Once Was Lost

Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury, Warner Bros., or the Christopher Little Literary Agency. In addition, I am in no way associated with Hanson, their respective families, 3CG Records, or 10th Street Entertainment. I am merely borrowing the world that this story is set in, and I promise to be careful. I will clear up my mess and put everything away when I am finished.

Author's notes: All right. *cracks knuckles*

A word to the wise before beginning: this story, like its predecessor Trinity, is a crossover. Hanson/Harry Potter to be precise. All I ask of anyone choosing to read is that you don't judge this story on that factor alone. I am deeply passionate about both fandoms, and prose is my way of showing that passion.

Couple of notes:

* I have based the Bonding ceremony very heavily on the Wiccan handfasting, and have borrowed from the Ceremony Scripts page at the website Handfasting Info in order to mock up my script.

* July 7 2007 was chosen as the date, and 7:00 pm as the time, to reflect that the number 7 is rather powerful in numerology.

* Old Sarum is the original site of Salisbury, England. It was abandoned around 1217 CE.

My thanks to Ashley for being a wonderful friend and an incredible little sister, and to my LiveJournal friends list for their support.

Once Was Lost

Chapter 1

Natalie

In years past, sunrise served as a warning. It was a harsh reminder that I had been awake all night, with the most common reason being that my boyfriend had sneaked over from the boys' wing of the school and we had spent hours on end talking, and that if I even so much as glanced at my watch or a clock, the lack of sleep would land on me like a tonne of bricks.

These days, sunrise holds a different meaning entirely.

"Mama! Daddy!"

The screams of a young girl shattered the early morning quiet and roused me from a sound sleep. Through the haze that always preceded a full awakening I saw that sunlight was beginning to filter through the curtains that had been hung at the window of my bedroom, and I could hear the sounds of the New York City morning drifting up from the street below. In the bed beside me, my boyfriend of nearly nine years, Taylor, was still sound asleep, the quilt rising and falling over his back as he breathed. I scowled at him - why was it always me who woke up first? - and proceeded to elbow him in the ribs.

"Piss off," he mumbled.

"One of your daughters requests your presence," I informed him.

He turned his head toward me, opened one very sleepy blue eye, and squinted at me. "The last time I checked, they were your daughters too," he reminded me, before closing his eye again and going back to sleep.

I let out a quiet groan and pushed the covers back. As I sat up and caught a glimpse of my alarm clock I let out an even louder groan - it was only a quarter to six, and the alarm was set for six thirty. I'd always believed that the younger of my two daughters could scream louder than any alarm clock, and this morning she had well and truly proved it. Once I had pulled on my dressing gown and slipped my feet into my slippers, and had checked that my wand was in the right-hand pocket, I left the room and padded down the hall to the room that my daughters shared.

The scene that lay before me as I slipped into the girls' room was one that was all too familiar. Penelope, the middle child of the family and my youngest daughter, was curled up at the very head of her bed, a toy wand clenched tightly in her tiny fist, eyes wide and filled with fear. Ava, her older sister, was still asleep.

"What's wrong?" I asked Penelope. Instead of answering, she nodded almost imperceptibly toward the floor. "Is it under your bed?" I asked, and she nodded again. I crouched down, took my wand in hand, lit it with a quick and quiet Lumos, and shone the light under the bed.

Crouched beneath Penelope's bed, golden eyes glowing in the wandlight, was our kneazle, Bast.

I breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, "Nox." The wandlight vanished and I stood back up. "It's just Bast, Ellie," I informed my daughter as I sat down on her bed. "Nothing to be scared of, is it?"

Penelope shook her head. "But Mama-"

"Inside voice, Ellie. Ava is still asleep, and if your brother wasn't woken up by your shrieking he most certainly has been now." The girls' baby brother, Fletcher, occupied the bedroom right next to theirs; I made a mental note to look in on him before going out to the kitchen.

"Ava said it was a monster," Penelope continued, her voice softer, "and that it was gonna come out and eat my toes."

