Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Behind the Veil	By : Leo Category: Harry Potter AU/AR > General Views: 3540 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I own no rights to the Harry Potter franchise and seek to make no profits from the distribution of this fictional work.

Chapter List
- 2
- 3
- 4
Pairings: FemHP/TMR, HG/OC, LP/JP, SB/OC, RL/OC, DM/DG, LL/GW

Disclaimer: I own no rights to the Harry Potter franchise and seek to make no profits from the distribution of this fictional work.

A/N: Thank you for your reviews, they keep me motivated to continue this work and bring you all more content; I've got about half of the first year outlined at the moment so you guys can expect weekly updates in the futures.

Behind the Veil

By StycianLeo

Chapter II

Potter Residence, Warwickshire, England, UK

July 29, 1991

12:00 AM

The next month at the Potter Manor was spent in a pleasant summer haze for Harry; he had always desired to experience what life was like with a loving family. The few summers he had spent with the Weasley's had been the happiest times of his life, they had been served as a surrogate family to those he had lost; Ron had always been jealous of Harry's fame but Harry had always been envious of Ron's family and every time he was with them he had felt a longing for family of his own, he would have traded his fame and wealth in a heartbeat if it meant that he could have spent a moment with his family.

Hecate had given him this chance to fulfill a longing that had been so ingrained into his psyche that he felt lighter and more at ease with himself and the world than he had since the first time he had set eyes on the Mirror Erised seven years ago.

Harry had taken the opportunity to immerse himself in the family life that he now had, whenever Lily was cooking or lounging about the house, Iris could now be found a few feet away either giving a helping hand or just spending time with her mother. This wasn't to say that Iris had become any less of a bookworm over the month but that she had taken to be a bookworm and still engage with others rather than simply sit in the drawing room or in her alcove; although her reading as of late had been focused on Greek and Roman mythology.

Lily had been surprised when her daughter had taken to being more proactive with her chores, the girl had always kept a tidy room but now after meals she voluntarily helped her clean the dishes and had even begun helping in the kitchen in cooking meals; something that had proved to be a unique blessing since it seemed her daughter had a natural talent for cooking and everyone had been very receptive to the new dishes that they were serving.

Remus had been bemused when their after dinner chats of history or discussions on her books had evolved into her asking him to tell her stories about the Marauders and his time at Hogwarts, even his current life; her genuine interest and the fact that she really seemed to understand what he was saying had led them to become much closer over the month, to the point that each evening led to Iris falling asleep on him and him tucking her into bed.

The werewolf had not minded in the least, and whereas before he had cared for Iris as the daughter of his best friend he had come to view Iris more as the daughter he didn't have. Even when the full moon approached Iris seemed to soothe the beast within him, and for the first time ever when he had changed down in the Potter's heavily warded basement he had only felt the discomfort of his physical transformation instead of the warring of his inner beast and human mind.

To his surprise, when he reverted and emerged from the basement; Remus had discovered Iris sleeping outside the warded door in the stairwell and he felt a surge of affection for the young girl. He didn't know why but he knew that she was the reason why he had had such an easy transformation, he rationalized it was probably because the wolf had sensed that it's 'pup' was nearby. In any case, he was silently thankful as he returned her to her room.

In an effort to play the role of Iris better, Harry had read through the girl's diary several times and was had begun developing his sibling bond. Liatris was born on May 27th of 1981; only ten months after the birth of Iris herself and the girls had grown up nearly inseparable from one another.

The two had developed differing interests as they got older, the elder had become an avid reader and had filled out several diaries with her thoughts and much resembled Lily's more level headed disposition; Liatris was her father's daughter all the way through, she was an avid quidditch fan and spent much of her day outside flying on her broom or otherwise sneaking into James' study to read his prank book.

She was a bit of a hellion in all honesty; she was still attending her tutoring sessions in the mornings and she returned home on a weekly basis with some letter explaining that she had turned a student's hair pink or had glued a student's hand to the table.

Of course, these letters were always received with raucous laughter from James and Sirius; and Lily had given up trying to train the prankster out of her youngest, she was too much like James for it to ever happen. Still, her pranks were harmless and no one ever got hurt or stayed mad at the young girl for long; so there was no fear of her becoming the hexing tyrant the James was in his own youth.

Harry had taken to spending time with his new baby sister in the afternoons, either flying playing keeper to her chaser; or just talking to the girl about quidditch and her classmates. Thankfully, at her age boys still thought girls were icky and he was spared the horror of giving sisterly advice; which had led to some internal conflict for the boy in a girl's body.

He was most certainly not a candidate for giving relationship advice to anyone; although he supposed that his current disposition offered him a unique outlook to observe both sides of the field. He remembered the late night discussions in Gryffindor tower where his dorm mates bragged of their conquests and who was the most attractive witch in their year.

Harry had the hardest time bonding with his father, James was receptive and communicative; interested in the lives of the three most important girls in his life but the man was either sleeping or working and spent little time in the daily life of his family.

While Liatris had displayed some resentment toward James for being absent much of the time, Harry had the maturity and emotional development of an adult and he did not fault his father since it was evident to Harry, that James was regretful that he was missing out on so much of his children's lives.

So when the weekends rolled around, he had taken it onto himself to engage his father and Liatris at the same time and began to smooth over the wrinkles that had formed in the family; which had in turn brought both him and his sister closer to James.

Iris' family had welcomed the changes and saw it as a sign that their daughter was finally coming out of her shell; Iris had always been a solitary child, preferring the company of her fictitious princes, knights, and princess of her stories to the flesh and blood children her own age.

Even Pollux, Pol as he was called, had become less Sirius' son and more Iris' friend; so the young girl was at the very least becoming more sociable and that was an encouraging thought, since they were no longer worried about her not being able to make any friends at Hogwarts.

But as Harry's birthday approached he had felt increasing anxiety; his new family knew that Iris had few friends so it would most likely be a small family affair but Iris' diaries had described her best friends as one Daphne Greengrass and Draco Malfoy so it was a foregone conclusion that at the very least he would have to play the role of Iris well enough to convince them while keeping his newer outgoing personality traits.

Another concern that Harry had, was his experiences with Draco in his own universe, there had been no love lost between the two and an intense rivalry that had come to a head on numerous occasions. He remembered what Hecate had said about the people in this reality being different then they had been in his universe so he needed to remain open minded about everyone and stifle his preconceived notions.

So now in the twilight hours of his birthday, the young man in a girl's body sat in the window alcove on the comfortable cushions with knees drawn up to his chest as he stared out at the moonless night considering how much life had changed for him; when he had taken over Iris' life he had avoided looking himself in the mirror and used the wash room sparingly.

He had learned that his thoughts on muscle memory had been correct and he was capable of taking care of his own hygiene but it had still been immeasurably embarrassing coming to terms with certain changes in anatomy. Showering had been a challenge, on one hand he knew he needed to be clean but it almost seemed like a violation of the girl's body to perform even that simple task.

Still, it was surprising how resilient the mind was as in the short month that he had lived as a female he had come to terms with his form but that wasn't to say that he had completely come to terms with the situation.

After all, despite the fact that everyone else saw Iris; it was Harry Potter on the inside and he still identified as a male despite his circumstances. Most of the time he forgot that he was even in a girl's body; he had become so used to the long hair that he know sported that tucking it behind his ear had become an unconscious reaction and he had noticed every once in a while when he was deep in thought or reading that he twirled a strand of hair around a finger.

