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Chapter Text

Baldra thought she was immune to silver tongued serpents, having been raised alongside the God of Mischief and Lies. She was wrong. So very wrong. When she met Tyr, she fell for his beautiful lies immediately. He expertly played the light, innocence and purity the goddess so famously embodied and slithered his way into her heart and her bed with careful manipulation.

Her father wanted to conquer, and he wanted to use Baldra’s powerful magic to aid his crusades. Tyr would take her away from the constant battle of war. He promised. But he’d need her help. Odin was the Allfather after all. He wouldn’t give up his prized daughter without a fight.

There were ways to shield her from her father’s influence, he said. All she had to do was join herself to the man she loved above all else. To marry her lover in a ceremony that would tie them together so inexorably even the Allfather would not have the power to separate them. He carefully crafted the words of their vows to ensure the resulting bond would be strong enough to protect them from Odin’s reach. All she had to do was say the words - and mean them.

She had no problem reciting the words with a conviction backed by her heart, soul and magic. She loved him beyond reason and knew saying the words could not make her belong to him any more than her love already had. She’d said the words without reservation. She was his. Her heart. Her Body. Her soul. Her magic. Everything that was Baldra Odindottir belonged to Tyr and she offered herself eagerly and of her own free will.

Baldra did not in any way question the words she’d spoken until Tyr began his part of the ritual. His words were not reciprocal. He did not offer all he was to his future wife as they’d discussed. Instead he accepted her offer. He accepted her heart, her body, her soul and her magic. She would belong to him always. His property. Her magic would respond to his commands as if she’d commanded it herself because she was no longer a separate entity. He’d successfully trapped her.

Once he had robbed her of her freedom Tyr revealed himself as the War God he was. He believed he was delivering justice against Odin and relished in his use of the Allfather’s own daughter deliver his victories. In reality, the guy was just a selfish, bloodthirsty prick.

Baldra was forced to use her power to bring destruction, directly contrary to her nature. It slowly chipped away at her inherent goodness to leave nothing but angry, bitter regret. She was no longer a selfless bringer of light. Instead, she wanted nothing more than to break free of her chains and escape into a world where she would serve only herself. The rest of the world could burn for all she cared.

Centuries passed in this manner and Tyr became complacent. He’d grown bored of his fight with Odin and left the Allfather to his remaining nine realms. He turned his sights on the wider universe. There was much to explore and conquer. He took time to travel and map out the future lands and people he would be claim. He left Baldra on his home planet, Oorga, and enjoyed exploring the pleasures his future conquered people would be offering him in abundance once they were under his rule.

Baldra had foreseen this break in Tyr’s battle siege and began making plans of her own. Tyr may own her magic, but he could only control what he knew to command. He didn’t know of her gift of Sight. She’d always had to put conscious effort into receiving visions and hadn’t enjoyed that aspect of her magic. She’d wanted to be surprised by life and all the beauty it had to offer.

Oh, but she had been a sweet, naïve summer child.

She had forsaken the Gift so thoroughly she hadn’t even thought of it when discussing the breadth of her powers with her future husband. She thought bitterly of the irony. The one aspect of her magic she’d rejected was the one that could have saved her from making such a terrible mistake in the first place.

It would help her now, though. Tyr couldn’t tell her to do anything with her Sight because he didn’t know she possessed it. So, when he left her alone to begin his planning expedition, she began planning a strategy of her own. She hadn’t dared feed any of her magic into her Sight while Tyr was near. He would have been able to feel the magic he owned being channeled. But now he was worlds away safe in his belief of total ownership of Baldra.

She began feeding magic into that place in inside where the Sight lived, waking it up from centuries of disuse, guiding it to show her the way to freedom.

It took months, but she knew Tyr was drunk on power and enjoying his journey. A few months was nothing to an immortal. He would spend years planning the next phase of combat.

Her Sight slowly started sending her visions to guide her actions, showing her the way to salvation. The price would be high, but she was willing to make any sacrifice to ensure her freedom.

She began acting even more listless than normal. She stopped eating meals regularly and spent hours every day staring out the window from her prone position in bed. The maids and guards stopped trying to engage her and left her to her brooding. She was too powerful to starve to death. She could stop eating for decades and still be ready to serve their master upon his return. She was but a means to an end and her personal happiness meant less than nothing to Tyr’s people.

She waited until she became nothing more than furniture to the people around her and then got to work. She left a copy of herself in bed (thanking Loki for teaching her that particular trick) and made her body invisible as she stole her way to the deepest most unused rooms in the palace’s dungeons. There she began weaving her magic into the clay of the Oorga to create a perfect golem. A copy was sufficient for her nightly rendezvous, but her plan would require nearly a year of absence without notice. If she could imbue the golem with enough of her magic to move and exist in the manner she had been living, it would buy her enough time. But it had to be perfect. She worked for weeks to ensure every inch of the golem was spelled with precision.

After the fifth week of intense spelling she stood back and smiled at her creation. She could feel her magic softly emanating from the golem as the slid her fingers over the arm. It was perfect. If someone tried to physically guide it into an action the golem would follow the lead and the minion would faintly feel the magical energy buzzing under the skin. They’d never be able to tell it was merely embedded and it would last for years.

It was time to initiate the next step in her plan.

The night the golem was finished she packed her bags with clothes and valuables. The next night she set the golem up in her bed and sneaked out of the room with the last patrol of the night. After a quick trip to the kitchens to stock up on rations she made her way to the base where the royal ships were docked. There had never been more ships available since the siege was currently in a planning stage and she quickly made her way to the one she’d Seen in her vision. This ship was scheduled to be decommissioned. It was old and not in the best shape, but it was sturdy enough to get her the 2 jumps to Broi where she could procure a better ship and make her way to her next destination. By the time the ship’s absence was noticed it would be assumed the ship had been decommissioned already and the paperwork was overlooked.

She completed this stage of the plan just as easily as she’d Seen and immediately started making the journey to the planet that held the key to her entire plan.

Two weeks later Baldra stepped off her ship and took her first steps in centuries on Midgard. She’d used the travel time to weave her magic into a shield that would block her from Heimdall’s gaze. It was imperative to her plan to go unseen by Asgard.
Baldra shrunk her ship and teleported herself to New York a few blocks away from a Mexican food truck she’d Seen in her visions. She watched the truck for 2 days before catching a glimpse of the man she was looking for.

She followed Wade Wilson as he left the truck with an ungodly amount of Mexican food. She placed charms on herself to remain unnoticed and kept the tall hooded man in her sights as they walked through the city. He stopped at a park and began messily consuming his street food.

As she approached, he did not look at her or even swallow the food in his mouth as he began speaking. “Yeah, I thought someone was following me. There better be a good reason, cause I gotta warn you lady, it’s not gonna end pretty if you’re tryin’ to start something.”

Baldra wrinkled her nose in distaste. “Straight to the point then, Mr. Wilson. I understand you are familiar with cross-dimensional travel.”

He looked up at that and raised a hairless eyebrow. “Now where’d ya hear a thing like that?”

Baldra had Seen how impossible the man could be if he really wanted. She also knew he had a soft spot for an abused woman. She decided to be honest. “I have the Gift of the Sight. I have Seen the path to freedom from my abusive, controlling husband, and you were part of that journey. I don’t need to go far, just one dimension over – the 617.”

“Well, you don’t ask for much, do you? I ain’t running a charity, ya know? What’s in it for me if I can get you over to 617?”

Baldra raised her hand and slowly extended it to his face. When her skin made contact with his she sent some searching magic into his body to find the darkness that was causing his pain and deformity. She could see the disease had taken over the cells and how his mutation was fighting every minute to heal as it continued to spread relentlessly. Her particular brand of magic had been perverted by Tyr, but the foundation of it was still there. This was exactly the type of problem her magic could aid beautifully.

“You are in pain because of these lesions on your skin. Your mutation is able to fight the spread of your disease enough to keep you alive, but not quite whole. I can rid you of the sickness and your own mutation would then be able to heal the lesions.”

Wade eyed her skeptically. “Yeah, I fell for that one once, ya know. Not looking to be a fool twice. It wouldn’t work. I have no shame.”

Baldra’s lipped quirked in mild amusement. “Well, I could always just pay you. How about this? You’ll transport me to the 617 and I’ll either heal you or pay you on arrival. If I don’t deliver you can bring us right back.”

Wade refused to get his hopes up, but figured he had nothing to lose. His inter-dimensional travel belt would make the job easy peasy anyway. “Okay,” he agreed swinging his legs on the bench and taking a huge bite of his chimichanga. “You know the belt isn’t a one-way ticket, though, right? Eventually it’s going to suck you back into this dimension. The timing isn’t even super reliable. You’ve got a year max, but probably closer to 8-10 months. If you want to make a permanent move, you’ll need to find the 616’s portal.”

Baldra sighed, “I don’t have time to look for it. My husband has a way to track me and I need to get rid of it before he realizes I’m gone. I can work to find the portal when I return. Or not, the universe is vast, and I can easily lose myself in it when I am untraceable.”

“Huh, well, as long as you know what you’re doing. Let’s get this party started then,” he replied jovially. He shoved the last of his food in his mouth and hopped from the bench and started walking away. Baldra followed him to his apartment and he disappeared behind a door with a “Wait here,” thrown over his shoulder.

He returned with the belt and gave her a dubious look. “I’ve decided I want to see the goods before the trip.”

Baldra sighed and took his arm. She placed one hand like a cuff around his wrist and held his hand with the other. She closed her eyes and focused on finding the darkness of the disease within his cells and pushed her magic into them to obliterate that darkness with light. The hand on his wrist created a barrier to ensure the darkness could not spread back into the hand. Both hairless eyebrows rose impossibly high as she let go and he watched the sores and lesions begin to actually heal. He couldn’t believe it.

“Okay, yeah, Princess. You’re going to earn this trip,” he replied excitedly and rushed to get the belt on and get moving. He wasted no time attaching the woman to his person and activating the belt. They were whisked away I a dizzying blur.

Upon arrival in the 617, Baldra let out a breath of relief. This was the first big step. Tyr would still be able to call her back if he noticed her missing, but he would never be able to sense the magic she was expending while she was in another dimension. She’d had to be so careful while creating her golem and setting up her escape. If she’d released too much energy at once he may have felt it.

“Alright sweet cheeks, time to receive my payment.”

They’d arrived in the same apartment they’d left on 616. “Do you know who lives here?”

“I do, I could never allow someone else to live in my apartment, even in another dimension!” he responded like she was crazy for even entertaining the thought.

She rolled her eyes and pointed to the couch, “Alright then, lay on your back.”

The process was lengthy as she had to heal him piece by piece, blocking the newly healed areas from the infected ones as she went. It made for some awkward moments since she had to put her hands on all of him. Especially when he exclaimed with a ridiculous eyebrow wiggle, “Ooooh, a handy! I didn’t realize this was part of my compensation…or is it that you just can't resist me?!” as she was healing his front and reached his crotch.

By the time she was finished his back was looking much better as his mutation had some time to heal the skin. He turned from admiring himself in the mirror and became uncharacteristically serious. “Listen, thank you. This…I don’t know what to say. My best friend told me I looked like an avocado had sex with an older more disgusting avocado. He was being kind. I thought that is how I would spend the rest of my very long life. But now…I’m going to get so much pussy. So, thank you.” Baldra snorted and Wade smirked in response. “But seriously, good luck. And if homeboy comes after you when you get back and you need any help, come see me. I got your back, boo,” he told her and then grabbed her into a massive hug that lifted her off her feet.

Baldra was oddly touched. “Thank you, Mr. Wilson. And good luck to you.” With that she teleported to London. No one on Charing Cross noticed her sudden arrival in the alley by the coffee shop. She ducked into the café and made her way to the restroom in the back.

Baldra knew she was a beautiful woman, but the centuries had been rough. She’d been so depressed and miserable, and it showed in her countenance. She’d also been skipping meals in order to create the image she needed for the palace staff to leave her alone. While she was still beautiful by human standards, she needed to look irresistible. Glamouring her features was but the work of a moment. Her hair returned to its previously lustrous blond and her figure filled back in to hide the weight she’d lost. The weary lines receded from her face and her blue eyes shined with an otherworldly coyness no man could resist. Especially not one like Sirius Black. Baldra smiled victoriously and made her way to Diagon Alley.

Chapter Text

Baldra was sitting at the bar in The Hopping Pot when the door swung open to let in a cool gust of wind.

“Merlin, Prongs, I can’t believe it’s already so bloody cold out and its’ not even October!”

“It’s October in three days, Padfoot, and the only time you’ve lived away from London you were in the Scottish Highlands. You just like to bitch. We should change your name to Duchess Padfoot,” James snickered and left his friend spluttering by the door.

“Hey Luca, two firewhiskeys – one for me and one for the Duchess, please,” James said when he reached the bar.

“Oi! I heard that you wanker!”

“You were meant to,” James said as his friend made his way up to the bar.

Luca laughed at the two idiots in front of him as he set down their drinks. He was glad there were those who could still laugh and joke with each other, even with the future looking darker by the day.

The two men swallowed their drinks and slammed the glasses back down in unison, both trying manfully not to wince at the burn. They were semi-successful.

“Another!” Sirius cried.

“You got it Black,” said Luca. “What about you, Potter?”

“Better not. I’ll have an ale, please. I need to get home to the wife. Just wanted to take the edge off first,” James replied.

“Ugh,” Sirius replied in disgust. “You’re no fun anymore Prongs.”

“Shut it, Duchess,” James replied without heat. “You should find yourself a nice witch and settle down. Then you’ll know the joy of having a reason to hurry home after work on a Friday night.”

“You take that back!” Sirius gasped melodramatically.

They all glanced to Sirius’ left at the giggle that followed Sirius’ exclamation. Sirius’ expression shifted into a seductive smirk in an instant. “Well hello there, beautiful. What are you doing here all on your own?” he asked smoothly. Luca met James’ gaze and both men rolled their eyes at Sirius’ predictability.

Luca’s smile faded as he set the new drinks in front of the men. “Rough day out there today? Anything I need to be worried about?” Luca asked the aurors cautiously.

James’ face turned grim while Sirius ignored them completely, lost in the chase of a night in bed with a gorgeous witch.

“I can’t discuss any specifics, Luca, you know that,” James finally replied in a low tone. “I don’t like the way the tides are turning, though, I will tell you that.”

Luca nodded seriously and went to fetch the butterbeer and ale Sirius ordered for the witch and himself.

Upon his return, James smiled and clapped Sirius on the back. “Thanks Luca, it was good seeing you,” he said with a smile. Then, turning to Sirius, “I’ll see you tomorrow for dinner, Duchess? Lily’s making roast. Moony and Wormtail will be there.”

“Yes, yes, of course I’ll be there Prongs,” Sirius replied distractedly while the woman giggled like an idiot at some inane joke Sirius had told - probably one of his lame, “Of course I’m serious, who else would I be”, har har har jokes.

James couldn’t believe it. In loudly exclaiming his distaste for commitment Sirius had garnered the amorous attentions of an obscenely attractive (and likely painfully stupid if her annoying giggles were anything to go by) woman. Witches be crazy. James rolled his eyes at Luca and went home to his beautiful, brilliant and sane wife.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Sirius and his new acquaintance, Bailey, spent the next few hours talking and drinking increasingly watered-down ale (Sirius may be a cad, but he wasn’t a monster. And informed consent is sexy). She was from the States and didn’t know a thing about all the drama going on with the rising threat of Death Eaters and a man the citizenry feared so completely they refused to even speak his name. She was also dumb as a post. He wasn’t looking to make a family with her, though. He could ignore the silliness of her words and instead focus on that sweet, sexy Southern accent.

Baldra became more and more forward as she wondered if this idiot was ever going to seal this deal. Did he not see she was a sure thing? She was physically pained to play the part of the airhead bimbo gagging for attention from this mortal who badly hid is painfully obvious insecurity behind a thin veneer of bravado. Her visions made it look so easy.

The bartender returned for what seemed like the hundredth time to see if they wanted anything else. Sirius looked to Baldra, “Angel?”

It was the first time he’d used that term of endearment, and she nearly deflated in relief. That was the sign from her vision that he was ready to move their night somewhere more private. She made an embarrassed face and shook her head. “I don’t think I could possibly drink another drop tonight,” she said looking up through her lashes with a coy shyness.

Sirius smiled rakishly and asked Luca for their tab.

“Do you have any other plans for tonight, beautiful?” he asked mock innocently.

“I was just planning to find a place to sleep and get some rest for tomorrow,” she responded sweetly. “I have a meeting with an antique dealer in the morning.”

“Well,” he said and bit his lip like he was thinking serious thoughts. “You could stay with me if you don’t want to go looking for an Inn. It’s pretty late and you have an early morning.”

Baldra adopted a dopey grin. “You really wouldn’t mind? I would be ever so grateful!” she replied as earnestly as she could manage.

“Of course, love. I would feel like a total heel sending you off on your own to find a place to sleep after I’ve monopolized your entire evening. My mother raised me to be a gentleman after all,” Sirius lied outrageously. He ignored Luca’s incredulous snort as he paid their bill.

As Sirius led them to his flat just outside Diagon Alley, Baldra marveled at the fact that his behavior could actually entice a woman into his bed. It must work as Sirius did not seem to think there was anything unusual about Baldra falling for his ridiculousness. Midgardians be crazy.

Sirius opened the door to his flat and invited Baldra into his home. “Can I get you anything to drink?” he asked as a formality.

Baldra forced herself to giggle mindlessly. “Oh, no, I really couldn’t. I meant what I said at the bar. I think I’d burst! But…is there a bathroom I can use real quick?” she asked and forced herself to blush.

Sirius chuckled and led her to the restroom. “Sure thing, Angel. Take your time – but not too much! I’ll miss you terribly,” he said while clutching his proverbial pearls and pretending to swoon dramatically.

Baldra forced another high pitch laugh and danced into the bathroom.

As soon as the door shut behind her, she slumped against the counter. That had been exhausting. She had spent centuries retreating into herself and playing the part of smitten airhead was a very tiring re-entry into social interaction. She quickly got to work casting the strongest fertility charms she knew over her person. And she knew a lot. She’d been to countless worlds with Tyr on his crusade for power and learned the magics of many different societies. It took a few minutes to complete the process and then she actually used the loo. She really had drunk too many watered-down pints.

When she emerged from the restroom Sirius was waiting for her on the couch. He stood and approached with wonder in his eyes. “Merlin, Bailey. You truly are the most stunning witch I have ever seen.”

