Happy Easter, everyone! I've been wanting to do something new for 2019 after all my old stories were complete, but I couldn't hold on to this one until that time. I've never written a Harry Potter story for Fan Fiction before, so this is entirely new territory for me. I was inspired by the stories where Harry smartens up/gets help, fem!Harry stories, and Dumbledore/Weasley/Granger bashing stories. Yes, this is going to be a fem!Harry story and yes, this is going to have character bashing in it. Also, there are going to be original characters. I mostly wrote this out of wanting to try something new and also as a cathartic exercise, which is surprisingly working. Originally this was meant to be a one-shot, but has since taken on a life of its own. I think I do have an ending in sight for it, but that could easily change.

The reason why I am posting this on Easter is because it is the perfect time for an egg hunt. In this chapter there are nine references that can be from movies, television, gaming, fashion, music, or pop culture that are stuck in here that really don't have much to do with the plot, but at the same time it doesn't necessarily mean they'll be easy to find. If you find all nine, the prize at the end is knowing that you did well and possibly know me a bit too well.

The usual disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the movies, games, music, or products that may be lurking in this chapter, but the original characters are mine.

Happy hunting!

Harriet Potter was not having a good summer. After her friends had promised to write her about what was happening, she hadn't heard anything from them other than there was nothing to tell her and Hermione added that she should work on her summer homework. Harriet had written back a few times to try to find out what was happening in the Wizarding World, adding that her homework was complete. Still she received the same response. She even wrote to Dumbledore to ask when she could go to The Burrow to stay with the Weasleys and his response was that she was safer with her relatives and not to send letters as they could be easily tracked by Death Eaters.

Her relatives put her to work. Harriet was once again expected to cook and clean the house and tend the garden to maintain the Dursleys' image of a perfect normal family with the exception of their delinquent niece who spurned their kind hearts. Harriet took every opportunity to listen in on the news and go through discarded newspapers, trying to find anything that would suggest what Voldemort was up to. Vernon caught her once under the open window listening in on the news and demanded why a freak would care about what was happening to hard-working normal people.

Then there were the nightmares. Harriet didn't sleep much because she constantly relived the night in the graveyard when she closed her eyes. If it wasn't the memory of the graveyard, it was her drowning during the second task or being eaten or incinerated during the first task. More than once she woke up screaming in the middle of the night, causing Vernon to storm into her room and shout at her for waking them up in the middle of the night.

Now, because she had woken up the Dursleys in the middle of the night because of a nightmare, Harriet was sent to work outside in the garden all day to prepare for the local gardening competition Petunia had entered in. Harriet was expected to have the beds weeded and the roses pruned before Vernon got home. Normally it wouldn't have been so bad if the new neighbors didn't have the best garden on Privet Drive already.

New neighbors. That was not something Harriet had expected when she arrived back at the Dursleys'. Vernon blamed her for the neighbors, accusing her of bringing more freakishness into their lives. Harriet thought they might have been a wizarding family, but the thought was quickly dashed when she saw them. Four women had moved into Number Two, and while eccentric, they didn't act like they were witches from what Harriet saw. Their clothes were modern, luxury brand names even, and their outfits were well put together, not the mess that Harriet witnessed at the World Cup. Each had their own individual style and all four were gorgeous. Harriet also saw one of the women on the cordless phone walking around the house speaking at an acceptable volume level, clearly knowing how to use it. She never saw a wand in their hands, a post owl, or anything indicating they were magical or even knew about magic.

Petunia did not like any of the women. She would spy on them from the backyard, listening to their conversations, especially when Phone Lady was talking to whoever was on the phone. She called them tarts based on the risqué nature of the phone calls she eavesdropped upon, trying to start a scandal amongst the neighborhood that they were loose women whose money was ill-gotten from what she could twist from their conversations. Rumors spread like wildfire amongst the housewives of Privet Drive thanks to Petunia. It didn't seem to bother the women of Number Two. They went about their lives without a care for the gossip.

Vernon had loudly voiced his opinion about what he thought about the new neighbors. Like Petunia, he called them tarts, but also foreigners who think they don't have to work hard like honest people. And while he spouted off his narrow-minded rhetoric, it didn't escape Harriet's notice that he leered after them whenever they came or left.

When they weren't beating up kids around the neighborhood, Dudley and his gang hung out in the alley behind Number Two to try to peep in on the women. Harriet would hear them bragging to each other about how they saw one of them undressed. If they really were peeping, it was only a matter of time before they got caught.

A door opened and closed. Harriet thought it was Petunia coming out to shriek at her for some reason or other. Then she heard Phone Lady's voice with her American accent on the other side of the fence.

"It's only a temporary situation," Phone Lady was saying. "We'll probably be here until next year. If you want us to visit, or you want me to visit, all you have to do is ask."

There was a pause.

"Old?" Phone Lady asked in a teasing tone. "You don't look your age at all!"

There was another pause before Phone Lady burst out in laughter.

"You know what I mean. But seriously, you should indulge yourself more often. You look like you're not a day over thirty-five when you're relaxed, thirty when you really loosen up. Good bottle of wine, home cooked dinner, chocolate dipped berries for dessert, a beautiful woman attending to you for the evening, two if Ursula is bored. Well, I can make a cheesecake instead if you wanted one."

Harriet had stopped what she was doing to listen to Phone Lady. Petunia had said her conversations were quite suggestive, but from what Harriet was hearing, it was only allusion to the risqué. Phone Lady could very well be strictly literal. It was all open to interpretation.

"I can speak how I want," Phone Lady went on. "I am in my own yard, not talking loudly or making a scene. The bitch next door has nothing better to do but to use her unnaturally long neck to look over the fence and twist my private calls into neighborhood gossip."

Harriet had to cover her mouth to hold in her snickers as Phone Lady talked about Petunia.

"Oh, the whole family's despicable!" she went on. "They look like some experiment gone wrong, all of them, like someone tried to create chimeras using humans. The husband is severely overweight and has a short temper. Honestly, I'm waiting for him to keel over from a stroke. And I wouldn't be surprised if Margarita didn't lift a finger to help him. She's noticed how he watches us every time we leave the house. Her jogging route goes passed their house and she's seen him on the porch acting like he was getting the paper. We all know he's waiting on her."

So the women of Number Two knew about Vernon's new habit of taking so long to get the newspaper every morning.

"And like I said, the wife, Petunia – the name's just insulting to the flowers – is horse-faced with a neck like a giraffe. She tries to make herself look like a perfect housewife in those floral print dresses. Bony thin, too. Walks out with her husband every morning to kiss him goodbye as he goes to work. It's like a scene out of a movie, and not a good one either, so fake, nothing going on in that bedroom I assure you. There's only one way he's doing it, if they can even find it."

Harriet choked, sick to her stomach. Phone Lady was actually talking about Vernon and Petunia like that? She really didn't need to think about what her aunt and uncle's love life was like.

"And the son! A pig both in form and in mind! He's as big as his father. The only exercise he gets is by shoveling food into his maul. A bully, too. Gets his little gang of budding criminals to do all the hard work for him. He'll punch someone, but only when his goons are holding them for him. To see him try to run is just a vulgar sight. Of course his parents think he's a little angel who's a growing boy. Oh, he's growing, all right. Right out of the seams of his clothes. They spoil him and he throws tantrums when he doesn't get his way. He's old enough to know better, but they've clearly failed as parents. He won't function in society, even if something changes soon. Personally, I'm surprised child services haven't showed up yet. No, I think something's going on there. Oh, did I tell you Forsythia caught them peeking over the garden wall and trying to see into the house? They had binoculars. Of course they didn't see anything of importance. We have curtains. And use them."

Harriet's eyes widened. She had thought Dudley had been telling stories about peeping in on the women.

"And then there's the niece."

Harriet pressed her ear to the fence to hear what Phone Lady had to say about her.

"One of the first things we were told when we moved in here was that the Dursleys' niece was a problem child who was always causing trouble. Her name is Harriet Potter. Mm-hmm, yeah. They say they send her to some boarding school called St. Brutus's Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Youths. A load of crap, the place doesn't exist. Petunia goes around saying that she's an ungrateful brat. More than once I heard them yelling at her for something or other and how this is how she repays them for their kindness and how they could have sent her to an orphanage. An orphanage would have been better. That brings me back to the child services thing. Clearly someone has their hands in it."

