earth, Dumbledore had been pushing for them to be made battle-ready. Despite Lily’s objections, her hand would be forced soon. With a method of control as fragile as their magical contracts, Tom knew that they’d find a way to defect if given the chance.

They stopped at a cell that contained what appeared to be a young, dark skinned, woman. “This is it?” Tom asked.

“Indeed.” Severus said. “Asgardian!” He barked suddenly “You have a visitor.”

“f*ck off.” She growled, looking away from them.

“Imperio.” Tom said, the woman stiffened, her mind fighting the curse valiantly. He knew instantly that he wouldn’t be able to hold her indefinitely. They’d need to find a better way of controlling her. Still, perhaps he could pry some information from her.

“What are Hela’s plans?” He asked her. “Do you know why she’s attacking…” He checked the still foreign sounding word “Wakanda?” The Asgardian was fighting him hard, and in his distraction, he missed a subtle shift, a presence flickering in surprise. It took only a moment for the presence to calm, becoming a detached observer.

The news of Hela’s latest move had been delivered to the Order by a source Dumbledore had refused to disclose. It had befuddled the others- why would the Goddess of Death, who had shown nothing but a bloodthirsty hatred of wizards, return to Earth to attack some muggle city in Africa? Tom, however, had a suspicion, borne of the memories he’d retrieved from Potter’s head, and he wasn’t quite sure how to feel about it.

“How should I know?” The woman spat.

“You’re Asgardian, are you not?”

“I. Don’t. Serve. Her.” She ground out; each word labored. Tom paused, as far as he could tell, she was being truthful.

“She’s said that before.” Snape said “Even under veratiserum. I’m starting to believe her.”

“She killed my friends!” She spat, bringing her fist down on the floor hard enough to cause it to crack “She killed the woman I loved. I hate her. I came here to help you and you f*cking locked me up and tortured me!” She screamed those last words.

“I see.” Tom said, removing the curse. “I don’t believe I can control her.”

“I can see that.” Severus said, with some amusem*nt, and was that… a flicker of superiority?

“I suppose that means our hopes rest with you, then.” Tom said, venturing a guess.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” Snape said cautiously.

“I won’t tell, of course, but I am curious.” Tom said casually “The process of creating a new potion has always been of interest to me. How far along are you?”

After a moment of indecision, Snape relented. While the man had a formidable poker face, pride was his weakness. He longed to show off, to display his superiority, and Tom was giving him the perfect opportunity to do so. Tom followed Severus back past the cells where Lovegood and Granger were kept, and through his potions lab, listening idly while he explained his latest project. “I call it The Draught of Perfect Subservience.” He said with a sweep of his hand over a simmering cauldron filled with a gleaming blue liquid. “It’s a delicate potion, but it’ll be quite potent when its finished.”

"Sounds useful.” Tom said neutrally.

“Indeed. You are aware of the deficiencies in our methods of mental control.” Severus said unnecessarily. He certainly was. The imperius left the target an inept puppet. Love potions were limited. Oaths and contracts could be gamed. “Hydra has found an answer to that problem, and I intend to take a page out of their book. They are not content with merely controlling their most valued soldiers like puppets. They mentally rewired them, make them want to serve. It’s a perfect solution.”

“And you’ve found a way to replicate it.” Tom said, even as unease curled in his gut. “Impressive.”

"The potion is derived from the Draught of Living Death, instead of rendering the drinker unconscious, it places them in a trancelike state of high susceptibility. From there, we will be able to influence them easily, rewriting their mind to suit our needs. It is cumbersome to brew- so I would only recommend it on high value and uncooperative assets.”

“You plan to use this on Granger and Lovegood.” Tom surmised. “And our Asgardian friend. Anyone else?”

“No, no one else.” Snape said. Tom wasn’t entirely sure he was being truthful but didn’t press him on the topic. No, he was preoccupied.

He knew that Hydra’s indoctrination wasn’t perfect, as Severus had implied. Potter had found a way to break it. If Hela did indeed destroy Wakanda, perhaps that would preclude the possibility, but perhaps not. If the Order put them out in the field, there was every possibility that Potter would win them over. He was loathe to give such powerful assets over to either Potter or the Order, and a plan to cut both parties out of the picture was beginning to take shape.

“When do you believe it’ll be ready?” He asked.

“Optimistically, the beginning of term.” Snape said “I’d like to finish it before we have a new set of brats to manage.”

“Well, let me know if I can be of any assistance.”

-----

Harry nearly threw himself out of bed as he woke. On either side of him, Ginny and Natasha awoke. Natasha peered down at him in concern. “Babe, I’ve seen a lot of your nightmares, but I haven’t seen anything like that.”

Harry regulated his breathing. Really, he was proud of his performance, his ability to remain cool as he learned that Hela was about to destroy Wakanda, to remain calm as Snape plotted to rape his friends’ minds. He never would have managed it as a teenager, and Voldemort would have uncovered his presence for sure. He calmed his breathing again, there would be no point in flying in a rage right now. No, right now he needed to think, to plan.

“Harry.” Natasha said with forced calm “You’re bleeding.”

Harry wiped at his forehead. His scar had broken out. Ginny paled, her eyes taking in the scar on his forehead, then paled again.

“Harry.” Ginny breathed “Was that a vision?”

“Err…” Harry uttered. Natasha’s eyes went wide.

“But you said that the visions were because of the horcrux.” Ginny pressed “You said that it was gone.”

The two women looked at him in horror “You lied to us, didn’t you.” Natasha said, finally, it wasn’t a question. Nor was it quite an accusation. Natasha, after all, was no stranger to lies. It was merely a statement of fact.

Finally, Harry found words. “Yeah.” He croaked out “I did.”

Chapter 14: Aggressive Recruitment

Chapter Text

“Okay.” Natasha said. “Okay.” She repeated, even though it obviously wasn’t okay.

“I didn’t want you to worry.” Harry said.

Ginny scoffed. “You were planning on getting yourself killed. Again. You- I-” She sputtered, at a loss for words. “I’ve lived through you dying once.” Ginny finally managed, Natasha nodding along in emphatic agreement. “I never want to live through that again. Never.” She poked his chest for emphasis “Maybe think about sparing us that. Work on a plan that doesn’t end in you dead.”

Harry looked down. It wasn’t that simple. Theoretically he should be able to purge the Horcrux using the soul stone. Easier said than done, considering Voldemort likely had gotten his hands on it. But the horcrux was overshadowed by something far greater- Death. He’d made a deal with her, a soul for a soul. He wasn’t sure if that deal was still valid or not, but he knew that she wouldn’t be giving up. No matter what he did, she would be coming for him. He just wanted to fix the world first. If he could do that, save everyone, he could let Death take him knowing he’d done his best.

He hadn’t told Natasha and Ginny about the horcrux because he didn’t want them working on a plan that would ultimately be pointless. He still didn’t want to tell them about Death- he didn’t want to spend what time they had together dreading the future, or obsessively preparing for an impossible fight.

“If you won’t do it for us, then do it for Lily.” Natasha said, jolting Harry from his thoughts. A cold horror took him, as the implications became clear. What would happen in a world without him? Would Lily not exist? Or would she still be alive, but without a father? The mere thought of abandoning her filled him with revulsion. He couldn’t do that to her.

“There’s more.” Harry said, his voice hollow, the words dragged out of him by this new motivation. “I never told you.”

“Told us what?” Natasha pressed.

He flashed her a hollow smile. “I figured it out- how I ended up in your universe.” Once he’d broached the subject, he knew he couldn’t stop. Natasha would draw it out from him, even if it was like pulling teeth. It didn’t come to that. His words, while halting, kept coming of their own accord. “I was supposed to go back to my body, in the battle at Hogwarts.” He nodded to Ginny “I was meant to beat him, to live happily ever after. But then…” another pause, and the weight of the silence was too much for either woman to break “Gin, do you remember the Deathly Hallows?”

“From the Tales of Beedle the Bard?” Ginny asked. “That’s not, just a legend?”

“Oh, they’re real.” Harry said. “If I’m not mistaken Dumbledore and Grindelwald have torn this planet apart looking for them. Thank Merlin they never managed it.”

“Could someone clue me in here?” Natasha prodded.

“Sorry.” Harry said. “In the wizarding world there is a story called the Tale of the Three Brothers…” His voice dipped as he told the tale, with more reverence than is strictly necessary. If nothing else, he had a deep respect for how very real and how powerful Death is.

“Death’s a woman in your story.” Ginny noted, after he’d finished.

“She is.”

“You act like you’ve met her.”

“I have.” The silence again rolled over them with all the oppressiveness of an oncoming storm. “The Hallows weren’t just a trick, they’re a key. And whichever unlucky fool manages to gather them is the door.”

“You?” Ginny whispered.

“Me.” Harry bowed his head. “I wasn’t about to let her have her way with our world. So I took another option, and I ended up… somewhere else.”

“So, we can’t under any circ*mstances reunite the Deathly Hallows.” Natasha concluded. “Where are they now?”

“Well, Dumbledore or Grindelwald probably have the Elder Wand.” Harry said “I’m not sure about the Invisibility Cloak. But as for the Resurrection Stone, there’s a good chance that Voldemort has it.”

“At least… since he knows they’re a trap, he probably won’t use it?” Ginny asked with a disbelieving lilt.

“He also knows that the Resurrection Stone is the Soul Stone, so I doubt it.”

Natasha sucked in a breath, her eyes going wide as she put the pieces together. “You- you sacrificed yourself for the Soul Stone.”

“Yes.”

"The guardian said…” Her breathing was ragged, and she barely got the words out.

“A soul for a soul.” Harry finished for her. “She tried to take me, make me her personal servant.” He shook his head “But since the prophecy between me and Voldemort hasn’t been fulfilled, she had to send me back.”

Too late, Harry realized that Natasha was hyperventilating. He took her in his arms, but she was cold and stiff, clutching herself tightly as she gasped in panicked breaths. He’d never seen her like this, not even after the snap. He’d seen her devastated, heartbroken, and empty, but not in terror.

He didn’t know what to do.

Then Ginny was on them. “f*ck that!” She hissed. Her face was horribly pale, but there was a desperate determination in her eyes. “We’re not going to let her take you from us!” That seemed to bring Natasha back, and then both women were clutching him between them, clinging like he’d be ripped away from them at any moment.

“You were just going to let it happen.” Natasha said finally, her voice hoarse. “That’s the worst part. It’s what you always do. You have people who’d take on the world with you, but we can’t help you if you won’t fight for yourself.”

He didn’t want to argue with her, to tell her that it was hopeless, that they couldn’t fight against a force of nature. He didn’t want to see her like that ever again. But then, the only way to truly spare her that pain would be to find some way to save himself. “Okay.” He allowed “We’ll work on it. But… I think we have more immediate problems.”

-----

“Wait, you saw Hermione? And Luna?” Neville gaped, hope cresting in his voice. “Where are they?”

“It has to be Hogwarts.” Harry said. Even if the vision hadn’t been explicit on that, he knew it had to be.

“Would Dumbledore really keep something like that at the school?” Neville pressed. “Isn’t that… risky?”

“You remember the Philosopher’s Stone?” Harry countered wryly.

Ron snorted. “Oh yeah, Dumbledore would totally do that. God, what a crock of sh*te.”

“So, all we need to do is break into one of the most heavily defended fortresses in the world. No problem.” Natasha said with forced levity.

“It should be easier, with us.” Ron said. “We know the layout and defenses, and I’ve been thinking about it… for a while.”

“Unfortunately, we’ve got a more urgent problem.” Harry redirected “As much as I want to save Hermione and Luna.” And he did, so very much. “Hela is going to attack Wakanda. We can’t let them fight her alone.”

“Good luck with that.” Natasha muttered.

“Have the Sorcerers had any contact with Wakanda?” Harry asked.

“Nothing of consequence.” The Ancient One said. “Believe me, we have tried to foster relationships with other groups, but…”

“But Wakanda was paranoid about outsiders when they lived in a world that hadn’t experienced decades of war.” Harry surmised. “We’ll be lucky if they don’t shoot first and ask questions later.”

“So, what do we do?” Peggy asked.

Harry had spent some time thinking about this problem, but it was still a rough outline more than a plan. Thankfully, he had several people he trusted far more than himself when it came to making plans. “Well, I do have some ideas.”

-----

“No sign of civilization.” Peggy noted. “How sure are you that Wakanda really is here?”

Harry didn’t answer immediately, instead casting a silent homenum revelio. It picked up several presences a few meters ahead of them. “They know we’re here.” He told her, before calling. “We mean no harm!” No response. “You can take us in, we won’t fight you. We just want to help. Hydra and the Goddess of Death are about to attack you.”

Still, only silence greeted them. Harry sighed and rolled his eyes. “Come on, tread carefully.”

“How likely is it that we’re about to become pincushions?” Peggy asked with a sardonic smile.

“Higher than I’d like. As soon as we cross the boundary, they’ll freak out, but they’re determined to pretend they don’t exist until that point.”

“Splendid.”

“Okay, we’re going to walk forward. If at any point you’d like us to stop, just speak up.” Harry called again, taking careful, deliberate steps. Sure enough, Harry’s leading hand pressed against a barrier in the air. “Ah, there we are.” He muttered.

-----

“They’ll have defenses.” Ron told him. “If they’re that committed to hiding, you might have to penetrate them before they’re willing to even talk.”

Harry nodded, knowing that Wakanda had its fair share of energy-based shielding. “I should be able to take care of that.”

“Without a wand?” Neville challenged with a knowing smirk, and Harry waved him off.

-----

Before Harry could begin to muster the magic to press through, something in the barrier shifted, and Harry found himself stumbling forward without resistance.

“Harry, status. Are you through?” Peggy asked.

“Yeah, I think the defenses… let me in. I didn’t do-” In that moment Harry found himself surrounded and at the wrong end of half a dozen spear-tips. Both the Dora Milaje and the Border Tribe were present, and neither seemed inclined to hear him out.

“Hullo.” Harry said.

“Drop your weapons!” One of the Dora Milaje, who Harry recognized as Okoye, barked.

“I don’t have any.” Harry said, holding his empty palms up to the air.

-----

“Harry, I really don’t like you not having a wand for this.” Ginny said. She understood why it had to be him. He could recover Shuri’s memories, and frankly he was better able to get out of a dangerous situation than any of them. Still, after the revelations of the previous night she was feeling protective.

Natasha, who had far more experience with Harry’s wandless magic, wasn’t as bothered. “It really isn’t worth antagonizing them. Carrying a weapon is just going to provoke them.”

“Besides, this wand is a bit crap.” Harry muttered. It did give him more power than going wandless, but it was slow- nothing at all like Mjolnir, the Elder Wand, or his old Phoenix Feather wand. He looked back up at them, meeting each of their eyes in turn. “I’ll do everything I can to get out of this alive. Even if it means blasting my way out of the city.”

“You won’t be alone.” Natasha promised “We'll have someone tailing you with an astral projection. If it comes to it, we’ll portal our way in before anyone can even blink.”

-----

“He’s obviously lying.” One of the Border Tribe said. “Search him, carefully.”

“How did you get in?” Okoye demanded.

“I think the barrier let me in.” Harry said. “Though I’m not sure-”

“That’s impossible.” Someone else scoffed. “He’s lying.” Two of the Border Tribe pressed Harry to the ground, and he didn’t resist. He wasn’t afraid, he could apparate away easily enough- Wakanda wasn’t warded against it. He could also just take down the entire retinue, but blasting his way into places wasn’t how one made friends.

“Grab his companion.” Okoye ordered. Two more of the Border Tribesmen complied and led an unresisting Peggy back through the barrier.

-----

“Someone needs to go with you.” Natasha insisted.

“And by someone, you mean you.” Harry surmised.

“What about me?” Lily interjected.

It took Harry and Natasha only a beat to get on the same page. “No.” “Absolutely not.”

“I’ve been fighting my whole life!” Lily argued, her voice cresting in outrage at the swiftness of their rejection. “Both of you did things this dangerous when you were my age!”

Both Harry and Natasha winced, knowing that she was right, but still… “Lily, this isn’t a ‘never’.” Harry soothed “Just a ‘not right now’.” Lily wasn't placated but seemed willing to at least hear him out. “We’re working on your training still, and this isn’t a mission where we need another powerhouse.”

Lily huffed “I just don’t like the idea of both of you going in without me.” Leaving me behind.

Harry gave Natasha a meaningful look. While neither of them planned to die on this mission, it wasn’t fair to Lily to put both of them at risk while she sat on the sidelines.

“Honestly, Peggy’s the better choice anyway.” Ron said casually.

“How so?” Harry asked.

“Well, not a wizard.” Ron ticked off a finger. “No association with Hydra or the Order.” Another finger. “Very dangerous without weapons. And if they recognize her as ‘Captain Carter’ it might actually give you some credibility.”

-----

Both of them were scanned, and their would-be captors scowled at the results. “They’re unarmed.” A guard said. “But this one’s a wizard.”

“Who are you? Why are you here?” Okoye demanded.

“Harry Potter, and my friend, Peggy Carter.” Harry said. They didn’t seem to recognize either name. “Hydra is going to attack you. We came to warn you, and to offer our help.”

“Why should we trust the word of a wizard.” The word was spat from Okoye’s mouth. And, ouch, but if his experience in this world was any indication, probably fair. “Where’s your wand?”

“I left it behind, as a display of good faith.” Harry said.

“We’re fighting against the Order, too.” Peggy added “I’m not magical. I haven’t been enchanted or compelled. We’re just trying to help.”

“Consider us warned.” Okoye said, though Harry felt like she didn’t appreciate the severity of the situation. “But we both know that having a wizard in our midst just makes us a bigger target.” She narrowed her eyes at him.

“And we both know you can’t release us, not when we know where Wakanda is.” Harry countered, keeping his voice level.

“Then why shouldn’t we just kill you?”

At that point, Harry could have made several blunders. If he’d revealed, however unconsciously, that he was not nearly as helpless as he seemed, it might have escalated the situation. However, he couldn’t show weakness either. He needed to show them that he wasn’t intimidated, without revealing his hand. Natasha had coached him on this exact situation. “We don’t work alone, of course. We’re with the Sorcerers, who also know where you are. If you kill us… well… I honestly don’t know what would happen.”

-----

“We wouldn’t actually do that, right?” Wong asked.

“Does it matter? Hela would destroy them anyway.” Neville said fatalistically.

“It’s a moot point. I’m not going to let them kill me.” Harry added.

“But you will let them capture you.” Neville snorted.

“Yes, I know it’s a stupid plan, but even I have limits.”

-----

Okoye glared with impotent fury. There was nothing she could do, at least, not without orders from the royal family. This was exactly what they’d wanted. “Knock them out and take them up.” She ordered. That wasn’t what they’d wanted.

Still, he had options- morally ambiguous options, but options nonetheless. He cast a silent confundo, and with her mind now receptive, injected a suggestion with legilimency. Don’t antagonize them.

“Actually” she pivoted. “Just take them up. We don’t know who they are, and we need to be cautious.”

-----

“You can do that?” Peggy asked uneasily.

“There’s a reason why people fear wizards so much.” Neville said.

-----

They were blindfolded and led up to the capital. While they were constantly under guard, they did not seem to consider Harry an imminent threat without his wand. For an interminable time, they waited until Okoye’s voice pierced the monotony. “The King wants to speak to him.” They were pushed onward in a pattern Harry couldn’t hope to retrace- not that he cared to. When finally, the blindfold was removed, Harry found himself in the Wakandan Throne room, facing a man he had saved years ago. Unlike other’s he’d met in this world, King T’Chaka looked just as Harry had always known him.

“King T’Chaka.” Harry bowed his head in respectful acknowledgement. “Queen Mother Ramonda.”

“How do you know of us?” The king asked. “How did you find Wakanda, and know our names?”

-----

“Just be honest.” Natasha said bluntly “It’s a story too crazy to make up. It’ll at least keep them interested. And if Shuri’s anything like Ginny and I-”

“She’ll be drawn to it.” Ginny finished.

-----

“I come from a different universe.” Harry said “One where I worked with Wakanda in a war against Hydra. I was friends with your son and daughter in that world. I’m here to help. Hela is planning on attacking the city imminently. You need to prep-” He was silenced by a spear pressed to his throat.

“Do not presume to order the King of Wakanda.” Okoye said.

God, he was getting annoyed with her.

“My apologies.” Harry said, mustering his patience. No matter how annoying Wakanda's leaders were, there was far too much at stake. It wasn't just Shuri's life, but the lives of countless civilians who had no say in who ruled them. “As I’m certain that you care for your people, it would be wise for you to prepare for her attack. If you evacuate the city and prepare the defenses, we will be there to help.”

“What you say is unbelievable.” T’Chaka said. Harry sighed internally.

“And the price for ignoring my warning?” He challenged, ignoring the press of metal on his throat.

“We have no reason to think he knows anything. No one could possibly find Wakanda.” Okoye argued.

“And yet this wizard did.” T’Chaka said, his tone was even, the voice of a man who’d never had to speak up to be heard, who was used to total deference from his subjects. “We clearly have a security breach on our hands, whether we believe him or not.”

“You do have a daughter, right?” Harry tried. “Shuri?”

“What business could you have with her?” Ramonda bristled.

“I believe that we have a connection.” Harry said carefully. “One that you might be aware of.” Both royals blanched. He’d hit a nerve, perhaps too much of one. A silence blanketed the room that grew heavier as the emotions flickered across the king’s face- shock, outrage, terror, rage, and finally a guarded accusatory stare, as if he could indict Harry through force of will alone.

“You-” The King said, his voice brittle. “-will explain yourself. But not now. Take him away.”

Well, at least he had their attention.

Chapter 15: The Black Sheep

Chapter Text

Shuri’s lab was her refuge, a place where she was in control. Her parents and the others at court didn’t bother to disturb her while she was at work. She’d tried to get T’Chone involved, but he seemed to take more after his uncle, with dreams of donning a Black Panther suit rather than designing one. Not to mention, she’d found that his ‘abilities’ tended to interact unpredictably with technology.

Shuri didn’t want to quash his dreams, tell him that his grandfather would never let him serve in public, even when he was of age he’d be locked up in a gilded cage, far away from anyone who could question his existence. She had hoped that he’d take an interest in a more… behind the scenes field, where he might be allowed to flourish. It wasn’t to be. He wanted to help people, serve Wakanda, and be a hero.

“You don’t understand, I think he was telling the truth.” She told Okoye. The general’s presence had done much to dispel the sense of safety that Shuri felt in her workplace. But this room was still her’s and she wasn’t about to be bossed around like she was everywhere else in her life. At least here, she had absolute confidence in her knowledge and abilities. She was right, damn it.

“About what, princess?” The general asked warily. Shuri supposed she could understand why Okoye was so on edge- it wasn’t often that Wakanda had intruders.

“About how he got in.” She explained. Inexplicably, Okoye relaxed, something that did not go unnoticed.

“I assumed he used magic.” Okoye said with a raised eyebrow.

“Without a wand?” Shuri asked. Granted, she wasn’t an expert on wizards, but everyone knew that they needed wands for their magic. The fact that he was currently in their custody was testament to that. “No, the defenses recognized him as Wakandan and let him in.”

“How is that possible?” Okoye sounded offended, and Shuri cringed. She was prone to stepping on social landmines, and suggesting than an outsider (let alone a white man) could possibly be Wakandan was a surefire way to offend the general. “Does he have… ancestry?”

Shuri sighed. “No, its not genetic its…” She waved her hand. “Weird.” Sadly, many things in her life were ‘weird’. She’d been notified about the mysterious intruders. The recordings of his initial encounter with the border guard had been fascinating and baffling. She’d received a DNA sample from his hair, but it had done little to clarify the situation, at least at first. “And I was stumped, but then T’Challa mentioned-”

“Shuri, where is this going?” Okoye interrupted.

For a moment, Shuri hesitated. She knew that what she was about to say would go over badly, but frankly, she didn’t care that much about appeasing Okoye. Not after… everything. “I think he was a Black Panther.”

“Impossible.” Okoye spat. “How could you possibly say that?”

“My sister is right.” Her brother stepped forward.

“My prince.” Okoye bowed her head in deference. Shuri snorted; she never got that treatment.

“The heart shaped herb leaves an imprint on the body, even if it is withdrawn. It is beyond the physical, but a spiritual link. Our defenses are meant to recognize Wakandans, and there is nothing more Wakandan than the herb.” Her brother explained. Shuri was grateful for his presence. There was no one who was more reliably in her corner than him.

“Now.” Shuri said “This would be speculative, but when I dug into the data, I found a dormant genetic signature. A set of genes that had been suppressed that share a remarkable resemblance to the herb. T’Challa has these same genes, and I imagine, every other Black Panther did as well.”

Okoye winced. Shuri knew that she wasn’t comfortable with how little consideration she showed Wakanda’s spirituality, how readily she pierced that veil with scientific analysis. “I see.” Okoye said tightly.

“Did he say anything about any previous interactions with Wakanda?” Shuri asked. “Or anything that might indicate how he was let in?”

“Not at all.” Okoye managed, before turning on her heel. “I will update the king. He has ordered that neither of you are to speak to him.”

“Naturally.” T’challa said with forced evenness. He and Shuri shared a tight-lipped smile as Okoye left.

“You know I’m on your side.” He said quietly, putting a hand on her shoulder. “And T’Chone’s. As soon as I know anything, I’ll tell you.”

“I know you will.” She said. “But…”

Her brother smiled faintly. “Impatient as always?”

She turned back to her screen, pulling back up the video she’d been watching earlier, before Okoye had visited. This Harry Potter, being led by the Dora Milaje back to the capital. While by all rights he was at their mercy, he seemed completely self-assured. She hummed thoughtfully. There was something about him that called him to her, something somehow familiar. Then, unexpectedly, a notification popped onto her screen. She scanned it, and her eyes went wide. A DNA match to...

Oh god.

“Do you think you can find out where he’s being kept?”

-----

“Well, it could have gone worse.” Harry shrugged.

“I suppose it was too much to ask them to be reasonable.” Natasha waved her hand, casually phasing through the material of Harry’s cell. She was astral projecting and had brought Harry’s spirit out so they could talk.

“I could just break out and make them listen.” Harry suggested. The cell was the best that Wakanda could produce, a dome of a transparent Vibranium alloy that offered no privacy. Still, neither the walls nor the handcuffs would be enough to hold him, nor the guards that regularly patrolled the hall.

“The entire point of this was to give them some time to prepare before Hela arrives.” Nat said. “I don’t see a point to you rotting in a cell. And we don’t know how likely you are to convince anyone of anything. Say you do get to Shuri and jog her memory, then what? Would she really be able to convince her parents of anything?”

Harry hummed in thought. “I don’t know. But I feel like I need to try.”

“Well-” Natasha paused “Looks like you’ve got company.” Harry let his soul drift back to his body, his eyes blinking open just as his new visitor came into view.

He nearly choked. Of all the people to find him, it was the one person he was looking for. She was older than he remembered her, not just physically, but deeper. The Shuri he’d known was irrepressible and full of youthful energy. The woman in front of him now felt… worn down.

“Shuri.” He breathed.

“Who are you?”

Harry knew there was only one way to answer that question. With a pop, he apparated. His handcuffs fell to the floor with a clink as he appeared behind her. “I’m sorry about this.” He said, and took her hand. Shuri grunted, her knees buckling. Harry caught her as she crumpled, gently lowering her to the floor. “Its okay, take your time.” He told her. His words were belied by the shouts coming down the hall. He sighed. “Don’t portal us out.” He said, knowing Natasha was listening and was looking for the excuse, especially with Shuri in tow.

“What have you done to her!” A guard, one of the Dora Milaje, bellowed. “HE HAS THE PRINCESS!”

sh*t. He was not making any friends today. “She’s fine!” He called, knowing it was pointless. “She’s just... resting?”

In a swift motion, the guard unfolded her spear and charged him. It wasn’t a bad tactic, all things considered. Harry sent a stunner out from his palm, which was batted aside with the spear. Harry clenched his hand in a fist, and the spell veered back at the guard. She fell to the floor unceremoniously.

He wasn’t inclined to move, and even if he did, he had no clear idea where to go from here. Harry’s cell was in the middle of a non-descript room, with equally non-descript halls stretching in two directions. He supposed it was convenient that there were only two directions they could attack him from… probably. Natasha had taught him to expect the unexpected, after all.

He didn’t have much time to dwell, and soon the Dora Milaje had closed in on both sides. “You will release the princess, or suffer the consequences.” Okoye snarled.

Harry stood over Shuri’s body, a hand held out to each group. “Yeah, I suppose if I just hand Shuri over, you’ll let me stroll on out of here.” He chuckled. “No. I want to talk to her, first.”

Okoye nodded, and the Dora Milaje attacked. They were an efficient fighting force, a potent ally to the Avengers in another world, but not prepared to face him. With a pulse of magic, he blasted each group off their collective feet. To their credit, most landed on their feet and sprung at him again.

He was somewhat limited. He didn’t want to do anything that could seriously hurt them, but stunning them all would be a tedious proposition, especially with those spears. His surroundings were mostly Vibranium, which eliminated most transfiguration. Still, he had options. As the first wave entered the room, Harry cast a silent Winguardium Leviosa. The women lifted into the air, their momentum dying as they lost purchase on the floor. Some of them flailed or grabbed for the walls that were just out of reach, others hurled their spears at him, only to find that they too lost momentum and hung in place. The sight would have been comedic if the situation had not been so serious.

Okoye, who was among those out of the spell’s range, was not amused. She responded by swiping along her collar, which produced a gas mask that arranged itself over her mouth and nose. The others followed suit. “Really? Going to gas us?” He asked, looking at Shuri “That’s… really cold.”

“We’re not savages.” Okoye snapped as a thin, almost invisible haze began streaming through vents in the ceiling. “It’ll put you to sleep, nothing more.”

Harry produced bubble-head charms for him and Shuri. “Cool.” Harry said. “I won’t feel bad about this.” Reaching out with his magic, he found that the masks weren’t entirely composed of Vibranium. The wonder metal that it was, even Wakandans needed to incorporate other materials into their technology. With a few seconds of focus, he vanished the parts of their masks he could. He watched with satisfaction at the sudden horror on the women’s faces as their protection quite literally fell to pieces. One by one, the levitating guardswomen went limp, while Okoye and the rest were forced to retreat. Behind them, the two exits to the room slammed closed.

Harry knelt beside Shuri. “Hey, you with me?”

She groaned, blinking wearily. “Why… are the Dora Milaje floating?” She murmured.

“I redecorated.” Harry smiled. “You don’t like it?”

“Harry, what did you…” Shuri froze, her eyes going wide as she sat bolt upright “Harry! I remember… I remember…” Her eyes lost focus again.

“Take your time, I know it’s a lot to process.” Harry said “Honestly, you’re handling it better than Nat did.”

“f*ck.” She rubbed her temples “This is such a mindf*ck. How the f*ck did this happen?”

“That’s a very long story that I can tell you later.” Harry said sympathetically. “Long story short, the world’s screwed up and we’re going to fix it.”

“Great.” Shuri managed with a strangled voice “I’ll… help.”

“Can I hold you?”

“Please.” Shuri immediately folded into him, burrowing her head into his chest. “It’s all so much.”

“I know.”

“You have a son.”

“I thought that might be.” Harry breathed “What’s he like?”

“His name is T’Chone. He’s thirteen. Stubborn. He likes jokes. Wants to be a hero. Wants to be like you, even if he doesn’t know it.” She mumbled into his chest “I wish I could do better by him.”

“I’m sure you did the best you could.” Harry rubbed her back “I know none of this is how we wanted it to be. You had no idea how he was conceived; I can’t imagine what that was like.”

“It was bad.” Shuri whispered.

“I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault. I just wish… I could have remembered.”

“It was a pretty good night.” Harry snickered “Shame that you forgot.” Shuri blushed, the memories of her prior sex life, which was leagues more successful than her history here, coming back to her.

“This is going to take some getting used to.” She groaned.

“Its okay, we’ve got time.”

“Do we? I think you pissed my parents off.”

“I can take anything they throw at me.” Harry said. “And if I can’t, Natasha will portal us out and then chew me out for being reckless, probably.”

Shuri giggled. “But seriously, what did you do to them?” She peered up at the still floating Dora Milaje.

“Used their own knockout gas against them.” Harry shrugged.

“I made that gas.” Shuri said, sounding vaguely offended “It was supposed to be for medical purposes.”

“Well, to be fair, they thought they were rescuing you.” Harry sighed “They’re probably freaking out right now.”

Shuri hummed, and pushed herself to her feet. Harry rose with her, steadying her when she wobbled. “We don’t-”

“No, its fine. We need to get moving, anyway.” Shuri shook her head. “I’ll deal, I’m really glad you came.”

“Me too, even if-” Harry deliberated on how to put it “-the circ*mstances could have been better. Hela’s coming for Wakanda.”

Shuri froze, growing rigid in Harry’s arms “sh*t.” She hissed.

“She knows that I have a connection here.” He continued “So she’s after you.”

“And if she finds T’Chone…” She murmured.

“We won’t let that happen.”

-----

Wood clacked against wood as T’Chone swung his spear down at T’Challa’s defense. With the enhanced reflexes the herb gave him, deflecting it wasn’t a challenge, but he was impressed nonetheless with the swiftness of the attack. T’Chone was only thirteen, but he was picking up on his training quickly. T’Challa followed up with a series of probing jabs with his own spear, watching in approval as T’Chone shifted away from the attacks. He kept his eyes studiously focused on his uncle, waiting for an opening.

If T’Challa weren’t the Black Panther, he might have been caught flat footed by the discarded shield that streaked in from behind him. He heard the slight whistle of it moving through the air, though, and could see the mischievous glimmer in his nephew’s eyes. He rolled away, letting the wooden shield pass harmlessly overhead. Just as he was improving in battle, T’Chone was honing his ‘abilities’. Shuri flat out refused to call them what they were- magic. Their parents refused to even discuss their grandson’s manifesting powers, preferring to pretend that they- and T’Chone- didn’t exist.

Pulling out of his roll, T’Challa swiped his spear at T’Chone’s ankles. Magic usually took all of T’Chone’s focus to pull off, making it an ideal moment to catch him flatfooted. He hopped away from T’Challa’s swipes but was put off balance enough for him to take advantage. T’Challa had him on the floor in under a minute.

He held his hand out to help him up “You’re improving.” T’Challa said.

“Not enough, apparently.” T’Chone shook his head good naturedly. “I thought I had you there with that shield, ‘Challa.”

“You’ll find that your old uncle has quite a few tricks of his own.” T’Challa chuckled. “Now, how about we get lunch?” T’Challa led the boy out of the sparring room. Technically, it wasn’t meant for sparring- it was merely a large room attached to T’Chone’s bedroom that had been converted for that purpose. In one of the other attached rooms was a small kitchen and dining room. While the space was undoubtedly luxurious, it was also a cage. His father wanted T’Chone out of sight, and part of that was keeping him in his quarters as much as possible. T’Chone bristled under the confinement, but he and Shuri tried to get him out as much as possible beneath their father’s nose.

"Can I try making a stew again, 'Challa?" T'Chone asked.

"After that last stew?" T'Challa teased. One could describe T'Chone's cooking as... creative.

"Okay, maybe I added too much mango last time. But this time you can help!"

T'Challa heard a soft pop and didn’t think much of it, but when the door to T’Chone’s quarters opened, his attention was piqued. It had to be Shuri, but he wouldn’t have expected her back so soon. That was why he’d visited T’Chone. The two of them tried to strike a careful balance between being with him and giving him space. Honestly, T’Challa expected and hoped that his nephew was getting into some mischief while they weren’t looking. The boy had so few outlets as it was.

“Shuri, how did the questioning go?” He called. Then he stilled as he picked up two sets of footsteps, and then laughter.

“T’Challa!” Shuri called back “Better than I could have hoped, but…” T’Challa turned the corner, to find the man who was supposed to be imprisoned hand in hand with his sister.

He raised an eyebrow. “I assume there’s an explanation for this.” He said. T’Chone peaked around the corner curiously. The boy wasn’t used to strangers, and he’d never seen an outsider before. The man- Harry- caught T’Chone’s gaze, and the boy jerked back.

“T’Chone, you can come out.” Shuri told him “Its okay. I want you to meet…” T’Chone edged back into view. It was odd to see him so shy, when around those he knew well he was anything but. “Well, this is your father.”

“What?” T’Challa breathed. He’d given up on solving the mystery of his nephew’s birth. It was obvious that his parentage was from an outsider, and a white man at that, but despite a thorough investigation no one could find any hint of foul play. Shuri had claimed she had no idea what had happened, and T’Challa had believed her. He didn’t want to believe it, but had she been lying after all? “Shuri, who is this? Did you know?”

T’Chone was frozen, his wide eyes taking Harry in, oblivious to the standoff between his uncle and mother. “Not until today.” Shuri raised her hand- the one that wasn’t holding Harry Potter’s hand. “It’s hard to explain.” She turned to Harry “Any chance you can jog his memory?”

He shook his head “No, unfortunately that trick only works on people I’ve…” He bit his tongue “Well, T’Challa should remember eventually.”

T’Chone stepped forward, seemingly in a trance. “Is it true?” He asked, his voice quavering.

Harry’s eyes glistened as he beheld his son, and despite his misgivings, T’Challa was utterly convinced that the emotion was genuine, that whatever else, T’Chone’s father absolutely loved him. “Yes… T’Chone, was it?” Harry gave him a watery smile “I’m so sorry I couldn’t come sooner, but I’m here now, and I’m not going anywhere.”

Shuri was wiping her eyes, smiling nonetheless, as T’Chone cautiously approached them. “Why weren’t you?” He asked.

“I was trapped.” Harry said carefully “I wasn’t able to escape until a few weeks ago.”

“Where?” T’Challa probed.

“London.” Harry said succinctly.

“Isn’t that the city that’s a horrifying temporal wasteland?” Shuri asked.

“The same. Where do you think I found Peggy Carter?” He asked rhetorically “It wasn’t in an iceberg; I’ll tell you that.” Shuri snickered, and T’Challa got the sense that he was missing a reference.

“Peggy Carter?” T’Challa asked, the name sounded vaguely familiar, but he shook his head. It wasn’t important. “How did you end up in London?” He shifted “Better yet, how is T’Chone your son?”

“Well you see, brother-” Shuri teased, eyes glinting “-when a man and a woman love each other very much…”

“Forget I asked.” T’Challa rolled his eyes. He couldn't be upset. He hadn't seen his sister like this, so playful, in years.

Harry and T’Chone were ignoring the byplay, each watching the other intently. “I know this is a lot.” Harry said softly “Take all the time you need.”

T’Chone nodded, choking out “Baba, I-”

At that moment, Okoye marched into the room, flanked on each side by members of the Dora Milaje. “Harry Potter.” She announced. Harry and Shuri tensed, with the wizard shifting into a battle stance. T’Challa could tell that she was rattled, her composure paper thin. Something was wrong, he could feel it.

“Hela, the Goddess of Death, is approaching the city.” Her voice, to its credit, didn’t shake at the words, even as T’Challa’s world spun. This was more than their family drama, more than whatever suspicions he had of Harry Potter. This was life and death, Wakanda’s very survival at stake. “I would like to formally request that you help us defend Wakanda from this threat.” She bowed her head “And offer our sincerest apologies for how we’ve treated you.”

Chapter 16: Deus Ex Machina

Chapter Text

A loud knocking at his door roused him, and he groaned. He hadn’t drunk that much last night, but he hadn’t avoided the hangover. “Tonyyyy.” A woman whined from next to him. “Make it stop.”

“Sure thing.” He mumbled, not quite sure who she was. If he were unlucky, she would be the daughter of the man knocking at his door.

“Tony Stark!” The man shouted.

“Just give me a minute!” Tony shouted back. “It’s been a long night… you know… working.” He turned to his companion and whispered. “Just stay quiet and out of the way. Slip out when you can, okay?”

“I don’t know where my clothes are.” She whispered back.

Tony sighed. “Borrow some of mine, then.”