Baldra smiled shyly and looked up at him from under her lashes. This look seemed to be a weakness in Midgardian men based on the mating rituals she’d seen in her visions. It certainly worked on Sirius as he cupped her cheek and said, “I’d like to kiss you now. Is that okay?”

Baldra nodded her assent and Sirius kissed her sweetly for a few moments before deepening it into something decidedly less sweet. The heat grew between them and Baldra allowed herself to enjoy Sirius’ efforts. Yes, his methods did seem to be effective on Midgardian women if the level of expertise he exhibited was anything to go by.

When Sirius was finally spent, he curled up around Baldra, kissed her shoulder and told her to sleep. He then immediately took his own advice and began to snore softly. She nearly snorted. Men.

Baldra laid with Sirius as she concentrated her magic on her abdomen. She’d found the exact right man to release the exact right sperm at the exact right time for the exact right egg. She searched through the hundreds of millions of single sperm cells until she found the exact one she needed and guided it to her waiting egg and ensured it was the one to fertilize it.

She waited on bated breath until she felt the conception. There was now a small barely-there life living inside her. Despite Seeing the success of her quest, she still felt immense relief at the feeling. The child that would be her salvation would be born.

Baldra quietly slipped from Sirius’ bed and left him sleeping like the dead as she gathered her clothes and made her way back to an uninhabited part of the country. She quickly un-shrunk her ship and set off to complete the next phase of her plan.

Sirius woke the next morning as the sun hit his eyes from the partially open curtains. He took a moment to close his eyes and stretch, enjoying the feeling in his muscles after an evening spent in pleasure. As he luxuriated in the feeling, he considered how he would get the lovely Bailey on her way as quickly as possible. Looking to his left he realized he was alone in bed. Extending his arm, he noted the sheets were cold. His conquest was long gone. Sirius smiled in happiness. He’d had an amazing night with a gorgeous witch who had the good manners to see herself out. She’d be back in her home country soon and he’d not have to worry about the perils of a Stage Five Clinger. The future may look bleak, but in that moment life was good.

Chapter Text

Baldra’s next steps revolved around nurturing a healthy pregnancy. That, and slowly, day by day, minute by minute, transferring her magic into the child growing in her womb. It was her own magic that bound her so strongly to Tyr. He could command her because of her magic, track her down wherever she went since the pure magic of Baldra Odindottir belonged to him. If she didn’t have her magic, she would be able to finally be rid of him. She could taste the freedom on the back of her tongue.

She didn’t really care overmuch what happened to the child. It was a means to an end, just like she was to Tyr. It needed a magical core that would be strong enough to hold its own magic as well as hers, and that was where the specificity of the single sperm of Sirius Black at the precise right moment became vital. Her Sight had shown her the way and she had executed the plan perfectly.

Of course, her magic had been inherently good and light, so the magic fueling her visions had priorities Baldra wasn’t concerned with. Like the life of the child. Baldra just cared that it was strong enough to absorb every last drop of her magic so she could be free from her tyrant. She’d take care of herself and the unborn baby meticulously to ensure it grew strong enough.

The magic wanted to give the spawn a chance at a good life. It did not want to be enslaved to Tyr any more than Baldra herself. So, it chose a wizard who would pass his own magic onto the child. The Midgardian magic of 617 was so vastly different from Asgardian magic, or even 616 Midgardian magic. Her Vision showed Baldra how to slowly transfer her magic to the growing child, weaving it into the child’s own magic to form a hybrid, a totally new magic that was not beholden to vows made by a young foolish Aesir.

Baldra knew this was the aim of the magic slowly leaving her being. She was fine with that. She may not care about the child, but she didn’t actively wish it ill. She knew she was being selfish but couldn’t bring herself to care overmuch. She’d set up what she could to aid the child, and that would have to be good enough.

She knew no other way to transfer the magic than the one Seen in her visions, so she didn’t have a choice anyway. Besides, it was probably better this way. Tyr would be able to call the child back to their dimension if the magic didn’t change enough to break the bond. He was vengeful and would probably use the child to track her if he was able to control it, so it was all in her best interest in the end anyway (in the darkest recesses of her mind she knew she would be safest if she eliminated the child once all her magic had transferred. She didn’t know whether to be grateful she hadn’t lost enough of herself over the centuries to truly consider it).

So, she followed the path laid out in her visions. She visited various planets and learned the concealment magics practiced by the inhabitants. She then got to work creating a cohesive concealment charm that drew from the strengths of each society. She already knew her future midwife would be able to cast the charm over her and it would be an added protection against Tyr’s search once she was back in her own dimension.

She would also journal her knowledge from both her recent crusade as well as the centuries of traveling with Tyr. She would rent a vault in the goblin bank on Midgard and make sure the spawn would be able to access it when it got old enough to understand and use the vast power it possessed. Her child would be powerful, and she wanted it to understand that power and know how to wield it responsibly.

However, she didn’t want it to come looking for her and she knew all dimensions contained a portal between worlds. Her kin would be an immortal like herself and may seek the portal in an attempt to locate her. So, she decided to make no mention of her true identity and the possibility of a multi-verse. Her people did not physically exist in this dimension, but were the subject of old legends. Seers of old had received visions of the Norns, and had written songs and epic poems about their adventures. Many were vastly exaggerated or just plain invented, but their names were not unknown in this universe. She did not want the child to know of her connection to the gods of old.

Before the final stop, she travelled back through Midgard and made her way to the goblin bank she’d seen on her last trip. She still had just enough magic to access the Alley and more than enough gold to do business with the goblins. She set up a vault for the child and made sure it contained all the knowledge and resources the child would need in its life. She left wizard money, non-magical money, tomes she’d collected on her travels, and the journals she’d prepared. She also included a vast sum of units to aid the child if it decided to explore the wider universe in the shrunken ship she’d purchased for it. With that last piece finalized, Baldra made the final leg of her crusade.

Six months after the conception of the child she was ready to give birth. Her pregnancy had been perfect, and she felt the last of her magic absorb into the child a few days before the labor. She followed her Sight to the planet of Sirius III (never let it be said fate didn’t have a sense of humor) and found the midwife from her visions.

Upon meeting the woman, Baldra wove a compelling story about an abusive husband and terror at being found by his relentless drive to control her. She cried desperately about a concealment charm she’d discovered while fleeing but the helplessness of not having the magic to cast it. She would do anything to protect the child but knew all would be lost if the child could be tracked. It even had the advantage of being mostly true. The woman didn’t need to know her concern was more for herself than the child. The healer was a powerful hedge witch in her own right and immediately agreed to place the charm.

After 32 hours the child made its debut into the world. Baldra looked down at her daughter and felt nothing but relief. She’d done it. She’d freed herself and given the child as much protection as she could. She would never be able to love it. Her heart was too dam
aged to truly open itself to the emotion ever again, but she hoped it would have a good life.
The hedge witch had wasted no time after the birth, casting the spell over mother and child, but both were eager to get the pair off Sirius III. She’d Seen herself taking the child back to Midgard, but didn’t want to waste any time lest the cosmos pull her back to her home dimension before she could drop off the girl. Now that she would no longer have the power of Sight to guide her, she didn’t want to take any chances.

Baldra thanked the witch and began the journey back to Midgard. It was a short trip, for which she was grateful. She did not think she was capable of making a connection to the child, but she didn’t want to risk it. The child really was extraordinarily cute.

She landed her ship in a well-hidden alcove within a forest near a small town just outside London. Before she’d lost too much of her power, she’d woven concealment magic into every inch of the ship, so she was not worried about being seen. She would leave the ship behind when she felt the cosmos pulling her back to 616. The spells were too powerful, and Tyr would probably be able to track her signature back to the ship if she tried to take it with her. She’d already made contingencies for this back home.

She could no longer shrink the ship, so she placed the ward stones she’d prepared beforehand in the appropriate points to activate them and watched her ship disappear. She then made her way to the small town where she ordered a car to Charing Cross.

She arrived on a clear Wednesday evening and easily found her way back to Sirius’ flat. She would have liked to arrive before he got home from work, but she could no longer dismantle his wards. She’d Seen herself leaving the child with him, but without her magic she still felt uneasy as she knocked.

She heard footsteps make their way to the door and then his voice asked, “Who’s there?”

“Um, Hi Sirius? I don’t know if you remember me, we met a few months ago. Um, it’s Bailey?” She made sure to infuse her voice with helpless uncertainty in the hopes the latent gentlemanly instincts he’d lied about would show through.

It mostly worked as he opened the door, even if it was slow and suspicious, with a wand pointed at her face.

“What do you have strapped to your chest,” he asked distrustfully.

Baldra slowly angled her body and pulled back the fabric of the wrap to show the infant asleep against her body. Sirius’ eyes shot straight into his hair and she used his shock to push past him into his flat. She might no longer have her magic, but she is still Aesir. No mortal human, magic or no, could really ever hope to harm her.

Sirius stood in dumbfounded terror as he tried to remember when he’d met Bailey. It was just as the war was starting to gain traction, but before it was too bad. It was the day Fabian Prewett had nearly lost his right arm. Gideon had just barely managed to get them out of there and to St Mungos in time. He and James had gone to the The Hopping Pot to drink away the tension and allow the relief that Fabian was going to be fine to take its place. He’d met the smoking hot American bird and had some of the best sex of his life. That was the end of September. It was now the end of April.

“Now wait a minute,” Sirius thundered after he’d completed his mental math. “What are you doing on my doorstep? We met less than 7 months ago! There is no way that kid is mine!”

Baldra sighed and sank into his couch. Dropping the American accent, she replied, “Yes, about that. I am not exactly human. Or that is to say, I am not human at all.”

Sirius paled. “What the fuck are you talking about? What the fuck are you?” He wanted to point his wand at her, but she was holding the child against her chest. He thought Bailey was full of shit, but wasn’t willing to risk hurting the child regardless.

Baldra observed Sirius wearily. “My name is unimportant. I am an immortal being from another world.”

Sirius’ eyes widened as he stared at the crazy lady on his couch. James was so right. Any woman who would fall for his bullshit had to be out of her mind.

“Are you actually for real right now?” Sirius asked incredulously.

“Yes. The gestational period of my people is only around 28 Earth weeks, give or take. I have been with no one else in years. There is no doubt that you are the father.”

Sirius spluttered. “You’re actually serious. You honestly expect me to believe you are an immortal being from another world? Just so you can dump your kid on me?” Distantly Sirius congratulated himself on not making a serious Sirius joke at a time like this. He really was growing up.

Baldra’s face darkened. “This is not about you. I made a foolish mistake as a young naïve girl in love. My powers were bound to a war god and have been used to bring nothing but darkness and pain to innocent peoples across the galaxies for hundreds of years.” Baldra turned away from Sirius’ stunned face. “In order to free myself from the chains of enslavement I had to remove the magic from my body, for it was the magic that bound me to him. The only way I knew to do this was by transferring it to a child as it grew inside me.”

Sirius was stunned nearly speechless. Nearly. “You…you’re crazy. You are trying to tell me you purposely entrapped me into impregnating you so you could dump your problems on an innocent kid?!?”

Baldra was unmoved. “You cannot even begin to understand the suffering I’ve endured, mortal. The suffering I’ve caused. It had to stop, and I was ordered not to end myself by the one who owned me. I had overlooked mentioning my Sight when the man was manipulating me into telling him the ins and outs of my powers. It was not a gift I ever considered using so it never even crossed my mind. It was the one weapon I had that he could not take from me due to his own ignorance of its existence. He was far enough from Oorga that I was able to tap into the power without him suspecting. It showed me a way out and I took it.”

“Wow, you’re a real piece of work, aren’t you? If I believed any of this bull, I’d tell you what a selfish, shitty being you are.”

Baldra removed the fabric holding the child to her chest and set her down on the couch next to the bag of supplies she’d brought for the girl. She slowly approached Sirius and he eyed her wearily, still scared to use his wand to defend himself with the child unprotected in such close range. Baldra calmly placed her hand on his chest and slid it up cup his face. Sirius’ eyes narrowed before her hand moved blindly fast to his neck and the diminutive woman lifted him one handed from the ground as if he weighed nothing at all. Her eyes filled with heat as she tossed him against the wall.

“That was to prove a point, mortal, be glad I wish you no harm.”

Sirius sat up against the wall and slowly used it to push himself up while clutching his neck and trying to catch his breath. He was beginning to think she might not be human after all. How was this his life?

“I am leaving the child with you. I do not care what you choose to do with her. If you want to keep her that is your choice. If you want to give her away that is your choice as well. I have done everything I am willing to do for her and believe I have sufficiently protected her from any who may come looking for the magic I transferred to her. I have explained it all in this book.” She turned and placed a medium sized blue journal on his coffee table.

Turning back around she also pulled a key from her pocket and held it up. He recognized it as a Gringotts vault key. “I have established a vault at your bank for the child. There is information within that will help her in her life, as well as explain the circumstances leading to her creation. I have also provided all the resources she will need to live comfortably.” She tried to hand him the key, but he remained motionless.

She sighed in annoyance and placed the key on top of the journal. “If you decide to give her away, I will ask you to take her to the bank and have them key her magical signature to the vault and request the key be delivered to her upon her 11th birthday. That is when your people typically come into their magic, yes?” Sirius nodded dumbly.

“She will manifest her powers much sooner than her counterparts as she is in fact, not mortal. I have not Seen her entire future, but I have Seen enough. She is half human, yes, but my blood is dominant. She will be physically stronger than a mortal, but this will less apparent until she goes through puberty. She will also be intellectually more advanced than most mortals. With a lifespan more in line with my kind, her mind will require a vast well to hold the knowledge she will gain over the course of her life. I believe this is similar to what you call an eidetic memory on your planet. You will probably be able to disguise her abilities using this explanation.”

Sirius had finally been rendered speechless. James would be impressed.

“All of this is outlined in the book, of course,” she reminded, pointing to the unassuming blue journal on his coffee table. “I just wanted to give you an idea of her abilities to ensure you will consider her fate before deciding whether or not you wish to be rid of her.”

“You mean like you,” Sirius asked bitterly and with malice.

Baldra was again unmoved. She didn’t care what this mortal thought of her choices. “Yes, exactly. I have already considered all I have told you before deciding to leave her with you, so I’ve made an informed decision. I only wish for you to do the same.” With that said, she marched past his gaping figure and straight out the door.

Sirius stood stunned for an indeterminable amount of time, only broken from his stupor at the sound of the child waking. He shook himself from his trance and reset his wards before approaching the child slowly. He didn’t have much experience in holding an infant, but he’d been learning in anticipation of his godson’s birth. He gently maneuvered one hand underneath her neck and the other under her lower back as he lifted her up, bringing her into the cradle of his arms. He searched her face and instantly recognized that nose and chin. Her mouth and eyes were shaped differently, her face a bit rounder, but he knew that nose and that chin.

She slowly worked toward opening her eyes, and the sweetest noises were coming out of her tiny mouth as it opened and closed adorably. She finally got her grey eyes to open and they lazily looked around before making their way to his face. Sirius felt his heart swell impossibly and, in a moment, fell completely in love with the little life he’d created with a crazy as fuck goddess.

Looking down at his daughter in awe all he could think was, “Well fuck, Princess.”

Chapter Text

Sirius gazed at the child, basking in the warmth filling him up for a few minutes before his brain realized he really should be panicking. He was in no way equipped for fatherhood. He was an Auror in the middle of a war and lived in a crappy one-bedroom flat he only ever used to sleep and fuck.

He glanced to his side and saw the bag the woman had left behind. It contained nappies, clothes, formula and bottles. At least she hadn’t left him completely unprepared. Just mostly, and certainly mentally. Great.

He realized his breath was coming too fast and tried to calm down. James and Lily had been preparing for their own child and they would know what to do. They would be able to help him.

He picked up the wrap and secured his baby to his chest as he’d seen on Bailey. Grabbing the bag and the journal, he made his way to his fireplace and quickly flooed to the Potters.

“James, Lily? It’s Sirius. And it is also serious,” he yelled with badly concealed panic.

James came rushing to the sitting room with a 6 months pregnant Lily a few feet behind. “What’s wrong, Sirius,” James panted as he hurried through the door. He stopped dead when he saw his best mate standing in the middle of his sitting room with an infant strapped to his chest and bag of baby supplies in his hand looking like a scared puppy.

“…Sirius? What in Merlin’s name?”

Sirius snapped out of his stupor and shuffled to the couch. “You are not going to believe the conversation I just had,” he said before he filled them in on what he’d learned from Bailey.

Lily and James just stared at Sirius whose eyes never left the baby in his arms. Lily finally cleared her throat. “Sirius, I get that you think you share some features with the baby, but you need to be sure this child is yours. I mean…an immortal being from another planet? That’s like, crazy comic book stuff.”

Sirius looked up at his friends. “No, you’re right. It does sound insane. Slug and Jiggers will be open for another hour. I…would you mind if I left her here while I hop over to buy the potion? I need to know.”

Lily smiled warmly at Sirius as she moved to sit beside him and take the baby. “Of course you can. Wow, she’s a cutie. What’s her name?”

Sirius’ eyes widened, “She doesn’t have one! Merlin, I’m terrible at this!”

James chuckled and patted Sirius’ shoulder. “Relax mate. I’ll go with you to get the potion and you can start thinking about a name.”

Sirius started nodding his head furiously. “Right, you’re right. Of course you are. Let’s go!”

James rolled his eyes and followed his friend through the floo. He’d never seen Sirius like this before and he found it very amusing. Frightening and amusing. He hoped the kid was Sirius’ so their kids could grow up together and be best friends.

After returning home and adding the child and Sirius’ hair to the potion, they waited the required 20 minutes before piping some of the liquid onto the charmed parchment that came with the potion.

Slowly the words FATHER-DAUGHTER appeared on the parchment confirming what Sirius had already accepted as truth. He was a father.

He’d taken his baby from Lily as soon as he was back in the Potter residence. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. The world was dark and dangerous, but he’d just been given a ray of light. He’d have to move. He’d have to take more precautions. He’d have to make sure she was safe.

James sat next to him and leaned into his shoulder to get a good look at his friend’s daughter. “She really is beautiful Sirius, congratulations. Now the Princess just needs a name.”

“She’s not a princess, my baby is a queen.” Sirius smiled mischievously. “In fact, I think I’ll name her Francesca.”

James smiled, “Is that a Queen’s name?”

“Yep,” Sirius replied. “Francesca Black, but I’ll call her Freddie. Freddie is the ultimate Queen,” he said with a laugh.

Lily and James laughed, “You are not naming her after Freddie Mercury, Sirius!” Lily said with a snort.

“Am too. It’s a great name. Perfect for my little rock goddess.” His mother would also hate it. A Black named after a muggle recording artist instead of a constellation. It would bring so much shame to the house of her fathers. Like he said, perfect.

