Pandora's Box

"Mom said," Harry2 began slowly, speaking for the first time since the fiasco began, "she said something about Cousin Quigley." He looked at Harry for help. Harry nodded.

"She said Cousin Quigley was alive." They both looked at Francis. "Any idea how that's possible?" Harry asked.

Francis shrugged. "Not unless Cousin Quigley is willing to explain." The room remained silent. Francis turned to Dumbledore. "If I explained what happened and what led to this point, would you write a letter explaining that we really are who we really are, just not exactly the same persons as everyone else, though?"

Dumbledore looked puzzled. "I suppose. But first . . ." He took Harry2's glasses, magically duplicated them, and then gave the copy to Harry. "I believe you would need these," he said cheerfully.

They went together to the kitchen for tea through a secret passage from Dumbledore's office to the kitchen so they did not want to alert the rest of Hogwarts of the unusual visitors. Everyone refrained from mentions of the convenience of midnight snacks. Upon reaching the kitchen, Dobby instantly gathered together a small army of kitchen elves in preparing a light snack for the people. Dobby did not ask why there was another Harry with Harry, or how there came to be a ghost of Professor Snape, but only did what he had been asked to do.

The light snack would have been better termed as a feast, but since the reality jumpers had not eaten anything since leaving the reality where Hermione's boyfriend was Neville Longbottom or, in Harry and Harry2's case, since being in Marcia's kitchen, they did not complain about the large amount of food.

Over the dinner they munched on, Francis explained to Dumbledore and Professor Snape of what was going on. He left out the unnecessary information--such as what they saw behind closed doors. It cut down a great deal of retelling. While Dumbledore set to writing that letter to other Dumbledores and Professor Snape studied his ghostly self, Francis decided to tabulate all the known information of Cousin Quigley.

He had Winky fetch him a piece of paper and a quill. "Let's see." He chewed thoughtfully on the end of his quill before he began writing. "As far as we know, Cousin Quigley has no known day of death. He married an Indian and had a son whom he named Dominic, which he then put into the future to preserve the Snape family." He looked up from his writing. "I'd also say Cousin Quigley is very proficient in the use of the Mirror of Rebounds."

Severus snorted. "If what he says is true, then I'd say the Mirror of Rebounds in proficient in the use of Cousin Quigley."

Francis thought about that. "That works too," he said as he wrote it down.

Harry picked up his head from where it had been resting against his folded arms over the table top. "The Bloody Baron said that Cousin Quigley was the most powerful family member since the creator of the Mirror of Rebounds. At least, at the time Cousin Quigley was alive, now that I think of it. I don't know about," he blushed as he thought of himself, "er, the Snapes who came after him."

Francis wrote that down. "And we know that he's doing this to save the Universe."

"And Grandmother has a soft spot for Cousin Quigley."

Francis nodded. "I noticed that as well. Usually Pandora did not put up with such nonsensical behavior from anyone, but she always made an exception for the twins and Cousin Quigley."

Harry2 leaned forward. He absently traced the outline of his tattoo with one finger. "Are Cousin Quigley and the Bloody Baron in league with one another?" he asked. Francis looked up from his writing with a scrunched look on his face as Severus appeared beside Harry2.

"Why do you ask?" Severus asked.

Francis waved him quiet with his quill. "Because we've always seen the Bloody Baron with Cousin Quigley, and the Bloody Baron doesn't seem to be confused or puzzled about this entire matter."

"It makes you wonder," Harry2 said. Francis thoughtfully tapped his chin with the end of his quill.

"Yes," he said softly. "It does make a body wonder."

Professor Snape shook his head as he blew at his cup of hot tea. "I find it difficult to believe that Harry Potter would be related to so many different," he pulled his lip back in a sneer, "famous people." He looked at Harry2. "Or is a fire demon." He muttered something under his breath that sounded like, "How convenient." He lifted the tea cup to his lips and sipped. Harry2's tattoo blinked at him and he choked on his tea in surprise.

After what Professor Snape said, Harry wondered if it was safer to mention what he learned of Pandora's mother at some later time, or if there would be a calm enough later time after they began reality-jumping again.

Francis bent over his writing. "And it also seems that Cousin Quigley's also been forced into giving up drink, and the Mirror of Rebounds has a mind of its own. Am I missing anything?"

Harry2 waved his hand. "This is completely off subject," he said, "but I'm a bit curious as to what we are going to do about Sirius. We can't leave him here because we aren't probably going to come back."

At the sound of that, Professor Snape brightened considerably. "How soon will you be leaving?" he asked in a purring voice.

