Disclaimer - I do not own Harry Potter, I merely play in the sandbox and dream up stories.

AN - I first wrote this story in 2010 and posted on a different site. Back then my writing wasn't very good and my opinion of certain characters wasn't as jaded. The original version of this story was dull, flat at best and hardly worth any weight. I'm re-imagining it into something better and hopefully you will join me on this new journey ~Hannah

Chapter One

Harry sat in the Headmasters office, confusion and nervousness wracking his body. The excitement he felt from the start of term feast and the prospects of his final year were now replaced with tendrils of curiosity. The war was over, Voldemort was dead, and the Wizarding world was slowly picking itself up and dusting itself off.

"I fear I have made a grave error Harry. I kept something from you because I thought it would hurt you unnecessarily. I see now that I gave up too easily. I should have told you years ago."

"What are you talking about?"

"I never told you before and perhaps that was a mistake to make but I, we, assumed a death had occurred. Why burden you with more pain when you would remain happier in the dark?"

"Get to the point headmaster, lest I say something I regret," said Harry with an edge of steel in his voice.

He was well used to Dumbledore's 'for the greater good' secrets by now but had assumed that he had heard all of them by this point. Harry was still angry that Dumbledore hadn't told him he'd been a horcrux in the first place.

"Before that fateful Halloween night, there were four Potter's in Godric's Hollow. Your Mum, Lily, your Dad, James, yourself and your twin sister, Anna. You were the perfect happy family until Voldemort came knocking. We thought Anna had died with your parents as we never found her body and she wasn't mentioned in the prophesy. You were of greater concern that night. We have come across some information that she is alive and I'm afraid I cannot tell you more as I do not know anymore. Rest assured, we have people looking for her and you will be the first informed when we find her."

"Are you telling me that you abandoned a baby to the rubble of a destroyed house because she didn't fit with the prophesy or the greater good of the wizarding world? Are you fucking mad sir? I thought we were done with secrets but apparently you withhold stuff all the time. On what authority did you become an expert on what knowledge I should or should not know? You are not my magical guardian and you are not my muggle guardian. I had been willing to give you the benefit of the doubt with this meeting, but I see you're up to your old tricks again. Who gave you this important information?"

"Narcissa and Draco Malfoy but Harry you must understand that they're probably lying to escape punishment."

"I see. Well I have two words for you headmaster: stay away! I don't trust you right now and I don't want anything to do with you. I will find out myself what has happened to my sister and you can rest assured that if I find out you had anything to do with it, there will be hell to pay!"

Harry walked from Dumbledore's office with his head in a whirl. He didn't know how he should feel. Past actions taught him that he shouldn't get excited for any family he'd found in the past had left him now. There was a lot of anger and resentment in his heart and he didn't know what to do with it. He had thought that life after Voldemort would be easy, but the harsh reality was that it was harder. From repairing the castle to burying the dead, Harry had helped in every way possible and hadn't fully worked through his own grief. Acquiring the knowledge that he potentially had a twin sister out in the world, made him numb with pain and longing. He walked mindlessly through the castle and mumbled the password when he neared the Head's apartments.

In a picture of perfection that the aftermath of the war had granted, Hermione, Neville and Luna sat together on the cosy sofas, laughing and talking together. That was until Harry appeared with such a wounded expression.

The lost of Ron and Ginny had taken its toll on Harry, Ginny had left to travel the world in an attempt to un-see the horrors of war while Ron had been signed as keeper to the Chudley Cannons and in doing so had finally stepped out of Harry's shadow. The fame hungry Ron was a mere shadow of the friend Harry had known for the past seven years.

"Are you alright Harry?" asked Luna.

"I completely forgot Harry, I'm sorry. How was the meeting with Dumbledore?" asked Hermione.

Harry looked at his friend's faces in turn, each one a beacon of light in his life and loyal till the end. The mere fact that he had to remind himself that they would be there for him whatever happened always unnerved him slightly.

"Dumbledore has been lying for the greater good again. He managed to avoid telling me for seven years that I have a twin sister who may or may not be alive."

