Disclaimer: I don't know own anything from the slayer or wizarding worlds. Just playing with them.

This is my first fic y'all so be gentle. I know this is definately not an original idea but I just love reading these stories so much I decided to try and write one. I'm not really trying to follow the HP book storyline after the fifth one so if things don't line up right, I apologize.

Chapter One

The rain slid down the windows of the carriage as it rumbled past the dark forest. Even if Ava had wanted to see the world outside it wouldn't have been possible. The irony of this new chapter in her life starting with 'a dark and stormy night' amused her. Her old life had ended with the death of her watcher at the hands of the Bringers and her sudden jolt from lowly potential to actual slayer soon after. Her watcher, Jonah, had been like a father to her and had gone against the Council's orders to send her to Sunnydale saying that it meant certain death. She had begged him to let her go. Like most potential slayers, she had been taken from her family at birth by the Watcher's council and ever since she could remember, it had been drilled into her head that it was her destiny to fight against the forces of evil. Certain death was supposed to be the reward for her dedicated service in the good fight. She couldn't understand why after all his speeches about destiny and bravery he would make her turn tail and flee. His actions had probably saved her life knowing now what the other potentials had gone through in California and in the past month it had eaten away at Ava to know that not only was she a coward to her cause but she hadn't been able return his favor. Lord knows how they did it but the Bringers had found them over and over again and one time there had just been too many for her to take down. Jonah had trained and prepared her the best a watcher could but without being able to tap into her inner-slayerness yet, it had done him no good. As the still-red scar reaching from the top of her shoulder across and down her back could attest, she had barely escaped that last fight with her own life. Ava shifted uncomfortably in her seat as she thought about how little that life meant now that the one person she had ever cared about was gone and how the whole point to her existence up until now had been to become the slayer. The fact that she was one now was little comfort considering Jonah wasn't there to witness it and also that it had happened by default and she shared the title with about a fifty other girls around the world who hadn't already been sliced and diced by the Bringers.

The only other person in the carriage noticed her inability to sit still. "We're almost there," he reassured her with his deep voice, "I know you're tired but I'm sure Professor Dumbledore will expect to see you tonight."

"Im fine, Mr. Shacklebolt. Really." Studying the man across from her she couldn't help but reminisce about their meeting. After miraculously escaping with her life, Ava had tried to go back to the council headquarters in London only to find the once beautiful building had become a depressing burned-out wreck that harbored no hope of help. She knew the one place left to go was the one place Jonah had died to protect her from and she wasn't about to walk right into that lion's den and make his death all for nothing. She had been on the run ever since, haunted by the image of her watcher being cut down by the black-robed men without eyes. She shuddered every time she thought of all the blood. His blood, her blood and the bringers blood on her clothes and in hair. Sometimes she could still smell the copperyness of it as it had dried. The moment that she had come into her slayer powers had been the most depressing one of her life. It meant that the current slayer, the strongest one on record and the last wall of defense on the Hellmouth, had fallen and who knew how many after her had been called only to be killed soon after before the line reached her. That was it, the bad guys had won and being the marked woman she now was, it was only a matter of time until they killed her too. It wasn't until weeks later that someone finally did find her but it definitely wasn't who she had expected. If Kingsley Shacklebolt hadn't had his wand at the ready, she would have taken his head clean off with a well-placed round-house kick right there in that dark alley in Romania. "Stupify" was the last thing Ava had heard before everything went black. She had woken up in a hotel room quadruple-knotted to a chair and sitting across from the intimidatingly large man perched on the edge of the bed. Surprisingly, the first thought in her head was that that was the ugliest down comforter she had ever seen. Whoever thought that putting salmon pink and forest green together anywhere was a good idea was pure evil.

"I'm not going to harm you," he had told her, his voice being as deep as she thought it would be. "Can we just talk?"

Ava smirked in response, her wrists pulling against the ropes to no avail, "If this is how you always treat your guests, I doubt you have any friends. Normally people don't tie other people up in skeazy hotel rooms because they just want to talk but since you made some really damn good knots, I suppose I have no choice. You say you're not going to hurt me and I actually believe you. I think if you had planned to harm or kill me, you would have done so already since you obviously had plenty of opportunity. So why don't we just skip the small-talk and you tell me what the hell is going on."

At first he had looked surprised and then a little amused but he sat back on the bed in a more comfortable position to begin. "My name is Kingsley Shacklebolt and I am here on behalf of Headmaster Dumbledore of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry." If Ava was surprised she didn't betray herself with her face so he continued, "I myself am a wizard and I used an elementary stunning spell freeze you and get you here. Dumbledore knows you're a slayer and he asked me to track you down-"

Ava quickly interrupted, "Wait, what? A slayer. If he knew anything about slayers, he would know that I am THE slayer. As in the chosen ONE, the ONE and only, the ONE girl in all the world yada yada yada."

It was Kingsley's turn to look surprised, "You mean you don't know?"

Ava pursed her lips, "Don't know what? What could you possibly know about slayers that I don't?"

"That there isn't only one anymore. Powerful wiccan magics were used to ensure the line of the slayers by making every girl who could be, would be chosen right then. That's how the spread of evil out of California was stopped."

Ava let this sink in. She knew he was telling the truth. So far she had chalked up the fact that was still alive to dumb luck but now she knew it was because nothing was after her. It was over. No more running. She wasn't up against unstoppable evil anymore, just regular old vamps. She could finally be the slayer that Jonah had trained her to be. Jonah. She closed her eyes and pictured his face with the twinkling blue eyes and the fatherly smile. A wave of nausea spread over her when she realized if she could have only been able to protect him for one more week, he would still be here. Probably tied to the chair next to hers she thought, wryly.

Keeping her eyes down so Kingsley wouldn't see the tears forming in the corner of her eyes she asked, "So if there's slayers like... everywhere why does this Dumbledore need you to find me?"

"I didn't say there were slayers everywhere. By our count there's still only 54 identified slayers left in the world right now. Unfortunately a great number of them have been lost recently, but you are the only one who is also a witch. Please believe me when I say that the wizarding world is facing a great evil of it's own and we need your help... Ava, your family needs your help."

At the word 'family' Ava's head had snapped up. Her bright green eyes met Kingsley's dark brown ones. "Mr. Shacklebolt, please believeme when I say that I'm in. One hundred and ten percent."

She knew Kinsley thought that the promise of family had been the deal clincher and it was easier to let him believe that than to explain to him the real reason that Ava had so quickly and earnestly accepted his offer: even though it was Jonah's devotion to her and fear for the life of his young charge and not his own that had caused them to flee, it didn't change the fact that they were traitors to their own cause pure and simple. She didn't know what all this talk about her being a witch was but she could recognize the handiwork of the Powers That Be when she saw it. They were giving her a chance to make her retribution. An atonement that would cleanse both their souls and make Jonah proud if he was somewhere looking down.

And that was how she had ended up here. A supposed witch sitting across from a wizard in a carriage being pulled by the freakiest looking horses she had ever seen and heading to a school she had never even heard of until yesterday so she could talk to the headmaster whose name made him sound like he belonged in a Tolkien novel. Kingsley didn't trust her enough to put his wand away when she was nearby but he had at least untied her for the journey.

The carriage slowed to a stop. "We're here," he unnecessarily announced before opening the door and stepping out into the downpour. He held out his hand to help her down but she completely ignored it. Ava was too busy staring up at the biggest castle she could have ever imagined. Realizing, she was too entranced to move, Kingsley grabbed her sleeve and pulled her behind him towards the ridiculously large double doors. "Geez, who walks into this place? Giants?"

"Sometimes," came the reply.