Severus the ghost did not speak with a purring voice. His was a low growl in contrast. "As soon as possible." He looked at Francis. "What are we going to do with Sirius?"

Francis continued to write for a moment until he finished. Then he looked up and answered. "I was going to shrink him, and then place him in a pocket or something with a cushioning spell to protect him against breaking prematurely."

Draco stirred from where he had been leaning tiredly against Harry's shoulder. "What was the point of even being in an egg anyway?" he asked.

"I," said Francis loftily, "would be making an unscientific observation at this point, due to having so little information."

Severus disappeared from Harry's side to appear at Francis'. "That has never stopped you before," he pointed out.

"But I was never before inside an egg that a male phoenix laid."

Everyone fell silent as they once more pondered how that came to be.

Draco sat upright suddenly. "Maybe," he said brightly, "maybe phoenixes are like those kind of fish that change sexes in order to breed!" He ignored the looks he received as he settled against Harry's shoulder again.

"I don't think so," Severus said darkly.

Dumbledore stood up. "It is quite late," he said. "Might I offer you all a room to stay in for the evening?" He looked at Harry and Draco. "Sleep would do all of you some good. The would be far away from other occupants, and you may leave whenever you feel well-rested enough to."

Francis shrugged. "I'd say something here about hating to impose." He too looked at Draco and Harry. "But we do need to get some sleep before we start jumping again. None of us have had any real rest since we entered Draco's reality."

Dumbledore nodded and turned around. "Come," he said. The others followed after him. They went back to Dumbledore's office through the secret passage. Francis shrunk the large pink egg until it was about the size of a robin's egg. He carefully wrapped several cushioning charms around it, and then tucked it into the same pocket that securely held Dumbledore's letter. After that was done, he grabbed Pandora's Box. Through default, Draco was the one who had the honor to carry the Mirror of Rebounds. No one else wanted to carry it, much less touch it. From there, they entered another secret passage.

"Most of the castle occupancy are in the Houses, so there are rooms in the very center of the castle that have not seen a single living being for many, many years," Dumbledore explained. He held a small ball of light in his hands to cast illumination in the dusty passageway.

He led them to a far-off room that contained two very large poster beds, three chairs around a single table, and a vanity table. He cleaned the dust and cobwebs up with a single wave his wand. He turned to the others with a small smile. "Have a safe trip," he said. "And I do hope you find a good Tom Riddle. I'm sure there is one out there, somewhere."

"Thank you, Albus," Francis replied. "It never fails to amaze me how, in every reality, you always turn out the same."

"I'll try not to change," Dumbledore said solemnly, though the laughter in his eyes belied the tone of his voice. He left the little ball of light on the vanity table in the room and left through the passageway they had come through. The paneling in the wall closed behind him.

"Who sleeps in what bed?" Severus asked as he looked around.

Draco perked up instantly.

At the sight of Draco's eagerness, Harry and Harry2 went pale. "You," said Harry2 as he pointed at Draco, "can sleep with Francis." Harry nodded in agreement.

"We'll take one bed," said Harry, "and you and Francis can take the other."

Draco wilted instantly. He looked at the Harrys with big, doleful eyes. The Harrys crossed their arms before themselves. From the way their heads tilted back and their shoulders straightened, it was obvious they had no intention whatsoever of sharing the same bed with Draco.

Draco sighed and looked at Francis, who was removing his over robes. "Just for the record," said Francis as he carefully folded them and then drooped them over the back of a chair, "due to some unpleasant experiences in other realities--"

"You only saw them," Harry muttered darkly under his breath. Francis ignored him.

"--I would greatly appreciate it if you would stay to your own side of the bed. If you hog the covers, that's fine. I'm well-used to Pandora doing that."

Draco shrugged. "All right," he said firmly as he sat down on one of the beds. "I've been celibate for a few years. I can stand it for another night or two." He ignored everyone as he tugged his boots off and dropped his sword and scabbard next to them on the floor. He stretched out over the surface of the bed and covered his eyes with one arm.

Francis moved over to the bed and pulled back the covers. Harry pulled his slightly-large over robes off and folded them next to Francis' over robes. Harry2 did not bother undressing. They both slipped under the covers. The light on the vanity table faded out. The only sound that filled the room was the breathing from four different persons. Severus was slightly illuminating in the dark, but he was quiet.

"Francis?" In the darkness, Harry's voice seemed small and child-like.

"Hmmm?"

"I had another dream earlier today. About Pandora."

