meets an old friend

"Professor, do you have a moment?" Jane paused at the door as the other students milled out. Alexandra was at her side, "Alex and I have been working on a project and we'd really appreciate having a Professor nearby."

"Before I say yes, how likely is this to result in an explosion?" Harry asked as he used his wand to repair the damage done by an errant spell on the floorboards in front of the dueling circle.

"It shouldn't result in any. Well I mean with transfiguration I guess there's always a possibility for an explosion." Alexandra replied, "Jane and I have been working on becoming animagi."

"We want you here for the final test so to speak." Jane finished, "You are someone that Remus' trusts so if something does go wrong, I know you will help him in case I either blow up or stuck as a she-wolf."

"Alright, if you two are sure that you've gotten everything worked out. But I do want to warn you, these sorts of transformations are very advanced magic." Harry replied to the girls. He also knew though, that his father and godfather had been able to cast the spell in their fifth year, so he knew enough to trust them.

Jane went first, holding up her wand she began to channel the magic inside of herself. She concentrated on the shape she'd seen during the meditations. There was a flash and where Jane Thornton had stood the space was now occupied by a brown-furred she-wolf with black markings that matched the twin moles on her left cheek. She circled around the floor of the classroom before changing back. "That was brilliant!" She said raising her fist in triumph, "Your turn Alex."

"Yeah yeah, hold onto your knickers, Wolfie," Alexandra said as she took her place and drew her wand. Like Jane, she began to concentrate and Harry felt the biggest shock he'd had in months.

Hedwig? Harry thought to himself. Sure enough, the blond witch was gone and in her place there was a white owl with markings that, like the twin moles on Jane's cheek, matched the freckles on Alexandra's face. The owl on the floor flapped her wings and took off shakily but swiftly righting herself and landing on Harry's desk. Changing back, Alexandra was sitting on the edge of the desk. "It worked! I can't wait to show Peter!"

"Who's Peter?" Harry asked hoping that she hadn't taken a page from Jane's book and fell for Peter Pettigrew. He had difficulty imagining the quiet hanger-on with someone as boisterous as Alexandra.

"Peter Prewitt, we grew up together," Alexandra said turning slightly red when she saw the widening grin on Jane's face. "He's been sick, so he stays home during the year."

The truth was that Peter Prewitt wasn't sick. He was a squib, kept largely hidden from the others by his parents. Alexandra swore that she would find a way to help him find his magic. Every year she brought him her old textbooks and notes. He wasn't capable of casting spells, but he was a very good potion brewer.

"Would you like to use my floo?" Harry offered, "You can tell him about it."

Alexandra nodded, "It would be nice to see him."

"You spent all of Christmas with him." Jane teased, earning a glare from her friend.

"And I go the school year without seeing him. Besides you and Roger, he's my best friend." Alexandra said before standing at the floo. She tossed in some powder before shouting "Prewitt House, Swansea!"

At the Prewitt home, Peter was doing his usual chores. He was trying to fill the void in his heart with busywork. He had overheard his parents talking the night before. Since he still hadn't shown any trace of magic they were beginning to discuss sending him to the muggle world. He needed a miracle.

Then he heard her voice. "Petey! Are you there?"

"Alex?" Peter said turning and setting his dusting cloth down before walking to the fireplace. Seeing the girl he considered his closest friend he smiled, "What are you doing in the fireplace?"

"I wanted to tell you, the project I was working on, you know the one? We finished it! I turned into an owl!" She was thrilled and it showed on her face. "The floo is open on our side, come in, I want to show you."

Peter nodded and stepped into the green flames. He saw Alexandra, her friend Jane, and an older man he didn't recognize. Alexandra took a deep breath to calm herself and changed into a beautiful snowy owl. "Merlin's saggy undercarriage..." Peter said softly, "That's amazing!" Alexandra flew over, landing on his shoulder and rested against his cheek.

Jane smirked and leaned over to Harry, "If I had my Da's camera I would have taken so many pictures of this moment." She said, "Thank you for letting her have this, I'm going to go show my boyfriend what I can do." Jane walked out leaving Harry with Alexandra and Peter.

Scene Break

Jane found Remus in the Library studying with his friends, there was a new addition, a girl in Slytherin robes she vaguely remembered as a Parkinson. She sat down beside Remus, throwing her arm around him and thoroughly enjoying the growing red on his cheeks. "So, I have a surprise for you, but since it's technically illegal I need you to follow me to an empty classroom." She said reaching over and closing his textbook.

"Do it." James and Sirius said at the same time earning twin glares from their respective girlfriends.

"Define illegal in this context," Regina said, "are we talking detention while Sprout tells you why what you did was wrong or full-blown 'named as a Dark Witch and thrown into the Veil of Death'?"

Jane waved her hand dismissively, "More like 'if I get caught before I can go to the Ministry I get fined a few hundred galleons'." Jane looked at Remus, "Come on, I want you to see this." She stood and pulled him to his feet, leading him out.

Jane led him to an empty classroom and closed the door, she flicked her wand at it locking the door. "Alright, get ready." She sad as she went to the middle of the room and concentrated, shifting into the wolf form.