This was a pleasant surprise. The women at Number Two didn't believe the stories the Dursleys spouted off about her and weren't fooled in the least by the stories that Dudley was a perfect little angel.

"Oh, who knows, he's probably at some pub in London getting hammered," Phone Lady said. "Ursula saw him last week. Came home complaining about the condition of the hotel room he was staying in."

It sounded like their conversation had changed topic.

A bony hand grabbed Harriet's shoulder and yanked her back from the fence.

"What are you doing lazing about?" shrieked Petunia. "Shirking on your chores! Spying on the neighbors!"

"Excuse me."

Harriet and Petunia looked up to see Phone Lady's face. Her pale face was done up in purple makeup and her brown hair hung in waves.

"I'm sorry for my delinquent niece," Petunia said with false sweetness. "We try so hard to help her, but it seems she's a lost cause."

Phone Lady glanced at Harriet and then at Petunia. "She wasn't the problem. I am trying to have a phone conversation. Could you keep your voice at an acceptable volume? Any louder and the police could be called for disturbing the peace."

"Disturbing the peace? Me?" Petunia screeched.

"Yes. Goodbye." Phone Lady disappeared and they could hear her chatting away on the phone once again.

Petunia dragged Harriet into the house. "Ungrateful freak! Making us look bad in front of the new neighbor. After we took you in and fed you and clothed you. Wait until your uncle comes home."

Harriet was locked in her room after that.

The next day, Petunia locked her out of the house. Harriet decided to go the rundown playground after her gardening was finished and sat on the only intact swing. She hadn't slept much last night because of the dreams again. Vernon had banged on her door and threatened to throw her in the cupboard under the stairs for the noise she was making. She closed her eyes for a moment. It was getting late, the sun was setting, and she wondered if she would be allowed in the house to sleep.

"Hey, Potter!"

Harriet opened her eyes and looked up. Dudley and his gang of friends was standing in front of her.

"Oh, hey, Big D," she said. "Out beating up a ten year old?"

"He deserved it," Dudley said. "He cheeked me."

"Yes, five on one. Very fair," she remarked sarcastically.

"You're one to talk," said Dudley. "At least I don't moan in my sleep. Scared of your own pillow?"

Dudley's gang laughed.

"'He's going to kill Cedric!'" Dudley mocked. "Who's Cedric? Your boyfriend?"

"Shut up, Dudley!" snapped Harriet. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"'Mum, he's going to kill me! Mum, help me, he's going to kill me!'" Dudley continued to mock. "Where's your mum, Potter? Is she dead?"

Dudley's gang continued to laugh.

Harriet reached for her wand in her back pocket and started to stand up.

"Hey!" someone barked.

Harriet saw one of the women from Number Two walking quickly across the grass at them. It was the woman who tended to run every morning. She had an athletic build and stood tall. Her chestnut brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She was wearing bright blue running shorts and an amber colored vest worn open over her orange trimmed gray sports bra. Around her waist was a green running pack and she was carrying a matching green water bottle in her hand.

"What's going on?" the woman demanded.

"We're just talking," Dudley said, trying to look innocent.

"The budding criminal thug squad just talking to a girl? Yeah, right. All of you, home now."

"Or what?" Dudley said belligerently. "We weren't doing anything wrong."

"Assault, for starters," the woman stated. "You admitted it yourself. 'He deserved it. He cheeked me.' Isn't that what you said? What are you parents going to say when the police get involved? Because I will go to them first. I won't lose sleep over putting a black mark on your record. Good luck getting into schools with that. I'm sure your parents will love that."

Some of Dudley's gang looked worried.

"Maybe we should go, Big D," said Piers.

"I would listen to your friend," the woman said to Dudley. "Clearly he has intelligence and a sense of self-preservation."

Suddenly the temperature plummeted and it got darker. Several of the streetlights went out for no reason.

Everyone looked around, confused.

"Go home," the woman ordered them. "Now!"

Dudley's gang ran off, leaving Harriet, Dudley, and the woman.

Harriet felt the happiness drain from her and began to hear mother's screams for her life. She realized what was happening. There was a Dementor nearby.

"What are you doing?" Dudley shouted at Harriet.

The woman put her water bottle in the holster on her running pack. "You two, go home!"

Dudley ignored the woman. Instead he continued to yell at Harriet. "You're not allow to use it! You'll get in trouble!"

Harriet took out her wand. She was then sent sprawling to the ground, her cheek throbbing. Dudley had punched her, causing her to drop her wand and lose her glasses.

"I can't see!" Dudley panicked. "I've gone blind!"

Harriet patted the ground for her glasses. She found them and put them on time to see Dudley running away, straight towards a Dementor.

"Dudley, you're running right at it!" Harriet screamed.

The ragged robed ghostly form swooped down on Dudley and grabbed him with its scabby hands.

Harriet searched for her wand.

"Be gone!" Harriet heard the woman yell.

A ball of light hit the Dementor holding Dudley and it dropped him. The Dementor let out an unearthly shriek and caught fire, turning to ash a second later.

Harriet turned to the woman to see she was poised with her fist pulled back, her hand glowing.

"Duck!" the woman yelled at Harriet.

Harriet dropped to the ground and the woman threw a punch. The light shot off her hand and hit a second Dementor that was creeping up on Harriet. It was incinerated like the first.

Warmth returned and the streetlights flickered back on.

The woman walked over to Harriet and held out her hand. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Harriet replied, allowing her to be pulled to her feet. "What was that?"

"A banishing spell," the woman replied. "I owe John for teaching us that one. Now let's go before more decide to show up. And get your wand."

Harriet found her wand and put it in her pocket.

The woman shook her head at Harriet. She walked over to the unmoving form of Dudley. With her foot, she shoved him over to his back.

"My condolences," the woman said.

Harriet began to panic.

"His soul wasn't sucked out." She bent down and hoisted Dudley up. "Get up!"

Dudley moaned and staggered to his feet, immediately wanting to slump down again.

The woman gave him a shake before grabbing him by the scruff of his neck. She slapped him across the face. "Wake up! I'm not carrying you!" With another shake, she began pushing Dudley in the direction of Privet Drive.

Harriet was quick to follow.

"Miss, um," Harriet started to say.

"Doctor would be the correct term, but don't bother with the pleasantries," said the woman. "I'm Margarita."

"Are you a witch, Margarita?" Harriet asked.

"You can call me that," said Margarita.

"But you didn't use a wand," said Harriet.

"So? It doesn't mean I can't use magic," Margarita said.

"Isn't difficult to use wandless magic?" asked Harriet. "Only powerful wizards and witches can use it."

Margarita snorted. "Anyone can do it. You just have to apply yourself, which is something the general wizarding public knows absolutely nothing about."

By the time they reached Number Four, Margarita and Harriet were dragging Dudley between them. Harriet opened the door to the house and went in first. Margarita followed, dropping Dudley in the entryway.

The next few minutes were filled with yelling and shrieking from Vernon and Petunia, demanding to know what happened to their son and blaming Harriet for his state. They carried Dudley into the living room where he curled up in a chair with a vacant stare and a continuous whimper. Petunia fretted over the boy, trying to get him to talk.

"Happy are we now?" Vernon asked Harriet. "You've finally done it. You've finally driven him loopy."

Margarita turned to Harriet. "Go next door and tell Ophelia to get off the phone and get my kit."

Harriet nodded and started for the door.

"And stay out!" Vernon yelled after her. "I won't put up with your nonsense any longer!"

"My kit, Harriet!" Margarita shouted over Vernon. "Quickly, please!"

Harriet ran out the front door and over to Number Two. She rang the doorbell and knocked on the door.

The door opened to reveal a tall woman with high cheekbones and perfectly straight black hair. Harriet had recognized her as the woman who loved the color black and liked to wear different hats and veils. At the moment the woman was wearing only black silk bathrobe that showed off her hourglass figure. She looked very surprised to see Harriet standing on the porch.

"Yes?" the woman drawled.

"Margarita sent me," Harriet quickly explained. "She said, 'tell Ophelia to get off the phone and get my kit.'"

