Third Edition Writer's Notes: In this version, I'm updating the story with references to Ilvermorny and the Congress of Magic from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I'm unsure at this point how much each chapter will be altered by this information, but I know several will be. Particularly relationships between Strange, Agatha and Wanda, and the wanded community of Britain. I also want to explore Jamie's decision to go to Hogwarts rather than Ilvermorny. I think it should have more involved than just the fact that her parents attended there, and her friendships with Dumbledore and Hagrid. Those played a role, of course, but I think the decision should be more layered and nuanced than that.

Chapter 1: "The Girl Who Lived"

Jamie was nervous as the plane landed at Heathrow Airport. Nervous was bad. Nervous meant her appearance could slip. Her godfather, Sirius, trained her well, however. She immediately forced herself to calm down and quickly checked herself in her pocket mirror while pretending to check her hair. Only her eyes had changed this time, becoming catlike and luminescent. Sunglasses would make sure none of the muggles got freaked out, until she had a chance to center herself and meditate for a few minutes.

"Miss Potter?" Jamie almost jumped with the strangely familiar blonde flight attendant addressed her.

"Yes?" She calmed herself quickly.

"Mister Dumbledore called the airline," the cheerful young woman told her. "He's running a bit late, but should be arriving within the hour. I'll be happy to stay with you until he gets here and help you through customs and baggage claim."

Jamie checked the woman's name tag, still unable to figure out where they may have met before. "Thank you, Amanda. That's very nice of you."

"It's my pleasure," Amanda assured her, but gave no sign that she recognized Jamie. "Just relax until everyone else has disembarked and I'll see to the rest."

Jamie nodded, closed her eyes and tried to shut the chatter around her from her mind. By the time everyone else was off the plane, she checked her mirror again and found human green eyes staring back at her. So far, so good.

The international terminal at Heathrow was a crowded, bustling, frenetic place. Amanda took Jamie to the customs counter, bypassing the line. The agent at the desk blinked several times at her British passport but then quickly stamped it and handed it back to her. The picture was ten years old. She'd been fifteen months old, but Sirius had never gotten around to updating it.

At the baggage claim, Amanda helped Jamie lift her large steamer trunk off the carousel and set it on its wheels.

"Wow," she exclaimed. "That's heavy. Are you sure you can manage it?"

Jamie smiled as she extended the handle at the top. "I'm stronger than I look."

There was a tussle at the main door to the street. A tall, thin man with long white hair and an even longer white beard was attracting a bit of attention. He was wearing a floppy black hat, a bright yellow shirt with a lime green ascot and a pale blue vest. He had on a brown greatcoat and purple trousers that were tucked into black riding boots.

Jamie rolled her eyes and laughed delightedly at the sight, then turned to Amanda. "That's him."

Dumbledore spotted the pair immediately and made his way to them. "Thank you for helping us with this, Miss Sefton."

"My pleasure, Professor," Amanda responded, then turned to Jamie. "I hope you have a good year at Hogwarts. A lot of people are expecting big things from you, but don't let that keep you from having fun."

With that, the young woman vanished into the crowd, leaving Jamie with Dumbledore. "I thought I recognized her. Sirius introduced us once. I didn't know she was a flight attendant as well as a practicing sorceress."

"She's that, my dear child, and a great deal more, but that's a story for another time. It's good to see you again, Jamie. How is Sirius?"

"Worried," she told him honestly, "and angry."

Dumbledore nodded. "He has a good reason for the latter, at least."

He led her out to the street where an ancient limousine waited for them. As he opened the door and assisted her, she looked around quickly, saw no one was paying them any attention, and quickly lifted the trunk into the passenger section.

"I was going to put that in the boot," he told her bemusedly as he climbed into the car behind her.

She laughed as the car pulled out. "You would've needed Mr. Hagrid's help for that, it's pretty heavy."

She quickly bounced forward and reached over the back of the driver's seat to give a large, shaggy driver a quick hug and kiss. "How are you doing, you big teddy bear?"

Hagrid patted the small arms wrapped around his neck. "I'm doin' jus' fine, Princess. It's good ter see ya again."

She returned to her seat and turned to Dumbledore. "Can I relax now?"

"I don't see why not." He smiled. "You've been holding form since leaving New York. You must be tired."

She sighed. "Not really. I wasn't able to sleep, but I did spend several hours meditating. It was good practice and almost as good as sleep. I'm definitely going to sleep well tonight, though."