Another set of knocks. “In the name of the goddess!” The man said, with blatant self-importance. Tony rolled his eyes. Hydra officers came in two types, ruthless predators and mindless sycophants. This one was clearly the latter.

Tony put the nearest pieces of clothing at hand on, staggered down the hall, and opened the door. “How can I help you?” Tony asked dully, as if he were a secretary fielding a request.

While many feared Hydra’s officers, Tony wasn’t one of them. He was the goose that laid the golden eggs. They’d put up with anything from him as long as he delivered- and he most certainly had. That was how he’d gotten his luxury apartment in one of Hydra’s most secure settlements, and it was why- he suspected- the man was here.

“Captain Erics.” The officer saluted. Tony did not salute back; he was not going to do Hydra’s ridiculous dance. “The goddess demands your presence, and your weapons.”

“Untwist your panties, Captain.” Tony waved his hand. “I’ve got the goods, as always. I think even Hela will be impressed.”

“She better be.” The Captain said. He was trying to sound intimidating, and Tony suppressed the desire to roll his eyes again. “You will make yourself presentable and… present your weapons as soon as…” He trailed off, looking over Tony’s shoulder.

“Sorry!” The woman squeaked, ducking back behind the doorway. “I was just trying to- sorry!”

“How about you give us a few minutes.” Tony said, and the Captain nodded.

-----

Tony had given many demonstrations and presentations in his time, but it was his first one in the presence of Hela herself. He wasn’t fazed by the other occupants of the room- an assemblage of Hydra officers that thought themselves more important than they were. He’d dealt with most of them in one capacity or another. Only Zola stood out to him, for obvious reasons. Tony assumed that he was watching too.

Hela was different. She was unnaturally tall and pale, and there was something about her… an aura that put him on edge. He’d heard it described before, but the stories hadn’t done it justice. He did his best to mask his unease with his usual showmanship. Though her eyes seemed to pierce him, and he wondered if she could see right through his bravado.

“I present to you the Iron Man mark six.” He said, having has arm to the suits, a dozen in total. “I’ve heard the complaints. The old suits were sitting ducks, not maneuverable enough, and well-” He stepped into one of the suits, satisfied as it automatically assembled itself around him. “I think you’ll be pleased with how these babies turn.” His voice was now piping into the room through speakers. He lifted off, the suit zipping into the air, and did a series of tight aerobatic moves to demonstrate the suit’s maneuverability. They needed it for dodging spellfire, or so he was told.

When he touched back down, the officers were murmuring to themselves with interest. Hela, however, was unmoved. “Don’t waste my time.” She said. “You know why I am here.”

Tony swallowed. Indeed he did. “Of course.” He said. “I’ll just cut to the chase, then.” He turned to the model he had intended to save until the end. The design had been requested, apparently, by Hela herself, and it was unlike anything made before by anyone on Earth. “This is the first suit in the Elite line. What you’re looking at is…” Tony’s prepared speech was derailed as Hela strode forward. She paid him no heed as she studied the suit intently. “It’s-” He tried again, only to be interrupted as Hela struck the suit with Mjolnir, her arm lashing out in a blur of motion. Metal clanged resonantly with metal, but the suit did not give.

“It’ll do.” She nodded. Tony let out a relieved breath. He’d spent years building the suit. Though ‘building’ perhaps was a strong word. While he’d drawn up the detailed designs, he was unable to make the parts himself. Only the craftsmen in Nidavellir could forge Uru, and only Asgardians could enchant it in accordance with Hela’s demands. Only then were the parts delivered to Tony’s workshop, where he assembled them with more mundane components.

“What is it?” Captain Erics breathed.

“It’s your new toy.” To Tony’s surprise, Hela was smiling indulgently at the officer. “Try it on.” Erics stepped into the suit, and it locked around him much as Tony’s had as the arc reactor in the chest flared to life.

“Forged in the heart of a dying star. Infused with Asgard’s magic. Powered by humanity’s most advanced technology.” Tony found his voice, bolstered by the stunned looks of the other Hydra officers. “I guarantee that once the wizards face these, they won’t want to leave their castles.”

Hela turned back to their audience “The other suits are yours to do as you wish. Be ready for battle.”

-----

“Battle, huh.” Tony said thoughtfully, once he was back in the safety of his workshop.

“Should I activate the backdoor protocol, Sir?” Jarvis asked.

He’d installed it on a whim. He’d asked many times for combat footage, to see how the suits fared in action. He’d always been denied, his extremely logical arguments that it’d help him improve the suits and come up with new ideas were brushed aside. His curiosity had gotten the better of him, though, so for these newest suits he’d installed a backdoor. He was able to access the suits’ cameras and sensors. It would be a trove of information he could use for future designs, and also, he guessed, quite the spectacle.

“Let’s take a look, shall we?”

-----

As soon as Okoye had announced that the Goddess of Death was attacking, portals had opened up around them. People had streamed through, with a white, redheaded woman at their head. He couldn’t help but stare. The skin tones of those present ranged from dark to pale white, and everything in between. He’d never seen anything like it, never spoken to anyone outside of Wakanda, or even the little circle of family and close aides his grandparents had restricted him to.

T’Chone’s world spun. “Mother.” He whispered. “What’s going on? Why is all this happening at once?”

“I’m sorry, T’Chone.” His mother whispered, kneeling down to brush his hair. “I know this is a lot all at once.” She cast several looks at the crowd around them as it churned. Wakandans and outsiders came and left in a flurry of activity. “I need to get to my lab. There’s no time.”

“What about me?” T’Chone asked. “I want to help. I can help!” He wasn’t going to run and hide while Wakanda was in danger. This was his chance to finally prove himself. He knew that he was a black sheep, a dirty little secret that that his family tried to cover up. At least now he knew why- his father was an outsider, a white man, and a wizard. No wonder his grandparents had locked him away.

“I’ll explain everything.” His father told him. “Shuri, go. I’ll make sure he’s safe.”

His mother disappeared into the crowd, and T’Chone looked to his father. His father. He’d always known, academically, that he had a father. T’Chone wasn’t stupid, he knew he wasn’t ‘like’ the others. His skin was lighter for one, and he knew that his abilities weren’t ‘normal’. He knew, or perhaps hoped, that this meant that he was special, rather than a freak of nature.

He’d dreamed up a dozen theories- stories really- about what had happened to his father. Perhaps he’d died a heroic death in battle, or was on a deep cover assignment outside of Wakanda, or had been cruelly expelled from Wakanda by his grandfather. Sometimes, he’d fantasize about his father returning, breaking T’Chone out of his room and taking him on some spectacular adventure in the outside world. But for all his musings, he’d never had a solid picture of how his father might look or act. The man in front of him was real- real and solid. If he wanted to, he could reach out and touch him. “Aba?”

“Come on, lets get out of here.”

“No, I have to stay!” He protested. “I can help, I can fight!” For a moment, his father looked conflicted, but T’Chone wasn’t about to back down. He’d been locked up his entire life, this might be his one chance to do something. “This is my home! I deserve to help protect it.”

His father bowed his head. “Alright.” He agreed. “But you won’t be fighting. You’ll help people evacuate.”

“Really?” He asked, realizing he hadn’t expected to be listened to. “You’ll let me help?”

“Your mother might kill me, but yes.” His father said. “Nat!” He called. The redheaded woman, who earlier had been barking orders went to his side. “This is T’Chone. He will be assisting you with the evacuation.” He turned back to T’Chone. “This is Natasha Romanoff. Follow her every order. If she says to get the hell out of here, you get the hell out of here. Understood?” He said sternly. T’Chone nodded silently. “Good. Let’s get to work.”

-----

The evacuation was still underway when Wakanda’s shield barrier fell. It had been designed to hold back an army, to disintegrate any who tried to force their way through, but it had collapsed in under a minute. As the shield crumbled, a brilliant golden streak appeared in the sky. Harry’s stomach clenched- Carol was up there. He hoped Shuri had had enough time. She was the only one who could make the serum that would free her of Hydra’s conditioning.

“Looks like we’re out of time.” He said grimly. Around him, an army was assembling. Ron, Neville, Ginny, T’Challa, and Peggy were at the front, spaced out for coverage. The broken halves of Peggy’s shield had been reforged. The only sign that there had been damage was the paint job- the Union Jack was broken along the middle. Assembling behind them were the Dora Milaj and the rest of the Wakandan army. The Sorcerers, Natasha included, were still ferrying as many people away as possible. The city was in chaos, with some stubbornly refusing to leave their homes and others grabbing whatever weapons they could find and barricading the streets.

“Yibambe!” T’Challa shouted. The chant began to echo up and down the line.

Above them, Wakandan aircraft were engaging Carol and getting torn apart. Energy beams streaked upward from Wakanda, but at that distance none even touched her. Yet, in front of them, there was nothing. No sign of an invading army or Hela, just an empty field of grass. “I don’t like this.” Ron muttered.

“Me neither.” Peggy agreed. “This feels like a-”

“Proximity alarm!” Neville yelled. His enchanted eye swerved erratically. “Wasps!” Before Harry could react, Neville shouted again “ABOVE!”

Behind them he heard two heavy thuds as a pair of Iron Man suits landed. The two-pronged ambush would have been an effective strategy had there not been a contingent of wizards present. Neville, Ron, and Ginny handled the ‘Wasps’, while Harry turned and dealt with the Stark suits. He transfigured one suit to stone with his wand, holding up a shield with his hand to block the repulsor blast from the other. The blowback from the blocked attack blasted the man back with a grunt. He stabilized himself in the air, but Harry held him immobile there with his wand. He clenched his fist, compressing the suit around him until it shorted out.

The telltale sound of a Wasp returning to full size prompted Harry to wheel around. The stunner left his palm before his attacker was even at full height. “That could have gone worse.” Harry commented.

“Don’t say that.” Ron grimaced. “That’s always when it goes to sh*te.”

Before Harry could think of a rebuttal, Neville went deathly pale. His enchanted eye was focused on an empty patch of air. “Neville, what is it?” Harry asked. Then he saw it. If he hadn’t been looking for it, he would’ve missed the ripple in the air. Moody had been able to see through his invisibility cloak, he remembered with sudden clarity.

For a long moment, the world slowed down- literally. Neville’s face was frozen in fear. Ginny was stopped midstride as she ran towards them. And in front of them, the Cloak of Invisibility slowly parted to reveal Hela, a beam of sickly green light extending from her palm. Harry pivoted to the side and thrust out his wand- while the world around him was slowed, he had no such limitation- and channeled his magic into the most powerful blasting curse he could muster. He looked behind him at the file of warriors in the curse’s path. With another burst of focus, he shoved them downwards.

The world returned to normal speed, and the change was jarring. Harry’s spell passed as a distortion in the air, striking Hela and blasting her back. The Wakandans behind him collapsed to the ground, the curse sailing over their heads. Neville yelled indistinctly. Ginny skidded to a halt, her eyes wide with terror. Hela summoned a blade and plunged it into the ground, upturning dirt as she slowed herself. For a moment, she stared at him, the silvery material of the invisibility cloak billowing behind her. “Harry Potter.” She said, her voice cold with barely masked hatred. “Finding you was easier than I’d feared.”

“Neville.” Harry uttered. “Keep a bead on her. You’re the only one who can see her reliably. Ron, Ginny- protect Neville at all costs.” All three of them nodded in synchronous, like it was second nature to follow his lead.

Hela kicked at the ground, propelling herself forward with incredible speed as she vanished beneath the cloak. Neville tracked her as best he could with a narrowed beam of light from his wand, but she was moving too fast to reliably pin down. It was clear, though, that she was rushing them- which allowed Harry to cast a shield charm in her general path. Harry felt her impact his shield. It nearly buckled, and Harry was prepared to fight her on it until the pressure suddenly relented. Neville’s tracing beam rose alarmingly quickly as Hela vaulted over it. As she hurtled towards them, she launched a barrage of blades. Trusting Ron and Ginny to handle the defense, he cast out a bolt of electricity. It jumped from blade to blade, following them back to their source.

She fell heavily to the ground, briefly reappearing from beneath the cloak, before putting on another burst of speed and quickly closing the distance. T’Challa interposed himself between them, and Harry winced as Hela threw him to the ground. The suit blew back the energy of her attack back at her, sending her back on her heels and once again parting the cloak. “Ah, Vibranium. You put far too much faith in it.” She cooed, holding up a hand with a wicked smirk. Harry’s heart froze as a tiny orb of sickly green energy formed in her palm. He knew that the killing curse could destroy Vibranium, like hell was he going to see how long T’Challa’s suit could hold out. He reached out with his magic and apparated T’Challa to the back of the battlefield. The curse struck the ground harmlessly, showering the surrounding area with dirt.

“Aren’t you after me!” He shouted at Hela. “Or are you just here to faff about?” She was if nothing else, easy to bait. She was on him in seconds, and it was then that Harry realized her game. Less than a meter away, she unleashed Mjolnir. Once again, time slowed, and Harry was able to duck his head to the side as the hammer slid past. It was time for him to start pulling from his bag of tricks.

Long ago, he had killed Elisa Sinclair by forcibly apparating her, and he’d only progressed since then. He reached his magic out to her with singular intent, to send her into the ground a thousand meters beneath them. Time resumed, and Harry felt an incredible flare of power from Hela that snapped the hold his magic had on her. Hela was propelled away from him, trailing blue fire in her wake that lingered like a gouge in the world.

They stared at each other for a moment- her eyes flickering with a blue light. They’d both come to an identical realization- they weren’t the only one with an Infinity Stone. Harry had pitted his magic against an Infinity Stone before, but he’d had the Elder Wand on his side then. Without that firepower, it was like fighting against a force of nature.

Hela recalled Mjolnir, and with her other hand summoned reinforcements. Around them, Hydra soldiers appeared in a series of blue flashes. The Dora Milaje and Border Tribe readied themselves for a fight. Up until now, all they could do was to try not to get killed while Harry and Hela fought it out.

If they were eager for a fight, however, they would be disappointed. No sooner had the soldiers appeared, than they were falling through the portals that opened beneath their feet. “I apologize for my lateness.” The Ancient One said cheekily.

“Nah, you’re right on time.” Harry returned with a slight grin. If there was anyone else on their side who could hold their own against Hela, it was the Sorcerer Supreme. His good humor vanished as he became aware of the explosions behind him. His focus on the battle had been so complete that he hadn’t noticed that Wakanda was going up in flames. He couldn’t spot Carol, but he could see several armored suits flying above the city. Despite their best efforts, they’d been outflanked. He could only hope that everyone was out. Though if everyone had escaped, where were Nat and Shuri? It wouldn’t do to linger on that thought. He had to trust that they could take care of themselves and that the sorcerers would save as many people as possible.

The Ancient One’s appearance had put Hela on the backfoot, giving them a brief breather as she re-evaluated her strategy. Unfortunately, that breather could be measured in seconds. This time, she was intent on Neville and his pesky tracking beam. Harry and the Ancient One ran interference, and Neville stared the goddess down admirably as she bore down on him, but there was no stopping her. Portals and magical barriers tripped her up at best, Ginny and Ron’s spells glanced off her even when they did hit, and the Wakandans that got in her way were cut down in moments.

Neville apparated, his body blinking away with a crack… only to blink back. While Harry had caught her by surprise when he apparated T’Challa at a distance, she was prepared now. Neville was held in place by the blue energy of the Space Stone, flickering in and out of existence as his magic fought against the inexorable power of the stone. Harry lunged at them in panic, pushing as much magic through his wand as he could manage. Neville’s face was in a rictus of pain as his magic struggled to propel him away. At best he’d be splinched, at worst…

Light burst onto the battlefield, raining down around them. It took Harry a moment to recognize it as the Bifrost. He braced themselves for whatever new reinforcements Hela had called upon. An axe sliced through the air, not at Harry, or any of his allies, but at Hela.

He knew it immediately. It was Stormbreaker.

Hela pivoted back, releasing Neville as the axe cleaved one of her horns. Neville finally vanished, reappearing in a crumpled heap at the other end of the battlefield. The axe returned to Thor’s hand. “Is this a private party? Or can anyone join in?” He boomed.

Harry had never been happier to see him. “Please do.” He said, hope surging. Thor had brought an army. Appearing behind him were Asgardians, Frost Giants, and Kronans. Portals opened and Sorcerers rushed through, taking positions behind the Ancient One. T’Challa and the Dora Milaje reformed to complete Hela’s encirclement.

Maybe, just maybe they had a chance. Maybe they could do more than just hold her off. Maybe they could win.

Chapter 17: Union

Chapter Text

Shuri worked furiously, typing into her computer and then rushing over to the haphazard collection of reagent bottles. She measured out a quantity of white powder onto a scale and coughed horribly when a small amount of it was kicked into the air.

“You okay?” Nat asked.

“No time for PPE.” Shuri rasped, wiping her watery eyes as she continued to work.

“If you screw up, it’ll waste even more time.” Natasha advised.

“I won’t screw up.” Shuri said tensely as she dumped the powder into a basin. She flipped a switch, and the basin began to hum, the solution within churning as it was stirred by the sonic energy. “That’ll take two minutes. Normally would give it fifteen, but…”

“Wait, it’ll be ready in two minutes?” Natasha asked hopefully.

"No, just that step.” Shuri shook her head. “I’m nowhere close to-”

They were interrupted by a flash of blue light, as five Hydra goons were deposited into the lab. “Don’t stop working!” Natasha barked as she charged into the middle of their formation.

There had been a time in her first life, before the arrival of wizards, aliens, and gods, where the thought of her feeling insecure in her abilities would have been laughable. She’d never felt like she couldn’t contribute to the Avengers, on missions that required a bit of stealth and finesse, she was invaluable. However, there were times where she felt like a liability. When sh*t truly hit the fan she was never the one standing side by side with Harry, Thor, Strange, and Wanda. In the fight against Thanos she’d been useless, taken out early only to awaken with the fight already done. In this life, she’d taken to the Mystic Arts with a fervor, and she wondered if in part this was because of an unconscious desire to change that.

She summoned toa mandalas from her hands. One of the soldiers fired at her point blank, and his gun was blown apart as the blue beam of energy clashed against her shield. “We’ve got contact!” A soldier bellowed. “They’re working on some- hrrk!” She bashed him with her other mandala, opening a portal behind him that he tipped partway through. It opened in front of soldier number four, who aimed at her through the portal. Just as he fired, she closed the portal, bisecting the man she had struck. The beam shot across the room, forcing soldier number five to dive to the ground to avoid it. She took the fourth soldier out with a flying kick, flipping in the air to land next to the downed fifth soldier, who she efficiently eliminated with a blow to the head.

Shuri blinked at her in shock for a moment. “The magic’s new.”

“I told you to keep working.” Natasha said. The fight had taken perhaps five seconds, but every second counted right now. Her words stirred Shuri to action, and she began to prepare for the next step of her process. Harry had placed a high priority on this, and for good reason. It was why she was here, to make sure nothing could disrupt Shuri. Perhaps, it could be argued, she might be better used evacuating people from Wakanda, or even its technology, Vibranium, or the precious Heart-Shaped Herb. All of those things, other Sorcerers and Wakandans could manage. Because this was about more than some battlefield advantage- though it certainly was that as well- this was about saving a friend.

Shuri worked for several more minutes, while Natasha took a breather, listening to the chatter over the comms. They should, theoretically, be safe. While not all of the buildings in Wakanda were constructed with Vibranium, the Royal Palace certainly was. If anywhere in Wakanda was secure, they were.

Yet… it was certainly odd that Hydra had teleported directly into Shuri’s lab. Had they been targeting the royal palace specifically? It would make sense. If the original goal of this attack was to lure Harry out, hostages would be useful. And if the evacuation was going as well as they’d hoped, they may well be the only life signs in the building. She’d worked for Hydra, and she knew how they operated, they might as well have placed a target on their backs. The safety of the Vibranium was also illusory. If there was a barrier Hydra couldn’t break through, they’d just go around it. She’d been ported in and out of supposedly impenetrable fortresses many times.

An explosion sounded out above them.

It also probably meant they wouldn’t stop trying, and perhaps, send in bigger guns.

Another explosion, and then a bang. She and Shuri shared an alarmed glance. The noises were getting closer, and fast. There was a loud thump as something impacted heavily on the door to the lab. Being made of Vibranium, the door didn’t budge, but she could hear the carnage wreaked behind it.

“Looks like she found us.” Natasha said. They both knew exactly who was on the other side of that door. They’d been hoping to lure her out, but not yet. Natasha glanced nervously at Shuri as she worked. It was too soon. “They’re going to port her in.” She said, opening a portal as another deafening explosion collided with the door. “Get out!”

Shuri shook her head “This is our only chance.”

“Damn it, get out!” Natasha shouted- too late. A flash of blue light heralded Carol Danvers’ arrival.

Shuri ducked behind a Vibranium bench, firing ineffectively with a sonic weapon. Carol shot in the air in pursuit, and Natasha spotted her chance. She opened a portal directly in Carol’s path. The ring shrunk down around her, nearly collapsing, but then Natasha faced a sudden resistance she’d never felt from her magic before. Carol was literally prying the portal back open with her hands. With a roar, she broke through, shredding the portal and casting off a shockwave of golden energy. It collided with Natasha’s hastily constructed mandala shield, sending her flying back into the wall. “f*ck!” She grunted, forcing herself back to her feet.

The lab had been destroyed, all of Shuri’s reagents burnt away and her complex machinery fried. There was nothing left for them here. She cast a quick glance at their means of escape. If they even tried to go for the portal, Carol would stop them and use it to find the sanctum. Natasha let it flicker closed, looking Carol in the eyes as best she could with her mask. “Carol, this isn’t you.” She said.

“That’s not my name.” Came the cold reply. With a quick jab, she sent another bolt of plasma at her. Before Natasha could even flinch, a wall assembled itself in front of her. Shuri leapt to her side, having discarded her gun and donned a metal headband. It was their plan B- Vibranium nanobots. Shuri had programmed them so they could be directed with her mind. She’d been working on nanotech for a new Black Panther suit, similar to the models she’d created in their original timeline, when Harry had crashed into her life.

“Think you can get us out?” She asked, holding the wall firm as Carol torched it, plasma shooting off in gouts on either side of them. It’d hold. While nanobots weren’t as strong as solid Vibranium, it was the next best thing.

“Think you can give us a little space?”

“Think you can help?” They flashed each other a quick grin.

The incoming fire stalled as Carol propelled herself towards them. It was scary, how fast she could move, far too fast for them to evade her. Thankfully, that wasn’t their plan. Natasha opened a portal in Carol’s path. She was prepared for the trick this time, rolling to avoid it. But she wasn’t prepared for what was on the other side of the portal. Shuri’s nanobots surged through the opening, latching onto Carol’s ankle as she passed. With a grunt, Carol crashed into the floor as nanobots crawled up her legs and pinned her arms. With a burst of effort, she broke from the tendrils binding her wrists, only for another wave of silvery goop to take their place. Slowly, despite Shuri’s attempts to keep her down, Carol stood up.

“Any moment now.” Shuri said. Natasha tuned her out, she just needed time to focus, this was a lot easier when you didn’t need to worry about who you were bringing with you…

Carol pulsed brighter, explosively scattering the nanobots with a burst of energy that thoroughly scorched the room. She lunged at Natasha and Shuri, only to pass through empty air. The two women looked on, statue still, not quite believing they were out of the woods yet. Around them, the room shifted into fractals. “Where are we?” Shuri whispered.

“Mirror dimension.” Natasha whispered back.

“They got away.” Carol said robotically. “Orders?” There was a pause. “Potter?” Suddenly her voice wasn’t so robotic, if only for a moment. “Understood.” Then she was gone in a flash of blue light.

-----

T’Chone ducked through the doorway, peering into the half-collapsed house. “Is anyone there?” He called, clutching the Vibranium spear that still felt odd in his hands. For all the sparring he’d done with his uncle, he’d never handled a real weapon before, never seen a real battle, never really fought.

His experiences with real battle were nothing like he’d imagined. It was a chaotic sprint as explosions rocked the buildings next to him. It was ducking low as Hydra flew overhead- both the less imposing drones and the more dangerous Iron Men. It was dodging to the side whenever he saw the flash of blue light that heralded the arrival of more soldiers. Hydra’s tactics were cowardly, T’Chone thought, but it’d almost worked. They wouldn’t attack them head on, and instead tried to terrorize civilians. How lucky Wakanda was, that his father had come prepared, that almost everyone had been evacuated already.

He hadn’t actually fought anyone himself, but he had saved some people, and that was enough. “Please, help!” Someone called back. T’Chone ventured deeper into the structure, finding a family huddled in the kitchen. A man was pinned to the floor by a collapsing beam, his wife and three children trying and failing to lift it off him.

He couldn’t help them, but he knew who could. He tapped the communicator in his ear. “T’Chone. I’ve got five at my location.” He said.

“One moment.” Came the response. Perhaps a minute later a portal opened, and a sorcerer strode through. With a quick nod, T’Chone was off. His job there was done.

“Kid, you should get out.” The sorcerer called. “We’ve got it from here!” He ignored him.

Out on the streets, the sounds of blaster fire and explosions could be heard, and more distantly- the booming of thunder. He pulled up his scanner and pivoted, squinting at the screen until a blip appeared- a life sign. He ran, skidding into an alley and vaulting over rubble. He turned a corner, and immediately realized his mistake.

The life signs he’d picked up were in fact a squad of Hydra soldiers. They’d been milling around aimlessly, seeming to be uncertain to do without an obvious target. Now, an obvious target had presented itself. T’Chone lurched back as a blue beam whizzed by, striking the wall and vaporizing it. Something clattered on the ground beside him, and it took him a moment to realize it was a grenade. With all his might, he focused on pushing the thing back from where it came, and the grenade skidded along the ground back to the soldiers. He heard shouts of surprise, then an explosion and screams.

Had he done it? T’Chone wondered, feeling delirious with relief. It was almost too easy. A soldier rounded the corner, gun raised. T’Chone cursed himself. He should have run, run as far as he could and called for help. He backed up, his palms sweating as he tightened his grip on the spear. Should he close the distance and fight, or get as far away as possible to dodge? He didn’t know! He tripped on a piece of rubble and fell back onto the ground. The soldier chuckled darkly. “You’re lucky.” He said. “Your death will be far less painful than my comrades’.” He pulled the trigger.

“PROTEGO!” A translucent shield appeared in front of him, absorbing the beam. Both T’Chone and the soldier blinked in astonishment as a girl who couldn’t be much older than him held her wand aloft.

“Witch!” The man shouted, before she took him out with a ‘stupefy’.

Then she offered him her hand. “Hi!” She said.

“Hi.” T’Chone returned shakily, taking her hand and letting her pull him up. “Thank you!” He had no idea who this girl was, but she’d saved his life. He had no idea what to say to her. He’d never really interacted with anyone his age, let alone a girl.

She smiled brightly, awkwardly turning her helping hand into a handshake. “You’re welcome! Uhm, I’m Lily.”

“T’Chone.” He managed. Perhaps they would have tripped around each other a while longer, but they were interrupted. One of the Iron Men suits streaked overhead, pulling to a surprisingly quick stop and landing on the ground with a bone shaking thud. “Looks like we’ve got a little witch.” The man snarled.

“Stupefy!” The girl said confidently, sending a red spell at the armored man. It pinged uselessly off his armor. “Hehe!” She chuckled sheepishly.

“My turn!” He raised his gauntlets, charging them up. T’Chone, who had already been backing up, yanked the girl around the corner as the repulsor blast went off. He retched when he saw the carnage the grenade had wrought- a horrible mess of body parts, gore, and blood, a lot of blood.

“Did you do this?” She asked as they ran.

“I just pushed their grenade back at them!” He said desperately, not wanting her to think he was some sort of butcher. “Like this!” The Iron Man had taken off in pursuit. He couldn’t shove him that hard with his magic, but the little push he gave him was enough to send him off course and careening into a building.

“Wicked!” She said.

“You two won’t get away that easily!” Their pursuer shouted. Lily sent a ‘lacerus’ spell at him, which only partially cut through the armor.

“Can someone get us out of here!” T’Chone said into his headset. “We’re under attack!” He should have called for help a lot sooner, just like he should have run away sooner, and done anything against that last soldier other than freeze. But the girl was looking at him like he was brilliant.

“You can do magic!” She gasped.

“Yeah, my dad is a wizard.” He said. “Though I didn’t know it until... today.” They ducked as blue beams whizzed from behind them. It conveniently carving a path into the building in front of them. They ran in and made a hard left, hoping to lose the man in the maze of what seemed to be an apartment complex.

“Really? Mine is too!” The girl said. “I just met him too. It’s a long story.” The wall exploded, leaving them on either side of the gap.

“Come on out, little abominations.” The man called, sending a shiver down T’Chone’s spine. Lily met his eyes, and then pointed silently at his spear, clumsily miming a throwing motion.

Oh, that might work.

He backed up as quietly as he could, shifting his stance in preparation. Lily crept backwards as well, holding her wand at the ready. As their attacker stepped into the hallway, they leapt into action. T’Chone hurled his spear with his whole body, giving it an additional boost with his magic while Lily said “Accio spear!”

With their combined power, the spear streaked through the air, lodging solidly in the man’s shoulder. He cried out in pain and stumbled, but wasn’t completely down. T’Chone had learned his lesson on inaction, and rushed up to their fallen foe, wrenching the spear in deeper, while Lily peppered his armor with cutting spells. Finally, it seemed they hit something vital, as the armor sparked and the light in its chest blinked out.

“Yeah! We did it!” Lily crowed. T’Chone offered his fist up to her. “Right, fist bump!” She said excitedly, smacking her fist clumsily against his.

“We did it.” He agreed, smiling in relief.

That relief would be rather short-lived. A series of crashes rang out above them, and they grew closer and louder with alarming speed. Something was plowing through the levels of the building like it was made of paper. They’d taken a few steps down the hall when they were both suddenly blown back by an unseen force. Another armored man plunged through the ceiling, and though his landing cast out a force that shoved them both back, he barely made a sound as he touched down. “Targets located.” He said in a calm, professional tone.

T'Chone scrabbled around the corner, dragging a bleary Lily along with him. Something about this suit was different from the others in a way he couldn’t put his finger on. It moved both heavily and lightly, and it seemed to hum with a sort of power.

The man extended his arm, and a beam passed over them, looking more like a distortion in the air than a laser or blaster. Though it missed them, it ate through the walls of the building with ease, sending the entire structure collapsing around them. T’Chone thrust his spear into the floor, using the blunt end as a support beam as the ceiling crashed down on them, giving them a tiny pocket of space to breathe in.

Then, as quickly as the onslaught had begun, it stopped. “Immediately?” The man asked, then a pause. “Understood. For the goddess!” Then he was gone in a flash of blue light.

As if on cue, a portal opened up in front of them. Neither teen hesitated to launch themselves through. Waiting for them on the other side were two women- Natasha Romanoff and his mother, and neither looked particularly happy with them. He and Lily gave them nearly identical sheepish grins.

They were in so much trouble.

-----

Hela flashed a wicked grin. Twin streaks of green light erupted from her palms as she spun in place, putting the entire encircling army in the curse’s path. However, even as Hela made her move, the Ancient One countered. Around them, the world shifted and distorted, as if he was watching it through a moving crystal lattice.

Along with Hela, only he, the Ancient One, and Thor remained. Thor batted away the curse almost casually with Stormbreaker. He looked every inch a Viking god, with a long braided beard and an eye-patch fitted over his right eye. Harry slid under the curse, he knew that the rest of his allies were safe for the time being. They were in the mirror dimension, and nothing they did in here could affect the real world.

Thor threw Stormbreaker at Hela once more, lightning arcing with his swing. Hela lunged forward, straight at Harry, but the ground shifted beneath her suddenly, manipulated by the Ancient One’s mastery of this world. She wasn’t prepared for this and went sprawling to the ground as Stormbreaker struck her. For the first time she was both prone and visible, and Harry took his shot, quickly charging up a beam of energy. It seared through the air, burning almost blindingly bright, and hit like a firecracker. Though Hela managed to raise her arms to block it, the impact still drew a hiss from her as it burned into the armor of her forearm and seared the skin beneath.

For the first time this fight, they’d hurt her.

Hela lunged again, casting out a hail of blades at Harry. He vanished the incoming fire while the Ancient One wrapped her in thick ropes of magic. Thor, plucking his axe from the air, cast lightning down on her. Harry readied his next attack. For a moment, it looked like they had her.

Then, with a flash of blue from Hela, the mirror dimension shattered around them. Hela broke free from the Ancient One’s binding and went into motion. Dimensional shards, the nearly invisible remnants of their time in the mirror dimension, rained down along Hela’s path but never hit her. She landed in the ranks of the Dora Milaje, a ring of blades appearing around her and shooting out to skewer those closest to her. Ginny shot a blasting curse at her feet, and Harry winced, knowing this wouldn’t end well. Hela used the space stone to halt the shrapnel in its tracks and return it to sender. Ron tackled Ginny to the ground, the rubble ricocheting off his shield charm. Several of the sorcerers were too slow with their mandala shields and fell.

Hela had foregone stealth in favor of all out attack, and she was going to tear through all of their allies if they didn’t stop her. That was probably her plan- force their hand, put them in an impossible position until they made a mistake. Perhaps, though, he could still surprise her. Even with the cloak, she was so active that it was obvious where she was. She constantly rolled, lunged, and leapt, revealing parts of her body as she did so, and the nearly constant hail of blades made her location quite obvious. Gritting his teeth, he transfigured the air around Hela into steel. For a moment she was completely still, as if fully transformed into a chrome statue. The magic resistance of Asgardians made that impossible, but this might be the next best thing.

The metal shredded around her, as if she’d merely been encased in tissue paper. Harry’s ploy had bought them time though. Time enough for the Wakandans to pull away from her, and time for Thor to close the distance and swing Stormbreaker down on her. Hela brought Mjolnir up to meet him, parrying his blow and sending the hammer into his chest. Thor grunted as the hammer pushed him back, plowing him through the ranks of his own people. A portal opened beside her, courtesy of the Ancient One, and a jet of water collided with her. The water carved into the ground with such force that Harry suspected its source was quite deep. Hela was dragged by the jet into a muddy mire, which Harry promptly froze around her. Her imprisonment only lasted a few moments. She quickly shattered the ice around her and used the Space Stone to accelerate it in all directions. Between the shields of the wizards and sorcerers, most were protected, but a few were not so fortunate. She was picking them off.

“We need to pull back!” Peggy shouted.

“She’ll slaughter us off if we try.” Ron said. “It’ll be a disaster either way.”

Harry sighed wearily, trying to figure out another strategy that could beat her. Nothing came to mind other than wearing her down, and the human cost to that wasn’t acceptable. Hela charged into the crowd again, and Harry vanished the ground in front of her. It tripped her up and sent her skidding. With the opening, the Ancient One opened another portal, drowning her once again. When she reappeared, Harry couldn’t help but be amused. She was dripping wet and covered head to toe in mud, and she looked absolutely furious.

Any good humor disappeared in two flashes of light. Hela had called for reinforcements, and…

He didn’t know what had happened to Shuri, if she was still working on the cure or if she was even alive. Either way, Harry had been silently hoping that they’d be able to bring Carol into the battle on their side, and now he knew that was impossible. At Hela’s other side was clearly an Iron Man model, though something about it was different. Thor leaped at the trio, and the suited man intercepted him. Stormbreaker clanged resonantly against the armor, with no effect. The man shoved Thor back with a godly strength and landed nimbly on the ground.

“Eliminate them, soldier.” Hela commanded, and Carol nodded. Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but Harry swore she glanced at him and hesitated, for just a moment.

Harry felt a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, we’ve got a plan.” Harry stiffened at the surprisingly familiar voice.

-----

Hela tore viciously through the ranks of the Kronans and was gratified to hear an enraged shout. Harry Potter had finally had enough and was done playing games. She knew he had a soft heart, and he wouldn’t be able to bear to see his friends killed for long. He’d offer up his life for theirs, in the end, as long as he could tell himself he was going down fighting honorably.

She ignored his spellfire and sent a few blades at him in return. She wasn’t surprised that they vanished before they struck him. If that would have been enough to kill him, she wouldn’t have needed to draw him out like this. For a few seconds they danced around each other, until he made a crucial mistake. He sent a plume of fire at her. It wasn’t nearly enough to hurt her, and it gave her cover. He wouldn’t see that she’d leapt through the flames, wouldn’t see how close she was, not until it was far too late. He had just enough time for the fear to register in his eyes, before a flash of green light ensured that those eyes would never see again.

Harry Potter’s body fell to the ground. It had been touch and go, and she’d loathed that she needed help in this battle, but she’d won. Summoning a sword to her hand, she sliced through Potter’s neck, gripped his head by the hair, and lifted it up for all to see.

A redheaded witch screamed, charging her with a death wish. Hela obliged her with a spear through her throat. “Harry Potter is dead!” She crowed triumphantly. “If you bow to me now, I may yet spare you.” She wouldn’t, of course.

Then, disturbingly, she heard laughter. After a moment, she realized it was coming from Potter’s severed head. She turned the head around so she could see its face. He laughed harder. Unnatural, abomination, this was why she was going to kill every one of them. Hela didn’t know how Potter had done this, but it only strengthened her resolve to cleanse this world of each and every one of his kind.

“You think you’ve won, don’t you?” Potter asked, and his voice shifted. Around her, the armies of her enemies disappeared into thin air, as did most of the corpses. The last corpse to disappear was Potter’s, though the head remained, taunting. She dropped it, but it remained in place, floating. “Congratulations, Hela of Asgard. You’ve successfully united your greatest enemies against you.” The head disappeared, and in its place was Loki, the trickster prince of Jotunheim. She launched her sword through his head, but of course it merely phased through him. Loki was far away now and was merely taunting her.

She’d been played. They’d escaped while she’d been distracted by an illusion. She’d conquered Wakanda and won the battle, but for what? Her true goal, Harry Potter, had escaped, and was left all the stronger for it. Loki smirked, and Hela wanted to wring the princeling’s neck. “Enjoy your victory, Goddess.”

Chapter 18: Break the Cycle

Chapter Text

Tony stumbled into his bathroom and retched into the sink. For the first time, it wasn’t alcohol, but pure revulsion that bubbled up through his throat.

It all made sense, too much sense. It was so clear, and the fact that he hadn’t seen it before was on him. For his entire life he’d been so carefully kept, a pampered pet. He’d been all too happy with his gilded life to realize that it had been a cage all along.

His weapons weren’t saving the world from the Wizarding Order, they weren’t protecting people. They were tools of slaughter. The battle had seemed to last an eternity, and he’d been helpless, only able to watch as his creations murdered and destroyed. Every person- every child- who had died in that city, it was all on him.

Tony heaved- it came up dry- and he splashed water in his face. He wondered what other lies he’d been told. He remembered his childhood, the rare visits with his parents. He’d been told that they were just too busy saving the world. But with the sudden clarity afforded to him, he saw his position for what it had been. He’d been leverage. His father had helped Hydra, but only because they’d had Tony. His parents’ distance hadn’t been because they didn’t care about him, but because they’d had no choice.

Worse, if anyone in Hydra realized that Tony had doubts, that if for a moment they suspected he knew more than he should, they wouldn’t hesitate to force his cooperation as well. His mind reeled, triaging his position. He couldn’t run, and he couldn’t fight against them.

At least… not directly.

-----

Natasha grabbed Lily’s ear, who squawked indignantly. “What the hell were you thinking? Running into Wakanda like that, without telling anyone?”

“I told someone.” She pouted.

“Who?”

“Err, some sorcerer?” Natasha looked distinctly unimpressed. “Look, I saved T’Chone’s life!”

“She did!” T’Chone came to her defense. “I’d be dead if it weren’t for her.”

“And why.” Shuri cut in. “Was your life in need of saving in the first place? You were supposed to be rescuing civilians, not picking fights with Hydra.”

“I didn’t mean to! It just sort of happened.”

“God, he takes after his father.” Natasha sighed. “What are we going to do with them?”