He supposed he should be thankful for just how little difference there was in the physical characteristics of eleven year old children; if you disregarded the facial construction and hair the only difference from an eleven year boy would be the slightly narrowed waist and slight protrusion of the pelvic bone. He was familiar enough to with the human body to understand that substantial changes to his current physique wouldn't begin until this body reached thirteen; there was a thought, at twenty he would be going through puberty again… as a girl this time.

Harry sighed to himself at the thought; he had already resigned himself to his fate as being a female since that was the price that Hecate had demanded so that he could be her champion. He really didn't have much to grumble about though, he had a loving and extended family that included the Black's and Remus all of whom were alive and well; and know he had the chance to keep them that way. Sounded like a fair trade to him anyways…

As he brought his thoughts back on his predicament, Harry gazed out onto the quidditch pitch and stared unseeingly at the dew covered grass that shimmered with starlight. "How do I hold onto Draco and Daphne when I don't have any memories of who they are in this world?" Harry asked the reflection of Iris in the glass using her clear soprano that was tinged with worry.

"I was wondering when you were going to ask that question, you surprise me Harry; you've done a remarkable job keeping your secret for all this time. I imagined that you would reach this impasse sooner than you did." The words washed over Harry and he immediately felt the soothing calm that Hecate brought with her when she came to him, the goddess had proven to be remarkably absent from her champion's life. She had taken to visiting him in his sleep as of late, generally when he was in the throes of a nightmare from his past; she would banish the troubling sleep and grant him respite with words of soothing.

Turning his head away from the window, Harry fixed his emerald gaze on the deity; as always she was standing regally in her silver gown, shining with that otherworldly light, her midnight hair cascading to her waist and she stared out at him through the ever present three faced mask as she approached him and settled herself on the cushions before him.

"I suppose I'm just full of surprises, then again so far I've just been moving with the flow of things. Iris kept very detailed diaries, they've proved to be useful in dealing with her daily life; unfortunately it seems that while she mentions her best friends there is little detail, most of those entries are focused on what she learned during the lessons." Harry responded with a one shoulder shrug as he lifted his chin toward the mentioned documents along the shelf.

Hecate nodded her head in agreement before her powerful gaze met Harry's, "Iris has seven years of cognitive memories stored in that mind you have taken up residence in Harry, even now she resides in your mind watching everything; acting where you let her, everything you need is at your disposal. All you need is a key and as always, I will provide that key for a price." The goddess spoke softly but her words traveled the distance clearly, somehow he was certain that if Hecate spoke to him in the middle of a hurricane her words would cut through everything to reach.

Harry pondered the proposition; he had been doing his research on the Goddess and learned that this was her way; ever since the Greeks and Romans had documented the deity she had been associated with numerous concepts. Hecate was known as a goddess of magic and her power was indeed prodigious; besides that she was also revered for her ties to the lunar cycle and the night sky, to snakes, and to crossroads and gateways.

As her champion, Harry had hypothesized that he would wield some power over these domains as well; as of yet he had only experimented with Remus' werewolf transformation, from what the man had said after his transformation in the last few days; Harry's proximity had eased the pain of the change and soothed the beast's mind which had proven to an extent that some of Hecate's powers could be channeled.

The only other things he had been able to test was his ties to serpents; he had retained his parselmouth abilities after defeating Voldemort and shedding the man's soul piece but it seemed that his ability was much stronger here. He had used one of his mornings while Liatris was in class to wonder the grounds; the property extended to the south and terminated at the tree line of a large forest.

Harry had explored the woods for a bit before he had called out in parseltongue; he still remembered the rush of magic that had accompanied that call that had left him feeling giddy and slightly drunk but had brought a number of the common adders that thrived in England to him.

In any case, Hecate's connection to the crossroads had been insightful; crossroads meant that a decision needed to be made and whichever way you went you had to pay the price of not going down the other path. It was one of the reasons why Hecate never offered anything for free, or at least that was that Harry's studies had indicated; the other possibility existed that she had ulterior motive.

"What's the price for the key to Iris' memories then?" Harry inquired curiously, as he stared at the goddess while his chin rested on his knees; there was something to be said Iris' flexibility, he didn't think he'd ever held this pose before but it had proven to be comfortable enough.

"The price for unlocking Iris' memories is Iris herself, by giving you access to her memories your conscious mind will have to meld with hers. You will still be Harry but you will also be Iris; her timidity will temper your brashness, her curiosity will stay your prejudices, likewise your knowledge will fill her ignorance, and your skill will fill her inexperience. But certain things will blur, some memories will have to fade to allow as seamless a connection as possible or your mind will shatter." Hecate explained the price, though the concept was difficult to truly grasp; he would still be himself but he would also be Iris, it sounded like a personality disorder, being two people simultaneously but somehow Hecate made it seem like they would be one person with both their traits; both sets of memories.

And while the concept seemed terrifying, Harry could not bring himself to feel fear or anxiety or even nervous; he was calm, serene as he held the goddess' gaze.

He looked into the goddess' eyes and with a deep breath he nodded his head in ascent and Hecate bowed her head in return acknowledging his confirmation, once more she leaned forward and placed the lips of mask against the forehead of the young girl and Harry was swallowed up by darkness.

Mindscape, Harry/Iris Potter

July 29, 1991

3:30 AM

Harry opened his eyes blearily as a shuddering breath wracked his chest, as if he hadn't taken a breath in ages. After a few moments of blinking harshly to clear his vision he found that he was looking up into a pair of startling green eyes; very familiar eyes that had gazed back at him every day for the past eighteen year.

Sitting up cautiously, Harry inspected himself and found that he was no longer possessing Iris' body but his own form; down to the scars that marred his left hand. Casting a look around, he found himself sitting the middle of the Hogwarts quidditch pitch, the stands empty save for what looked like picture frames. The frames were all different, some small and shaded in black and white while others were large and depicted scenes with vivid colors, but all of them were heavily detailed.

In the middle of the pitch was a apple tree; the leaves on the branches were swirling with colors and constantly seemed to be shifting in a nonexistent wind. Hanging from the branches were bright, shining fruit that radiated a vibrant life while on the ground at the base of the tree were dull and listless fruit that seemed to have fallen from the boughs.

Kneeling at his side was Iris, while he had never actually met the girl before somehow he knew that this was her in her entirety. Together, they were alone on the pitch and Harry sighed to himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose wondering what was going on. The young girl looked at him with a soft smile as she patted him on the shoulder warmly as though in greeting.

"Is it so difficult to comprehend Harry, you learned Occlumency; remember how the text taught you? Meditate and create a mindscape so that you can sort your memories and guard your mind." Iris said with a gentle smile as she made an encompassing gesture with her arm to make point.

"We're in my… our mindscape then, eh?" Harry corrected himself halfway through his sentence as he evaluated the scene curiously; the young girl at his side gave a nod of confirmation as she stood up and he followed suit. Looking at the young girl, Harry wondered what he was supposed to say, "Umm… I'm sorry for hijacking your life Iris; I didn't know that was what Hecate meant when she meant she was going to give me a second chance." The words sounded awkward even to him even as they passed through his lips.

Iris giggled and she looked up at him with a disarming smile, "Don't worry about it Harry; when Hecate said she wanted me to be her champion I didn't know how I was supposed to help her but now that you're here I can see you're strong. And we're just the same, we want to protect those we love; but you're the warrior, you know how to keep them safe, so if that means I have to take the back seat then I'll do it. But since we're here together, I think Hecate is telling us to work together."