"Are you kidding me?! What was his excuse this time?" asked an enraged Hermione.

"She wasn't part of the prophesy and not worth the time to look for."

"Just once I'd like to take Dumbledore down a peg or two. I mean, without his interference both Harry and I would still have parents, Sirius and Remus wouldn't have suffered, Snape wouldn't be teaching here. Countless bad decisions wouldn't have happened if Dumbledore hadn't been given free reign to do things as the 'greater good' commanded him to," spat Neville.

"I agree Neville. Standing on the other side of the war has made me question everything about Dumbledore. He couldn't even stay dead…"

"Did Dumbledore tell you anything else?" asked Luna.

"They had no hope of my twin being alive and couldn't be bothered to search for her body that Halloween night. The information about her possible survival came from Narcissa and Draco Malfoy."

"What?!" exclaimed Neville.

"Actually, that makes sense," said Hermione.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the Malfoy's were prisoners in their own home during the war. We all experienced how they helped the prisoners left in their dungeon. Even Luna can tell you how kind and apologetic they were. They both had inside knowledge of the other side, they weren't considered important enough to become part of the inner circle, but they knew the ins and outs of Malfoy Manor and were able to collect a lot of important information. It's why we've been able to sentence so many death eaters since the war. It would stand to reason that if anyone other than Dumbledore had information on your twin then it would be them."

"I guess so."

"Besides, I share these quarters with him and even I've noticed a change in him since term started. He doesn't have to hide who he is anymore and he's actually quite pleasant to be around."

"I couldn't have asked for better friends. You all open my mind to possibilities I never thought of. I never would have thought of Draco Malfoy as anything other than my enemy if I wasn't open to making new friends or using my own head instead of letting others make decisions for me."

"We were all young once Harry. We're allowed to make mistakes. Look at me, for seven years I allowed a bully to frighten me into failing one of my classes but in the year of the war I gained the confidence to stand up and take control. Now, my ability and skill in potions is far beyond anything I'd thought I could be when I was eleven."

"Thanks Neville."

"You are happy about this news aren't you Harry?" asked Luna.

"I am but I am also reserved."

"We can all understand that Harry. We'll be with you whatever happens."

Harry felt warmth in his bones and hope in his heart despite all that had been revealed to him this evening, he didn't feel like punching his hand through a wall or taking drastic action. He was angry, and he was hurt but he was around friends that comforted him and supported him. With his friends by his side, he knew he could face any danger.

"I think I should get Harry back to the common room now, it looks like the nargles are starting to converge around him."

Harry let Luna guide him out of the head's apartments. They all knew that nargles was code for Luna wanting some alone time with her boyfriend. Harry was all to ready to agree he needed that alone time with his girlfriend also.

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Dumbledore was not feeling as positive as Harry was. Dumbledore was beginning to think that he might have crossed a line when it came to Harry. He was beginning to realise that keeping secrets wasn't all it was cracked up to be. He was beginning to regret the fact that he had let Harry be so independent and was beginning to think that his original idea for the greater good would have been a better path to travel down. If he was being truthful, Dumbledore could admit that in truth, the search for Miss Potter had begun well before term started. Inf fact, the search started in the latter part of the war when Dumbledore was searching for alternative roads to walk down should Harry not succeed as was prophesised. Dumbledore had seen no reason to inform Harry of this sooner because, well…because of reasons only known to Dumbledore. Dumbledore was pacing his office because he was struggling to control one Potter. Heaven forbid what happens when the second Potter is found and what secrets would come to light.

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The next time Harry heard something about his supposed sibling, he was rushing, bleary eyed towards the hospital wing. Luna, Hermione and Neville close to his heels. Harry had been tight lipped on how he was feeling to those outside of the three with him and in all honesty, he hadn't wanted to get his hopes up in case they were shot down again. Harry was more suspicious of Dumbledore now but wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt in this manner. He remembered however, not to look Dumbledore in the eye, less he perform legillimency on him.

There was no stopping Harry and his friends from gathering around the one occupied bed and straining to drink in everything they were seeing.