"Ava was just teasing you, Ellie. Which means she was being silly, and I am going to have a long talk with her later about that." I glanced at my watch and beckoned to Penelope. "Come on. Seeing as we're both up, you can help me make breakfast. Daddy is going to need lots of coffee when he wakes up."

I had just started the coffee brewing when a tap-tap-tap sounded at the kitchen window - a sharp tapping sound, one akin to the sound of a small pebble striking a pane of glass. Looking toward the noise, I saw a regal-looking eagle owl perched on the carved wooden perch that was standard for all buildings in our neighbourhood and borough, a cream-coloured envelope clutched in its beak. For Gotham wasn't your average New York City borough. It was home to approximately half a million wizards and witches, all of whom lived right under the noses of New York's Muggle residents.

Leaving the coffee to brew, I went to the window and unlatched it, swinging it into the kitchen. The owl spread its wings and soared into the kitchen, landing gracefully on the perch that was used by our family owl, Horus, and gave me a reproachful look that said something akin to, Take it for Merlin's sake, I'm not about to wait around all day. I gave it a look of my own and took the envelope it carried. The address on the front was written in an unfamiliar, looping hand.

Taylor Chambers and Natalie Bryant

Apartment 369

1748 Pickering Way

Gotham

New York City

USA

Deciding it was against my best interests to open it before Taylor saw fit to drag himself out into the kitchen, I propped the envelope up against the bread box and sent a weak Flame Charm at each side of a slice of bread, toasting it far more quickly than our toaster would have done. The owl took the toast in its beak, blinked at me, and took off out the window.

Twenty-five to seven heralded the arrival of Taylor, Ava and Fletcher into the kitchen. Penelope had finished her breakfast, and had gone into the living room to watch cartoons, and I was in the middle of my own breakfast. As soon as Taylor had seated himself at the table, I picked up the envelope that had been delivered earlier and handed it over without a word, before resuming my seat.

"Why didn't you open it?" he asked. He drew his wand across the envelope to unseal it, and pulled out a folded piece of cream-coloured parchment. Written on the parchment, in the same handwriting as on the envelope, was:

Lady Narcissa Malfoy

and

Jocelyn and David Abernathy

cordially request the presence of

Taylor Chambers and Natalie Bryant

at the Bonding of

Draco Tiberius Malfoy and Sarah Elizabeth Abernathy

on the seventh of July 2007 at 7:00 pm

to be held at Old Sarum, Wiltshire, England

Reception to follow at Malfoy Manor

"I didn't open it because it was addressed to the both of us," I replied. "Besides which, she's your sister - I'd have thought you'd want to know before me."

"That's fair, I suppose." He read the invitation again. "Bit short notice, isn't it? Considering it's already the end of June and all."

I shrugged. "Why didn't we decide to be Bonded?" I asked, choosing to answer his question with one of his own. I already knew the answer, but I wanted to hear him say it.

He was silent for a short while. Finally, after I figured he had spent some time thinking, he looked up at me over the rims of his silver-framed glasses. "Because we had decided that we didn't need a ceremony and a piece of parchment to prove that we love and are committed to each other," he reminded me. "And we didn't need it to start our family."

More like you chickened out of it, I thought viciously. "Oh." I nodded. "Right." I finished my breakfast and picked up my plate, taking it to the sink.

Cleaning up after breakfast had finished, I was about to throw out the envelope that had contained the Bonding invitation when a separate, folded-over piece of parchment fluttered out onto the slate floor. I picked it up and unfolded it to read, in the familiar hand of Taylor's oldest sister:

Dear Natalie and Taylor,

Draco and I would be honoured if the two of you would consent to being witnesses at the ceremony - Natalie as a maid of honour, alongside my sisters Miriam and Maggie, and Taylor as our Bonder. The four of us will be family soon, and it would mean so much to us if you would fulfil these roles during the ceremony.

Sarah

I raised an eyebrow, before tucking the note into a pocket of my dressing gown and resuming the task I had set myself.