The woman looked over her shoulder. "Ophelia! Margarita needs her kit!"

"Tell her to get it herself!" came the response.

"She sent someone to get it!" the woman shouted back. "Say good night to Jekyll and Hyde! You can flirt with them later!"

"Why don't you get it?"

"In a bathrobe?" The woman sighed. "Hold on."

Harriet waited impatiently. The woman returned to the door wearing a long black coat and carrying a duffle bag.

"Lead the way," she said to Harriet, pulling the door shut behind her.

The two went back over to Number Four.

"Margarita!" the woman sang, entering the house like she owned it.

"In here, Ursula!" Margarita called from the living room.

Harriet and the woman, apparently Ursula, walked in to see the Dursleys looking fearfully at Margarita. Dudley now had a bucket on his lap and was looking decidedly green. Margarita took the duffle bag from Ursula without a word.

"You're welcome," Ursula said sarcastically.

Margarita took a small bottle of something out of the bag and shoved it under Dudley's nose. The reaction was immediate. Dudley jumped before retching into the bucket.

"Now we're getting somewhere," muttered Margarita.

"Chocolate helps," Harriet said. "It's what my professor gave us."

"Yes, it does," Ursula said, patting Harriet on the head. "But let's have Dr. Margarita work in peace."

Harriet ducked away from the hand with a scowl.

A screech owl came flying in the open window and dropped a letter in front of Harriet before flying out again.

Harriet opened the letter.

Dear Miss Potter,

We have received intelligence that you performed the Patronus Charm at twenty-three minutes past nine this evening in a Muggle-inhabited area and in the presence of a Muggle.

The severity of this breach of the Decree of the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery has resulted in your expulsion from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Ministry representatives will be calling at your place of residence shortly to destroy your wand.

As you have already received an official warning for a previous offence under Section 13 of the International Confederation of Warlocks' Statute of Secrecy, we regret to inform you that your presence is required at a disciplinary hearing at the Ministry of Magic at 9 a.m. on the twelfth of August.

Hoping you are well,

Yours sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

Improper Use of Magic Office Ministry of Magic

Ursula plucked the letter from Harriet's hands. "What is this garbage?" she asked, reading it over. "Margarita, what happened?"

"Dementors," Margarita replied curtly. "The British are dumb enough to still use the demons. Pointless to use them."

"They are the guards of Azkaban," said Harriet.

"This is Surrey, not Azkaban," Margarita pointed out. "So what are they doing here?"

"Mm, possibly setting up Miss Potter," said Ursula. "They did just inform her of her expulsion."

Margarita turned sharply to them. "On what grounds?"

"For performing a Patronus Charm according to this," replied Ursula.

"She couldn't have," said Margarita. "I was the only one to cast any magic and I used one of the spells John taught us."

"Seems like you owe him a gift basket," Ursula quipped.

"You're freaks, too?" Vernon thundered, turning purple.

Margarita and Ursula glared at him.

"Keep in mind who is treating your son at the moment, Mr. Dursley," Margarita said darkly.

A second owl flew into the house and landed near Harriet. It held out its leg, offering her the letter it was carrying. It flew away after Harriet removed the letter.

Harriet –

Dumbledore's just arrived at the Ministry and he's trying to sort it all out. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR AUNT AND UNCLE'S HOUSE. DO NOT DO ANY MORE MAGIC. DO NOT SURRENDER YOUR WAND.

Arthur Weasley

"More lovely news?" Ursula asked, trying to see Harriet's most recent letter.

Harriet clutched the letter, more like a note, to her chest to keep Ursula from taking it.

Margarita checked Dudley's pupils with a little light. "It shouldn't surprise me they won't bother doing an investigation. The Ministry is lazy, corrupt, and bigoted. They probably don't even see the need to check on their so-called savior."

"But the last time I had accidental magic happened, they sent a bunch of people to check on me," Harriet told them. "They were all in a panic because they thought Sirius Black was trying to kill me. Now Voldemort is back, I get attacked, and they just tell me I'm expelled, no questions asked."

"Yes, but then they weren't making you out as an attention seeking brat who's crying wolf," said Ursula.

"What?" Harriet asked.

"You haven't been reading the paper?" Ursula asked.

"I have barely heard from my friends," said Harriet. "I've written them, but they write back saying everything is fine and not to send letters because they could be intercepted. They never even sent my birthday presents. And now I'm being told to stay here and not do any more magic. Not like I used any earlier."

"Add fickle to your list, Margarita," Ursula commented.

"Noted," Margarita said flatly. "Okay, boy. You in there?"

Dudley moaned.

"Diddy-dums?" Petunia called.

"Cold," murmured Dudley.

"Yeah, you're going to be," said Margarita. "At least he's talking now. Think you're going to be sick again?"

Dudley went back to staring into space.

Margarita turned to Petunia. "Physically, he'll be fine in a few hours. Don't be surprised if he has nightmares. Once he gets his wits about him that he won't choke, give him some chocolate. I've found that the dark kind with chili pepper in it works best. That'll counter the chill he's feeling. He got lucky."

A third owl, another screech owl, flew in and dropped its envelope in front of Harriet before flying away.

"More owls!" Vernon bellowed.

Harriet opened this letter, aware that Ursula was looking over her shoulder.

Dear Miss Potter,

Further to our letter of approximately twenty-two minutes ago, the Ministry of Magic has revised its decision to destroy your wand forthwith. You may retain your wand until your disciplinary hearing on the twelfth of August, at which time an official decision will be taken.

Following discussions with the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the Ministry has agreed that the question of your expulsion will be decided at that time. You should therefore consider yourself suspended from school pending further enquires.

With best wishes,

Yours sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

Improper Use of Magic

Ministry of Magic

Ursula burst out in sarcastic laughter. "How nice of them. They are giving you the privilege to defend yourself before they snap your wand. They are probably hoping you'll incriminate yourself in the death of the boy who died in the tournament."

"I didn't kill Cedric!" Harriet screamed. "It was Voldemort. He killed Cedric!"

Ursula leaned down and put a finger in Harriet's face. "That is the exact reaction they want from you. And you'll make it so easy for them."

A fourth owl came soaring through the window and offered the letter tied to its leg to Harriet.

"For God's sake!" Vernon shouted. "I will not have owls here, I will not tolerate it, I tell you!"

"Oh, do shut up," Ursula said.

Harriet recognized the handwriting as Sirius's.

Arthur's just told us what happened. Don't leave the house again, whatever you do.

Harriet ground her teeth. She hadn't done anything to begin with and everyone was treating her like she had, telling her what to do, without asking for her side of what happened. She was becoming very frustrated with it all.

"I want you out of this house this instant!" Vernon yelled at Harriet, his face turning increasingly purple.

"I'm being told to stay here," Harriet said hollowly, holding up her letters from Mr. Weasley and Sirius.

"I don't care!" Vernon stomped over to Harriet. "You're more trouble than you're worth. He can't pay us enough to make us keep you any longer!"

As Vernon reached out to grab Harriet, Ursula stepped between them and slapped the large man across the face. Vernon howled and doubled over, holding his face.

"Vernon!" screeched Petunia, jumping up to help her husband.

Vernon looked at his hands and saw specks of blood on them. There were four long scratches running along his fat cheek.

Petunia glared at Ursula. "You tramp!"

"What the hell is going on in here?" Phone Lady was standing in the doorway in a purple mid-length dress with a thick black belt. Next to her was a petite woman with long, curly golden yellow hair wearing an oversized green T-shirt and boldly patterned, brightly colored drawstring shorts. "Ursula, really, you have much better tastes than that."

"Oh, please, like I would give the walrus the time of day," Ursula said, looking down her nose at Vernon.

The blonde woman went over to Harriet. Harriet had only said hello to her a few times when they were both out tending their own gardens. "Come on," she said quietly. "You can stay at our house."

"I can't," said Harriet.

"We're not leaving you here with an abusive family," said the blonde woman.

Harriet shook her head. "You don't understand. I can't leave. They told me to stay here."

"Who told you?" Phone Lady asked.

"My friends," Harriet started to say.