Kingsley and Tonks stood on either side of the bed, standing guard over the fallen victim. There were murmurs around Harry of Kingsley finding her in an abandoned manor, bound and alone. The manor was one of the last strongholds of Voldemort. Harry felt he could worry about the where and the why later. For now, he was just horrified with what he could see. Her body was badly bruised and beaten, a series of odd shaped cuts and scrapes covered her body and dried blood was still caked on her skin. Her face appeared to have been murderously beaten, leaving her skin in multiple shades of colour and her left eye slightly swollen. Her body was swollen like she hadn't eaten for days. Whether she could talk or not, Harry didn't know but she refused to look anyone in the eye.

Harry took hesitant steps towards the bed. Dumbledore tried to intercept him, but Harry brushed him off. Standing at the foot of the bed, Harry glance at the poor soul before him. He made no move to touch her and simply became another guard by her side. Madam Pomfrey bustled over with some healers from St Mungo's, they worked in silence and Harry took notice of when his sister flinched and when she accepted treatment without movement. Harry's heart broke a little at what he was seeing.

"Could someone please send an owl to Mrs Malfoy? I'd very much like to talk to her and learn what she knows."

"I don't think that's wise Harry. I would prefer if you left things up to me. We shall get your sister the treatment she needs but I think she needs solitude most of all," said Dumbledore.

"I don't care much for what you think old man. Putting her in isolation would be the opposite of all things to do. Mrs Malfoy is the one who found information that she was alive, and she is the one I want to talk to. Do not get in my way Sir, you might be headmaster here, but you have no bearing in my life anymore."

"Harry please, think about what you're doing, you could be endangering yourself."

"Sir, it is by Mrs Malfoy's hand that I was able to survive long enough to kill Voldemort. She will always have my gratitude for that. Mrs Malfoy may have her husband's last name, but she will always be a Black by heart and I wish to connect more with the family that Sirius left behind. I should have thanked her months ago, but I have been otherwise occupied. If Mrs Malfoy hadn't bought this information to your attention, would you have ever mounted a search for my sister? Or would you have led me to believe that I was alone in the world? I have fulfilled the prophesy Sir and you can ask no more of me or were you expecting me to die in the battle?"

Harry had never said it out loud before but in the months after the war was won, he had suspected several times that Dumbledore had never expected him to survive. In the hours after the last body had been laid to rest, Harry had huddled together with Hermione, Luna and Neville and they had compiled a list of all the inconsistencies leading up to the war and what they thought had been unnecessary and unneeded. Much of what they had uncovered had been unnecessarily provided by Dumbledore's hand. War had opened Harry's mind up to see that not everyone was perfect and that not everyone was without flaws. Harry was guilty of putting Dumbledore on a pedestal, but he had removed him from that pedestal in the wake of the battle and was now seeing him in another light. Dumbledore was a strong and powerful wizard, but he was also a man and a man that was guilty of hoarding knowledge and acting as the man behind the throne if you will.

"Do you really think so little of me Harry?"

"I do not think you want me to answer that question Sir."

"I can get an owl to Mrs Malfoy Harry," said Tonks.

"Thank you, I appreciate it."

"You may use my office to meet Harry."

"I don't think so Dumbledore. I'd rather not sit in an office where every portrait reports back to you. I shall hold the meeting elsewhere. If you could just get Mrs Malfoy to meet me outside the heads apartments I shall walk her to our meeting place."

"I really think I should be included in this Harry."

"Why headmaster?"

"Come now Harry be reasonable."

"I think Dumbledore that Harry is right. There is no reason for you to be involved in this matter. If is a matter for the Potter family and Harry has so kindly extended that right to the Black family as well. You belong to neither of these families and hold no sway over Harry. You are his headmaster but nothing more. If you continue to interfere in Harry's life, he is well within his right to take action against you," said Tonks.

"You would do that?"

"You'll find Sir, that when family is involved, I will do anything to keep it safe and protected. I have warned you before that I want nothing to do with you outside of school so please respect that. I noticed that you didn't answer my question which leads me to believe that yes, you did expect me to die in the battle. I think it's reasonable that I treat you as person non grata until I can look at you without wanting to cause you injury."