The Potters laughed and smiled indulgently. “Alright, Padfoot, Freddie it is. You want to stay here tonight? We already have the crib set up for our little guy. Freddie can use it until we get you all set up.”

“Merlin, Prongs, I’ve got a lot to do. I’ll need to find a better place to live and find a nanny and buy furniture and clothes and, oh god!”

“Calm, down, buddy. You got this and you got us. We’ll help you get set up and get everything squared away. We’ve already been interviewing people to watch our boy when the time comes – muggles, so we don’t have to worry about Death Eater spies. We’ve found some good options. Maybe they’d be willing to take both kids on and start with you earlier. You’ll take some time off until you get everything settled. Everything will be fine.”

Sirius smiled at James, so grateful to have such an amazing friend. They’d help him and he’d do everything he could to give his girl a better life than he’d had.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Sirius and Freddie moved into a much nicer apartment in a quiet muggle area of London. The building itself had excellent security and Sirius made sure to ward his apartment as heavily as he could to keep his family safe. Lily and James had their son, Harry. The kid was adorable, with James’ wild hair and Lily’s beautiful green eyes. He loved watching his daughter and godson grow and play together. The two were inseparable and Sirius knew the 2nd generation Marauders would be even more awesome than the first.

Times got dark and Lily and James had to go into hiding with Harry. You-Know-Who was after their son. Sirius was also going to go into hiding as it was made known he was the Potters’ Secret Keeper. They’d known there was a traitor in the Order, so they switched it at the last minute. Only Lily, James, Sirius and Peter knew. Sirius was terrified, and it broke his heart to separate the kids, but he knew it would be safer for everyone. Hopefully Dumbledore would end this madness soon and they’d be able to get back to living their lives in peace.

It was Halloween and Sirius wanted to check on everyone to make sure things were set and secure. There was a college girl a few flats down who babysat Freddie sometimes for some extra money. Sirius left his daughter with her and went off to check on Peter. When Peter wasn’t where he should be, Sirius panicked and started frantically searching for him. With an uneasy feeling he eventually apparated to the Potters to let James and Lily know Peter was missing.

When he arrived at the house it was in ruins. He ran inside and saw James dead on the ground. He froze and tried to force his brain to believe it was a lie. An illusion. Anything but reality. Someone was coming down the stairs and he froze and pulled his wand. The steps were very heavy, and he could hear Harry crying. Sirius’ unease grew until he recognized Hagrid’s form. The giant man was crying and holding his godson. When he saw Sirius, he started crying harder about Lily and James being dead, and You-Know-Who being gone.

Sirius had heard of a person’s vision going red with rage, but he’d always thought it was just people being dramatic. In that moment he knew the phrase to be true. All he could see and feel was pain, fury and a drive for revenge. How could they be so stupid? Of course, Peter was the traitor – the fucking rat. How could they have missed something so obvious? Peter was a dead man.

The next day Sirius found himself thrown into a cell in Azkaban with a dementor outside his door. The creature was certainly having a feast that day as Sirius thought of his dead friends and his baby girl abandoned with a 19-year-old kid. He felt his despair consume him at not knowing what would happen to her and if she’d be okay. Would someone take her in even though they thought her father had sold his friends out to a psychopathic murderer? What would happen to Harry? Sirius closed his eyes and let himself sink into the cold dark depths of the Dementor’s influence.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Abigail Miller woke with a start as she heard little Freddie’s cries. Mr. Black had not come to pick her up last night, which was very strange. She picked up the girl and walked down to Mr. Black’s flat. She knocked and waited, but no one answered. She used the key he’d given her to open the door and tentatively called his name. The apartment was silent. After a few moments she made her way deeper into the apartment and began searching for the girl’s father. The flat was empty.

Abby made her way back to her own flat and worried at her thumbnail. She had class in a few hours and would need to be getting ready. She didn’t know what to do, so she fed the child and called her mum. Her mother told her to call the police.

The police showed up about an hour later, along with child services. The social workers took the child who screamed and cried for Abby, her friend Harry, and for her Daddy. It broke Abby’s heart.

The police took the key to Mr. Black’s apartment and wrote down her statement. They told her she was free to go to her class, but they may have more questions for her later. Abby tried to concentrate on her studies that day, but it was pretty much impossible. In the end, Mr. Black didn’t come home, and she never saw little Freddie again.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Freddie had been taken to a small orphanage in Surrey. She was adopted for the first time about two months after her arrival. A young couple saw the lonely little angel and instantly decided she was the child for them. Freddie, however, was scared and nervous. She'd been taken from the only life she ever knew and tossed into an entirely new environment. This uneasiness caused the magic inside her little body to flare up more often than a magical child with a steady upbringing, not even considering the special nature of her power. The adoption exacerbated her anxiety as she was just getting accustomed to her new living situation when she was again removed to a new home.

Her new parents started noticing strange things happened around her. Things they couldn’t explain and made them uneasy. The young inexperienced couple didn't know how to deal with these bizarre occurrences in addition to the more commonplace child rearing issues, and immediately regretted their decision to adopt. They tried to make it work, but little Freddie could sense their disquiet, which added to her own. This created a vicious cycle of more accidental magic which led to more parental angst, which then contributed to an increase of accidental magic, and on it went.

Needless to say, Freddie was back at the orphanage within a few months. The stewards had seen such occurrences when the child first arrived, so they knew the couple wasn’t making up stories. She continued cycling through homes for the next three years. Every couple who adopted the child was warned of the previous failures, but each wanted to be the one that worked out for the innocent little thing. She really was an adorable child. Eventually they deemed her ineligible for adoption, and they did not allow potential parents to even see her.

The trouble was, the rejection of seven different sets of parents (some of them calling her demon, devil, evil), in addition to life in an orphanage, ensured that little Freddie wasn’t actually all that sweet and innocent. She was jaded and wary. It was a lot to put on a toddler.

Another unfortunate side effect of being shuffled from home to home was the inability to make true friends at the orphanage. Most children that had lived in the home long term held a grudge against Freddie for being chosen seven times. Most people wanted a child under the age of two, but she continued to be chosen until they stopped showing her to potential parents. Every time she was returned and then chosen again the other children's bitterness towards her grew, believing she’d stolen their chance at a family. Because of this she was an outsider, never allowed to join in any reindeer games.

Not all the children were satisfied with mere shunning. Some of the more vindictive little bastards also liked to push her around and steal what little portions the orphanage provided. The orphanage itself didn't starve their wards by any stretch, but budgets were always tight, so there was never any excess. Always just enough to remain healthy. With Freddie’s portions bullied away, the young girl often went to bed on an empty stomach.

Freddie started school when she was five. She knew she was tough and could take care of herself, but she was desperately hoping to find a friend. Just one friend. One person she could trust, that she could turn to when she needed some comfort. The closest she'd ever had was Melanie, but she was more like a mentor.

Melanie was fifteen when Freddie first arrived at the orphanage. She was never very friendly, but she'd give advice, and taught Freddie how to take care of herself. Over the course of their time together Melanie taught Freddie how to pick a lock and a pocket, as well as basic self-defense. The idea of theft didn't sit well with the young girl, but sometimes her stomach was just so hungry. She'd taken to lifting money from mums at the playground before sneaking off to the convenience store across the street. She'd then buy food she could stuff in her clothes before hiding it in her room at the home. That way she'd have a back-up if the other kids decided to take her dinner.

Melanie was gone, though. She'd left as soon as she turned eighteen. Now Freddie was completely alone at the orphanage and nervous for her first day of school. She wasn't so much nervous about the curriculum. Being a lonely child gave her few choices in leisure activities, so she’d taught herself to read. She picked things up fairly easily, so she thought she'd do well in class. She was wary of the idea of a teacher, as well as the interactions with the other children.

Freddie was a brave little girl, however, so after her mental preparations she raised her chin and returned to her room to grab her school bag. The school was only a few blocks from the orphanage, and Little Whinging was a peaceful town, so the children walked to school every day.

She quickly made it to the school and found her classroom. There was only one other child from the orphanage in her grade, but he wasn't in her class. She was grateful for this small favor, for he was a nasty little boy. Scanning the room, she noted the desks were grouped in blocks of four. Seeing no seating chart, Freddie quickly walked to the back of the classroom, deciding on the group of desks farthest from the teacher.

Slowly the room filled as children trickled in with their parents. Her eyes rolled to the ceiling as she watched some of the little brats whine and carry on simply because their parents were leaving them. Honestly, she thought, what is wrong with those kids? They'll get to see their precious mummies in just a few hours. There was one boy who was especially loud. He was rather large and round for a five-year-old. His mother was a tall, thin horse-faced woman. She was cooing at the boy while stroking his blonde hair in an attempt to calm him.

Freddie was watching the display in disgusted fascination when she noticed a small boy with a shock of messy black hair, glasses and raggedy old clothes more suited for the large blonde boy's frame. His head was bowed, but she could see him lift his eyes to survey the room. He noted the teacher's desk and then his eyes travelled to the group of desks farthest away. He quickly side-stepped the blubbering mother and son, making his way over to where she was sitting.

He took the desk across from Freddie, as it was the second farthest from the teacher's desk. His eyes never strayed to her, instead stared fixedly at the desk in front of him. This gave her a chance to study him. He seemed small for his age, like her. He also had that weary look of a kid who'd had experiences no child should have to endure. That was something Freddie understood all too well.

She was brought out of her musings when he quickly raised his eyes to hers. It startled her a bit as she'd been blatantly staring at the boy and had been caught quite spectacularly. She quickly turned away, embarrassed, and watched the rest of the students pick their desks.

Finally, the bell rang, and the teacher subtly began to corral the remaining parents out the door. The woman then introduced herself as Mrs. Phillips before telling the class a bit about herself and her family. She then began to call roll, eventually calling the name Harry Potter. The name struck something buried deep in Freddie's subconscious. It seemed so familiar, but the more she tried to recall any memories associated with it the further away they seemed. She looked around the room, but no one responded to the name and the teacher was looking over at their group.

Mrs. Phillips approached their table, calling out the name again with distinct annoyance in her voice. "I said ‘Harry Potter’." She was right on top of the black-haired boy now. "You need to say 'Present' when I call your name, boy."

The messy haired boy's head shot up when he was addressed as "boy". Freddie found this to be a very odd reaction. Why would he answer to "boy" but not Harry? Furthermore, he looked up at the teacher with a confused expression.

Mrs. Phillips lips thinned as she glared at the small boy and Freddie immediately took a dislike to her new teacher. "Mr. Potter, you will say 'Present' when I call your name. Do. You. Understand?"

She said the words slowly, as if Harry was stupid, and the chubby, blond headed ponce (who had cried for his mummy for a good ten minutes) started snickering. Harry looked up at Mrs. Phillips with fearful eyes that made Freddie's heart melt for the boy. He looked so small and vulnerable in those baggy clothes. Freddie may have only been five years old, but she'd been forced to grow up quickly. She understood that this woman, who was supposed to be their support, was now making a target out of a scared five-year-old boy. She may not have been doing it intentionally, but that hardly mattered in the end. Freddie eyed her new teacher with disdain.

Harry slowly nodded his head and the teacher called his name again, agitation plain in her voice. "Let's try this again. Har-ry Pot-ter." She spoke each syllable of his name distinctly.

The soft "Present" was so quiet Freddie almost couldn't hear it. She narrowed her eyes dangerously at their teacher.

The teacher finally made it to Freddie Black. "Here!" Freddie called forcefully. The teacher raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

"You will say 'Present' Miss Black. Thanks to Mr. Potter I believe we have been over this quite thoroughly." Freddie didn't respond, which resulted in an intense staring match between the little girl and grown woman. After a few moments of staring down the determined child, the woman sighed exasperatedly and moved onto the next name. Freddie smirked triumphantly at her small victory and vowed in that moment that Mrs. Phillips would never hear the word 'present' pass her lips.

Freddie was still reveling in her triumph when she noticed Harry's eyes trained on her from below the fringe of his hair. She smiled and winked at the boy, causing him to hastily lower his eyes and keep his attention firmly away from her the rest of the class.

Any attempt to speak to Harry throughout lunch and recess were firmly ignored. It seemed the boy wasn't looking for a friend, which severely disappointed the young girl. All the other kids ignored her, often times making fun of her status as an orphan. It didn't bring her down, though. It's hard to rub the absence of parents in the face of a child who's never been exposed to a real family. She was far too used to living in a group home to realize just how cruel their taunts were. It's all she'd ever known, and the brief encounters she'd had with "parents" left her wanting nothing more than to return to the orphanage.

Harry understood, though. He knew that this strange girl, who was the only person to ever be nice to him, was having the worst sort of insults thrown at her on a daily basis. He couldn't understand why they didn't seem to bother her. His aunt and uncle had been throwing their relationship with his cousin in Harry's face as far back as he could remember. They always told him he was nothing but a worthless freak with drunks for parents. He wasn't worthy of being a part of their family, so he was relegated to the cupboard under the stairs and told he should feel lucky they allow him any place at all. He had to do many chores in order to earn his place in the cupboard. "If you want to live here, you'll work, boy!" his uncle would scream at him.

Boy. Freak. Those were his names until he started school. He'd never known his name was Harry Potter. He'd never known he had a name at all. He'd desperately wished that one day a long-lost family member would show up at his uncle's house and tell him it was all just a big mistake. That he didn't belong with the Dursley's. He belonged somewhere else, with a family that was all his own. That day never came, of course. He was forced to watch his aunt and uncle fawn all over his cousin, spoiling him rotten. And rotten he was. To the core.

Dudley's favorite past time was pounding his small cousin to a pulp. "Harry Hunting" he called it. At least now he knew why. It had always confused him since he didn't know his own name. The poundings weren't so bad at first. It had gradually gotten worse starting at age three. Dudley was aggressive and his parents only encouraged this behavior. As Dudley was steadily growing in size while Harry remained small, he knew it would only get more intense as they grew older. He also knew that if he ever found a friend at school he'd only be giving Dudley another target on which to practice. Dudley told him so, in fact.

"Ready to start school, freak? No one is going to want to talk to you, you know? You won't have any friends. If anyone does want to be your friend, I'll know they're a freak too. It will give me a new person to hunt!" He'd finished his taunts with a look of malicious glee on his pudgy face that made Harry's stomach turn.

That was why Harry ignored the girl who'd stood up to his teacher for him. She'd tried to speak to him multiple times, but he refused to respond. The girl was even smaller than him. If he was to talk to her Dudley would hurt her; he wouldn't spare her because she's a girl. He couldn't stand it if someone was hurt because of him, especially the small black-haired orphan who sat across from him at school. He didn't know why, but he felt particularly protective of the girl. It was…instinctual.

It had been two weeks since school started, and Freddie still tried to speak to Harry every day, hoping that one day he'd finally speak back. She was walking around the school grounds during recess when she noticed him sitting alone on the curb. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the class bully Dudley Dursley, along with his mean little gang. They were all approaching Harry with a nasty glint in their eyes.

Freddie started making her way over as well. Harry was a very shy boy. He didn't say much (and never to her), but Freddie could see what kind of person he was, and she liked what she saw. She also felt a protectiveness over him she couldn't quite explain. She'd never made a conscious decision to feel that way, it was just there.

She was a few dozen meters away when Harry realized Dursley's gang was a few meters behind him. Freddie could see his entire body tense while he quickly rolled into a ball on the ground. The boys surrounded him, laughing. "What a good little punching bag you are, freak. Rolled up in a ball so nicely for us to practice," Dursley taunted.

The words enraged Freddie beyond anything she'd ever felt in her young life. All of those boys were much larger than Harry, and they were going to beat him up even though he was making no attempt to fight back.

She ran to Harry as quickly as her little legs would take her. The no-good bullies were still taunting him but were moving in to throw their first punches. Freddie quickly darted between them and stood over Harry's prone form. "Stay back or I'll turn you into a toad!"

She had absolutely no idea where that threat came from. It just sort of slipped out of her mouth. The boys stopped moving forward, but burst out laughing. "That's rich; you must be a freak too. You'll be helpful, though, as you look like you'll fight back. We need practice on a moving target as well."

All of Dursley's friends laughed, but Freddie felt something powerful stirring inside. She'd had this feeling many times before, each instance resulting in some strange, unexplainable incident. Suddenly the boys stopped laughing as they were all thrown back several feet, landing on their bums.

They stared at Freddie in a shocked stupor that was quickly turning to anger. She looked down at Harry who had sat up and was staring at her in wonder. She reached down, hooked her hand under his armpit and hauled him to his feet. The bigger boys were slowly rising to their feet as well and both Harry and Freddie knew they needed to be somewhere Dursley's gang wasn't, and quickly.

Harry grabbed Freddie's hand and started running. It was the only way he'd ever been able to avoid his cousin's fists. He led her around the school where they hid behind a dumpster. They were both trying to catch their breath as quietly as possible while listening for any approaching footsteps.

When Harry finally felt like they were safe for the moment he turned to Freddie with a grave expression. "You shouldn't have done that," he said quietly. "My cousin and his friends will always be after you now. He told me he'd never let me have any friends at school." Harry quickly realized what he'd intimated and started to stammer nervously. "Not that I think you'd ever want to be friends with a freak like me…It's just that now they'll think you are." He blushed crimson and averted his eyes to his lap.

Freddie was still caught up on the first part of his speech. He’d said his cousin's friends would be after her. His cousin. He's related to that blond blubbering bully? "Cousin? Dursley is your cousin?"

Harry was surprised that she was more concerned about his relation to Dudley than she was about him thinking she might be his friend. He'd been told he was worthless all this life, so he thought she'd be upset at his slip. "Erm…yeah. My mother was his mother's sister."

"Oh." This was all she said for about thirty seconds, which caused Harry to fidget. He was still mentally kicking himself for implying that she'd want to be friends with the likes of him. He was surprised by her next words. "I can't believe he treats his own cousin like that. What a prat! And I don't have any friends, either, Harry, and you are not a freak. I'd love to be your friend."

She smiled warmly at him and he felt his stomach do a little flip. Someone wanted to be his friend? He didn't understand at all, especially since she was risking Dudley's wrath. He looked back at her unsurely. "Are you sure? Dudley will be really mean to you."

Freddie looked down sadly. Maybe he didn't want to be friends with her. "He was never exactly nice to me before. I figure he'll be a lot worse after what just happened, anyway. I understand if you don't want to be my friend, though."

Harry's eyebrows shot up, surprised, and he quickly backtracked. "No! It's not that I don't want to be your friend! I do! You're the only person who has ever been nice to me or stood up for me. I just don't want you to get hurt because of me."