After I had dressed, and had checked on Fletcher and the girls, I went through to the study, leaving my wand on the shelf outside the door. I didn't dare risk carrying my wand through the doorway, even despite the heavy shielding that protected the delicate Muggle electronic equipment inside. A group of Californian witches and wizards had invented a way of shielding Muggle electronics from magic, but unlike Taylor I didn't exactly trust it. The same 'technology' protected our television, stereo and DVD player, along with the appliances in the kitchen.

Seated at the desk inside the study, fingers flying across the keyboard of his new computer, was Taylor. His wand - I remembered it being ten inches of ash with a phoenix feather core - was sticking up out of one of the back pockets of his jeans. He looked up from his typing as I drew up a chair to sit beside him. "What's up?" he asked.

"There was a note in with the invitation," I told him.

"Oh? What'd it say?"

Without saying a word, I withdrew the note from my pocket and handed it to him. He unfolded it and scanned the writing.

"Well, looks like we're going to England," he said when he was done reading.

"You mean you were planning on missing it?" I asked, my tone vaguely accusing.

"Nat, relax," he said. "Of course I wasn't going to miss it. This is my sister getting Bonded here. But this" he jabbed at the note with a finger "pretty much clinches it. I may not like the guy very much, but..."

"But what?"

He looked at me. "She asked me to be their Bonder, Nat. I can't deny her this. And she's right - we're all going to be family soon. And what better way to become a family?"

He had a point. "There's only one problem in all of this," I said.

"And that is?"

"You're the only one in this family with a passport, and even then I'm fairly sure it needs renewing. I've never had need for one until now, and the kids definitely haven't needed them."

"Relax, Nat. I know someone who can pull a few strings for us - we'll have our passports and our airline tickets by the end of the week."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Are you absolutely positive?"

"When have I ever steered you wrong?" He gave me a smile. "Just trust me on this one."

* * *

Taylor

London Heathrow Airport was a hive of activity, even at half past six in the morning. The five of us - Natalie, Ava, Penelope, Fletcher and I - had arrived five minutes earlier on a British Airways flight, and had been fortunate enough to find ourselves at the very head of the line that snaked its way toward Immigration. The official stamping travellers' passports this sunny July morning looked and sounded as if he had been awake all night.

"Name?"

"Taylor Fletcher Chambers," I replied easily. I knew the spiel off by heart by now, considering all the travelling I did as part of my job - I was one of the two strikers for the New York Revolutionaries Powerball team, and we were often invited as a team to play exhibition matches overseas - but I had long ago decided to let those in authority call the shots.

"Point of origin?"

"John F. Kennedy Airport, New York City, United States of America."

"Reason for visit and length of stay?"

"My sister's wedding - we will be here for a week."

I then handed over my passport. The passports issued to the magical community in America were slightly different from those that the Muggles were issued with - entirely aside from having the emblem of the United States Magical Congress, that of an eagle clasping in its talons a wand shooting sparks, embossed in silver on the cover, its pages were imbued with a mild Compulsion Charm that ensured that its holder would be granted automatic and safe passage across the world's borders.

"This seems to be in order," the immigration official said, having given my passport a cursory glance, after which he stamped one of the pages and handed it back to me. "Enjoy your stay."

"Thank you," I said, before moving off to one side to await the passage of the rest of my family through Immigration.

It wasn't long before we had made it through Immigration and Customs. Waiting in Arrivals, the gathered crowd forming a wide circle around them, were my sister and her fiancé. It wasn't hard to see why the crowd was giving them a wide berth - the vibes my future brother-in-law was giving off were enough to drive anyone away.

"I'm so glad you could make it," Sarah said as we embraced. "How was your flight?"

"Nerve-wracking," Natalie replied. "What in the world possesses Muggles to choose that mode of transport? I almost thought we were going to pitch into the Atlantic."

"I don't understand it myself," Sarah replied. "But it's not as if we have much of a say in matters - the Muggles don't know we exist, do they? Well, elsewhere they do," she amended, "but not here. And it's not like we'd make much of an impact if we spoke up."

"Good point." My gaze fell across Draco, and I nodded in greeting. He in turn inclined his head. "I think we should get going. Blondie over there is already starting to freak out the normals."