The rustling of covers from the other side told Harry Francis was pushing them back. "Tell me." His voice was wistful and distant.

"She was brushing her hair on this boulder next to the sea. I said Grandfather Severus said her mother used to brush her hair all the time, and I asked her why. She said her mother was one of the . . ." Harry tried to remember how to pronounce Gwragedd Annwn, but found he couldn't. "One of the Lake Maidens."

There was a slight pause before Francis asked, "Do you mean the Gwragedd Annwn?"

"Yeah! Are they like mermaids?"

Francis sighed. "The Gwragedd Annwn, also known as the Lake Maidens, aren't exactly mermaids. They're a water folk from Welsh legends, said to possess very powerful healing abilities. Most water-folk are selfish, or vain, or mischievous, but the Lake Maidens weren't. They were said to be serene and gentle, with a very strong inner strength."

"James was like that," Severus whispered. In the dark, eyes shifted to look at him. He floated in mid-air with his legs crossed beneath him and his arms crossed before his chest. His head was bowed. He said nothing more. Harry burrowed deeper under the covers and drifted into a dreamless sleep.

In the darkness, Severus remained awake. Was it possible for an actual ghost to be plagued by the ghosts of the past? He was not so sure any more. Draco was the one who stayed awake the longest.

He lifted his head off the pillow and looked over at Severus. "Professor," he whispered, "just out of curiosity, who is your godson?" Severus favored him a scathing glare. "I swear upon the House of Slytherin that I won't tell anyone!"

Severus snorted. "You're swearing an oath of trust upon the House that is least trusted?"

"I can see the irony," Draco replied, "but really, you can trust me."

Severus shook his head with a sad little smile on his lips. "I won't be able to get rid of you until you know, won't I?"

"Nope."

Severus gave him a mirthless smile. "Too bad. I have all of eternity to wait you out."

Draco rolled his eyes and flipped over.

============================================

"All righty now." Francis tipped the Mirror of Rebounds over on its side once more. He paused a moment to study its surface. Gone was the crack that had appeared across the glass' surface when Severus looked into the mirror only to have Voldemort look back at him. He stood up and turned to Severus. "We know that you're Cousin Quigley's son, which would explain greatly why you could use the Mirror of Rebounds. But when you saw Voldemort, are you sure it was across Time?" Severus gave him a sour look, but said nothing.

Harry fiddled with the buttons of his over robes. "I don't get it," he said. "What do you mean across Time?"

"Well, Cousin Quigley could see the future as well as the past. Couldn't the Mirror of Rebounds also see the present as well? If so, did this mean Severus watch the things as it happened or would happen, rather than after it happened?"

Severus turned his back to Francis. "How am I supposed to know?" he snapped angrily. "The only time Pandora ever said anything about the Mirror of Rebounds was when she gave it to me, and James mentioned it once, but he said the Mirror of Rebounds was the most painful artifact that the entire Snape family owned."

He sighed and seated himself in mid-air next to Pandora's Box. "And that's another mystery all together." He pointed at it. "I don't know if Pandora just created it on the spot, or she used it to help strip Voldemort's power. Francis," Severus looked at the blonde man, "shouldn't we question the virtue of the items we use?"

Francis shook his head. "A little too late for that," he said. "We should have questioned the virtue of these items before we started reality-jumping."

Harry waved his hand. "Grandmother said the power in her box was tainted."

Francis looked at Harry. "And you always react to the power that's used." He reached out and gently traced Harry's scar with one finger. Harry's scar itched from the contact. "Voldemort was corrupt, and when Pandora said the power was tainted, perhaps she meant the same thing. You may just be reacting to the corruption in the power."

He turned back to the Mirror of Rebounds. "Are we ready to jump?" he asked cheerfully. There was a chorus of No's behind his back. He glared at the uneager reality-jumpers. "We're never going to get anywhere with that attitude," he said. He smiled. "Buck up! There may be something interesting in the next realities!"

Harry shrugged. "Well, if I'm lucky, I may just decide to be a virgin until I marry."

Draco grinned at him. "Harry, there are more virginities than just one."

Harry's face turned red as Severus appeared before the Mirror of Rebounds and smacked it with his hand a little harder than was necessary. The lid of Pandora's Box flew off and away they went into the Mirror of Rebounds.

As it spun but did not disappear, Cousin Quigley appeared beside it. His nose was runny and his eyes were red from crying. He sighed as the Bloody Baron materialized behind him. "Is it still broken?" the Bloody Baron asked as he peered at the Mirror of Rebounds with an expression of uncertainty.