Freddie raised her head and their eyes met. Her face broke out into a happy smile. "I can take care of myself, Harry. So, friends?"

His smile mirrored hers at the idea of having his very own friend. "Friends!" he agreed eagerly. She quickly leaned in and gave him a quick hug. It was the first real hug either of them had received in a long time and they both relished in the feeling.

From that day forward the pair were inseparable.

Chapter Text

Freddie and Harry spent every moment they could together. The Vice Principal had a soft spot for the two small children and made sure they were always in the same class.

Harry was not allowed to leave his house very often, so they mostly only saw each other at school. They’d try to stay as long as possible after class every day so they could spend more time together.

Most days they would stay late in the library and read about new things. They both loved learning and shared a love of science and math. They read as many science books as they could. Harry enjoyed learning about the Earth and animals and Freddie loved technology and learning to build things.

One day Freddie found a comic book someone had left in the library. She showed Harry and they both became obsessed. They talked to the school librarian, and she said the town library might have them available to check out. Freddie joined and would bring them to school to share with Harry.

During the summers she started sneaking into his house after his family went to bed. She’d bring a torch and a comic book and they’d read them together. Harry’s favorite was Thor. He liked him because he is strong and can control lightening. Freddie adored Tony Stark. He was a normal person, not like Thor or Captain America, but because he was so smart, he was able to be extraordinary. She liked that about him.

Freddie would also make sure to bring other books for Harry when she’d visit his cupboard, as well as snacks. His family made him stay in there all the time and he’d get really bored. And hungry.

The years passed by this way, with the two children forming an unbreakable bond of love and friendship. The other kids continued to tease them, but they didn’t care. They had each other and that was all that mattered.

Time flew by, and soon April 16th, 1991 arrived, and Freddie turned 11. Harry had sneaked home some art supplies from school and had made her a card. He’d drawn a picture of Iron Man and added a sweet message written in binary code. Freddie smiled as she read it and her heart felt so big. She was so happy to have a friend like Harry.

There was an odd looking woman waiting for her at the orphanage when she got home that afternoon. The head administrator said the woman was from a special school and needed to speak with Freddie.

Freddie was nervous. She knew she and Harry should be in a more advanced school. They were both far too intelligent for their local primary. However, they both knew the Dursley’s would never allow Harry to go to a gifted school, so they’d decided to dumb down their assignments so they wouldn’t stand out. They could learn on their own and no one had to know what they were capable of. Could this woman know she wasn’t being challenged at school? Would the orphanage force her to go to a different school if they offered a scholarship? She couldn’t do it; she couldn’t leave Harry. She wouldn’t.

The administrator led the pair into an unused office and then left them to it. Freddie was surprised to be left alone with the strange woman but tried to remain calm.

“Good Evening, Miss Black, and Happy Birthday to you,” the woman said. “My name is Professor McGonagall.”

“Oh, erm, pleased to meet you,” Freddie replied with a handshake.

Professor McGonagall gave her a sad smile. She looked so like Sirius. Seeing the girl’s name and parentage on this year’s school roster had been a shock. She wondered if Sirius had known about her. His behavior had changed so much the year before the Potters were killed, but he’d been so secretive. She wouldn’t have blamed him for hiding the child’s existence. It was a dangerous time and he’d had a dangerous job. She’d wondered more than once since learning of Francesca if she had been the catalyst behind the betrayal. Betraying his friends to protect his daughter made far more sense than him being a secret blood purity fanatic. Especially since she’d never heard the family name Odindottir, strange though it was. The child was not a pureblood.

That didn’t account for the vicious murder of poor Peter Pettigrew. Maybe being forced to betray his friends to save his daughter had made him truly lose his mind. The Blacks were a generally unstable bunch. Inbreeding will do that.

Minerva sighed and shook herself from her thoughts as she addressed the young girl. “This will probably come as a shock to you, but I am the Deputy Headmistress of a special school - Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. There is another world, a world of magic, hidden within the mundane world. Hogwarts is a boarding school located in the Scottish Highlands dedicated to teaching young witches and wizards to use and hone their magic. You, Miss Black, are a witch.”

Freddie fell back into a chair and absorbed the words. “Huh. Yes, well…that does explain a lot,” she replied lost in thought. Both she and Harry had had multiple unexplained incidents over the years.

Professor McGonagall chuckled. “You are not surprised then. Have you had many bouts of accidental magic?”

Freddie hummed. “I was adopted a bunch of times and returned because weird things would happen. Like, I’d want a cookie from the jar and then I’d have a cookie from the jar. Or the dog would change colors. Freaked people right out. Half the people who adopted me thought I was possessed by the devil or something.”

Professor McGonagall’s lips turned down. “I’m sorry to hear that. You are certainly not possessed by any spirit. You were merely born a witch. At Hogwarts you will learn to control your power and will be less likely to release it in uncontrolled bursts like that.”

Freddie thought about that. “So how does it work? I don’t have any money, you know?”

McGonagall cleared her throat in discomfort. She was not looking forward to this conversation. “There is no tuition for the school. The students are merely required to purchase their supplies and uniforms, but there are funds set aside for students without the means to acquire these items.”

Freddie was relieved, but still worried about Harry. Not about magic, she was sure he was magic as well. One day Harry told her his aunt had shaved his head the night before. He’d gone to bed very upset as it had been poorly done and looked horrible. The next morning, he woke up to a full head of hair and an enraged Aunt Petunia.

No, she was worried because she could not see the Dursleys allowing Harry to go to a special school, scholarship or no. Especially not one that would teach him magic. She’d never known anyone more adverse to otherworldliness than Harry’s aunt and uncle. They’d freaked all the way out when they caught him reading The Chronicles of Narnia, for god’s sake.

Minerva’s dread grew as she watched the young girl’s wariness. She did not want to have to deliver this news, but she forced herself to continue. “That being said, you will not be eligible for this aid. The magic of the school is ancient and powerful, and still very much a mystery in many respects. One of these unexplainable phenomena is the Hogwarts roster. Every year the school generates a list of students in Great Britain and the surrounding Isles to be offered enrollment. It is how we learned of you, Miss Black. The roster reveals the students’ names, as well as their parents. This helps us to approach those, like yourself and other muggleborn families, who are not already familiar with Hogwarts.”

“Muggleborn?” Freddie asked.

“Ah yes,” Minerva responded. A muggle is what we call a non-magical person. A muggleborn is a first-generation witch or wizard, born from muggles. Now…”

“How does that work,” Freddie interrupted. “Is there some kind of recessive gene that allows for the ability? Have you been able to isolate the genome?”

Minerva stared blankly back at the young girl. “I’m not sure what you are asking, Miss Black.”

“You know, genetics,” Freddie replied. “There’s got to be something in our genetics that allows us the use of magic. Like the X-Gene in X-men.”

“X-Gene? And I do not know what X-men are,” Minerva replied uncertainly.

Freddie was immersed in the comic book world, but she knew many people didn’t read them. So, she let it slide. “Never mind,” she replied. “It is just a fictional story about a group of people with genetic mutations that give them special abilities. I was wondering what sort of genetic anomalies allow for magical abilities. Someone must have studied, this, right?” she asked hopefully. “It is so fascinating. I love science and would like to read more information on how it all works. Granted, biology is more Harry’s area…”

Minerva fidgeted like a recalcitrant first year caught out after curfew. She was the Head of Gryffindor, for Merlin’s sake. She would not be thrown off by and eleven-year-old girl’s impossible questions. “We are practitioners of magic, Miss Black, not muggle science. We do not spend our time trying to discover the source of our powers, as they just are.” There, she thought proudly. That should explain the phenomena quite nicely.

Freddie did not look convinced. “But…there must be an explanation for how it all works. It can’t just be chance. Are all children born of magical parents magical themselves? How does a child born of muggles have magical powers? It must come from somewhere.”

Minerva blinked. “No, while most children with magical parents are magical themselves, there are rare occurrences of a magicless child born of magical parents. They are known as Squibs.”

Freddie looked intrigued. “Well, don’t the people of your world want to know why that is? Why a child of magical parents would be born without magic?” She trailed off and then started muttering more to herself than to Professor McGonagall. “…If it were a recessive gene causing the phenomena, two magical parents should only be able to produce a child with magic as they’d both possess only the magical gene. It would explain the muggleborns. I’m sure the gene is rare if the magical world is able to stay so hidden. It would not be often two carriers met, procreated, and both passed the recessive gene. But the Squibs…hmmm…Maybe there is a duality. If there were two genes and both were required to create a magical child…like if there is one gene to give the child magical ability and another required to access or channel the magic? Like some sort of physical requirement within the body? If one of the mechanisms needed to perform magic was recessive an the other dominant it would explain both Muggleborns and Squibs,” she concluded and turned back towards the professor.

Minerva narrowed her eyes at the girl. This conversation was far more in depth than she’d ever had when introducing magic to muggles. Even the Granger girl did not ask these sorts of questions and she was quite curious. Her questions revolved around what she could do with magic rather than how it all worked. The magical world operated the same way. The magical community studied how magic worked, not why.

Squibs were also a topic one did not discuss in polite company. The idea of a child born without magic was horrifying for their community. Squibs typically left the magical world as quickly as possible and were not spoken of again, as if they never existed. The girl’s questions about the existence of muggleborns was even more taboo, especially after You-Know-Who disappeared. Pureblood supremists believed the magic was stolen from true wizards, but it was no longer socially acceptable to make the claim publicly. Others believed as Minerva did, that magic just is and all those born of magic are just born that way. To look for an explanation and start asking questions could be dangerous, and Minerva didn’t want the girl to start down that path. Especially not with her family history, which she still needed to explain.

“Miss Black. I appreciate your curiosity, but these are dangerous questions in our society,” she began, but was quickly interrupted again.

“Dangerous how?” Freddie asked.

“There are those who believe muggleborns are thieves – that they’ve stolen their magic from rightful magic users. Purebloods consist of families who can trace their magical heritage back centuries. There are a group of them, the Sacred 28. There are those within these lines that believe they are superior – both to halfbloods and muggleborn magic users. Some of them also believe muggles are lower life forms. Their views are quite drastic and about a decade ago our world was embroiled in a war with the worst fanatics. They wanted to kill muggles and muggleborn and create a superior race with the old Pureblood families on top.”

Minerva took a deep breath as she watched the girls’ eyes widen. “I do not wish to scare you from our world, Miss Black. You are a witch and you belong in our world with others like yourself. There are a few reasons you need to know this information before entering Hogwarts. We’ll start with your earlier questions. These can be very dangerous indeed. For the fanatics, they may believe you are trying to discover a way to create more magic users from muggles. They would take any study, especially using muggle methods of research, as a threat to their way of life. The other side of the war will worry you are trying to stop the creation of muggleborn magic users.”

“But why would I want to do that? I just want to know how it works. If we do, we might be able to help people from being born a Squib. Wouldn’t people want to avoid that? It’s awful, just throwing away your family just because they can’t do magic. Does family really mean so little to people in your world?” Freddie may have had bad experiences when it came to the families that adopted her, but like all orphans she’d long to truly belong to one. One that would love her unconditionally and take care of her. She felt like she found that in Harry. They may not be blood, but as far as she was concerned, he was her brother. She’d never turn her back on him.

Minerva sighed. She should have known a child of Sirius Black would be difficult in the end. She didn’t know how to explain such things to a child. “Many Squibs do not wish to stay in the magical world. It is very difficult to see all the magic around you every day and not be able to access it. Very painful. And it is hard for the family to see their relative suffer through that difficulty. It is easier for them to live in the muggle world, where there are others like them. The two are very different, Miss Black, which you will see when you come to Hogwarts. It becomes difficult for the families to relate to one another when they are living such separate and vastly different lives.”

Minerva sighed, the child did not look convinced. Minerva secretly agreed. She knew it would be difficult for both parties, but if she had a child of her own, she would not give them up for anything, magic or no. She did not understand how some people so callously cut off family members as if they no longer existed just because they did not have magic.

“I still don’t think that is a justification for treating your family that way, but to each their own, I guess. What is the other reason?” Freddie asked.

“The other reason?”

“Yes, you said there are a few reasons and the first is that magical people shun their family members if they don’t have magic. What is the other reason?” Freddie responded.

Minerva would have smiled at the girl’s cheek, but the worst part of the conversation was upon her and it dampened her amusement. “Yes, well. As I mentioned before, there are aspects to magic that are still unexplainable. We just accept them as ancient or wild magics. There is much of this magic in Hogwarts. Many believe the castle itself is sentient.” Miss Black’s face betrayed her surprise, but she did not interrupt.

“As I said, there is a school roster that tells us of the upcoming year’s batch of students. This is a book as old as the school that updates itself every September 1st. On that date it tells of every student to be offered enrollment for the next school year, along with their birth date and their parents’ names. If their parents are magical and familiar with our world, we send an enrollment letter to the family on the child’s eleventh birthday. If the child is muggleborn, or in your case, lives with guardians unfamiliar with the wizarding world, a home visit is required on the child’s eleventh birthday. That is to say, we know of your parents. Or well, we know of your father. His name is Sirius Black and he was a student at Hogwarts from 1971-1978. We have not heard of your mother.”

The child stared at Minerva with wide, surprised eyes and it broke Minerva’s heart. “The Black family is an ancient, well-known Pureblood family – one of the Sacred 28. I approached the goblins,” the child was clearly shocked, but showed distinct interest at the mention of goblins. Minerva continued quickly before she could be interrupted again. “The goblins run our banking system,” she explained. This did not seem to compute for Miss Black, so Minerva decided they could come back to it later. It was hardly the point. “I approached the goblins and asked about a potential inheritance. Sirius is the last of the Black line, so as his child, you should be able to access those resources.”

“Is he dead,” Miss Black asked quietly.

Minerva took in a slow, deep breath. Merlin this was going to be terrible news to impart. “No Miss Black,” Minerva responded.

The girl closed her eyes, looking like she was anticipating a terrible blow. “He’s one of the bad ones, isn’t he?”

Minerva did not look away from the girl as she responded. She was the Head of Gryffindor house, and now was no time to be a coward. “Yes, Miss Black. In the last war, Sirius was believed to be on our side, but he was a spy for the fanatics, led by a terrible wizard whose name we do not speak. He was imprisoned after the He Who Must Not Be Named was defeated and the Light won the war.”

Miss Black looked very fragile, but met Minerva’s eyes unflinchingly. “Please tell me what happened.”

“Miss Black,” Minerva responded hesitantly. “The details are not important,” she tried.

“They are important to me, Professor. If I am to go to your school, people will know who I am, won’t they? If Black is one of the old families? I need to know the truth so I can be prepared.” Freddie was trying to put on a brave face, but she was not feeling very brave. She wished Harry was with her so she could hold his hand.

Minerva closed her eyes briefly. This was even more difficult than she’d anticipated. “You Know Who was after a certain family. Sirius had been good friends with them since they were children. They’d gone into hiding and made Sirius the only one who could tell of their location. We’d known there was a spy on our side, but no one suspected Sirius. He was a Black, but he’d always been so against all the Pureblood dogma and seemed to hate his own family due to their fanaticism. Sirius turned out to be the perfect spy, and told You Know Who where to find the Potters.”

Minerva was gazing out the window as she recalled that dark day and did not notice the child go bone white. “You Know Who surprised them at their home and killed Lily and James. He tried to kill little Harry as well, but,” Minerva’s attention was drawn back to the child at her sharp inhale after mentioning young Harry, and she trailed off. “…the curse backfired and You Know Who was destroyed.”

Minerva became alarmed as the child started crying and hyperventilating. She couldn’t seem to get many words out, and just kept repeating “Harry, oh my god, Harry.”

Minerva quickly retrieved a Calming Drought from her bag and encouraged the girl to drink it. She’d only ever had to administer these to parents on these visits, never to the child. Eventually the girl’s breath evened out and she sat silently in her chair with tears steadily falling from her eyes.

Once the girl had gained more control of her emotions Minerva began to work out why the girl had such a dramatic reaction to Harry’s name. She knew Albus had left young Harry with his Aunt in Surrey, which is the same area as Miss Black lived. The did not live close enough to know each other, surely. What are the odds of Sirius Black and James Potter’s children coming together even without the influence of their parents?

She was honest with the girl when explaining the many aspects of magic that could not be explained. Perhaps magic had ensured Miss Black would be placed at a home close to Mr. Potter so they would be able to grow up together. It would not surprise her if the children had been close before Sirius’ betrayal. If they had formed a strong bond, she would not be surprised at magical intervention.

“Should I take your reaction to mean you are familiar with Mr. Potter?” Minerva asked.

Freddie nodded her head numbly. “Yes,” she said without further explanation. She did not want to discuss her relationship to Harry. It was too special, too important, and now too uncertain for her to be willing to expound. “Will he be invited to Hogwarts too, then?” she asked.

Minerva wanted to know more about how the girl knew Mr. Potter, but she could see the child would not say any more. “Yes, Miss Black, Mr. Potter will also be attending Hogwarts.”

Freddie looked up at that. Clearly Professor McGonagall had never met the Dursleys if she made that statement so confidently. “What if his relatives won’t let him go?” she couldn’t help but to ask. She wanted Harry to be able to attend so badly. She also wanted to attend but she wouldn’t go without him. Even if he hated her.

Minerva gave a wry smile at the question, despite the tension in the room. “They will not be given a choice in the matter, Miss Black, do not worry. As I mentioned, the curse that destroyed You Know Who was intended for Harry, but it rebounded back to the caster. He is largely viewed as the savior of our world, a hero. There is no one in the world who could keep Mr. Potter from attending Hogwarts,” she replied with unwavering certainty. Albus would move heaven and Earth if those horrible muggles tried to keep Harry from Hogwarts and magic. They would not stand a chance against him.

Freddie was skeptical but did not push the matter. She felt sick to her stomach. Harry’s parents didn’t die in a car crash. They were murdered and it was her father’s fault. Freddie was heart broken for Harry and terrified for herself. She did not want to lose Harry. He was her only friend, her only family.

Minerva felt a pang of sadness for the child, and cursed Sirius Black. It was clear the girl cared about Mr. Potter and was devastated to learn of her connection to the man who facilitated the murder of his parents. Happy Birthday, indeed.

Minerva glanced out the window to see the sky growing dark. It was too late to take the girl to Diagon Alley tonight, even if the child was in better spirits. “Miss Black, I need to take you to purchase your school supplies. As I mentioned, the goblins have agreed you are to be granted access to the Black family vault as heir to the last in the line and current Head of House. We will retrieve your key and then I will help you purchase all the supplies you will need. I will be back in the morning at nine o’clock sharp to pick you up. Please be ready.”