"Nice," Sarah said with a raised eyebrow. "You have everything?"

"Bar the kitchen sink," I replied. Behind me I heard Natalie stifle a laugh, and I smiled.

"I hope so, because I would rather not make this journey a third time." She gave me a tight smile, linked arms with Draco, and led the way out of the airport terminal. From there, we proceeded to what looked like a loading dock; Sarah stopped walking next to a 'No Standing' sign and took her wand from the pocket of her jacket. "Everyone stand well away from the curb," she said. "Otherwise you might well regret it." With those words, she grasped her wand in her right hand and stuck her wand hand out into the street, as if she were hailing a taxi.

From out of nowhere careered a triple-decker, bright purple bus that had The Knight Bus in gold lettering across the top of the windscreen. It stopped right in front of where we stood, and a young Asian woman dressed in a uniform matching the colour of the bus stepped off. I figured she was the conductor.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard," the conductor said. "Just stick out your wand hand, step on board and we can take you anywhere you want to go. My name is Serena Li, and I will be your conductor this morning." Having finished her spiel, Serena eyed the seven of us. "Where to?"

"Salisbury, Wiltshire," Sarah replied.

"That'll be four Galleons, ten Sickles," Serena said almost automatically. Sarah dug around in her pockets for her money pouch, withdrew four gold and ten silver coins, and paid up so we could all board the bus.

To my surprise, instead of rows of bench seats, armchairs had been placed around the bus for passengers to sit in. At least half of the armchairs were already occupied.

"Make sure you've got something to hang onto," Sarah advised as we found our seats. "It's somewhat of a bumpy ride."

No truer words were said. Barely seconds after we had all seated ourselves, the bus started up and shot off down the road, weaving left to right at high speed without any care for the other vehicle that was in its path.

"Have you thought about what you'll say during the ceremony?" Sarah asked me as the Knight Bus sped through Staines, before hanging a hard left near Weybridge. I shook my head slowly. "Taylor!" she nearly screeched. "The Bonding is in five days, and you don't even know what you're going to say?"

"I've never been to a Bonding," I protested. Well, I had, but to be fair I'd been five at the time, and had been more interested in kicking the backs of the seats in front of me than what was being droned about up at the front. "I wouldn't know what the hell to say during them."

Sarah let out what sounded like a long-suffering sigh. "All right, you've got an excuse. But when we get to the Manor, I'll have one of the house elves show you to the library so you can study up on Bondings. I'm positive that there's at least a Muggle's Guide To Bondings tucked away in there."

Sure enough, a house elf dressed in a spotless, snowy white dishtowel stamped with the Malfoy family crest was waiting in the entrance hall. "If sir will please follow me," the elf said in a scratchy voice, before bowing low and leading the way upstairs.

The library that the elf led me to was, in one word, massive. Rows upon rows of tall, dark wooden bookshelves took up half the area allocated, and the walls were lined with more shelves. A tall wooden ladder on castors leaned against the left-hand shelves. Three tall windows took up the far wall, giving a view into the grounds. In the middle was a large polished wooden table that had twelve comfortable-looking chairs placed around it. I thanked the elf, and it bowed low once more before exiting the library.

My main problem now was trying to locate the books I needed without resorting to examining every single book in the library - there had to be thousands. If this was like any other wizarding library I had ever been in, there would be an index somewhere. And sure enough, near the door was a thick, leather-bound book resting on a carved wooden pedestal - the master index. I crossed over to it, opened the book carefully so as not to crack the binding, and started my search.

Fifteen minutes later, I had located the books I needed, and was reading through a book entitled What To Do When You're In Way Over Your Head: A Beginner's Guide To Bondings. Thankfully it had a section of possible Bonding ceremonies that could be used near the back, with the disclaimer that any part of the ceremonies could be used for non-profit purposes.

"Eureka," I said triumphantly. I picked up my wand from where it lay on the table, Summoned my writing set, and set to work drafting out a Bonding ceremony.