Cousin Quigley shrugged. "I don't know." He nudged it with his foot. With the sound like a spring being wound up, the Mirror of Rebounds twisted as if made from rubber, and then popped into nothingness like a balloon that exploded. "That should put them on the right path after the shrinking charm threw them off balance," he said.

====================================

The first thing, or rather person, whom Harry noticed when he came through the Mirror of Rebounds was a woman with brilliant red hair. She effortlessly hauled Harry to his feet and slammed him against the wall the moment he managed to regain his senses. Her hand tightened around the base of his throat. Harry stared disbelieving down the length of her arm--Woe! That thing's got more muscle than my thigh!--and then up into the stormy eyes of Ginny Weasley.

Harry smiled nervously. "Hello, Ginny," he said. She smiled at him, though it was more of a show of teeth than a smile.

"Hello, Harry," she said. "Fancy meeting you here after you died two years ago, leaving me eight months pregnant." Harry's jaw would have dropped somewhere in the vicinity of his knees if Ginny's arm hadn't been in the way. Ginny rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Of course, you look much younger than the Harry I married, so maybe you're an illusion." She released him. Harry slid down the wall to the floor. He rubbed his sore collarbone and watched Ginny take two large strides to a part of the room where a heavy staff of oak sat. She picked it up and twirled it around in her hand. "Or maybe," she said darkly, "maybe you're a spy sent here by the Queen Snake Bitch."

Harry choked. "Not again," he muttered as the others came out of the Mirror of Rebounds.

=====================================

After Ginny knocked Draco out, nearly broke her staff over Harry2's head in an attack, and fell through Severus, she realized she did not recognize Francis.

"You don't look dangerous," she said as she loomed over him.

Francis flinched and covered his head with his arms. He smiled nervously up at her. "I try not to be. We're really not who you think we are. We're from a different reality. Here." He moved cautiously so he would not alarm her, and reached into his pocket to give her Dumbledore's letter. "This will explain the short of the long of it." Ginny frowned at them and carefully backed out of their reach. She opened up the parchment and swiftly scanned the written content.

"All right." She rolled up the parchment and handed it back to Francis. "So you're from another reality looking for a good Tom Riddle. You'll not find one here. Voldemort and Harry fought for eight days before they killed themselves, and Voldemort went and left a woman he Transfigured from a snake in charge." She glared at the others. "Professor Snape was a traitor through and through; he let the Death Eaters through Hogwarts' boundaries and killed Dumbledore when his back was turned." She turned a smoldering brown eye on Draco, who had come to while she was reading the letter "And you, you slime-sucking brown-nosing Death Eater from the nether regions of a troll, you killed my brother!"

Draco pressed his hands over his head. "She's an Amazon," he muttered darkly to himself without any attention to his surroundings whatsoever. "A bloody Amazon!"

Harry2 prodded the gigantic egg that was beginning to form at his hair line. "She can swing a stick better than you can swing a sword," he said pointedly. Ginny crossed her arms and glared down at them. Harry2 gracefully stood and gazed into Ginny's eyes. She softened immediately.

Severus appeared beside the Mirror of Rebounds. "I know where this is going," he muttered darkly as he nudged it. The Mirror of Rebounds pivoted about on its axis and power exploded from Pandora's Box. The power shoved the wincing Harrys, Francis, Draco, and Severus into the Mirror of Rebounds. The top of Pandora's Box flipped over to shut it, and then that too was sucked into the Mirror of Rebounds.

Ginny stared at shock at the spaces everyone had occupied. She sniffed. "How rude." A small cloud of dark green and baby-blue colors hovered near-by. She glared at it. "Well, make yourself useful," she told it.

The colors pulsated before they leaked out of the cracks in the wall and flew off into the distance to engulf this reality's Nagini.

Ginny gazed at the pivoting Mirror of Rebounds. A shimmering figure appeared beside it. The Bloody Baron glared down at it. "I thought you said it was supposed to be working now," he snarled.

Cousin Quigley popped into sight on the other side of the Mirror of Rebounds. "I said it should work," he said with a wheedling voice. He poked the Mirror of Rebounds and it snapped out of existence abruptly. The Bloody Baron and Cousin Quigley blinked in surprise.

"Was that supposed to happen?" the Bloody Baron asked.

Cousin Quigley shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I should go back into the past and ask Hyacinthe." He twisted around to smile brightly at Ginny. "I know you're surprised, and I know that you really don't know what's going on, but that's all right. You see, when Harry finally resolves this matter, then none of this will have happened, and you--in this form--will not have existed. I will not waste the time explaining all of this to you, and you can go about on your life until the past paths of this reality change, and you will cease to exist." He and the Bloody Baron disappeared.