“Yes, Professor,” Miss Black replied in clear distraction.

Minerva sighed, cursing the tradition of birthday visits and feeling guilty at ruining the child’s birthday. She was an orphan, for Merlin’s sake. Her birthday was probably depressing enough without having dumped all this ugly history onto the poor thing. It was done, now, though. Hopefully the wonder of experiencing the magical world for the first time would cheer her up in the morning.

Freddie saw Professor McGonagall out and listened to her set up the morning trip with Mrs. Applebottom. After the Professor left, she turned to run up to her room.

“Freddie,” Mrs. Applebottom called. “You missed supper. I saved you a plate. Come eat. There’s even some cake for your birthday.”

Freddie didn’t turn around, too afraid to look at Mrs. Applebottom. She’d always been kind to Freddie and Freddie wanted to be in her room before she started crying again. “Thank you, Mrs. Applebottom, but I’m not feeling well. Can you please save it and I will eat it later?”

She began climbing the stairs again, but Mrs. Applebottom wasn’t ready to let her escape so easily. “Freddie, you do not have to go with Professor McGonagall if you do not want to. I think it is a great opportunity, and I know you are not being challenged at school despite how you try to hide it. But if you really don’t want to go, we will not force you.”

She sounded so kind and understanding that Freddie felt her eyes begin to water. She managed to choke out, “Thank you Mrs. Applebottom, but I really do want to go. I just don’t feel well.” With that Freddie made her escape and was not stopped again. She locked the door behind her and collapsed on her bed in tears.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Later that night, Freddie quietly opened her bedroom window and climbed down the tree just outside her room. She could not wait until Monday to see Harry. She needed to tell him what she’d learned from Professor McGonagall and beg him to still be her friend.

Freddie made her way through the woods and up to the back of the Dursley’s house. She carefully climbed up and over the fence and creeped to their back door. It was past midnight and the house was quiet.

Upon reaching the back door, Freddie pulled some pins from her pocket and began picking the lock. In a few moments she was in the house and quietly making her way to Harry’s cupboard. It still angered her every time, especially since they locked it and she always had to lock it back when she left. She hated locking him in there. However, it did make it easier that she didn’t have to sneak upstairs. There was less of a chance she would be caught when they were downstairs while the rest of the family was upstairs.

Harry stirred as he heard the door to his cupboard open, and he was disoriented for a moment. He quickly recognized Freddie’s form as she crawled into bed beside him. His smile began to fade as she tucked herself against him and buried her face in his neck. Her whole body was shaking.

“What’s wrong Freddie?” he asked worriedly.

She just shook her head. He could feel tears hitting his skin and his worry began to turn to panic. “Please Freddie, what’s wrong. You’re scaring me.”

“It’s so horrible, Harry!” she whispered brokenly. “I’m so afraid you are going to hate me.”

Harry was shocked. How could she ever think that? He loved her more than anyone. She was his best friend, and he considered her to be his sister. His only family. He could never hate her. “That’s crazy,” he tried to reassure. “I could never hate you. That is a scientific impossibility. Matter cannot be created or destroyed, an object in motion will stay in motion unless acted upon by an outside force, and Harry Potter cannot hate Freddie Black.”

Freddie just started shaking more and Harry didn’t know what to do. “Please,” he begged. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”

Freddie took a few deep breaths to try to calm herself down. She knew she couldn’t be too loud or she risked waking the Dursleys. In the back of her mind she dared them to try anything with her. She had direct access and regular visits with social workers. All she had to do was mention this damn cupboard and the Dursley’s would be in so much trouble. Harry asked her not to. He was afraid he’d be moved, and they wouldn’t go to the same school anymore. He promised it wasn’t too bad and he much preferred it to the unknown if he was taken away.

Eventually she started shakily explaining what she’d learned that afternoon. “A woman from a special school came to visit me today. She said she was from a magic school. That there is a whole other world hidden in the mundane world and we are a part of it.”

“We?” Harry interrupted. He was only slightly shocked at learning about a magical world hidden within their own. He and Freddie had shared many unexplainable experiences with each other over the years. He was afraid she’d be leaving him behind when she went off to magic school. He’d be happy for her, of course, but he’d miss her.

“Yes,” she responded quietly. “I’d never go without you Harry, you know that.” He started to interrupt again, but Freddie cut him off. “Please just let me get this out, Harry. It is going to be difficult enough already.” She took another deep breath. “Professor McGonagall is the lady, the witch, who visited me. She told me about a war that happened a decade ago, over some stupid blood purity rot that kind of reminded me of the Nazis. Apparently, these psychos wanted to cleanse the world of non-magical people and muggleborn witches and wizards,” she said.

Harry wanted desperately to interrupt, but she’d asked him not to. He just made a questioning noise in the back of his throat instead. Freddie understood what he was asking. “They call non-magical people muggles. Muggleborns are magical people with 2 non-magical parents. Evidently the idiots think the muggleborns are stealing magic from the ancient families or some such stupid thing. Anyway, she told me my father…she said my father was one of the bad wizards,” she replied miserably.

Harry wanted to respond, but manfully kept his mouth shut. He could tell she wasn’t finished and needed to get the rest of it out. “He…He was a spy, for, for wizard Hitler – I never actually got his name. She said they don’t speak it and only referred to him as You Know Who and He Who Must Not be Named. It was so weird. Anyway, the good side thought he was with them and he betrayed them. He was given secret information on the location of one of wizard Hitler’s targets. Apparently, he was only given the information because he had been best friends with the target, and they trusted him unquestioningly. Then he betrayed them, and they were murdered by wizard Hitler. He tried to kill their son, but the curse backfired, and he was destroyed. They don’t seem to really know how it all happened, just that the bad wizard was gone.”

Freddie had started crying in earnest, trying desperately to do so quietly. Harry’s heart had begun beating wildly while she talked about the curse and the bad wizard trying to kill the son. He thought of his nightmares. Of a woman’s screams and a man’s high-pitched, cruel laugh. Of a green light and then pain. He clutched Freddie to his body as he tried to get words out of a throat that had gone impossibly dry. “I’m the son, aren’t I,” he finally managed to choke out.

Freddie’s grip tightened and he felt her nod her head against his neck. “I’m so sorry,” she cried brokenly. “I’m sorry your horrible aunt lied to you about your parents. I’m sorry they were murdered. I’m sorry it was because of my father.” Her shaking intensified and Harry didn’t know what to feel first. He was feeling so many things he thought he would explode with it. He needed to concentrate on one thing at a time.

He didn’t say anything for a few long moments as he allowed himself to mourn his parents. His father hadn’t been a drunk who’d gotten them killed. He’d been attacked by a prejudiced lunatic bent on genocide. They hadn’t been worthless people. They’d been standing up to him, trying to fight him. They must have been doing a good job of it if they’d made themselves such a target. He allowed himself to feel pride in that. To know his parents were brave, strong, and fought for what was right.

He knew he would need to take more time to think about his parents and mourn their loss anew, but he also needed to reassure his sister. “You have nothing to be sorry for,” he finally replied, not loosening his grip on her for a second.

His words didn’t seem to do much for her grief, so he tried to think of the right thing to say to make her understand. Despite the sadness in his heart, he smiled when it came to him. It was something she’d said to him on his last birthday. Something he’d carried with him ever since and had made him feel better in his darker times with the Dursleys.

“Freddie, do you remember my last birthday? You came to visit me that night and brought me a cupcake and the new Thor comic? I was upset because Dudley had set up an elaborate joke to pretend they were celebrating my birthday and had got me a cake and presents. Everything I opened was an old, worn piece of clothing he’d outgrown or chemicals to clean with. He ate the entire cake while I cried. He laughed and told me I was stupid for ever believing anyone would want to celebrate my birth. After all, no one would be happy a freak like me was born. It hurt so much,” he remembered sadly. It wasn’t the words or the actions that had been so devastating (as painful as they were), but that his own cousin was the one treating him so cruelly. He had lived his whole life desperate for his family’s love.

Freddie nodded her head, tears streaming from her eyes. She thought miserably that he must want her to acknowledge how wretched his life was all because her father had betrayed his parents.

“Of course, you do,” he laughed. “You remember everything,” he said fondly. Freddie felt a little hope at the tone. He’d said that with such affection. Maybe he wouldn’t hate her, even if she deserved it.

“So, you must remember what you told me,” he said. She did remember but could not find her voice to respond. “You told me that we should feel sorry for Dudley. That we were the lucky ones. I thought you were daft,” he responded with a laugh. Freddie managed a smile against his shoulder.

“But then you explained. You told me he was trapped, and we were the ones who were free. That he has been raised to be a horrible, ignorant, cruel bully by horrible, ignorant, cruel bullies. Bullies who love him beyond reason. They shower him with such kindness while teaching him hatred. Of course, he wants to be like them, to make them proud. He loves them, they’re his parents and they’ve never given him a reason not to. You said he would spend his life trying to live up to the standard they set. That if he ever wanted to be a half-way decent person, he’d have face the fact that his parents are not good people. That they’d taught him wrong, that he’d behaved wrong. He’d have to go against people who, to him, had been nothing but loving. Otherwise he would never change, and he’d live his life being that person, and how terrible would that be? But you and me? We’re free from that. We don’t have to live up to anyone’s expectations but our own. We can both be whoever we want to be, do whatever we want to do and only worry about disappointing ourselves. I don’t know if you really ever understood how much that meant to me. To be able to look at Dudley and feel pity instead of jealousy and longing. To finally realize I am better off without their love, as it would just make me want to please them, and they are not good people.”

Freddie had known the impact her words had on her friend. They had not been spontaneous; it was something she’d thought about a lot. How different Harry would be if his Aunt and Uncle were kind to him. How their ugliness would have infected him like it had Dudley. She wished they’d been good people and loved their nephew, of course she did. But they weren’t good people. And in treating Harry so unkindly they’d freed him from any ties to them. He could be his own person, without worrying about disappointing them. She was just glad they’d had each other. That he’d had her to love him with all her being. She felt despair at the idea of their lives without each other. It would have been bleak indeed. But they had had each other.

She hoped they still would, but she couldn’t let his words go. It could have all been different. “But Harry,” she responded quietly. “It didn’t have to be that way. It is my father’s fault your parents were murdered. You could have been raised by people who loved you, people who were kind and taught you to be a good person. People whose expectations would shape you into the kind of person you want to be. My father took that opportunity from you.”

Harry thought about her words. He longed for the parents she spoke of and knew in his heart they would have been the type of parents who taught him to be a good, kind man. But. “Freddie, listen to me. We don’t know what would have happened if my parents weren’t betrayed. They still might have been killed. Others might have been killed instead. I might have been killed instead.” He felt Freddie tense up, but he went on. She needed to hear this the same way he’d needed her words the night of his tenth birthday.

“We don’t know what would have happened. And I’m not saying I’m not upset about the betrayal. That my parents died because of someone they trusted. Their friend. I am very upset about that,” he said giving her a squeeze. “But that has nothing to do with you. You’re free of him Freddie. Maybe he would have loved you unconditionally and taught you to hate people because of their heritage. Maybe you would have been cruel and unkind to others in order to make him proud. But he’s nothing to you, Freddie. You’re an orphan. Orphans have no fathers. But me and you, we’re family. We probably even knew each other before we were orphaned. And we’ve taught each other to be good, to be kind and how to love someone unconditionally. We only have to live up to the expectations of each other and ourselves. So forget him, he’s nothing. It’s just you and me, like it always has been.”

Freddie held Harry tight and tried to gain some control over her emotions as she absorbed Harry’s words. She was feeling an overwhelming sense of relief only eclipsed by the tidal wave of love she felt for her friend. There were going to be okay.

Harry sighed, “I can’t believe that witch ruined your birthday,” he lamented.

Freddie laughed and sat up. “I love you, Harry.”

Harry smiled up at her. “I love you, too. I can’t believe you ever thought I would hate you. You’re supposed to be the smart one.” They both laughed felt the tension between them ease. “Now tell me more about this magic business.”

Freddie grinned and did just that.

Chapter Text

Freddie arrived at the visitors’ entrance to the Ministry of Magic early Friday morning. Harry had started working for the Department of Mysteries after they’d graduated from Hogwarts. He’d originally wanted to become an Auror, but after the war the shine of hunting dark wizards had dulled. He’d always enjoyed science, but the wizarding world still didn’t have much of a taste for it. The Department of Mysteries was the next best thing. He could spend his days researching and experimenting with all the unexplained magical phenomena Minerva had spoken of all those years ago.

Freddie had gone in a different direction. She’d never lost her interest in engineering and technology. She’d spent much of her time at Hogwarts studying electricity and trying to determine why it clashed so profoundly with magic. With the help of her Head of House and his brilliance in Potions and magic in general, she’d discovered how to marry electricity and magic. It had revolutionized the magical community after the war. With all the devastation wrought by Voldemort, their world was finally realizing the dangers of shutting themselves off so obstinately from the rest of the world.

Plus, who doesn’t love Candy Crush?

Freddie had always been ambitious (she was sorted into Slytherin, after all), and it served her and the wizarding world as a whole when it came to her unrelenting drive to understand technology and how it can be improved by magic, instead of destroyed. She’d furthered the advancements in muggle technology as well and had a division of her company dedicated to purely muggle tech. They’d made several world changing advancements that helped clear ocean pollution and discovered water purifying techniques that improved the quality of life for the poorest people on the planet.

Her team was very close to revolutionizing clean energy in a way that would break the worlds’ dependency on oil. She was inspired by Tony Stark, of course. She’d never lost her love of comics and he’d always been her favorite. They’d started making movies a few years ago and her love only grew – for both Tony Stark and the actor who portrayed him. She just wished he was a real person.

The Avengers movie was released that day and she and Harry would be going to see it that night. They were both ridiculously excited. Freddie was looking forward to a couple hours with RDJ and Harry would be drooling over Chris Hemsworth. He’d never quite stopped holding a candle for Thor, either (even if he did find Tom Hiddleston totally adorbs).

Freddie was lost in her thoughts when someone sidled up next to her. “Morning, Freddie. You here to feed Harry’s obsession, then?” asked her cousin, Draco.

Freddie rolled her eyes. She was so over this shit. “It is Friday, Draco. You know that is the day we dedicate to that particular subject.”

“Come on Freddie,” he needled. He always needled when it came to Harry. It was very annoying. “Don’t you think it’s time to give up on this madness? It isn’t healthy.”

Freddie gave him the side eye. “What do you care, Draco? You dumped Harry 4 years ago, remember? You’re married to Astoria now and you have a kid on the way. You made your choice when it came to Harry. This is none of your business.”

Draco sighed dramatically. He was always dramatic. “I’m not allowed to worry? Just because we broke up doesn’t mean I don’t care about him.”

Freddie knew Draco cared about Harry. She knew that while he truly loved Astoria, it wasn’t the same as his love for Harry. She suspected Astoria knew as well. But Astoria also knew she could provide Draco with the perfect pureblood heir, something Harry would never be able to do no matter how obsessed the internet was with mpreg.

Harry had been heart broken. It was ironic that the same thing that had originally softened Harry to Draco is also what ended their relationship. It went back to that conversation they’d had back on Harry’s tenth birthday, and then again on Freddie’s eleventh. Draco, while he had come a long way from that toxic little pureblood supremacist his parents raised him to be, would never really be free of their expectations. They would always expect him to settle down with a pureblood witch and provide a pureblood heir. And Draco? He would always love them beyond reason and be willing to do anything, sacrifice anything, in order to make them proud. Even if he had to settle for a less extraordinary life with a less extraordinary love.

It was a cold comfort to Harry, knowing he was free from having to choose between the person he believed to be the love of his life and his family’s expectations. Not when his love had chosen his parents over their relationship.

It was probably for the best. Harry had pretty much become a recluse as it was becoming fairly obvious he’d stopped aging. They’d originally written off the Deathly Hallows as merely powerful magical objects that had helped him win the war. Now they weren’t so sure. He’d tried to get rid of them after he defeated Voldemort, but they always found their way back to him. He’d even tried snapping the wand, but it was whole, and in his hand, the next morning when he woke up.

Freddie was relieved, even as Harry was horrified. She felt wretchedly selfish, but she couldn’t help it. They’d spent a few weeks with her father at the Black family home the summer before their fifth year, and he had explained how Freddie came to be. He’d given her information on a vault her mother had set up for her before she was born and how he’d taken her there when she was a baby to key it to her magical signature. Sirius had visited the vault, hoping to find knowledge that would help them in the war, but he could not understand the language in the books.

She’d gone to the bank that summer and asked to be taken to the vault. They tested her signature rather than requesting a key and then gave her access to the vault. The first book she’d opened was a journal her mother had left her. Harry could not read it, and she’d discovered she had the ability to understand any language. Her mother had even called it The Allspeak, like in Thor! She’d laughed about that but supposed it did make sense. Space travelers would need to be able to communicate with other species or what would be the point? Harry had been so jealous.

Her mother had been a selfish hag, as far as Freddie was concerned. What kind of woman tricks a man into impregnating her just so she can use her child to fix her stupid mistakes and then dump her off? What a bitch, really.

She had been thoughtful enough to leave Freddie an amazing amount of knowledge. Much of the information found in the tomes and journals had led to world altering discoveries. She and Harry were planning to take a trip off world in a few years. Freddie was still learning about how the ship operated and they were both concerned about how time worked outside of Earth.

If what her mother said was true, Freddie was immortal, or at least had a much-extended life span. She’d become fairly obsessed with alchemy that summer, trying to recreate the Philospher’s Stone. She didn’t want to have to go on by herself. Her Head of House had been incredibly helpful in her quest to learn more. He’d found her all sorts of rare texts and given her well thought out theories that were invaluable in her research. That had been a terrible year for everyone, and she thinks he appreciated the distraction she provided. She just wished he’d been alive to see her finally succeed years later.

If their suspicions about Harry were true, he was the Master of Death and couldn’t die. It was looking like she wouldn’t need to convince him to use the Elixir of Life to stay with her. At least they’d never be short on gold.

The point is, they had time after the people they loved were gone to go exploring space.

She’d moved everything from the vault to a charmed bag with a heavy-duty extension charm after Dumbledore died. She’d been afraid the bank wasn’t secure and didn’t want the things her mother left her to fall into the wrong hands. Plus, she hoped there was information in the books that would help them win the war. They’d found plenty of useful information that saved a lot of lives, even if they ended up winning the war largely thanks to a sheer stubborn unwillingness to lose.

She’d decided to always keep the items in her extended bag and on her person. She even slept with it secured to her wrist. The war had made her paranoid.