An awkward silence filled the hospital wing, but Harry found himself reluctant to back down. Dumbledore had been a prominent figure in his life for seven years, but Harry didn't need a mentor anymore, he needed family and his new family didn't include Dumbledore. The man had won the war but lost his biggest asset and Harry vowed that he would never be someone's pawn again.

Tonks left to deliver the letter to an owl and once she'd returned, Kinsley escorted Dumbledore from the wing before returning himself. Harry had but one question for the two Auror's before him.

"Will you be reporting everything you hear back to Dumbledore? I know you were both in the Order."

"I stand beside my family," said Tonks.

"In this instance I am here in capacity of the Auror's. Amelia Bones requested I stand guard over this charge."

"Very well, you may stay. I realise this is a school hospital, but this is a private matter. I would like to request that the only people allowed to visit are myself, Hermione, Neville, Luna, Mrs Malfoy and Draco. I do not want any other parties interfering or gawking at her."

"Of course, we are happy to comply with that request. Should you need any extra help, please speak to Amelia Bones. In fact, she might seek you out before then."

Harry nodded, satisfied that he had control over the situation. He grabbed chairs for himself and his friends and sat in silence until Madam Pomfrey and the healers from St Mungo's had finished giving treatment. He sat in silence as his sister fell into a peaceful slumber. He sat silently as get were given refreshment by a Hogwarts elf and he sat in silence as Hermione did was she did best and complied a list of what they knew and what questions they had.

The first bit of noise was the arrival of someone to the hospital wing. Harry didn't think she had ever seen Mrs Malfoy look so dishevelled. She looked pale and tired but made a beeline for Harry. Draco trailed behind her looking equally out of sorts. Harry didn't know what involvement they had with his sister, but he wasn't foolish enough to push them away like Dumbledore wanted.

"Harry," whispered Hermione.

"What?"

"She's awake."

Harry whipped his head around so fast that it clicked and ached as he pulled a muscle. Sure enough, Hermione was correct, she was awake and blinking curiously up at them all.

Harry wanted to say hello, but he could tell that his sister was experiencing some distress with all these people around her. He was relieved to see her relax once she caught sight of Mrs Malfoy and Draco. It was in that moment that he realised he'd have to open his mind and heart to the two remaining Malfoy's because he could see what they meant to his sister. He already wanted to bring the Potter family and the Black family together as he was the heir to both, this was just another step on that ladder. Laying eyes on his sister and seeing her in the flesh made Harry want to call her by her name, for she was now real to him.

Anna let out a strangled sigh of relief at seeing Mrs Malfoy and Draco approach and if Harry had any reservations about the two Malfoys, they were washed away in that moment. Harry watched in equal parts of jealousy and joy as Mrs Malfoy took Anna in her arms and hugged her tightly, kissing her forehead before moving away and allowing Draco to do the same. Harry watched as Draco whispered something in Anna's ear and felt caught in the headlights when she turned her green eyes towards him. Very hesitantly so as not to alarm or scare her, Harry walked towards the bed and with a nod from Draco, took Anna in his arms and hugged her for the first time in his life. It was an emotional hug filled of unsaid things and Harry wasn't afraid to admit that he shed a tear or two. Before, he didn't know what to do with the knowledge that he might have a twin sister but now, he couldn't imagine a life without her. He knew that was silly, he'd only just met her, but it was true nonetheless.

Harry broke away from the hug and said, almost unnecessarily, "I'm Harry."

It broke the tension that was flowing through the room and put a smile, however small, on Anna's face.

Harry walked back to his chair, or rather, he would have had Anna let go of his hand, instead Tonks moved out of the way and moved Harry's chair so that he could sit comfortable next to his sister.

"I, I want to tell my story," said Anna, her voice raw from lack of use.

Harry squeezed her hand, "you don't have to. Not now, rest and get better first."

"No, you of all people deserve to know and if I don't tell it now I never will."