As she spoke, her features slowly morphed. She removed the cap and hair tie holding her hair in a bushy ponytail, then shook out her mane of raven black hair, revealing the white scalp lock that resembled nothing so much as a bolt of lightning. As she did so, her ears moved up several inches and changed shape becoming catlike along with the rest of her features. The actual shape of her face didn't change much, but her teeth, nose and eyes did and long, translucent catlike whiskers sprouted from the sides of her nose and mouth. As her long furry tail sprouted from the base of her spine, she kicked off her shoes and flexed the claws hidden beneath her finger and toe nails.

She stretched languorously, her tail, ears and whiskers quivering. "That's so much better."

He put her cap and hair tie in the backpack now secured on top of her trunk. "So, where are we going? When do I get to see Hogwarts?"

"We're going to Diagon Alley to buy your school supplies," he told her. "As for Hogwarts, you'll be joining the rest of the students on the Hogwarts Express tomorrow."

She hugged him quickly. "It's good to see you again, Uncle Albus."

He hugged her back and laughed. "It's good to see you too, dear, but it won't get you to Hogwarts one minute sooner."

She flopped back into her seat and stuck her tongue out, then laughed. She obviously hadn't expected her ploy to succeed.

He looked down at her affectionately, but sobered. "You know Minister Fudge is likely to have people looking to 'talk' with you."

Her smile was almost feral. "Let 'em. I'll give 'em an ear full."

"Be careful," he warned gently. "Fudge may be a fool, but he's not a man to be taken lightly"

"Don't worry," she assured him proudly. "He can't touch me. After all, I'm the girl that lived. Besides, Padfoot and Moonie trained me better than that. They wouldn't have let me fly all the way from New York to London by myself if they didn't know I could handle myself. I'm not some shy, retiring little waif of a girl. I'm a Marauder."

Dumbledore rolled his eyes. "Saints preserve us."

He'd been against letting her fly unchaperoned, but the child was extremely persuasive when she wanted to be. Seeing there was no dissuading her now, he changed the subject. "Did your godfather give you enough money from your family account?"

"More than enough." She nodded. "With the birthday money I saved up, I probably have enough for all seven years. I'll need to convert some my birthday money to galleons, but I'd like to visit the vault anyway. I've never seen what's in there. Padfoot gave me the key and a letter of authorization making Hogwarts joint executors."

She produced a letter and key from her backpack and Dumbledore accepted both, putting them in one of the numerous pockets in his greatcoat. He and Sirius had spoken at length throughout the summer in preparation for this day. Actually, they'd been preparing for the last decade; ever since the child's parents were murdered and Sirius was forced to take her into exile. The fact that he was one step ahead of the Ministry of Magic who believed he was responsible for betraying those parents only made the situation worse. Even today, Dumbledore was one of the few that believed in Sirius' innocence.

As they arrived at the Leaky Cauldron, Dumbledore cast a quick glamour to cover them until they entered. As expected three wizards were waiting as soon as they stepped through the door. He recognized two of them, but not the third. The two were well known aurors and the third had the demeanor of one. Of course, not even the great Albus Dumbledore could be expected to recognize every member of Britain's wizarding society at first glance.

"Kingsley," Dumbledore greeted the senior man of the group.

"Albus," the large black man responded, obviously unhappy to have been saddled with this duty. "We need to speak with Miss Potter privately."

"I don't think . . . ." Dumbledore began.

"S'okay, Professor," Jamie assured him sweetly. "I have this."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded and smiled.

"Very well," he decided. "Hagrid, stay with her. Don't let them bully her, not that I believe they could. It's well past time I had a long . . . unpleasant conversation with Cornelius. Sending three aurors to 'talk' to an eleven year old indeed. What was he thinking . . . ? Never mind, he obviously wasn't."

He turned once again and smiled. "Be careful, Kingsley. She bites."

With a knowing wink to Jamie, he passed the key and letter to Hagrid and vanished.

"I've never met Minister Fudge," Jamie laughed, "but right now I actually feel sorry for him. Not all that sorry, of course, but a little sorry . . . very little."

She took a seat at a corner table well within earshot of the looming figure of Hagrid. The trio looked at each other, shrugged and joined her.

"Since you're officially a ward of the Ministry," Shacklebolt began, "and are of age to begin formal training, we've been instructed to talk to you about the rules of our Wizarding society."

She held up two fingers. "Two mistakes: first, I'm not a ward of the Ministry, officially or not. Second, my godfather already told me all about the rules; no underage magic outside of Hogwarts and all that. I also know they only deal with spells. I already know several dozen spells, but I don't even have my own wand, although I'll be getting one today. Besides the Ministry's rules aren't all that different from the Congress of Magic's rules in America."

"We also want to take you to St. Mungo's for some tests," one of the other man sounded like he was talking about some loathsome disease, "to look into your . . . condition."