"And who are your friends to tell you to stay in an abusive household?" Phone Lady interrupted. "They are your friends, not your parents."

"But my godfather told me to stay, too," Harriet tried to argue.

"Then why aren't you with him?" Phone Lady asked. "Clearly he doesn't care about you. Get your stuff. You're staying with us until further notice. Forsythia, help her pack."

A fifth owl flew in, but dropped its letter in front of Petunia. It was in a red envelope. Petunia reached down and picked it up, seeing her name on it.

"You can open it if you like," Harriet told her. "We'll all hear it says anyway. It's a Howler."

"Petunia, put it down," said Vernon. "It could be dangerous."

"It's addressed to me," said Petunia. "Why would they address it to me?"

The envelope began to smoke before bursting into flames. Petunia screamed and dropped it.

An awful voice echoed throughout the room. "Remember my last, Petunia."

Petunia paled dramatically. "The girl stays," she said in a whisper.

"With you child abusers? I don't think so!" Phone Lady yelled.

"Ophelia," the blonde tried to console.

"Don't 'Ophelia' me, Forsythia! It's bad enough they treat her like a slave - don't give me that look, Dursley, we're not blind like the rest of this cookie cutter neighborhood. It's another thing that people who do not have the authority to make decisions about her life are telling her she must stay here. I have had enough of this stupidity. Harriet, get your stuff and take it over to our house. If your friends have a problem with that, they can take it up with me."

The blonde, Forsythia, gave Harriet's arm a small tug. "Best to go before she starts throwing spells."

Harriet and Forsythia went up to Harriet's room. Harriet quickly packed her trunk and got Hedwig's cage. The snowy owl was out hunting and wouldn't be back for a while. She turned and saw Forsythia looking at the cat flap and locks on her door.

"Do you have everything?" Forsythia asked, noticing that Harriet was looking at her.

Ursula appeared in the doorway and looked at the room. "Oh."

"Don't say anything, Ursula," said Forsythia.

Ursula made a face like she wanted to say something but didn't.

"What's going on downstairs?" Forsythia asked.

"Margarita's packing up her kit," said Ursula. "And Ophelia is having words with the Dursleys. We better hurry up and leave before she starts cursing them. Frankly, I might even join her."

The three walked down the stairs to find Ophelia and Margarita standing by the front door. Both looked very angry about something.

"Do you have everything?" Ophelia asked Harriet.

Harriet nodded.

"Let's go." Ophelia stood aside for Harriet to walk out, glaring at the Dursleys.

Harriet was escorted across to Number Two. Across the street, she noticed old Mrs. Figg staring at them with a look akin to horror. She quickly scurried back to her house. Harriet frowned. Margarita put her hand on Harriet's shoulder and guided her to the front door.

"Welcome to Number Two," Ursula announced dramatically. "Possibly the only place in Little Whinging where individuality can be expressed without criticism."

"Not all criticism," Ophelia said. "You can be quite vicious."

"So can you," Ursula shot back. She took off her coat to reveal that she had only her underclothes on beneath it. She hung it on the coat rack before sashaying up the stairs. "I'm going to put on something more comfortable."

Margarita turned to Harriet. "Have you eaten anything?"

Harriet shook her head.

"Leave your stuff here. We'll get you some food," said Margarita, leading Harriet to the kitchen.

After Harriet ate some oatmeal Margarita quickly made up for her, she sat at the table looking at the women. Ursula had returned halfway through Harriet's meal dressed in a charcoal gray gown.

"I'm sure you have questions," Ophelia stated.

"Who are you?" Harriet asked.

"Well, I'm Ophelia, and that's Ursula, Margarita, and Forsythia."

Harriet shook her head. "That's not what I meant. Are you witches? Why are you here on Privet Drive?"

"She's ignorant, Ophelia, not stupid," said Margarita. "And I did tell her she can call us that."

"We just don't consider ourselves the average witches," Forsythia said. "We don't agree with the status quo of the wizarding communities. We believe that we need to live with the non-magi, not isolate ourselves because we're extraordinary. By going into hiding and believing non-magi are inferior, the communities have created a rift that could take years to fix. The longer they separate themselves from the rest of the world, the greater the risk of exposing themselves."

"And with cameras everywhere these days and the internet, it's not a matter of modifying a few memories anymore," said Ophelia.

Harriet thought about that. She only knew about new things from Dudley, who bragged about what his parents bought him. Other than that, she was usually isolated, staying at either Hogwarts or locked away at the Dursleys.

"As for what we are doing on Privet Drive, we were looking for you," Ophelia said with a smile.

"Me?" asked Harriet. "Why?"

"Like Forsythia said, we aren't your average witches," Ophelia continued. "We believe in coexisting with non-magi, which means helping them when the situation calls for it. And sometimes when the situation calls for it, we have to use magic from the shadows."

"Which brings us to our latest mission," said Ursula. "You."

"Me?"

"You are Harriet Potter, savior of the wizarding world, are you not?" Ursula mocked. "Survived the Killing Curse with only a scar? Defeated Voldemort before you were potty trained?"

Harriet opened her mouth to argue.

"Ursula, she doesn't understand your humor," Margarita said before Harriet could start yelling.

Ophelia giggled. "Don't take it personally, Harriet. None of us can stand stupidity, though Forsythia has an amazing amount of patience when it comes to it. The general magical world has lauded your survival as a show of your power. They forget you were a toddler who didn't know any spells. The only one alive that probably knows exactly what happened that night is Voldemort himself and I doubt he'll be telling anyone."

"And chances are that your survival and his downfall were because of something your parents did, not you," Ursula said. "There are a few powerful rituals out there that require a sacrifice. If that's the case, your parents not only risked their lives, but prison if they lived. The British outlaw everything they don't like."

"The general wizarding populace has this mold of you, that you are supposed to know how their world works," said Ophelia. "That you have to stay in their so-called 'Light' and denounce all who are 'Dark'. You look like your parents, so you must act like your parents. You have to go to Hogwarts. You have to be in Gryffindor. You have to be brave, daring, and 'Light' or you're a disappointment. Your father was a Quidditch player, so you must be one as well. Your mother was a first generation witch, so it's okay if you don't excel at everything magical. You were hidden from the magical world, so you must have had some sort of special training."

Harriet was becoming angry. "I never had any special training, except for third year with Professor Lupin for the Patronus Charm! And don't talk about my mother that way! She was a great witch!"

"Was she?" asked Ophelia. "Do you know that for sure?"

"She was a great witch," Harriet insisted.

"This is how the world is for you, Harriet," Ophelia said gently, no hint of mocking in her voice. "People expect you to take their word for everything and never question it. This is how they mold and shape you into what they want. But what do you want? You should ask questions. You should look at the world in your own way, not just theirs. You should have your own personality, not the one they pick out for you. In the end, it's your life, not theirs. And if they don't like it, they can go shit on a cat."

Harriet inadvertently burst out in laughter and was quickly joined by the women.

"So why am I your mission?" Harriet asked, recovering from her laughing fit.

"Because you need help," answered Ophelia. "Voldemort is back, as much as your government wants to deny it. Making you seem like you're unstable will make you uncreditable and the community will ostracize you. And when they do learn that Voldemort, they'll want you to fight him. They'll hide in their homes while you fight for them and demonize you for doing things they don't like. And that's where we come in. We've dealt with things that go bump in the night before. We're willing to fight Voldemort and can teach you how to fight if the need arises."

"With my luck, I'll need it," Harriet grumbled. "But why help me?"

"Who else is going to do it?" Ursula asked.

Harriet thought about it for a moment. No one had talked to her all summer and now they were telling her what to do, not even asking her for her side of the story or even if she was all right.

"Okay," said Harriet.

The rest of the evening was figuring out sleeping arrangements. Harriet insisted she could sleep on the sofa in the living room, but the women weren't having it. They decided that Harriet would bunk with Forsythia as she was the one least likely to wake Harriet up with her schedule.