At that moment, portals opened up around them and people began streaming out- Sorcerers, Wakandans, and… others? Natasha scanned the crowd, not sure what to make of the dark blue skinned giants, the humanoid beings composed of stone, at least not until she spotted a couple of Asgardians. Then things started to become clear. It was a retreat, but not a disorganized one- better than she’d feared. “Dad!” Lily shouted, pelting towards Harry the moment she saw him. T’Chone watched them as they hugged, stunned.

Harry spun her around and set her down. “I made a friend!” Lily chirped, leading him back. “This is T’Chone.”

“I see that.” Harry said, a tired smile on his face. He was far from jubilant, but the battle couldn’t have gone that poorly, Natasha figured.

“Aba.” T’Chone said, the word still unfamiliar on his tongue. “What… how…” Finally, he spit it out. “Is she my sister?”

“Well, half-sister, yes.” Harry said with the straightest face he could manage. Natasha didn’t envy him. Having to explain how he’d had children from two different women, and yes this was all consensual with all parties wasn’t an easy task.

Shuri came to his rescue. “T’Chone, your father and I have a… unique relationship.” T’Chone nodded numbly. “You and Lily were conceived at around the same time, and both Nat and I knew what we were getting into.”

“He’s my brother.” Lily breathed. She was just as dumbstruck as T’Chone. However, she’d had time to acclimate to her parents’ unorthodox relationships. “Why didn’t you tell me I had a brother?” She asked, accusing.

“Well…” Harry stumbled, caught between the demands of his two children. “We weren’t even sure if you did until we reconnected with Shuri. We didn’t want to get your hopes up if it turned out…”

“Oh.” Lily nodded, somewhat mollified. She was very sensitive to things being kept from her, but was as quick to calm down as she was to anger.

“But why, mother?” T’Chone asked, sounding utterly lost. “If he was already with another, why…”

“Let me tell you a story, T’Chone.” Shuri said soothingly. “Back when we’d first met, Hydra attacked Wakanda and tried to kill my parents. Your father nearly killed himself saving us, pushed his magic so hard in healing my father that he collapsed and almost died. He’s… special to me. And the other women we were with… it was never a competition between us. We were friends, teammates, partners. It felt natural.”

That was as good of an explanation as Nat had heard, and Shuri cemented it by throwing a playful arm around her shoulder. “We’re still friends, right?” She teased. “You’re not upset I slept with your man?” Natasha smiled, rolling her eyes.

“And I’m out.” Lily said, turning on her heels.

“Wait just a moment.” Natasha disentangled herself. “You’re still in trouble!”

“What for?” Harry raised an eyebrow.

“This is your fault.” She jabbed a finger into Harry’s chest. “She charged headfirst into a warzone. She’s got your stupid saving people complex.”

“I saved T’Chone!” Lily shouted. “My brother, apparently!”

Harry held a hand up. “Let’s discuss this before doling out punishments.” He cautioned. “And I’m sure this is at least partly because you did such a good job raising her to be compassionate and brave.”

“Flattery will get you nowhere.” Natasha said, smiling despite herself.

“Harry!” He turned his head to find Ginny rushing towards him. She looked not much worse for wear. Natasha found herself wondering what exactly had gone down in the battle outside Wakanda.

“You were incredible out there.” She gushed. “Going toe to toe with her like that.”

Harry wrapped her in a hug. “You scared me for a moment there, Gin.”

“Wait, Gin?” Shuri asked, putting the pieces together. “Oh my god! You’re his magic school girlfriend!”

“Yeah, I guess that’s me.” Ginny said awkwardly, reluctantly releasing Harry.

“I’m so happy for you two.” Shuri crowed. “He missed you so much, it was obvious.” She offered up a fist to bump. Blushing, Ginny knocked her fist to Shuri’s. Natasha chuckled under her breath. She doubted Ginny had been expecting such an enthusiastic reception from Shuri. Shuri looked back at Natasha. “We need to catch up. Get on the same page.”

“Yeah, right after we get on the same page with our children.” Natasha said under her breath. She glanced around, to find that both of the little miscreants had disappeared. “Son of a-”

-----

“Thank you.” Harry said. “I don’t know what would have happened without you. I know you don’t remember me, but it is good to see you.”

“So its true, then?” Thor asked. “Heimdall told me of your situation, but I confess I couldn’t quite believe it.” Heimdall was with them, then, that explained how Thor had known to arrive at exactly the right time. Harry could only begin to imagine the advantage that having eyes and ears everywhere would give them.

As much as Harry would like to spend time with his nascent family, getting up to speed with their new allies couldn’t wait. The Asgardians and his wizarding friends had been eyeing each other warily, and Harry wanted to cut any distrust off at the head. He hoped this wouldn’t be a difficult conversation. Thor had always been easy to get along with, but then, the Thor he had known hadn’t had his kingdom taken from him and spent decades as a resistance fighter.

“It is.” Harry bowed his head. “I’m… we’re going to fix this. Its not going to be easy, but with your help… we’re that much closer.”

“I always thought an alliance between me and your people would make sense.” Thor said. “I sent a messenger down to discuss cooperation, but she… never returned.” Harry winced. He instantly knew who Thor must be referring to- the woman from his vision.

“We have nothing to do with the Order.” Harry said. “They’re as cruel and racist as Hela is. I have a source within the organization.” He wasn’t prepared to regale Thor with the details of his horcrux connection with Voldemort. “I believe she’s alive and imprisoned.”

“She’s alive.” Thor breathed, relieved. “We need to save her.”

“Thor-”

“Its my fault she met this fate.” He barreled on. “I sent her down here. I cannot stand by and-”

“Thor!” Harry belted. “I have friends down there too. I’m not going to abandon them. We will get them back.”

Thor breathed out a heavy sigh. “Thank you, Harry Potter. I confess, I was worried about this meeting.”

“Why?”

“After what happened to Valkyrie. I feared that no wizard would speak with any of my kind. Not after what my sister has done.”

It was Harry’s turn to sigh. “You are not your sister, and I am not the Order. Neither of us is responsible for what our people have done. But together, we can break the cycle, and make things right.”

-----

Shuri felt the tension in her gut grow as she followed Harry away from the common areas. There hadn’t been time for intimacy, not with danger so close and with so much to do. Housing an entire city’s worth of people should have been a nearly impossible task, but the Ancient one had merely opened a door and presented a complex with hallways, rooms, gardens and courtyards that seemed to go on forever (when asked if they truly did, the Ancient One had only smiled enigmatically).

Then there was Lily and T’Chone to deal with. Shuri found herself unable to punish T’Chone too harshly, her resolve breaking as soon as they’d tracked the two down. They were in an alcove, talking excitedly to each other and occasionally breaking out into giggles. Shuri couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen T’Chone so happy and carefree. Her heart thawing, she couldn’t bring herself to do more than give him a lecture about safety and recklessness.

There promised to be meetings later, to discuss strategy and no doubt argue endlessly, but certainly not tonight. Tonight, everyone would settle in and get some rest. Though she planned to be in bed, perhaps Shuri would be getting less rest than the others.

“Princess.” They had been intercepted, and by someone Shuri was loathe to see. Okoye bowed her head, showing more deference to her than she normally would have. Shuri’s memories of Okoye from her previous life were different. The woman, then and now, was driven by honor and a warrior spirit, but this world had hardened her edge and her prejudices, at Shuri’s expense. “Please allow me to escort you to your quarters.”

It was a peace offering, but Shuri realized as it was made that she had no interest in taking it. She was done playing that game, of court politics and intrigue, of trying to adhere to conservative standards that she’d never fit into naturally. “Thank you for your offer.” She said. “But I will be sleeping with Harry from now on.”

“Sleeping?” Okoye asked, apprehensive.

In an unspoken answer, Shuri leaned forward, rising onto her toes to catch Harry’s mouth in a kiss. Harry hesitated for a moment, before leaning in. She moaned purposefully, drawing herself against Harry’s body as their kiss deepened. It felt good, being close to Harry, but it felt even better to show Okoye just how much she enjoyed being close to him. Let her see, let her stew and judge. And if deep down the woman was secretly jealous? All the better.

When they broke the kiss, Shuri found herself pressed intimately against Harry and her back against the wall. She could feel his breath ghost against her lips as he panted, his own lips alluringly flushed. She wanted to kiss him again. “I think we’ve got the situation well in hand, general.” Harry said. Amused, Shuri watched Okoye spin on her heels and beat a swift retreat.

“You know, I’d like them to at least tolerate me.” Harry told her.

“I don’t care.” Shuri said. “I’ve been playing their game all my life, and I’m sick of it.” Having gotten a taste of rebellion, she wanted more. She wanted to rub her relationship with Harry in her parents’ faces. She wanted gratuitous displays of affection with him in front of the elite families. She wanted to see the looks on her old suitors’ faces, who had always treated her like they were doing her a favor, making her a proper woman by associating with her. She wanted to tell them that Harry was the only man who had made her cum, who had made her scream and see god.

She wanted to see them steam with impotent rage and humiliation. Their princess, dating an outsider. But not just an outsider, but a white man. And not just a white man, but the man who had saved them all, who was completely untouchable. And she wasn’t merely dating him, she’d already had a child with him, already tainted her royal bloodline with his foreign seed. And worse still, she wasn’t even a ‘proper’ wife, she was one of his lovers, part of his harem like the kings of old.

She wanted to tear apart every one of Wakanda’s traditions, and f*cking Harry was a good place to start. She kissed him again, bowing to the allure of his parted lips. He grabbed her ass, crushing her to him and rubbing his erection against her abdomen. An idea occurred to her, triggering a shiver of arousal. She sank to her knees, looking up at Harry. He cut an imposing figure from this position. Already significantly taller than her, he towered over her now. However, it was the prominent ridge of his co*ck, now right in front of her, that monopolized her attention. She unclasped his pants and dragged them down. “Shuri.” Harry panted. “Someone could see us.”

“Let them.” She said. That was the point. If some Wakandan nobleman walked in on her gagging herself on Harry’s co*ck… she felt another shiver of pleasure. She tugged down his boxers, and her breath caught. He was every bit as impressive as she’d remembered. His pale shaft, engorged and flushed with blood, called out to her. “I’m gonna worship your white co*ck.” She moaned gratuitously for her imagined audience. Harry’s co*ck throbbed at her words. “f*ck.” She moaned again, this time not exaggerating one bit.

She pressed her lips against his flushed head, swiping with her tongue almost tentatively, lapping around his crown as she got a feel for his taste and texture. “Shuri.” Harry hissed, his co*ck twitching again. It was all the encouragement she needed. There was something hypnotic about it, bobbing her head up and down his length, hearing him moan, tasting him and feeling him throb into her mouth. She took him deeper, until she was gagging herself on him. She reveled in it, how depraved she must look and how lewd she must sound.

She felt Harry’s hand on the back of her head, though it was little more than a gentle caress, it felt like a promise that he could do more. “I’m close.” He said, his voice low and gravelly. She didn’t let up, staring up at Harry with darkened eyes and hollowing out her cheeks as she sucked. Harry moaned, shivering as he began to release himself. Shuri knew from previous experience that she wouldn’t be able to swallow it all, which was just as well. After the first few shots, she released him and let his essence streak across her face, marking her up, claiming her.

She gave a delirious giggle, feeling high. She could taste Harry’s seed in her mouth and feel it warm and thick on her face. It was intoxicating. She must look like a sight. Then she heard footsteps behind her, and panic mixed with a sudden, intense spike of arousal. Had someone actually been watching, all along?

“Alright you little rebel.” Natasha chuckled, and Shuri felt a strange mix of relief and disappointment. They hadn’t been caught, not really. “I think we have a lot of ‘catching up’ to do.”

Shuri stood, wobbling, prompting Harry to place his hands on her shoulders to steady her. She felt lightheaded, coasting on a high that was partly sexual, and partly the thrill of rebellion. “C’mon.” She giggled again. “Whisk me away, white boy.”

She squeaked when Harry scooped her up into his arms. “As the princess wishes.” He said with faux formality. Shuri giggled again, swatting his backside, causing Harry to jolt in surprise.

“He has a nice ass, doesn’t he?” Natasha smiled, giving it a swat of her own. “Come on, Ginny’s waiting for us. Let’s all get acquainted, shall we?”

-----

“What are you doing, sister?” T’Challa asked.

“Something I should have done a long time ago.” Shuri said. Sexual rebellion was one thing, but it didn’t mean anything without some real rebellion, without something concrete. In her hands, she carefully cradled one of the most carefully guarded treasures of the royal family. She hadn’t asked permission, of course, and she wasn’t going to ask for forgiveness either.

T’Challa merely raised his eyebrows. “I hope you aren’t giving that to T’Chone.”

Shuri snorted. “God no. We’re going to have a hard enough time with him as it is.” She shook her head. “No, I’m giving it to Harry.”

It wasn’t the first time she’d thought about it. She’d given him the Heart shaped herb once, to save his life. It had been withdrawn under her father’s orders, and Harry had consented, but all along, the procedure had left a bad taste in her mouth. Harry had nearly sacrificed his life to protect her family, and with the herb he could have done even more to save people. But she’d bowed to her father’s will, and Harry had taken it with equanimity.

Now, she had far less patience with authority and the traditions and strictures of Wakandan society. It had been those judgements that had led to her hiding her son away, to them living in subtle disgrace, and she was sick of it. Harry deserved this, and more importantly, he could use it.

She could see her brother coming to terms with her intentions in real time. There was a brief flicker of conflict, and then acceptance. He had been in the battle against Hela and had seen firsthand how outclassed they had been. “Don’t worry, sis, I won’t try to stop you.” T’Challa nodded. “And I won’t tell our parents either.”

“If they find out, they find out.” Shuri said brazenly. She wasn’t going to go out of her way to tell them, but she felt surprisingly flippant about what they might do if they did figure out what she’d done. What, would they leave, send all their people to certain death? Unlikely. Her father may still be the sovereign of Wakanda and hold the loyalty of her people, but he no longer held the cards. “They can rage about it all they want, I won’t move.”

“One thing.” T’Challa added. “You should consider taking a second herb.”

Shuri blinked uncomprehendingly.

“If we’re going to be giving the herb to our allies.” T’Challa explained lightly. “Shouldn’t Wakanda’s honored princess also be gifted with it?”

Chapter 19: Spectre

Chapter Text

“Fuhck! Fuhck! Fuhck!” Ginny’s guttural moans were embarrassingly loud, far overshadowing the slapping of skin on skin, Harry’s heavy breathing, and the quiet commentary from their two observers. She couldn’t help it, it just felt too good. Sex with Harry had been good from the very start, but as they’d learned more about what made each other tick, it had gotten somehow better. Well, at least Harry had gotten better, she hoped he was enjoying it more too, but sometimes it felt like she was just along for the ride.

They’d found that doggy style felt especially good for her, penetration just felt deeper. With each thrust, his co*ckhead burrowed into her, lodging against a part of her that she’d never known existed but felt unfathomable. It was the satisfaction of having the innermost depths of her femininity penetrated and claimed. Each time he seated himself within her, her feminine walls closed addictingly around his girth, singing with the satisfaction of having something to clench around, and of being so very full. So she moaned out garbled profanities, spraying drool and spittle, she couldn’t not.

Once he’d gotten the angle, depth and rhythm just right (and he was getting frighteningly good at that) it didn’t take her long. “Cumming! Cumming!” She howled. “On your co*ck! co*ck! co*ck! co*ck!”

Harry had learned to keep thrusting at exactly the same pace as she came. With the pulses of her org*sm already blazing through her body, his plunging thrusts were like chucking a load of explosives into the inferno. She detonated again, her org*sm redoubling itself, and Harry continued to thrust. “HUHH! HUHH! HUHH! HUHH!” She grunted, beyond words, beyond everything except the feeling of Harry’s co*ck in her.

As the inferno dissipated, Ginny slumped limply against the bed- her brain as much mush as her muscles. “Looks like your little fangirl is addicted to your co*ck, babe.” Natasha teased. During her recap of the battle with Hela, Ginny may have gushed a little too exuberantly about how well Harry had fought. She wasn’t in the headspace defend her honor, however, mostly because her headspace was still somewhere up in the clouds. “Though it looks like you’ll need some help finishing off.” Natasha continued. Huh?

“I volunteer!” Shuri piped in.

Ginny roused herself. “Wait, you didn’t cum?” Perhaps it could be explained by this being round two for him- Natasha had gotten first dibs tonight, and all three of them had enjoyed some private time with him earlier that day- but her sense of pride wouldn’t stand for this.

“Don’t worry about it, Gin.” Harry stroked her back. “I loved-”

“No. I need to make you cum!” Ginny insisted.

However, Shuri had seen her opening and was trying to wedge herself in. “C’mon.” She sashayed over. She met Ginny’s eyes, hers glinting playfully. “Don’t you want to cum in my Wakandan puss*?” She brought a hand down to her sex, spreading her outer lips to reveal pink flesh beneath. “I’m so wet for you.”

Oh, she wanted to play that way, did she? Ginny had a competitive streak, and wasn’t about to get poached from. She got back on her knees and splayed her legs, displaying her sex to him. “Please cum in me, Harry.” She begged as plaintively as she could manage, swaying her hips enticingly. “I need it, please.” She shot a smirk Shuri’s way. Beat that.

Harry’s eyes were bouncing between them, he seemed paralyzed by the turn of events. Ginny and Shuri were all too happy to take advantage of his indecision as they upped their game. Shuri retaliated by crawling into bed and placing a hand on his chest. “I loved watching you wreck Ginny.” She purred. “Don’t you want to make your princess scream for your co*ck?”

Ginny gave up her position and crawled to Harry’s other side, mirroring Shuri. Harry sent a long-suffering look to Natasha, who was watching on in amusem*nt. “My womb is so empty.” It was strange, what the energy between all of them led to. Would she ever dream of saying something like that if it were just her and Harry? But the addition of Natasha and Shuri, all of them playing off each other had an energy of its own. It was over the top and intense and playful, with more than a hint of the taboo.

“So’s mine!” Shuri added quickly.

“You’ve already knocked her up!” Ginny snapped. “It’s my turn!”

Harry choked on nothing. “Well, well, well.” Natasha said. “Bold of you. I don’t know if a war is the right time for getting knocked up, but more power to-”

“Shut up!” Ginny squeaked, her cheeks heating. “I-I wasn’t thinking properly.”

“I concede!” Shuri held up her hands in defeat. “On the condition that you keep going with the impregnation bit.” Ginny pumped her fist in triumph.

“But no actual impregnation this time.” Harry raised an eyebrow at Shuri.

“The contraceptive charm should prevent any… mishaps.” Ginny said. She’d heard the problems Shuri and Natasha had had with mundane methods of contraception. While she hadn’t heard of magic overriding muggle birth control, Harry had always been the exception to the rules. “Oh.” She caught herself. “I mean, please breed me!”

Harry chuckled. “Well, if you want my cum so badly, you better work for it, Weasley.” Then he laid back in bed, relaxed and confident. There were still moments where Ginny felt a sense of perspective. A few weeks ago, she would have bemoaned that she would stay a virgin all her life, while nevertheless seeing that as better than most of the alternatives. Her partner would have been decided for, and even if she tried to date a boy of her own accord, he’d probably die in the war. Having a satisfying sexual relationship was a dream.

On the other hand, she remembered spending years of her other life obsessing over Harry- being with him and being in bed with him. She remembered her first sex dream, at twelve, and waking up hot and panting, wishing she could climb into his bed and fill the emptiness inside her. She remembered touching herself, every night for years, thinking of him. Even when she’d dated other boys, her secret thoughts had strayed back to Harry as often as not.

So, seeing Harry now was like a wet dream. She stared, feeling the need to pinch herself. He was laid out for her like a platter, his eyes burning into hers in challenge. He was fully relaxed, but she could still see the subtle, drool worthy, ripple of his musculature. Then of course, was his co*ck, which erupted brazenly from his body. It was thick and flushed and engorged, like a monument to his masculinity, a testament to his power, sexual and otherwise.

She was drawn from her staring by Natasha, who smacked her bum playfully. “You know, if you just want to ogle him I’d gladly take your place.” Shuri said. Stirred to action, Ginny scrambled onto Harry, plopping herself onto his lap. His co*ck rested against her abdomen, and she felt her core flutter at the proximity, she was leaking onto him. She lifted herself up. She could do this. Grabbing his co*ck and trying to ignore how it throbbed between her fingers, she guided herself back down on him. She gasped as her lips pressed against his crown, and then easily parted for it. She slid around him so easily, and she ended up taking him faster than she intended. She grunted as he bottomed out. They’d found that in this position, it felt best for her to gyrate and grind her hips. However, Harry far preferred an up and down pumping motion, and so that was what Ginny would give him.

She started slow, bracing herself against Harry’s chest as she began to pump her hips. “You’re going to need to f*ck him harder than that, if you want him to cum.” Natasha told her. It was an easy thing for Nat to say. While both women had fought in the war, Ginny’s childhood had been comparatively sheltered, and when she had fought she hadn’t really had to rely on physical strength. Natasha’s body, however, spoke to her physicality. She was both strong and flexible, she could easily pin Ginny down and have her way with her, and could properly f*ck Harry in any position she chose. Neither she nor Shuri could compete with that- though Shuri, she knew, was getting ready to change that.

Nevertheless, Ginny grunted and picked up her pace, focusing on the mechanical action of moving her hips rather than the sensations. There was something erotic about it, about f*cking Harry not for her own pleasure, but to get his cum. It really did feel like this was a breeding, that they were both just animals following their base instincts. “C’mon, Gin.” Harry hummed. “Show me how much you want it.”

“f*ck! I want it!” Ginny moaned, picking up the pace further. She could faintly hear the sound of her skin slapping wetly against his. “Gonna get your cum.” She grunted. Through the hanging locks of her hair, her hooded eyes met his and he must have seen something in them because he moaned. “Gonna suck it straight from your balls.” She bored her eyes into his. “’Till there’s nothing left for Shuri.”

“Hey!” Shuri squawked.

“Gonna take it all,” Ginny continued over Shuri’s protests. “Into my fertile womb.”

“f*ck!” Harry hissed, his co*ck throbbing urgently within her. He was close, but he had one last trick up his sleeve. “You want that Gin?” He nearly growled. “I could do that. That little charm is nothing.” He pressed a hand to her abdomen, and she felt his magic. He was purposefully projecting it into her body, and she could feel it.

f*ck, he was powerful. When she saw him against Hela, wielding magic in a way she’d only ever seen Riddle, Dumbledore, and Grindelwald do… she’d felt something. Natasha was only teasing about the ‘fangirl’ thing, but she wasn’t that far from the truth. Long gone were the days where she thought of him as a flawless storybook hero- her fourth year was enough to disabuse her of that. But he’d never stopped being her hero. And thinking about Harry’s power, how naturally and potently he’d wielded his magic left her weak in the knees and soaking wet. And here he was, flaunting his power for her. It flowed from his hand, burned in his eyes, and thrummed through his co*ck. “And you want to know the best part?” He asked. “You’d let me. You’d beg for it.”

She knew he was right. “Hnnnggghhh.” Ginny grunted, biting her lower lip in a desperate bid to control herself. She hadn’t been particularly close to cumming before, but in moments Harry had brought her to the edge. She couldn’t stop thrusting, though. She had to… had to hold on for him, last just a little longer, no matter how good it felt, how much she wanted to tip over the edge. For Harry.

“I’m cumming!” He finally moaned. “f*cking cumming!”

She was too far gone to do anything other than hold on for dear life. He was throbbing in her, pumping in her, filling her, filling her with his seed. She shuddered, overcome with euphoria. She threw her head back, her unfocused eyes gazing blankly at the ceiling as she moaned. Every pulse from Harry was like another dose of ecstasy, unravelling her further as she imagined him injecting more and more of his cum into her. Even after he stopped, she stayed, mouth silently agape as she focused on the feeling of him inside of her.

Even after she came down to earth, she felt light and tingly all over. Her sex fluttered around his shaft still, as if begging it to release just a bit more of his seed for her. He shifted beside her, and his co*ck began to slide out. Ginny whined, clutching him and re-sheathing his shaft. Her puss* quivered in delight at having reclaimed its prize. “Don’t leave.” She entreated. “Stay. Please.”

“You’re so greedy.” Shuri teased. “You gonna hog his co*ck all night?”

She gave Shuri the side eye. “Maybe.”

“Well, too bad.” Shuri said. “You got to cum twice, and I could tell those were really good ones. I’m really pent up.”

“He ate you out this morning.” Natasha remarked. “Made you cum, what, three times?”

“And I’m really pent up!” Shuri repeated, with emphasis.

“Ladies, I think we can find a compromise.” Harry interrupted.

“Like what?” Shuri huffed.

“You think I’m done spoiling my princess’ puss*?” He asked her. “C’mere.”

Shuri’s lips parted into an ‘o’ as she realized his intentions, and she wasted no time in scrambling over to straddle his face. In the corner of Ginny’s vision she saw Shuri’s dark thighs coming to rest on either side of Harry’s head. Ginny just snuggled in closer to Harry’s chest, happily claiming her spot. “Well, what are you waiting for, white boy?” Shuri chirped. “Get to-” Her words were cut off by a squeak as Harry did in fact get to it. For a long few moments, Shuri’s only noises were her breathing, which became more and more ragged with each passing second. Then- “f*ck!” She hissed. “f*ck, f*ck! You’re so good.” Another few moments as her breathing picked up. “You’re so f*cking good. So good. Soooo good.”

It was just like this morning, Ginny thought to herself. Shuri had spent the entire time babbling a few iterations of the exact same phrase. Not that she blamed her. Shuri’s moans grew, rose to a peak and then- “No!” She cried out. “Don’t stop! Please don’t stop!” Ginny gasped as Harry’s co*ck throbbed, suddenly pulsing to near fullness.

Ginny looked up at them. Shuri was grinding down onto Harry’s face, but it was clear that she wasn’t in control, not remotely. “Oh, he loved that.” She said. “Keep begging him.”

“Please suck my cl*t!” Shuri begged obligingly. “Please! I need it. I need your mouth on my cl*t soooo bad.” Harry grabbed Shuri’s hips, tilting them just slightly, and Shuri wailed. His co*ck throbbed again, and Ginny couldn’t help herself, it just felt so good. She pushed herself up and began to grind, seeking that magical spot deep within her and rubbing his co*ckhead against it.

Shuri, meanwhile, had doubled over, panting as Harry continued to worship her puss*. “f*ck!” She grunted breathlessly. “Oh f*ck!” They were facing each other, inches away. She thought nothing sounded better than popping Shuri’s nipple in her mouth. Then Natasha leaned in between them.

“You’re both so cute.” She said. “Both on top of him, pretending you’re in control.” She cupped Ginny’s cheek and ran her thumb across her lips. Ginny gasped, and Natasha took the opening, pressing her tongue in skillfully. Ginny tried to reciprocate, but her attempts were clumsy and distracted. She collapsed into Nat, folding into her body for support.

“Close?” Natasha purred into her ear, before nibbling at her earlobe.

“Getting there.” Ginny panted. She was planning on savoring this, Harry’s hard co*ck, pressing in all the right places, grinding at her own pace, slowly building herself up.

“Let’s see what we can do about that, shall we?” Natasha favored her that alluring, lopsided grin that made her insides flutter. Her hand dipped down, and in moments her fingers found Ginny’s cl*t. The combination- Nat’s fingers rubbing her cl*t perfectly and Harry’s co*ck hitting just so- made her cum in seconds. Nat kissed her again, swallowing her moans with her mouth. Her body felt so good, her firm muscles and soft curves were the best of both worlds, and Ginny wanted to melt into them.

Ginny was basking in the afterglow, enjoying both Harry’s presence inside her and Nat’s against her when she suddenly found herself toppled over. She squawked indignantly from her new spot tangled in the bedcovers, while Natasha took her place. “Sorry babe.” She said, not sounding sorry at all. “My turn.”

-----

Albrecht stumbled, disoriented. He closed his eyes, bracing himself on all fours as the world seemed to swirl around him. His mind was a jumble, but he tried to remember what had just happened.

There had been a fight- an ambush. Wizards had teleported in. Curses had gone flying. A green spell had hit the ground at his feet. It had exploded, sending him flying into… into…

The Time Vortex.

Despite his dizziness, his eyes flew open and he looked around. All around him, he saw the burnt out ruins of London. Was he trapped? Was, even as he got his bearings, years, decades, centuries slipping away from him? For a moment the thought panicked him, but then, he thought about it a little more.

He didn’t have any family left, nor any friends he’d missed terribly. His entire life had become fighting in the war, and frankly he could do without that. So what if he only got out a century from now? Maybe the world would be a slightly less sh*tty place than when he’d left it.

Calmer now, he stood up, wobbling only slightly. There were no signs of the battle that had once been raging around him- a sure sign that he was in the vortex. That battle was probably long finished. He began to leisurely stroll back out- what hurry was he in? He was already late to every conceivable appointment he could have made. Chuckling softly to himself at his attempt at humor, he trod on. Hopefully the war would be long settled by the time he got out.

Then, suddenly, something shifted. It felt monumental, like the tides pulling back in anticipation of a tsunami. The sky, once an indecipherable blur, crystalized. It was noon, and there was a scattering of clouds drifting by. In the distance, he saw a cadre of soldiers. They warily approached him, as he did the same. As they neared, he saw their emblems, and his heart sank. The uniforms were different, but these men were still Hydra. They were still armed for battle. The war wasn’t over. He must not have been in limbo as long as he’d thought.

“You there!” One of them barked in English. “Who are you!” He only partially understood the language, and he did his best to respond.

“Private Albrecht Beck!” He saluted. “Was in battle… blown into…” He struggled for words, and settled for waving an arm behind him. “That.”

The men conversed, again in English. What was with the English? He knew that technically, they were in England, but they were Germans, were they not? Or had that changed?

“What… year?”

“1998.”

Albrecht gaped. He was pretty sure he’d heard that right. “Forty years?” He managed faintly. How was the war still going on, after forty years? How could the world have survived it?

“We’ve got a situation here.” One of the men said into coms. “Something’s… happened with the vortex. It might be pulling back.”

“The… war?” He asked, hoping he was wrong, hoping it was done.

He only got a shake of the head in response. It was all he needed to know.

“What now?”

-----

Harry laid back onto bed, fully naked. This was nothing new to his audience, the three women who slept with him at night, but the context was completely new. It was almost formal, ritualistic.

Shuri held a cup in her hand, and in the cup was a purple liquid. “You sure about this?” Nat asked.

Shuri nodded. “It was taken from him unjustly.” She said. “He defended Wakanda, twice now. If anyone’s worthy, its Harry.”

“Damn straight.” Ginny said.

“You’ll probably get another vision.” Shuri warned. Harry grimaced, he already had a feeling who he’d be seeing, and he wasn’t keen on another little talk with her. “Are you ready?" Despite his misgivings, Harry nodded.“Okay.” Shuri said, her voice almost a whisper.

“Are there any words you’re supposed to say?” Ginny asked. “Incantations?”

“I really don’t give a sh*t.” Shuri snorted. “Drink up.” Then she tipped the cup to his lips, and Harry drank.

…

…

…

“You again.”

He was back on the mountaintop, where he’d last confronted Death. The night was still cold, the unforgiving landscape still hauntingly beautiful, and the stars above were still striking and unfamiliar. But something was different. He looked towards the horizon. The sky seemed just faintly less black, like dawn was just about to break, and Death looked… put off?

“You didn’t have to see me.” Harry said. She scoffed. “In fact, if you don’t want anything to do with me, we could solve this all right now.”

“Please. You’d think I’d give up a chance to talk to you?”

“I’m not sure-”

“But you’re just so INFURIATING!” She burst out.

“Err, sorry?”

“Escaping me once- fine.” She waved her hand. “A fluke. But twice? And by blowing up two universes?”

“Yeah, turns out I found your offer of making me your torture sex slave less than appealing.” He deadpanned. He could still feel the power rolling off her in cold waves, and her fury was terrifying, but it was also- Harry knew- impotent. If Death could take him now, she would, or would at least be gloating about it. Not raging at his intransigence.

“You should be honored.” She spat. “To even meet my notice, let alone be desired by me.”

There was silence, only cut by a gust of wind that bit at his bare skin. “Somehow.” He said. “I think if I were the type to grovel at your feet, you wouldn’t care that much about me.”

“Perhaps.” She said, her frustration bleeding off. “You’re right. No mortal’s ever done what you have. I’ve been watching you.” She stalked toward him. “Watching you lay with all those pitiful mortal women.” Harry was speechless, was she jealous? “You’re so desperate to f*ck them, almost like you’re trying to forget me.” Perhaps he was trying to forget her, but not in the way that Death seemed to be implying. He was terrified, and maybe sex helped him forget his near certain doom. “But you see, Harry. They’re NOTHING.” Harry felt that word and her intent with it. It was said with such a force of will that it seemed to be communicated to his very soul. She saw his lovers as worms, less than worms, like the scum beneath her feet. It would have been completely beneath her notice had that scum not become attached to him.

Then, to emphasize her point, she unveiled herself. Her midnight dark robes melted away, revealing the perfect expanse of her pure white skin. It was as if she’d been carved from marble by one of the great artists. To say that he was attracted to her would be like saying that a weathervane responded to a hurricane- technically true but utterly insufficient. His co*ck throbbed, filling with blood so quickly it left him dizzy. He bit his lip to try to stifle his moan, but it came through anyway.

He didn’t understand how she could look so beautiful, how he felt he might cum from just looking at her bare form, how he could feel such intense arousal and all-consuming terror at the same time. “Once you belong to me, you’ll be begging for the worst of my torture over whatever meager pleasure those mortals could give you.” She was closing in, and her cold power buffeted him like an arctic gale. All she needed to do was reach out and touch him. “You were right, though. The more you resist me, the more I want you.” Her eyes darkened, and she looked down at his body with hunger. Harry shuddered from head to toe. “And I want you. You will be mine.”

Then she kissed him, fingers stabbing into his cheek, the cold piercing him. Her tongue jabbed forth, forcibly parting his lips. He wanted to close his eyes, but he couldn’t, forced to look into her darkened pits as they swam with hunger. She moaned, and Harry’s body vibrated with it. His co*ck twitched again and again, and Harry repeated in his head like a mantra- don’t cum, don’t cum, don’t cum.

…

…

…

The world reformed around him, and Harry sat bolt upright in bed.

“It worked!” Shuri shouted. “I mean, it worked, didn’t it?” Ginny and Nat stared at him indecipherably.

It certainly had. He felt strong, physically strong. His co*ck had never been harder in his life. He tried to banish the memory of what he’d just seen. He didn’t want to think about death, and her terrible beauty. Perhaps Death had been wrong before about why he wanted to forget her, but she wasn’t wrong now. He needed to purge her from his mind, dispel the shadow hanging over him. He knew it would fade into vague memory like all his other encounters had. His mind simply didn’t seem capable of fully holding her, but until then he needed to get her out, out, out.

Thankfully, he already knew how.

Chapter 20: Initiative

Chapter Text

Harry was bemused to find that their meeting room had been expanded to fit representatives from Wakanda and Thor’s contingent. With the new members, however, there was a new tension between them.

It hadn’t been like this with the Avengers. There had been disagreements and arguments, sure, but at the end of the day there had been a tight bond between them of shared experience and trust. Here, it was clear that they were a bundle of disparate factions, each only here because they had few other options. Harry wanted to be able to unite them, but he wasn’t sure how. He’d never had to deal with factionalism on this scale before.

Harry winced as Ron stumbled into an argument with Thor. His redheaded friend was generally suspicious of the Asgardians, and their true loyalties. While Thor had promised Harry that he’d try to build bridges, he wouldn’t tolerate anyone questioning the loyalty of his people. Harry had a hard time being upset with Ron, Harry knew just how many people he had lost to Hela and her followers, but it didn’t make his job any easier. Meanwhile, T’Chaka had not been humbled by the loss of Wakanda, and seemed dead set on blaming the misfortune of his people on anyone but himself. It stung that he had at least something of a point- that if not for Harry’s connection to Shuri, Hela would not have targeted them. That argument, though, had set Ginny off. As amusing as it would be, Harry didn’t want the king of Wakanda to have to suffer her bat-boogey hex.

Harry rubbed his temples, feeling his frustration rising. Natasha cast him a knowing look and nodded. That was permission enough for him. “Enough!” Harry snapped. Instantly, the bickering died. Harry stood from his seat, looking around at the assembled allies in turn- Ginny, Ron, Neville, Peggy, the Ancient One, Wong, Thor, Loki, Korg of the Kronans, T’Chaka, Ramonda, T’Challa, Shuri, T’Chone, Lily, and finally on Harry’s other side, Natasha.

Harry let out a breath, calming himself. “I’m not here to listen to you bicker. If you want to do that on your own time, fine with me. We need to figure out what we’re doing and get on the same page.” He said. Amazingly, everyone listened.

“What do you have in mind, Harry?” Natasha asked, teeing his answer up for him.

“We can’t keep being reactive. It’s good that we were able to evacuate Wakanda, but we have to hit our enemies where it hurts. The way I see it, we have two targets.” Shuri took her cue and activated a holographic projector. He’d missed the technology from his time with the Avengers. He waved his hand, pulling up a video of one of the Iron Man suits in action over Wakanda. “Look familiar, Shuri?” He asked.

“Tony Stark.” She said.

“Who?” Neville asked. “I’ve never heard of him.”

“Oh, he’d hate that.” Natasha chuckled.

“Tony Stark. He was an Avenger, a friend of mine.” Harry said. “But here, it looks like he’s working for Hydra.”

“The arc reactor in the suit’s chest is a dead giveaway.” Natasha nodded. “It has to be his work.”

“What is the significance of this man?” T’Chaka asked. “Surely we can provide more advanced technology.”

“Can you invent time travel?” Harry asked. “Because Tony did, in like a week.”

“I’m sorry, but did you just say time travel?” Peggy leaned forward. “Could we go back in time, and fix everything?”

“I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that.” Harry shook his head. “You can’t change your current timeline, but you can hop into a new one, either to retrieve something or someone of importance, or to stay, I suppose.”

“Are you sure you can’t figure this out, Shuri?” T’Challa asked.

“I appreciate your faith in me, brother, but I was unfortunately dead when Stark came up with it. And without my lab, I’m up a creek.” The destruction of Shuri’s lab had been a blow to them, for multiple reasons. For Shuri, it was almost personal, like losing a limb. “Probably the only place on the planet left with a similar capability is Tony Stark’s workshop.” Harry knew that this was hard for her to admit, and was grateful that she was willing to set aside her pride for his sake.

“What would we do with time travel, practically?” Loki asked shrewdly. “If strangling Hela in the cradle won’t solve our problems.” It was a little odd working with Loki, but it helped that he didn’t much resemble the man Harry had known. The Loki of this world had been raised on Jotenhiem, and though he was short for his race, there was no mistaking him for an Asgardian. Whether raised Asgardian or Frost Giant, though, Loki still had a cunning and ruthless personality- the perfect Slytherin. Fortunately, it was being harnessed for good in this world.

“At the very least, we could retrieve Steve Rogers.” Harry said, and Peggy’s breath caught. She was at attention, hanging onto his words. He nodded to the Ancient One, who explained the encounter Steve had had with another version of herself.

“He has multiple Infinity Stones with him.” She concluded. “And is likely stranded in the void. We can save him if we can replicate Tony Stark’s technology.”

Harry gestured with his hand again, bringing up more footage of Wakanda, this time of Carol. “With the resources in Stark’s lab, we should also be able to break the brainwashing Hydra has on its super-soldiers.” He pitched this as a pragmatic measure, but those close to him knew just how personal it was to him. He needed to save Carol. The strategic advantages were undeniable, but not his true motivation.

“Problems.” Natasha redirected, as they’d planned. “We have no idea where Tony is, or how to find him.”

“Tracking spells aren’t reliable on top Hydra people.” Neville said. “Their bases have protections.”

“Hela’s protections will block Heimdal’s sight as well, though I will have him keep an eye out.” Thor added.

“Which leaves?” Harry pitched.