Harry gave a long blink at the girl in front of him, he was surprised to be honest; he had known that Iris was smart but it was no wonder his secret had gone unexposed for so long, this girl was wise and mature beyond her years.

He nodded his head in agreement, "You're right, I can fight and I'm strong enough to defend our family but this is your life too; it wouldn't be right for me to just take the reins of your life and do whatever I saw fit. But how do we coexist?" Harry pondered aloud, wondering briefly why he was asking an eleven year old girl for what to do; he was the older of the two, he should be taking charge but somehow he had the feeling that his girl knew exactly what to do; she had been sitting in the back of his mind for a month, she would have had plenty of time to put the pieces together.

Iris gave a quiet laugh as she looked over her shoulder at Harry with an easy smile and a twinkle in her eyes, "Think about it Harry, you've lived at the manor for a month; a family coexists because of the memories they share together. All we have to do is build a house to put up our memories." It was a simple solution, and he remembered the wisdom of a friend; the best answers to the hardest problems are the one that make the most sense.

With a nod, Harry stepped up beside Iris and took her hand in his; "Alright then, let's get started." Together the pair began to build the Potter Manor, from the basement up to the second floor, ever brick and window set exactly where it should go. Together the pair hung up paintings or shelved books containing their memories until it was impossible to distinguish where one or the other of them started and ended; the two having become one.

Their job complete, the two Potter's settled on a couch in the drawing room of the second floor staring at the tapestry of their family before the fell asleep. Iris' head resting on Harry's shoulder and Harry's head resting atop hers.

In the corner of the room, Hecate emerged from the shadows; hidden behind her mask it was impossible to discern quite what she was feeling at that moment but there was a pleased air about the goddess as she stopped in front of the couch before the sleeping pair. Casting a hand above the pair, the room was filled with a soft radiance before she left the drawing room; and descended down the stairs to the newly stocked library.

Lifting her hand, a book began to float away from its place on a shelf and settled in her palm as it opened of its own accord and settled on a page. The book was filled with neat and defined penmanship, lacking embellishment; and as she gazed at the book sentences began to fade out of existence and she flipped through the text thoroughly as if double checking her censorship. Shutting that book, the goddess returned it to its place while she took out the book beside it and repeated the process before returning it to its proper place as well.

As she faded from sight she smirked slightly at the two books as she observed the titles written across the spines of the texts. "Lord Voldemort" was the title of the first, and the second was titled "Tom Marvolo Riddle." When Hecate faded from sight there was a stirring in the drawing room up above, laying on the couch was a rather beautiful young woman; raven black hair spread across the seat in a dark halo, framing an angelic face with finely arched eyebrows and almond shaped eyes, full cupid's bow shaped lips and high cheekbones.

Potter Manor, Warwickshire, England, UK

July 29, 1991

10:00 AM

Emerald eyes open slowly as light passed through glass and bathed the figure of Iris Potter in warm and gentle rays. The girl's temple rested against the cool glass and a blanket was pulled up around her to ward off the chill; rousing slowly she pulled back and stared into the reflection cast by the glass. Staring back was the eleven year old face, but staring out there was a new person, a new consciousness.

Iris shook her head slowly as she gathered her wits about her, and pondered what had happened since Hecate's kiss; she remembered rebuilding her memories and integrating both sets. She remembered fighting Voldemort at Hogwarts but also her excitement at getting to go to her parent's alma mater and learning there.

It was a bit confusing but she found that it wasn't too difficult to sort through and took a 'look' at her Occlumency shields; to her surprise they felt stronger like they could hold out anything. Satisfied that she wasn't going to collapse into a sobbing mess of insanity and tear herself apart from the inside out, she went about preparing herself for her birthday party.

Unlike the past month, Iris had no discomfort or shyness at showering or relieving herself and even took a moment to look herself in the mirror as she evaluated her appearance and busied herself with brushing out her damp hair with one of the wide tooth combs that were in a drawer.

Crossing over to the closet, Iris discarded her sleeping clothes as she changed into a charcoal blouse and jeans before slipping into a pair of trainers. Over by her bedside, she opening the jewelry case and took out an elaborate fleur-de-lis pendant on a leather cord; clasping the necklace around her neck.

A few moments later, Iris had arrived on the ground floor and slipped into the kitchen where Lily was cooking up a full breakfast it seemed, Iris smiled exasperatedly at her mother's behavior.

"Mum, you didn't have to through all this trouble over breakfast you know; I would have been okay with a light breakfast." She chimed as she stepped into the outfitted Muggle kitchen; you could take the witch out of the Muggle world but you couldn't take the Muggle world out of the witch it seemed.

The kitchen was outfitted with stainless steel appliances, a full stove and oven, a deep sink and dish washer; the cabinetry was all an off white color that made the space much brighter and welcoming and contrasted nicely against the burnt umber counter tops.

Lily looked up from her cooking as Iris entered the room and she smiled brightly at her daughter, "Don't be silly, today's your birthday! What kind of mother would I be if I didn't make you your favorite breakfast?" she inquired with a playful grin as she pulled turned off the stove and together they moved the food from the island that divided the kitchen from the dining room and settled the dishes on the table.

Taking seats across from one another, they both heaped their plates with servings of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, fried tomatoes and hash browns. Looking up at each other they both said cheers simultaneously and laughed good naturedly before they tucked into the meal.

A few minutes later Remus descended from his room looking rested and healthier than Iris could ever remember seeing him from either set of memories, eventually they were join by James and Liatris, who was likewise freshly showered and her hair combed properly rather than having her sister fix it for her like usual.

As everyone ate they made small talk but there was poorly hidden excitement for the party, especially for Iris; because the Harry part of her mind was about to have his first birthday with his family.

Well… they had certainly been a party for his first birthday based on the letter he had found in Sirius' room back in Grimmauld Place but did he had been too young to remember that.

Potter Manor, Warwickshire, England, UK

July 29, 1991

12:00 PM

As the guests started arriving, Iris noticed that it wasn't all that different from her old birthday parties but it was also exceedingly different; Harry had only ever experienced those parties amongst the Weasley's and while those had been good times, the fact that this party was being thrown by family made it seem much more special.

The guests who attended were also fairly surprising to the portion of her mind that held Harry's memories; the back yard was filled with the people he had expected of course, Lily, James, Liatris, Remus, Sirius and his family but also in attendance were Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy and their son Draco, Lord and Lady Greengrass and their daughters Daphne and Astoria.

The party had proceeded just about the way you would expect; the children were partaking in a three on three quidditch game which was something that Iris could get into despite the fact that she now had the mental development of an eighteen year old amongst a group of preadolescents; somehow flying was one particular activity that seemed to span the ages and everyone who could fly could enjoy playing.

While the younglings were up in the air, the adults were hanging about the patio shuttling back and forth from the kitchen when the summer heat became too much; the dynamic was interesting to observe from afar though Iris wished she could mingle more to get a feel of how things were going on.

Lily was entertaining the women it seemed as they sat around a large table amicably talking with each other; Sarah seemed to be explaining something that had drawn the attention on Lady Greengrass and Andromeda, but on the other side Lily was discussing something with Narcissa who looked quite pretty now that her nose wasn't stuck in the air and scrunched up like she had looked in Harry's universe. It was actually rather surprising to see that the two women were getting along so well, and Iris wondered what the story was behind it all.

On the other side of the deck, Remus, James, Sirius were taking turns manning the grill and talking while sipping their bottles of bitter and in between the two groups, Iris saw Lucius Malfoy talking to Lord Greengrass quietly; the two of them seemed uncomfortable with the whole affair considering how casual the event was and they were both much more used to dealing with upper crust galas and events than a child's birthday party.