"Well, that's fine," Ginny muttered. "It doesn't help me in the mean time though." She went off to throw knives at the gigantic poster she had of Draco Malfoy.

=====================================

They jumped from reality to reality. They encountered some very evident things on their jumps, significant in difference with the other realities, but so much more the same because of it. One of the major differences in these realities that Harry was no longer student. Instead, he was often an instructor--usually for Quidditch or Defense Against Dark Arts--so he was now a teacher having an affair with another teacher, rather than a student having an affair with a teacher.

"I don't know about you four," Francis told his reality-jumping partners, "but I, for one, feel much more relieved for Harry's sake."

Harry and Harry2 glared at them from where they were sitting on top of the convulsing-with-anger Draco.

"I'LL KILL HIM FOR TOUCHING HIM!"

Severus looked like he wanted to give Draco a well-aimed kick. "That was me you just shoved out the Astronomy Tower window," he snarled.

Draco heaved up against the combined weight of Harry and Harry2, and nearly unseated them in the process. "LEMMEE AT HIM!"

Harry2 looked imploringly at Francis. "Can I hit him?" he asked.

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Can he?"

Francis shook his head as he propped the Mirror of Rebounds into the usual reality-jumping position. "No. I'd rather get out of here before Severus Snape finally gets away from the squid."

=======================================

"Are you done yet?"

Harry2 looked up from where he was putting out Harry's smoldering hair. He looked away from Severus. "This reality's Harry is very jumpy," he said in explanation. "But I suppose he would be more less jumpy if you hadn't appeared half-way out of the wall and told them about the wonders of silencing spells."

Severus threw his hands wide. "Everyone could hear those two making it on!"

Francis sighed from where he was seated on a sulking Draco. "What goes on behind closed doors is none of our business," he said sagely. Everyone glared at him. "What?"

"You," Harry pointed at his great-grandfather, "were the one who opened the closed door!"

"I thought someone was dying," Francis said defensively. "It certainly sounded like it!"

=======================================

Of all the shades of colors Severus turned, Harry had to admit the deep purple he was now was something Harry was quite sure he had never seen his uncle turn before. Francis did not notice, since he was currently reading the papers that proved Professor Snape's paternity to Harry Potter.

"So, Snape is your father?" Harry2 asked the current reality's Harry, who nodded sheepishly in return.

"He's my uncle," said Harry. "I can understand." He pointed at Harry2. "And his mother's a demon." He pointed at Francis. "And he's supposedly dead. So I guess it all works out for the best in the end."

This reality's Harry shrugged. "I guess," he said. He brightened up. "Hey, if you guys don't mind staying, why don't we all play some Quidditch? Dad never wants to play and he's about as graceful on a broom as, well, I can't think of anything as clumsy as he is, but it's pretty bad."

"At least," muttered Francis from where he was reading the paper, "this Harry isn't having an affair with his own father."

Severus made a sound very similar to a whistling tea kettle. In a purple blur, he kick-started the Mirror of Rebounds, grabbed Francis by the back of his robes, and tossed him into the blur before he could so much as squeak in surprise. The paper Francis had been reading before he was abruptly tossed out of reality fluttered to the floor. Severus loomed over the two Harrys and Draco. "Whose next?"

"Please." Harry2 turned away from Severus and walked over to the Mirror of Rebounds. "I have some dignity." He stepped close to the Mirror of Rebounds and was sucked into it. Harry gulped at the dark look on Severus' face, and edged away from him.

"Another time," he told this reality's Harry weakly before he jumped into the Mirror of Rebounds.

=====================================

There was a lot more violence and attacks involved in this round of reality-jumping than ever before. With Voldemort rise in power, fear overrode a great deal of rationality. People panicked at the sight of anything that was remotely suspicious. The students and teachers were battle-worn veterans whose motto was, "Kill first; search body for ID at a later time." The Harry Potters grew in strength and magical prowess in every new reality, and each one became more twitchy and foolhardy than the last.

The level of danger finally reached the point where Francis, sick and tired of constantly being run over in someone's haste to attack Draco or one of the Harrys, tied a white handkerchief to his wand and waved it everywhere he went, like a creeping soldier on the lookout for the enemy he was carrying a message of surrender to.

"You look ridiculous," Severus told Francis as he cautiously peeked around the corner.