“Good old-fashioned sleuthing.” Natasha said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been with Hydra… but I might be able to come up with something.” Harry knew that there was only one contact that she could possibly have left- her sister. Tracking her down would probably be the easy part. If Natasha could win her over, and she uncovered something…

“How likely is it that Stark would even be cooperative?” Loki asked.

“Hydra operatives do have a tendency to carry cyanide pills.” Neville added darkly.

“I don’t know.” Harry said. “I’d like to think he’s been coerced into this, or that we can win him to our side. If not, we’ll do what needs to be done.” He didn’t relish the prospect of using the imperius curse on one of his friends, and hoped it’d never come down to it.

“Also, if we go after Tony, we need to be prepared to fight Hela again.” Ron said. “I reckon we need a better strategy, and more firepower.”

“Which leads me to option two.” Harry pivoted. “Hogwarts.”

“Only you, Harry. Would try to paint attacking Hogwarts as the safer, easier alternative.” Ginny said, amused.

“Not ‘attacking’.” Ron rallied. They’d been working on this plan, on and off, ever since Harry’s fateful vision. “More like a prison break.”

“The Wizarding Order has a number of prisoners.” Harry said. “We know they have Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood, two of the brightest witches I’ve ever known. They also have one of Thor’s people.” He nodded to the Asgardian.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to a strike at the Order.” The Ancient One said. “But it seems that finding Stark would be more rewarding.” He could tell that not everyone was on board. Peggy was dead set on any action that would save Steve, naturally. Shuri simply wanted to get her hands on a proper lab again. There were more than a few, though, that looked more than tempted at a chance to strike at the wizards.

Harry had to admit that the Ancient One was right about the potential rewards, but he couldn’t just ignore his friends. Worse, they were on a time limit. They needed to strike before the Order and Voldemort’s machinations on them came to fruition. “This isn’t an either-or situation.” He argued instead. “We don’t know where Stark is, but we shouldn’t sit on our hands while we work on finding him.”

“You know that I am in favor.” Thor said solemnly. “What is your plan?”

“We still have some things to work out.” Harry admitted. “We need a way to slip someone, anyone, into Hogwarts without drawing suspicion.”

“The old secret passages have been blocked, and every entrance is heavily warded and patrolled.” Ron said. “But there is a secret room in the castle that can create another passage and give us free movement.” He was referring to the Room of Requirement. That was all they needed, really. One person in the Room of Requirement could give them access to any part of the castle. If they were lucky, they could grab artifacts, books, and prisoners in a just few minutes. Even if they got caught, the Room would give them an easy escape.

“Because of Hogwarts’ wards, only witches and wizards would be able to enter, not without putting a lot of effort into breaking the wards, which everyone would notice. But a diversionary attack could happen simultaneously.” Ron continued. “If we could have, say, an Asgardian, attack one of their bases, it could draw a lot of attention off of our infiltration.”

“Uh, dad?” Lily piped in. “Hogwarts is a school.”

“Yes. We were planning on infiltrating it at the start of term, when the staff would be distracted…” He trailed off, realizing the implications. He hated them, most of all because it made too much sense. “No.”

“What is it?” Ginny asked.

“Does Hogwarts take older students?” Lily continued.

“No.” Natasha echoed him.

“Well…” Neville’s eye- his normal one- glanced apologetically at Harry before he answered. “Yes. The Order has a very hard time reaching children in areas protected by Hydra. It’s not uncommon for students to escape and start in their teens.”

There was a moment of silence while Lily sat back with a self-satisfied smile, which was broken by T’Chone. “I want to go too!”

-----

“Harry.” Ginny’s voice stirred him from his thoughts. As much as he hated to admit it, Lily and T’Chone really were their best bets at infiltrating Hogwarts. He worried, though. What if someone discovered that they were infiltrators? What if Riddle noticed the family resemblance? There were so many unknowns, but not many other options. “We need to talk.”

He looked up, she seemed apologetic. Ron and Neville were behind her, looking uncomfortable. “What is it?” He said.

“We didn’t… I’m sorry.” She tripped over her words. “It’s just…”

“Whatever it is you need to say, say it.”

“Your mum’s alive.” Neville said what Ginny couldn’t, in his typically blunt manner.

Harry gaped. “What?”

“She’s the charms professor at Hogwarts.” Ron said.

“Why am I just hearing this now?”

“I didn’t put the pieces together at first, not until after I started recovering memories. And then, I didn’t know how to tell you.” Ginny said quietly. “After everything… its just one more thing on your plate. And there wasn’t anything we could do about it anyway, not until…”

He’d honestly hadn’t thought about his parents. There really had been just so much else to worry about, and so little time. It hadn’t been much longer than a week since he’d arrived in this world, still… “You should have told me sooner.” He said without edge. “Especially you, Gin.”

Ginny looked down. “I know. I wasn’t trying to lie to you, I was just… putting it off.”

“Why?” He didn’t understand why this would be a conversation to put off. His mum was alive. Sure, she didn’t know him, and had never had him in this world, but it was good news, wasn’t it?

“Well, she’s working for Dumbledore, for one.” Ron said. “And she’s married to Snape.” Harry’s face twisted in disgust. “Yeah.” Ron agreed. “He’s every bit as much of a bastard this time around.”

“But... that doesn’t mean she’s irretrievable.” Harry said. “You three worked for Riddle. We’re going to try to win Tony over. We’re trying to get Carol out from Hydra’s thumb. Maybe we can convince her. I mean, what’s she like?” The question held far more longing than he’d intended. He’d had just a few conversations with his mum, all of them brief. He’d dreamed of getting to know her for so long. The three cast uncertain looks at each other.

“Well, she is a brilliant professor.” Neville said. “Charismatic, talented. Any witch who made it as far as her would have to be.”

“Hermione idolized her.” Ron said.

“That makes sense.” Harry hummed.

“She’s close to Dumbledore.” Neville continued. “Almost like she’s his apprentice.”

“Harry…” Ginny’s voice was hesitant. “I don’t know if we can reach her.”

“What makes you say that?” He said doubtfully. He just couldn’t see it. His mother had sacrificed her life for him. She’d appeared to save him from Death, and told him to never give up.

“She’s very… enthusiastic. About the war.” Neville answered. “Riddle always had her pegged as a diehard Dumbledore loyalist, and he’d know.”

“Oh, you’re going off of Voldemort’s judgement now?” Harry scoffed. “Come off it. I mean, of course she’s enthusiastic about the war. You were fighting Hela and Hydra. What other options were there?”

“We found one.” Neville said.

If this was the talk they’d wanted to have with him, he could see why they’d put it off for so long. Who wanted to try to convince someone that their mother was irredeemably evil? “I’m not giving up on anyone, least of all her.” Harry said. He knew, without a doubt, that his mum would never have given up on him, if their situations were reversed. He wasn’t about to abandon her when she might be saved.

“Alright, Harry.” Ron said, placating. “We just wanted you to be prepared. In case.”

Harry sighed, and uncomfortable weight in his chest. “I’m sorry.” Ginny said again.

He didn’t know if he was more upset with her for keeping this from him for so long, or for what she was arguing. He knew how hard it was to break bad news to people. After all, he’d tried to lie to Ginny and Natasha about the Horcrux inside him. But he wasn’t ready to grant her absolution, not just yet. “Excuse me, I need to talk to someone.”

-----

“Harry Potter, it is nice to see you in person.” Heimdall said.

“I take it you’ve been watching me.”

“Since you emerged from the Time Vortex, I’ve been keeping track of you.” He admitted. “Events… seem to be revolving around you.”

“Its an incredibly useful ability, one that might have saved my life.” Harry said. "Thank you."

“As Thor said.” He sighed. “I won’t be able to see inside of Hogwarts, or in Hydra’s most defended bases.”

“That’s not why I’m here.” Harry said simply. Heimdall raised an eyebrow.

“I have other friends out there.” He elaborated. While his parents had barely crossed his mind over the past week, Skye and Wanda were frequent visitors. He at least knew that Wanda was alive, and with family, and it comforted him. But he had no clue where Skye was, if she was alive or even safe. “I need you to find someone for me. Her name is Skye.”

“I will need to know more about her.” Heimdall said.

Harry grinned faintly. “Do you accept memories?”

-----

Hela looked across the rubble strewn landscape, as if she could piece things together through sheer will alone. “When did this start?” She asked.

“Well, that’s hard to say.” The officer, who she didn’t bother to remember the name of, said. She cast him a look, and he quailed. “What I mean to say is that while we only noticed major disturbances in the past couple days, there have been… minor irregularities in the past week that make sense now.”

“I see.” She said. “I don’t suppose those ‘minor irregularities’ started after Harry Potter’s appearance?”

“Perhaps?” The man offered.

“Hm.” She hummed, reaching a hand forward idly. A week ago, the ground they were standing on would have been unreachable. The collapse of the time vortex couldn’t have been a coincidence. Harry Potter had the Time Stone, clearly- he had used it in the battle at Wakanda. It must have been what fueled the vortex in the first place, and without it, the storm was unravelling.

Further ahead, drones had found that the pace of time was only somewhat slowed. Only the very core of the vortex, the heart of London, remained nearly frozen, and that area was shrinking by the day. Unfortunately, that was exactly where she needed to be. The battle at Wakanda had been a wakeup call. Too many of her enemies were assembling - the Wakandans, the Sorcerers, her infuriatingly persistent brother, and an unsettling number of wizards, and they were all gathering around the worst person possible. Harry Potter knew far too much- about her, about the Infinity Stones, and about the Hallows. If he managed to ally with the Order…

Well, she needed to prepare for the worst. She needed more power. And as much as she’d like to rip the Deathstick from Grindelwald’s bare hands, she’d had a hard enough time with him and Dumbledore on their own. She didn’t want to give Potter the opening to swoop in, save the day again, and gain more allies.

“What do you make of this, Goddess?” Erics asked deferentially.

“Make sure the heads of Hydra don’t eat each other until I return.” She said.

“Return… from where?”

Potter wasn’t the only one with allies, and she knew that the key- or rather the door- lay in the heart of London. Without another word, she tapped into the Space Stone, and launched herself forward.

Chapter 21: Welcome Home

Chapter Text

Ginny eventually mustered the nerve to return to their shared bedroom. She wasn’t sure what sort of reception she’d find waiting for her. She wouldn’t blame Harry for giving her the cold shoulder, and she braced herself for his disappointment and anger. She had lied to him, and she remembered just how sore of a point being kept out of the loop had been during their school years.

The scene she walked in on was both better and somehow worse than what she imagined. Harry sat naked on the bed, with Shuri and Natasha on either side of him. They took turns, alternating between kissing him and kissing his chest and neck. Occasionally, one or the other would idly stroke his shaft. She spent a long moment staring, none of the three acknowledging her presence.

"Uh, hey.” She said awkwardly. “Do you want me to go?” The activity stilled, and Ginny braced herself.

“I’m not kicking you out, Gin.” Harry frowned. “We’re not going to work like that. I’m upset. I wish you’d told me sooner, but I get why you didn’t, and I wouldn’t do that.” Ginny felt the tension in her gut unravel. Then, he and Natasha shared a look, causing a very different tension to take its place. “Besides, I’m sure you can make it up to me.”

“Yes, absolutely.” Ginny nodded vigorously, her voice cracking. “Anything.”

“Well.” Natasha said, rising from the bed. She strode up to Ginny with a feminine grace. Unlike Harry, she was still clad in a black bra and knickers, but the limited modesty did almost nothing to blunt Ginny’s attraction. “How about this? Strip.”

Ginny jolted into motion, stripping off her bulky robes. She could feel their eyes on her- Harry and Natasha’s especially- and when she dropped her knickers, they hit the floor with a wet thwap. “Good.” Natasha smirked. “Harry, would you?”

Before Ginny could so much as ask about Natasha’s request, she was jolted up into the air. She was not weightless- she could still feel gravity pulling her down, her hair tumbling down her shoulders- yet she remained suspended by an invisible force. “Eep!” She squeaked, finding that flailing her arms and legs did nothing for her situation.

Harry grinned mischievously, a look that did things to her. Suddenly, she found her wrists pinned to her back- another feat of wandless magic. “Harryyy!” She whined.

“Are you alright?” He asked softly. She swiftly nodded, before returning to her writhing. “Good, Shuri, could I have the vibrator?” Ginny froze, realizing what was about to happen. Shuri produced from a drawer a small silver shaft, a Vibranium vibrator of her own design. Ginny had tried it herself and was in complete agreement that it was the best sex toy ever invented.

“Have fun.” Shuri snickered.

“Err…” Ginny chuckled nervously. “I thought this was supposed to be a punishment?”

“Well, its all a matter of perspective.” Harry said. “I wouldn’t do this if you didn’t enjoy it. But…” He slid the device into her slick sex, and Ginny shivered as she felt the cool metal against her. “It’s still got to be a punishment, right?” He tapped it with his wand, and it rumbled to life. It vibrated with a low purr that reverberated deep within her core.

Ginny gasped helplessly, writhing in the air. “Oh! Oh, oh!” She moaned. “Harry!” He looped an arm around her shoulders, bringing her in for a quick kiss, before letting her hang. “Harry!” She called. Natasha stepped beside her, following Harry back to the bed. She gave Ginny a push, sending her slowly spinning.

She rotated away as Harry, Natasha, and Shuri returned to bed. Giggling and whispering soon shifted into moans, and then the slap of flesh against flesh. Ginny whined, imagining what was happening behind her back as the thrum of the vibrator sent waves of bliss through her core. Shuri moaned loudly, so loudly that Ginny suspected she was putting on a show.

“Oh, shut up!” Ginny sniped. “Stop b-bragging!” Her body turned back to the scene, and she saw that Harry had pressed Shuri onto her hands and knees as he drove himself into her.

“What, are you jealous?” Natasha teased.

“Of course I am!” Ginny called as she rotated back.

“f*ck me with your thick, white co*ck!” Shuri cried out, and Ginny would have rolled her eyes if she were not so undone.

“You love my co*ck, princess?” Harry purred. “Why don’t you let Ginny know how much?”

“I love your f*cking co*ck! It feels so good!” Shuri moaned. “So good inside me!”

Ginny gave a strangled noise. She knew exactly how good Harry’s co*ck felt, thank you very much, and she didn’t need the reminder. What she needed was to cum, but perniciously, the vibrator was at such a low setting that she wasn’t sure she’d be able to get there. “Come on!” She shouted.

“Oh, I’m close.” Shuri panted, and the raggedness in her voice told Ginny that she wasn’t lying. “So f*cking close to- to- cumming!” Ginny spun back around just in time to catch Shuri’s org*sm, and to witness Harry’s final few thrusts before he too reached his peak.

For a minute, Ginny thought that might be it. But her hopes were dashed when Natasha crawled up to Harry. “My turn.” She said, casting Ginny a taunting look. Ginny did her best to glare back, but the effect was ruined, she was sure, by her current state. Then she was rotating away and could only rub her thighs together as she listened to them. For what seemed like an eternity, Natasha rode him, and she put on as much of a show as Shuri had. By the time that she too had finished, Ginny felt almost delirious.

“Haaarrry!” Ginny whined, as she heard someone leave the bed behind her. “Please.” Then she felt his hands at her waist, as he grabbed her and spun her back around.

“Have you learned your lesson, Gin?” He asked.

Ginny nodded fervently. “Yes. I’ll be good. I’ll be a good girl.” She spread her legs, exposing her sopping sex to him. She felt so helpless, in the best way possible. Harry had her under his complete control, she couldn’t even move without his say-so, and it was thrilling. His hands moved from her waist, first sliding along her thighs, then back up her back, and finally fondling her breasts. His closeness and the feel of his hands on her did nothing to soothe her. “Please!” She begged. She didn’t think she’d ever been so high for so long without reaching her peak.

Harry hummed in acknowledgement as his fingers began to worry her hardened nipples. Ginny whimpered, her body trembling at the stimulation. She was so close, but she needed more. Then Harry dipped his head down, taking one of her nipples in his mouth. Ginny went rigid, her mouth gaping open as she focused on the intense sensation. She was so close to cumming, just a little more…

Just as she was about to push herself over the edge, Harry withdrew, and Ginny wailed in frustration. She lost herself, writhing and humping her hips in the air blindly. “Please! Please f*ck me! Please, please, please!” She begged with no hint of humor or shame.

The vibrator stopped, and Harry tossed it back to the bed, where Nat and Shuri were watching. Then he grabbed her hips firmly and pulled her slowly onto his co*ck, despite her efforts to speed up the process by latching her ankles around his waist and gyrating her hips. “Uhn! Uhn! Uhn!” Ginny grunted, nearly undone. She was so close, she just needed… Harry’s hand slid back around her waist and down to her folds. His fingers found her cl*t, and rubbed just so, and Ginny finally, finally came.

-----

T’Chone threw himself to the ground, rolling back to his feet as Lily’s spell zipped overhead. His own wand was extended, the tip lighting up as she prepared to cast. Lily saw her fate approaching and did the only thing she could think to do. She lunged. T’Chone flinched, bracing himself as she grabbed his arm, causing his spell to go wide.

“Hey! No fair!” T’Chone laughed.

“Dad didn’t say we couldn’t!” Lily giggled. The smile was wiped from her face when he threw her off him, sending her stumbling back.

“Hey!” She chirped, raising her wand again. “Stupefy!” The spell went wide, but T’Chone had cast a shield charm, wasting the opportunity she’d given him. Realizing his mistake, T’Chone dove, but this time Lily anticipated him, and her follow-up spell hit him dead on.

“Okay, good job you two.” Harry called, beaming at his kids’ antics. It was wonderful to see them like this- happy and playful. Lily had wanted a friend her age her entire life, and T’Chone had wanted much the same, and now they both had each other. “Any lessons from that?” He asked.

“Lily cheats.” T’Chone ribbed.

“No, I’m creative.”

“Well…” Harry’s eyes twinkled. “She was right that I didn’t say you couldn’t get physical. You’ve both had training with hand to hand combat, right?” Both teens nodded. Natasha had taught Lily, and T’Challa had sparred with T’Chone. “It’s important to be able to fight with both your body and magic, to use them together. It’s something that a textbook wizarding education won’t teach you. However, Lily, you made a pretty big mistake when you grabbed your brother.”

There was silence for a moment, and then T’Chone ventured. “It didn’t go anywhere. She didn’t have a plan.”

“Exactly.” Harry nodded. “You acted off of instinct, and it was a clever move, but not a complete one. In time you’ll learn how to improvise properly.” He turned to T’Chone. “Now then, what mistake did you make?”

“I repeated the same move twice, and Lily expected it.” T’Chone sighed.

“I get the appeal of going for a dive, but it does fully commit you.” Harry said, nonjudgmentally. “You should use a large repertoire of moves and positioning. Now then.” He clapped his hands. “Lunch?”

The two practically skipped as they followed him out, trailing slightly behind as they talked quickly- joking, ribbing and snickering. He felt a warm pulse of satisfaction. He’d been worried that they might not get along, that there might be some sort of rivalry between them. He was more than happy to find his worries unfounded. On this, at least, things seemed to be looking up.

The Ancient One had done well to expand the living quarters for their new arrivals, but Harry and his core group remained in a central space with their own bedrooms, living and workspaces. It reminded Harry of the Avengers compound, if one swapped out Tony’s technology for sorcery. The dining area was a short walk from the sparring room, one that the three of them had made many times now. When they reached the threshold, T’Chone hurried to his side and offered up his wand. “You should have it back, aba.” He said.

Harry shook his head. “You need it more than I do.”

“But it’s yours.”

“I stole it off of someone two weeks ago.” He chuckled. “Keep it, until you can find something that works better.” He’d explained to them what it meant to ‘own’ a wand, for it to recognize you. Lily had described the moment she’d found her wand, and Harry suspected that it had chosen her. T’Chone, by comparison, had struggled more with his magic, and Harry had been quick to tell him the wand was likely the culprit. Still, there was nothing to do about it. Even if he were inclined to mug random wizards and see if their wands fit with T’Chone, it’d be a long, tedious process that’d likely get them into a confrontation with the Order sooner than they wanted. Harry supposed that this was one silver lining for their plan to send T’Chone and Lily into Hogwarts. The Order would at least match him with a proper wand before sorting them.

He just wished it didn’t involve sending them into the lion’s den.

-----

Septimius poked at his food, far more of his attention on his book than on his plate. “Sep, you know I’ve always encouraged your reading, but you need to eat.” His mum said in her familiar, worried tone.

She always worried for him, over his health, his friendships, his health, whether he was doing anything strenuous, and his health. Just about the only thing she didn’t worry about was his grades, and that was because they were perfect Os. “Yes, mum.” He said dully, taking a few appeasing bites of his scrambled eggs.

His mum sighed. “At least drink your potion.” Septimius grimaced. He’d always hated the foul tasting potion his father brewed for him. ‘Nutritional supplements’ his mother called them. Septimus suspected that it was much more than that, though his parents would never tell him, and he’d never had the courage to press further on the matter. All he knew was that he’d been born sick, that he was better now, and that his mum wanted him to stay that way. That he might like to know what he’d been sick with, and how he’d gotten better was immaterial to his parents, or any other authority figure in his life.

He gulped down the potion, before returning to his reading. It was easier to stick with his books. No matter how dense the tome, it would be simpler than having to think about the real world. “Well, school’s about to start up again, Sep.” His mum said, the tension easing from her voice. “Are you excited?” At this, he grinned. He did love school. Once term started he’d have the entire Hogwarts library to peruse. There was one rub, though. Hogwarts was more than strict enough with most students, but with both his parents on the faculty, it was impossible to escape them. His father was… a firm man, and he had high expectations that Septimius did his best to live up to. His mum cared less for that sort of thing, but her concern was oppressive. Sometimes he wanted to just run away or escape into one of his books and never look back.

He almost sighed, before catching himself and plastering on a big fake smile. “Yeah, I’m excited to see what you have in store for us this year, mum.”

-----

Natasha nearly jumped as the door opened. She knew to expect the visitor, but hadn't really expected a response so soon. She'd figured she'd have to come back at least a few weeks a in a row before the message had been received. She wasn't, however, concerned about a trap. If the message had been intercepted and Hydra was bearing down at her location, help was only seconds away. “Well, well, well.” The woman crowed. “Well, well, well, well- shoot, that’s too many wells.” Natasha snorted. “If it isn’t my traitorous big sister.”

“Yelena.” She replied, smiling. “Its good to see you.”

“Is it?” Yelena co*cked her head, glancing around at the room. The house Natasha chosen for the meetup was long abandoned, with dust and grime clinging to every surface. “You sure know how to put up a warm welcome.”

“Of course. I missed you.”

"Then why did you wait fourteen years to reach out?” Yelena asked. “Did you not trust me?” She tried to answer her own question. “But if so, why reach out now?”

Natasha had expected this. Yelena had had those same questions the first time around. Yet the mere fact that she was here gave Natasha hope. She'd left the note with this location and time 'Thursday, 2:00PM' at their designated safe box. She hadn't expected Yelena to come on the first available day, and she wasn't sure she liked the implications that she had. Had Yelena checked their safe box every week, for all this time? “I was on the run.” She said. “I had a daughter to look after. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust you, but everything was a risk.”

“I get it. She’s your real family. Unlike me.” She said it so casually, as if those words didn’t hurt, as if she hadn’t probably been thinking them, internalizing them, for well over a decade.

“No.” Natasha shook her head. “No. You’re my sister. You’re my real sister.” She stood up and took Yelena’s hands, who looked hesitantly back up at her. The Natasha Romanoff of this world hadn’t had any plans of reaching out to Yelena. She’d been guarded and jaded, focused only on protecting Lily and (secondarily) surviving. She’d never had Clint, SHIELD, the Avengers, or Harry. But she, as she was now, was never going to let that come between them again. “I want us to be a family again. You, me, Lily, and, well…”

“If you hadn’t told me about her yourself, I wouldn’t have believed it.” Yelena said softly. Yelena had been the only person Natasha had told about the pregnancy. She wouldn’t have been able to escape without Yelena’s help. “So, is she okay? Is she here? Did you ever figure out about her father?”

“She’s doing good, better than ever, actually.” Natasha said, smiling as she thought back to Lily’s playful friendship with her brother. “Her name is Lily. And you know, I think she’d love to meet her aunt. Her father’s here to, and that’s… quite a story.”

“Really?” Yelena beamed. Natasha knew exactly how to hook her, and she knew the prospect of getting to know her niece, would be too much for her to resist. “Is that why you’re here, so I could meet her?”

“No.” Natasha said. It wasn’t, really. It was part of it, but far from the full story. “I’m here to bring you home.”

“I don’t have a home.”

Natasha twirled her finger, creating a portal behind them. “Wanna bet?”

Yelena followed Natasha through the portal, understandably skittish as she sized up her new environment. It was just a normal sitting area, purposefully set up to be unintimidating. Harry was waiting for them and held out his hand for Yelena to shake. “Hey, you don’t remember me but I’m-” Yelena cautiously took his hand, and instantly crumbled to the floor. “-sorry. There’s no easy way to do that.”

“Oh my God.” She whimpered pitifully. “Why didn’t you warn me?”

“Sorry.” Nat snickered. “You’re getting the same treatment I got.”

“In my defense, I was just trying to get you to stop attacking me.” Harry retorted playfully.

“So!” Shuri clapped her hands as she entered the room. Yelena curled into a ball and groaned. “Is she back with us?”

Then suddenly, Yelena jolted up, her eyes scanning Harry. “Oh my god.”

“I think that’s a yes.” Harry said.

“This is so f*cked up. What even happened?” She babbled. “There was Thanos. And then you were dead. And…and…”

“That’s a long story.” Harry tried to explain. “But-”

“We had sex!”

“That’s what you’re focusing on?” Natasha rolled her eyes, ruffling her sister’s hair.

“Basically, the world is f*cked up. We’re going to fix it. You in?” Harry asked.

Chapter 22: Den of Snakes

Chapter Text

Minerva appraised the two teenagers- a blond girl and a dark skinned boy, both perhaps around fourteen. “We picked them up near Edinburgh.” Their escort, Dawlish, said. “They sent an owl.” He shook his head disapprovingly. Owls as a form of post had fallen out of favor after Hydra had used them to locate Beauxbatons. All owls addressed to Hogwarts were directed far away from the castle, to a site with a small team dedicated to exactly this purpose- finding wayward children. “They say they grew up in a Hydra controlled area and managed to escape.” By the looks of them, Minerva could believe it. Their clothes were ragged, and they were covered in grime. They’d have to be clothed in proper robes befitting a young wizard and witch.

“Sounds like quite the tale.” She said.

Dawlish grunted disinterestedly. “They’re yours to deal with now.” Clearly, he felt he had better things to do than play babysitter.

The girl shifted self consciously on her feet, peering up at her with brilliantly blue eyes. “Is this… Hogwarts?” She asked in a small voice.

“Not quite.” Minerva chuckled. Shacklebolt had called her out to Hogsmeade to meet Dawlish and the teens. She could still remember when it had been a quaint village. Many wizards had moved close to Hogwarts’ protection, and so Hogsmeade had grown. Ramparts and towers encircled a large collection of sturdy stone and brick buildings. It was perhaps the most vibrant place left in the Wizarding World, yet it nevertheless felt like a bastion. “But you’ll see it soon enough. What did Mr. Dawlish tell you of Hogwarts?”

“He… didn’t tell us anything.” The girl said. “While we were on the run, we ran into a wizard. He’d promised he’d take us to Hogwarts. He said it was in Scotland, and that term started in September. But then he…”

Minerva nodded heavily. “That must have been hard. It’s a miracle that you’ve made it this far- oh, excuse me, I’ve forgotten to ask your names.”

“I’m Tevin Boseman.” The boy said. He seemed shy, which didn’t surprise Minerva. If he’d gone through half of what she suspected, it would take some time for the boy to open up. “I always knew I was… different.” He looked down. “I’m just lucky that I met L-Lisa, and that we were able to get out.”

“Lisa Rushman.” The girl, who seemed the more genial of the pair, held out her hand. “You’re professor…”

“McGonagall.” Minerva said succinctly, shaking Lisa’s hand. Sometimes, some of the younger students second guessed having a woman as their professor. In a way it was refreshing to teach those born outside their world, who had fewer of those prejudices. “I’m the transfiguration professor at Hogwarts. Now, there are some complications, with your arrival.” The two teens tensed. “Its nothing serious, just a quick screening.”

“What sort of screening?” Tevin asked quickly.

“We’ve gone through this sort of thing before… with Hydra.” Lisa said. “It… wasn’t pleasant, trying to stay hidden.”

“Well, this will be nothing so barbaric as what Hydra put you through.” Minerva assured them. “We just need to ask you a few questions.” There was a time where one could be completely sure of every would-be student’s identity. Every child with magic on the British Isles was recorded in a book. Once, that book had been used to create the Hogwarts roles. Now, it was a mere curiosity. As schools around the world had been destroyed, children from across the world had begun flocking to the school. While no one seriously suspected that wizarding children would betray their own people, it was well known that Hydra had a form of brainwashing. Fortunately, it was easy to identify such cases with non-intrusive legilmency. The students wouldn’t even feel a thing, she was told.

-----

“I have things to attend to, Minerva, I hope you didn’t ask me here just to meet two brats.” Snape said in a low voice.

While he hadn’t been officially introduced to them, Lily instantly recognized the man from memories her dad had shown her. She placed a hand on T’Chone’s forearm, and felt his nerves settle. He was jumpier than she was, mostly deferring to her when it came to talking. It was just as well, because Lily was finding that it was coming naturally to her.

“You have a particular set of talents, Severus.” McGonagall said cryptically, though Lily could divine her meaning- legilmency. It was her turn to steady herself. “Besides, you will be teaching these two students soon enough.”

“Very well.” Snape said. “Be simple in honest with your answers.” Before the words had even left his lips, she felt the subtle press of his legilmency at the edge of her mind. Her dad had given both of them a crash course on the mind magics over the past month. Neither of them was able to defend their minds from a direct attack, but then again defending directly would raise alarms regardless. Harry had instead instructed them in the art of deception, projecting selected, useless, or fabricated memories to the front of one’s mind while leaving anything incriminating hidden away.

The memory he probed into was from earlier today, of Dawlish picking the two of them up. They’d, funnily enough, delivered a letter to Hogwarts via owl- not addressed to anyone in particular, and explaining the basics of their fabricated backstory. They hadn’t expected such a quick response.

“Of course. Sir.” T’Chone said.

“Your names.” Snape said.

“Tevin Boseman.”

“Lisa Rushman.”

Snape grunted unenthusiastically, apparently detecting no deception from either of them. “How did you find out about Hogwarts?” Lily brought to mind a particular memory. She and her dad had gone back and forth, crafting it together, stitching it up using both of their memories. The product was a little disjointed, but the scene was a chaotic, deadly battle, one in which the wizard that had supposedly told them about Hogwarts died a heroic death. She gave them the same story they’d written in the letter. They’d met a wizard while on the run, and he had told them about Hogwarts, a fantastical wizarding school in Scotland. Tragically, before he could bring them home, Hydra ambushed them. The wizard- who they only knew as Stephen- escaped with them, but at the cost of his life.

The questions kept coming. How they’d made it to Britian- Stephen had given them a portkey that had taken them to England, they’d made their way up north by foot. Her dad had given them each a portkey ride so they knew what it felt like, it wasn’t pleasant! What their time on the run was like- her memories from her actual time on the run were invaluable. What living with Hydra was like- her mum had provided the details on that.

Snape’s legilmency probed into her thoughts, scanning her memories as they drifted past. For a minute, Lily thought she was in the clear. Then he took a stab. Her dad had warned her about that, that Snape was a vindictive bastard who enjoyed tormenting children. Well, if he wanted a tormented child, that was exactly what Lily was going to give him! In front of his thrust, she threw out one of her worst memories, a time she’d snuck off on her own and ran into a gang. Not even Hydra, just a group of men with guns on few morals. It had been a terrifying few minutes, in which her accidental magic had acted up and blown one of the men back, cracking his head on a rock. The others had let her go after that, leaving Lily to stumble away bloodied and in tears.

Now, Lily stumbled back, clutching her head as she cried out. McGonagall glared at Snape. “W-what was that?” Lily asked wetly.

“What did you do to her!” T’Chone barked, stepping in front of her. He didn’t know that this was for show, but she was touched by his intervention.

“Just standard procedure.” Snape said, appearing unmoved. T’Chone glared at him, unintimidated. Then Snape pulled his wand, causing T’Chone to tense up, shifting into a fighting stance. Snape rolled his eyes and murmured an incantation. Lily felt nothing, but when she looked down, she saw that her pocket was glowing. Wiping her tears on her sleeve, she pulled out her wand. “It was Stephen’s.” She explained. “But when I picked it up, it was like it was calling to me.” She didn’t need to fake that memory in the slightest.

“Very well. No signs of magic or electronics. By all appearances two normal teenagers.” Snape said impatiently. That was true, Lily had nothing magical on her. Her hair was blonde because of hair dye, and her eyes were blue because of Vibranium contacts custom designed by Shuri. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a potion to attend to.”

McGonagall shook her head, muttering. “That man, I swear.”

“So he’s… one of our Professors?” Lily ventured cautiously.

“Yes, that was Professor Snape. He will be your potions teacher.” She answered. “He is excellent at his craft, but lacks patience with students.”

“Somehow, I gathered that.” T’Chone said, deadpan, and Lily could have sworn that McGonagall almost chuckled.

“Mr. Boseman, I see that you don’t have a wand, is that correct?”

“Yes, Lisa lent me hers a few times, but it didn’t feel right.”

“It wouldn’t.” McGonagall said. “A wand only works properly for a wizard it has chosen. Borrowed wands just aren’t the same. Not to worry, we’ll have you with a proper wand.” T’Chone perked up, a genuine spring in his step as they followed the professor out. Lisa let herself relax, just a little. They’d passed the first hurdles. They were in!

“Now, we have a program in place for older students.” McGonagall began to explain as they walked. “You’ll be on an accelerated path. It will be rigorous, but…”

-----

“Lisa.” T’Chone hissed, barely containing his excitement. Lily’s real name had almost tumbled out of his mouth. They’d spent days referring to each other by their cover names just to be certain they wouldn’t slip up, and T’Chone almost had right out the gate!

The door opened, and Lily beamed at him. “You got a wand!”

“I got a wand!” T’Chone cheered. “Cedar and Dragon Heartstring!” Professor McGonagall had led him down a hallway into the dungeons. Nestled down there was a room filled to the brim with boxes of wands. The great wandmakers of old were dead, most killed in the first wave of attacks by Hydra. While younger craftsmen had stepped in to fill in the gap, knowledge had been lost, and the old wands were highly prized. Every wand from a dead witch or wizard was recovered, if possible, to be used by future generations. His had been one of those wands. Over half a century old it was, yet it hummed in his hand with a life that Lily had described for her own wand. Her words hadn’t done it justice, but T’Chone didn’t think he could describe it better than she.

“Nice!” Lily grinned.

“Now we can finally have a proper duel.” T’Chone jibed. “You better watch out.”

“Do your worst!”

They chuckled, letting the good humor dissipate. With a quick look behind him, he closed the door. They’d been posted in guest quarters until they could be sorted, and told not to wander off. Now they needed to figure out how to do exactly that.

“We need a good excuse.” Lily said, T’Chone nodding along. “I say we ask to go to the library. It won’t be our fault if we ‘got lost’.”

“You just want to go to the library.” T’Chone teased, and Lily playfully bumped his shoulder. “I can’t believe we just got past Snape like that, what did you do?”

“Just some good acting.” Lily brushed her shoulder. “How did you hold up?”

“He barely bothered with me.” He shrugged. “He seemed really focused on you.”

“Huh.” Lily said. “That’s a little…”

“Creepy?” T’Chone suggested. “Apparently he is very into our grandmother.”

“Ew.” Lily wrinkled her nose. “That makes it even grosser! You don’t think he was digging in my head for…” She blanched.

“I don’t know, but I don’t like him.” T’Chone said. “Not one bit.”

They startled at a knock on the door.

“Ah, I thought I might find both of you here.” To his surprise, the voice wasn’t McGonagall’s or even (thankfully) Snape’s. It belonged to a man he’d never met before, but had heard plenty about.

“H-headmaster?” Lily asked. “What are you doing here? Not that it isn’t an honor, but I’m sure you have more important things.”

“On the contrary, there are few things more important than raising the next generation of witches and wizards.” Albus Dumbledore said. He looked no older than her dad did, but his eyes were ancient. His dad had once described him as an old man with a youthful soul. To T’Chone, this Dumbledore looked much the opposite. “To that end, we’ve decided that there’s no point in making you wait for the start of term. We have a few days before your new peers arrive, and in that time, we’re going to assess you.” As if expecting objections, he held a hand up. “There isn’t any shame in starting late. In many cases, our older students catch up very quickly. But we need to know your starting point, so don’t try to bluff your way through this, it’ll only hurt you.”

“Of course.” T’Chone nodded. “What do you need of us, Sir?” While Lily excelled at gladhanding, being deferential came second nature to him. It was just like speaking to his grandfather.

“To the point, I see.” Dumbledore said. “The first step in your assessment will be perhaps the most important- your sorting.”

“Sorting?” Lily asked, even though they both knew what he was referring to.

T’Chone caught the barest hint of a twinkle in the Headmaster’s eyes, but it was gone in an instant. “Oh, you’ll see.”

-----

“Gryffindor!” The hat crowed. T’Chone leapt up from the stool and pumped his fist. The scene looked a little absurd to Lily’s eye. The Great Hall was spectacular- utterly massive, medieval, and with an enthralling ceiling that Lily kept craning her neck up to see. It was also completely empty, save for Dumbledore and McGonagall.

“There’s nothing for it Headmaster.” The Sorting hat (it could talk!) insisted. “They must be sorted in the usual way.” So, they trooped up to the empty hall to put on a charade of a sorting ceremony. The hat had even insisted on singing a song before they could begin.

And now it was Lily’s turn to sit on the stool. “Another infiltrator, hm?” The hat’s voice said into her mind. Lily, to her credit, didn’t startle, much. “Don’t worry, thankfully Godric enchanted me with a little moral leeway. I won’t say a word. Now, let’s take a look at you. Hm, yes. Very bright. A strong desire to prove yourself, and to find a place to belong. Plenty of courage to spare as well, sneaking into here made that obvious enough, but I have to say…” The hat chuckled, as if it was about to tell a joke only it could understand. “That you’d make a mighty fine… SLYTHERIN!” The hat belted that last word out.

“I suppose that’s my cue.” Lily turned her head at the new voice. He must have come in when she was being sorted. “Welcome to the house of ambition, Ms. Rushman.” Tom Riddle said.

f*ck. “Thank you, Professor.” Lily cast a wistful look at T’Chone. While he would be going up to Gryffindor tower with Professor McGonagall, she would be delving down to the den of snakes with Voldemort himself.

“You will be seeing plenty of your friend later.” Riddle said. “Let me show you to your new quarters.”

She followed in his wake, trying not to let her nerves show. What if he saw right through her? What if the moment they were alone, he confronted her? He slowed his pace leaving Lily no choice but to walk by his side. “So, what can you tell me about Slytherin?” She asked, grasping for something to deflect his attention.

“The House, or the man?” Riddle asked.

After a moment of deliberation, she said. “I think knowing about the man will tell me a lot about the House.”

“Indeed.” Riddle gave a ghost of a smile. “He was the most brilliant mind of his generation. Don’t let the Ravenclaws tell you otherwise. Ravenclaw was book smart, but Slytherin, he was a mastermind. He was cunning, and talented in every branch of magic- enchanting, spellcraft, alchemy, even in magical creatures.” He smiled at the joke he believed only he understood. Lily, however, had been told about her dad’s adventures with the Chamber of Secrets, and the Basilisk within.

“While Gryffindor was born of privilege, Salazar had to work his way up from the bottom. That is a true Slytherin, not those entitled heirs who think their family name counts for everything, but those who were given a bad lot in life, and struggled and clawed their way to the top. That is what House Slytherin can offer you, Ms. Rushman.”

“Was that you?” She asked.