Her tail bristled and her ears laid back, but her voice remained dangerously calm. "I don't have a condition. I'm a pooka."

"Yes." Kingsley tried to calm things down a bit. "We are well aware of that. We also know you weren't born this way. You were changed when the Dark Lord's curse backfired. It's possible what was done to you could be reversed, returning you to fully human."

Now she suddenly became claws out and fangs showing, hissy fit angry. "No! I like what I am. I don't want to be 'fully human', as if that's such a great thing. I'm me. I'm Jamie Wanda Potter; witch, pooka and mutant all rolled into one. If that's not good enough for your precious ministry, you can all go . . . jump in a lake. I'd say what I'm really thinking, but Padfoot taught me to be a lady."

Only after she brought her fist down on the table, breaking it in two, did she realize she was causing a scene and calm down, blushing just slightly. "Oops. Sorry about that."

Kingsley rose calmly and produced his wand. "Reparo."

Once the table re-formed, he returned to his seat. "No problem."

She straightened the sun dress she was wearing and sat back down as well. "Professor Dumbledore did some research. Like a lot of other pureblood families, mine has fae blood in their history. He called what happened to me by a muggle term: a recessive gene. I don't know what would've happened if old Moldywarts hadn't showed up, but he didn't cause what happened, he just triggered it. At least that's how the Professor and my godfather explained it. They had some of the best people in America check me out. They gave me a clean bill of health."

"I see." Kingsley scratched his chin. "It's ill-advised to mock the Dark Lord."

"Why not?" She laughed. "It's not like he can do anything. He's dead . . . at least that what everyone over here keeps insisting. Someone once told me that refusing to name something just gives it more power over you. Voldemort's been gone for nearly ten years. It's time people stop being so afraid of him."

She paused. "If all of that isn't good enough for you and your Ministry, I've already received an acceptance letter to attend Ilvermorny as well as the one I got from Hogwarts. They don't start classes until next week."

Kingsley knew when he'd been defeated. "Well, gentlemen, it appears we've been outdone by an eleven-year-old girl."

"You can't be serious!" The man who didn't like pookas glared at him. "Minister Fudge's instructions were clear. She needs to be given a complete examination before being allowed to attend Hogwarts."

"What do you propose we do, Carlisle?" Kingsley countered. "Take her by force? Have you ever tried to corral a pooka? I have. I've already been embarrassed quite enough for one day, thank you. Besides, she's apparently already been given a clean bill of health before leaving the States."

"If you won't follow orders, I will." Carlisle suddenly produced a wand and pointed it at Jamie. "Stupify!"

But Jamie is no longer there and the spell fizzled harmlessly against the wall as her voice came from directly behind him. "You'll haveta do better 'n that. You shoulda listened to Mr. Shacklebolt."

He leaped from his chair like it was on fire and whirled, wand at the ready. She wasn't there. She appeared on the bar just long enough to give him a raspberry, before vanishing again. He took several steps forward, and uttered a threat that became a squeak when she appeared behind him, phased her hand enough to reach beneath his robes, grabbed him by the underwear and lifted him a foot off the ground, giving him an atomic wedgie.

As he lay there curled up on the floor, trying to catch his breath, she appeared floating a few feet above him with a large mug of ale in her hands, which she quickly dumped on him before disappearing again. "Consider yourself lucky. I could have used my claws and left you with some permanent scars. I don't like bigots and I really don't like you."

That said, she reappeared once again, sitting on the bar next to Hagrid. He'd been watching the whole scene with growing amusement, but with his hand resting on his wand hidden in his overcoat just in case. The danger over, he took his hand out and started clapping. Several others around the bar quickly joined in.

Jamie jumped down off the bar and curtsied prettily, then turned to Kingsley who was picking his disgraced fellow auror up off the floor. "Are we done?"

He nodded and steered the other two into a corner. "I hope you enjoy your first year at Hogwarts, Miss Potter. It's been an . . . education meeting you."

That said, the trio vanished before they could be embarrassed even further. Kingsley actually had a wry smile, while the third auror just looked confused.

Once the tumult of people who wanted to congratulate, or just meet, Jamie died down, a man with painfully red hair approached them. "Hagrid."

The big man smiled and shook the redhead's hand aggressively. "Good ter see ya, Arthur. How's Molly an' th' kids?"

"All well, thank you." He smiled.

"I'd like ter introduce you ter Miss Jamie Potter," Hagrid continued proudly. "Jamie, this here's Arthur Weasley; one o' th' nicest guys y'll ever meet. He was an old friend o' yer parents."

Jamie smiled and curtsied to the new arrival.