"I'm trying to stay alive here," Francis hissed angrily.

Severus sniffed. "Sure, rub it in. It's not as if I wanted to be dead." He drifted over to where Draco had been firmly told to sit. Something heavy slammed against the wall down the hallway, and Harry and Harry2 came running down it.

"No good Tom Riddle here!" Harry2 yelled as he ducked a stray hex thrown at him by an upset McGonagall of this reality.

Francis sighed. "What took you two so long?" he asked as they sprinted past him and tripped over each other to grab the Mirror of Rebounds first.

"Harry," said Harry2, "was accosted in the men's bathroom again, only by Flitwick."

"Harry!" Severus said with a disapproving frown, "what have I told you about playing around when we're trying to find someone important?"

Harry snarled at him. "It wasn't my fault!" he said as he pushed the Mirror of Rebounds over. It spun, the lid of Pandora's Box flew open, and they were sucked into the Mirror of Rebounds.

===================================

"Now where are we?" Francis, the first out of the Mirror of Rebounds, looked around. The others followed soon after him. They were in one of Hogwarts' hallways.

"Let's go look around," Draco said.

Harry2 grabbed him. "After you attacked a naked Professor Snape?"

Draco pouted. "He was making out with you on his potions worktable!"

"Thanks to you," Harry2 continued without listening to Draco, "I am now scared for life. You are staying with me so I can smack you if you get out of line."

"We are staying together," Francis said.

A little figure appeared behind them with a smoldering tray in her hands. "All right! Harry! You're back!"

They whirled around to see Marcia. She wore her oversized apron, oven mitts on both her hands that came up to her elbows, and held a tray with flat black pieces of charcoal. She grinned at him. "Just in time to try my brownies!" She thrust her tray of charcoal forward for them to see. They stared at the "brownies" with no small amount of misgivings.

"Mom." Harry2 tried to find something tactful to say. "We just brushed our teeth," he said finally. Her eyebrows rose up above the rounded curve of her mirrored glasses. "You said that I can't have sweets after brushing my teeth."

Francis, seeing an escape when it was presented, nodded his head vigorously.

Severus leaned over to peer closer at the brownies. "Are you trying to poison us?" he asked as he picked one up. Marcia pouted.

She turned to Harry2. "Where've you been?" she asked. "You realize that in the four years you've been gone, everyone's been blaming me for all the bad stuff that's been going on around here? They blame me for everyone from your disappearing, to What-His-Name's revival and violence and trying to take over the world again, to the release of the Wild Hunt!"

"But mom." Harry2 stared at Marcia blankly. "Releasing the Wild Hunt is all your fault."

"No it's not. It's Ron's."

"But mom." It was clear this was an old argument between mother and adopted son. "You told Ron that if he didn't unleash the Wild Hunt, Voldemort would kill me."

Marcia looked genuinely puzzled for being accused of releasing the Wild Hunt. "I didn't make him do it though."

Harry2 sighed and spoke very slowly, as if Marcia was a little girl. "But mom, you said that if Ron didn't unleash the Wild Hunt, then Voldemort would kill me. In essence, you made it sound that if Ron did not unleash the Wild Hunt, then I would be killed, and it would be all his fault, because he did not unleash the Wild Hunt."

"But he did, and so it is his fault."

"Because you made Ron do it. You took him to the stone that chained the Wild Hunt to the underworld, and you told him how to release it. It's actually all your fault that the Wild Hunt is now roaming the world, with the dogs chasing sinners every night to drag them off to hell! They were even chasing Professor Snape until Professor Dumbledore rescued him!"

Marcia smiled smugly. "Yeah, that was kind of neat to watch." The smile disappeared. "But I didn't release them. Ron did. It's his fault, not mine."

Harry2 sighed and threw his arms up in the air. "I give up," he said.

Draco moved forward to stand before Marcia. She poked at one of her brownies listlessly for a moment before she craned her neck to look up at him. "Are you the one with Lupin?" Draco asked.

"Yeeesss . . ." Marcia's word was drawn out long and uncertain. She studied Draco intently for a moment. "Who are you?" she asked finally. Draco grinned mischievously and threw his arm around Harry2's shoulders. Both Harry2 and Marcia tensed.

"I'm Harry's husband!" Draco declared proudly.

Marcia's normally open and cheerful face changed swiftly into something that was coldly emotionless. Her head twisted from Harry2 to Draco to Harry2 to Draco. "No." her voice was flat and low, rather than high-pitched. "No," she said again. "I won't have it." She pointed at her son with one oven-mitted hand. "You get a divorce this instant."