* * *

Five days later, I stood at the eastern end of the nave in the ancient stone cathedral that the Bonding was to be held in. It was bedecked in royal blue and emerald green, silver and bronze - the House colours of Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Row upon row of robed witches and wizards filled the wooden pews, though from my vantage point at the very front I could only pick out a few faces, none of which I recognised. Sarah's sisters Maggie and Miriam stood flanking me, the three of them dressed in royal blue robes trimmed in silver. I stood beside Miriam, and wore deep green robes, my hair pulled back into a ponytail and wand in hand. Opposite the witches stood three wizards - Sarah had introduced Natalie and I to the three of them a few days earlier, and I remembered their names as being Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini, and Nathaniel Rochford. They, like the witches, wore silver-trimmed royal blue robes.

Natalie stepped out of her place and up beside me, and whispered in my ear, "You do this right, and I'll make you the happiest wizard in the world tonight. And that means speaking in English for once in your life."

I looked toward her and raised an eyebrow. "You got it," I agreed. Natalie nodded and returned to her place. I could see her hiding a grin as she did so.

Right on seven, the cathedral doors opened smoothly, revealing Sarah and Draco standing upon the threshold, dressed in their best robes - Draco in black, and Sarah in scarlet. They stood there for barely a minute, before walking together up the centre aisle hand in hand, stopping level with the first row of seats.

I took a deep breath, fished my glasses out of the pocket of my robes and slipped them on, and began speaking. "We stand before this company, on this magical summer evening, to witness the Bonding of Sarah and Draco. Blessed be all who attend this glorious celebration, and blessed be those about to be united in the bonds of love." I looked to Sarah and Draco. "You stand before this company and before the Gods, seeking to become one with each other. You have entered into this union with open eyes and full hearts. If either of you, or anyone present here today, know of any reason why these vows should not be made, speak now."

Nobody said a word. I nodded almost imperceptibly, and continued the ceremony. "Who comes forth at this time to petition the Lord and Lady's attention?"

Miriam stepped forward and took Sarah's hand, and the two of them walked forward three steps. "This lady."

Nathaniel then did the same with Draco, saying his line when they were level with Miriam and Sarah. "And this man."

"And their reason?" I asked.

In unison, Sarah and Draco said, "For the beauty of love." Miriam and Nathaniel returned to their places, and Sarah and Draco joined hands.

"Sarah and Draco, you stand before me, the Gods, and this company, having desired to be bound to one another. Do you do this of your own free will, coming here today without coercion or pressure from other persons?"

"We do."

Sarah then turned to Draco, took a deep breath, and said, "I, Sarah, do recognise in you, my love, the form of the God, he who gives life; my perfect other half, the shining part of my spirit, holy and human and revered in every way. I promise to honour you, as human and holy, knowing all that I say and all that I do is said and done to the God as well."

In reply, Draco said, "I, Draco, do recognise in you, my love, the form of the Goddess, she who gives life; my perfect other half, the shining part of my spirit, holy and human and revered in every way. I promise to honour you, as human and holy, knowing all that I say and all that I do is said and done to the Goddess as well."

That said, Maggie and Theodore each proceeded to pull a ring from a pocket in their robes; Maggie handed hers to Sarah, and Theodore handed his to Draco. As Sarah and Draco exchanged rings, I said, "Onto each other's hand you now place a ring, the circlet symbolising the wheel of life that turns ever onward. There is a lesson in both the hand and the wedding ring. The ring is worn on the fourth finger; in numerology, the number 4 stands for steadiness and endurance. The circle itself is all-encompassing and inclusive. Your hand opens to receive and to give, clenches in frustration and anger, holds and soothes in times of sadness, and clutches in fear. With this hand are cities and sandcastles made, music played and poetry written; into these hands is life given, and from these hands is it taken. All the actions of your hand move in sympathetic rhythm with the wheel of life and with your destiny. Pleasure, pain, creation, destruction, giving and receiving are all within the power of your hand. As the ring symbolises the cycle, so does the hand symbolise the power of actualisation and creation. Let this ring remind you of the many turns of the Wheel through which you and your love shall pass, and may everything that is touched by your hand be touched also by love."