The quidditch game ended after Iris and Draco had raced through the air each one of them pushing their brooms to the limit; they had been hovering above the pitch making lazy circles looking for the glint of light while Astoria and Liatris had been vying for control of the quaffle. The pair of seekers had seen the glint of gold flitting between the two chasers and they had been prompted to dive towards the combative girls, which caused them both to shriek and separate to make way.

Liatris had dodged left to avoid the collision but Astoria had jerked her broom upwards instead and placed herself firmly in Iris' path. The adults had looked up sharply at the girlish screams, they had thought for sure that Iris would break off her pursuit to avoid the crash, and Lucius had a slight smirk on his face as he glanced over at James; so it was clear that he was still as much of a pretentious jackass in this reality but at least his wife was nice.

However, with Harry's experience at her beck and call it didn't even faze Iris; crossing her ankles and squeezing the broomstick tightly between her thighs, the girl rolled upside down and pushed the broom faster as she flattened herself against the wood shaft. With her long black hair streaming behind her; Draco had to drop his altitude to see past the girl's hair and as he did so he realized that he had moved out of reach of the gold object even as Iris seized the small sphere in her hand. Lowering herself into a dive, Iris streaked towards the ground before looping to level off and correct her orientation.

After seeing the maneuver, James gave a smirk of his own and met Lucius' gaze; the tall blond man was now staring in disbelief with a gobsmacked expression on his face, turning towards the man he had just smirked at he winced involuntarily as James cocked his chin at the man. Turning towards his friends James looked at the gathered group with a confused expression as they were snickering behind their hands.

"What's so funny? Didn't you guys just see my daughter pull that off!" He exclaimed as he waved his hand frantically at the pitch where the kids were landing and congratulating Iris on her catch.

Sirius took a breath as he looked as he best friend with tears of mirth forming at the corners of his eyes, "We saw that alright mate, she's going to be the most popular girl at Hogwarts if she pulls those moves off on the pitch. You ready for the marriage contracts?" he asked breathlessly before the group fell back into peals of laughter as they looked at James' horrorstruck and pale face; he opened a mouth a few times to try and make a coherent retort but gave up before crossing his arms and giving a sulking expression, "I'm going to take a page out of aunt Gothel's book and stick her in a tower somewhere under the Fidelius." James murmured to himself thoughtfully, which sent Sirius to the ground rolling in laughter.

The rest of the event went as planned; they sang Happy Birthday to an embarrassed Iris, before cutting the Honeyduke's made chocolate cake that James had fetched; and after everyone was fed they began with presents. The gifts were nothing earthshattering but they were still sentimental to Iris, since to the portion of her conscious that was Harry; they were the first real presents he had ever gotten from his family.

From her parents came a charm bracelet that was already fitted with several pendants; a lily flower in mother-of-pearl, an amethyst liatris flower, an iris in lapis lazuli, a silver moon, an onyx paw print and finally a gold stag. To Iris, it was a simple but extremely thoughtful gift that just seemed to fit; nothing was more important to her then her family and now she could carry them with her wherever she went and she immediately put it on after giving her family a hug.

The rest of the gifts were from the other guests in attendance, an assortment of sweets from Remus; some prank items from Zonko's courtesy of Sirius (which had earned several dubious looks from the Greengrass's as well as Lucious); Daphne had presented her with a hefty gift card to Flourish and Blotts (which had been met with a happy and excited laugh as the Heiress had addressed the card to "my favorite bookworm"); and from the Malfoy's (considering that Lucius cocked an eyebrow in curiosity as to what was under the wrapping, it had probably been Draco and strangely enough 'Aunt' Cissy) a dragonhide forearm holster for the wand she would be getting on her actual birthday.

Overall, the day went very well and Iris had little difficulty interacting with Draco or Daphne though they were both a bit surprised by her new level of expressiveness and how much more interactive she was being; but it had passed quickly and they were quite pleased that their friend was being more sociable and talkative.

It turned out that the Draco in this reality was still something of a spoiled snot but he was much milder, his insults and sarcasm had been playful and joking in their manner throughout the day and she had to admit that talking to him was a lot more than talking to Ron had been at that age.

The Draco of Harry's universe had been a monumental prick but the man had his circle of friends, so perhaps this was what he was really like behind the cold and malicious mask he had put up all the time; if that was the case then she would have no reservations working with the man so long as she managed to keep him away from the Dark Lord.

Daphne was actually a real pleasure to be around, Harry had never interacted with her in his universe, but at least in this one the young strawberry blonde witch with her gold flecked hazel eyes was exceptionally bright for her age. She seemed to be equally well read and educated as Iris had been in this universe before merging with Harry; so she had proven to be quite insightful in her conversation.

Furthermore, because of her father's position she seemed to have a fair amount of knowledge on the current political scape even if she didn't quite understand all of it, Draco had displayed the same; so the political maneuvering was still beyond their comprehension but at least they knew it was happening and that it was important.

Those were concepts that Harry had not become familiar with until much older in his life as a result of being hidden away in the Muggle World and having Dumbledore's manipulations run his life. Harry had come to that realization before, how the grandfatherly headmaster had taken the prophecy as a ticket to shape his life.

From the moment Harry had been set on the door step of the Dursley's he had been played. Dumbledore had placed him the care of people who had outright feared and resented magic; he had been lambasted as a freak; starved and made to do hard labor. They had broken his spirit from day one, so that when Dumbledore took him into Hogwarts he would have a child that was eager to please, starved for positive attention and willing to go through hell to get it; and Harry had played the role perfectly.

And the point of all the old man's machinations was to set him upon a path that would ultimately terminate in him dying so that the horcrux that resided within him could be destroyed. If he was supposed to be the savior of the Wizarding War, why wasn't he ever trained? Why had he learned to fight on the run?

One could argue that Dumbledore had thought he had more time but once Voldemort had returned after Harry's fourth year then training should have begun in earnest. It hadn't, and that had left Harry scrambling to get the heck out of dodge; the fact that he had survived the Battle of Hogwarts had been a fluke, Voldemort had him dead to rights; the only thing that had saved him had been the Elder Wand.

Dumbledore had trained Harry to die in the name of the greater good. And now it was Neville's turn it seemed; from what Iris had learned through Remus and her parents, the Boy-Who-Lived of this universe had grown up the son of an important Ministry official with a stepmother that loved to parade around on the boy's fame.

By all accounts, this universe's Neville was worse than the old Draco had been; walking around as though the world owed him for his mother's sacrifice, although he probably thought he 'was' the reason why Grindewald had been torn from his body.

If that was the case, Iris had no interest in working alongside the boy or Dumbledore for that matter. Hecate had done more to earn her trust then the senile fool and there was no way she was going to prostrate herself for some egocentric child when she could stomp him like a bug.

Potter Manor, Warwickshire, England, UK

July 31, 1991

11:00 AM

Tuesday morning had come by with little fanfare for Iris; after all they had already celebrated her birthday the Sunday prior so she had simply been met with a few birthday wishes and hugs or kisses from her family.

She had set to work on helping Lily cook up a nice breakfast before tucking in to the late morning meal. After polishing away their 'brunch' the Potter girls and Remus assembled in front of the fireplace, Lily took down a box from the mantel and passed it to Iris so that she could get a handful of the familiar glittery silver Floo Powder.

"Alright Remus, we shouldn't be more than a few hours; you sure you don't mind watching Liatris?" she asked the man with a concerned smile not wishing to impose on the man.