“Perceptive.” He said. “You should know that Professor Snape also rose up from humble origins. You are in good company, even if some in this house won’t acknowledge it. So tell me, what is it that you want to achieve here?”

“I want to learn magic.” She said. “I know that sounds cliché, ‘Oh, I’m going to school to learn magic’. But it’s true. All my life I’ve only seen scraps of what I could do. I want to do more, to be more.”

“You should know that wizarding society has limits on what status witches can hold.” Riddle said carefully. “Don’t be fooled by Professor McGonagall’s position. She’s very much an outlier. Only a woman who displays massive power would be given the opportunity to prove themselves.”

“Well, I’ll just have to display massive power, then.” Lily groused.

“Remember, you are a Slytherin, not a Gryffindor. You have more tools in your arsenal than brute force. You’ll never know when an opportunity will present itself, be prepared to take advantage.”

She didn’t know why he’d taken such an interest in her, if it wasn’t because he suspected her of subterfuge. After he led her down into the Slytherin dorms. The common room was eerie. It was deathly quiet and cast in a green glow by the lamps and the windows, which all faced out into the lake. Her room, though, was surprisingly cozy, and she didn’t hesitate to ensconce herself in its privacy. Her mind turned over her and Riddle’s conversation again and again, trying to make sense of it. He didn’t suspect her, yet he was implying something, but what?

Oh. She realized in a flash. He was trying to recruit her.

-----

Natasha paced along the length of the room again, and again, and again. “You’re going to wear a hole in the floor, sis.” Yelena said.

Natasha scoffed. She wasn’t in the mood for humor, even if it was just Yelena’s own form of coping with stress. “You got anything, Shuri?” She asked. Neville had scouted out the perimeter of the castle, going as close to the wards as he’d dared. During his reconnaissance he’d laid out probes of Shuri’s design, whose feeds were now displayed in the air around her.

“If I had something, I wouldn’t be keeping it to myself.” Shuri responded tensely. T’Challa put a calming hand on her shoulder. They were all wound tightly, they all had family down there, and they were all running low on sleep. It wasn’t surprising that they were snapping at each other.

They’d put so much work into the details of the plan- the kids’ backstories, the timing, and a month of unrelenting training. But Harry hadn’t been prepared for just how unbearable it was to wait. It had always been him going out, leaving others to worry and wait for him. He didn’t like being on the other side of it.

Never before had he sympathized so acutely with Mrs. Weasley. What he’d do to have her clock right now, he’d probably be carrying it from room to room too. They’d discussed ways of monitoring the kids’ conditions from afar. Perhaps if Hermione were here, she could have done a little ‘light reading’ and whipped something up. But Hermione wasn’t here, and everything they’d considered had seemed too risky. Just knowing that Lily and T’Chone were alive would be a relief, because right now they knew nothing. They could be dead, or being interrogated, and Harry would be none the wiser.

“I think I need to do it.” Harry sighed.

“Do what?” Yelena asked. She hadn’t been kept in the loop on this.

Nat, however, knew exactly what he was proposing. She sighed, appraising him, and finally said. “I trust your judgement.”

They’d talked in circles about it, the risks and benefits. The last time that Harry had ventured into Riddle’s mind, he’d managed to slip by undetected. However, the encounter before that had been an absolute disaster. They couldn’t afford for Harry to slip up and reveal their plans to him. At the same time, they needed to know Lily and T’Chone’s status, and it wasn’t just his parental instincts talking. If they were captured and interrogated, they could be used to spring a trap on them, opening a passageway into Hogwarts… and straight into an ambush.

If it came down to it, if he learned that they’d been caught, Harry did have a backup plan. He didn’t like it; it was risky in an entirely different way- a break all of reality again type of risk. But if it meant saving T’Chone and Lily’s lives…

After all, what was the point in having the powers of the Time Stone if he couldn’t use it to save the people he loved?

“Are you two just going to look into each other’s eyes all day, or are you going to share with the class?” Yelena prompted.

“I’m going to sneak into Riddle’s mind and see if the kids are alright.” Harry pitched.

“Its crazy.” Shuri said. “Do it.”

“Good luck.” Natasha said, kissing him softly.

“Stay with me.” He told her. She slipped into his lap with complaint, lacing her fingers through his hair. “He won’t be able to bear being in my mind when I’m feeling love.”

“Oh my god, this guy’s allergic to love?” Yelena rolled her eyes. “Comically evil.”

Harry closed his eyes, letting the byplay wash over him, and reached out.

…

…

…

His eyes fluttered open, and he sighed in relief. “They’re okay.” He squeezed Natasha tighter. “They’re okay.”

He’d only caught a quick glimpse. T’Chone and Lily were in the Great Hall, the Sorting Hat had been perched on Lily’s head as it proclaimed her a Slytherin. He could feel Riddle’s thoughts, and there wasn’t any suspicion in them. He saw her as a potential recruit if anything. His concerns were focused elsewhere, and though Harry was tempted to delve further, he didn’t dare risk it.

Shuri jumped. “YES!” She caught herself. “I mean, I never doubted them for a moment.”

Natasha buried her head into his chest, shuddering with relief. “They’re alright.” She repeated. “They’re alright.”

Chapter 23: Reunion

Chapter Text

They were escorted to the library the next morning by Professor McGonagall, and were told to be expected at lunch. However, Lily’s plan to ‘get lost’ was foiled. She hadn’t anticipated the presence of another student.

She spotted him sitting at a table, immersed in a thick tome, and she was of two minds. On the one hand, having someone else around would make it harder for them to sneak off to this ‘Room of Requirement’. On the other hand… it wasn’t like she’d talked to many other people her own age. She glanced at T’Chone, who nodded. With that silent agreement, they stepped forward, and T’Chone announced their presence.

“Hey, we’re new here.” He said softly. The boy looked up. He sported a curly mass of auburn hair. His robes were meant to be formal but were clearly put on in a groggy morning stupor. “My name’s Tevin.” T’Chone said. “And this is Lisa.”

“Septimius.” The boy said. He nodded to the table. “Septimius Snape.” Lily tripped, catching herself at the last minute on the table. “Ah, I take it you’ve met my father. Or perhaps my mother?”

“Your father.” Lily admitted. It was far easier than saying ‘Oh hey, I’m your half-niece? I think?' Honestly, even getting into the mechanics of how they were related was likely to give her a headache. “He… screened us yesterday.”

Septimius looked apologetic. “I’m sorry. He’s…” He shook his head. “Well, he doesn’t like people.”

“So it wasn’t that he specifically hated us?” T’Chone asked.

“No. He’s pretty disagreeable with everybody.”

“That sounds tough.” T’Chone said sympathetically.

“It’s fine.” Septimius said unconvincingly. “I’m just lucky that both my parents are alive. What about you, where are you from?”

“We escaped from Hydra. We’ve been stumbling around Britain for the past few months.” Lily said.

“See, this is how I keep the self-pity in check.” Septimius gestured to them. “There’s so much wrong in the world. Complaining about my parents just seems… petty.”

Lily frowned, feeling a little guilty for lying now. While it was true that neither of their lives were easy, both she and T’Chone had two loving parents. T’Chone snorted. “Nah, you’re allowed to complain. And it must suck to have both your parents as teachers.”

“Ha!” Septimius exhaled. “Like you wouldn’t believe. My mum isn’t too bad, but my dad expects me to be a potions prodigy.” He rolled his eyes. “Well, even moreso than his other students.”

“Yeah… I know a few spells.” Lily said. “But I know basically nothing about potions. The professors say they’re going to put us on accelerated coursework but…”

“Yeah.” Septimius nodded severely. “McGonagall is fair, as long as she sees that you’re trying she’ll be fine. Riddle plays favorites, so try to impress him early on. My mum is probably the friendliest teacher, but if you get her upset…” He suppressed a shudder. “And my dad, well... hold on a sec.” Lily and T’Chone watched as Septimius ruffled through the shelves, before selecting a book. He plopped it in Lily’s hands- The Best Basics for Brilliant Brewing. “Memorize as much of this as possible. He likes to ambush new students with a bunch of questions, if he finds a reason not to like them.”

T’Chone winced. “I did kinda yell at him yesterday.”

“Yikes.” Septimius said quietly.

“He was digging through Li-Lisa’s mind.” He justified. “I couldn’t just let him-”

“Please.” Septimius held up a hand. “Nearly everyone on the staff has yelled at him at some point, and most of the student body would like to. But he is going to be a prat to you, so…” Septimius smirked and patted the table. He seemed to take a little joy in undercutting his father. Perhaps there was something of a rebellious teen in him. “Take a seat. Maybe I can help you two out.”

Septimius, it turned out, made a good tutor. He never seemed to get frustrated with either of them, even when they had to ask basic questions about ingredients, or even more basic questions about life in the wizarding world. Eventually, the discussion veered away from classwork. “So, what house are you in, anyway?” Lily asked.

“Ravenclaw.” Septimius said. “I suppose I’m too much of a bookworm for anything else.”

“I was kinda hoping you’d be in Slytherin.” Lily admitted. “Just so that I’d know someone there.”

“My father would agree with you, though he’ll say that ‘at least I wasn’t a dunderhead Hufflepuff.’” He seemed chagrinned as the words slipped out. But neither of them batted an eye. The longer they talked, the more he let slip little complaints about his home life. Lily wondered if he’d ever gotten a chance to vent before.

“I don’t get it.” T’Chone muttered. “What’s supposed to be wrong with the Hufflepuffs?”

“Oh, all the Houses have rivalries with each other.” Septimius said, glancing between them. “Gryffindor and Slytherin is about the worst of them, and lots of people look down on the Hufflepuffs. It’s pretty dumb.”

“Well, Tevin and I won’t be like that.” Lily said. It wasn’t like they were planning on staying, after all.

Septimius nodded. “You’re both going to have to stand your ground on that. There will be people who’ll expect you to act a certain way, and that includes not befriending the ‘wrong sort’.” He rolled his eyes.

Lily wanted to probe further on that, but T’Chone shifted the conversation. “So do you just live at the castle, then?”

“No. Unfortunately.” Septimius replied. “I’d love to be here every day. But during the summers I stay at Godric’s Hollow. My parents have business with the Headmaster, and they let me tag along today.”

“Teacher stuff?” T’Chone asked.

“Based on what mum said… probably war stuff.”

“War stuff?” Lily leaned in, discreetly sharing a glance with T’Chone. He silently gave her permission to take the lead. “I didn’t realize your parents were so involved with the war. I guess it makes sense.”

“Yeah, they’re constantly working.” Septimius said carelessly. “I’m pretty sure that they’ve got some sort of project at the castle, not that they’ll say anything.” Secret project, at Hogwarts? Could this be what they were looking for?

“Wow, so I guess they’d never tried to involve you, huh?” Lily asked.

“I wish.” Septimius sighed. “Not like I’d be of any use to them. I’m just a student, and a pretty average one at that.”

“Come on, you seem to know your stuff.” T’Chone said. “We would have been completely lost at potions without you.”

“Septimius.” All three of them turned at the new voice, and Lily found herself frozen. It was her. Her namesake. She had Septimius’ auburn hair, and her own emerald eyes.

“Professor Snape?” T’Chone managed. “We’re new students. Septimius was helping us with potions.”

“I see.” Lily Snape smiled. “Its good to see you making friends, Sep.”

“Mum.” Septimius ducked his head in embarrassment.

“It’s time for lunch. Why don’t you two join us?”

“Sure.” Lily swallowed her nerves. They couldn’t exactly refuse.

-----

Septimius was a little embarrassed by his mum’s interference. Mostly, he felt bad for Lisa and Tevin. It seemed like they’d been through the wringer in the past few days. After dealing with his father, he didn’t want to subject him to his mum’s more subtle form of interrogation. Sure, she was just curious about his new ‘friends’, but her enthusiasm still put them on the spot. Lisa and Tevin fielded her questions, though some of the more probing ones about their past they dodged. It was understandable, he thought, they’d clearly been through a lot.

Eventually, Lisa managed to redirect his mum with a well placed question about charms. His mum shifted seamlessly into ‘professor mode’ then, and turned the rest of the lunch into an impromptu lesson. Septimius thought they might all get out of this unscathed, but as if summoned by his optimism, his father appeared at the doorway like a shadow.

“Oh, hello. Father.” Septimius said, as much in greeting as he was warning Lisa and Tevin. His two classmates (friends?) stiffened.

“Septimius.” His father said. “Lily.” His voice warmed. “And company.” His eyes flicked to Tevin, before lingering on Lisa. “Welcome to Slytherin House, Ms. Rushman.”

Lisa shifted uncomfortably in her seat, while Tevin tensed further, coiling like a spring. He looked ready to put himself in front of her at the slightest trigger.

“Severus.” His mum said cooly. “Have you finished your business here?”

“I have.” His dad said.

“Well.” She smiled stiffly, making no move to rise from her seat. Septimius wanted to cringe at the tension. “I’ll be seeing you.”

“I suppose you will.” His father turned with an overdramatic swoosh of his robes.

“What a creep.” He heard Lisa mutter. None of them objected.

-----

Their time was limited. They’d been dropped headfirst into classwork to prepare them for the imminent start of term. The upside was that they learned a lot and had plenty of opportunities to impress the professors by quickly ‘picking up’ spells. Both Lily and T’Chone were getting a reputation for being a whiz at practical magic. Riddle had even had them duel. They’d gotten lost in the moment, and perhaps done a little better than they ‘should’ have. Lily told him they’d both had good instincts from their time on the run. She hoped he was convinced.

Severus Snape sat them both down for a potions lesson. True to form, he’d rounded on T’Chone and peppered him with questions. With each correct answer, Snape had grown more frustrated, until after the fourth question, he bit out. “The art of potions is more than rote memorization.” While he didn’t relish drawing the professor’s ire, he much preferred his attention on him than on Lily. Despite Snape’s declaration, T’Chone proved to be a natural. He chalked it up to his mom’s influence, but at Snape’s imperious stare, he could only shrug and say that ‘it just came naturally to him’. That answer did not mollify the man.

They’d both, on separate excursions, located the Room of Requirement. T’Chone had summoned it using the phrase ‘I need a way to get out of the castle.’. Sure enough, a door had appeared and within, a stone passageway. He was wary of being ‘missing’ for too long, and scurried back to his dorm. Despite his anxieties, no one confronted them, or showed any sign of suspecting them. Their lessons were challenging and they had a mountain of books and homework, but the heavy workload helped the days leading up to the start of term pass quickly.

Before he knew it, he was being shoved to the end of the long table as his new Housemates piled in. They came, it seemed, from all over the world, with more diversity than he’d ever seen before. T’Chone tried to make small-talk, but he was wound far too tight. He kept looking for Lily in the crowd, and felt a spike of anxiety when he lost her. They were so close to the end, now. Once they got to the Room of Requirement tonight, they could slip away safely while his dad raided the castle. They just needed to get lost in the crowd, and if everything was going according to plan, the team was about to set up the perfect opportunity for them to do so.

The sorting ceremony was interminable, all T’Chone wanted was for it to end. He repeatedly glanced (he hoped discreetly) at the head table, looking for some sign of a disturbance that refused to materialize. Finally, after the start of the feast, T’Chone glanced up again and saw that Dumbledore’s seat was empty. Riddle was rising from his own seat and beating a swift retreat. The hall exploded into speculative murmurs, while the remaining professors sat stiffly, anxiously in their seats.

T’Chone let out a breath. The end of dinner couldn’t come fast enough.

-----

The wards around Godric’s Hollow had shattered, the magical backlash of their destruction humming in the air. To Riddle it was almost an electric charge, like the taste of ozone in the air after a lightning strike. Whatever- whoever- had broken the town’s wards, they were powerful. The possibilities were limited. In fact, he could only think of two who could potentially pull it off. He could only hope that it wasn’t Hela. The Goddess of Death attacking now, at this critical juncture, would be a worst-case scenario.

“What do we have, Albus?” Dumbledore had been the first on the scene, though for the moment he merely observed.

“I’m not quite sure.” Dumbledore admitted calmly. With the wards down, it was possible to apparate out. Mothers scooped up their young children and fled. The men would be required to stay and fight. “Whoever it is, will surely-”

Around them, portals opened. Water streamed out of one in a high pressure jet that carved into the ground. Dumbledore parted the stream, sending it cascading on either side of them. Meanwhile, out of the other portals… “Sorcerers!” A wizard yelped. They were surrounded.

Dumbledore was quick to respond, launching spells with preternatural speed. The ‘sorcerers’ vanished as they were struck. “An illusion.” Riddle muttered, taking a step back. Silently, he cast Homenum Revelio, and in the corner of his eye spotted the outline of a body. Quick as a viper, he struck with a killing curse. Ice rose up between them, intercepting the curse and exploding into splinters. More ice welled up around him, and for a moment he was ensconced, before he summoned an intense pulse of heat that vaporized the ice. He had drawn his quarry out. He wasn’t human, neither was he Asgardian, but a blue skinned giant. On his head was a horned helm, and in his hands was a curved blade. “Who are you?” He asked.

“You admit your own ignorance?” The giant taunted. “I am Loki, of Jotunheim, human. You would do well to…”

Riddle quickly checked on Dumbledore while his opponent spoke. He was deep into battle with the sorcerers- or rather, one in particular. As Riddle watched, he transfigured the ground beneath her. Stone arms erupted, grasping, and clawing at the sorcerer. Space distorted around her, splintering into fractals. The arms were diced into pieces, and she slung the spatial shards at Dumbledore. The rubble around him reformed into a wall, intercepting the projectiles. Then, with a flick of his wand he enchanted the bricks. The purpose of the enchantment became clear when Dumbledore launched the bricks at the sorcerer, rapid fire. The Sorcerer deflected one with a magical shield that she projected from her hands, but on contact the brick exploded with a flash of light and storm of sparks. The Sorcerer was blown into the air, landing in a roll and putting up a portal up to redirect the next volley. The bricks instead fell on the town, sending wizards running for cover from the brilliant explosions.

If Dumbledore was pulling out his ‘experimental’ spells, it meant he wasn’t feeling particularly hard pressed. The Sorcerer seemed equally content to let this play out. It raised the question of why they were even attacking if they weren’t fighting to win. What were they waiting for? What did they want?

He glanced back at the giant, and smirked. “Actually, I don’t particularly care.” He sent out a gout of fire, which carved through the ice that rose to meet it. Loki tumbled back, bracing for another attack. It wouldn’t come from the direction he expected. Riddle apparated silently, leaving an illusion at his former location. He liked the irony of using his opponent’s own strategy against him. He sent another killing curse, but as it streaked through the air, Riddle and his surroundings were enveloped in a shower of light. Thor, the God of Thunder, swung Stormbreaker in the curse’s path, and the unblockable spell fizzled against the metal.

Riddle gaped at the Asgardian. He knew him from Harry Potter’s memories, and his presence here could only mean one thing. Potter was behind this, but why? What could he gain from a pointless attack on Godric’s Hollow? All of the civilians had already escaped, and even if they did get the upper hand in a full-on battle, Dumbledore would just escape to the protection of Hogwarts. There was nothing for him in Godric’s Hollow, and Potter wasn’t even here.

It was a diversion.

Thor swung his axe, lightning crackling around him as Riddle idly dodged. He detonated the ground beneath the Asgardian, sending him flying back. Simultaneously, a barrage of explosions heralded Grindelwald’s arrival. While Dumbledore preferred creativity and cleverness in his fights, Gellert Grindelwald was all power and aggression. The ground around the Sorcerer was blasted apart and obscured by flames.

“Sorry I’m late, Al.” Grindelwald crowed. “I was in China trying to-” The Sorcerer reappeared, and a portal opened at Grindelwald’s feet. He apparated, reappearing several feet away while Dumbledore focused his fire on the Sorcerer.

Riddle wasn’t concerned about the two archmages. Together, he suspected they could best all of Potter’s little friends, but if one of them did happen to fall, all the better. Riddle turned on his heal and apparated.

Potter was going to Hogwarts, and he intended to meet him there.

-----

The trek through the corridor was hauntingly reminiscent of his last journey into Hogwarts, all those years ago. Except now it felt like almost yesterday. Like yesterday when he, Ron, and Hermione had cooked up an insane plan to break into Gringotts and had ridden out on the back of a dragon. Like yesterday, when he’d thought he’d seen his friends for the last time in this life. Like yesterday, when he decided to leave them all, not saying goodbye because he couldn’t bear to, and because he knew they’d stop him. Now he was back, with three of those friends at his back, here to find the last two and bring them home.

There had been a tension in Harry’s chest for the past week. Peering into Riddle’s mind had eased it, but it hadn’t taken long for the uncertainty and worry to return. Harry had resisted the urge to check again. The risk of being detected wouldn’t be worth the fleeting relief from anxiety. Even now, on the long walk through the passageway the Room of Requirement had created, that his children had made for them, the tension didn’t ease. He didn’t think he’d relax until he had them both in his arms.

Yet, as Neville reminded them, they needed to take it slow. It wouldn’t do to barge blindly into a trap. At a door, they stopped. Neville looked through it with his enchanted eye, and with a smile, nodded at Harry to go ahead.

“Dad!” T’Chone shouted, and Harry surged forward, crushing him in his arms. For a moment, he felt at peace. “I don’t know where Lily is!” The moment was gone.

Reluctantly, he pulled back, taking note of the fear in his son’s eyes. “What happened?”

“I lost track of her at the feast.” T’Chone said quickly. He was spiraling. “I don’t know… Snape seems really interested in her. What if he- he-”

“I’ll find her.” Harry said. If Snape had so much as touched his daughter, he’d rip him apart.

Ginny grabbed his hand, and Harry’s nerves calmed fractionally. “We’ll find them. You find her.”

T’Chone looked miserable. “Its not your fault.” Harry grabbed his shoulders. “We’ll get her back. You need to stay here and keep the room open for us.”

T’Chone nodded resolutely. Harry looked to his friends, from Neville, to Ron, to Ginny. “Let’s do this.”

-----

Hela let out a breath, taking a moment to savor the sacred silence within the chamber.

The wizards had discovered the Veil, and though they had recognized its importance, they couldn’t truly understand what it was. They had used it, to execute criminals and create monsters, but they didn’t grasp the implications. Only a few could hear the voices that called from the other side.

The Veil of Death was a door, and doors could be opened. Hela gazed at the tattered black fabric that hung from the archway. It rippled from a breeze that none could feel, except Hela could. The Invisibility Cloak hung off her shoulders and fluttered from the same silent wind. She held her hand up, her fingertips grazing against the barrier, and it stilled.

Doors could be opened if one had a key. She didn’t have the key, at least not in full. But she had a part, just enough to open a crack. Hela felt her fingertips tingle with power. Through the Veil, she saw her.

Death smiled.

Chapter 24: Lily's Secret

Chapter Text

Lily had actually begun to enjoy herself. It was a little fun lying to people without guilt, and learning new things, and meeting new people. Yes, her schedule was far too regimented for her taste, even before classes started, and she preferred her dad’s teaching to any of the professors (though perhaps she was biased). But the days leading up to the opening feast had gone by fast. She could tell that T’Chone was enjoying their mission far less, despite her best efforts to put him at ease- mostly through teasing. She wished she could sit with him. Even though they’d known each other for only about a month, she’d grown so used to his presence. It didn’t feel quite right without him there.

Still, it was fun watching the first years get sorted, and she’d dug into the feast with enthusiasm. At a certain point, she’d noticed several of the professors missing, and was assured that things were going according to plan. She’d just need to slip through the crowds in the after dinner rush, and…

“Lisa, Lisa!” Lily turned, her mood dipping at the familiar voice.

“Septimius!” She turned, smiling at her ‘uncle’. God that was weird to think about.

“You’re trying to get to the dungeons right?” He trotted up to her.

“Er, yeah. I got a little turned around, no big deal!” She tried to wave him off. “I’m sure I can figure it out.”

“Oh, everyone gets lost on their first week.” Septimius assured her. “I’ll show you back.”

“You don’t need to do that.” She tried. “I don’t want to put you off.”

“It’s no problem, really. It’ll just be a few minutes.”

Lily suppressed a sigh, resigning herself to following him, at least until she convinced him she could make it the rest of the way. He was just trying to help, but she’d be lying if she’d said she wasn’t frustrated with him. She masked it with cheer. “So, how was your week?”

“It was alright, it’s nice to be back at school.” Septimius said, which was code for ‘not good’.

“Yeah, it’s great here. Your tips really helped us.”

He led her down a flight of stairs, then another. “Okay, we’re almost there- oh, hello father.” Lily hated the overly formal tone that Septimius took with his father, though not nearly as much as she despised the man himself. Most of all, she hated that he was here, now, looking down at her over his hooked nose. “Lisa got lost, I was just showing her back to her dorms.”

“I see.” Snape said. “How conscientious of you. Five points to Ravenclaw.”

Septimius nodded gratefully. “Thank you, father.” It was the closest Lily had seen the professor be anything close to caring.

“Now then, I’ll make sure that Ms. Rushman returns to her dorms. You should return-” At that moment, Riddle burst through the door that Lily had just come from.

“Severus. We may have a situation.”

“So I’ve heard.” Snape said dryly. “Be sure not to lose your way again, Ms. Rushman.” He said in clear dismissal.

Riddle, it seemed, hadn’t even noticed her presence. He looked at her, judging, evaluating. “I got turned around after the feast. Luckily Septimius found me.”

“Lucky indeed.” Riddle murmured. “Severus, you should go check on your project, and bring help. I think Lisa and I need to have a little chat.”

Snape arched a skeptical eyebrow at Riddle, but did not argue. Septimius on the other hand… “She got lost, it happens to first years all the time!”

“Be assured, Mr. Snape, that your friend isn’t in any trouble.” If Lisa hadn’t known better, she would have believed him. Septimius, though, let out a relieved sigh. “Now, you should return to your dorms. We don’t need any more students out where they shouldn’t be. Isn’t that right, Lisa?”

“Of course!” She nodded, even as the bile burned in her throat. Why was he here? Did he suspect her? Did he know? He led her past the Slytherin Common rooms, to his office. She wanted to puke.

“I believe, Ms. Rushman, that someone may be trying to break into Hogwarts.” Riddle told her.

“How would someone even do that?” She asked, trying to control the tremble in her voice.

“It’d be nearly impossible, but, I can’t help but wonder…” She felt a presence probe her mind. Tensing, she threw up memories from the feast and from her last lesson with him, but he batted them aside. Snape hadn’t been taking her seriously when he’d examined her mind, but Riddle was. He struck deep and true, and despite Lily’s best efforts to hunker down, he snagged a fragment of a memory, just an image- the last time she saw her dad. It made sense that he was on her mind. She wished he was here right now, more than anything. Tears spilled down her cheeks, and Riddle smirked.

“I see.” Riddle said, his voice deathly calm. “Potter sent you to infiltrate the castle. Clever of him. Ruthless, but clever.” He trailed his wand along her forehead, pushing back a strand of her hair. “If you want to live, you will tell me what his plan is.”

Just like that, terror turned to resolve. She would never betray her family. If she died, she’d make sure her dad and T’Chone got out. “Please don’t kill me.” She begged, as she cast her mind for a plan- a lie.

“Then you’ll tell me what I want to know.” Riddle said, his voice icy. “Speak, or I will rip it out of your mind myself.”

“We were supposed to make a diversion.” She burst out. “Me and Tevin, we were going to make a scene after the feast. But he lost his nerve!” It wasn’t a very believable lie, and Riddle wasn’t buying it.

“You’re lying.” He hissed. “You think you can deceive me, girl?”

“Didn’t I, though?” She managed. God she wished her dad were here. She wondered if he’d be proud of her. She hoped he didn’t hurt himself too badly over this. She wished she could see him one last time, tell him it was okay, that she loved him.

“I suppose you did, Ms. Rushman. You really are a fine Slytherin, it’s a shame that you fell into Potter’s lot.” Riddle mused, as behind him a door appeared.

“It’s Potter.” Lily said, hoping to distract him.

“What?”

“My name.” She boldly met his eyes. “Is Lily Potter. And I’m not afraid of you.”

Her dad burst through the door. “Avada Kedavra.” He’d told her the importance of that spell, what it meant for him to use that spell. Riddle wheeled around in shock, flipping his desk in the curse’s path just in time. Lily felt her arm sting as wood splintered the room, but she was already running. Her dad was going on an all out offensive, giving her time to escape. He followed up the curse with a bolt of lightning. It collided with a transparent shield, leaving the heavy taste of ozone in the air. Riddle transformed the wooden splinters around him into snakes, and sent them after her dad. He lobbed a series of blasting curses back at Riddle, negligently decapitating the snakes with his off hand. One of the snakes made a bid to bite her heels, but Lily stunned it. She was at the door now, and Riddle spared her a glance, but her dad launched another fierce barrage.

She bounded into the hall, breaking into a sprint. When she was at the stairs, she plowed into Septimius. “Ow! Lisa?” He squawked. “What’s going on? I heard explosions!”

“Run!” She shouted, breathless, not even pausing. After a moment of shock, he followed.

-----

Harry ducked as the killing curse seared through the air where his head had just been. The curse blasted apart the wall behind Harry, but he was already moving. Riddle had been able to shield himself from his direct attacks, so he needed to be cleverer. Just as he had with Hela, Harry tried transfiguring the air around Riddle into steel. He certainly hadn’t been expecting it, and within Hogwarts he wouldn’t be able to simply apparate out from the trap.

Harry’s hopes that the ploy would buy him time were dashed as the metal surrounding riddle began to flutter, parting into thousands of individual bodies. They lifted off- a thousand hornets swarming in the air. They intercepted a concussive blast that Harry had sent to take advantage of Riddle’s confinement, and most were torn into mangled scraps, but a few had taken a wider arc and were now diving at him. Harry was forced to vanish them while Riddle retook the initiative.

Thankfully, that ‘just’ meant more killing curses. Good ol’ Tom, always obsessed with the killing curse. While obviously lethal and creating a lot of collateral damage even when they missed, the spell was predictable, and Harry knew how to handle it. In the corner of his glasses, he saw a notification, a link established via protean charm and Wakandan technology. Dumbledore en route.

Well sh*t. He needed an escape plan. One that didn’t result in Riddle running straight down to Neville, Ron, and Ginny’s rescue attempt. It would be best if he could find a way to keep both Riddle and Dumbledore occupied, but how?

The curse blasted the wall behind him again, this time tearing a path into the hallway. Eager for a more open battlefield, Harry leapt back. He sent a hail of simple stunners at Riddle, a cover for his real attack, a piece of rubble he launched at him from the other direction, it made a crack like a gunshot as it rocketed towards him, and it tore through Riddle’s unprepared shield, puncturing his shoulder.

Riddle hissed as blood stained his cloak. Wizards were durable, Harry knew from personal experience, and it would take more than a single wound to bring either of them down. Still, it was a start. Harry launched a brilliant bolt of energy at Riddle, hoping to capitalize on his success. But Riddle reacted quickly, flicking his wand and causing the spell to detonate prematurely. It exploded so brightly that Harry was forced to squint. Blindly, he sent out a series of blasting and cutting curses.

When the light faded, Riddle stood unscathed by Harry’s assault. But something seemed off, he stood unnaturally still. “I’m surprised.” He said. “At how ruthless you’ve become. Sending your own flesh in blood in here to die, you’ve grown more like me.”

Harry wasn’t going to rise to the bait. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a ripple, the telltale sign of a disillusionment charm. He whirled on his feet and almost reflexively, sent an overcharged concussive blast. The disillusionment charm dropped as Riddle put up a shield, but when the spell hit, the image vanished.

Too late, he saw a flash of green. It hit his chest, and Harry fell to the ground, limp. f*ck, Loki was never going to let him live this down. Riddle hadn’t actually moved at all, he’d just created an projection as a diversion, and it had worked almost perfectly for him. He silently thanked Shuri for the vibranium armor beneath his robes. The curse had impacted hard, and he was sure that he’d be sporting an ugly bruise tomorrow, but he wasn’t dead.

Riddle, ever suspicious, cautiously approached him. When his foot came in range, Harry unsheathed a vibranium blade that was slotted at his wrist, striking Riddle’s ankle. His robes were enchanted, but the vibranium cut through them regardless. He grunted in pain as Harry drew blood, sending a killing curse down at him before he could dig the knife in. Harry rolled, putting up as strong a shield as he could muster. The explosion blew both of them back. Riddle collided with a wall, while Harry tumbled further down the corridor, towards the stairwell. As he recovered, he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He made a wager.

“We’re nothing alike.” He said loudly. “What are your plans with my friends? Or the resurrection stone?”

“Oh, you’re right, of course.” Riddle rasped. He was rising too, and despite the wounds Harry had inflicted on him, he seemed in better shape from being further from the explosion. “You may be ruthless, but you’ll never have my vision. I’ll do things with that stone that you’ve never dreamed of. To say nothing of that fool Dumbledore.”

“Fascinating, Tom.” Dumbledore spat. Nearly every piece of rubble in the corridor rose into the air, morphing into sharpened blades. Only a few of them pointed at Harry. Dumbledore stared Riddle down, his eyes burning with rage and betrayal. “Why don’t you enlighten me?”

-----

“Take us to Hermione and Luna.” Neville said to the room. Nothing happened.

“Bugger.” Ron muttered.

“Take us as close as possible to Hermione and Luna.” Ginny tried. This time, a door dutifully appeared. She glanced at Neville. “See anything?”

“Coast is clear.” He said, pushing through the door. “Ron… is this corridor familiar to you?”

“No way.” Ron breathed.

“What are you two on about?”

“I never even thought about it, but yeah, it’s been closed off for as long as I can remember.” Neville said.

“We’re in the third-floor corridor.” Ron told Ginny. “You know… Fluffy?”

“Where else would Dumbledore hide something at Hogwarts?” Neville rolled his uninjured eye, while his enchanted one scanned their surroundings.

“Ron, if we have to fight a three-headed-dog, I’ll defer to your expertise.” Ginny demurred.

“Oh, that’d be easy. Just play a flute and he’ll go to sleep.” Ron said. “We good to go?”

“This corridor’s warded to hell and back.” Neville said, scanning with his wand. “But it looks like we’ve slipped past the worst of them. If you touch that door-” He gestured to one end of the hall, to the door that opened up into the Charms Corridor. “-you’ll trigger at least five enchantments.”

“Let’s not.” Ron said, as they ventured deeper. At the very end of the corridor, they came up on a door, and Neville held out a hand.

He furrowed his eyebrow. “Its… locked but that’s all.” He said finally.

Ron chuckled. “So, alohamora would do the trick? Déjà vu.”

Neville unlocked the door and pressed in. Instead of a trapdoor, they found an elevator. “Well, that’s convenient.” Ginny said.

“I don’t like it.” Neville said.

“Is it warded?”

“Well, no.” He admitted. “But it’ll be very hard for us to get back out.” That may be true, but none of them were willing to turn back now. Their friends were down there.

“One problem at a time.” Ron said. “And the longer we take, the more likely it is that we’ll get caught.” They filed in, and the elevator began descending automatically.

“The defenses are a little thin, aren’t they?” Ginny asked,

“Well yeah, but then again, so were the defenses to the Philosopher’s Stone back in our old timeline.” Ron said. “Three first-years were able to get through them. I think he was mostly counting on Hogwarts being impenetrable.”

“And trusting people too much.” Neville muttered. “He’d never suspect any of his teachers of betraying him.”

Ding. The doors opened into what could best be described as a sitting room. A man lounged in an armchair and looked up from his book casually. “Sir, I wasn’t- Hey! Who are-” Ginny took him out before he could reach for his wand- a slashing spell to the neck.

“Let’s go.” She said shortly, trying to keep her anticipation in check. They scoured the halls, finding offices, a library, a potions laboratory, and even a bathroom. Neville, predictably, found it first- a stairwell leading deeper down. They each nodded grimly and headed down without saying a word.

It was a dungeon. Ginny swallowed, feeling something churn in her stomach at the thought of Luna and Hermione being kept in such a place. The cells looked comfortable- with beds, tables, desks, and even what appeared to be private bathrooms- but they were still cells. The first few rows were empty, but then-

“Luna!” Ginny gasped. “Oh, Luna!” She whipped her wand, slicing through the bars without a thought.

“Ginny?” Luna blinked in shock, sitting up from bed. She looked older now, of course, and paler. Her eyes were dimmed, and Ginny hated it. She slid to the foot of the bed, taking Luna into her arms. “How are you here?”

“I missed you so much.” She whispered fiercely, holding her close as Luna cautiously reciprocated the hug. She was trembling. “We’re going to take you home.” In an adjacent cell, she heard Ron cry out Hermione’s name. Ginny took a breath and pulled back. She needed to keep it together, every second they wasted was a chance they got caught.

“Is there anything we should know?” Neville asked. “Sorry, but we’re on a timer. Dumbledore’s coming back. No word from Harry.”

“I can’t tell you some things.” Luna said quietly. “They-” The words halted in her throat.

“They’ve got something on you.” Neville concluded. “Something controlling you.”

Luna didn’t deny his words, which was confirmation enough. “f*ck.” Ginny hissed.

“There are only so many methods to magically control a person.” Hermione said, in an analytical tone that was so familiar. “I can tell you that we are not under the imperious. We have not taken a potion that would allow people to control us.” Hermione was still Hermione, but she too was worse for wear… worn down. There was something else odd, both of them were nearly completely cloaked in robes, like they were hiding.

“Is it from an artifact?” Neville asked.

“No.”

“Was it any sort of spell cast directly on you?”

“No.” Hermione’s lip curled in amusem*nt. They really were just going to play a game of twenty questions, weren’t they?

Ron snapped his fingers. “Oh, what about when Harry was forced to compete in the Triwizard? The Goblet of Fire-”

“-put him under a magical contract.” Ginny finished seamlessly. “Is that it? Are you under a contract?”

“I… cannot say.” Hermione smiled.

Ron barged back up the stairs, the rest of them trailing in tow. “I’m going to burn this place to the ground.”

“Magical contracts can’t be negated through mundane means.” Hermione said. “You’d need complete magical destruction.”

“Got any basilisk fangs?” Ron grunted, shoving his way into the first office he found.

“If I were a contract, I wouldn’t be in there.” Luna said. Ginny ventured towards a library but was run off by Hermione’s arch look.

Neither witch objected when Neville tried a room. “Looks like this is Lily’s office. How involved is she with this?”

“Can’t say!” Luna chimed. Harry was going to be devastated and-

“Wait.” Ginny said flatly. “Luna, what’s that?”

“What’s what?” Luna asked in genuine confusion.

“On your hand.” Ginny grabbed it, fingers running over the black tattoo engraved on her palm. She rolled Luna’s sleeve up, finding more tattoos. “What did they do to you!”

“Can’t say.” Luna said in a small voice.

Hermione looked down at her feet, rolling up her own sleeve. “We were here for a reason.” While Luna’s marks looked like runes, Hermione’s were an indecipherable network of lines and nodes.

Neville looked through the drawers of Lily Snape’s desk, finding a thick pile of papers. “Sod it.” He muttered, drawing a flask and uncorking it.

“What is that?” Hermione asked.

“Riddle gave it to us, before our mission into the Time Vortex. Most corrosive substance in existence, he said.”

“I didn’t catch that name… and did you say you were in the Time Vortex?” Hermione looked lost.

“Oh, forgot about that Fidelius Charm.” Ron said. “It’s a long story.”

Neville tipped the flask into the stack of papers, and watched them pop, smoke, and disintegrate with satisfaction. “Huh.” Ginny hummed. “Did he tell you what was in that potion?”

He shook his head. “He was never exactly liberal with information.”

That acid spread, tearing through the wood of the desk, and dripping onto the floor where it began to eat through the stone. “Okay, let’s remember that he has a Basilisk.” Ginny tried to keep the urgency out of her voice.

“What?” Hermione squeaked.

Luna took Ginny’s hand. “There are other prisoners.”

“You’re free?” Ginny asked. She’d expected something more dramatic- a flash of light, a sudden invigoration, or an obvious mental struggle.

“Yes. But there are others. I won’t leave anyone behind.” She said with determination.

“We wouldn’t dream of it.” Neville said. “Lets-”

Ding.