I then switched my wand to my left hand, closed my eyes briefly, and stepped forward. I addressed Sarah first, the very tip of my wand hovering over Draco and Sarah's joined hands. "Sarah, do you do this of your own free will, coming here today without coercion or pressure from other persons?"

"I do."

"Will you seek to do him harm?"

"I will not."

"And if harm is done, will you seek to repair it?"

"I will."

"Will you seek to be honest with him in all things?"

"I will."

"Will you support him in times of distress?"

"I will."

"Will you temper your words and actions with love?"

"I will."

"These things you have promised to your partner, before this company and the Gods. May you ever be mindful and strive to keep the vows you have spoken." As I spoke, from my wand shot a tongue of flame, which wrapped itself once around Draco and Sarah's joined hands. I repeated this twice more, addressing Draco and then both Sarah and Draco, before addressing the congregation. "As this witch and wizard are Bound, so are your families united through them. It has been their decision to bind themselves to one another, and their lives will be blessed and enriched by the support you give. Will you encourage and bless Sarah and Draco in their union? Will you celebrate their bond, standing beside them in rough times, yet not standing between them?"

As one, the congregation said, "We will."

"By the grace of the Lord and Lady has your love, through Their love, brought you together upon this day. May the Gods sustain and strengthen your bond, bless you and keep you, for as long as love shall last.

"You have witnessed the promises made by Sarah and Draco one to another, and the exchange of the symbols of their union. They are now connected to experience together whatever life may bring them.

"In the Bonding of yourselves have you created life anew. Step forth, therefore, into that new life, and rejoice in your love." I paused for the briefest of moments, before closing the ceremony by addressing the congregation. "I present to you all Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy."

As I finished speaking, applause rang throughout the cathedral, and Sarah and Draco embraced for the first time as a Bonded couple, joined for the rest of their lives.

* * *

End Author's Notes: Thank you to Deltastar100 for leaving their thoughts on the completed edition of Trinity, and also to MandaCo for leaving her thoughts on chapter 9. (I'm quite impressed, by the way. Didn't think anyone would pick up on that!) In addition, thank you to anyone who happens to review Trinity in the future - your thoughts are greatly appreciated. :)

In reference to one review I received for Trinity in particular: please note that this whole trilogy is intended to be OC-centric. I see transplanting canon characters into an OC-centric fic as a cheap, weak excuse to have a canon character represented, unless there is a concrete reason to do so. And for Trinity, there was no reason for me to do that - the least reason of which is that the story was set in Australia, and there are no Australian characters featured or even mentioned in canon. Never fear, however, you'll get your canon character fix in this story. Can't promise the same for the next story, though. *shifty eyes*

In reference to my 'warning' in my beginning author's notes that this is a crossover, sharp-eyed readers (particularly those who, like me, are partial to the music of a certain blonde trio) will note that the characters of Natalie and Penelope are also real people - Natalie is the 'real life' wife of Taylor Hanson, and Penelope is their daughter. Ava and Fletcher, however, are my own characters.

The spiel by Serena Li is taken directly from page 30, chapter 3 of the Australian edition of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I created this character mainly because I don't believe Stan Shunpike was the only conductor of the Knight Bus - he wouldn't have got any sleep if he was! Therefore, Ms. Li is his daytime counterpart.

In canon, Draco Malfoy doesn't have a middle name - that we know of, anyway. To correct this 'oversight', I have bestowed upon him the middle name of 'Tiberius', a Biblical name meaning 'the son of Tiber'. It was also the name of the second Roman emperor, Tiberius Caesar Augustus, who ruled between 14 and 37 CE.

The name of the magical borough of New York City, Gotham, comes from one of the nicknames of NYC - in addition, I feel that the population of Gotham is realistic, being that there are more than 8.1 million people living in NYC, with each borough (the exception being Staten Island) home to at least a million people.

Also, even though this story is being written post-DH, I originally conceived this trilogy and began to write the original version of this story a full year before the release of Deathly Hallows. Thus, I will be making no reference to any events that took place in DH at any time during the story.

Next chapter: The triplets' search for their family begins in the most unlikely of places - Malfoy Manor.