Draco huffed when he realized his cousin was lost in thought and totally ignoring him. Rude. “I’m not the only one worried, you know. You and Weasley are the only people who seem to see him outside the DOM. He’s important to our world, Freddie, whether he likes it or not. And people need to see that he’s okay.”

Freddie narrowed her eyes. What kind of Hufflepuff did he take her for? She knew Draco didn’t give a fig about the general public braying for their hero. “You talked to Ron, then? And he told you Harry is fine and none of your concern, so you thought you’d give me a try?” she asked knowingly.

Draco sighed and pulled her into an empty office. “Look, I just want to talk to him, okay? See with my own eyes that he’s okay. I know it’s not fair, but I miss him. And I worry about him. Weasley has Lavender and they are about to pop out their second kid. You’ve got your business and are busy saving the planet. You both have busy lives. Harry works in the DOM all day and then goes home to that gloomy empty house and is never seen by anyone. How can I not worry? I think I’d worry less if he was out there with Weasley trying to track down Rodolphus. With Scorpius on the way, I just…”

Freddie couldn’t help herself. She laughed. Draco looked so forlorn, she really shouldn’t be laughing at him, but honestly. “Is that what this is about? You’re worried Harry goes home to Grimmauld Place, where I live as well, you git, he’s hardly alone in that house, pining away for his lost love?” Draco glared at her fiercely and it made her laugh again. “Honestly, could you be any fuller of yourself? It’s been 4 years, Draco. Harry is well and truly over you. He is not spending his nights crying over you and brooding about your upcoming child.”

Draco’s face had turned quite red and Freddie felt a little bad about teasing him. But honestly. It had been four years. No one is that good a shag.

Draco turned around and began to storm out of the office. Freddie got control of herself and grabbed his arm. “I’m sorry I laughed at your concern Draco,” she began insincerely. He rolled his eyes and tried to pull his arm free. She was much stronger than him, though, and he did not succeed. “Harry is fine, Draco, really. He just has other priorities. He’s not interested in dating right now. He’s not a monk, he enjoys the company of others, he just does it outside the wizarding world. There is too high a risk of a wizard selling the story of how he shagged the great Harry Potter for Harry to feel comfortable finding a casual partner in the wizarding world.” Draco grimaced, he hated the way the public treated Harry, and he knew how much it bothered his ex.

“I promise you he’s doing exactly what he wants, Draco. He’s enjoying his research, both with our pet project and his other projects. He enjoys living with me and going out to muggle bars on weekends to pull hot men who enjoy sleeping with him because he’s hot and not because he’s Harry Potter. He enjoys the time he spends with Ron, Lav and Rose and is looking forward to meeting Hugo. He’s not miserable and he’s not holding a candle for you. You can go forth and welcome your child into the world without the guilt of Harry’s supposed misery on your conscience, okay?”

Draco’s shoulders slumped. “Do you think I’ll ever stop holding a candle for him,” he asked quietly.

Freddie smiled sadly. “I don’t know Draco, hopefully when Scorpius is born you will finally be able to stop looking backward. You made your choice and you have to live with it. It is not fair to Astoria, you know. You need to let him go, not just from your life, but from your heart and your mind.” He started to interrupt so she placed her hand over his mouth. “I know you love Astoria, I know you do. But your heart has never really been fully hers. I’m not saying you can’t care about Harry; I know he still cares about you. He wants you to be happy. He was happy when I told him you were having a son. He said the kid was lucky and he knew you were going to be an amazing father.”

Draco began to tear up, so Freddie pulled him in for a hug. “I agreed, of course. You will be a better father than yours could ever hope to be.” She expected him to come to his fathers’ defense and was surprised when he remained silent. She pulled back and looked him in the eye. “Just remember that your son will love you and will want nothing more than to please you and make you proud. Be the type of man who deserves that sort of adulation. And remember what it felt like to have to choose between what your heart wanted and what your father wanted. Make sure he knows you will love him even if he doesn’t choose what you want for him. Give him that freedom to be who he wants to be and to do what makes him happy.”

Draco held her gaze as she spoke and truly listened to the words she said. He’d been quietly freaking out about becoming a father for weeks. He hadn’t had a great example, after all. He’d been given unsolicited advice by nearly every person he came across, but none of it spoke to him the way Freddie’s advice did. “Thank you, Freddie, that…how is it that you, who was raised an orphan and has no children are able to give the best parenting advice of anyone I’ve spoken to?” he asked with a wet laugh.

Freddie laughed as well. “It’s the outsider’s perspective. That and well - being an orphan sucks. You know how it goes…kicks instead of kisses, tricks instead of treats, all that jazz. But we have one advantage, one good thing going for us, and that is freedom. We are beholden to no one but those we choose. Your father, he got you into so much shit. You knew it was wrong, I know you did. But you loved your father and you wanted him to be proud of you. So you did what he wanted, and it cost you so much. During the war, and even after, with Harry.” Draco clenched his jaw and looked away. “I’m sorry, I know your father is a sore subject. I just don’t want you to ever be a sore subject for Scorpius. And you’re a good man Draco, I know you’ll do better by him.”

“My father does love me,” he said adamantly. “He does.”

“Of course, he does, Draco. That’s what makes it hard. If he didn’t love you it would be a lot easier to tell him where to shove it.”

Draco laughed and met her eyes again. “You’re right. Merlin it is so annoying that you are always bloody right.”

“And don’t you forget it,” she sassed. She glanced at her watch, “Shit, I need to go. Harry will be waiting,” she said and reached up to kiss Draco’s cheek. “I’ll see you later, give my love to Astoria,” she called as she hurried from the room.

Draco laughed, “I will, Freddie, and you better hurry up. You wouldn’t want to miss any of the time you are about to waste on that bloody useless project.”

Freddie turned and walked backward toward the elevator. “Too right you are Mr. Malfoy – I love you, by the way,” she said with a grin while hitting the elevator call button.

“I love you too, you ridiculous woman,” he responded with a laugh as the elevator doors closed.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Harry turned toward the door as Freddie hurried into the Death Chamber. “Where have you been? You’re late. We don’t have time to waste today, the movie starts at 5 and I don’t want to miss the previews.”

“I was just talking to Draco. He said all we do on Fridays is waste time anyway, since nothing will ever come from this project.”

Harry rolled his eyes. “Yes well, we both have plenty of time to waste if he’s right.”

Freddie just laughed and pulled her notes from their last session. They’d been trying to decipher the runes around The Veil, but were not having much luck. Her “Allspeak” ability had been useless - the only time she’d ever had a problem understanding any written or spoken language. It has never stopped being disappointing.

Harry had become fairly obsessed with this project. He was convinced The Veil was not what it was believed to be. No one else in the wizarding world was willing to even entertain the idea that The Veil was anything other than a portal to the afterlife. They allowed Harry his research because, well, he was Harry Potter and he could pretty much do whatever he wanted.

Of course, no one but her and Ron knew why Harry was so convinced. No one else (alive) had ever had access to The Resurrection Stone. He’d tried to sacrifice himself after learning of the Horcrux in his scar, but before he’d made it to Voldemort’s camp, he’d realized how to open the Snitch Dumbledore had bequeathed him. He’d found the Resurrection Stone inside and called forth his deceased loved ones. His parents, Remus and Sirius. Only Sirius hadn’t shown up.

He’d tried to call Sirius again after the war was over and the Hallows had made their own way back to him. Nothing he did would bring Sirius’ spirit to him.

At first they worried he hadn’t been able to move on after his death. That his soul was trapped in some sort of in between place. Then they started wondering if The Veil was even a gateway to the afterlife at all. Maybe it was a different kind of portal.

They’d both become interested in The Veil, but Harry had sometimes taken it to a level of obsession. He’d felt a stronger connection to Sirius than Freddie herself had. Freddie thought Sirius was disappointed she’d ended up in Slytherin. He definitely had his own prejudices. He ensured her he loved her no matter what, but she suspected it truly bothered him.

She knew her relationship with Professor Snape bothered him greatly. Severus had been a total asshole at first, but she’d eventually won him over. She was very smart, and after all, she had been an adorable child. It was difficult to dislike her when she really put in an effort. He had tried, though. He had tried really hard.

In the end he was won over by her intellect. She could tell he was intrigued by the questions she asked and the connections her brain made when learning potions. They ended up spending a fair amount of time together outside of class in private tuition. She’d grown on him over time and they’d formed a bond that grew incredibly strong over the years. He became involved in more than just her potions education and began helping her with her research into muggle technology and merging it with magic. He’d help her order muggle books and trade publications so she could continue to learn more about the advancements in muggle technology and had even taken her to a tech conference one summer. She often viewed him as a father figure, and she knew it infuriated Sirius.

She also knew how much Sirius missed James, and Harry looked so like him. Sometimes he would even slip and call Harry Prongs. Harry would beam, but it made Freddie sad. Harry was amazing and deserved to be loved by his godfather for being Harry, not for being a James lookalike. Sirius had suffered so much, though, and it didn’t bother Harry, so she never said anything.

So yeah, Freddie got Harry’s obsession. He’d always wanted a father and he’d chosen Sirius as the one he wanted. If it had been Professor Snape who’d fallen through The Veil, Freddie knew she’d be just as persistent. Of course, she also wanted to find Sirius if he was out there to find. He was her father after all, and she had grown to love him.

They had been crouched on the floor, working on copying down the runes on the bottom right side of the archway for hours. They had a theory that the runes were not one specific set, but multiple runes of varying languages layered to look like a single rune. They’d decided to copy the runes carefully by hand and spent an inordinate amount of time on each one, trying to determine how the grooves might overlap to determine the individual runes of each layer. They’d been at it for a couple hours when the door opened and Harry’s boss, Marlin Jenkins walked in.

Harry knew Marlin was just humoring him and didn’t believe there was anything to discover about the archway. He would still check up on their progress a few times a year to see if they’d discovered anything interesting. Harry was surprised to see him that day, however, as he’d just checked in with them a couple weeks before and he’d thought Marlin was off that day.

“Hey Marlin,” he called absent mindedly as he glanced back to his work. “We’re still working on deciphering the layer of these runes,” he informed. “What are you doing in the office today anyway, I thought you were taking the day for Annabelle’s birthday.”

Harry’s words distracted Freddie, as she was already wondering why Marlin would be checking in with them so soon after their last discussion. She turned to give Marlin her attention, but she was Stunned before she could turn all the way around. Harry made to stand but he’d not been fully paying attention and was stunned himself before he was able to reach for his wand.

Marlin approached and stood over their prone forms laying just outside the archway. He smiled a most un-Marlin like smile and Freddie felt her heart sink. Not-Marlin laughed manically. “You know, I didn’t actually think this would be so easy. The ministry really needs to update its security protocols. There are still Death Eaters on the loose, you know, even if it has been a decade since the war,” he babbled. Freddie felt the dread sink deeper into her stomach. “I mean, everyone, even outside the ministry, knows they can find Harry Potter conveniently close to the Veil of Death every Friday, fruitlessly studying meaningless runes in a sad attempt to retrieve his useless godfather,” he continued laughing cruelly with a heavy dose of insanity.

“You ruined everything, you know, Potter. The Dark Lord was going to fix this world and you destroyed all his good work. You and your little sidekick,” he spat. “How dare you infect our beautiful world with your disgusting muggle inventions, you filthy half-blood?” he screamed in Freddie’s face, backslapping her harshly. He roughly grabbed her arm and a cruel smile spread across Marlin’s face. “My wife was right, you are a traitor,” he hissed squeezing her arm and causing the scar Bellatrix Lestrange gave her to burn. It still ached some days.

Both Harry and Freddie felt the blood drain from their faces. This was Rodolphus Lestrange, the last of Voldemort’s inner circle to remain at large. Ron’s Auror team had been on his tail for months, but here he was, right under the ministry’s nose.

“I’m not taking any chances with you, Potter,” he spat. “You should have fallen to The Dark Lord’s curses too many times for me to risk it.” He glanced up at the archway. “No, I think I will send you straight through to the other side. There will be no escaping death this time.” He laughed. “And, really, I’m doing you a favor. You’ll get to finally see what’s on the other side of this stupid archway you’ve wasted your life studying.”

With that said, Rodulphus brandished his wand and sent the pair of them flying through The Veil of Death.

Chapter Text

Freddie felt her stomach swoop as she and Harry hurtled through the portal. The stunning spell was gone the moment they passed through the arch way and she and Harry had immediately reached for one another and refused to let go. Wherever the portal led, they would end up there together.

Many thoughts were streaming through Freddie’s brain as she and Harry screamed their heads off. She was glad they were together, even if they were going to die. She thought about her father, and how he was alone through this dizzying, disorienting journey. She thought of her mother, of how she and Harry had talked about eventually travelling off world. Of trying to find her. How they’d never get that opportunity now. Ridiculously, her last thought as they were blinded by a bright light and gained a frightening amount of speed, was that she wished Rodolphus had waited until the next Friday to attack them as now they will probably never get to see The Avengers. She’d really been looking forward to spending the evening with Tony Stark.

Freddie almost lost her grip on Harry’s hand when their momentum was suddenly arrested in midair before she and Harry landed on the cold, hard ground with only a slightly breathless, “Oooof!”

“What the buggering fucking shite,” Harry exclaimed.

“Yes, I quite agree,” Freddie mumbled, staring up at what looked like the ceiling of a cave.

“Me too,” came a vaguely familiar sounding voice.

Freddie turned her head to the sound and froze. Her vision was still a bit blurry and her head felt full of cotton. But…was that Robert Downey, Jr? It looked awfully similar to a fuzzy, indistinct Robert Downey, Jr.

Freddie shook her head in disbelief and scrambled to Harry, trying to pull him upright with fumbling, numb fingers. “Harry…Harry, get up,” she insisted urgently.

He recognized her panic and tried to pull himself together. After a few seconds they managed to find their feet, even if they were mostly holding each other up. They were both looking around them in dumbfounded shock when Harry exclaimed, “Freddie! We’re on the set of the first Iron Man! The portal is a time travel device!”

“Harry,” Freddie started with trepidation. “Harry, this is not the set of Iron Man.”

“What? Of course it is,” he insisted. “Look there’s RDJ and that dude who plays Yinsen,” he continued pointing out the two men in the room, who were staring at them warily, like they would explode any moment. “And over there – it’s the Mark I!” Harry was laughing delightedly like a total idiot.

“Harry,” Freddie continued with mounting panic. “Harry, this not a fucking set.”

“What is wrong with you, I’d think you would recognize the Iron Man set before anyone else. You’re the Tony Stark fangirl.”

Freddie knew she’d be embarrassed about Harry’s statement later, if her theory turned out to be correct. She could see the scruffy man smirking at her even as he was clearly bewildered. She took a deep breath as she tried and failed not to lose her shit. “Harry,” she began again with mock patience. “Look around you,” she continued with her arms held out to her sides as she spun in a slow circle. “If this is a set, then where are the fucking cameras? Or the crew? The director? Boom mics? Those little X’s made of tape they put on the ground to show the actors where to stand?”

“They’re called Spikes,” the RDJ look-a-like interjected helpfully.

Freddie pointed at the man emphatically and ignored his flinch. “Thank you, yes, where are the fucking spikes, Harry? And RD fucking J? Harry, if this is the set of Iron Man, where is he?”

Harry pointed dumbly in the direction of the look-a-like and Freddie noticed his face was missing something. She sighed and quickly located his glasses near where Harry had originally landed, thankfully still intact. She handed them over and watched the color drain from her friend’s face as he took his first clear look around the room. “Holy shit,” he breathed. Freddie could only agree.

He made his way to the look-a-like and gazed up into his handsome face. “You’re right, he isn’t RDJ, is he? He looks remarkably similar, but it is obviously a different person. He’s definitely taller.” The man huffed as he watched Harry with a combination of trepidation and unbridled fascination. “Who are you,” Harry finally asked.

“Tony Stark,” the man replied bemusedly.

Freddie had approached during their interaction and she was staring at his chest. “Look Harry, it’s the arc reactor. It really is in his chest, you can see it. It isn’t fake,” she breathed in awe. “Holy shit. Holy shit, Harry. I think we were actually transported to the MCU.”

“What the fuck are you talking about,” the man asked, finally feeling agitated. “What the fuck is happening?”

Freddie opened her mouth to respond, but stopped as she heard the pounding of many footsteps approaching the door from the other side.

“Shit,” the man cursed with feeling. “Shit, they will have seen you on the cameras. They are terrorists, they’re probably going to kill you.” He tried to grab them and push them behind him. “They need me alive, so get behind me while I try to figure something out.”

The man was weakened from his injuries and months spent in captivity. He would never have been strong enough to move Freddie, but couldn’t budge Harry in his current state either. He made a frustrated sound as the pair made eye contact and in unison reached into their pockets to grab their wands. Harry had gone for the Elder Wand, which he usually avoids. However, if they were going to be facing off against the Ten Rings and all their fire power, he wanted to be prepared. He could hardly believe his own thoughts.

“You maintain a shield, I’ll subdue the assholes,” Harry relayed with some excitement. It had been a while since he’d felt the thrill of this much adrenaline pumping through his veins. Freddie rolled her eyes, but agreed. Harry always got to take out the assholes.

The bad guys streamed in, but didn’t start shooting yet. They were telling the look-a-like to move, but he continued to stubbornly stand with them. Freddie sighed and turned to Harry. “Shields up, Harry. Are you waiting for a written invitation or what?”

Harry huffed, but started quickly disarming, stunning, and binding the terrorists. There was a mass of confused disbelief before the men decided to risk their prisoner’s life after all. Those with guns started using them. The shield stopped the bullets and Harry merrily continued to methodically disarm and bind the remaining bad guys.

Harry looked to Freddie and grinned. That had been more fun than he’d remembered. They were interrupted from their moment of triumphant revelry by the prisoner they were both beginning to believe was truly Tony fucking Stark.

“Holy shit,” he was panting.

“You took the words right out of my mouth. You really are Tony Stark, aren’t you,” Freddie asked.

“No, no…I mean, yes, I really am. But that – that was like some Harry Potter shit right there,” Tony exclaimed manically.

Harry and Freddie’s jaws dropped in shock. “But…” Harry spluttered. “I…what?” He turned to Freddie. “Freddie, what is happening?”

“How the fuck am I supposed to know, Harry?” she cried hysterically.

“Wait,” Tony said staring at Harry, then up to his forehead. His eyes widened dramatically. “Holy shit,” he breathed again. “You’re Harry fucking Potter.”

They all stared at each other speechless, but Tony was starting to lose his gobsmacked look, replacing it with glee. “This is so amazing,” he enthused, turning to Freddie. “He called you Freddie. Are you Fred Weasley? Did the books change you to a man? Where’s your red hair? No wait, Fred Weasley died in the last book. Is Freddie a nickname? Or did you meet Harry after the war and so you weren’t in the books?”