Harriet's trunk was moved into Forsythia's room and a spare mattress was brought out of storage. Upon seeing what Harriet had in her trunk in ways of clothing, Ursula launched into a tirade about the Dursleys and forcing Harriet to dress like their pig of a son. This resulted in both Ursula and Ophelia deeming that Harriet needed a proper wardrobe and they would be taking her shopping after breakfast. Margarita and Forsythia agreed to come along too, if only to stop Ophelia and Ursula from sneaking over to Number Four and cursing the Dursleys in some fashion. Harriet was given a set of pajamas that belonged to Forsythia, which fit better than Dudley's castoffs.

Breakfast was very different in Number Two's house than what Harriet was used to. To begin, each woman got their own breakfast. Breakfast foods were also quite different, the women choosing fresh fruits, yogurts, toast smeared with cream cheese or avocado spread, and scrambled eggs with herbs compared to the heavy, grease laden breakfasts Harriet had made in the past or the tiny portions of grapefruit that she was forced to eat because of Dudley's diet.

Another thing was how noisy it was at the table. Harriet was used to Vernon bellowing for his breakfast or Dudley whining about wanting to watch his programs or Petunia's screeches at her to not burn the bacon. But this was a bit different. Ophelia and Ursula were debating where they were going to go shopping. Harriet was shocked at some of the insults they exchanged with each other. She looked to Margarita and Forsythia, but saw they weren't bothered by it at all. Apparently it was something that happened all the time. The only thing Ophelia and Ursula decided on was that they were going to shop in London. Harriet heard them throwing around names like Chanel, Fendi, Gucci, Prada, and Versace before Margarita called out that Harriet was a teenager and didn't need luxury brand names. Ophelia and Ursula looked appalled at her statement.

Forsythia leaned over to Harriet. "They love their luxury. Don't be surprised to walk out of a store with a dress that costs more than the mortgage on this house. Margarita and I will be with you to talk them out of it when that happens."

After breakfast came getting ready to go shopping. Forsythia loaned Harriet an aqua top, magenta shorts, and a pair of sandals. Forsythia herself wore a top and skirt set with a bold pink, white, and bright blue floral design and rose gold colored sandals, her golden hair half pulled up in a bejeweled clip. Margarita walked out of her room wearing a green tank top and taupe cargo pants, carrying a black hooded vest in one hand and a pair of black training gloves in the other. She had her hair pulled up into a ponytail like last night. Ursula was wearing a long black dress with the corset laced up tightly to show off her figure. She had a fascinator hat of mesh and black feathers clipped in her hair, a veil of netting covering her face. Her black eyeliner was graphic and her lips were painted red wine red. Ophelia also chose a black dress, hers being a leather mini dress held up with thin straps. Her eyes were smoked out in purple and her lips were simply glossed. Her skin looked like it was glowing from the warm gold pigment she had dusted on her face, shoulders, and chest.

Margarita put her sneakers on and grabbed her wallet from the table by the front door before heading out to start the car. Ophelia and Ursula were still bickering on where to shop as they put on their black heels and packed their purses with lipsticks and compacts. Harriet watched them, feeling nervous about the impending outing. Beside her was Forsythia. The blonde woman had obviously noticed Harriet's discomfort and put herself in the position as a guide to help her understand what was going on. Forsythia picked up her own purse and walked out to the car with Harriet, Ophelia and Ursula following behind them.

"Good morning, Mrs. Dursley!" Ophelia called loudly so the surrounding houses would hear. "And isn't it a lovely morning?"

Petunia was on the front porch getting the paper. She looked like she wanted to make a nasty remark at Ophelia, but had to stop herself as the neighbors leaving for work were listening. Instead, she forced a clearly fake smile on her face. Ophelia was obviously taking pleasure in putting Petunia on the spot as they all got into the black Mercedes. Her greeting had also drawn the neighbors' attention to the group and they could clearly see that Harriet was going on an outing with the four eccentric women. Associating with them would tarnish the Dursleys' reputation, at least in the Dursleys' eyes.

Harriet sat in the back of the car with Forsythia and Ophelia. The latter pulled a bright pink compact out of her purse and a makeup brush and dusted more of the gold pigment along her décolletage.

"Care for some?" Ophelia asked Harriet.

Harriet look suspiciously at the makeup brush.

"Oh, it's highlighter, not arsenic," said Ophelia. "A little won't hurt. Glasses off. I'll do your cheeks."

Harriet took off her glasses and closed her eyes. She felt Ophelia sweeping the brush across her cheekbones.

"Ooh, this looks nice," Ophelia said. "Courtesy of a rising star and the golden king it was named after. What do you think?"

Harriet opened her eyes and looked in the compact's mirror. Her cheeks now had a slight golden sheen to them. She wasn't sure how she felt about it.

"Looks good," Ursula said from the front seat. "We'll have to get her some makeup while were out."

"Did you ever agree on where we're shopping?" Forsythia asked.

Margarita answered before Ophelia and Ursula started arguing again. "I'm driving, I'm picking."

They drove into London and arrived at a large indoor shopping mall. Ophelia and Ursula approved of Margarita's choice and tried to run off with Harriet immediately. Margarita and Forsythia had to stop them from dragging Harriet into the high-end stores first, saying that she didn't need to drop a working man's paycheck on a dress.

Harriet was overwhelmed with shopping. They took her to several affordable stores for blouses, pants, skirts, dresses, and shoes. While the women did most of the choosing of what Harriet would try on, they did ask her opinion if she liked certain colors or prints or styles. Harriet was so used to Dudley's castoffs and her school uniform, she wasn't sure how to answer. She didn't want to appear difficult, but she didn't want the women to spend all their money on her. The women seemed to understand this as well. Most of what they ended up purchasing were solids or subtle prints, suitable for everyday wear and most occasions.

The cosmetics store was frightening. After they had gotten everyday clothes for Harriet, Ophelia and Ursula insisted on taking her to one of the cosmetics stores. Harriet had seen Petunia's makeup drawer before and she never heard of half the products she was seeing. Ophelia and Ursula went in separate directions with Margarita and Forsythia chasing after them to keep them from going overboard. This left a very confused Harriet standing with an employee. The employee was helpful in explaining different products and helped to shade match Harriet with a tinted moisturizer and a concealer for when she needed it.

After leaving the cosmetics store with a bag full of skin care products, they stopped for food at one of the restaurants. Ophelia and Ursula were still talking about makeup over their sandwiches, deciding what to give Harriet from their makeup drawers as they had a few duplicates of colors and shades that were unopened. As they were figuring out what store to visit next, Margarita brought up the fact that Harriet had nothing to wear to her upcoming court hearing.

"That's right," said Ophelia. "We didn't find out what all that mess was about last night. Care to inform us?"

Margarita summed it up quickly. "Dementors attacked Harriet and the pig. I banished them. Harriet here didn't use any magic at all. But the Ministry, in all its wisdom, has decided to charge her with using magic 'in the presence of a Muggle'. Not only that, they accused her of using the Patronus Charm."

"A Patronus?" asked Forsythia. "That is an advanced spell."

"I can do it," said Harriet. "Mine's a stag."

The four women blinked.

"You can make a corporal one?" asked Ophelia. "Maybe there is hope for this backwater society."

"Doubtful," said Ursula. "They expelled her and then said they would give her a trial. It was a second thought to give her one. They want her gone. Part of me wants her to plead guilty so they throw her out completely."

Harriet turned to Ursula, horrified. "But I won't be able to magic without a wand!"

"Bullshit, you won't!" Ursula countered. "We don't use wands and we do just fine."

"I don't even know if you are really witches," Harriet said.

"Then what did I do last night?" asked Margarita.

"I don't know," said Harriet. "But the Patronus is the only way to drive away a Dementor. You can't destroy them!"

Ophelia leaned onto the table. "Would you like proof?"

Harriet nodded. "I want to see real spells," she insisted.

"In front of non-magi? The thing you are in trouble for?" Ophelia laughed. "Very well."

Ophelia took a napkin and allowed her hand to hover over it. Slowly she moved it and words began to appear in her handwriting on the napkin.

Will this do? Or do you think this is a parlor trick?

Harriet was unsure.

Ophelia continued. Or would you like me to tell about the lady with three kids at the counter that are yelling and carrying on?

Harriet looked at the counter and saw a lady trying to pay the cashier while three young children were whining over something.

Forsythia had a small seed in her hand that was sprouting and growing around her finger. Ursula had changed her napkin several different colors. Margarita's plastic fork had twisted itself into a bow on her palm.