Harry2 blinked. "Excuse me?"

"I won't have Draco Malfoy as a son-in-law! I refuse to even accept the idea that you would even date him!"

Draco frowned. "Aren't you being close-minded about the matter?"

Marcia glared at him. "You be quiet. Don't want to hear a word from you." Marcia turned to Harry2. A pleading tone crept into her voice. "Harry, I don't care if you date women, I don't care if you date men. I don't care if you bring home a stray dog and tell me the mutt was your long-lost soul mate and that you two both want to shack up in a dumpster behind a butcher shop--well, actually I'd worry about you then--but I fully support you in everything that you think you should do!" She pointed at Draco. "But I refuse to be the mother-in-law to that--that thing!"

Draco bristled. "Hey!"

Marcia started to cry. "Where did I go wrong?" she wailed. "I tried to be a good mother, and my boy still goes and falls in with the wrong crowd!"

"Mooooommmmm . . ." Harry2 looked at the others for help.

"Mrs. Runes?" Francis stepped forward. Marcia stopped crying. "

Miss Runes," she said as she dabbed at her eyes with the corner of her apron. "I am Marcia Runes. My family calls me Sydney, my friends call me Marcia, and my enemies call me . . ." She hesitated for a moment. "Won't go into what my enemies call me." She glared at Draco. "You can call me Ma'am."

Harry stepped forward. "Harry and Draco aren't married."

Marcia sniffed. "Then how come he," she pointed at Draco, "said he was Harry's husband?"

"In the reality where Draco came from, he and that reality's Harry got married. That reality's Harry got killed, and then we came along and we haven't quite managed to get rid of Draco since."

"Ah." Marcia looked at Draco. "So in other words, this guy like a leech on your bum; you know you've got to get rid of him, but he's too slippery to get hold of."

The corner of Draco's eye twitched. "A leech?"

Francis gave Marcia a friendly smile. "Rest assured," he said, "we have been taking good care of your son. Indeed, Harry--your Harry--is very helpful because he's strong enough to protect us on some levels."

Marcia glowed with pride. "I know; I taught him to be like that."

"A leech?" Everyone ignored Draco.

"How is Remus, Mom?" Harry2 asked. Marcia shrugged.

"Doing fine. Took a while for him to get used to another him, but they get along well and having two Lupins is good for communications in the war, especially since no one but them like to listen to me anyway." She paused. "Well, they don't listen to me either, but that's okay, because they're living in my place and doing all the cooking. I don't mind."

"A leech?"

"I," said Francis as he began to riffle through his pockets, "have a question." He gently withdrew the little pink egg that Sirius was in. "Since you already have the other Lupin, would you mind taking the Sirius Black who goes with him?" He removed the cushioning charms and held the pink egg out to Marcia, who accepted it.

"Sirius Black?" She studied the egg.

"Fawkes ate him."

Marcia looked up from the egg. "But--"

"And then he laid an egg which has Sirius in it."

She looked at the egg again. "How's that possible?"

"A leech?"

Severus glared at Draco. "She said leech, get it through your thick head and shut up."

Francis gave both Severus and Draco a disapproving look before he turned back to Marcia. "I do not have enough information at this time to make an educated guess."

"Then how do you know Sirius Black is in the egg?"

"Because both Sirius and I were swallowed by Fawkes, both us came out in an egg, and I hatched out of one." Marcia lifted up her glasses and squinted at Francis with her crimson eyes. She sighed and dropped her glasses back into place. "Well, you're whole at least," she muttered. She grinned. "So a little Sirius Black is going to pop out of the egg when he's ready, and I can raise him to be irritating to the Greaseball?"

Harry2 slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Mooooooom!"

Severus the ghost appeared in front of Marcia. "What was that?" he asked. Marcia ignored him as she happily cradled the egg close to herself.

"Well, I guess we should be going," said Francis. He gestured to Harry. "Do you want him to stay?"

Marcia shook her head. "No, if he's useful, go ahead and use him. That is, if Harry still wants to help." Harry2 looked uncertain. "After all," she hung her head and contrived to look like a martyr, "I can live with being accused for all the things I never did."

"The Wild Hunt," said Harry2 firmly, "is your fault."

"Is not. It's Ron's fault."

Before Marcia and Harry2 could continue with the old argument, Severus grabbed Harry2 and Harry and steered them to the Mirror of Rebounds.