"More of an acquaintance, really." Arthur blushed. "I must say it's a distinct pleasure and honor to meet you, Miss Potter. Professor Dumbledore suggested you might stay with my family tonight and accompany us to the train in the morning. With Ron starting this year, we'll just have Ginny left around the house. She's just a year younger than you and will love having another girl around, even if it's just for one night. Having six older brothers hasn't been easy on her."

Jamie shook his hand and smiled through his genial rant. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Weasley. It's very nice of you to invite me over. I'd be honored."

"Such a well-mannered young lady," he gushed.

She laughed. "You wouldn't have known it a few minutes ago."

He waved her self-deprecating comment off. "Nothing that fool Carlisle hasn't had coming for years. I swear, the man gives purebloods almost as bad a name as 'you know who' did."

"I'll bring her by the Burrow after we finish shopping, Arthur," Hagrid promised, starting to steer Jamie towards the brick wall at the back of pub.

"Of course," Arthur agreed. "I'll let Molly know to expect you."

As Hagrid led Jamie to the back of the tavern and through the wall into Diagon Alley, Albus Dumbledore, having changed from "street clothes" to his robes, strode into the Minister's outer office. He'd put this confrontation off for far too long, but no longer. It was time to remind certain people the folly of interfering with HIS students.

"I'm sorry, Professor," the young witch who served as Fudge's receptionist and secretary said, trying to intercept him, "but Minister Fudge is in an important conference and can't be disturbed."

Dumbledore apported calmly past the young lady and opened the door to the inner office to find Fudge alone and definitely not occupied. "Good day, Cornelius. That will be alright, miss. He'll see me."

With a flick of his wand, Dumbledore closed the door behind him and locked the young woman on the other side. "Now, we won't be interrupted."

"I say, Dumbledore," Fudge tried vainly to bluster. "This is quite irregular."

Dumbledore wasn't buying it. "No more irregular than sending three aurors to intimidate an eleven year old girl, Cornelius. What were you thinking? Kingsley is a good man, but Jasper Carlisle is a fool. Besides, I've kept you abreast of Jamie's progress. Do you really think anyone could intimidate her after everything she's been through? What were you thinking indeed?"

Cornelius Fudge was no fool and was wisely afraid of the tall wizard, but tried to diplomatically explain his actions. "Regardless how famous Miss Potter is, certain families will be quite concerned to have a creature of the fae attending Hogwarts with their children once they discover she's returned and been enrolled. I merely requested they meet with her to make certain she was advised of the rules and take her for a full medical examination at St. Mungo's before word got out."

Dumbledore wasn't impressed. "She may have been raised in the colonies, Minister, but she was in the constant care of no fewer than four Hogwarts alumni. Do you really think they didn't prepare her? As for St. Mungo's, I already sent you a copy of the medical records her godparents sent ahead of her arrival. She's received a clean bill of health from some of the best doctors, magical and muggle, they have."

"You'll pardon me, Professor," Fudge responded, making the title Dumbledore was most proud of sound like the Minister was trying to put him in his place, "if I don't fully trust some doctors in America."

Dumbledore saw through the younger man's façade like it was glass. "Your problems with Stephen Strange and the other members of the American Magical Community aside, Cornelius. The list of doctors and experts that have overseen Jamie's care for the past ten years would impress anyone. As I'm sure she's already informed Kingsley and his companions on no uncertain terms. She won't be visiting St. Mungo's anytime soon. Do you have any other problems we need to address, or can I and MY students get on with the new school year?"

Minister Fudge hated the way Dumbledore used that phrase; like his precious students and that school were outside and independent of the community that had elected him Minister. What he wouldn't give to put the man in his place. Unfortunately, Albus Dumbledore was as feared as he was respected for good reason. The simple fact was that Dumbledore intimidated Fudge.

Cornelius knew all too well that the only reason he had his current office was because the man before him had refused it. He knew it and it irked him to no end. Even today, one word from Albus Dumbledore and Cornelius knew a new election would be scheduled before he could even blink and he'd be replaced. Yes, it irked him, but he wasn't fool enough to let the old man know that.

"Very well," he said finally, "but if anything happens because of her presence at Hogwarts, it's on your head and not mine."

Dumbledore smiled a politician's smile. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Gringott's Bank was an education for Jamie especially when Hagrid left her in the care of a goblin named Griphook while he took care of some school business. Sirius told her that both the Potter and Black families were extremely wealthy but she never imagined how wealthy. The money wasn't what she was there for, though. She walked past the stacks upon stacks of coins to the family heirlooms and such at the back of the vault and found the trunk with the name tag, Lily Evans.