The questions flew from his lips with frightening speed and Harry and Freddie struggled to make sense of what he was asking. They’d both felt a pang at the mention of Fred Weasley. His death was still difficult to think about, even after a decade.

Freddie tried to ignore the grief that flared in her chest and focused on the more important questions. “What do you mean the last book? There are books in your world about Harry?” she asked.

“Um, only the most popular books in the entire world. I don’t think there’s a person on this planet who doesn’t know the name Harry Potter,” he responded.

Freddie winced as Harry groaned in horrified despair. “He said, books, though Harry,” she tried to reason. “That’s better than movies, right? I’m sure not everyone will look at you and think, ‘Hey, that bloke looks like Harry Potter from those books.”

Harry looked hopeful for about 2.4 seconds before Tony added helpfully, “Oh, no, there are movies, too. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix came out last year. The Half-Blood Prince will be released next year. All the books are out, though, so most people already know what happens.”

“I have never read the books,” Yinsen replied, speaking up for the first time.

The other three jumped, forgetting he was even there. “See Harry, not everyone has read them,” Freddie tried to encourage.

“Oh, well, I have seen the movies, so I am familiar with the story." Harry groaned. "Although, it is as you said with Tony and this RDJ. You look remarkably similar to the actor who plays Harry Potter, but it is obvious you are not him." Yinsen smiled slightly at their looks of relief before it faded and he continued. "I was sorry to see what happened to your godfather in the last movie. It is so unfair you keep losing your parental figures, Mr. Potter,” he added. Tony was nodding his head in agreement, a sympathetic expression on his face.

They both froze at the mention of what happened to Sirius. Harry looked to Freddie hopefully, “Do you think...”

“It’s got to be, hasn’t it,” she replied. “I mean, he was only stunned when he fell through the portal, just like we were. But if we are really in a multiverse situation, how will we know if he landed in this dimension?”

They stared at each other in thought for a long moment. Tony started fidgeting, clearly wanting to interrupt, but managed to keep quiet while they had their silent conversation. Finally, Harry seemed to have a thought. “What if we were right about the runes, about how there were multiple runes carved on top of each other? What if there are people out there who know how to use the portal, and they added the runes to direct their travels? You did say something about that a few weeks ago when we started really digging into the idea of the Veil being for inter-dimensional or time travel.”

Freddie started pacing. “True, that does make sense. And it has been decades since anyone has made any changes to the arch, so if it was set to this universe for us, it had probably been set for this universe for Sirius as well. But what of time. It was 2012 in our time, but if the MCU timeline is correct, it is only 2008 here. Who knows when Sirius may have ended up?

Harry nodded in thought. “I wonder why we did end up here in this cave, with Tony Stark. I mean, that’s one hell of a coincidence even if we were always going to end up in this universe.” His eyes widened. “I was thinking about how we were going to miss the movie after Lestrange pushed us through The Veil. Specifically, I was thinking about how excited you said you were to spend the night with Tony Stark.”

Tony spluttered and Freddie shot Harry a withering look. “Sorry!” he exclaimed. “I’m not trying to embarrass you, I’m just trying to figure this out!”

Freddie closed her eyes in embarrassment as she admitted, “It was my last thought as well.”

Harry laughed and Freddie flipped him off. “Maybe the person's thoughts can affect when and where the person shows up. But…that would mean Sirius could be anywhere, any time. Maybe even in the future or so far in the past he’s already died. That is if we are even right and he’d come to this world at all,” Harry said.

Tony cleared his throat, “Excuse me, Tony Stark here. If you know who I am you probably know what I’m capable of. You need to find Sirius Black, I’m your man. In other news, I can’t believe those words just left my mouth.”

Freddie smiled at him and then remembered he’d been held by terrorists for months, tortured, and had a battery installed in his chest. He must be in terrible pain. She approached him slowly and reached out her hand like she was contemplating touching the reactor. “You realize that over there is Harry Potter, right? Then you probably know some of what we’re capable of?” She turned to Yinsen, “He’s got shrapnel trapped in his chest, right. The magnet powered by the reactor is keeping it from entering his heart?”

Yinsen nodded and made his way over as well, “Yes, that is correct. It was too dangerous to try and remove the shrapnel and his chest is badly damaged.”

“Is it the bones, or just the tissues,” she asked.

“The structure of his ribcage had to be altered in order to fit the magnet in his chest,” Yinsen explained.

Tony had gone white and Freddie winced in sympathy. She couldn’t quite imagine the body horror. “Well, I think I can fix it. I uh,” she coughed in embarrassment and glared at Harry when he laughed. “I may have, you know, just for theoretical purposes, done some studies on how he could be healed, and um, created some potions that would help reform the tissues if someone were to have a giant hole in their chest. We already have potions to regrow bones.” She refused to withhold information that could help Tony, even if it was a bit embarrassing how devoted she was to her fandom.

Tony eyed her curiously, “You’re saying you figured out how to heal a fictional character?”

Freddie held her chin high, ready to retort, but Harry beat her to it. She smiled, he’d always have her back. “Hey, the regeneration potions she created have saved many lives in our world, she didn’t just do it for grins and giggles. She gets inspired and then creates miracles. She just so happened to be inspired by Iron Man,” he explained. Freddie smiled his way in thanks.

“Yeah, about that,” Tony replied. “Who are you exactly? There is no female Freddie in the Potterverse.”

“Well, my full name is Francesca. Francesca Black. Freddie is a nickname.” At Tony’s blank look she continued, “Sirius’ daughter? Harry’s best friend since childhood?”

Tony shook his head, “Sirius didn’t have a kid in the books. And Harry never had a friend until he went to Hogwarts and met Ron and Hermione.”

Freddie had begun to feel some rather righteous indignation. “What? Hermione? As in Granger?” she asked. At his nod she continued, “How is Hermione in the story and I’m not? She was attacked by a troll 2 months into our first year and her parents pulled her from Hogwarts and sent her off to Beauxbatons!”

Tony shrugged as he backed away from Freddie. “Dunno, just telling you what’s in the books. But, geez, how did Harry survive without her? She was always saving his ass.”

Freddie shouted, “He had me!” the same time as Harry let out an indignant, “Hey!”

Freddie turned to Harry and angrily complained, “They wrote me out of your story, Harry! What utter bullshit!”

Harry shrugged helplessly, “I don’t know Freddie, maybe the author felt having two sad orphans was too depressing. Or they wanted to make me even more of a sad sack by living the first 11 years of my life without a single friend.”

Freddie considered this and thought Harry was probably right, even if it was totally unfair. They’d probably given Hermione credit for everything she’d done. Looking around she sighed and decided to let it go for now. They needed to deal with the terrorists, the stolen weapons and get Tony out of there.

She turned to Tony and started uncertainly, “If they wrote me out of Harry’s story, I’m not sure how much I should tell you of what happened in the original Iron Man. I mean, what if I tell you who is behind your abduction and it’s not true in this reality?”

“Is it the same person who was illegally selling my weapons to terrorists,” he asked with heat.

“Yeah, in the movie it was,” she responded hesitantly.

“Just tell me,” he demanded.

Freddie bit her lip in indecision. She knew Stane was like a father figure to Tony and she didn’t want to hurt him needlessly. “It was Stane,” Harry said, making the decision for her. “He ordered a hit on you, but when the terrorists realized who they were attacking they decided to kidnap you and force you to create weapons for them instead.”

Tony looked as though he’d been slapped and collapsed into a char. A pained grimace crossed his face as his injuries were jostled and Freddie winced in sympathy.

“Uncle Obi,” he said quietly. “I can’t believe he would do that, I mean, he’s practically family. It would be like Harry Potter betrayed by Hermione or Ron.”

Freddie made a face at the mention of Hermione, but she let it go as she responded, “Or James Potter being betrayed by Peter Pettigrew?” Harry winced at that and Freddie shot him an apologetic look. “Maybe it wasn’t actually him, Tony. We can’t be sure the movies from our world are totally accurate. But…is there someone else in your company who could get away with selling so many of your weapons under the table without raising any red flags?”

Tony sighed and admitted, “Probably lots of people could do it without me noticing, but that is why I have Obi. I don’t…I don’t think it could happen under his nose.” No one said anything for a few minutes as Tony processed what they said. Finally he asked, “What else happened in the movie?”

Freddie looked to Harry and he indicated she should be the one to tell him. She’d seen the movie way more times than him, after all. “Well, you escaped in the Mark I and torched all the weapons creating a huge explosion. Yinsen…” she glanced at the man and then looked away as she continued, “he didn’t make it. Before he died, he made you promise you wouldn’t waste your life.” Tony glanced to his new friend in distress.

He looked back to her and bid her to continue. “Well, you sort of crash landed and the suit fell apart. You were walking for a while, but the explosion had alerted the military to your general location, and Rhodey found you and brought you home.” Tony smiled at the mention of his sugarbear. “Um…as soon as you got home you had a press conference where you announced you were shutting down the weapons division of Stark Industries. Obi had the board shut you out to try and stop the shutdown, and then he came here to investigate your escape. He found the original parts of the Mark I and tried to have some of your R&D guys recreate it. None of them could figure out the arc reactor, though, so even though they built him a suit based on your original design, they couldn’t power it.”

Here she glanced at Yinsen, “Christine Everhart showed you some evidence of your weapons being used to terrorize a town called Gulmira.” Yinsen sucked in a sharp breath and she continued, “You took the new suit you’d been working on and disposed the terrorist cell, destroyed the weapons, and liberated the people there.”

“Thank you, Tony,” Yinsen said quietly and sincerely. Tony felt uncomfortable considering he hadn’t even done anything yet. Not that he wasn’t planning on it as soon as he was able to get back to his workshop and create the Mark II.

Tony didn’t respond and so Freddie finished the Iron Man Q&D, “Um…eventually Stane decided to just take your arc reactor to power his suit. He came to your house and paralyzed you with some kind of sound frequency device,” she tried to ignore Tony’s wounded expression. “He um…he took the arc reactor out of your chest and…um…”

“Left me to die,” Tony finished quietly.

Freddie nodded sadly, “Yeah. Um, Pepper had your original arc reactor mounted in a glass case and gifted it to you in your workshop. You were able to crawl down there after the paralysis started to wear off, but you couldn’t reach it on the work bench. You thought you were going to die there, but then DUM-E grabbed it and handed it to you,” Freddie smiled at that, she’d always loved Tony’s bots.

Tony finally smiled as well, “Good boy,” he said fondly.

Both Freddie and Harry laughed, and he looked at them in question, “That’s what you said in the movie,” Harry explained.

They all allowed themselves to be amused for a moment before Freddie wrapped up the story. “You eventually had to have the big third act battle with Stane in his monster suit. You’d had some issues with the suit freezing at high altitude, so you tricked Stane into flying high enough to damage his suit. You’d already fixed the issue on yours. You ended up with him on the roof of your building and had Pepper overload the big arc reactor and fry him. Then you had a press conference where Christine Everhart goaded you into admitting you were Iron Man even though the shady government agents asked you not to.”

“Wow, okay,” Tony said while trying to absorb everything he’d learned. “Anything else I need to know? You keep saying Iron Man 1. Is there anything from the sequel I need to know urgently?”

Freddie thought about it. “Well, a large part of the movie revolved around you having a mental break down because the palladium core in your reactor was slowly killing you. You made Pepper your CEO and created a suit for Rhodey. You let him think he stole it, but I totally think it was your plan all along. I mean, your suits are designed for your biometrics, no way could he just take one without you allowing it.”

“That sounds like something I’d do,” Tony agreed. “So you are not worried about the Palladium, then?”

“Well, I already told you I can heal you,” she replied. “In the movie you ended up being given some old models of the Stark Expo campus your dad made and realized he’d left you a message that led you to discovering a new element. You wanted to name it badassium,” she said with a laugh. The others joined her before she moved on. “Anyway, you could probably still create the new element, but since the arc reactor won’t be needed in your body anymore, you won’t have to worry about it poisoning you.”

“Well that is a relief,” he said a bit sarcastically.

“It is,” she agreed, ignoring his tone. “There was also this Russian dude. Vanko. Apparently his father worked for your father in helping create the original arc reactor. But then your father had him deported and stole all the credit for the discovery. Vanko’s father ended up living a poor miserable life in Russia. Vanko went all Inigo Montoya on you to try and make you pay. He created his own arc reactor and used it to power some modified armor with whips.”

“Kinky,” Tony murmured.

Freddie ignored him. “He attacked you at a race in Monaco and was arrested. Justin Hammer broke him out and hired him to create armor for Hammer Tech.” At this Tony scoffed. “Yeah, it didn’t work out very well for him. Vanko ended up programming them to attack you and the civilians at the Stark Expo you’d revived. He even hacked into Rhodey’s suit and used it to attack you. It was pretty fucked up,” she continued. “Another third act battle commenced, you were victorious and Vanko seemingly died.”

“Seemingly?” Tony asked.

“Well yeah, they didn’t actually show it, but it is a family movie.”

“So what is the MCU then,” he asked.

“Marvel Cinematic Universe,” she responded. “The movies are based on Marvel comic book characters. There is also a movie about Thor, God of Thunder, Captain America, who is not dead, b-t-dubs, and The Incredible Hulk.”

“Oooo, Dr. Bruce Banner,” Tony enthused. “I’m a huge fan.”

Harry and Freddie smiled. “Well, he is a genius, I’m not surprised.”

“Do I ever meet him?” he asked.

“Probably in The Avengers movie,” Harry responded. “It’s the first team up movie where all the heroes band together. There was going to be an alien invasion, based on the previews. We were supposed to go see that tonight, but then you know, we didn’t plan on being interrupted by inter-dimensional travel.”

“It happens,” Tony responded, flapping his hand dismissively. “So you guys are staying, right? You gotta stay. Especially if there is going to be an alien invasion. We could use some Potterverse magic, I’m sure. Plus it’s really cool and I want you to stay. Please stay. You guys are my new friends and I want you to stay,” he said quickly giving them his best kicked puppy look.

Harry and Freddie looked to each other to try to gauge what the other was thinking. Finally, Harry spoke, “Well, I want to at least look for Sirius. Since we’re here.”

Freddie nodded and ignored Tony’s huge grin. “Yeah, and really, I have no idea how to get back. If Sirius is here, you know he would have been trying to get home to us, even if he liked it here.”

Harry nodded thoughtfully. Sirius would not abandon them again if he had any choice.

“Great,” Tony interrupted, clapping his hands together loudly. “Now we just have to figure out what to do with these assholes,” he said, pointing a thumb over his shoulder at the pile of Stupified terrorists in the corner, “destroy my weapons, and get back to Malibu. I’ll shut down my weapons division, you can heal me, then I’ll get to work on the Mark II and help you find Sirius.”

Tony started walking toward the door of the room that’d been his prison, turning around and walking backwards when he realized he wasn’t being followed. His companions were just staring after him in shock at his complete nonchalance. “Well, come on! Time’s a-wastin’!”

Chapter Text

Freddie, Harry and Yinsen followed Tony as he found a control room of sorts. Tony hacked the feeds and made sure to wipe any footage of Freddie and Harry’s magical terrorist take down. In the process he also found the video the terrorists had sent to Stane, which Freddie was able to translate. Tony tried to pretend like he wasn’t affected by actual evidence of Stane’s betrayal, but the trio weren’t fooled.

“So, what are we going to do with the terrorists,” Harry asked, deciding not to force Tony to admit to being hurt.

“Well, you said in I blew the place up in the movie, and that was my original plan. Take my suit out and torch the place – blow up the stolen weapons. That seems like a viable option to me,” Tony responded savagely.

Freddie and Harry blanched. “We can’t just murder everyone,” Harry replied slowly.

“Why the hell not,” Tony asked heatedly. “Those assholes are evil. They wouldn’t hesitate a second to kill any of you. They only kept me alive to try and force me to help them kill more innocent people. They’ve been torturing me for months!”

“They are evil,” Freddie agreed gently. “The fact that they would kill indiscriminately is what makes them evil. The fact that we don’t is what separates us. If we could just blow them all up, we would be no better than them.”

She could see Tony getting angrier as she spoke, “So, what? I killed everyone in the movie, right, and that was my plan to get out of here. So, you think I’m just like them?”

“Don’t be obtuse,” Harry demanded. He knew how much his friend idolized this man and he could see his anger was affecting her. “You’re a genius. It doesn’t suit you. When you fought them they were not already disarmed. They shot at you and you fought your way out. But we’ve already removed the threat. We are not fighting our way out, defending ourselves, as you were in the movie. You only ever killed people who were an active threat, in order to neutralize it. You do not just kill unarmed men.”

Tony laughed without humor. “Really, kid. You don’t know the real me, then. Freddie said they didn’t show Vanko’s death cause the Iron Man movies are geared toward families, so I guess they didn’t show the real me. The good, bad and ugly. Let me rectify that: I am the Merchant of Death.”

Tony expected the two travelers to react with horror, but was surprised when they both just rolled their eyes. “God, you really are very dramatic.” Freddie commented. “Reminds me of Draco, actually.”

Harry sniggered at Tony’s horrified face. “It does kind of fit, doesn’t it?” Harry commented thoughtfully. “Lonely rich boy, living the life their father expects them to, rather than the one they want.” He continued wistfully. “At least your father was on the side of the good guys. You have that going for you.”

“I can’t believe you are comparing me to that spineless, evil ferret!” Tony replied outraged. “I am nothing like him!”

“Hey, watch what you say about my cousin,” Freddie defended. “He made a lot of poor choices, I’ll give you that, but he also drew the short straw when it comes to the parents who raised him.”

“You’re actually defending him,” Tony asked surprised, turning to Harry, expecting him to be offended as well. He was disappointed.

“Look, I don’t know how they portray Draco in the books and movies, and probably a lot of it is correct, based on your reaction. But it is definitely not the whole picture,” Harry responded. He looked to Freddie and sighed. “You know, if you were written out of the books, much of his growth and change was probably left out as well. If it were up to me and Ron, we would have never had anything but a mutual hate relationship with him. You were the one who really had an impact on his behavior. Being his cousin, and also being in Slytherin.”

Tony was definitely surprised at this and gasped audibly, taking a step back. “You were in Slytherin?!” he asked aghast.

Freddie rolled her eyes. “Jesus, are you serious? The whole house system is total bullshit, I can’t believe someone as smart as you would be putting so much stock in it. A person can be ambitious and brave, you know? Loyal and smart,” she ranted, annoyed.