“Well, it seems that Riddle was onto something after all.” They heard Severus Snape’s distinctive drawl.

“No sign of a struggle, a clean hit.” Lily Snape said. “They knew what they were doing.”

“Luna, rescue the others.” Hermione whispered, before looking to Neville. “Let me lead.” He nodded.

Hermione walked down the hall stiffly. “Professors!” She called, stepping out into the sitting room.

“Hermione!” Lily gasped. “What happened? Why are you out of your cell?”

“A group of wizards tried to break me out.” Hermione explained, in a dull tone, as if the words were being forced from her. “I killed them… as ordered.”

Ginny peaked around the corner. Hermione was facing the two professors, along with half a dozen other wizards grouped behind them. She didn’t like how exposed Hermione’s position was, and she could tell that Ron didn’t either, he looked ready to jump in wand blazing at the slightest provocation.

“That’s… good.” Snape said finally. “Show me to them.” He walked past her. Once he stepped into the hallway, he’d be a sitting duck.

Lily, however, furrowed her brow. “I… never ordered you to do that.”

They were busted. The three of them leapt out of cover, hurling curses at the Snapes, while the other Order wizards launched a barrage of their own at Hermione. She took the spells very deliberately. Dark curses she dodged, but the rest she tried to intercept with her own body. Through her now torn robes, Ginny could see what was happening. The tattooed lines running along her body were lighting up, pulsing with each spell she tanked, the light pooling into the nodes which began to glimmer with stored magic. Then it was Hermione’s turn. With wild eyes, she lifted her arm up, and the pattern ran in reverse, light flowing from the nodes through the lines along her arm. Snape gurgled, lifting up into the air and twitching in pain. Hermione closed her fist, and he crumpled like a crushed soda can. Blood and gore sprayed out behind him, and what was left of his body slumped to the floor. Hermione collapsed herself, panting, tears streaking down her face.

Everyone in the room gaped at Hermione, who glared up at her professor. “I trusted you!” She screamed. “I admired you! You- you-” She lifted her arm up, presumably to do to Lily what she’d just done to her husband. However, instead she was slammed back into the wall. Lily didn’t have her wand; she hadn’t even moved. Ron and Ginny formed a protective wall in front of Hermione while she rose to her feet. “What… what was that?”

“Hermione. You may think that I’ve been cruel, but I haven’t done anything to either of you that I wouldn’t do to myself.” She vanished her robes and ripped open the buttons of her blouse. Her skin was marked, just as Hermione and Luna’s was. Runes like Luna’s, connected in an intricate network resembling Hermione’s. At that moment several runes were lit up, connected by illuminated tattooed lines. “Albus and Severus were pushing to send you into the field, but honestly.” She shrugged. “It wasn’t my priority. You were research.”

Ginny and Ron, both running out of patience, fired off spells at Lily. Another rune lit up on her stomach, and a faint shield appeared in the air. Ginny had tried for the strongest blasting curse she could muster, but it didn’t so much crash as ping against the shield. It glowed faintly in the air as it absorbed their spells. The rune brightened as well, the tattooed lines lighting up as magic flowed through it into the network.

“sh*t.” Ginny hissed. If anything, they’d just made her stronger. Ron echoed the sentiment with a ‘bugger’.

“Try to leave one of them alive for interrogation.” Lily told the wizards flanking her. “But don’t hold back.”

Chapter 25: Triumvirate

Chapter Text

Lily could tell that Septimius was following her, calling out ‘Lisa’ breathlessly, until his shouts were completely subsumed by panting. To an outside observer, it would have seemed that Lily was running blindly, but in reality she was trying to make a beeline to the seventh floor, where the Room of Requirement was. Unfortunately, on the first floor she was stopped by a group of adults. Rather, she nearly ran headlong into them.

“Ms. Rushman, what’s gotten into you?” Professor McGonagall asked. To her horror, the Professor was joined by none other than Albus Dumbledore, along with another wizard.

“Explosions… dungeons…” Septimius gasped.

Now, all eyes turned on them, and Lily found herself in an awful position. She couldn’t bring more fire down on her dad, but there was no way out of this situation. If she lied, she could easily be found out. No matter what she said, attention would be drawn down to the dungeons.

“I don’t know what’s happening!” She said quickly, injecting panic into her voice. “Professor Riddle told me to run. He said that the entire castle was in danger. He was fighting a wizard, but its all a blur. I’m sorry!”

“It seems that Gellert was right.” Dumbledore said. “The attack on Godric’s Hollow was a feint.”

“But for what purpose? We don’t have anything of value down there, do we?” The other wizard asked.

“Other than a quarter of our students, Mr. Shacklebolt?” Minerva asked.

Kingsley Shacklebolt went rigid. “Do you think they’re targeting the students? Should I post guards to the dorms?”

“See to it, Kingsley.” Dumbledore said. “I will-” At that moment, a hawk patronus materialized in front of Dumbledore. “We have intruders in the facility.” Lily Snape’s voice said. “I should have them in hand, but they’ve compromised our subjects.”

“It seems.” Dumbledore said heavily. “That we’re being stretched in all directions. Minerva, Kingsley, see to the safety of the students. I will assist Riddle. Gellert is securing Godric’s Hoallow, but I’ll direct him to help Lily when he is able.”

The wizards went their separate ways, while Professor McGonagall looked down at Lily and Septimius, not unkindly. “Where can I go, Professor?” Lily asked.

McGonagall frowned. “I would suggest another House’s dorms, but its possible that none of them are safe.” She mulled the problem over for a heavy moment. “For the time being, you two can take shelter in my office. As soon as the situation is in hand, you may return to your dorms.” Her words were meant to be reassuring but Lily could see the uncertainty in her, and the impatient briskness in her pace. If she hadn’t been trying to keep up appearances, she may well have been running as quickly as Lily had just been. The Professor was rattled. Good.

She led them to her office, and spent several minutes warding the door, and then the walls. She was more than rattled, she was terrified. Terrified for them. “There, you should be safe.” She said finally. “I will check on Gryffindor tower. Please stay here until I return.”

The two teens nodded dutifully. “Yes, professor.” Septimius said, even as McGonagall was turning on her heel. She shut the door behind her. Then, Lily heard a harsh gasp, and the soft thud of a body hitting the floor.

“Professor?” Septimius asked, fear in his voice. “Are-are you still there?” No response. “Professor?” He tried again, reaching for the door handle.

“Are you crazy!” Lily hissed- too late. Septimius opened the door, revealing McGonagall’s crumpled form on the floor.

“Oh Merlin.” Septimius moaned. He was clearly useless in a crisis. “Is she dead?” This poor sheltered boy. While Septimius panicked, Lily’s mind was whirling. What could have killed her so quickly, so soundlessly, so cleanly? She wished she knew more about magic, so she might know what she was be up against.

“Shut the door, get back!” She whisper-hissed. Septimius stumbled back, reaching for the door handle. Something glided into her field of view. She saw a flash of yellow, and the entire world seemed to curl around that color. She’d never seen anything so yellow as those eyes.

-----

“Why don’t you enlighten me?”

Harry allowed himself a brief moment of satisfaction. He hadn’t been sure it would have worked out this way. If his timing had been off, if Riddle hadn’t risen to his bait, he could be facing two of the most powerful wizards in the world right now.

Well, he still was facing two of the world’s most powerful wizards, but at least they’d be pre-occupied with each other. Harry had seen the two of them duel once before, when he had been fifteen. The two archmages had seemed so unattainable then, wielding magic like a paintbrush on canvas. He remembered some of that awe now, as Dumbledore unleashed his opening barrage. The blades streaked forward, cracking through the air with a noise not dissimilar to apparation. Several of the blades shot at Harry. He deflected most of them, but one had been deliberately aimed to miss him, and sliced clean through his wand. If Harry’d had a moment, he would have marveled at the precision that took, to individually control each blade to such a degree. He didn’t have a moment.

With a mental shrug, he tossed the splintered wand aside. Destroying his wand was a minor inconvenience, rather than a shattering handicap, but there was no reason to announce this to Dumbledore. Riddle had evaded the knives as well and responded with a barrage of killing curses. Dumbledore handled them as easily as Harry did, lifting up brick from the floor and launching the shrapnel back at Riddle. Unfortunately for Harry, he was roughly between the two wizards. He dove and rolled while placing a shield around his head. The rest of his body would be protected by his vibranium armor.

Dumbledore was blocking the way up, which meant there was only one way for him out of the dungeons, the same way he got in. He’d need to maneuver past the dueling wizards and back into Riddle’s office without drawing either one’s ire.

“How dare you keep it from me!” Dumbledore hissed. “How dare you keep them from me!” He lashed his wand, streaking lightning across the hall towards Riddle. However, the electricity didn’t dissipate, instead hanging in the air as a permanent obstacle.

“You’re so small minded, Albus.” Riddle rasped. “You don’t even know-”

“Perhaps not.” Dumbledore said, cold. “But when I’m through with you, I will.” The ropes of lightning constricted, lashing around Riddle’s invisible shield. The ropes tightened, and the shield constricted even as Riddle struggled against it, grunting with exertion.

Harry swallowed; he couldn’t let the duel end so quickly. With a quick wave of his hand, he transfigured the air between Riddle and Dumbledore into water. Harry saw the flash of electricity arcing across the room and lunged forward to the blasted opening in the wall to Riddle’s office. He’d made it two steps when the water froze over and ice sealed his path. A wall of ice shoved into his side, frozen daggers tearing through his robes and stabbing at his vibranium armor as he was shoved into the stone wall on his other side. Simultaneously, Dumbledore launched a hail of those icy daggers down the hall at Riddle.

Harry sensed the ice and could feel Dumbledore’s magic animating it. Better not to fight a battle of wills for control. Instead, he vanished the stone wall, tumbling into the far corner of Riddle’s office. Almost there…

The ice exploded as Riddle launched another series of killing curses, and Harry saw an opportunity. He enchanted the walls, floor, and ceiling around Dumbledore to repel objects. Riddle’s next hail of shrapnel ricocheted off the walls, reflecting back at Dumbledore. Dumbledore took a few moments to vanish the barrage, flashing an annoyed look at Harry. He felt a sudden, terrifying coldness in his hand, like his life force was being drained from it. He glanced at his hand; it was visibly withering. Withering curse. Instinctually, he marshalled the magic of the heart-shaped herb and used a surge of its potency to flush out the curse.

“Professor, what’s going on?” A small troop of schoolchildren, most likely first or second years, had ventured out from the Slytherin common room. It was apparent to Harry that they were under the imperious curse. How like Tom, to use schoolchildren as pawns. With a flick of his wand, Dumbledore sent the children flying back. Harry lunged for the door, while Tom darted into the office. They each regarded the other warily, both understanding the situation. Dumbledore was more powerful than either of them. The door to the Room of Requirement would be an escape, but only for one of them. Riddle reassembled the walls and door and summoned barricades. It was quite a passive move on his part. Why try to stall him? What was Riddle waiting for?

The door promptly vanished, and Dumbledore plunged in with a flurry of spells that sparked against Riddle’s shield. Simultaneously, the barricades transformed into a pride of lionesses. Two leapt at Harry, and he cut them down with a slashing spell. He took another step towards the door, and Riddle hissed in frustration. He was being pressed hard by Dumbledore, and yet he couldn’t let Harry escape.

The corpses of the lions rose up again, this time animated with darker magic- inferi. All six converged on Harry, who huffed out a breath and incinerated the creatures in an instant. Harry made another bid for escape and felt the floor beneath him lurch back, nearly sending him sprawling backwards. Instead, he tucked into a roll, letting his previous momentum carry him. That charm had come from Dumbledore, who no doubt also did not want this marauding wizard to escape. How fortunate for Harry that he was far more focused on Riddle to fully press the issue.

Riddle had tried to keep Dumbledore at bay by summoning obstacles and with liberal application of the killing curse, but the archmage was relentless. After the initial barrage of low-powered spells, Dumbledore had summoned a mass of silvery liquid. He controlled it with incredible precision, forming it into whatever shape he desired. When pressed by a killing curse, it formed a smooth, concave shield in front of him. The curse blasted the mass apart into a mist of tiny droplets that Dumbledore reformed with a flick of his wand. Shrapnel and projectiles lodged into the substance as if caught in molasses. Harry could see that this would be a highly effective weapon against Hela, and that was likely who Dumbledore had developed this spell for.

Dumbledore formed the metallic liquid into long tendrils that hemmed Riddle in. Along each tendril was a finely sharpened edge that cut through wood and stone like butter. A tendril glided towards Harry as he made his final escape, suddenly surging forward to snag his ankle. He pivoted, avoiding the snare. However, it snaked in front of the door, flattening into a panel that barred Harry’s path. Another tendril, which had been sharpened to a fine point, shot towards him, this time looking to gore him. Time slowed, quite literally, as Harry considered his options. He’d spent many long hours meditating, trying to access the infinity stone that was tied to him. After the Battle at Wakanda, it was clear that he needed to use its abilities to the fullest and not just hope it came in clutch when his life was on the line.

Fiendfyre would certainly destroy Dumbledore’s creation, but it’d also endanger innocent schoolchildren. The killing curse would delay it but couldn’t guarantee his escape. With his reaction time enhanced, Harry ducked the tendril as it speared through the empty air where his head had been. He slowed time further, observing the scene closely, noting how the liquid moved- so smoothly, except the moment Riddle detonated an explosion in the ceiling above Dumbledore. The archmage was forced to reinforce and repair the ceiling above him, buying Riddle more time, but Harry noted how the quicksilver vibrated along with the noise of the explosion. Time returned to its normal flow. Harry formed a sonic pulse in his palm, charging it until his hand felt numb from the latent vibrations. For good measure, he placed silencing charms around his ears, and he let loose. He heard nothing, but he could feel the vibrations rattle his bones. Riddle and Dumbledore both staggered, clutching their heads. The quicksilver dissipated into mist.

With both his opponents distracted, Harry made one final lunge and wrenched open the door. As he threw himself back into the Room of Requirement, he was relieved to see the door disappear behind him. His relief only lasted a moment. T’Chone had rushed to him, mouthing something Harry couldn’t hear. He canceled the silencing charms. “It’s Lily!” He cried, stricken. “I think she’s- she’s-”

There were two stiff bodies on the floor, and Harry was at Lily’s side in an instant. He pressed a hand to her neck, she felt cold… frozen. His breath caught, and suddenly he was twelve again and sitting beside Hermione’s bedside. He examined his daughter more closely, she had the blonde hair of her disguise still, but her eyes were green. Carefully, he pointed a finger and levitated the contacts out of her eyes, placing it on his fingertip. It was cracked. Those contacts were made of vibranium. Almost nothing would be able to crack them, short of a killing curse straight to the eyes. A Basilisk stare might be close enough. Riddle’s stalling tactics were making a lot more sense now.

“She’s not dead, T’Chone. She’s petrified.” T’Chone still looked near panic, and Harry tugged him into a hug. “Its alright, she’ll be fine.” He whispered to him. “What happened?”

“The Room gave me a door, and I went out to look, and they were just there. I thought they were- were…”

“Shhh.” He soothed, and he felt T’Chone sag against him. “Who’s the other boy?”

“That’s Septimius… Snape.”

“Oh.” Harry muttered. “Is he?”

“I think he’s petrified too.” Harry moved to Septimius, confirming it for himself. Perhaps he’d just seen its reflection, but the explanation seemed too convenient for him. Harry reached out with his magic, searching for anything on the boy that might explain his survival. He found something in the boy’s satchel. Harry summoned the object of interest. It was a potion that emanated vitality unlike anything Harry had felt before. It felt like the Heart Shaped Herb… but more.

He tipped the bottle first into Septimius’ mouth. He nearly jumped when the boy coughed. Assured of the potion’s safety, he went to Lily’s side and put the bottle to her lips. The change came over instantly, and Harry gathered her into his arms before she could get a word out.

“Basilisk!” Was the word, screamed loudly and directly into his ear.

“Well spotted.” Harry grinned.

“Wait!” Lily gasped. “Grindelwald’s going down to Neville, Ginny, and-”

Harry was on his feet, dashing to the door that Neville, Ron, and Ginny had taken not ten minutes before. Time had a way of bending in the midst of battle, a few short minutes stretching into an eternity. “You two, stay here. If I’m not back in fifteen minutes, get out!” He tapped his glasses, sending a quick message to the team that he was on his way.

He put the puzzle of the miraculous potion aside, content that, if nothing else, his two children were safe. It was time to save the rest of his family.

-----

“Reducto!” Neville snarled. The spell hit the flask he’d tossed into the air, the flask containing what was left of the corrosive potion Riddle had given him a lifetime ago. Lily held a hand in the air, and most of the debris bounced harmlessly off her shield, but a man on either side of her fell to the ground, groaning in agony as they began to smoke and sizzle. Hermione, Ginny, and Ron used the distraction to retreat back into the hallway, ducking curses as they ran.

“What’s the deal with those tattoos?” Ron asked.

“Oh, do you want to tell them, or shall I?” Lily rounded the corner and negligently caught Neville’s blasting curse with her hand. The tattoos running along her arm lit up from the absorbed magic. Ron and Ginny brought the ceiling down on her. She held up a hand to stabilize the collapsing structure, and they used the opportunity to retreat further.

“The others might be ambushing us.” Ron hissed.

Neville’s enchanted eye pivoted in its socket, and he nodded jerkily in confirmation. “Coming around the side, probably through the potions lab.”

"Let’s ambush the ambush, then.” Ginny said, ducking into the lab. “Nev, give her the nastiest sh*t you’ve got.”

Neville grimaced, he wasn’t exactly eager to dip into the unforgivables, but they might be just about the only thing that would work on her. “Crucio.” He hissed. Lily had collected the rubble and set it floating into orbit around her, it seemed trivially easy for her to intercept the curse with one of the floating bricks. “Avada Kedavra!” This time he aimed the spell at the floor in front of her, feeling a sense of triumph as she staggered back from the rain of shrapnel the spell created.

“I’m sorry, Neville. I’m pretty much out.” Hermione said quickly. “And Snape’s not about to charge me up with a spell.”

“Too right you are.” Lily snapped. “You should abandon this foolishness and surrender, Ms. Granger.”

“I’m not your student.” Hermione growled. “And I’d rather die!” In the potions lab, Ginny and Ron were throwing just about everything into the largest cauldron they could find. Mad, absolutely mad, they were. His enchanted eye caught something else from behind him, a stunning spell coming from a completely unexpected direction. He put a shield up to deflect it into Hermione. It hit her, and she shuddered. Hopefully that was a good thing.

Lily frowned, displeased that he’d caught onto her trick. She made a grabbing motion with her hand, and he felt a sudden pressure in his head. He clapped a hand to his enchanted eye, only barely in time to keep it from flying into her hand. Still, it left him vulnerable, and it seemed Hermione used up everything she’d gotten from that spell to shield him from the hail of shrapnel Lily brought down on him. Neville sent a killing curse back at her, Lily rolled beneath it, popping up right in front of Hermione, who was completely vulnerable and-

An explosion rocked the hall, sending all three of them toppling over. “You bloody idiots!” Neville shouted as he scrambled to his feet. “You better not be dead!”

“We’re alive!” Ginny cried. “Just… regretting some choices.” Neville hauled Hermione up and dragged them into the ruined potions lab. The charred bodies of the Order members were present, along with Ginny and Ron, huddled together behind a shield and an overturned desk in the far corner.

“Come on!” Neville shouted as they pelted into the opposite hall. He was caught between the desire to escape with what they had, and to draw Lily out so that Luna might escape unnoticed. His decision was made for them when a fist plowed through the stone wall, tattooed lines glowing along it.

“f*ck!” Ron cursed, moments before the entire wall exploded. A brick hit Ron’s head, knocking him out cold, while Ginny managed to dive out of the way. Neville and Hermione ran for the elevator room. Spellfire flashed briefly behind them as Lily took Ginny out, thankfully with a stunner. She was picking them off one by one, and there wasn’t a damn thing they could do about it. Analytically, he knew what needed to be done. They needed to cut their losses and leave. They didn’t know where Harry was, or even if he was alive, and this was maybe the only chance any of them would have to escape.

Yet… he couldn’t imagine abandoning them. If the choice was going down fighting side by side with his friends, or running like a coward, Neville would stand and fight every damn time.

Luna was in the elevator room with two unfamiliar women in tow, when he and Hermione came charging in. “I hope you have something that can stop her.” He said. Luna looked uncertain, but girded herself. When Lily followed them through the doorway, Luna lit her up with a gout of flame.

“I taught you those tricks, Luna.” Lily said, parting the fire with a glare. “You should know that they’d never work on me.

“Don’t you touch her!” One of Luna’s companions snarled, lunging at Lily. She jerked up in the air, where she wriggled helplessly.

“I’ll deal with you later, mutant.” Lily said dismissively. “This is personal.” The other prisoner, a dark-skinned woman, came at Lily wielding an iron bar that had been ripped from the prison cells. She joined the mutant up in the air.

Hermione retrieved a wand from one of the Order wizards’ corpses, making to hex Lily. But it was clear that she hadn’t had any practice with wand-work in the intervening years. Lily easily disarmed her and sent her flying back into the wall. She groaned weakly as she tried to rise back to her feet. Instinctively, Neville moved in front of her, shielding her with his own body.

Luna screamed in rage. “Don’t hurt her!” The runes on her hands lit up, triggering a concussive blast that ricocheted off Lily’s shield and sent Luna flying back.

Ding. Neville was the only one who paid note of the elevator. He glanced quickly at his pocket mirror, and Harry’s message in it. He felt bad for being so relieved. They needed the help but… he didn’t want Harry to see this.

“You’re predictable, you know that?” Lily mocked. “I’ve given you a limited set of runic abilities. Powerful, yes. But when you know them all, there’s no surprises left. Hermione is more flexible, of course, but she needs to be charged up. And look at me.” Neville did, while Luna’s runes seemed to all be specialized to a variety of purposes, Lily’s were all identical, strategically placed across her body to feed into the tattooed network of lines. Lily’s runes powered her abilities, but they didn’t determine them. “I have perfect wandless magic. This could save the wizarding world, you know that? It could save my son, it could have saved your friends, had they not betrayed their people.” She approached Luna, who tried to rise again to her feet. Lily backhanded her, sending her stumbling back to the ground, tears stinging her eyes. “This is pathetic. You would have been a hero if you’d accepted this as a sacrifice for your people. Instead-”

Lily would not get the chance to continue her rant. Harry Potter made his presence known, casting a beam of energy from his hand that lanced through the air. Even more than a meter away, Neville could feel its heat. It struck Lily’s shield and carved through it, the level of power directed on such a small area was too much for Lily to withstand, and her shield caved in. Lily dropped to her knees, letting the beam sear over her head while she panted for breath. Neville detected the smell of burnt hair.

“You.” Harry choked. The single word contained such a breadth of emotion- grief, betrayal, rage. The word itself seemed to charge the air, as Harry’s magic crackled around him. “You.”

Chapter 26: The Broken Altar

Chapter Text

Tom Riddle knew that, in a contest of pure magical skill, he was outmatched. Dumbledore had decades of experience over him, the elixir of life, and pure rage. But he’d prepared for this eventuality, and though he knew he was beaten, there was still a chance. He just needed to hold Dumbledore off for a few more moments, and the proper distraction.

Quicksilver encircled his wand hand, prying his wand from his grasp before he could get another spell off. Potter’s innovation, of using sonic pulses to disrupt the construct had been useful, but it had only delayed the inevitable. He was lifted into the air, the liquid metal wrapping around his wrists and ankles and cuffing around his throat. Dumbledore’s hold was not gentle, and Riddle was finding it hard to breathe.

“I would kill you, right here and now, traitor.” Dumbledore said, his eyes nearly glowing. “But I need information from you. I need to know why, for what purpose, and who you worked with.”

Riddle kept his face impassive. All was not lost, he had an ace up his sleeve- a secret weapon in the palm of his hand, and far more knowledge than he should. He knew Dumbledore’s weakness.

“Albus?” The voice of a young girl cried out. He had commanded those words from her, but by the raw emotion in them, he suspected that they were genuine. “What have you done?” Dumbledore went pale, his eyes wide with shock. Riddle knew that his better judgement would tell him to keep his focus on the enemy, but he also knew that when it came to Ariana Dumbledore, his better judgement could be overridden. He’d seen it in a previous world, where the old man had picked up a cursed ring for the chance of seeing her again.

Dumbledore turned, a pained look in his eyes and his sister’s name on his lips, and instantly toppled to the floor- the gaze of the Basilisk felling him. Riddle fell to the ground, scrambling to his feet and set to work. His position was beyond precarious. Killing Dumbledore was one thing, but he needed to pin the blame on Potter, or he’d have an equally dangerous and far more murderous foe on his hands.

“You can’t win, you know.” Ariana said. These words, spoken of her own accord, were said so matter-of-factly and they rattled him. “You can’t beat her.”

“I’m the only one who can beat her.” The girl favored him a skeptical look. “What would you know?” He snapped as he repaired walls and cleared rubble. He’d need to make the fight seem much more contained. Perhaps he’d say he’d been knocked out early… some might buy that, but he doubted Grindelwald would. No, he needed more drastic measures. His cover was likely blown, and he needed to make his move, soon.

“You know I can’t answer that question, even if you compel me.” The girl said. The urge to banish her then and there warred with the desire for more information.

“What can you say, then?”

“There are only two ways this ends. With Harry Potter repairing the timeline, or with Death taking control of the mortal plane.”

“Begone.” The specter vanished. Riddle shook his head, wishing he could dispel her words as easily as he had dispelled their speaker. It wasn’t as if he could trust her. He scoffed. She was dead, under Death’s thrall. Anyone he summoned may only be able to tell him what she wanted him to hear, and of course Death would wish him to give up.

He knew it had to be him. The memories he’d seen from Harry had been terrifying, yes, but they’d filled him with a terrible purpose. Only he could defeat Death, do what needed to be done. Dumbledore and Grindelwald had dug their own graves for decades. Harry Potter would seek out his friends, if only for the pleasure of dying with them. Only he had the vision to see what needed to be done, and the will to do it. There were some lines that Potter would never cross, things he could never bring himself to do.

He would be the flight of Death. Tom Riddle would become Voldemort again.

Riddle unclenched his hand. In his palm rested a pendent- goblin silver surrounding a luminescent yellow gem. He’d interrogated a fair few of the dead, including Herpo the Foul and Salazar Slytherin himself. They’d been less willing to share than he’d hoped, but he’d been able to compel some wisdom from them on the limits of magic and what might be possible. Still there were clearly some topics, particularly surrounding the Soul Stone, that they had not been allowed to speak on.

It was time to explore those topics, in detail. “Don’t worry, my sweet.” He stroked the Basilisk’s head. “I will need you again, soon.”

-----

“Who are you?” Lily asked.

What a question, Harry thought distantly, beneath the sea of emotions that wracked his mind. This woman was his mother. This was the woman who had saved his life, who’d died for him, who when he faced Death down in the astral realm, had come to save him. He’d been told she’d been smart, talented, brave, and loving. That entire edifice, that image of her as a perfect, flawless protector crumbled in an instant, leaving… what?

With a roar, he unleashed a shockwave, not so much a spell as pure force directed at the woman who, in another life, had been his mother. She raised a shield, but the spell clashed against it with such force that she went tumbling back.

“Why?” He asked. “Why would you do this?”

“Don’t moralize to me!” She snapped, rising to her feet. “I did what I needed to do. I don’t care if people don’t understand.” Each word she said was like another blow, another crack in his psyche.

“What you needed to do?” He demanded. “You needed to torture teenagers. You needed to lock my friends in a dungeon for years! You needed that.”

She sent a shower of low-powered spells at him. They sprung from her fingertips like water, and glanced off his own shield like raindrops. “It was for the greater good! For our people.”

“I didn’t realize I was talking to Albus Dumbledore.” Harry said sardonically.

She scoffed. “I don’t know you, but I can tell… you had it so easy. You were gifted with this kind of magic. I had to struggle and claw for it. I did the right thing, even though it was hard-”

“You know nothing about me!” He snarled, whipping a bolt of electricity at her. Lily intercepted it by forming a wall of loose stones and rubble between them. Harry unleashed a barrage of blasting curses at the barrier, forcing her out. “I was left alone, without a wand, no magic! I spent a decade learning how to do wandless magic. That was hard. This-” He gestured indistinctly around the room. “-was easy.”

She lunged, the tattoos running along her arms and legs lighting up as she kicked off the wall and streaked through the air towards him. She came down on him with her arms poised for a physical blow. Lily Snape may have been able to enhance her strength, but she hadn’t been trained in physical combat. He blocked her with his arms, and her eyes went wide with shock. She hadn’t been expecting him to match her strength, and she certainly wouldn’t see what was coming. He kicked her legs out from under her, and as she tried to regain her balance, he grappled her, twisting her body into a helpless position with a few efficient motions. She struggled, the glowing of her tattoos spreading as she strained against him. It was useless, Natasha had put him in this position in training, there was just no leverage to be had.

It was then that Harry realized he was crying, that he’d been crying this entire time. It hurt him, almost physically, to do this to her, to fight her, to hurt her. He hated this. Even after everything, she was still his mum, and he loved her, even if he hated her.

“Why?” He choked out. “Give me the real answer. Why?” It couldn’t just be a calculation, there had to be something more. Something that made her like this, something he could cling to so that he could tell himself his mum could never have turned out like this.

“Its my son!” She shouted. “He’s- he’s dying. And it’s my fault!” He heard the tortured grief in her voice, and knew she was telling the truth. “I need to save him.”

“You need the elixir.” He said, feeling a sense of dread wash over him. This was worse. In a moment of terrible clarity, he could see exactly how the woman who had died to save him might also be the woman who’d torture and kill to save her son. Lily noticed his distraction. Stunners materialized in the air, shooting towards him from multiple directions. He raised his hand to quickly bat them away with a shield. She used the opportunity to surge against his grip, pushing against the floor hard enough to leave cracks spiderwebbing out from her hands. She slipped free, limping to her feet.

He had missed his chance. He could have taken her out, even killed her while he’d had her pinned but he hadn’t… couldn’t. He hated her, yet he loved her. He couldn’t bring himself to kill her, but he couldn’t imagine himself forgiving her. It was a weakness, he thought with cold self-recrimination.

“You think I like being on Dumbledore’s chain?” She spat. “Why do you think I’ve modified myself? I’ve been trying to find a way out of this, to save him!” She turned her head to a woman Harry didn’t recognize. She’d been suspended in the air when Harry had arrived, but now she was on her knees, looking at them with shock. “That’s why I have her. She can drain magic from anything! If I could just refine her powers, I could- could-”

Harry overcharged a blasting curse, shattering her shield. Lily fell back, tumbling and rolling awkwardly as she hit the ground. He'd heard enough. There was nothing for him here, no solace or closure. He looked around at his friends, and he couldn’t bear the pity in their eyes. “Let’s go.” He said, his voice empty.

Ding.

“You had the situation well in hand, eh Lily?” Grindelwald said sarcastically, striding out of the elevator with confidence. “Perhaps I can be of assistance.” That was their only warning. Time slowed as the spells arced through the air, forming a formidable wall. At the leading edge of the tide were explosive spells, designed to clear the way for the next wave. The killing curses were next, two apiece targeted at every person in the room. The final wave was a grab bag of dark curses- blood boiling curses, cruciatus curses, and a half-dozen spells Harry couldn’t identify, which would pick off anyone who’d managed to survive the first two waves. The avalanche of spells cast the room in a terrible glow, the orange of the explosive curses, the sickly green of Avada Kedavra, the muted reds, blacks and purples of the final wave. It was an attack that was simultaneously overwhelming and perfectly orchestrated. This was the power of the Elder Wand, Harry knew. He’d wielded it once, and it had felt like being ascended. Now he was seeing it in the hands of someone with far more experience and brutality.

He let time go, and Harry’s robes shredded as the pieces of his vibranium armor- including the shattered remains of his chest plate- ripped through, intercepting the explosive and killing curses in mid-air. The resulting explosion filled the air between him and Grindelwald, and Harry pushed the inferno back. He knew that wouldn’t be enough to kill him, and just as the flames parted, Harry froze time again. He needed to act carefully. He could only spend so long in this state before it became too painful to hold, and he was wary of what overusing the Time Stone would do to him. He’d used the ability sparingly in the battle with Riddle and Dumbledore for this very reason, but he no longer had that luxury.

There were limits to what he could do. He could move, but not affect the outside world while he had time frozen like this, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t take advantage of this freedom of movement. To those on the outside it would appear like teleportation, a massive advantage when any form of true teleportation was impossible. Harry rushed forward to point blank range, and time resumed. “Avada-”

He was engulfed in fire. If it weren’t for the herb, he’d be dead. Instead, he stumbled back. He clenched his teeth, fighting the pain while he channeled his magic and the herb to heal himself. Grindelwald must have used some variation of the proximity alarm, that instead of alerting the caster when someone got close, tried to incinerate the offender. It was clever, and would have been quite useful against Hela, even if he wasn’t in the mindset to appreciate it at the moment.

Harry was given no breathing space as a barrage of spells pelted him, and he was forced to stop time again to escape the counterattack. He noticed that the mutant woman had taken advantage of Lily's prone position, the two of the grappling on the floor for control. Harry had to continue playing defense as Grindelwald launched killing curses at the others in the room. Desperately, Harry sent rubble to intercept the spells, and pushed Lily and the mutant woman back with a banishing spell. The two women rolled apart. The others, at least, had the good sense to retreat to the back halls, but not her. She lunged for Lily again, and would have died for it, had Harry not paused time again with a luminescent black curse frozen a mere foot from her chest.

He could feel the strain now, of repeatedly using this ability. The Time Stone had been shattered and absorbed into him. He could feel it, embedded in him like broken shards of glass. The more he used it, the more those shards dug into his being, and he didn’t want to think about what damage they might be doing. He pushed through the pain, and with a burst of focus, grabbed the woman’s hand.

In order to pull her to safety, he’d also had to bring her into the time bubble with him. He instantly felt the pull of her powers, not just at his magic, but at his very life force. Shocked at the strength and speed of the drain, he used his instinctual sense of magic to again tap into the heart-shaped herb, stoppering the flow to a trickle. She was looking around them in confusion at the frozen scene around them. Then she looked down at their conjoined hands, lips parted with awe. “Who are you? How did you do that?” She asked in a distinctive southern drawl.

“Doesn’t matter.” He said, wincing at a sudden pain in his chest where a glowing green crack had formed. He couldn’t keep doing this. “We don’t have time.” An ironic thing to say while frozen within a moment.

“Can you get me close to her? I can finish her.”

“Finish her?” Harry said uneasily, his stomach turning at the implications of her words.

“You have a soft spot for her.” She said, and there was a hint of accusation in her voice. He supposed it was obvious, by their confrontation, that he was emotionally compromised. What could he say, other than the truth?

“She’s my mother.”

There was pity in her eyes, which was almost worse than accusation. “sh*t.”

Harry barked out a bitter half laugh. “Yeah, that’s a good way of describing it. I know I can’t ask anything of you. But-” His eyes stung. “Even though she’s a terrible person, and hurt so many people, I can’t just turn those feelings off.”

“Well sh*t. Do… you want me to try to capture her instead?” He was surprised she was even offering, after everything she’d gone through. Despite her powers, she was a kind soul. What a curse they must be.

“I trust your judgement.” On this, he trusted this stranger’s judgment far better than his own. “If it comes down to it, do what I can’t.” He looked at Grindelwald. “But I’m not sure it’ll matter.” The archmage had surrounded himself with curtains of flowing quicksilver, making him nearly untouchable. He could momentarily disperse them with a sonic shock, but then what? He couldn’t get close to him, and now Grindelwald was expecting his little trick. What could he do?

Another crack appeared on his chest.

“But… you can beat him, right?” She said, an almost naïve hope in her voice. He hated that he might fail that hope. If only he had more control of the Time Stone, if only he could hold this moment for longer, he might be able to slip all of them out. But he hadn’t, and he couldn’t. There was a good chance that all of his moral handwringing would be moot, that he’d fail them all.

“You wiped the floor with her.” She said. “And you can do this.” She held up their still joined hands. She said that with such awe, and he wondered if she’d ever encountered anyone she could touch. “You can beat him? Right?”

Harry sucked in a deep breath. Screw it. It was time to go all in. He comforted himself with the knowledge that Lily and T’Chone were alive. “Let’s find out.”

-----

Rogue grabbed Lily again before she could rise. She felt her powers engage, sucking, taking unendingly. She met resistance from Lily as her tattoos powered up to fight her pull, their magic absorbing abilities pitted against hers. She didn’t quite understand how the tattoos worked, or why her life force was so damn persistent. Still, she could tell that she was winning, that Lily was fading. Her thrashing was much weaker now. “Get off me!” She barked, as she struggled in futility against Rogue’s grip.

“I hate you.” Rogue whispered. She’d killed her friends, taken her from her family, locked her in this prison. She deserved to die. Rogue had hoped that this moment would feel cathartic, or vindicating. It didn’t. There was nothing for her in this pit, even if she drained this woman to death, there wouldn’t be closure.

She thought about their mysterious savior. The first person she’d touched safely in years. The man who had trusted her, a stranger, to decide his mother’s fate. If she could, she’d spare Lily. If only for his sake. She figured she owed him that much. They could hold her prisoner, if they got out of this somehow, interrogate her for information about the Order.

She glanced at the wizard who had saved them, and her heart dropped- he had collapsed to the floor. The glowing green cracks had spread across his body and had jumped into the air. Like cracks in a pane of glass, they spread quickly, forming a barrier between them and Grindelwald. Whatever his last gambit had been, she wasn’t sure it had gone according to plan. They were safe for the moment, sure, but only until Grindelwald found a way around. And they were trapped. All their enemies would have to do is wait and let them waste away in a prison of their own making. “I can save you. It’s your only hope.” Lily bargained. “I need you to save my son. I’ll let you go after this, I promise. But you need to-”

“Shut up!” Rogue slapped her. She knew better than to trust any of this woman’s ‘promises’. “You think I’m giving up? You took me from my friends, you think I’d just roll over for you?” That, more than anything else, had been keeping her going all this time. Her friends, more like family, and that faint hope of seeing them again. “I’ll never give up on them. And I know that they’ll never give up on me.” She thought of her friends, of Bobby and Logan, of Jean and the Professor. She hoped they were okay, wherever they were.

Then she heard it- phoenix song.

-----

All Harry knew was pain, pain and the distant knowledge that he’d failed. He’d pushed himself to the limit and beyond, and it hadn’t been enough. If it all hadn’t hurt so much, the guilt would have been overpowering.

Then, piercing through his bubble of despair, Harry heard the phoenix’s song. The melody gave him peace, it told him that his friends were safe, it told him to let go. He did. Harry fell limply onto the floor, feeling an ache in his soul where the shards of the Time Stone resided. Then his vision was engulfed by fire, and he was somewhere else. His vision swam, and he tried to focus. His friends were there, safe. But what about Lily, T’Chone? No, they’d been in the Room of Requirement. They were safe too, even if they weren’t here.

“Oh my god.” A wonderfully familiar voice said. “It’s him. It’s him.” Harry blinked up at Wanda Maximoff, who was looking at him with something akin to awe. Fawkes gave a trill, lifting up from Harry’s body and alighting on a redheaded woman’s shoulder- Jean, his brain provided. She’d once rescued Ron and Neville… and Wanda.

Something fluttered to the floor in front of him, resting there was a lone phoenix feather.

-----

“Not… dead?” Riddle said. It took every bit of willpower to keep his voice level. How? How? How had Dumbledore survived the Basilisk’s gaze? How had he failed so spectacularly?

Grindelwald leveled him with a cold stare. “No, merely petrified.” As soon as Grindelwald revived Dumbledore with the Elixir of Life, he would know, and there was nothing Riddle could do about it.

Riddle bowed his head. “That is good to hear. I was beginning to think today was a complete disaster.”