In a small jewelry box inside the trunk, Jamie found what she was looking for. It wasn't any of the expensive pieces of jewelry James Potter bought for his beloved over the years, but a simple locket on a gold chain. To Jamie, it was more valuable than all the rest of the things in the vault put together. To her, it was a link to the past and to parents she had never met.

The inscription on the face of the locket was a verse from the Bible. "Perfect love casts out all fear." Sirius said he gave it to Lily to celebrate Jamie's first Christmas. When opened, it would project images, both magical and mundane, and scenes from Lily's life since arriving at Hogwarts and meeting the men who would become the Marauders.

Jamie didn't open it there. She wanted to be alone when she did. She knew she was going to cry and really hated crying in front of people. She unclasped the chain and hung it around her neck, then turned and left the vault.

"I'd like an inventory done of the contents of the vault and my family's estate," she told Griphook as he resealed the vault door.

The goblins smiled avariciously. "That can be arranged for a nominal fee."

Jamie stopped as if frozen, then turned to Griphook with a frown. "I'd think you'd do it for free as a courtesy for one of your oldest and biggest accounts."

"Free?" The goblin almost choked on the word. "Surely you jest."

Jamie learned haggling from her namesake godmother, Wanda. "Surely I don't."

"Such a thing would be unheard of," the now nervous goblin stammered.

Jamie smiled ferally. "Of course, I could always take the account and estate out of your hands. I know several Muggle banks that would love . . . ."

"You wouldn't." Griphook was terrified at the very thought.

Jamie's expression said otherwise. "I have a friend in America. His name's Tony. He's brilliant and incredibly rich. He told me before I left that if I ever needed help investing my money, he'd be happy to advise me. My godfather even approves and might be convinced to do the same thing with the Black accounts."

Griphook was in shock and several higher ups in the bank were about to have apoplectic fits, but by the time Jamie and Hagrid left, she had the deal.

"I've never seen th' goblins quite so agitated," Hagrid noted as they exited the fortress like main doors.

Jamie shrugged. "I just got them to promise to do a complete inventory of my family's estate . . . for free."

Hagrid looked at her askance. "I never heard of a goblin doin' anythin' fer free. How'd ya pull that off?"

"I threatened to empty the vault and take the estate out of their hands." She smiled sweetly. "I was taught haggling by a gypsy, Hagrid. They never stood a chance."

Hagrid guffawed. "I'da given a month's wages ter have been there ter see that. Indeed I would."

The rest of the afternoon was fairly uneventful, despite one white haired boy in Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions who was extremely rude to her. Jamie was in a rather good mood at the time, so she just decided to ignore him. She figured it was his loss. It wasn't like Padfoot hadn't prepared her for the foolish disdain of some purebloods, after all. If he'd made one more snide comment, though, she'd have given him something to remember her by.

They'd gone a bit out of their way to visit Madame Malkin's first and it would also be their last stop when they returned to pick up the robes that Jamie had been fitted for. The shop also had several other clothing items, including a collection of shirts with magically animated artwork on them. Jamie took the opportunity to expand her shirt collection. She bought a blue one with a drake that climbed over and about on it, a red and gold one with a phoenix blazing on the front, one with moving waves and a sea serpent gamboling around on it and three others that caught her fancy. Madame Malkin promised to package up the shirts for them to pick up when they returned for the robes.

Their next stop was a return to Potage's Cauldron Shop, which was actually next to the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron to get a pewter cauldron, size 2, which was required of all students. Jamie was tempted to get a second brass one for her own experiments, but Hagrid didn't think it was a good idea.

"There's a reason why th' school requires pewter," he told her. "Don't rightly know what it is, but I know there is one."

Not able to argue with that logic, Jamie bought the pewter one and they moved on. Their next stop was Flourish & Blotts, where Jamie bought her required school books and several others that caught her fancy, including the latest in a series of romantic fantasies that was popular in the wizarding world.

"It's for Aunt Nymphadora," she lied. "She's addicted to these things."

She also picked up several books on more practical subjects, much to Hagrid's surprise. "Good ter see yer takin' a real interest in learnin' Jamie."

She laughed. "Padfoot and Tonks may not be the most bookish people to come out of Hogwarts, Hagrid, but Mooney and Aunt Wanda both love books and so does Aunt Agatha. I guess I come by it naturally."

At their next stop, Slug and Jiggers Apothecary, Jamie was like a kid in a candy store. She grew up around some of the better alchemists in America and loved brewing potions. It was an art form when you came right down to it. Nowhere near as boring as chemistry. While Hagrid's own Potions grades while he was at Hogwarts hadn't been exactly stellar, he knew enough to be impressed at Jamie's selections and to steer her away from some of the more dangerous stuff.