"I believe you," Harriet said quietly.

Ophelia leaned back and took out her compact again to check her makeup. "Glad you do. Keep an open mind with us, honey. I'm sure we do plenty of things that wizards and non-magi think are impossible." She snapped her compact shut.

After they finished their lunches, they went to a store to get Harriet an outfit for court. They found a black pant suit for Harriet that she could easily wear. Then it was on to the high-end stores. Ophelia and Ursula insisted on get Harriet a purse. They ended up getting her a classic flap purse and a large shopping tote.

With all their purchases in hand, they loaded up the back of the car and started back to Surrey.

"Am I the only one who noticed we were being followed all day?" Margarita asked as she drove.

"Hardly," Ophelia said. "Why do you think I was checking my makeup so much?"

"Because you're obsessed with your looks," Ursula stated.

Harriet's eyes widened. "We were being followed?"

"They weren't very discreet," said Ursula. "I'm surprised you didn't notice them, Harriet."

"Do you think they were Death Eaters?" Harriet asked.

"No," answered Ophelia. "They would have attacked us in the mall."

"Don't worry, Harriet," said Forsythia. "You're safe with us."

Once they were back at Number Two, they sorted out their purchases and threw away Dudley's castoffs. Harriet was putting her new clothes away when she heard tapping on the bedroom window. A snowy owl was perched on the windowsill.

Harriet quickly opened the window. "About time," she snapped, letting Hedwig in. She rushed to find some paper and a pen.

Forsythia stood in the doorway. "Harriet?"

Harriet stopped. "Oh, this is Hedwig. I need her to deliver some letters. I want to know what's going on. None of my friends have sent anything other than to tell me that everything is fine and that I should focus on my homework. Not like they read my responses or they would know my homework is actually done. Now there are Dementors showing up in Little Whinging and they're still not telling me anything except to sit tight and not use magic!"

Forsythia looked on calmly as Harriet ranted. "Come downstairs. I think we need to have a talk. And bring Hedwig."

Harriet went downstairs while Forsythia gathered everyone else in the kitchen. Ophelia and Ursula gushed over the snowy owl that was sitting on Harriet's shoulder. Hedwig appreciated the praise, but wouldn't be tempted over to the two women.

"I think it's time you told us about your Hogwarts years," Forsythia said to Harriet. "We only know what we have heard through the newspaper and word of mouth. And with people who can't decide to worship you or demonize you, I'm pretty sure a lot of what we heard was not true."

And so Harriet told them. She started with just before her first year when she was told about magic from Hagrid up until the graveyard and Voldemort. With each year, each adventure, each story, the women's faces twisted in surprise, disbelief, anger, and suspicion. At the end, Ursula announced that she needed a drink and got out a bottle of wine and some glasses.

Ophelia threw a hand up. "I knew these people were stupid, but I wasn't expecting them to be this stupid. But really, what should I expect from this backwater society? They agree that being pureblooded puts you on top, no matter how mentally stunted one is. Progress is such a dirty word to them. Heaven forbid an outsider comes up with a better mousetrap. How unorthodox!" she finished with dramatic sarcasm. She reached over and grabbed the glass of wine Ursula had just poured for herself.

"It's a miracle that you are alive," Margarita pointed out to Harriet. "I will be giving you a full checkup."

"I'm fine," Harriet insisted.

"No sense in telling her that," said Forsythia. "She'll just hold you down and do it anyway. But Margarita is right. You are very fortunate to be alive."

"Enough, Forsythia," Ursula cut in, pouring another glass of wine. "The girl probably hears that all the time. It reminds her that her parents are dead and she's alive."

Forsythia glared at Ursula.

"And this Dumbledore," Ursula went on.

"Oh, he better pray I don't get a hold of him," Ophelia cut in. "Just drops a toddler on the doorstep in November with only a blanket and a note and just walks off. Doesn't bother ringing the bell, doesn't bother checking up on her, nothing. And then when she tells him she doesn't want to go back to them, he just pats her on the head and says all families have their problems and they love you very much. They couldn't possibly mistreat you in anyway. Every child needs to be punished when they're naughty. Yeah, sure, being locked in a cupboard with no food or water is a perfectly acceptable punishment because she couldn't get the ridiculously long list of chores done in time."

Ursula looked at Harriet. "We really need to discuss your time at Hogwarts."

"I know, I should have told a professor or done something different," Harriet started.

"Oh, yes, you should have," Ophelia interrupted. "But I doubt it would have done you any good." She took a long sip of wine.

"There are so many things wrong with what you told us," Ursula said.

"I'm telling the truth!" Harriet insisted.

"We know," Forsythia soothed. "She means some things don't add up to us."

"Exactly," said Ursula. "Starting with how the groundskeeper of your school showed up to give you your letter."

The four women began listing off all they saw wrong with what Harriet told them. It should have been a professor to visit Harriet and explain Hogwarts to her and take her to Diagon Alley. They found it awfully convenient that a pureblood wizarding family with children already in Hogwarts would go running through the train station proclaiming loudly what platform they needed to be on. And then there was the influencing of Harriet's choice of house and the blatant favoritism of professors. Ophelia pointed out how stupid the professors were for creating the gauntlet that three first years could get passed.

Moving on to her second year, they questioned what Harriet and Ron were thinking when they took the flying car. They should have sat and waited or sent Hedwig with a note telling them they had missed the train. The women found fault in how the school treated Harriet like a leper when they learned she was a Parselmouth and decided she was the heir to Slytherin. On top of that, having to fight the basilisk and dealing with the cursed diary that the professors should have dealt with. However, they did somewhat applaud Harriet for getting a professor, even though said professor was a complete fraud and a twit.

Third year was when they said it was becoming clear that people were intentionally keeping Harriet in the dark. They led her to believe it was none of her business that a potential mass murderer was trying to kill her. Granted, it turned out Sirius Black was not a killer and that one of the people he supposedly murdered set him up. There was also the bit about a werewolf running around putting students in danger, but the four women glossed over it for the time being. They added that Hermione clearly strove to be the teachers' pet, tattling on Harriet about the Firebolt. Margarita said that she would never get very far believing in only library books and authority figures and if she had done her research, she would have known that a Firebolt couldn't be cursed. True, Sirius Black had sent Harriet the broom, but at the time none of them knew that at the time and it was plausible that one of the teachers had given it to her anonymously. Instead, Hermione went behind Harriet's back when she didn't get the response from her she wanted. While it may have been true that her intentions were good, she had betrayed Harriet's trust. Forsythia said it was a nice thing for Harriet to forgive her, but she shouldn't forget where Hermione's loyalties were.

It was fourth year that cemented the notion that there was something more going on in the women's minds. A simple age line would indeed keep the underage from putting a name into a cup, but it wouldn't stop someone of age putting a name of an underage student in the goblet, especially if the name had been torn off from a homework assignment where it would be said student's handwriting and magical signature. Then there was the fact that Barty Crouch Jr. was able to impersonate Alastor Moody all year and no one noticed the switch, even the headmaster who was supposed to be a good friend. All four of them agreed that Ron was a jealous brat who desired fame and glory for himself and was only Harriet's friend so he could say he knew the famous Harriet Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived. Again, it was nice that Harriet forgave him, but she shouldn't forget how he acted. They also said that Hermione could be very narrow-minded. While trying to help the house-elves was a good thing, she was going about it all wrong by forcing her beliefs on them and dismissing what the house-elves wanted. Overall, they suggested that Harriet find some better friends.

"It wasn't all bad," Harriet argued weakly.

"Oh, you mean there wasn't a time where you didn't have to worry about someone or something causing you bodily harm?" Ophelia sniped.

Harriet withered under her dark look.

Ursula spoke up. "Would you ever like to go back to Hogwarts?"

"I have to," Harriet insisted.

"Do you?" Ursula asked. "What if you found somewhere else to learn magic, a place where you're not under a microscope? A place where your friends don't use you for their personal gain? What if you could be you and not this creation the world has cooked up for you? Would you take it?"

"Any school would treat me the same," Harriet said glumly.

"Who said anything about a school?" Ursula purred. "What if we taught you?"