“I will bring him to Nurmengard. There, we will regroup and plan for this threat.” Grindelwald said. “That Harry Potter was powerful. I can see how he bested you, though I do not think he could kill Dumbledore on his own.”

“I will watch over Hogwarts until our Headmaster returns.” Riddle said. He braced himself for Grindelwald's reaction. He could only hope that he didn’t already suspect him.

“See that you do.” With a swish of his cloak, he was off. Riddle let himself relax a fraction. In his zeal to revive his partner, Grindelwald had not done his due diligence. It gave him some time, a few hours, at the very most, before the full power and fury of two Archmages came down upon him. It was a battle he couldn’t hope to win.

Not without… drastic measures.

Chapter 27: The Scarlet Witch

Chapter Text

“Lisa, what’s going on, who was that man?” Septimius asked, his voice edging into panic. “Why is everything going crazy?” Lily was a little miffed. She’d been enjoying the tight hug that T’Chone had wrapped her in. He’d been scared for her, and the knowledge that he cared so much warmed her. It was really nice, to be able to hold someone close, to know that you mattered, really mattered, to them.

“I don’t know.” She lied. “I’m just as confused as you are.” Poor Septimius. Lily thought. He really wasn’t prepared for any of this, maybe they could spare him that madness.

T’Chone grabbed her arm, then, and hissed in her ear. “I think we should just tell him the truth.”

“I heard that.” Septimius grumbled, and T’Chone shrugged, chagrined.

Lily sighed. She was all for telling the truth in principle, but if they told Septimius the truth now, he was liable to think they were complete loons. Still, there was nothing for it. For better or worse, their part in the mission was done.

“Alright, strap in.” Lily grinned. “Basically, that man is Harry Potter, our dad. He’s from another timeline, universe… whatever, where things weren’t nearly so horrible as they are here. His universe got destroyed and turned into this one. We’re trying to set things right. Oh, he’s also your half-brother, which makes me your niece. Hi!” She held out a hand with a smile that she hoped wasn’t manic. “My real name’s Lily, and this is my brother T’Chone.”

He looked like he was about to faint. Poor, poor Septimius. All he could think to say was. “But… you don’t look like siblings.”

“We’re half siblings.” T’Chone said. “And that’s a whole other story.” Lily nodded emphatically to that.

“You’re serious?” Septimius asked. “You aren’t pulling my leg?”

“I don’t think now is the time for jokes.” T’Chone said.

“Excuse me.” Septimius said. “I think I need a-” A chair appeared for him. He sat in it, but looked at them questioningly. “Did either of you…?”

“Oh, that’s just the Room of Requirement. It gives you whatever you want.” Lily said. “We’re not secret wandless prodigies like my dad is.”

“Cool.” He jerked his head in a nod. “Cool, cool, cool. Is there- hold on!” He sputtered. “What are you doing lying about everything? If you’re trying to fix things, why not just talk to the Professors about it? They could help!”

“Hehe.” Lily scratched the back of her head. “That sounds great in principle, if half the staff weren’t…” She searched for the term.

“Psychopaths?” T’Chone offered. “Evil? Murderous? Complicit in genocide?” Quite a bit blunter than how she’d put it, but that was T’Chone for you.

“They’re not that bad.” Septimius argued. “It’s a war, everyone has to get their hands a little dirty, that doesn’t mean they’re evil.”

“It’s a bit… more than that.” Lily said carefully. Neville, Ron, and Ginny had an entire routine choreographed, where they detailed all the Orders’ sins. But she’d seen more than a few tales of the Order’s brutality while on the run, and perhaps a more personal tale would get through to him. “When I was on the run, with my mother, we went through Bulgaria. There used to be a Veela enclave there, before the war. They’d long been scattered, but they still lived with the local population.”

Septimius paled, seeing where this was going.

“There’d been a disturbance, in a town that we’d stopped over in for the night. Turns out a group of wizards had gone… hunting. My mom didn’t let me see the results, but I knew. They hadn’t just killed the Veela, they… played.” She bowed her head, and T’Chone put a hand on her shoulder, his eyes glistening. He’d been spared the worst of the war, and she didn’t want to lay that burden on him. She didn’t want the things that haunted her nightmares to become his.

Still, Septimius, blindly, persisted. “That’s… awful, but those were just bad apples, right? Surely-”

“Wake up!” T’Chone stomped his foot, his protective instincts riled. “Why do you think everyone hates you guys? Don’t tell me you actually buy the crap their feeding you. No ones f*cking jealous of your ‘superiority’.” The dryness in his voice was biting, as he air-quoted aggressively. “You think the Wakandans, Sorcerers, Mutants, or Goblins are fans of Hydra? They hate the Order’s guts because they’ve been killing, pillaging, and raping all across the world. Maybe if you lot hadn’t been such massive pricks, we all could have banded together to hand Hela her ass!”

“T’Chone-” Lily tried to calm him, seeing the horror in Septimius’ eyes. “I think you made your point.” T’Chone let out a breath, the tension unwinding from his body.

“So… what are you trying to do? Destroy the Order?” Septimius asked in horror. “Leave all the students to be killed by Hela because of things that others did?”

“No.” T’Chone said definitely. “There’s a better way. We’re building movement where everyone is welcome. You could come with us. You’d be welcome. You’re family.”

Septimius wavered. “I can’t just abandon my mum. She’s all I have.”

“You could have us.” Lily said.

“Well… I’m all she has.” Septimius bowed his head. “She’ll be so scared for me if I leave during a night like this. I can’t. I can’t.”

Lily and T’Chone glanced at each other. She’d expected this response, but it still disappointed her. It didn’t sit right with her. Just… leaving him. If only there was a way they could keep in touch… with a clink, a pair of mirrors appeared between them.

“Huh?” She hummed, picking them up.

“Oh.” T’Chone said. “Dad told us a story about these, remember? The one about his Godfather?” They’d both eaten up their dad’s stories, hanging onto every word. She remembered.

“Well, we can’t change your mind.” Lily said, handing Septimius one of the mirrors. “But if you ever need us, all you need to do is call.”

-----

Wanda watched the scene with curiosity. She’d seen this before, in her dreams. The details of those dreams tended to slip away from her, but the man hadn’t and neither had the feelings he evoked. For this scene, those emotions were guilt and contrition. Harry was there, as he usually was in her dreams. He was in battle with three other women. Skye and Natasha were under the thrall of the third, who wielded a scepter that held a blue gem. Wanda was there as well, of course. With a twist of her magic, she released Skye and Nat. The third woman scowled.

“You’re being ridiculous.” She spat. “You’re part of Hydra now, Wanda. Do you think you can just… walk away? You can’t. You’re ours, and now the Avengers know it. They’ll never truly accept you after what you’ve done.”

Wanda winced at the woman’s words. She knew well that there was a very good reason for the guilt she felt from this memory. Over time, with the help of a dream journal she’d begun to piece together events, people, and places. She knew that in this other life, she’d once worked for Hydra. She knew that Harry had given her a second chance, that he’d saved her soul. All that effort hadn’t helped her answer the big questions, however. Where did these dreams come from? Why did she have these dreams, that almost felt like memories? Where was Harry Potter now?

Harry- she’d actually met him, in real life, she remembered suddenly. Seeing him in the flesh had felt like a revelation, her whole body had felt charged. After all, he was the man- quite literally- of her dreams. She hadn’t been able to resist reaching out for him, but when she touched him, a green energy had arced from his body, and now she was here.

“I remember this.” A voice said, her voice. “This is when I met Harry.” Wanda whipped around, and saw herself.

Well, not quite. This woman looked a little older, but something about her seemed… at peace. “Are you…?” She let the question hang.

“I’m her.” Her doppelganger nodded to the Wanda in the memory. “Or rather, who she’d become.”

“How is this happening?” Wanda asked. “Do you know why I’m dreaming of your life?”

“I’m not quite sure.” Her double shrugged. “Though I’d bet that Harry knows.” The scene around them shifted to something much more mundane. It was a dinner, people eating and laughing- Wanda, Harry, her brother, others she’d never met- but she could feel the happiness and affection of this memory. Wanda knew these feelings of camaraderie, in her own life. She had her father, her brother, and the mutants. It was odd, feeling that same sense of fellowship with people she didn’t know.

“So what, we wait for him to come give us answers?” Wanda scoffed.

“Hardly.” Her double said, twisting her hand. “We can bring him to us.” With a grunt, Harry tumbled into existence. He hadn’t even picked himself up when Wanda’s double was on him. “Harry!”

“Wanda?” Harry gasped as she embraced him, and Wanda felt her heart twang at the tenderness of the moment, and sense of loss. She’d long since learned to love Harry. These dreams had become well worn, and those feelings familiar. But Harry’s love wasn’t for her, it was for her.

“Its me. Its me.” Wanda’s double repeated. “I don’t know how but-”

“Its okay.” Harry said. “I can explain.” Then she kissed him. It wasn’t a chaste kiss, either. They kissed like they were dying of thirst, and they wanted to drown in each other. Wanda couldn’t look away. She’d seen plenty of this in her dreams, and knew it normally ended with both of them naked and in the throes of passion, often along with other women. There’d been a time, around when she was fifteen, when she had this sort of dream every night. Far more times than she could count, she’d woken up hot and wanting. She knew what it was like, to miss the solidity of a body she’d never known, to feel a keen emptiness in her core that had never been sated, to yearn for a love and trust which she’d never been granted. It was something that fingers and toys could never satiate, nothing could, except Harry himself. Just as she’d learned to love this man she’d never met; she’d learned to want him too.

She’d gone to Professor Xavier, eventually. It had been embarrassing, but it had become clear to her that more than just hormones were at work, especially once that first crash of sex dreams had subsided, and she’d begun to see other things as well. He had been some help, advising her to write a dream journal and meditate, but he hadn’t been able to answer the big questions.

Wanda’s double moaned, and the kiss deepened. How good it must feel, Wanda wondered. If only she could be in her place. She tore at his shirt, letting it fall to the floor. Wanda squeaked at the sudden reveal of skin, and the noise was enough to bring them back. “Oh.” Wanda’s double panted. “Sorry, I went overboard.”

“No problem.” Harry breathed, dazed. “Go overboard whenever you like.”

Wanda’s double chuckled. “Actually, I was talking to mini-me.” Harry turned to her with a raised eyebrow.

“Hey, I’m nineteen!” She protested. Perhaps that would have been more convincing if her face weren’t beet red and she could hardly look at Harry’s chest.

Her twin nodded indulgently. “Sorry, you’re very grown up.”

“Hey.” Harry said, approaching her carefully. “Sorry about that, I know this all must be confusing.”

“You have no idea!” She snapped, Harry following along apologetically. “All these dreams, I can hardly make sense of them!” Harry blinked in shock.

“Dreams?”

“Every night!” Wanda said. “A battle, or a get together, or-” She stopped herself, but as if her words had prompted it, their surroundings changed. She and Harry were in bed, Harry was on top of her, teasing her entrance with his- she turned away, trying to fight the desire unfurling within her, only to be faced with a shirtless Harry, looking at her in concern. She looked at the floor, willing the vision to disappear. Eventually it did, replaced by a bedroom. Great.

“I’m sorry.” He said, and why did he have to sound so sweet and concerned? “I’ve been there- visions you can’t control. That must be hard.”

“The hardest thing about them was that you weren’t there when she woke up.” The other Wanda said. She didn’t deny it.

Harry, somehow, softened further and she felt compelled to look back at him- big mistake. “I’m here now. I’m sorry I took so long.” She melted at the warmth in his eyes, those beautiful green eyes that had called to her from her dreams for so long.

“Harry.” She swooned. She’d loved him for so long, so impotently, and she couldn’t bring herself to fight it anymore. “I love you.”

Harry blinked at her in shock. “But… you don’t even know me.”

She smiled. “I know you.” At first, she hadn’t understood why she loved him. But after piecing her other life together, she’d begun to understand him- she saw his bravery, his forgiving nature, his selflessness, and the way he made everyone around him better. “I know that I was your enemy, and you gave me a second chance when no one else would. I know that you’re far more reckless with your life than I’d like. I know that you lost so much, but you kept on going. I know that… you’re a really good kisser.”

Her double grinned. “Oh, he is. Why don’t you show her?” Wanda squeaked again.

“Did you just call me here for a threesome?” Harry arched an eyebrow. “Not that I’m complaining mind you. Your dad was ready to skewer me when you called.”

“Well, I figured you knew how we got here, and you do.” Her double said. “Do you know how to resolve… this?”

“Not… exactly.” Harry admitted. “It seems I can instantly reawaken the memories of anyone I’ve had sex with. But with the others it just happened when I touched them. For anyone else, it takes longer. The split personality thing is… new.”

“Well, none of your other lovers are a powerful telepath.” The other Wanda pointed out. “It would not be so simple to alter my mind without my consent.”

“True.”

“But that does suggest a solution.” She continued. “Obviously, you need to have sex with her.”

“Obviously?” Harry said in amusem*nt, while Wanda choked on air.

“Think about it.” She said. “Sex is a condition for recovering memories. You need my ‘consent’ to alter my mind. What better consent is there, than sexual consent?”

“Your logic is impeccable as always.” Harry deadpanned.

“So.” She turned back to Wanda. “What do you say?”

Wanda felt herself flush all over, and Harry looked sympathetic. “Its okay, if you’re not ready, we can probably find another-”

“No!” She burst out.

“No?”

“I mean, we can do it, have sex I mean.” She said, feeling like she was about to melt into a puddle. “If you want, that is.”

Harry sighed. “I would, absolutely. But it’s been a very long day. I don’t know how well I’d be able to perform.”

Wanda’s doubled frowned. “Then let us take care of you, Harry.”

“I… oh.” Harry breathed, sitting on the edge of the bed. “Okay.”

“What happened?” Wanda asked.

He was silent for a long moment. “My mother is evil.” Harry said, a bitterness in his voice. “I’m not sure if she’s even alive or if we killed her.” Grief joined the bitterness.

Wanda’s double stroked Harry’s hair, pressing a kiss to his temple. “I’m sorry.”

“I was weak.” He continued. “I couldn’t kill her, even though she’s tortured my friends, killed people.”

“That doesn’t make you weak, Harry. That makes you human.” The other Wanda said. Wanda couldn’t imagine what she’d do if her father turned evil, and this was Harry. “You love people so much, that’s one of the things we adore about you.”

“We?”

“Well, Me and me.” Wanda chuckled. “Isn’t that right, mini-me?” Wanda pouted at the nickname, but she nodded.

“Come here.” Her double said, with a ‘come-hither’ motion. Wanda obeyed, unable to look away. She was captivated by his eyes that peered up at her with such vulnerability. “She’s been dreaming of this for years.” Her double continued to rat her out. “Did you know she dreamed about us having sex nearly every night for over a year? She always got herself off afterwards.”

“Why do you have to say all of that?” Wanda cringed.

“Are you saying I’m wrong?”

“No, but- but-” Wanda stuttered, unable to muster a defense.

“Come sit down.” Her double said, taking her own seat beside Harry. Wanda claimed the other side, tentatively resting and arm on his bicep. She savored how the muscles moved as he lifted his arm up to cup her cheek. Even that simple touch felt good, felt right. He leaned in, and she leaned in with him, parting her lips as they met his, and oh…

She’d barely kissed anyone, outside a few fumbling encounters that she hadn’t cared to repeat. They hadn’t felt anything like her dreams. This was exactly like her dreams, except in her dreams she’d felt far more confident, she’d known exactly what do to. Harry sensed her hesitation and pulled back. She tried to follow his lips, and he chuckled. “Its okay, Wanda.” He said. “Just follow my lead.” He kissed her again, and she let herself get swept away in the warmth and softness of his mouth. She clung to him, one hand remaining on his bicep while the other went to touch his chest. She whined when they parted next, resting her head against his chest. He was the most intoxicating thing she’d ever had, and she wanted more.

“You should feel how he feels now.” Her counterpart said, her voice deepening. “How much he wants to make you whimper, moan, and scream. How he wants to be inside you, and make you cum on his co*ck.” She couldn’t resist the temptation and reached out with her telepathy. She slipped into his mind so easily, he was completely open to her, and she felt him. She could feel his strength, the enhanced muscles that lay beneath her fingers and the buzzing power of his magic. She could feel his affection and desire, all directed at her, and she wanted to drown in it.

But alongside all that, she could feel Harry’s co*ck, and it made her knees go weak. He did want to be inside her, with a desire that felt like the masculine counterpart to her own. His arousal, however, was closer to smoldering embers than a raging inferno. She wanted to stoke him, see exactly how hot he could burn. She was starting to understand the other Wanda’s fixation with him having sex with other women.

“She’s a virgin, you know.” Her counterpart said into Harry’s ear, and she felt his arousal pulse at her words. “Just like I was. You’ve already gone further than anyone else has.”

“Nothing compared to my dreams.” Wanda whined. “To you.”

“God, Wanda.” Harry growled. “I know what you’re doing.”

“Its working, though.” She said cheekily, her hand sliding down to his crotch- she was far bolder than Wanda had dared be. “Mini-me.” She called. “Be a good girl and strip for him. Put on a show.”

She stepped back and went to strip, one piece of clothing at a time. “Look at her. Isn’t she beautiful?” Her double cooed. Wanda could feel Harry’s agreement, could feel how irresistible he found her, how tempting. She felt so shameless as she puffed out her chest for Harry’s seeking eyes. His desire captivated her, dispelling any sense of modesty or shame.

“Someone’s got an ego.” Harry said, despite himself. The older Wanda undid his pants in retribution, grabbing hold of his co*ck and freeing it from the fabric. Wanda moaned. It felt so good to have his co*ck freed, to feel his masculinity project outwards without restriction as it engorged to fullness. Those slender fingers felt so good around him, too, stroking expertly, but she knew that he could feel so much better. She could sense in his mind the desire to penetrate, to pin her down and plunge his raging shaft into her slick warmth. Her knees wobbled. God, she wanted that too.

She bent over, pulling her panties down. She knew he could see how wet she was, how much she wanted him. “But its true.” Older Wanda insisted. “You can’t wait to sink yourself into her slick, teen puss*.”

“You make me sound like some sort of pervert.” Harry mumbled.

“Baby, how many women do you have relationships with?”

“Point taken.” Harry sounded amusingly chastised, and Wanda couldn’t help but look over her shoulder at the bantering couple. “But you’re half the reason that number is so high.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I love it.” Wanda assured him, her voice still teasing. “You love so much, and so freely, and the same goes for lust.”

“Now you’re making it sound all-” Harry cut his words off as Wanda dipped down to her knees, staring up at him with wide eyes. He looked so impressive from this angle. His co*ck was calling out to her, it looked so thick and flushed, and it twitched like something alive, like it was begging for her mouth. But at the precipice, she hesitated. She knew that he’d gotten blowj*bs from women far more skilled than her- from a trained assassin-slash-seductress, from a more experienced version of herself, and from a woman who could literally make her mouth vibrate. How could she possibly compare?

“I know I probably won’t be any good.” She blurted. “But-” Whatever else she would have said was silenced when her counterpart angled his shaft downwards, pressing the head to her mouth. Her lips tingled where his flesh made contact, but that paled to the electric current that raced along his shaft in anticipation.

“You’re going to do great.” Her older self assured her. “Harry’s a simple creature. If you’re sucking his co*ck, he’ll love it.” Encouraged by her words, and by Harry’s rapt gaze, Wanda wrapped a hand around his shaft. Her fingers interlaced with her counterparts’, and she felt him throb under their combined touch. His co*ckhead flared, somehow flushing deeper as if trying to entice her. Consider her enticed. She pressed her lips to his glans again, this time deliberately. Instantly she was met by a surge of desire from Harry. He restrained the rabid urge to thrust upwards into the warmth of her mouth.

Wanda, however, didn’t even try to restrain the urge. All sense of hesitation and exploration forgotten, she took him as far as she could go, gagging herself in the process. Instead of overwhelming him in pleasure, his enjoyment was tempered- perhaps even ruined- by concern for her. “Slowly.” Her counterpart chastised, using a hand to guide her back up his shaft. “You don’t need to deepthroat him, just bob and suck.” She gently pushed her down, and Wanda followed her instructions. This time, Harry lost himself in the pleasure, moaning low and deep.

It felt so good, so so good. She’d suck his co*ck every day, whenever he asked, if this was how it felt. Or maybe she’d have Skye do it for her while she laid back and enjoyed it. That was what alternate Wanda had done many a time. It took all her focus to follow those instructions- bob and suck. Ironically, she needed to tamp down on her connection to him in order to properly pleasure him- another mark in favor of involving other women. All she wanted to do was sink into what Harry was feeling, as she could tell her alternate self was, but she couldn’t because if she did, she’d completely lose the plot. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that this other version of her was a genius.

“I’m close.” Harry moaned unnecessarily. She’d already increased the speed of her bobbing. She wanted him to cum so badly, she could beg for it. Thankfully, she and her other self were on the same page.

“Cum in her sweet mouth.” She crooned. “She wants it so bad. Give it to her.” He came, and Wanda came with him. She tried to keep him in her mouth, but when his cum shot to the back of her throat, she couldn’t help but cough, letting the next few pulses line her face. Finally, as his org*sm wound down, she found the wherewithal to return his co*ck to its proper place in her mouth, suckling the last few dribbles from him.

“That was incredible.” Harry breathed.

“No, that was terrible.” Wanda muttered, feeling disappointed in her performance. “I’ll do much better next time.”

“Well-” Harry blinked, realizing that there was now only one ‘Wanda’ in the room. “Wait.”

Wanda quickly scoured her memories. “Oh. Its me.” She had two complete sets of memories now. She was… both. She beamed. “It’s me.” Harry tugged her up and kissed her despite the mess her face was. She giggled, clearing the mess with her telekinesis. “I can give you much better right now.”

Harry smiled apologetically. “As lovely as that sounds, we should get back first. I wasn’t exaggerating about your father. We’ve done what we needed to do here.”

“Not quite.”

-----

Harry turned to the new- or not quite new- voice. There she was, Wanda again, but she looked… different. “Wanda.” He said.

She shook her head. “It would be easier if you call me the Scarlet Witch.”

He appraised her. There was something off about this woman, grief hung around her like a cloud, but there was more, something… darker. He summoned clothes for him and his Wanda, suspecting that this encounter would be quite different from the previous one. “I think I prefer Wanda, thanks.”

“Who are you?” His Wanda asked.

“I’m you.” She answered. “In a world without Harry Potter.”

“Oh.” Wanda breathed, her eyes scanning again. “What happened?”

“A lot of things. I lost my brother. I lost the man I loved. I lost my sons.”

“You’re the one I saw; in that vision the Mind Stone showed me. You-”

“I killed the man I love, and it meant nothing.” Wanda’s voice, enraged and grief stricken, cut through the room.

“I’d apologize, that my mistakes led you to make your own.” The Scarlet Witch said. “But I’m afraid I have much more to atone for.”

“Wanda.” Harry breathed, moving to reach for her, before remembering himself. This was a woman who truly didn’t know him, he was a stranger to her. There was no reason she’d find comfort in him. “What did you do?”

“I wanted my family back.” She said. “I killed people, innocent people. Tried to kill my friends, hunted an innocent girl across the multiverse. And in the end, I killed myself.” Harry swallowed, speechless. “How does it feel, to know that someone you love is capable of such evil?” She asked him.

He’d already known how that felt. But this, this actually made it easier for him. He’d seen Wanda struggle with her darkness. He’d seen her regret and her contrition, he’d seen her mistakes, and seen her try to be better. He was proud of her for that, for choosing the right path, even when it was hard, even when it might be easier to let herself go. And he remembered something Dumbledore had once said to him, so very long ago, in the aftermath of his battle with Tom Riddle in the Chamber of Secrets.

“Everyone is capable of good, and evil.” Harry said. “It’s our choices that make us who we are. Wanda- my Wanda-” He looked warmly at her. “Struggled, but she made her own choices, she didn’t lose herself. Your choices don’t reflect on hers.” He wondered if he could say the same thing about his mother- a woman he had never truly known. Maybe, at least, it could help him separate the two versions of the woman in his mind.

“Perhaps so.” The Scarlet Witch allowed.

“How are you here?” Wanda asked her, guarded. She was far more wary of the woman than Harry was.

“I died, but before I did, I’d scattered myself across the multiverse.” The Scarlet Witch said. “Our universes are close together, and so I got caught up in… this.”

“More importantly.” Harry said. “Why are you here?”

“I’m here to help.” The Scarlet Witch answered. “Consider this me making a choice. A small act of penance.”

“How are you going to help?” Wanda pressed. “I don’t want whatever powers you have.”

“Certainly not.” The Scarlet Witch scoffed. “You’re too good for them. I doubt you’d like my memories, either. No. I’m here because I know your plan, Harry Potter.” She leveled him with her eyes. “And as it stands, it won’t work.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ll never be able to get all the infinity stones, not even if you find Steve Rogers.” She said. “The Reality Stone is beyond your reach.”

“I see.” He’d feared that possibility, so this didn’t surprise him. “I take it you have an answer.”

“Let me show you something, from the worst day of my life.” The Scarlet Witch told him, and the world around them rolled over.

“Big day today. Your mother and I… are very proud of you both.” The man said. He wasn’t human. His body was metallic- red and silver, and in his forehead was the Mind Stone.

“Very proud. You know… a family is forever. We could never truly leave each other, even if we tried. You know that, right?” That was Wanda. They were doting over their children, tucking them into bed… saying goodbye.

The scene shifted, rolling forward. The two of them were staring out the window, watching as a wall of red static approached inexorably.

“Wanda, I know I can’t stay like this. But before I go, I feel I must know. What am I?” The man asked.

“You, Vision… are the piece of the Mind Stone that lives in me. You are a body of wires and blood and bone that I created. You are my sadness and my hope. But mostly, you’re my love.”

The Scarlet Witch dispelled the memory, returning them to the bedroom. “Do you see now?” He saw the tracks of her tears, and again wanted to reach out to her, to comfort her. But it wasn’t his place.

“The piece of the Mind Stone.” Wanda whispered. “That lives in me?”

“You have more power than you know.” The Scarlet Witch told her. “I created a reality for myself, no Darkhold needed. I recreated the Mind Stone from the fragment of its power that resided in me. So, consider Wanda.” She pointedly glanced at Harry. “Who else do you know, that has been empowered by an infinity stone?”

His mind raced, putting the pieces together all at once. Wanda had been empowered by the Mind Stone, just as every wizard had been empowered by the Reality Stone. Just as Carol had been by the Space Stone. If this worked, they had almost everything they needed.

“Good luck, Harry Potter.” The Scarlet Witch said. “I hope… you can give her the life I never got to have. She deserves it.” She closed her eyes, and she was gone.

Chapter 28: The Order and the Phoenix

Chapter Text

“They saved my life!” Rogue’s impassioned shout was the first thing Wanda became aware of. She stirred, groaning softly. She really wasn’t in the mood for arguments. Her head was too full.

Reluctantly, she opened her eyes. Her father hadn’t taken her collapse well. Harry’s wizard friends had interposed themselves between him and Harry’s own crumpled form. Though they looked weary and worn, none of them were willing to give an inch. Her father was furious at their defiance and was using sharpened pieces of metal… for emphasis. Rogue had slotted herself in front of the wizards, equally as vehement in her defense of them.

“If it weren’t for them, I’d still be down there! They risked their lives fighting the Order, and… and Luna’s my friend.”

“I think that’s quite enough.” Xavier’s voice rang from the doorway, and Wanda relaxed. The Professor wouldn’t let things get out of hand. While the Professor was wheelchair bound, he was the only one among them who her father listened to. No matter how powerful she or Jean got, they’d always be ‘children’ in his eyes. Charles Xavier, however, he saw as an equal. An equal he butted heads with, but an equal nonetheless.

“Charles.” Her father snapped, irate. “Don’t tell me you trust these wizards.”

“I trust them.” Wanda said, rising unsteadily to her feet. She wobbled, in a blink, Pietro was at her side, steadying her.

“What happened?” Her father asked, concern for her momentarily overriding his suspicions.

“I’m alright.” She assured him. “I’ve just… learned a few things.”

Xavier regarded her with a knowing look. “Would you care to share with the class?”

Harry rose, Ginny instantly breaking formation to wrap him in a hug. Wanda glanced at him. “Its him.” She said.

“Him?” Her father repeated.

“My dreams. They’re about him. This is Harry Potter.”

“That doesn’t mean that he’s trustworthy.” Her father scoffed. “He’s still a wizard.”

“Do you doubt Fawkes’ judgement of him?” Jean asked, knowing her point would be brushed aside. “He didn’t just bring him to us, he granted him a feather.”

“I trust him.” Wanda said firmly. She thought of what she’d just seen, of that version of her, the one that fell. “More than I trust myself.”

“That much?” Xavier’s eyes twinkled. Wanda nodded.

“If I may.” Harry interrupted, stepping through his entourage of wizards, who seemed reluctant to let him through. “I understand your suspicion. I know that wizards have done… horrible things to mutants, to non-magical people, to everyone in this world. I also understand being protective of your daughter. I have kids too, and if anything happened to them…” Harry shook his head. “I can assure you, it wouldn’t be pretty. So I don’t take offense in your suspicion. Just give us the chance to prove ourselves.”

Wanda wanted to roll her eyes. God, Nat had been coaching him on diplomacy, hadn’t she? It made sense, they’d known they needed to recruit the disparate factions of the world, and Harry was the perfect leader for them. Worse, his words worked. Her father, for all his prejudice, softened, just partially.

“If you really are worthy of our trust.” He said. “You wouldn’t object to allowing my friend to examine your mind, would you?”

“Not at all.” Harry said easily.

“I’ve already seen his mind.” Wanda snapped. “Every facet and corner, I know him better than I know myself.”

“Wanda, its okay.” Harry put a hand on her shoulder, and she instantly felt calmer. She breathed deeply. “It’ll make explaining everything much easier.”

“Yeah, honestly, fair.” Ron muttered. “The whole story sounds barmy when you tell it.”

“This will only take a moment.” Xavier said. Wanda had a feeling it would take quite a bit longer, and she was right.

Several minutes later, Xavier opened his eyes. “Oh.” He said.

“Yeah.” Wanda nodded with a satisfied smirk. “Oh.”

-----

Harry watched on as Thor embraced Valkyrie, the Asgardian they’d saved from the Hogwarts dungeons. The reunion of the two friends was touching, but Harry’s attention was quickly diverted as Lily and T’Chone made beelines to him. For a moment, the worries of the world slipped away as he hugged his children. He hadn’t been completely bullsh*tting Erik ‘Magneto’ Lehnsherr, when he’d implied the lengths he’d go to for them. It was almost overwhelming. The relief he felt, to have them back in safety, was profound.

Reluctantly he let them go. He saw Natasha, staring at them with shining eyes. Glancing around he saw his friends… almost all of them now. Ron and Neville talking with Hermione. Ginny and Luna hugging, with Rogue at Luna’s side, but keeping her distance. T’Challa teasing Shuri as she fussed over T’Chone. Wanda approached the group, and Nat tore towards her, the two women reuniting with a fierce hug.

Harry smiled. This was good.

But there were still people he needed to bring home.

“Harry!” Thor’s voice cut through the crowd. Harry’s smile didn’t fade one bit as Thor approached. He looked lighter now, a burden of guilt had been lifted from him. “I’m in your debt.” He said.

Harry shook his head. “No, you’re not. We’re both here for the same reason, you don’t owe me anything.”

Thor’s eyes glinted. “You should reconsider. I think you’ll like how I’d repay you.” Harry internally rolled his eyes at the direction Wanda’s mind immediately veered, to Thor’s companion.

“Oh?”

“I’ve heard that you’ve received a gift.” Thor said. “The beginnings of a new wand.”

“Yes.” Harry palmed his pocket, which was warm with the heat of Fawkes’ gifted feather. “Though I need to figure out how to actually make the wand.”

“No need!” Thor clapped his shoulder. One by one, eyes turned to them, the wizards watching the interaction curiously. “I’ve got something better in mind than a flimsy piece of wood.”

“Like what?”

He held out his hand, and Stormbreaker leapt across the room and into his grip. “It’s time we pay a visit to Nidavellir.”

-----

The Bifrost opened, depositing the three of them into the forge. The occupants gaped at them for a moment, then- “It’s the rebel prince!” A young Asgardian shouted. “Sound the-” His voice was cut off with a gurgle as a sword sliced through his neck.

“This is the rightful king of Asgard.” It was Frandal. Harry knew the blonde Asgardian as one of Thor’s ‘Warriors Three’, but in this world, he played the role of double agent. “You owe him your allegiance.”

Scattered skirmishing broke out across the forge, as those loyal to Thor took advantage of the stupefaction of Hela’s people. It helped that the Dwarves were firmly on Thor’s side, and they were far more imposing than their names suggested. The battle was quick, leaving Harry free to observe their surroundings in awe. It was just as Thor had described it, yet his words had been insufficient in conveying the sheer scale. The workshop that unfolded before them was larger than any room he’d seen. He walked towards a window, which looked down onto the neutron star the facility orbited. The star was oddly small, shining with an earie light that reminded him more of the moon than the sun. Even from this remote vantage point he could feel the pull of its gravity.

“If we’re going to do this.” One of the dwarves- Eitri- said. “We need a guarantee of protection.”

“From her?” Valkyrie scoffed. “Where’s your honor? We all risk our lives to fight her.”

“That’s not how this works, Valkyrie.” Thor reprimanded her gently. “These people are my subjects, and they are entitled to my protection.” Thor glanced at Harry, with a question in his eyes.

“If this is what it promises to be.” Harry said. “I should be able to make sure that no one enters Nidavellir without your permission, ever again.” Something in his words convinced the dwarves, as they set to work immediately. The mechanisms of the forge began to turn with a slow precision. An avalanche of focused light was beamed in, triggering a chain reaction. Boilers and pipes ignited, and soon molten metal was pooling in a vat. Harry stepped forward at that point, opening his hand to reveal the feather that rested in his palm. With a puff of magic, he sent it fluttering through the air. It landed in the vat, and the Dwarves were knocked off their feet as a column of fire erupted from it, carving into the ceiling.

“It’s time! Pour it!” Eitri shouted. They surged back to their feet, pouring the metal into a mold. It sat for a few minutes, before they carefully pried the mold open. A staff clattered to the ground, still glowing red with heat. Even from a distance, Harry could feel it calling for him. “This is Lævateinn.” Eitri said. “The Wounding Wand.”

Harry held out his hand, and the staff rose into the air. He hadn’t even touched it, yet it was so responsive to him, responding to his will almost before he conceptualized it. It drifted towards him as it cooled, the glowing metal slowly turning grey. “I don’t know exactly how that feather will affect it.” Eitri admitted. “But by that reaction earlier, I’d say this will pack quite a punch.”

“That is saying something, coming from you.” Thor remarked. Eitri grinned wolfishly.

“Its perfect.” Harry said. “I can already feel it.” The call of the staff was so strong, he could wait no longer. The staff rocketed into his hand. He needn’t have worried about the staff’s lingering heat. Flames engulfed him instantly, rolling down his body like a liquid, but they didn’t burn him. It felt incredible. The stolen wand that he’d been using, that was nothing. The Elder Wand had been powerful, but it hadn’t been attuned to him like this. Lævateinn felt like an extension of his body, as much a part of him as his hand was. It felt natural, it felt like an old friend. It felt like his old wand, his first wand. That bond was paired with power indeed. In his hands was the power of a dying star, and of rebirth. Death and life in balance, forged together by fire.

Harry held the staff up high, and the flames retreated. He felt like he could do anything. He brought the staff down to the floor, striking it with a resounding gong. He had no doubts that his will would be enacted when he boomed- “Fidelius!”

-----

“Sep!” His mum rasped, wrapping him in a hug. He’d never seen his mum so haggard, like he could feel her bones through her skin. “Are you okay, I was- I was looking for you.”

He could tell her the truth, that he was saying goodbye to Lily and T’Chone, his newfound family members who were trying to tear down the world he knew. If he told her, it would invite questions, questions he didn’t know the answer to. “I was hiding.” He said, and it wasn’t a lie.

“Do you have your potion? We’re leaving.”

“No… I’m out.” He said lamely.

His mum sighed, slipping a hand into a pocket that he’d never noticed before, and retrieving a small, blood red stone. “Mum… what is that?” She didn’t answer. Instead, she sliced her palm open with wordless magic. Blood flowed over the stone, instantly turning into a thin, clear-gold substance, which she collected in a flask. After several seconds of this, she healed the gash and gulped down the elixir before handing it to him. Septimius gazed in astonishment as his mum seemed to make an instant recovery, vitality returning to her. Numbly, he followed suit, and was surprised at the familiar taste and texture. “Wait. Is this my potion?” As confused as he was, there was a sense of unease in his gut. Perhaps T’Chone and Lily’s warnings were getting to him, but whatever answers his mum had for him, he didn’t think they’d be good.

His mum nodded. “Come, Sep. I don’t like what’s happening here. I need to speak to Albus as soon as he’s revived.” She took his arm, leading him along.

They had almost made it to the entrance hall when they were intercepted. “Ah, Lily.” Professor Riddle said coolly. “You’re just in time. I’m gathering everyone in the Great Hall.”

“We won’t be attending, Tom.” His mum said, equally cool. There was a tension between them that Septimius didn’t understand. They were all on the same side… right? “Septimius has been through quite an ordeal… and I need to break some news to him.”

Riddle frowned. “My condolences, to both of you.” He said, casting further confusion in Septimius’ mind. Condolences? For what? “But consider, it might be a great comfort to you both to have companionship in these times.”

His mum grabbed his shoulder, physically placing herself between them. “We’ll have to decline.” There was something in Riddle’s eyes that seemed to want to fight her on this, but he seemed to think the better of it.

“Very well. Safe travels… Ms. Evans.”

They left the castle, stepping into the cool night. It seemed far too quiet after the chaos of the evening. “Mum.” He asked in a hushed tone. “What was that all about?”

“I’ll tell you when we get there, Sep.” She said, in a tone that better fit the drained woman he’d seen her as earlier.

“Get where?”

“Nurmengard.”

-----

Septimius tried to follow the conversation, but it was as if cotton were in his ears. They were in Grindelwald’s war room- which was dominated by a massive round table that right now only seated four people. Somehow, one of those four was him, by virtue of the fact that his mum refused to let him leave her side.

His father was dead. He should feel bad about it, he should be devastated. But no, he just felt… numb.

“I’m going to murder that snake.” Grindelwald snarled, before shaking his head violently. “No. He’ll wish he were dead when I’m through with him.” Dumbledore’s rage seemed to be simmering embers, rather than Grindelwald’s inferno, but perhaps that was just because he had more time to process Riddle’s betrayal. It was starting to make sense. Septimius thought distantly. He doubted that things would have gone well for them, had they stayed at Hogwarts. Still, there were blinding holes in his understanding, and he had the two most powerful wizards in existence in the room with him.

“But… why?” His mum asked, and Septimius silently seconded her question. Was Riddle betraying the Order for the same reasons that Lily and T’Chone were? But then, hadn’t Lily been running from Riddle earlier? Or was that a ploy. It made his head hurt.

“He’s an opportunistic, conniving snake.” Grindelwald spat. “There’s nothing more to it.”

“He’s planning something.” His mum said. “He’s gathering everyone in the Great Hall. I don’t think its benign.”

“Almost certainly not.” Dumbledore said. “We’ll need to interrupt his plans. And a rooster.”

“A rooster?” Septimius said dumbly, before shaking his head. That wasn’t important.

“We’ll need more elixir.” Grindelwald added. “I don’t want to take our chances tonight.”

“Wait, what elixir?” Septimius asked. It was an impertinent question, but he might never get an answer if he didn’t ask now. “What is it that I’ve been taking?”

Grindelwald scoffed. “That’s your mess, Albus.”

“I suppose there’s no helping it.” Dumbledore relented, pulling another blood-red stone from his robes. “This, Mr. Snape, is the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“I’ve been… drinking the Elixir of Life?” He asked faintly, to dead silence. “What’s wrong with me?”

His mum choked on a sob. “Mum? What’s going on?”