After a visit to Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment to get Jamie her own telescope and several other bits and pieces of magical equipment she figured she might find use for . . . more likely misuse, really, but she wasn't going to admit that to Hagrid, Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour was at the far end of the cul-de-sac, so they stopped there for a snack before heading back towards the Leaky Cauldron stopping at several more shops. There as they savored a pair of large sundaes, Hagrid made a cheerful announcement.

"I never got the chance ter get ye a proper birthday gift, Jamie." How 'bout ye let me get yer a proper pet. The rules say ye c'n get an owl, a cat, a toad or a rat. Let's have a look at Eeylops Owl Emporium an' maybe the Magical Menagerie t' see if we c'n find ye somethin'."

"That's sweet of you, Hagrid," she insisted, "but you really don't have to."

"Hogwash." He laughed. "T'aint everyday a pretty girl like yersel' turns eleven, now is it. Soon enough, y'll be all growed up an' it won't be proper no more fer y'r ol' Uncle Hagrid ter spoil yer a li'l bit."

Now Hagrid had intended to take her to Eeylops and get her a snowy owl he'd had his eye on for her, but Jamie made a beeline for the Magical Menagerie next door to it, where she saw and fell immediately in love with a small, barely weaned, black kitten with bright blue eyes. Seeing the way the kitten purred and cuddled as soon as Jamie picked her up, Hagrid figured the affection was mutual and abandoned the idea of buying the owl. Another girl with unruly brown hair and obviously Muggle parents bought it instead.

Jamie named the kitten Ororo after a friend in upstate New York who loved to fly almost as much as Jamie did. Now, Hagrid had never had much care for cats; one of the few animals he could say that about. They were good for getting rid of mice and making his nose run, and little else, as far as he was concerned. Seeing the little girl and the kitten together, however, was so sweet it brought a tear to his eye and immediately settled the matter as far as he was concerned.

After Hagrid purchased the kitten, Jamie nearly bought the shop out of toys and supplies for the small animal. She bought a cat carrier that was self-cleaning and had an entire yard and garden inside for Ororo to play in. Once she saw a bag of magically preserved, dried and condensed catnip, she had to have it. The same was true for an animated stuff mouse and a set of three colorful balls that jingled, rolled and jumped all on their own. Of course that didn't even include brushes and collars and bows and nail clippers and other things. By the time Jamie was finished, Hagrid figured her new kitten would be the best supplied pet in Hogwarts.

There were only two official stops left, but Jamie had a couple of her own. She wanted to drop by Gambol and Japes, but was rather disappointed. Their selection left a lot to be desired. As a matter of fact, she'd made a lot better stuff with Padfoot for April Fool's Day and told Hagrid as much after they left without buying anything. Knowing her godfather, Hagrid wasn't at all surprised Jamie wasn't that impressed with the shop.

A brief stop at Twilfitt and Tatting's was even more disappointing. It wasn't that they didn't have some nice clothes, but their attitude at seeing a half giant and a pooka darken their doorstep was infuriating. They even had the nerve to have a security wizard keep a close eye on them as they browsed. As if they'd deign to steal anything from such a pretentious dump.

As they left, Jamie was heard to make a comment far louder than was necessary. "I've seen better clothes at thrift shops. This place doesn't deserve a knut of my money if they don't know how to treat customers."

The comment raised several eyebrows and a harrumph from the proprietress, but Jamie just left and loosed a minor telekinetic poltergeist inside once she hit the pavement. The shouts and crashes were quite soothing to her slightly bruised ego.

"Remind me to never go there again, Hagrid," she said, smiling calmly as he resisted the urge to guffaw. "Way too cluttered."

After two disappointments, Jamie was almost reluctant to check out Quality Quidditch Supplies, but she loved Quidditch and knew it was even bigger in Britain than it was in the US. There weren't nearly as many western hemisphere professional teams as there were around Britain and Europe, but Jamie's favorite team, the American Thunderbirds, actually had a chance of making it to the finals this year, so she wanted to show her team spirit by getting a banner and maybe a poster for her room. Happily they had everything she could have wanted. The proprietor even knew her father and was very happy to meet her. It was a nice stop and she promised to drop by again when she was in the market for a broom . . . not that she needed one to fly, but it seemed the thing for kids in the community to buy. There was even an ad for one of the newer models in the store window.

The last stop before returning to Madame Malkin's was at Ollivander's Wand Shop. Obviously used to surprising customers with his seemingly instantaneous appearances, Mr. Ollivander was somewhat at all when Jamie saw him coming.

"I'm pretty hard to surprise." Jamie laughed. "I'm told all pookas are."