He waved it off, "No worries Lil, you go and have a good time with Iris; Sarah and Pol are coming over in a bit to keep us company." Remus said as he settled his hands on Liatris' shoulders, the young redhead had perked up a bit at hearing Pol was coming over and a mischievous glint had formed in her eye, you could practically see the cogs turning in her mind as she constructed some prank for when the boy arrived.

With a small chuckle at her sister's expression and a brief wave, Iris tossed the powder onto the cherry flames before she stepped into the green tongues of fire, she felt the tickling warmth as she called out her destination, "Leaky Cauldron" and was suddenly whisked through the Floo network.

The sensation never got any better, Iris thought to herself as she inhaled at the moment of transport, earning herself a lungful of soot and ash so that when she arrived at the tavern, she came sputtering and coughing; momentarily disorientated she stumbled out of the fireplace and was caught by a steadying hand on her shoulder.

Finally regaining her composure as the final whoosh of the fireplace signaled her mother's arrival; Iris managed to look up into the face of a rather handsome man; he appeared to be in his late twenties, with long, thick jet black hair that he had tied back into a tail, he was pale peach in coloring and his face was composed of high cheekbones and a strong square jaw with an aristocratic nose that combined to make him incredibly attractive.

But what was more surprising was how novel the experience was, no one was fawning over her; no one was making any exclamations or trying to see who she was. As far as anyone was considered, she was just some kid with glasses; and the anonymity of it all was a welcome respite.

Just a month ago, this entire experience would have probably been front page news for the Daily Prophet and people would have been swarming the area trying to get autographs or handshakes. Still, since she was just some kid in this reality so she couldn't expect to get away with being rude or anything.

"Thank you, sir." Iris said hoarsely to the handsome stranger as she gazed up at his imposing six foot figure, he gave her a smirk and a nod as while Iris moved over to her mother, who turned towards her daughter and glancing at the man that stood behind her.

Lily blinked in surprise at the man as she recognized him, in fact the man didn't seem to have aged a day since she had graduated from Hogwarts over a decade ago; "Oh, Professor Riddle? How are you?" Lily inquired politely as she smiled at the man with genuine affection.

Tom Riddle looked at Lily Potter for a moment before a faint smile appeared on his face as he met her emerald eyes with his own obsidian orbs, "I'm well Lily, but please you haven't been my student for a decade at the least; please call me Tom." He replied with a rich and velvety voice, though there was a faint air of amusement in his voice he sounded mostly bored. Altogether, his voice was pleasing to the ear but his mannerisms left something to be desired.

Iris gazed at the man as she tried to place the reason why the name Tom Riddle sounded so familiar to her. She wracked her memory for a moment before she recalled that 'Hogwarts: A History' had listed him as one of the most powerful wizards of all time; he had set current high scores for every N.E.W.T. he had taken and he had graduated Hogwarts with no fewer than five Masteries, he had even invented several spells for that had made their way into student textbooks. She had a feeling that she should know more about this man than that but try as she might, she could not think of anything else so she just shrugged off the feeling thinking that it would come to her later.

But now that she wasn't coughing up a lung and she could give him, her attention; and when she did so it was almost as if the man at the source of a blizzard, cold just poured off of him in waves, and just beneath the cold was the taste of something bittersweet and just a tad bit metallic.

The combination was strange but invigorating; the likes of which Iris had never crossed before, her mind was abuzz with curiosity and she stretched out a tendril of magic towards him; she gave an involuntary shudder at the jolt of power that seemed to react with her own and gave her a heady rush that was many times more powerful than when she called the snakes in the woods.

Riddle looked down at the raven haired girl with her mother's vibrant green eyes; sizing up the incoming student. Her eyes held an expression of recognition and curiosity that he found amusing and he could practically sense the intelligence that hid just behind in the recesses of her mind.

However, as he focused his senses towards her core he was suddenly intensely aware of how the young girl's magic was billowing around her chaotically and the presence of a sharp heat that seemed to appear every few moments but in no discernible patter as well as the smell of ozone that permeated the air around her; it was almost shocking that her hair wasn't flying around her where she stood.

When he sensed the tentative touch of the child's magic against his own he almost flinched back from the touch, but he kept his expression schooled and watched as her eyes glazed drunkenly and her eyelids drooped heavily from the magical contact.

While it was not uncommon for children to wield their magic accidentally, this girl had enough control of it to actually probe him; a skill that most wizards did not achieve until adulthood; though there was the odd exception, he had wielded that level of control in his youth as had the girl's mother. However, this girl had an exceptionally powerful magical core; he would wager that she was as strong as or stronger than he had been at that age.

He dismissed her reaction to the magical contact offhandedly though; it was a typical reaction when coming in contact with more mature magic to feel a sense of disorientation, especially in children since the only ones who could control their magic that well had to have a greater sensitivity to magic in the first place.

His thoughts took only a few moments to run their course so his scrutiny did not seem to be impolite. As Iris' eyes cleared up, he smirked down at the girl, "Looks like you've got a sensitive one there Lily, she reminds me of a certain someone." Riddle said as he gave the woman a pointed look before returning his gaze to the young girl.

"As I'm sure you're aware, I am Professor Tom Riddle; Deputy Headmaster and Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts." He held his hand out to the young girl as he introduced himself, the same self-satisfied smirk returning to his face though it did little to detract from his good looks.

Iris mentally shook herself from the remnants of the magical contact, before she stepped forward and took the man's hand and gave it a firm shake. "Pleasure to meet you Professor, I'm Iris Potter." She returned the introduction with a smirk of her own that caused the man to raise an eyebrow at her confidence.

"Are you headed into the Alley, Pro… ahem, Tom? You're more than welcome to join us; we're getting Iris school supplies." Lily corrected herself though she flushed minutely in embarrassment, though she quickly recovered.

Riddle considered her offer for a moment before nodding his head in acceptance, "I've got to pick up a few things from Gringotts first if you don't mind, and afterwards it'd be my pleasure to escort you." He said finally with a small nod of his head as if he was checking some mental spreadsheet. Gesturing towards the back room, Riddle followed up behind the pair and gave Tom a small nod as the man looked over there way.

"So Tom, how've you been all these of years?" Lily asked tentatively trying to make polite conversation with her old professor as the group shuffled out the back door and came up to the brick entryway of Diagon Alley.

"The usual. Teaching, grading, sending out acceptance letters." Riddle responded tersely in clipped sentences, even to Iris' younger psyche the way he spoke sounded like he resented the concept.

"Sorry if this is a bit forward, but why are you teaching if you dislike it so much?" Iris inquired boldly, which caused her mother to give her a stern look at the slightly rude question but Riddle just turned to give her a look through an unreadable expression before he shrugged and drew his wand.

"I like teaching fine." He said, though under his breath he hissed something that sounded like, §"When the students aren't immature little prats"§

Lily stared at the man curiously as Iris laughed softly; "We're not all prats, y'know?" she replied with a smirk as Riddle drew his wand. He paused in the middle of the motion and starred at the girl curiously.

§"You can understand what I'm saying?"§ he asked while Iris frowned at him confusedly at the somewhat sibilant sounding words. §"Of course I can, it's not like you're speaking French; not that it matters since I know that too."§ she responded noticing the undertone of hissing in her voice before realizing that she had just been talking in parseltongue to the man.

She desperately wanted to smack herself in the forehead for being careless with that but she had honestly never conversed with a person using it before, relying on her Occlumency; Iris pulled the wards sharply as he forced herself to control her emotions.