Harry couldn't help but smile thinking that she had the same stubbornness that he did. Instead of arguing with her, he merely passed her a glass of water to help her voice regain some clarity before she told her story.

Tonks had wisely blocked the bed off from view using hospital curtain dividers and Harry watched her set up wards and prevent them from being interrupted and from being overheard.

"Our Mother Lily didn't completely trust Dumbledore and had a second plan in place should anything happen to both her and Dad. It would have worked on Harry as well had Dumbledore not asked Hagrid to take him away. If Harry had managed to stay lost in the house for twenty-four hours, his life would have been like mine. Mum cast a very complex piece of magic that only came into action once they had both died. Part of it was a glamour to hide my appearance, the green eyes and the red hair are a bit of a giveaway. The other part was a complex memory block which stored every memory Harry and I had ever had in my mind. To access these memories the situation would have to become so dire that survival would be slim. I think Mum wanted us to be able to know who we were if the end was near. Lastly, she cast a spell that would send me to a house muggle parents. If Dumbledore hadn't interfered."

"That sounds a bit of an extreme thing to do and an overly complicated one," said Hermione.

"I think that's what Mum was going for. She didn't trust Dumbledore as those born in the magical world did. She had her muggle upbringing that warned against 'stranger danger' and I don't think she took Dumbledore being overly involved in her life very well. She didn't believe in the prophesy that much, it was too loosely worded to be properly dissected. Mum would rather put her trust in magic than in Dumbledore. I think she was right to take such drastic actions. I know of Dumbledore's character and I am positive that he would have silenced me if I didn't fit into his plans."

"Why do you say that? I'm not judging you I'm just curious," said Harry.

"Dumbledore has planned his entire life down to what socks he wears each day. Dumbledore has always believed that the world is better off not having the knowledge that he has. He asked others to fight his war with Grindelwald, only entering the battle at the last moment. He knew what Voldemort was and how he got there for years. He had plenty of time to hunt down Voldemort's soul and end him once and for all, but he didn't. He let you go back to the Dursley's every year with no regard to what it was doing to you or how they should never have been your guardians. Dumbledore manipulated our parent's will so that he could keep you as his pawn and secret card to play in the war. He knew Sirius was innocent but let him rot in prison for twelve years. I would never trust Dumbledore and will never willingly put myself in the same room as him."

"Well at least one of you has a brain and uses it. Harry is only just coming to the conclusion that you seem to have known for years but you'll have to forgive Harry, he is a boy after all and has had to battle with someone trying to kill him every year," said Luna.

"So, I went to live with strange muggles and Harry went to the Dursley's. My life from the time Mum and Dad died to the time I received my Hogwarts letter passed without incident. You shouldn't be so shocked to see I attended Hogwarts when you wouldn't have seen me as I am now. I can't really remember what my glamour name was, but my best friend was you Luna."

"Jessie Rainbottom," she whispered.

"Seriously? Jessie Rainbottom? Well now I'm glad I didn't remember that. What an awful surname. I was sorted into Gryffindor house and I remember thinking I knew Harry, but the reason would always allude me. The night Harry fought Voldemort in the graveyard was the night I was snatched from my home. Those people I'd believed to be my parents were nothing more than complex magic and as soon as I was taken from the house they dispelled into fragments of dust. Voldemort took me, he knew who I was and being in his darkness so long broke the mind block. I guess my life thought it was threatened and so everything rushed out in a big torrent of memories, everything I'd seen and everything Harry had seen came humbling into my brain, our memories linking together and giving me hope. It was hope in the darkness I became trapped in and a dream that I might someday meet this twin of mine."

"That must have been hard for you to handle. What did Voldemort want with you?"

"At first he showed lenience towards me and sought to charm me into doing what he wanted. He wanted to train me and to make me his personal assassin. He wanted me to kill Harry. The thought it would be ironic to have one twin kill another. But I couldn't do that, I was now, am not, a follower of darkness. I wouldn't kill my remaining family for anything. Once Voldemort realised this, his attitude towards me changed and I felt sure he would kill me, but death did not come and instead, this happened."