He smiled. "You would be my first pooka customer, Miss Potter. I look forward to finding the perfect wand for you."

Hagrid hold a long thin box from inside his coat. "I've got the one fer her right here."

He opened the box and presented it to Jamie. The wand inside almost jumped out of the box and into her hand as she reached for it. The glow that radiated from her the second she grasped it nearly blinded the two men as her already wild mane flared out even more.

"It was your father's," Hagrid told her. "I found it on him after . . . . I been keepin' it fer ya ever since. Figgered he'd want ya ter have it."

She leaped up, wrapped her arms around his massive neck and buried her face in his shoulder. "I don't know what to say. Thank you, Hagrid."

"I remember that wand," the old man said somewhat reverently. "I remember every wand I've ever sold, but that one was special; Rowen wood with a Phoenix feather core. The phoenix that supplied the feather only parted with two. That wand and its twin are two of the most impressive I've ever made. Its twin was actually quite infamous, but that's beside the point. I'll be happy to register it for you, Miss Potter . . . for a nominal clerical fee of five sickles."

Jamie produced the coins without comment or, for once, even a thought of haggling.

When Hagrid dropped Jamie off at the rambling house called the Burrow, she was quite impressed and amazed the place was even standing. "Uncle Tony would go nuts trying to figure out how this place was built."

"Uncle Tony?" Hagrid asked.

"A friend Sirius and I made in America," Jamie told him. "He's a Muggle, but a wizard with technology. He's also a really sweet man once you manage to get past the irresponsible playboy image he puts up."

The Weasley family was wonderful and kooky, and practically adopted Jamie inside of five minutes. Ron was a little shy and tongue-tied around her, but sweet. Ginny was beside herself with hero worship that quickly turned into friendship once a younger girl realized "the girl that lived" wasn't all that different. The twins, Fred and George, were hilarious pranksters and elated to find a kindred soul in Jamie. Even Percy was nice enough, if a little standoffish.

It was Molly, though, that Jamie fell in love with. The woman was a wonder. She had a heart large enough to encompass the whole world.

"You must stay for dinner, Hagrid," she insisted.

"Sorry, Molly," he told her reluctantly, "but I need ter get back t' Hogwarts. Busy day tomorrow."

Dinner at the Burrow was a joint effort. Even Jamie was drafted to help Ginny peel potatoes while Ororo played with her new animated stuffed mouse at their feet. Sirius hadn't done a lot of cooking, but others let Jamie "help" them when she was young, so she at least knew the basics. Her claws made short work of peeling.

"That's so wicked," Ginny said in awe, then became shy. "Do you mind if I ask you something?"

"Sure." Jamie figured it was one of a handful of questions just about everyone asked eventually and really didn't mind.

"What can you do?" Ginny stumbled. "As a pooka, I mean."

"Oh, lots of stuff." Jamie smiled genuinely. "I'm stronger. I no Hulk or even Captain America, but I broke a table in half when I got mad at some aurors earlier today. I can see in the dark and hear a lot better, and my whiskers can sense vibrations in the air, so it's pretty hard to sneak up on me. I'm a lot more agile and a lot faster than normal. I'm not going to break the sound barrier, but I can out run most cars."

She flexed her claws. "These are pretty strong. I can carve into steel, even cut through it if it's thin enough. They also help me cling to walls and my strength helps me jump pretty far. I can clear twenty feet vertical if I get a good running start."

She paused. "Other than that, I have a lot of the basic pooka powers. I can teleport, become invisible, walk through walls and fly. I can't do much of the psychic stuff or shape shifting some pookas can, but I do have some telekinetic abilities. My shape shifting is limited to making myself look human. It takes several minutes and a lot of concentration. It also tends to slip if I get nervous, excited, angry or anything like that, but it lets me mix with Muggle society without causing a ruckus."

"That's about it," she said finally. "A genetics expert in the US says that in addition to my magical heritage, I'm a mutant. Don't spread that around, okay. He thinks the spell that backfired triggered something in my genes. He called it something real sciency; 'a latent recessive genetic manifestation.' What that means is that Moldywarts' spell somehow activated the Fae heritage I have from the Potter bloodline."

She shrugged. "It's pretty cool, really. My godmother, Wanda, is both, too. She's a powerful wizardess and has these mutant powers that warp probability, making her pretty talented with chaos magic."

Ginny's face suddenly turned pale. "Wanda . . . chaos magic . . . ? You don't mean Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, do you?"

Jamie sighed, realizing she just opened her big mouth again. It wasn't even like she did it deliberately. To her, Wanda and her friends were just a bunch of wonderful, funny, amazing people who took a shine to her and practically adopted her, making her childhood something truly special.