She couldn't afford to let her secret slip so she had to play the role of an innocent but confused child which wasn't all that difficult as since half of her psyche actually had no idea what was going on.

Lily looked down at her daughter concernedly before looking up at Riddle who simply looked thoughtful at the turn of events.

"There is certainly more to you than meets the eye Miss Potter, I believe these will be a most interesting few years." He stated cryptically as he tapped out the proper sequence causing the brick wall to part and grant them entrance.

As Iris' eyes fell on the pale column of wood she felt a twitch in her left hand and a sudden desire to reach for the instrument before she mastered herself and stuck her hand firmly in her pocket.

Gringotts Wizarding Bank, Diagon Alley, England, UK

July 31, 1991

12:00 PM

The group's first stop was to Gringotts Wizarding Banks, which was a surreal experience since the last memory Iris had of this place was Harry escaping on the back of a half-blind dragon after retrieving one of Voldemort's Horcruxes.

The group ascended the white stairs to the burnished copper doors; Riddle opened the doors for his female companions and led the way through the opulent marble hall that was flanked on either side by goblins.

Iris' memories kicked in here; the first time that Harry had entered this place he had been a stranger to the Wizarding World and oblivious to the decorum and mannerisms that were respected of the scion of the Potter House. But in this reality, Iris had full knowledge of what was required of her as the representative of the House of Potter.

"Welcome to Gringotts; Lady Potter, Miss Potter. I am Grimtukk." The goblin teller greeted the women in the sneering, nasally voice that showed his disdain for them as he expected that the Muggleborn and Half-blood representatives of the House would not know the old ways. He was visibly taken aback when both women dipped gracefully into curtsies.

"Merry met, Grimtukk," they responded in near unison in the traditional greeting to the goblins; he actually gave a pointy toothed smile as he gave a short bow of his head. "Merry met; Lady Potter, Miss Potter. How may I be of service?" He responded less coldly and without the sneer that had been present in his former greeting.

After the women had made their introduction, Riddle stepped up behind them and inclined his head respectfully which prompted the goblin to return a deeper bow than he had given the women. "Lord Slytherin, what might I do for you?" The goblin inquired after righting himself.

Iris looked at Riddle through the corner of her eye and felt as though that title should mean something more to her, but for the life of her she could not bring the memory up. She could remember Voldemort having some ties to the name and the she clearly remembered the Chamber of Secrets from his reality that had been the remnant of Salazar Slytherin's prejudices; but she had this inkling that there was more to remember but could not draw up the information.

A sudden fear filled her; Hecate had said that some memories would be forgotten lest her melded mind shatter, if she pried too much into this train of thought would she risk fracturing her mind? The goddess had performed some hefty magic on her behalf, if she destroyed her sanity out of curiosity how could she protect her family from Grindewald and Voldemort.

She couldn't be that selfish, so she simply acknowledged that she knew there was more to the story but would not know what that information was until she relearned it; and hopefully by that time her integrated consciousness of being Harry and Iris together would prevent her from going mad.

Riddle looked up at the goblin, "I have to make a withdrawal from vault seven-one-three as well as my personal vault." He explained shortly while Lily followed up with, "And we'll be making a withdrawal from the Potter Vault."

In short order, the group had been moved underground along a series of tunnels, first stopping at the vault that Riddle had mentioned before from which he withdrew a solitary parcel. They had proceeded next to the Potter vault where Lily had taken a drawstring pouch from within her robes and busied herself with filling it while Iris had looked around.

In Harry's reality he had discovered that the vault he had been going to for years to make his withdrawals had actually been a trust vault that had accumulated interest for much of his life. When he had turned seventeen he had inherited the Potter vault as well which was where they were now; while this vault did hold a vast fortune as well, what had drawn Harry's attention had been the amount of texts; family lore, histories, and the grimoires and tomes that had been filled since the formation of the Potter line.

To Iris' eye, this vault held much the same information, though there was something different this time around; a flickering along her periphery that drew her to a corner of vault behind a pile of gold.

When she stood in the corner, she could sense the trace amounts of Hecate's magic leading her to a certain stack of books laying abandoned in corner away from the rest of the texts that were condensed into a pile in the rear of the vault.

Pulling a pouch of her own from her pocket, Iris carefully slipped each of the old texts into the leather confines; thankfully the pouch had been bespelled with an Expansion and Feather-weight Charm to the extent that she could have packed a caribou in confines of the pouch if she needed to.

With the texts stored and a handful of galleons for good measure, she returned to Lily who had been waiting for her and learned that Riddle had proceeded to his vault without them. He returned in short time and the group made their way out of Gringotts and back onto Diagon Alley.

Diagon Alley, England, UK

July 31, 1991

3:00 PM

Iris had found that shopping with her mother had been a much more fun occasion than it had been as Harry, although in retrospect it had nothing to do with his gender but more to do with his company. Shopping for supplies had been a hassle because everywhere Harry had gone, he had been met with gawkers and onlookers that had wanted to rub against his fame.

And when you separated the strangers, you had to deal with the Weasley clan; Ginny crushing on him had made things awkward a lot of the time and then you figure Ron was constantly sulking because of his 'best mate's' fame and wealth. When you combined the two halves it was no wonder why he had despised making any kind of public appearance.

But in this reality, Iris was just a girl out shopping with her mum, even Professor Riddle had been welcome company throughout the affair; it seemed the man had an inexhaustible supply of information on everything and it had been fun to watch him deal with his own admirers.

It seemed that being exceptionally powerful, wealthy, and good looking had conspired to make him one of the wizarding world's most eligible bachelors. He handled the attention well though, ignoring it for the most part as he conversed with Lily about her work as an enchantress or pointing out a useful point of information to Iris for when she got to Hogwarts.

By the time that three o'clock had rolled around; Iris had been fitted for her Hogwarts robes at Twilfit and Tattings, which in all honesty was a place Harry had never gone before; but seeing as how Iris' family was rather well off it didn't seem out of place for them to be shopping there than at Madam Malkin's.

In point of fact, Iris had preferred the upper scale establishment since they had offered a better selection of materials and services then their competitors. By the time they left the clothing outfitter, their order had provided for a full set of uniforms and robes that were charmed to be self-ironing, stain proff, and water repelling; as well as a heavy winter cloak that was to be charmed with a warming spell in conjunction with the other spells.

As an afterthought, Iris had also requested a leather messenger bag with an expansion charm and feather weight charms; if she got sorted into Gryffindor or Ravenclaw this time around, she wouldn't be doing a repeat of carrying her texts books and items up to the seventh floor towers when it had an extra twenty pounds biting into her collar and constantly bumping into her side.

The rest of the shopping had gone by smoothly, the apothecary for ingredients as well as the scale and a charmed set of unbreakable crystal phials, the cauldron shop was self-explanatory although she had gotten one of her mother's self-cleaning collapsible cauldrons for a quarter of the retail price, and general supply store from which they purchased a telescope.

As they were making their way to Flourish and Blott's to pick up the school books, Iris recalled how Snape's old textbook from sixth year had been full of helpful tips and notes and she wondered what the odds were that her mother, an exceptionally bright witch in her own regard would not have done the same to her old text books.

"Hey mum, do you think I could use your old school books instead of getting new ones?" Iris asked after contemplating how she was going to sell this. Lily paused in front of the book store and eyed her daughter curiously before taking a look at the book list that had come with the Hogwarts acceptance letter. Riddle had already entered the store ahead of them, looking genuinely interested for the first time throughout the outing.