Marcia pointed at Draco. "I ever learn that you so much as looked at my baby with dirty thoughts on your mind--and I suspect you of doing no less at this point, but I'd prefer to have proof to justify myself--I'll castrate you with something particularly dull. Like a butter knife, or something."

Draco gave her a one-fingered wave before the reality-jumpers were sucked into the Mirror of Rebounds.

Marcia looked from her pink egg to her tray of charcoaled brownies, turned around to find and inform Dumbledore of what she had seen, and slammed into a torpedoing little shadow. She dropped both the tray and the egg. "My brownies!" Marcia cried as she plucked the little shadow out of the air. "You ruined them!"

The dismembered hand she had yanked free from her grasp and flew at her throat. Enormous green fingers wrapped around her small neck and squeezed. Bones cracked and soft smooth muscle crushed beneath its grip. Marcia toppled over onto her face amidst the scattered charcoaled brownies. She worked her hands free of the oven mitts and then tried to pry her fingers beneath the choking hand to ease the crushing pressure.

A dull roar filled her hearing. Her eyes were wide and she gasped desperately for breath. She managed to bring her knees up, but concentrated fully on the choking hand. She thought she heard someone come up behind her.

"Hmmm," said Professor Snape.

Marcia waved one desperate hand. " ‘M be'n' ch'k'd!"

"Hmm? You're being choked?" Professor Snape looked at Marcia's scattered brownies. "I do not doubt this has anything to do with your . . ." He paused a moment to search for a scathing enough phrase, but could not find one, ". . . pathetic attempt at fixing food that is beyond repair." He swept away as she managed to squawk in protest. Long moments passed as Marcia struggled to pry the hand loose. Knowing she would not succeed, Marcia climbed to her feet and stumbled through the hallway. She followed a light scent of death. Her glasses fell off somewhere, but she did not care. Her vision swam dizzyingly.

"Nand'n!" She stumbled through the hallway as her vision blackened. She tumbled against the door of the staff room and pushed it open with her weight. "Nan . . ."

Strong arms grabbed her and held her upright. Nandin Sydney pried his fingers beneath the strangling green hand. He managed to loosen it enough for Marcia to draw a strangled breath. Her vision cleared slightly. "Nand'n!"

"Hold still, Sydney," Nandin hissed. He yanked his sword free and Marcia eyed it desperately. "Don't move." Marcia's eyes grew wide before she screwed them tightly shut. She heard the whistle of the sword through the air and steel hitting bone. Warm liquid soaked through her shirt and ran down her body. Her eyes popped open as Nandin fully pried the green hand away from Marcia's throat. It struggled against Nandin's iron grip. As a little crow demon, Marcia was not built for strength or filled with the love for fighting. Nandin Sydney, her adopted brother, was a cat demon who needed to fight. His lean body was better built to handle the unusual strength and power of the hand. He slammed it against the floor and then skewered it with his sword, pinning it against the floor.

Green fingers convulsed and relaxed. Nandin turned to Marcia. She had one hand pressed tenderly around her swollen throat.

"Are you fine?" he asked.

Marcia shrugged. " 'm not dead, am I?"

"We both know the actual possibility of that."

" 'm fine." Marcia coughed and rubbed her throat. "Don't think I'll speak a lot any time soon," she said as she looked around at the staff room's occupants. Dumbledore were there, along with two Remus Lupins. She brightened at the sight of the werewolves. "That reminds me!" She whipped around and ran out of the room.

Nandin knelt down beside the pinned hand. He was small, but not nearly as much as Marcia, and gracefully beautiful. While Marcia emitted a sense of mischief and disability to be serious, there was something deadly cold about Nandin, something that hinted of deliberate violence. Both Nandin and Marcia had been professional mercenaries/killers, but Nandin had relished his job while Marcia had shirked her responsibilities and hid from her superiors.

Nandin prodded the green hand with one slim finger. The green hand's fingers snatched at it and squeezed. His face remained closed at the sound of breaking bone. He twisted the sword with his other hand, and the green hand released his finger as it convulsed again. He stood up and stepped away from the hand . He reset his broken finger. The green hand twitched, and then dissolved out of existence.

"What," said Dumbledore for the first time, "was that?"

Nandin sniffed the air. "It smells of Voldemort," he said. "It's unnatural and evil."

Dumbledore walked over to the sword. He bent over to examine the dark blood that stained it. "Where did it go?" he asked.

"Beyond this reality." Nandin pried his sword free from the floor and sheathed it in its scabbard slung across his back. "It's chasing something." He looked at the others with his fluorescent gold cat-slit eyes. "Pity whatever it gets. That thing will not be destroyed."