She smiled. "Would it be so bad if I did? She's really sweet. Her brother's a bit of a jerk when you first get to know him, but he's not so bad. He's got issues, though. Boy, does he have issues."

She figured she must will let the other boot drop. "Her friends are really great. They kind of adopted me as an unofficial mascot. Even the Hulk can be surprisingly gentle and protective. He calls me 'pretty kitty', but my call sign is Pooka. At least it will be when I'm older."

Ginny was in shock. "You know the Avengers."

Jamie didn't think it was that big of a deal. "They're just people."

"Just people." Ginny was trying to wrap her brain around it.

"Yeah," Jamie tried to assure her. "Clint, that's Hawkeye, taught me how to fire a bow. Natasha, the Black Widow, and Cap taught me self-defense. Natasha also taught me how to dance. Did you know she's a trained ballerina? She's so graceful. Thor is big, loud and boisterous. Sirius calls him an overgrown frat boy, but he tells some of the best stories. Bruce taught me how to meditate."

She paused, then sighed. "Everyone sees them as these bigger than life icons, but they're really just folks when you get to know them. For example, Tony Stark has this big show off playboy genius vibe going, but the way his girlfriend, Pepper, has him wrapped around her little finger is hilarious; incredibly sweet, but still hilarious."

"Wow," was all Ginny could think to say.

"This isn't going to make things weird, is it?" Jamie was worried.

"No," Ginny hugged her new friend. "It just takes some getting used to. It's not every day you meet someone who knows the Avengers on a first name basis."

Jamie hugged her back, relieved that her big mouth hadn't cost her another friend. It wasn't even like she was name dropping. Whatever else the Avengers might have been, to her they were just a big, slightly dysfunctional, family of aunts and uncles who opened their hearts to her. She really couldn't see them any other way, but all anyone else seem to see where these bigger than life figures.

She let the matter drop, but at dinner, Ginny practically gushed about it. "Did you guys know Jamie knows the Avengers? Her godmother is the Scarlet Witch. Jamie actually hangs out with them."

Jamie sighed as everyone stared at her. "It's not all that weird. All anyone ever sees are these huge superheroes in bright costumes, but they're really these nice, sweet and surprisingly normal people."

One of the twins cocked an eyebrow. "Thor's a normal guy?"

Jamie laughed. "Oh, yeah. He eats like a horse. His friend, Voltstagg, is the only person I've seen eat more. I saw Thor put away twenty slices of French toast and ask for more. Jarvis has this secret recipe he won't tell anyone. I'd have eaten twenty too if I could have, but I can usually only handle two or three before I'm stuffed."

She continued. "He's a big, boisterous kid. He loves to laugh almost as much as he loves to fight, and boy does he love to fight, but he tells the best stories. At the same time, he can be wonderfully gentle; particularly around his lady friend, Jane."

"What about Tony Stark?" Percy asked, now interested.

Jamie shrugged and decided to run with it. "He's brilliant. He's also a coffee fueled insomniac and probably insane. He's a narcissistic, monomaniac who doesn't work well with others and has an innate gift at saying the very thing most likely to push your buttons. By the way, he'll readily admit to all of that . . . particularly the brilliant part. Most of that description is a direct quote from him."

She smiled fondly. "He's also one of the sweetest men I know. That, however, he'll deny with his dying breath. He's extremely funny; almost as funny as he thinks he is. He might be funnier if Pepper didn't keep stopping them from finishing half the jokes he starts to tell. Then again, maybe not."

She blushed slightly, then shook her head. "His curiosity and imagination are limitless, but I think he's been hurt bad by someone very important to him. All the rest of it is just a way to protect himself from getting hurt like that again. It's sad, really, but he's the last person who would ever want anyone feeling sorry for him."

Molly ended the questions. "I remember Wanda. She and your parents were First Years when Arthur and I were Seventh Years. Anyway, Ron and Percy, it's your turn to clear the dishes. The rest of you go get ready for bed. You have a big day ahead of you tomorrow."

"Some of us." Ginny pouted.

Arthur laughed sympathetically. "Don't be in such a hurry to grow up, daughter. Enjoy your freedom while you can."

As Ginny kissed her parents good night, Jamie started gathering dishes to take to the kitchen, but Molly stopped her. "Let the boys take care of that, dear. You're a guest."

"Okay," Jamie said reluctantly, gathering up a very full and sleepy kitten.

On a whim, just before following Ginny to her room, Jamie leaned over and kissed Molly on the cheek. "Thank you. You know, for dinner and everything."

Molly smiled understandingly. "It was my pleasure, dear. All of it."