"Well, I don't see why not; most of the books are the same if newer editions. But why not get new ones?" Lily asked her daughter as she gave her an odd look. Iris of course couldn't explain the thought process of hoping for a heavily annotated textbook with new spells and the like so she gave the response that would fit a young, sheltered child instead.

"Since this is the first time I'll be spending most of my time away from home, I was hoping to hold onto something of yours so I don't get homesick." And of course, the second that those words were out of her mouth; Lily enveloped her daughter in hug and getting all misty eyed. The reaction was so sweet that Iris actually felt a little guilty for lying and looked down embarrassedly while Lily ran a hand through her daughter's curly-wavy hair.

"Of course sweetheart, I've still got all my school books packed away in my study; and whatever books they've changed that we don't have in the library probably aren't worth reading and I'll get you something better. Still, we should probably head inside to see if there's anything you like, eh?"

Iris nodded her head and gave her mother a smile before opening the door for her and following the red headed woman into the store. The bookstore was pretty empty considering it was a Tuesday afternoon, the few people who were hanging around in the store seemed to be in the midst of studying, looking up at Lily, Iris cocked an eyebrow in an unspoken question.

Lily smiled down at her daughter, "They're studying for their Masteries; most career choices don't require them because you start of as an apprentice generally, but some people choose to forego the apprenticeship by getting their qualifications as masters in their fields of study. I've got Masteries in Charms and Potions, and your father has Mastery in Transfiguration."

Iris considered mulled over that information as she began looking through the selections of texts that filled the shelves; she recalled at Harry's Ordinary Wizarding Level tests at the end of fifth year but because of the Second Wizarding War he had never gone back to finish his studies to take his N.E.W.T.'s although Hermione had.

If she could fix things in this universe then just maybe she would get a chance to fulfill her career at Hogwarts this time around; she still had the advantage of knowing how things were most likely going to play out here, and if certain key events failed to transpire in this universe or at least happened differently than just maybe she could prevent all hell from breaking loose.

With something of a knowing smirk, Iris had taken down a few advanced texts that she could get away with grabbing so if she used some of her otherworldly knowledge; she wouldn't draw too much attention as to how she knew it and after some exploration in the library over the past month or so; there were a few tomes that she would generally like to nick for her time away at Hogwarts.

After purchasing the books, Iris had to listen to Riddle hissing under his breath over the limited choice of books that the store had to offer although it seemed he had purchased quite a few books himself despite his grumbling.

A visit to Eyelop's Owl Emporium had followed, and Iris had nearly broken down at seeing the familiar snowy owl sitting in display; to see the loyal companion that had been with Harry throughout his wizarding life had filled her with happiness at the prospect of reclaiming another life that had been claimed unfairly.

As the entered the story, Iris gave a cursory glance over the stores many breeds but she made her way to stand beside the snowy owl's cage. As she approached, the owl turned her head as though studying the eleven year old before making eye contact and amber eyes stared into emerald for a long moment before the owl bobbed its head and leaned forward allowing Iris to stroke its plumage.

The store's proprietress approached, she was a diminutive woman with salt and pepper hair with wide eyes that resembled the owls she sold. "Well I'll be… I ain't ever seen that bird being so friendly with anyone before, specially with someone she don't know. Seems like you've got the hand for creatures darling, a rare gift that." The wizened witch said kindly to Iris while Lily and Riddle watched curiously at the scene.

Iris pondered those words for a moment as she continued to stroke the owl's feathers, watching as the bird's eyes closed and she hooted appreciatively. "I don't know about that, but she's definitely something special alright."

They purchased the owl quickly and returned to the Leaky Cauldron for a small and late lunch while Lily took the Floo home to deposit the purchases they were carrying so far and letting out Hedwig to stretch her wings after being cooped up in her cage for so long.

At long last their final stop was Olivander's Wand Shop and this was the moment that Iris was dreading; she remembered Harry's first time there and how it had taken so long for a wand to finally choose him. Things in this reality had played out very differently so far, between Grindewald marking Neville; Voldemort falling to the rear as the main antagonist and disappearing, the fact that her family was alive.

With everything that had gone on, Iris wasn't even the same person she had been when the holly wand had picked her; now she was the melding of two intelligences, two personalities, completely separate and entirely like the two portions of her psyche. Not to mention she was the representative of a goddess that was connected to several different flora; most primarily being yew and cypress.

As the group approached the wand shop, they came upon a group exiting the establishment; it took Iris a moment but she finally recognized the boy as Neville Longbottom. He was still the same pudgy kid that had existed in her old universe but he was flanked by a much more severe looking Frank then the photos of the Order had presented; then again in this universe he had survived torture, watched helplessly as his wife was murdered, and then lived with the persistent fame that his son dealt with that reminded him of his wife's death.

The resentment and disdain he had for his son was clearly evident by the way he glowered at the child who was looking at his new wand with wide eyes while he looked up at his stepmother's too wide smile. This woman was walking with a hand constantly placed on Neville's shoulder or on his head as she looked around at everybody she passed with a smug superiority.

It was no wonder that the boy had become such a stuck-up prat, he was getting all the attention from his stepmother who was playing him up as the savior of Britain. With that kind of home life there was ample opportunity for his ego to bloat up to extreme proportions; as long as Dumbledore stroked the boy's ego, Neville would fetch and roll over if it meant staying the savior.

As it was when the group passed Neville and his parents the boy openly sneered at them while his mother gave Lily a look that was filled with derisiveness and contempt though she smiled lecherously at Riddle and batted her eyes at the man, Frank maintained his scowl; it lightened a bit seeing Lily but when he saw his wife's antics it deepened further and he gave Riddle a venomous glare.

Entering the store, Iris actually gave a small sigh of relief, "I can't believe I'm going to be stuck with that kid for the next seven years! Homicide was never more appealing." She stated flatly while her mother gave her a wide eyed stare before she gave an outright laugh, a warm and pleasant sound.

Even Riddle had an amused smirk though he quickly schooled his expression, "I don't see why you're complaining; I'll have to read every one of his essays for the foreseeable future!" he said in an equal dead-pan to which Iris tittered at.

"Ah yes, that was one of my more frustrating appointments; difficult to find a wand for that kind of child but I always do. Welcome Miss Potter, I've been expecting you." Olivander emerged from the rear of the shop with an amused smile as he gave a nod to the other adults in the room. "Pleasure to see you again Lord Slytherin, Lady Potter; it seems like just the other day when I gave you both your wands and here you are bringing me the next generation."

Lily smiled at the eccentric wand maker as she drew her wand from inside her sleeve, "I remember that day fondly Mr. Olivander."

"As well you should, the day you get your first wand is truly a remarkable one indeed; now let's see. Yes, ten and one quarter inches, willow, rather swishy and good for charms." Olivander said after he paused for a moment and looked at Riddle, "Thirteen and one half inches, yew with a phoenix pinion; if I remember correctly."

This time Iris felt a sharp tug on the edge of her awareness at those words as she was struck by the familiarity of that wand but was left with nothing to connect it to, in fact everything about the Professor had seemingly tickled the edges of her memories but there was nothing there for her draw on which added to her feelings of frustration.

As the emotions came to a head, Iris was suddenly filled with a soothing calm and she could smell dittany in the air around her signifying that Hecate was there. It seemed that the goddess had sensed her champion's distress and was comforting her, "All in time child, everything will come in time; I promise you that. You need only to trust me, and I will pay you in time for that trust."