Harriet gasped. "You would do that? Why?"

"My dear, sweet child, it's what we do," Ursula said. "To help unfortunate folk, like yourself. A poor soul with no one else to turn to." She smiled dangerously.

"Don't go scaring her," Forsythia admonished.

Ursula shrugged and took a sip of wine.

The blonde turned to Harriet. "You don't have to make any decisions now. Let's get you through your court appearance first and then you can make a choice."

"But in the meantime, we can teach you other things," said Ophelia, bouncing with excitement. "I can't wait to get you in front of my vanity. Oh, we're going to have so much fun!"

"Yours!" Ursula yelled. "What about mine?"

Ophelia gave Ursula a dark look. "We want her to look great, not like she's in a casket."

Ursula gasped. "Rather that than a tramp!"

"Excuse me? You have a problem with my makeup, you Morticia reject?" Ophelia challenged.

"At least I'm not the one who looks like a dead Bond girl," Ursula argued.

"I have taste."

"In what?"

Margarita decided to step in. "Girls, you're both pretty."

Ophelia and Ursula stopped arguing and glared at Margarita, who ignored their dirty looks.

Forsythia stood up. "It's late. We should go to bed."

The next morning, Harriet was rudely awakened by Ophelia dragging her out of bed and sitting her in front of a large vanity and shoving a fruit smoothie into her hand. A few minutes later, Ursula came in and the two women started having a lively conversation. When Harriet was a little more awake, she was able to see all of the makeup products in front of her. Already Ophelia and Ursula were grabbing bottles and brushes and starting their makeup routine. Harriet looked at the chaos with trepidation. Ophelia let her panic for a few moments before telling her why she had dragged her into her bedroom. The next few hours were filled with playing with different colors and finishes on Harriet.

Harriet found that she liked makeup, especially concealer. With it, she could cover her famous scar and walk out in the world without people staring at it. Her second favorite product was lipstick, since it took the attention away from her forehead and ugly glasses.

Their makeup session was interrupted by Margarita, who wanted to give Harriet a checkup. After being taken over to her room, Margarita gave Harriet a physical using both magic and non-magical means. Harriet hadn't wanted to show them the scars she had, but a no nonsense look from Margarita was all it took for the younger girl to strip down to her underclothes. Margarita reiterated to Harriet that it was a miracle that she was alive and despite the mediocre treatment she received from Madam Pomfrey, she was in no danger of past injuries having ill effects. Except for her famous scar. Margarita didn't like what she was feeling from it. However, there was nothing she could do about it at the time and it didn't appear dangerous at the moment. Harriet heard her mutter something about getting in touch with the mysterious John.

After lunch, Ursula asked to see Harriet's school books and her homework so she could look it over. It turned into a two hour study session on the different applications of spells, punctuated by commentary from Ursula of how the teachers didn't show diversity in ways a spell could be applied. Ophelia, who had taken over the living room and was on and off the phone, said while it was a good starting point, knowing how to turn buttons into beetles and charming a pineapple to tap dance wouldn't help one in life. Looking over her work, Ursula thought Harriet should be learning more practical skills to prepare her for life after school. This left Harriet hoping she would start learning these skills this year, if she wasn't expelled from Hogwarts.

After the study session, Harriet went out to join Forsythia in the garden to see if she needed help. They both weeded the garden, Forsythia telling Harriet the uses of different household herbs. Harriet especially enjoyed the story of how a group of thieves used herbs to keep themselves from catching plague as they looted the houses of the plague victims. They worked until sundown when the streetlights started to come on. It was then that Forsythia leaned over and whispered to Harriet that they were being watched and that the house had been watched since Harriet came over. Harriet glanced around, but Forsythia assured her if they were attacked, Forsythia would strike back while Harriet would run inside. They finished bagging up the weeds to be discarded. Forsythia went inside for a moment to get one more bag to finish the last of their piles while Harriet waited for her.

"Harriet!" Mrs. Figg came running up to her and grabbed her hands, starting to pull her to the edge of the property. "What are you doing here? You were told to stay with your relatives and not leave."

"What?" Harriet yanked her hands out of Mrs. Figg's. "How would you know that?"

"Dumbledore was so upset when I told him you weren't with your aunt and uncle," Mrs. Figg went on as if Harriet hadn't said anything, grabbing her hands again. "We were supposed to keep you from doing magic at all costs. The useless skiving sneak thief! I don't know why Dumbledore had him watching you."

Harriet drew back. "Dumbledore's been having me followed?" she asked slowly.

"Of course he has," Mrs. Figg said impatiently. "Did you expect him to let you wander around on your own after what happened in June? They told me you were intelligent, girl."

"Why didn't you ever tell me you're a witch?" demanded Harriet.

"I'm a squib," Mrs. Figg told her. "And Dumbledore's orders. I was only to keep an eye on you, but not tell you anything. You were too young. Now come on. They'll be here any minute."

"Who will?" Harriet asked.

"Yes. Who will?" Ophelia asked from the porch. The four women were watching Mrs. Figg with hostile expressions.

"Harriet," Forsythia summoned, stepping off the porch with her hand out.

Mrs. Figg grabbed Harriet's arm. "You have no right keeping her here."

Ursula raised a thin eyebrow. "Keeping her here? We weren't forcing her to stay."

"She is supposed to be with her relatives," Mrs. Figg said.

"She was not staying another minute in that hellhole!" snarled Ophelia.

Mrs. Figg flinched back before saying, "You have no say in where she goes."

"And you do?" Ophelia snapped back. "You, the crazy cat woman from down the road? What authority to do have to make decisions in Harriet's life? Hmm? None, I expect."

"Dumbledore told me to watch her," Mrs. Figg said, her voice quivering. "And he told her to stay with her relatives."

"And who is this Dumbledore?" Ophelia went on. "Is he Harriet's relative? Her legal guardian? He is the headmaster of the school she attends. What right does he have to make decisions for her without her knowledge that have nothing to do with her education?"

Eight or nine loud cracks startled them all. A second later, all the streetlights started to go out one by one. Mrs. Figg lost her grip on Harriet's arm and Harriet quickly ran to Forsythia. The blonde ushered her up the steps and Margarita shoved Harriet behind her. In the twilight, a motley group of people marched across the street.

"What's going on here?" one of them demanded in a low, growling voice.

Harriet recognized the voice. "Professor Moody?" she asked uncertainly.

"I don't know about 'Professor'. Never got around to much teaching, did I?" the voice growled back. "Get down here, we want to see you properly."

Harriet stepped around Margarita. The athletic woman put a hand on her shoulder.

"Act smart," Margarita muttered out of the side of her mouth. "We know you are."

"It's all right, Harriet," a slightly hoarse voice called. "We've come to take you away."

Harriet gasped. She hadn't heard that voice in over a year. "Professor Lupin."

"Why are we all standing in the dark?" an unfamiliar woman's voice asked from the group.

Ophelia barked a laugh. "Like you're coming in here? Turn the streetlights back on if you want to see."

There was a loud click and the streetlights turned back on. At the edge of the lawn stood a group of wizards, some Harriet recognized. Remus Lupin, while still young, looked sick and tired with a few more gray hairs than Harriet remembered.

"Oooh, she looks like you said she would," said the youngest, a witch with short, spikey that was an electric shade of purple.

"I see what you mean, Remus," said a bald black wizard with a slow, deep voice. "She looks exactly like James."

"Except the eyes," said a wheezy-voiced, silver-haired wizard. "Those are Lily's eyes."

Harriet frowned a little. That was always what people told her she looked like, her father with her mother's eyes, nothing else.

Mad-Eye Moody, with his grizzled appearance and mismatched eyes, squinted at Harriet. "Are you quite sure it's her, Lupin? We don't want to bring back a Death Eater impersonating her. We ought to ask her something only the real Potter would know. Unless anyone brought any Veritaserum?"

"Harriet, what form does your Patronus take?" Lupin asked.

"A stag," Harriet answered.

"That's her, Mad-Eye," said Lupin. "It's okay, Harriet. We will need to leave here shortly. Go pack your trunk."

Ursula sniffed. "And what if she doesn't want to? Are you going to kidnap her like the daffy bat tried to do?"