She sat on her haunches in front of him, her tail wagging slowly as he reached out with a trembling had and touched her fur. "Jane- this is...this is amazing." He said softly as he caressed her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. Remus had never expected someone would go to this length to make him feel less alone. He knew two things, the first was that he would probably love Jane Thornton for the rest of his life, and the other thing that he knew was she deserved better than a coward. "Could you please change back?" He asked her. She did so, straightening up from off of the floor. He hugged her tightly, "Jane, this is the greatest thing anyone has ever done for me. I lov-"

She stopped him with a finger on his lips, "Don't say you love me. I just turned into a wolf for you, so you're feeling all sorts of things. Give it some time, okay?" She smiled and hugged him, "When you are ready to say that for real," She whispered, "I'll be waiting."

They left the classroom, she let him go back to the Library as she went to collect Alexandra from the Dueling classroom. When she returned, she found Peter and Alexandra were discussing something in a hushed whisper while Harry was working on something at his desk. "So, what did I miss?" She asked as she came up beside Alexandra.

"Peter is about to be forcibly emancipated. He overheard his parents and they are tired of waiting for him to show his magic." Alexandra said looking up from the impromptu huddle. "It just so happens that Professor Fawkes is in the market for someone to help take care of his orchard."

"Well, that's what this notice is going to say." Harry spoke up from his desk, "Pounds House has plenty of room. Peter can stay there and work on his brewing. I still can't believe the Prewitt's would do this. Fabian and Gideon are-"

"They are my cousins Professor," Peter explained, "Their side of the family is much more tolerant of me than my fathers part. To them, I'm an embarrassment."

"And to me they are jackasses." Alexandra said, sliding an arm around him, "You are so much more than your lack of magic." Peter returned the embrace and sighed happily.

Harry stood up and gave the notice to Peter. "There you are. This will act as a portkey to Pounds House when you are done getting your things." He used his wand to check the time, "If there's nothing else, I believe it's time for me to prepare for the sixth year dueling class."

Alexandra walked over to the floo with Peter giving a final hug before watching him go back through the green flames. "Thank you, Professor, Peter deserves better than how his family treats him."

Harry smiled, "I know the feeling. I grew up with my mothers family, they hated me."Harry hadn't really thought much about the Dursley's since he'd came here. Privet Drive had been destroyed in what should have been Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts. Voldemort had decided that the way to deal with Harry was to destroy everything he held familiar. That had included the only family he'd had left. The Dursley family wasn't a good one, but even they hadn't deserved the torture and execution they had suffered.

In the original timeline, Dudley had been left as a warning to Harry. In the end, the first killing curse Harry had ever cast had been at his cousin in order to spare him the horrors he'd seen.

Jane and Alexandra left the classroom giving Harry a moment to himself before the next class was due. He drew his wand and cast his patronus, "Message to Bellatrix: There will be a young man arriving later with his things. His name is Peter, please give him one of the guest rooms and show him the potion lab." He watched the silvery stag race off and then turned to the door. His students would arrive soon.

Scene Break

Emil Delacour had only been an assistant to Director LeMille for three weeks. Magical law enforcement wasn't the easiest career, but it was the path he'd chosen. Today found him sitting inside one of the interrogation rooms as a witness while the Auror on duty questioned three people who had arrived in Paris with an unregistered portkey.

One of them Emil actually knew quite well. Antonin Dolohov was a respected champion on the European Dueling Circuit. He was respected, but not liked. Emil considered him a bully when they'd faced each other. The other two, twins, were unknown to Emil.

"Would you care to explain the unregistered portkey that brought you here?" The Auror, Yvette Lalaurie asked them. "Use of an unregistered portkey is a class six felony punishable by three years in prison or a six thousand galleon fine."

"It was registered in England under Thurman Davis." Dolohov replied, "The fact that is not showing up as registered in a failing in your Ministry, not ours." He looked at the Auror and then to Emil, "Delacour, you know as well as I do, I wouldn't do something illegal and be caught."

"I am here as an observer only, I have nothing to say to you or for your defense." Emil replied before looking to Yvette, "Madame-Auror Lalaurie is the one whom you should speak to."

"Thank you," Yvette replied before turning her attention back to the trio before her, "In a normal situation involving an unregistered portkey, we would simply contact your Ministry. But," and here she looked at the blond twins, "you two refuse to give your names. So, I am forced to use veritaserum to question you."

"You can't do that!" The witch said, "It is against ICW law!"

Yvette shook her head, "It is if we know that you are underage and we know whom your parents are. Then we are not allowed to use truth serum on you without their permission." She leaned back, "We have no such knowledge."

Emil was surprised to learn that under veritaserum the portkey was indeed revealed to belong to Thurman Davis. The twins before him, Amycus and Alecto Carrow had confessed that they had picked up the portkey but had failed to sign the last of the paperwork.

It was their business in France that had caused the biggest surprise. Amycus had said in a dull, sluggish monotone that they were here specifically to purchase lodestone.

"Why?" Yvette asked, she watched the young man struggle and so she repeated it, "Why do you need lodestone?"

"Our master is- Our m-master is building- ahhAHHH!" He cried and then Amycus slumped in his chair unconscious. Yvette and Emil could smell something burning among another foul odor, the young man had soiled his robes. Reaching for his arm, Yvette pulled it up, revealing a wound on his arm that hadn't been there before.

"A secrecy pact." Emil said quietly, "the magic would have burned itself out of his mind."

Yvette checked the other two, "They have matching marks on their arms." She told him, "We need to contact the Departmente." The French Department of Mysteries, much like the British iteration, was the place where they had the best chance at figuring out what sort of magic had been used.

Emil nodded, "I will take our findings to Director LeMille and then have him meet with you. There's something very strange going on."