“I’m sorry.” She spoke. “This is… all my fault.”

“Its not your fault that I’m sick.” He shook his head. “I just want to know what-”

“It is.” She said, more firmly. “And you have a right to know what I’ve done to you.” Past his notice, Dumbledore and Grindelwald slipped out of the room. “You know that your father and I… never had a good relationship.” Septimius nodded dumbly. “I tried to get out of it before you were born. I cast a curse on myself.”

“A curse?”

“Wither my womb.” She spat the words. “It should have made it impossible for me the bear children. But combined with fertility potions…”

“You still had me.” He said, numb.

“You were so sick.” She warbled. “And when I held you in my arms, that first time, I realized I couldn’t let you die. I loved you from the moment I saw you, and I’d do anything to save you.”

He felt ill. “I never should have been born. Maybe you should have just let me-”

“No!” His mum sobbed, clutching at him. “Don’t say that, Sep! Don’t say that. It’s all me. All my fault. You’re innocent. And I’ve been trying to make it right, all this time!”

“I hate to break this up.” Grindelwald’s dry, unapologetic voice crept through the door. “But there’s been a development.”

“What could possibly-”

“Hela’s here.” Grindelwald said, deadpan. Septimius flinched at the name, which struck his mum dumb. “And she’s… different.”

It felt like an out of body experience, walking out to the corridor, peering through the window. It was clear where the ward boundary was, because it was where the mass of Dementors stopped. The faint glow of patronuses that Grindelwald’s men had summoned seem totally insufficient for the weight of the horde. The light, however, was enough to illuminate her- the Queen of Asgard, the Goddess of Death, the one that wizards dare not speak of. She was standing at the ward boundary, hand outstretched, and as her hand touched the wards, they shattered. Like they were nothing.

“Something’s changed.” Dumbledore said, his voice grave.

“She tore through those wards like they were parchment.” Grindelwald echoed. One by one, the lights of the patronuses went out, and Septimius soon lost track of the goddess. Occasionally, there was a burst of blue light, followed by flashes of green and explosions. Each flash was closer than the last.

“I fear.” Dumbledore said. “That this may be the end.” He took Grindelwald’s hand, who squeezed back silently. Then the Goddess was upon them, appearing from another flash of blue. He hadn’t actually heard her described, not in any detail. In this moment of terror, he found himself oddly detached, picking out features. She was tall and pale, with regal armor and fierce, burning green eyes. She had a shadow of sorts, a black silhouette that flickered about her like a candle flame.

Dumbledore and Grindelwald reacted in a flash. Dumbledore summoned quicksilver, while Grindelwald hurled a mass of spells. His mum grabbed him and pulled him back into the war room. As she closed the door behind them, he saw the Goddess’ shadow reach out, batting away Grindelwald’s curses. Its dark hand passed through Dumbledore’s quicksilver, instantly tarnishing it. Dumbledore stepped back, but he was too slow, and the shadow grabbed his wrist. He shuddered, and for a moment, nothing happened. Then, he seemed to age before his eyes- skin wrinkling, hair greying- the door slammed shut. His mum cast wards on it, but Septimius wasn’t stupid, he knew they wouldn’t hold.

They were going to die. And despite his previous words, he realized he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to die. He wanted to live. Tears pricked his eyes, and his mind seized on one last hope. He fished the mirror out from his pocket. “Lily! T’Chone!” He shouted into it. “Please, it’s the Goddess! She’s going to kill us! Please send help!”

There was no response. “Sep, what are you doing?” His mum asked.

“I’m calling for help!” He said, shaking. “I met the people who infiltrated Hogwarts today. They said-” He cut himself off. There wasn’t time to explain, no way he could possibly get her to understand with the time they had left. “I don’t want to die.”

“You won’t.” She vowed, reaching into that secret pocket, and fishing out two items. The first was a small notebook, and the second was the Philosopher’s Stone. “I promise.” She placed them in his hands. “Keep them safe.”

He stuffed them into his pockets, again grabbing the mirror with a white-knuckled grip. The noises behind the door stopped. Then, the door rotted away, and Hela stepped through. Through the doorway, he saw a pile of dust and bones- all that was left of the great Albus Dumbledore. Around the Goddess, the world seemed to degrade. The wood of the doorframe and table rotted, while the stone cracked and crumbled. She held her palm to his mum, the green of the killing curse at her fingertips, but paused as her shadow leaned in, seemingly saying something in her ear. “I don’t care how important she is.” She scoffed. “She’s an abomination, and I will destroy her.”

“Kill me.” His mum declared, bringing Hela up short. “I deserve it.” She continued. “But please, spare my son. He’s innocent. Please, don’t kill him.”

The Goddess chuckled at the display, unmoved. Almost casually, she sent a spear at his mum, impaling her throat. Septimius wailed, rushing to his mother, dropping the mirror in his grief. “No! No! Please, mum! Mum! Mum!” His vision blurred from tears as he made it to her crumbled form, his robes stained with her blood. She couldn’t even speak; her lips were moving silently. He couldn’t read them through the tears, but he knew the words anyway. I love you.

He sobbed, and just like that, his grief turned to rage. He grabbed his wand from his pocket, brandishing it with futile fury. “Sectumsempra!” He shouted, knowing the spell from one of his father’s old books. The Goddess laughed; the spell had done nothing, but at least he’d gone down fighting. “Sectum-” He started to repeat, but he was brought short by the oncoming green light. He winced, bracing himself for his fate. He was dead.

Except, he wasn’t. The spell had hit him, and it had rebounded, colliding with the beam that Hela continued to send at him. The clash created an expanding orb right in front of his chest. He stared, frozen in awe and fear at the sight, while the Goddess seemed furious at this defiance, pouring more and more power into the sphere. The light grew stronger, until it illuminated the entire room, aside from Hela’s shadow, which seemed even darker in contrast.

A breaking point was reached as the orb fractured, the sickly green magic exploding out in all directions. Septimius’ vision was enveloped in light. For a long moment, he heard nothing and felt nothing. Then he fell, hitting the ground awkwardly. There was no light now, just fire and smoke. There was no castle, no Dementors, no wizards… nothing. He tried to suck in a breath and coughed on smoke. Was he going to die from inhalation, after surviving that. But no, ahead the flames parted, and he saw her.

He was going to die after all.

She was completely unharmed. That explosion had levelled the entire castle and she didn’t have a scratch on her. Her eyes zeroed in on him in a hateful glare. The fire picked up around him. Maybe he’d burn to death, before she managed to kill him. But it was odd because these flames didn’t hurt.

The flames leapt up, congealing into a human form out of thin air. “Let’s get out of here, kid.” Harry Potter said.

They’d heard him, after all. Septimius clutched him like a lifeline. If it was true that he was family, he, Lily, and T’Chone were just about the last family he had left.

“No!” The Goddess hissed, and her voice seemed distorted, overlaid with a second voice that was impossible to place. Hela bolted towards them, indescribably fast. She wouldn’t reach them before Septimius’ vision was engulfed by fire.

Chapter 29: Soul Eater

Chapter Text

The instant Harry reappeared, Lily and T’Chone were on them. They’d been beyond frantic when Harry had returned from Nidavellir, and at first, he feared he’d been too late. Nurmengard had been reduced to a crater kilometers across. The surrounding area was being pelted by falling debris and terrorized by fleeing Dementors. He should have known that Lily would not have gone down so easily. Just like with Harry, she’d laid down her life to protect Septimius, and invoked powerful blood magic to defend him. It only made his feelings about the woman all the more complicated. He had to wonder just how different the two versions of her were, and how much her willingness sacrifice herself for the sake of her son counted for.

Hela had fallen victim to the same magic that Voldemort had, but she hadn’t suffered the same consequences. Harry had only gotten a glimpse of her, before fleeing, but what he saw had spooked him. A shadow, attached to her, shimmering in darkness despite the blaze of fire, a figure obscured as if separated from the world by a veil. He’d have to see Septimius’ memories to learn more. Had Hela gotten her hands on the Elder Wand, or had it been destroyed in the explosion? And was that shadow what he thought it was, and hoped it would not be? He’d have time for those questions later, for now, he needed to care for the boy in his arms. He’d barely spared him a second glance back at Hogwarts, so pre-occupied he’d been with the task at hand, but now he felt his heart going out to him.

He’d just lost everything. Harry knew what that was like. “Hey.” He said softly, holding up a hand to stall his childrens’ approach. “We’re here, you’re safe.” Septimius drew in a ragged breath, nodding, but not letting go. “You’re welcome with us, for as long as you want.”

“Dad, is he alright?” Lily asked urgently. “What happened?”

Harry glanced around the room at the growing crowd. He sent Nat a subtle look, and she began clearing everyone out. The Sanctum would likely need to be expanded again, he thought distantly. They’d need new protections too, the fidelius at least. Blood wards too, if Septimius could consider this place a home. Harry hoped he’d be able to, blood wards or not.

“Nurmengard was destroyed.” He said quietly. “He and Hela were all that were left. I think… Lily sacrificed herself to protect him.”

“Is that… what happened?” Septimius said, his voice hollow. “She’s why I survived?”

“She did the same for me, in a different life.” Harry said, setting him down. Lily and T’chone moved to him. While T’Chone patted his shoulder, Lily hovered beside him indecisively. “I know that it’s a lot to process.”

“You can have a bedroom next to ours.” Lily said.

“You heard me.” Septimius said to her, as if he hadn’t even heard her speak. He glanced at Harry. “You came. You don’t even know me.”

“You’re family.” Harry said simply. “And even if you weren’t… you didn’t deserve to die. You didn’t deserve any of this.” Those words were what finally broke through Septimius’ shock, and he began to sob. Not knowing what else to do, Harry hugged him, and he clung back.

Eventually, Harry led the boy to his new bedroom. Septimius was passive, allowing Harry to lead him down the maze of corridors. He looked so small, and Harry resolved to stay with him until he fell asleep.

He glanced around his new room nervously. “Mr. Potter.” He said, trying to sound formal.

Harry shook his head. “Just call me Harry.” He said. He nodded, reaching into a pocket in his robes and holding his hand out. Harry blinked in shock, realizing that he recognized the stone he held in his hand. He’d held it once, so very long ago- the Philosopher’s Stone. “How did you get this?” He asked.

“My mum gave it to me.” Septimius said.“I need the elixir of life… apparently.” Harry got the sense that there was much more to the story, but he wasn’t going to press it now.

“I’ll make sure you have it.” Harry said, taking the stone.

“There’s something else.” Septimius shoved a book in his hands. Harry leafed through it, unable to decipher the dense arithmatic equations within. “My mum’s notes.”

He flipped the book shut, a sense of unease in his gut. In his hands were the fruits of Lily’s labors, the product of every terrible thing she’d done. Part of him didn’t want to know what lay within. But blissful ignorance was a luxury he didn’t have.

-----

It had been a long, long night, and he was exhausted- physically, mentally, and emotionally after… everything.

He’d infiltrated Hogwarts and rescued Lily, fought Riddle and Dumbledore, learned of the horrible things his mother had done to his dearest friends, fought her, fought Grindelwald, reunited with Wanda, forged a new staff, and saved his half-brother all in one night. After putting the kids to bed, he was ready to collapse.

Then he saw them- Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Neville, and Luna. They’d claimed a corner of the living room, with six seats cloistered together. One was empty, meant for him. Suddenly, his fatigue didn’t feel so important. Nothing felt better than sitting down and relaxing with them, but something made him hesitate.

Luna and Hermione both looked so different from the people he’d known, and not just because of the tattoos Lily had branded them with. He remembered Luna’s innocent passion for life and curiosity, the way she bounced back from any personal slight, and how fiercely she valued her friends. Would she still, after everything she’d been through? And Hermione… they’d been through so much together. She’d been his sister in all but blood. But this Hermione didn’t even know him, and he’d lived so much life since he’d known her. How could things ever be the same, after all of that?

The answer was, of course, that they couldn’t be the same. But they could still be something. Ginny shot him a not subtle glance, and Harry heeded her call, sitting down in an armchair that had been reserved for him. Luna and Hermione’s curious eyes turned towards him.

“We’ve told them a bit.” Ron explained. “About everything.”

“Oh. And they believe it?” Harry asked.

“Oh, absolutely.” Luna said definitively. “I don’t think you could make up a story like that. It all reminds me of the clockwise counter-reavers.”

“The clockwise counter-reavers?” Harry said faintly, his heart tripping over itself.

“Oh yes. They supposedly feast on your perception of time. When you find yourself losing track of time, its because a counter-reaver has passed by.” Luna said in a voice curling with nostalgia. “That’s the story, anyway.”

Harry wanted to laugh, he wanted to cry, mostly he wanted to hug Luna, but he figured that would be too much too soon. Instead, he said softly. “You really remind me of her.”

“Her?”

“You.” He shook his head, blinking back tears. “You’re always you.”

“Who else would I be?” Luna asked.

“Never change, Luna.” Ginny said, beaming at her with warm eyes.

Hermione continued to regard him curiously, but not suspiciously. “It’s a lot to take in.” She admitted. “But there’s something about you that’s…familiar.”

Harry nodded, trying to keep his hopes in check. It had taken time to rebuild that familiarity with Ron and Neville. It’d take time with Hermione and Luna as well. “If it helps, I can tell you some stories.”

“What do you want to start with?” Ron asked. “The troll?”

Harry grinned. “Definitely the troll.”

“Only you three.” Ginny snickered. “Could become best friends after defeating a mountain troll.” Hermione leaned forward; her interest piqued.

“Well.” Harry began. “We were in charms class during our first year, learning the levitation charm. And Ron was bungling it up.”

“Of course he was.” Hermione said, while Ron grumbled.

“You corrected him on his pronunciation- its leviosa, not leviosa.” He quoted, imitating an eleven-year-old Hermione.

“I may have responded…” Ron trailed off.

“Like a prat?” Ginny suggested.

“Sure, lets go with that.” Harry allowed. “You ended up crying in the dungeon bathroom. But then our defense professor of the year came running into the hall during dinner, screaming about how there was a troll in the dungeon before passing out.”

“And this man… was the defense teacher?” Hermione asked.

“Oh, its even more ironic than you think.” Harry chuckled. “But that’s another story. Ron and I, of course, went straight towards the dungeon.”

“Of course.” Neville said.

Harry went on to describe the battle, how he’d jumped up on the troll’s shoulders and jammed his wand up its nose, and how Ron had levitated its club with a (correctly pronounced) levitation charm and knocked it out. “After that, the teachers found us and freaked out. You lied to them for us, taking the blame for our recklessness. And we were inseparable from then on.”

“And that is how the golden trio was born.” Neville declared jokingly.

“The golden trio?” Hermione arched an eyebrow. “Were we model students?”

Ron snorted. “Hardly. We got in trouble all the time, and only most of it was justified. But we were-”

“-pretty amazing.” Harry finished.

-----

Harry looked out over the great hall, seeing the students that had piled in. They were in a mix of school robes and nightclothes, some clutched bags and trunks, as if they were prepared to evacuate. Their faces were weary, the younger children looking to the older students for reassurance that couldn’t be given. Flanking on the sides were Kingsley’s men, the men of the Order who’d been sent to Hogwarts in response to the attack. Cloistered in a chamber in the back of the hall were his own supporters, called to his side in his hour of need. They would aid him, though perhaps not in the way that they’d imagined.

He felt that same weariness as the students, but also a cruel sense of triumph. They were all like lambs to a slaughter. It was then that Harry realized this wasn’t a dream. This was happening- now.

Kingsley turned to Tom Riddle and said. “Things are still chaotic, but that’s nearly everyone.”

Riddle felt a sense of urgency, it would only be a matter of time before Dumbledore and Grindelwald returned. But the two wizards were the least of his concerns. He’d seen into Potter’s mind. He knew what Death had planned for them all. He was doing what he needed to, to stand a chance against her. He slipped a hand into his pocket, feeling the reassuring power of the Soul Stone, and he hissed in parseltongue. “Come to me.”

The sharp hiss drew looks of confusion from Kingsley and Flitwick, but Riddle paid them no mind. Harry felt sick, but he suppressed the feeling as she searched Riddle’s thoughts. Surely, he had more than mindless slaughter planned, surely there was a purpose to this.

Riddle stepped forward, clearing his throat to draw the eyes of the crowd. “Tonight… has been a hard night for us all.” He said, as if starting a grand uplifting speech. Harry knew that wasn’t Riddle’s style, and that he had nothing more than a few sentences planned. Riddle’s anticipation grew in tandem with Harry’s impotent horror. Riddle’s emotions peaked into vicious excitement as the Basilisk reared up behind him. Terror briefly broke across the kids’ faces, before they dropped over dead. Some managed to avert their eyes just in time and made to flee. The professors wheeled around in confusion and were all felled instantly.

A dark, ritual power enveloped Riddle- no, Lord Voldemort. He grasped the Soul Stone, the perfect channel for the sacrifice he’d made, falling to the floor as its power overwhelmed him. He was trapped between two terrible forces- that of the ritual and of the infinity stone- and though he held on, he felt himself warp and stretch under the pressure. With a roar, he surged to his feet, reasserting his will- over both himself and the room. The souls of the deceased, both the fresh ones of the students and the lingering souls of the ghosts, hung in stasis. They were strung up by the power of the Soul Stone, tethered to him and his will.

Riddle exhaled, reveling in the power at his fingertips. It was time to feast.

-----

Harry shot bolt upright, nearly colliding with Wanda. “Harry!” She said urgently. “Something’s wrong! I felt something.” They gone to bed together, and he’d fallen asleep almost instantly.

Ginny and Natasha began to stir, but they all felt so distant to Harry, like they were the dream, and he was still in that hall with Voldemort. “I know.” He said. “I saw it.”

“Saw it?” Wanda asked.

“Voldemort.” Ginny said darkly. Harry jumped out of bed, causing Shuri to groan sleepily. His staff was in his hand, summoned to him with barely a thought.

“Wait.” Natasha said, alertness filling her. “You’re not going alo-” Flames engulfed Harry, and he was gone. He would never have to worry about overexerting himself with apparation, or with being blocked by wards. Even the heart of Hogwarts was open to him, and he intended on appearing right behind Voldemort and burning him and his damn snake alive.

But when the flames parted, Harry wasn’t in Hogwarts. He levitated himself into the air, seeing nothing but wilderness in all directions. It didn’t seem possible that he’d been redirected, so where was he?

He saw spotted a lake, and his stomach lurched at its familiarity. In the distance were mountains, also far too familiar. Even the forest bore a striking resemblance to the forbidden forest Harry and his friends had ventured into far too many times. He let himself fall, feeling ill. He was at Hogwarts… where it had been, but it was as if the castle had never existed.

A portal opened, and Hela stepped through. She and Harry gaped at each other for a moment. Then they both reacted, Harry readying his staff while Hela lifted her hand. She held the Elder Wand, her fingers grasping it like vines around a tree, and Harry braced himself- only for Hela’s shadow to grasp her wrist. Septimius had tried to explain what he’d seen of Hela to Harry, but he hadn’t been able to get his point across- Harry didn’t blame him. ‘Shadow’ didn’t really do justice to the black form that accompanied Hela. Harry found himself struggling to focus on it, the very thought of it was slippery, constantly shifting away from him in his mind. Still, Harry knew exactly what it- she- was.

“Hello.” Harry said, far calmer than he felt. “Couldn’t wait to see me again?”

“Were you responsible for this?” Hela sneered, practically spitting.

“Wasn’t talking to you. I was talking to your shadow.” Harry scoffed. The Shadow shifted, and Harry got the sense that she was amused. “Who’ll be able to tell you that I didn’t do this. Isn’t that right Death?”

Hela’s mouth froze as the shadow stepped into her body. ‘Hela’ appraised him, but it was clear she wasn’t in control anymore. Death spoke, her voice soft, almost as if it were coming on the wind. “I know this wasn’t you, Harry. It could only have been Tom Riddle.”

Harry co*cked his head. Something in how she said that felt off. She’d concluded correctly, but Death, as he’d understood it, had an eagle’s eye view of the universe. She should have known. “Any idea why the castle disappeared?” He asked.

“Have you reconsidered my offer?” She countered. Her non-answer wasn’t conclusive, she wasn’t likely to give him information for free.

Harry bristled. “What, to be your sex slave for all eternity? No thanks.”

“It would be better, that way. People are suffering right now. Your entire world is suffering. Wouldn’t you rather take that suffering onto yourself? Spare them that pain?” Harry turned his head away, not wanting to acknowledge her point. “With your cooperation, I could restore everything. I could be… judicious, in how I use my access to the world. I’d spare your friends.”

She was negotiating. There was a time, not so long ago, where he might have accepted her terms, consigned himself to an afterlife of torment to save his friends. It would have been an act of foolishness. He couldn’t trust her promises, such as they were. And it was selfish, in a way, to save his friends at the expense of the rest of the world, who Death would presumably be less ‘judicious’ with.

No. He couldn’t accept her terms. But the fact that she felt the need to compromise was if anything, encouraging. Did she feel vulnerable? How odd, for a force of nature to feel vulnerable against a human. Harry heard a portal open behind him, and he extended his staff protectively. “Do you really think you can protect them from me?” Death quipped.

Natasha was at his side, despite Harry’s desperate attempts to subtly shoo her back. She’d extended tao mandalas around her wrists. Ginny flanked him from his other side. “We do not need protecting.” Wanda said, landing beside them, and Harry detected a flicker of surprise from Death. She hadn’t known that Wanda had joined him.

Death smiled cruelly, and Harry knew that she intended on proving her point. She released Hela, who rocked back, reacting as if Wanda and the rest had suddenly appeared. Harry got the impression that she was in over her head. In some sense she’d gotten power out of whatever deal she’d struck with Death, the power to destroy her enemies. But she’d also lost power, the ability to shape her own destiny.

Harry didn’t feel sorry for her, and as Hela’s look of shock schooled into a mask of venom, he decided she didn’t even deign being addressed, aside from with fire. She was unaffected by the inferno he vented at her, of course, and her counterattack was swift. In a flash, she’d vaulted behind them. Harry slowed time, following her movements while Ginny cast spells at the space Hela had just been.

Hela’s eyes glowed green, signaling that she was about to unleash the killing curse, but it was Death that Harry had eyes on. The shadow flickered forward, its hand closing around Ginny’s wrist. Harry saw her age, wrinkles spreading quickly up her arm even with slowed time. A desperate panic seized him. He couldn’t lose Ginny, wouldn’t lose her. Not again. He grabbed her shoulder, bringing her into synch with him. Phoenix fire wrapped around them, and Harry willed it to take them away, but the Goddesses’ grip around her only tightened.

Simultaneously, Hela had thrown out a hail of killing curses. They were currently arcing away from her, their paths bending in the air. With horror, Ginny realized what was happening to her, feeling her life slipping away as surely as the moments ticked by. Then a grim determination flashed across her eyes. With her free hand, she pointed her wand at her wrist and hissed a cutting curse, lopping off her hand. Death’s power released her, if for a moment. The flames around him and Ginny billowed out, engulfing the others. As quickly as they had flared, the flames receded, and they were in the Sanctum.

Ginny fell to the floor, her body withered beyond recognition, and blood pooling on the floor from her wrist. With a thought, Philosopher’s Stone was in his hand, and in the next moment he was slicing open his palm. His blood ran over the stone, transforming into a translucent-golden liquid that dribbled into Ginny’s mouth.

Seconds ticked by as Harry stared down at her, looking for the smallest sign that the elixir was working. If need be, he’d tap into the Time Stone, even if it meant breaking this world even more than it already was. Slowly, ever so slowly, the elixir did its work. Weathered lines disappeared from her face, and her withered arm filled out against the rotting tatters of her sleeve. Her hand didn’t return, and Harry suspected that no science or magic would be able to regrow it. Ginny had escaped Death, but with a price. Death demanded her due, and her claim, Harry knew, was greater than any magic.

Harry let himself fold into her, relief doping him up like a drug. No matter the price, she was alive.

Chapter 30: Triage

Chapter Text

Ginny whined piteously, her hand clenching in the sheet. Wanda rubbed at her cl*t, but the sensation couldn’t hold a candle to what Ginny was experiencing. Not only did she have Harry’s talented tongue pleasuring her, but she was so sensitive, practically putty in his hands. For Nat and Skye, their love and lust for Harry had been something newly discovered. It was different, feeling a love that was so deeply rooted. Ginny had wanted this since she was a girl. She’s spent so many nights dreaming of Harry, fantasizing, touching herself to him.

Wanda knew what that was like now. In this world, Harry had been her sexual awakening. He’d been her teenage wet dream, the man who’d practically defined what she found attractive. There was a part of her, the part of her that was the Wanda from this world, that couldn’t believe that he was real.

Ginny cried out as her org*sm claimed her- it was far from her first of the night. Harry had taken her brush with death hard. As soon as they were alone, he’d been on her. It had been amazing to watch, and to feel- the ferocious urgency with which he kissed her, how easily she’d given in to him, her body responding to his every touch. It wasn’t so much that she was submissive, as Skye was. While Harry was a wonderful lover it was also true that Ginny was just easy. Harry could have skipped all foreplay and she’d still be begging for it. As it was, the lucky woman didn’t stand a chance as Harry poured all of his passion into her. She’d cum again and again, first around his fingers, then around his co*ck, and finally with his mouth.

This most recent climax, however, seemed to be a tipping point. “Harry, wait.” She said between panting breaths, her chest rising and falling as she gulped down air.

Harry paused. “Was it too much?” He asked, lifting his head up to check on her. She was trembling head to toe, and Wanda knew how fried her nerves were, how doped up Ginny felt on hormones.

“No.” Ginny said. “But I think Wanda needs a turn.”

Harry glanced Wanda’s way. “Is that so?”

“I’m fine.” Wanda said. “I don’t want to-”

Ginny rolled her eyes. “I learned occlumency.” She said. “I can hear your thoughts. I know that you’re absolutely gagging for his co*ck.”

Well, she had her there. Harry pressed a kiss to Ginny’s forehead and turned his focus back on Wanda. “I guess we never did get the opportunity to reunite properly.” He conceded. “I’m sorry. Things have been moving fast, and when Ginny almost died…”

“I understand.” And Wanda did understand, she had felt Harry’s urgent need to reconnect to Ginny, to assure himself that she was alive and safe. She didn’t begrudge him that, and it had been fun, listening in on them. But as much as she enjoyed when Harry f*cked other women, her body had needs. And, well, she’d missed him.

“I missed you.” Harry said, and she’d have thought he’d read her mind, except she knew he hadn’t. “After we lost you during the snap, and when I was dropped into this world.... I was so relieved when I learned that you were alive, and with family.” He crawled over her, and Wanda felt a stupid thrill. It wasn’t like they hadn’t done this dozens of times before, but the part of her that only knew him from her dreams was freaking out. She couldn’t help but blush, tittering.

“Its not like we haven’t done this before.” Harry chuckled.

“I know.” Wanda flushed deeper. She touched his chest, admiring the broadness and solidity of his body. “But… part of me hasn’t.”

“The part of you that’s been having sex dreams of me for years?” Harry teased. He cupped her cheek, and she shivered as he brought his lips to hers. Their bodies slid into place against each other, both reacting to the other’s presence. It felt new and familiar, exciting and comforting, intoxicating and grounding. She delved into his awareness, immersing herself in his physical strength, and the tenderness with which he held her. She felt his arousal grow, how alluring her body was in his eyes, and how the feel of her enticed his co*ck. It was addictive, feeling his sex throb and swell, filling with a desire to penetrate- a desire she wanted nothing more than to yield to.

Harry broke the kiss, allowing Wanda to moan- loud and unrestrained. He kissed down her neck, but it wasn’t enough. She wanted him, all of him. “f*ck me.” She moaned. “I want you inside me.” Her words weren’t the most creative- Skye had always had a special way with dirty talk that Wanda had lacked- but Wanda backed up her words with telepathy, showing Harry just how empty she felt, just how much she wanted to be filled by his co*ck.

Harry groaned against her skin. “Minx.” He muttered, cupping one of her breasts in his hand and worrying the nipple with his thumb, before following up with his lips.

“I want your co*ck.” She continued, spreading her legs for him. “I’m… so wet. I need it.”

“f*ck.” Harry moaned, she almost had him. She could feel how tempting he found her, how close he was to giving in, and she knew how to push his buttons.

“I’ll help you seduce more women.” Wanda pressed. “What about Ginny’s friend, Luna?” Ginny squeaked, a not displeased sound. “Or Rogue? She hasn’t touched another person in years, and I know she’s smitten with you.” Perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, but Wanda knew that Rogue would be eager to slide into bed with Harry.

“Please, don’t feel like you need to do that.” Harry wavered. “I don’t need-”

“I want to.” Wanda bulldozed him, gazing fiercely into his eyes. “Assuming, that is, that you f*ck me.”

Wanda sensed the exact moment that Harry gave in, when his lust overrode restraint, and it was glorious. Harry growled as he pushed her back into the bed. A hand went to her sex, spreading her lips in a practiced motion. She moaned, rolling her hips into his touch. “You want my co*ck?” He asked.

“Yes!”

“You want me to take your virginity again, Wanda?” He positioned himself over her, his length held over her sex. Her body throbbed in anticipation, as she realized he was right. She was going to lose her virginity to him, for the second time.

“Please.” She whined, wriggling her hips impatiently. “Take me.”

He pressed into her, relieved moans escaping both of them as his masculine urge to penetrate met her feminine need to be filled. Wanda could feel the entirety of it, how well they complemented each other, their desires perfectly matching to fulfill the other’s. She marveled at how the embrace of her inner walls felt like perfection against his shaft, just as how his firm thickness felt so primally satisfying as it seated itself within her. It felt so much better than her fingers, or any toy, because it was him.

“Oh!” Wanda choked out, overcome. “Oh, Harry.” It felt so, so good, and then he started to move. Powerful muscles held her down, and pistoned his hips against hers with more and more force. His shaft struck deep again and again, sending sparks of pleasure cascading out with each thrust. Yet Wanda could tell that he was holding back, she gripped his shoulders, throwing her legs around his waist to wordlessly urge him for more. Deprived of coherence, she again communicated telepathically, showing him exactly what she wanted- for him to pin her down and ravage her.

Harry growled again, stilling for a moment, before unleashing himself. The bed began to creak beneath them, while a loud wailing noise filled the room, which Wanda distantly noted sounded like her voice. She was too caught in the moment, addicted to how his muscles worked, ceaselessly tensing and straining with one purpose, to drive his co*ck into her. She marinated her mind in his desire for her, how he admired the way her body moved in response to his thrusting, and the masculine pride he felt in how he could make her scream. Most of all, she reveled in his pleasure, the nascent org*sm that was building in his balls and coiling up his shaft, and the knowledge that she was the one giving that to him.

Finally, he reached a frenzied peak, thrusting into her with abandoned as he lost himself. Wanda followed him over the edge, mindless bliss overtaking her. It was a singular moment- she felt completely united with him, even as they both fell apart.

Basking in the afterglow, she wondered if, when all of this was over, she too would have children with him. Seeing Harry with Lily and T’Chone, made her realize just how much she wanted it- she’d always wanted it, but the timing had never been right. Then there was the other Wanda- the Scarlet Witch- she’d been so happy as a mother, but she’d lost it all, and it had broken her.

She looked over and noticed Ginny holding her fist out for her. Wanda knocked her knuckles to Ginny’s in a clumsy fist bump.

She just had to hope that her story would end better.

-----

Ginny moved the mechanical fingers experimentally. “This really isn’t magic?” She asked.

Shuri snorted. “It’s all science, witch.”

“Play nice.” Harry scolded.

“Its fine.” Ginny deflected. “After all, she is giving me a hand.”

There was a beat of silence, before both of her companions snorted. “You’re hilarious.” Harry deadpanned.

“I know.” Ginny grinned with faux arrogance. “Aren’t I?” She tucked her hair behind her ear, with her new vibranium hand. “This is so cool.”

“Thank you.” Shuri snickered. “I still don’t have a proper lab, but I am pretty handy.”

The door opened, and their bubble of good humor burst. It was Natasha, and her face was grim. “Nat, what is it?” Harry asked.

“Looks like Hela is making her move.” Natasha said shortly, motioning them to follow her.

“Where? Who?” Harry asked, anxiety bubbling up. He got the distinct feeling that their time was running out. They were close, closer than they had any right to be to a solution, yet the pieces weren’t in place.

“It’s everywhere.” Nat said. They followed her down the hall, passing a pair of sorcerers tending to a traumatized group of survivors- they looked like non-magicals… just normal people. “We’re still trying to put information together.” She pushed open the door to the conference room, where discussion was already taking shape.

“We can hold off Dementors.” Neville was saying. “But we can’t kill them, not as far as we know.”

“Well, if we don’t find a solution, all of Europe will be devoured.” Peggy said shortly.

“How many people can we evacuate to the sanctum?”

“Its not a matter of numbers.” Wong said. “Its getting to them before Hydra or the Dementors.”

On the other side of the room, a video of Carol Danvers was being projected into the air as she laid waste to a settlement. “Europe is being overwhelmed by Dementors. Hydra’s been attacking villages across the world.” Natasha said. “Carol’s been spotted too.”

In a sense, that was a comfort. Death knew of Harry’s affinity to Carol, and he’d feared she might just kill her. That she was keeping Carol alive was good, but Harry knew that it had to be for a purpose- if only to taunt him, or to use her as bait.

“Are we even safe here?” That was T’Chaka, and Harry reluctantly had to agree that it was a good point. If Death could break through the protections at Nurmengard, there was no guarantee that the Sanctum could hold, or anywhere else for that matter…

Something occurred to him, and his stomach turned. “Have there been any sightings of Hela herself?” He asked the room at large, which instantly fell silent. If Death could destroy wards…

“sh*te.” He muttered, the lack of answer was answer enough. “Thor.” He said. “We need to go to Nidavellir.”

Thor paled. “You said that it was safe.”

“Everywhere’s safe, until it isn’t.” Harry said grimly. He summoned his staff, conjuring flames that swiftly enveloped him. When they parted, he had returned to the forge.

He’d been right, horribly right.

The Bifrost opened, and Thor landed beside him. Harry took in the destruction without a word. “No.” Thor moaned. “No, no, no. Not again.” He cast Harry a haunted look. “This- this happened before.”

“Thor-”

“They trusted me to protect them, and both times I let them down.” He said, his voice brittle. “I failed them, again.”

Harry shook his head. “If anything, its my fault. I was the one who failed, and-” There was movement ahead, and Harry tensed for battle. Thor, however, seemed to know who it was, and dropped his head in despair.

“Thor?” It was a dwarf, a survivor. His hands had been reduced withered stumps. Why had he been spared, just to taunt them?

“Yes. Its me.” Thor said robotically.

“We… were supposed to be safe.” Harry flinched, guilt twisting in his chest like a vice. “You were supposed to protect us! You were supposed to-” The dwarf’s voice choked off in a sob.

“I’m sorry.” Thor said. “I thought we could keep you safe, I was wrong.”

“There’s nothing left. She destroyed everything, and everyone.”

“We can take you back with us, you’ll be safe-” Thor paused, glancing at Harry, who shook his head. “You’ll be with other survivors, while we try to sort things out.”

-----

“Its not your fault, Harry.” Harry had retreated to a study upon returning, but he should have known he wouldn’t be left alone for long.

“You should tell that to Thor, he’s taking it way worse than I am.” Harry said, with a poor attempt at humor. Nat didn’t bite.

“War is hell, and sometimes you can’t protect everyone.”

“If I’d realized the danger earlier, I could have evacuated them, just like that.” He snapped his fingers. “But I didn’t.” He’d been pre-occupied with Septimius, and Ginny, and Wanda, he hadn’t imagined that the fidelius could be dismantled until it was too late.

“I’ve never figured out how to help him when he gets like this.” Natasha admitted.

“Neither have I.” Ginny said. “I think he just needs some time to brood.” Harry rolled his eyes.

“Honestly, I’m impressed you realized the danger at all.” Harry turned in surprise, Hermione had joined them, and she was carrying a small book. It took Harry a moment to recognize what it was- Lily Snape’s notes. “The fidelius is supposed to be unbreakable, I’m not altogether sure how Hela was able to find Nidavellir, let alone destroy the charm.”

Harry didn’t want to have a conversation about Death, and the implications of her presence in the material world. Maybe once the rapport between he and Hermione had been rebuilt, but until then… “She’s developed a ‘deathtouch’ ability.” He explained. “Anything she touches withers and ages. I talked to Septimius, and based on how he described her attack on Nurmengard… I think she can use it on wards as well, to cause them to deteriorate and fail.”

Hermione nodded. “Regardless of how she did it, it raises the question of how we’re still alive.”

He hadn’t thought of that, but it was a good point. Death, theoretically should know where the Sanctum was. They had the ability to peal back any wards they created, so why hadn’t there been an attack? “I suppose you have an answer?”

Hermione flipped open the book, passing over several pages of dense equations and runes before arriving at a heading titled ‘The Bond of Blood’. Harry sighed. “Right, that.”

“You know of it?” Hermione asked.

“In my world, my mother sacrificed herself for me as well. Dumbledore told me about the blood wards that protected my… childhood home.” Ginny snorted at the description.

“How much did he tell you about them?” Hermione asked.

“Very little.”

“Typical.” Ginny said.

“I just know that it was because my mother sacrificed herself for me, it was ancient blood magic. Dumbledore created wards around where I lived, but I needed to live with a blood relative of Lily’s.”

“Well, that’s not entirely wrong.” Hermione allowed. “But not entirely accurate, either. While what Lily did was based on some ancient principles, I think that the charm itself was her own invention… and as far as I can tell, the blood wards are already in effect.”

“How do you figure?”

“Well, for one we’re still alive. Blood wards always require a sacrifice to establish, but they’re just about the most powerful wards in existence. For two, I felt it.”

“You felt it?” Harry asked. He had an instinctive feel for magic, and he was struck by the desire to compare notes, something that he thought Hermione would be happy to oblige him with.

Hermione nodded. “As horrible as they are, these tattoos have their uses." Harry nixed that thought. "I can feel changes in magic like any other sensation. When you came back with Septimius, it felt like something had been sealed. From what Lily wrote, to enact the blood wards the victim needs to live with a blood relative who willingly takes them in and intends on protecting them against the target of the wards.” She ticked off her fingers. “The stronger the blood relation and the stronger the intention to protect the victim, the stronger the wards are. There should be no need for someone to cast them. Unless, I suppose, one of those requirements was shaky.”

“Well, that explains it.” Ginny scoffed, casually gesturing with her mechanical hand and knocking over a lamp. “Petunia was barely willing, and if Death Eaters had shown up on her doorstep, I imagine she’d offer Harry up in a heartbeat.”

Harry wouldn’t go quite that far, but her point was taken. “So we’re safe because of Septimius.”

“And you.” Hermione said, softening.

“And my kids.” Harry returned. “I think you’d have to pry Sep from Lily’s cold, dead hands.”

-----

The flow of refuges had not abated, and Harry was surprised by the diversity of them. Wizards, muggles, goblins, mutants… everyone was fleeing to the only safe haven that remained. Harry had taken shifts, rescuing people under dire threat from Hydra. The Ancient One had expanded the Sanctum again, providing more and more rooms for the new arrivals. Meanwhile, Ron and Hermione had been useing the multiplying charm on their food stores to accommodate the influx. But despite the manpower they devoted to it, it would never be enough. For everyone they saved, there were many more they were too late to save. After a few days of this, it was not just Harry and Thor left with a sense of failure. It clung to them all.

They couldn’t keep going like this. Merely reacting, triaging. Harry’s instincts were itching with the need to get out there and strike back. But how?

It was as he was mulling this over (or as Ginny would say, brooding) that Heimdal found him. “Harry, we need to talk about the task you gave me.” He said, and Harry jolted. It had been weeks since he’d asked Heimdal for help finding Skye. Harry had tried not to think on his lack of progress, knowing it would only lead to dark thoughts.

“Did you find her?” Harry asked, unable to contain himself.

“It was difficult. She goes by a different name than the one you provided me, and she’s constantly on the move, but… yes. I found her.”