The voice came to her in a soft whisper and she was sure that no one but her could hear what the ancient being was saying; so she gave a barely perceptible nod of acquiescence and felt the soothing presence retreat though the scent of dittany hung around her leaving her in a much more serene state than she had been only a few moments before.

Olivander turned his attention down to the raven haired girl with a curious smile, "Well then Miss Potter, let's see which wand picks you shall we; now which is your wand hand?" Iris considered the question for a moment, Harry had been right handed but had learned to duel with both hands and the young Iris had been a lefty; effectively leaving her ambidextrous at this point.

Iris decided that for consistency's sake she should use her left hand so she held it forward as the wand maker descended upon her with a tape measure and begin to measure her from finger to shoulder, shoulder to hip, armpit to floor, and even around her head.

"You must understand something Miss Potter; it is not the witch who chooses the wand, but the wand that chooses the witch. You see, the connections are complex but what we those of us with wandlore know; there is first an initial attraction, and then a mutual quest for experience." Olivander was saying as he wandered into the rows of the shop while the tape measure continued to do its things and… well, measure her.

He returned after a moment and proffered a wand towards her, "Ash, ten inches, unicorn hair. And you can stop measuring." At his words, the tape fell limply to the floor and Iris grabbed hold of the wand, she attempted to send some of her magic through it as she gave a small flick of her wrist and managed to shatter the mirrors in the shop.

Olivander blanched slightly as he quickly took the wand and shook his head, "Nope, no definitely not!" he placed the wand down and went to fetch another, "Ah, here we are; ebony, twelve inches, dragon heartstring." Again he handed the wand to the young girl but even as her hands settled on the instrument he was pulling it out of her hand.

As the events continued, Lily took the seat in the corner while Riddle moved to lean by the door and began to flip through one of the books he had purchased from Flourish and Blott's; as Olivander removed yet another wand from Iris' hand he looked over at the man and was seemingly struck by inspiration. "Yes, I think I've got just the wand for you!" he stated excitingly as he shuffled into the back and returned brushing off a heavily dusted box, opening it he held out the familiar wand to Iris.

Reaching forward her hand hovered over the eleven inches of warm holly before it leaped the last few inches into her hand, her fingers curling around the wood reflexively. The wand felt good in her hand but it didn't feel quite right until she switched it over to her right hand, Harry's wand hand then there was a flush of magic as if something had just clicked into place and the wand began to pulse strongly in her hands.

Riddle frowned as he looked up from his book and drew his wand, which seemed to be pulsing just as strongly as Iris'. As both wands were exposed to one another, a ribbon of gold blossomed between the two; before threads of silver and malachite began to spread from Riddle's spread along the ribbon to meet scarlet and cobalt threads that had emerged from Iris'.

Lily looked shocked at the beautiful light display and looked at the wandmaker, "Olivander, what's going on!" she asked with the alarm clearly apparent in her usually calm voice. "The wands are reveling in reunion." He said simply with one of his knowing smiles without elaborating further.

The magic continued to swirl about the store causing Iris' ebony locks to dance about the air at the brilliant light show; she was staring transfixed by the beauty of interconnecting magic before just as suddenly as the connection had formed a bright pulse of light ended the connection. She looked down at her wand saddened by the loss of the beautiful colors but happy to have the holly wand back in her hand.

Riddle stared at his own wand bewilderedly with a number of emotions flitting through his obsidian eyes though his face did not betray his emotions, and for some reason that saddened Iris immeasurably before she looked at Olivander with a curious gaze.

"Well, I'd say that this most definitely the wand for me, but what was all that?" She asked the question that seemed to be on everyone's mind because Lily and Riddle looked from her to Olivander expectantly.

"You see Miss Potter, the wand you hold there has the core of a phoenix feather, and the phoenix in question gave just one other feather. That feather resides at the heart of Mr. Riddle's wand, and so the wands were celebrating their reunion. But take this as a warning; unless you wish for your wands to rejoice once more, you should not turn them against one another." Olivander said in a near whisper that forced the room's occupants to lean in to hear his words.

"And that will be seven galleons." Olivander said with a merry smile on his face that broke the tension in the air, Iris moved to stand by Riddle while Lily handled the transaction; looking up at the professor, he met her gaze and looked down into her curious green eyes with his calculating black.

"Why do I have the feeling that this is just the beginning of a long seven years?" he asked quietly, to which she gave him a smirk before responding with, "Because anyone can spot foreshadowing when it makes a lightshow."

If looks could kill, the glare he fixed her with should have given her cardiac arrest; instead she just shrugged off with that cool smirk of hers. "You're lucky I can't give out detentions until after classes start." He said flatly as they shuffled out of the store oblivious to the knowing smile that Olivander had plastered on his face.

Potter Manor, Warwickshire, UK

July 31, 1991

10:00 PM

Upon saying goodbye to Professor Riddle, the Potter women had departed the Leaky Cauldron in time to begin making dinner and sharing the day's events with Remus, James, and Liatris. They had all been interested in the events that had occurred at Olivander's and Iris had shown them her new wand to which she earned a chorus of congratulations from around the table.

Unfortunately, James had to head to the Ministry shortly to begin his shift and Liatris had helped Lily clear the table while Iris went upstairs to sort her new belongings. It hadn't taken long to get her mother's old trunk from her study and sort through her belongings to get the school books she had been promised. Thankfully, the trunk at the foot of Iris' bed was enchanted for space and multiple compartments because she took full advantage of it.

The first of the compartments had been used for her school books and supplies, the second compartment she reserved for her clothes and personal items; she locked this particular compartment with a password before opening the third compartment.

In this final space she unloaded the books from the Potter vault with the intention of checking into them when she got back to the school and could get into the Room of Requirement; Hecate had guided her to them for a reason so there must be something of importance within them. She sealed the compartment using a parselmouth password and smiled to herself at the phrase, §"Wands rejoice"§

But after everything was sorted and stored, Iris was exhausted and changed into her sleepwear before crawling up under the heavy down comforter. She was fast asleep by the time Lily came to check up on her daughter and she stared down at her daughter concernedly before kissing her forehead and moving on downstairs to her study. Sitting at her desk, the redheaded woman drew out a sheet of parchment and began to write;

"Cissy,

Something's wrong with Iris, I know you had your suspicions before but after taking her to the Alley today, I know something isn't right. She was using parseltongue, she stood toe to toe with Tom Riddle and instead of that demure little girl was someone much more confident and her magic is right there with Dumbledore, Grindewald, and Riddle; before I couldn't be sure but once she got that wand I could practically feel the power radiating off of her.

I was thinking on what you said, Liatris has class in the morning and James will be going on a training exercise to Germany next week. Whoever is pretending to be Iris uses the mornings to walk the grounds, if you're still with me; it'll be the only opportunity to find out what is going on. I cannot allow this imposter to reside in my home for another moment while my daughter is being held captive somewhere.

Yours,

Lily"

A/N: A lot going on in this chapter, and it took me considerably longer to write it then I had thought it would. As you can see, I stepped up my plans on merging Iris and Harry and introduced Riddle to the story; in order for this storyline to work Riddle and Harry will need to be working from a blank slate and I needed to have a plot device to provide that reset button so there you have it.

Please leave a review if you liked the story or even if you didn't like the story. Flames will be ignored so trolls don't bother. If you have any questions that you want to ask and don't spoil the story, feel free to leave it in the reviews and I'll shoot you a pm.

Next Chapter: Train Rides, Sorting, and maybe the first day of classes.
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Behind the Veil