"They won't let Harriet leave!" Mrs. Figg screeched.

"Quiet, woman!" snarled Moody. "You'll attract the Muggles!"

"Oh, let them see," said Ophelia.

Moody growled at the four women, wand in hand. "And who are you?"

"Hmm? Us? Doing a better job as guards than you morons," Ophelia replied. "We actually care about Harriet's living situation. Unlike her 'loving' relatives, we feed and clothe her and not with table scraps and rags. We pay attention to her like a person, not an object to be left on shelf and forgotten for, ooh, more than a month and don't boss her around, expecting her to be an obedient dog and do it without objection or question." She looked pointedly at them.

Ursula turned to Harriet. "Do you want to go with them? It's your choice."

Harriet thought for a moment. "I'll go. Maybe I get some answers as to what is going on."

"Okay, Harriet." Ophelia addressed the group of wizards. "She said she will go with you. We will allow you into the house. However, you will not leave the entryway. Understood?"

The group gave her blank looks or in Moody's case, a glare.

"Am I understood?" Ophelia repeated slowly.

They nodded.

Ophelia rolled her eyes as she went back into the house with the others. "Idiots."

The wizards filed into the house. Mrs. Figg was sent scurrying home by a dark look from Ophelia telling her she was not invited.

Forsythia went upstairs with Harriet to help her pack. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Not really," Harriet replied, putting her new clothes into her trunk. "I just hope I can get some answers as to what is going on. I mean, I'm not ungrateful to you for taking me in, but I barely know you."

"And you don't know if you can trust us fully," Forsythia finished. "You just know we probably won't kill you in your sleep."

Harriet looked at her sheepishly.

Forsythia went to her vanity and took something out of one of the drawers. She turned to Harriet with a notebook. "This is a linked journal. When you write in it, your message will appear in three other journals. Ophelia, Ursula, and Margarita have them. I want you to take my journal with you. If you need help, you can write to us and tell us where you are. Okay?"

Harriet took the journal. It looked like a normal journal with a bright floral cover. "Okay."

They finished packing her trunk and Forsythia helped her carry it downstairs.

Margarita and Ophelia were standing with the group of wizards. Moody was scowling at the two women and the young witch with the purple hair was glaring at Ophelia. Ophelia was sneering back at the young witch. Everyone else was looking at Ophelia and Margarita with suspicion. Ursula was nowhere in sight.

Hearing movement on the stairs, everyone looked up.

"Oh, there you are," Ophelia said, an edge in her voice. "A few minutes sooner and you would have gotten a front row seat to how dense wizards of this country are."

"You didn't need to almost break my nose," the young witch groused.

Ophelia turned to her. "What part of 'You will not leave the entryway' did you not understand? I thought I was speaking English, like the rest of you. Maybe I should have enunciated my words more. Or perhaps it was the lack of British accent. It also could be that you think yourself above me and think you can do whatever you like, whenever you like, regardless of whose house you are in. If that is the case, you are very rude. And honestly, I don't know why I'm wasting my breath. Judging by your vacant expression, you haven't the slightest idea of what I am saying. Maybe I should use baby talk, then the widdle witch would know what I'm tawking about. Maybe even get a cookie if she listens."

The young witch's hair color turned bright red and she puffed up indignantly, opening her mouth to say something.

"Nothing to say? Good." Ophelia turned to Moody and Lupin. "Let the grown-ups speak."

The young witch closed her mouth with an audible click.

"Now see here," one of the wizards cut in.

Ophelia whirled on him. "No, you 'see here'. You are arrogant and clearly possess no manners. We invited you and we can kick you out. So remember your place."

"Let's be civilized," Lupin gently pleaded.

"This is civilized," Margarita retorted. "Tread carefully."

Lupin turned to Harriet.

"Where are we going?" Harriet asked him. "The Burrow?"

"No, not the Burrow." Lupin motioned her over. "Too risky. We've set up headquarters somewhere undetectable. It's taken a while." He pointed to Moody. "Harriet, this is Alastor Moody."

"Yes, I know," Harriet said, a little uncomfortable being introduced to someone she thought she had known for almost a year.

"And this is Nymphadora," Lupin continued, but was interrupted by a snort from Ophelia and the young witch yelling at him.

"Don't call me Nymphadora!" she snapped with a shudder. "It's Tonks."

"Nymphadora Tonks, who prefers to be known by her surname only," Lupin finished. "And this is Kingsley Shacklebolt, Elphias Doge, Dedalus Diggle."

An excited wizard dropped his top hat and squeaked, "We met before."

"Emmaline Vance, Sturgis Pudmore, and Hestia Jones. A surprising amount of people volunteered to come and get you."

"The more the better," Moody said darkly. "They're your guard, Potter."

Harriet had given an awkward nod to each of them as she was introduced. She wished they would look at something beside her. The distraction came in the form of Ursula hurrying down the stairs.

"Hold on!" She handed over a Louis Vuitton makeup bag. "I picked a few things from our vanities that we were playing with earlier. You've got a little bit of everything: eye palettes, face and cheek palettes, plenty of lipsticks. You have stuff to make dozens of looks if you want."

Moody suddenly swore and covered his magical eye. "It keeps sticking! Ever since that scum wore it." He trailed off as there was a horrible squelching sound and he popped the eyeball out.

"Mad-Eye, you know that's disgusting, don't you?" Tonks asked conversationally.

"Get me a glass of water, would you, Harriet?" Moody asked.

"I'll get it," Margarita said. She walked to the kitchen. She came back a few moments later with a glass full of liquid.

Moody took the glass from Margarita and dropped his magical eye into the glass and prodded it up and down. "I want three hundred and sixty degree visibility on the return journey."

"How are we getting – wherever we're going?" Harriet asked.

"Brooms," answered Lupin. "It's the only way. You are too young to Apparate and they'll be watching the Floo Network and it's more than our life's worth to create an unauthorized Portkey."

"And side-along Apparating is out of the question because it's a logical thought," Ursula added. She sighed. "So I guess by broom is the only way."

Moody growled at Ursula. "They can track a magical signature with Apparation, girl."

"So the Ministry and or Voldemort's people know you're all here then," Ursula sniped. "I guess we should expect a knock on our door from them then. Lovely. We needed something to jazz up our night."

The wizards flinched at Voldemort's name and how Ursula spoke it so casually.

Ophelia shook her head at the group. "Spineless," she muttered in contempt.

The bald black man spoke up. "Remus says you're a good flyer," Kingsley said in his deep voice.

"She's excellent," Lupin said, checking his watch. "The signal should be coming soon."

Moody replaced his magic eye, spinning it around in the socket. "Come here, girl," he said to Harriet. "I need to Disillusion you."

"You need to what?" Harriet asked.

Moody already had his wand out and was pointing it at Harriet. The wand was yanked out of Moody's hand and stuck to the ceiling. The wizards jumped, some going for their wands and having the same thing happen to them.

"She asked you a question," Ophelia said slowly. "Are you going to answer her or are you just going to do what you want and not inform her?"

"I don't know, Ophelia," drawled Ursula. "They seem to be very good at ignoring her."

"She may have an invisibility cloak, but it won't stay on during the flight," said Lupin.

Ophelia rolled her eyes. "Of course, they won't explain it to you. Keep you ignorant and under their thumb so they can control you," she grumbled, turning to Harriet. "It's basically a camouflage spell. If someone is really looking, they can see you, but if it's just a passing glance, you won't be noticed. It doesn't work if people know you're there already."

"Oh," Harriet said dumbly. "Self-explanatory then."

"Come here, darling, I'll do it for you," said Ursula.

Ursula gave Harriet's ears a tickle with her fingernails. Harriet swatted at her ears to stop the tickling, but she was already disappearing from view.

"There, you're ready," said Ursula.

Harriet looked down and saw herself blending in with everything around her.

Lupin checked his watch again. "The first signal will be coming any moment. If you would be kind enough to give our wands back?"

Ophelia gave him a dark look and waved her hand. The wands dropped from the ceiling on to the floor. She then turned to Harriet. "We'll see you soon, Harriet."

So did you find all nine "eggs"? And what do you think of the story so far? Again, this is the first time I've done a Harry Potter story and I do value your input.