Harry rolled his eyes and tried to head her off. She could go on for hours. He’d seen it himself. “Well, the books probably put even more emphasis on it, Freddie, which makes sense.” She gave him a look of incredulous disbelief and he could see her gearing up to really let him have it. He barreled on before she could gain steam. “It’s a book, Freddie. There are characters, not people. It makes sense for characters to be less dynamic than real people, in order to tell the story the author wants to tell, impart the lessons and themes they want to impart.”

Freddie eyed Harry critically before rolling her eyes. This was neither the time nor place to get into an argument over house politics. Especially when they were in a universe where their world was fictional. “Fine, whatever. We are still left with the question of what to do with them. If our world is fiction in this dimension, there is no Statute of Secrecy, so we don’t have to hide ourselves. I still don’t fancy letting SHIELD know about us, though. I’m with Darcy, I don’t trust those shady jack-booted thugs.” Saying she was with Darcy was a bit of an understatement. Freddie loved Darcy.

“Excuse me,” Tony interrupted indignantly. “I’m gonna need to you to take back your slander. You compared me to Draco Malfoy. That’s just rude, and I’m not ready to move on.”

Freddie sighed exasperatedly. “I’m sorry I compared you to Draco, but I also think I know a different Draco than you. Can we just move past this right now? At least until we get you home and healed, and Harry and I have time to read these books, so we know what you think you know about us?”

Tony did not look at all mollified, so Freddie decided to sacrifice all of her pride. Tony Stark really was a soft spot for her. “Look, Tony, The Merchant of Death bullshit is just that. You were making weapons to help US soldiers defend themselves and the ideals of freedom and justice. I don’t know what’s real from the movies and comics, and what is made up, but I truly believe you are a good person. We discovered the comics in the 1st grade, and I’ve always loved Iron Man. My hero, though, since I was 6 years old, has always been Tony Stark.”

Tony had been looking away from her, but met her eyes in surprise at that. “Why me?” he asked quietly, seemingly in awe.

“You’re so brilliant, Tony. Look what you did here. You created something that will change the world while being tortured, starved and held prisoner in a cave. You can change the world with just your mind and your vision and your drive. And I think…you’re ready to do that now. After this horrific experience, you are ready to shed the expectations of your father and use your brilliance for something other than warfare. I mean…Jarvis, Tony. Jesus, he’s…You created him and he’s, like, got a soul or something. He’s amazing and he’s entirely a product of your big, beautiful brain.”
Tony had actually started to blush as Freddie became more impassioned. She really was a fangirl. He was not good at accepting praise, genuine praise like she was giving so freely. So, he decided to deflect. “Wow, changing the world with my brain, huh? No pressure.”

The other three smiled back and Tony cleared his throat. Their obvious belief in him was going to give him hives. “Okay, so yeah, whatever, we can’t kill them. What do we do?”

The group sobered as Harry and Freddie started to discuss the best way to handle the situation. In the end, they decided to shrink the Mark I and add it to Freddie’s bag. She tried not to let Tony’s, “Hey, like Hermione’s undetectable extension charm on her beaded bag!” get to her. Then they obliviated the terrorists to remove all the memories of their capture. After moving the bound, stupefied terrorists outside the cave, Tony requested they destroy the weapons. He didn’t want them to get in the wrong hands and was disgusted the terrorists had them in the first place.

As the sky darkened, they locked Tony and Yinsen back in the room that had been their prison cell, then set off spells to mimic flares high in the sky. It did not take long for the pair to see the Black Hawk helicopters making their way to the camp.

Harry and Freddie hid under Harry’s invisibility cloak as a group of Marines and Colonel James Rhodes exited the helicopters and began confusedly rounding up the passed-out terrorists and searching the camp for any hostages. Tony and Rhodey had their emotional reunion, and they watched as Tony and Yinsen were helped onto one of the Black Hawks and whisked away under the watchful eye of Tony’s best friend.

Once they were sure Tony was safe, the pair activated the portkey they’d made and were whisked away to Tony’s address in Malibu.

Upon their arrival at Tony’s house, the pair looked around the patio where they’d landed. The view was amazing, the ocean a vast expanse with the sun just coming up over the horizon. The sun had been beginning to wane back in Afghanistan, but it was the start of the day in California.

While basking in the beauty of a new day, the pair took a few long moments to consider the situation in which they now found themselves. How different things were going to be and what they wanted to do about it.

They seemed to be on the same page, as they turned as one toward the house. Harry easily bypassed the locks on the door and entered the empty house with his friend.

“Identify yourselves immediately, or the police will be contacted,” came a cultured British voice that brooked no argument.

“Alpha-468-Lima-895-Victor,” Freddie responded quickly.

There was a long pause before the voice asked suspiciously, “How do you know Sir’s personal override code?”

Freddie and Harry smiled. He sounded just like the Jarvis from the movies. “Hi Jarvis,” she started. “This is going to seem like insanity, I know, but we are from another universe. A universe where you and Tony are fictional characters. We landed in Tony’s cell in Afghanistan when we were thrust through the multiverse. We subdued the terrorists holding him prisoner and made sure to draw the attention of the military searching for him. When we left, he’d just been picked up by Rhodey. He’s safe, Jarvis.”

There was a long moment of silence that reeked of incredulity. How did he do that? “You cannot actually expect me to believe that,” he eventually rejoined. “How then did you get from Afghanistan to Malibu if you just left Sir with Colonel Rhodes?”

Freddie opened her mouth and took a breath, preparing to respond, but didn’t know what to say. She closed her mouth and looked to Harry. He shrugged and lifted the bangs from his forehead to clearly show his fading scar. “I’m Harry fucking Potter.”

Another long pause full of accusation. “You are telling me you travelled from Afghanistan to California through magical means?”

Harry nodded and Freddie finally got her wits about her. “You had to of seen us appear out of nowhere, Jarvis. I know there must be cameras on the deck.”

Jarvis’ grudgingly agreed. “Listen, I know it is out there, and that Harry is a fictional character in your world. Well…you and Tony are fictional characters in our world as well. I have to say, Jarvis, and I hope this doesn’t make you feel uncomfortable, but…I totally love you.”

“…If you know about me, Miss…”

“Black.”

“If you know about me, Miss Black, then you know I am an artificial intelligence. I do not feel.”

Freddie and Harry both snorted. “Right,” Harry responded disbelievingly. “I’m sure you have been completely unaffected by the fact that your creator was captured by terrorists and has been missing for months. Didn’t feel a thing about that, did you?”

“I am programmed to take care of Sir’s needs, and I have not been able to do that as he has been missing,” Jarvis replied evenly.

“Keep telling yourself that, buddy,” Freddie replied amusedly before sobering. “Look, we aren’t going to tell anyone about you, Jarvis. We know how people get about AI…do you have the Terminator movies here? Skynet?”

“Yes,” he replied tetchily.

Freddie nodded seriously. She’d clearly hit her mark. “Yeah, I guess that one is universal…multi-universal…whatever, you get what I mean. My point is we are pro-Jarvis and pro-Tony Stark. We aren’t going to out you. Promise.” Harry nodded his agreement.

Jarvis sighed. “Very well. Sir did give you his personal override, so he must have trusted you.”

Freddie sighed. “About people Tony shouldn’t trust…we believe it was Stane who contracted the Ten Rings to kill Tony. He’s been selling Stark weapons to terrorists under the table for years.”

“Obadiah Stane has been a part of Stark Industries for decades. He is practically family to Sir. The only family he has, really, other than Colonel Rhodes,” Jarvis responded in clear skepticism.

Freddie and Harry nodded sadly. They both knew something about having a small family consisting only of the few people you chose rather than those tied by blood. “We took this laptop,” Harry explained, gesturing to Freddie to retrieve it from her bag. He had his own moleskin pouch, but it wasn’t as versatile as Freddie’s bag. He mostly just kept the Hallows and the picture album Hagrid made him in his bag. “It contains a video made by the Ten Rings. Tony hacked into when we were searching the camp. He was able see where they sent it to Stane, asking for more money.”

Jarvis directed them to a station where they hooked up the laptop so he could access it. “I will find every connection there is to find based on what is in this computer,” Jarvis vowed seriously.

“Good, that’s good,” Freddie replied. “In the meantime, clearly Tony has read the books about Harry, do you…” she trailed off as Jarvis began to speak over her.

“I have been monitoring communication at The Pentagon. There has just been word that the search and rescue team looking for Sir has located him and are brining him back to base. They are requesting medical to be prepared,” he finished accusingly.

“Hey, don’t look at us,” Harry defended. “The man was held by terrorists for months after being hit by shrapnel from a bomb!”

“My apologies,” Jarvis conceded, worry evident in his tone. “You have seen Sir. Can you provide me an update on his health?”

Freddie sighed. “He’s weak and dehydrated, malnourished. He’ll have PTSD and nightmares, no doubt. As Harry said, there was an explosion when his envoy was attacked, and he took some shrapnel to his chest. There was a doctor there who operated on him and was able to keep him alive. In the movies in our world, they kept the shrapnel from migrating to his heart using a magnet powered by a car battery hooked up to his chest. He created a miniaturized arc reactor to replace the battery. When Harry and I showed up, he already had the arc reactor in place.”

“Sir has a hole in his chest,” Jarvis asked with well-concealed panic.

Freddie wished she could offer some physical comfort, but tried to reassure him verbally. “He’s going to be fine, Jarvis. I have potions and spells that will heal him up and rid him of the shrapnel. He won’t exactly be good as new, he’ll still have scars, but he’ll be healthy.”

Jarvis tried to let himself be reassured. He knew his creator was a survivor and he’d have to believe this instance was no different. “Very well,” he responded. “I believe you were about to ask where Sir keeps his Harry Potter collection.”

Harry and Freddie nodded and then followed Jarvis’ instructions to Tony’s personal sitting room. There was a vast collection of both fiction, nonfiction and scientific journals.

They quickly located the books written about Harry’s life and decided to take turns reading chapters to each other since there was only one set. When they got to chapter three, the pair smiled as Jarvis offered to take a turn. Apparently, he was an excellent multi-tasker.

Tony sighed as he sunk deeper into his friends’ embrace. Rhodey’d told him the next time he’d ride with him. Tony knew there wouldn’t be a next time. He hoped his friend would understand when he announced his plans. He couldn’t think about that now, though. He just needed a moment to think about nothing but the warmth and comfort of being safe in his best friend’s arms.

When they arrived at the base, medical personnel descended upon both Tony and Yinsen. They were led to a shared room where they were both hooked up to IV’s ready to pump electrolytes into their veins. The doctors wasted no time giving both men a thorough examination.

They were both malnourished and dehydrated, but Yinsen was in good shape otherwise. They had not tortured him the way they had Tony. He also hadn’t been blown up. It was good that he was there as the doctors had a lot of questions for him as the surgeon who performed the life-saving surgery on the American. After a thorough questioning, the doctors agreed it would be risky to remove the shrapnel in any circumstance, but especially on a base in the middle of the desert.

Neither man mentioned it was moot, as Tony would be letting Freddie heal him. Tony surprised himself at the amount of trust he placed in Freddie and Harry so soon after meeting them. They did help him escape without getting Yinsen killed, so maybe that was part of it.

After the examination, questioning and light meal provided, the real interrogation began. The military wanted to know how all the terrorists had been knocked unconscious and bound in the middle of their camp.

The group had decided to just play it completely dumb. Someone had obviously helped them, but how were they to know who? They’d been locked in their cell, after all. They claimed they heard what sounded like shots fired and a controlled explosion, but they had no clue what was going on and had just tried to brace themselves under something sturdy. Next thing they knew the military had shown up to liberate them.

Once they’d decided on their story, it was easy to ensure the evidence matched it. They’d set up the fire fight, one-sided. They’d blown up the weapons in such a way there would be little to no structural damage to the caves. The video evidence was wiped so there was no way to challenge the story. Tony and Yinsen were both adamant they had no idea how they’d been rescued or by whom. Eventually the interrogators had to concede to their story.

The pair was kept on the base for a few days as they regained their strength and were monitored by the medics. Eventually they could no longer ignore Tony’s demands to release them. The man was a billionaire. If they didn’t take him home, he’d pay someone else to do it. They couldn’t risk any civilian transport entering a warzone to pick the man up.

Tony asked Yinsen to come work for him as his personal physician and offered to set him up to research whatever he desired when they restructured Stark Industries. Yinsen did not have anywhere else to go, with his family gone, and he’d become quite fond of Tony. He agreed to Tony’s terms and joined Tony and Rhodey on a cargo plane back to the United States.

Harry and Freddie were nearly finished with the seventh book when Jarvis interrupted to tell them Tony was on a flight back to the US and would be arriving in about 15 hours.

Freddie smiled; she could hear the relief in Jarvis’ voice. “Have Happy pick up some In and Out on his way to the airport. Tony will want hamburgers.”

“I will relay the message, Miss Black,” Jarvis said warmly. He’d become quite fond of the two magical people who’d helped his creator escape the terrorists who’d kidnapped him. He’d especially enjoyed listening to her rant when the books got something wrong, mischaracterized someone unfairly, or gave Hermione Granger credit for something she, or Harry had done or thought of. Harry was rather put out about that as well. Even some his own insights and achievements had been credited to Miss Granger.

“Excellent,” she responded. “Let’s go ahead and try to finish this up and then get some sleep before he gets home. I want to be ready for the shit storm that will be coming his way after that press conference.”

Harry nodded and continued reading. They’d been able to get through the books in record time, thanks to Jarvis. When they were both too tired to continue reading aloud, he’d taken over and they’d been able to cover much more ground.

When it was over, they decided it was fairly true to actual events, as far as the big things. Everyone’s personalities, the good and bad aspects, had been embellished. The biggest variances occurred with Freddie’s exclusion and Hermione’s inclusion, obviously. The other big discrepancy was with Snape. He’d had to play a role in public when it came to Harry, and even Freddie as a friend of Harry, but in private he was much different. He’d never liked Harry, but Harry knew he played up the dislike in public due to his role as a spy in the war. He wasn’t actually that much of a bastard.

Dumbledore’s death had been the biggest test to their friendship Harry and Freddie had ever faced. Harry had witnessed it and believed Snape had been fooling them all along, maybe even using Freddie to get to Harry. Freddie refused to believe that. They’d all seen Dumbledore’s hand, and how weak he was becoming. She always believed there was more to the story. At the time, they’d had to agree to disagree. They never talked about it. Then they’d witnessed the man’s gruesome death and the affection he held for Freddie was obvious in his dying moments. He’d really loved her like his own child.

They’d watched the memories together and Harry had felt wretched. Both from the hateful thoughts he’d had about Snape and for the way he’d treated Freddie for months after Dumbledore’s death. Freddie was distraught at having watched her father figure’s murder and the reality that her best friend, her brother, was about to sacrifice himself for his friends.

It had all worked out, of course, but the last few chapters of The Deathly Hallows were very difficult to get through. Jarvis had taken over reading them as the two friends were too emotional to speak.

After it was all over, the pair was drained. They made their way together to the room Freddie had claimed and clutched each other in their sleep.

The next morning the pair woke up feeling better, but emotionally drained. Jarvis had prepared coffee and they followed their noses to the kitchen for their morning cup.

Harry made some omelets while Freddie cut up some fruit. They took their breakfast into the living room and turned on the telly. Every channel was blasting news of Tony’s rescue and return home. They flipped through the channels until they came across a channel with an anchor in the corner giving an update on the situation while a live feed of the air strip was displayed on most of the screen.

The pair watched as the plane landed and the back of the plane opened to reveal Tony, Rhodey and Yinsen standing and waiting to disembark. Tony made his way to Happy, who hugged his boss in relief. Tony smiled hugely when Happy held up the bag of burgers and gave his friend another hug.

They then watched as he made his way to Pepper, and the two had a brief emotional exchange. Pepper then said something, and Tony shook his head. Pepper did not look pleased. Freddie and Harry figured this was when she told him they were going to the hospital and he was refusing.

The group then made their way over to Tony’s car and everyone got inside with Happy making his way to the driver’s seat. As the car was driving away, the anchor started reporting on an upcoming press conference Tony had requested.

Tony leaned back into the seat of his car and let out a sigh of relief. He opened the In and Out bag and inhaled deeply. Happy was so getting a raise.

He offered a burger to Yinsen, who accepted, and then both men started eating ravenously. The military had provided rations, but it wasn’t very appetizing.

“Tony, are you sure you want to do this? Maybe you should take some time to settle back in at home before facing the press.” Pepper pleaded.

“Sorry, Pep. This can’t wait. I’m not going to change my mind, so don’t waste your breath.” He responded, not unkindly.

Pepper sighed, “I still think this is a bad idea.”

“Noted.”

The car was quiet as they made their way to the press conference. The only noise being the two men demolishing the bag full of burgers Happy had acquired.

When they pulled up to the building where the conference was being held, Tony got his first look at Obi. He looked the same as ever. It was hard to believe the man had betrayed him so thoroughly and then had the gall to stand there looking so normal.

“Tony,” he bellowed. “I was going to meet you at the hospital,” he murmured while pulling Tony in for an exuberant hug.

Tony tried not to stiffen. He didn’t want Obi to suspect Tony knew the truth. He’d perfected his acting skills over the years, portraying a certain image to the public, so he thought he did a pretty good job fooling Obi.

Tony followed as Obi made a big spectacle of his return and they made their way into the building, people clapping all around at his safe return. Tony glanced back and noticed Yinsen eying Obi’s hand on his shoulder with distaste. They quickly made eye contact and Tony shook his head. Now was not the time.

Tony just hoped Jarvis had been able to compile enough compelling evidence against Stane in the last few days to prove his treachery. He knew his friend would work tirelessly (and vengefully) to uncover anything there was to uncover. The laptop Freddie and Harry had taken had to be a good starting point.

When they reached the podium, Tony took a seat in front of it and asked everyone to sit down. He was still feeling weak from his months of captivity and didn’t know if he’d be able to stand for very long.

Looking at the crowd, he noticed Christine Everhart. He inwardly cringed. He’d never been ashamed of his sexual exploits, and he wasn’t ashamed now. But…with the way Freddie kept mentioning her by her first and last name, for some reason he did regret ever sleeping with the woman. From what Freddie was saying, she would continue to be a pain in his ass.

Taking a deep breath, Tony began his speech. “I never got to say goodbye to my dad…”

Freddie and Harry watched as Tony stood and made his big dramatic final announcement, “…And that is why, effective immediately, I am shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark International until such a time as I can decide the future of this company…” he continued speaking as people went nuts and Obi tried to usher him off the stage and do some damage control.

Tony then made his way through the reporters and out of the room like a total boss.