Harry watched with barely concealed anger as Anna turned to the side slightly and pulled up the back of her shirt and removed the glamour she'd placed on herself. It revealed a jagged red scar running from her right side up to the middle of her back. Harry heard gasps all around him but paid them no mind as he squeezed his sister's hand and offered silent support.

"It was done with a cursed knife. The cut will close eventually, and I'll be left with a scar. After my defiance to Voldemort, he ordered me to be locked away, tortured but not killed. He still planned to use me against Harry, but he didn't know that Harry had no idea I existed. I met Cissa and Draco while I was captive as they were captive in their own hope and forced to care for me. Well, Voldemort's definition of care anyway."

"It wasn't proper care, but we tried to find ways around the orders given to us. We are so sorry for all the pain we caused," said Narcissa Malfoy.

"It's alright, I knew the pressure you were under. You both cared for me in a time where I had no one. Either of you are of have ever been death eaters and that placed you on the lowest rung, one up from me. You did the best you could in a horrible situation. In my time kept in captivity, Cissa became my family, my guardian and taught me about love and compassion. Draco made my life bearable, he'd hold me close and comfort me when the tears came, and he told me stories of what life would be like when it was all over."

"Then I thank you for taking care of my sister when I couldn't and didn't know," said Harry.

"It was no trouble. We became quite close and formed bonds while in captivity together. Our lives changed with the arrival of Anna and taught us to look at life through a different lens. Lucius was not a good man and I am shameful to admit that I became the meek silent wife by his side when I should have been a force stopping him from getting his own way and acting in such a terrible way as a Father to Draco. I think it is honourable that you wish to unite the houses of Potter and Black together and it is something I would like to stand behind. I hope Draco will carry on the Malfoy name and bring some good back into it."

"Harry, it wasn't just these two that helped me. I was also acquainted with Severus Snape. I'm glad to have known him for a short while and I am sorry he is gone now. He was my Godfather you see and taught me occlumency while I was captive so that Voldemort could no longer interfere with my mind and he told me stories about James and Lily and about Harry's life and gave me the best gift, Dora."

"Snape told you stories about our parents? But him and Dad hated each other, and he was never nice to me."

"There is a lot you don't know about the friendship between Severus and our parents. Facts that have been deliberately left out by a long-bearded wizard. Sirius and Severus never got on and there was always going to be animosity between Severus and Dad, but they worked around it."

"Whose Dora?"

Anna promptly uttered the name and a house elf appeared in the room. The house elf was smartly dressed in a purple pinafore dress with a bright green t-shirt underneath. Dora took absolutely no notice of Harry or the others in the room and hauled herself onto the bed and curled up on Anna's lap. This, Harry noted, was not proper house elf behaviour.

"Dora was Severus's elf, but he assured me that she'd said something 'big' was coming and wanted to bond with me. We became bonded with the help of a very old piece of magic. Dora is not my house elf but my best friend. We have a telepathic link and she can tell if I'm in trouble or angry, sad, etc. She used to sit with me when I was locked away and Cissa or Draco couldn't get to me. She'd read me muggle fairy tales or make up stories for me and allow my mind to find peace for a while. I made the dress she's wearing out of scraps she gave me because she said she wanted to wear my favourite colours."

"Just how long were you imprisoned Anna?"

"Life continued like that for me for close to three years. I managed to separate the torture from the life I led in privacy with my adopted family. Then suddenly I was left. I realise now they'd all come to Hogwarts for the final battle, but I didn't know then. I thought I had been left to die. Before Voldemort left, he tortured me close to death. He thought it was funny to leave me barely alive. He left me chained and locked in the manor. Dora found scraps of food for us, but she couldn't apparate me out. Then some Auror's appeared and I told Dora to hide. For the first time in three years I felt hope again but I was also so scared and that's it."

Harry's heart ached for Anna as she came to the end of her story. He wanted to reach out and comfort her but could see that it wasn't the right time. She was sobbing uncontrollably but she wouldn't let go of his hand and that was enough for him at the moment.

"I thought I'd never see you again," she whispered.

It was the line that broke the camel's back and had Mrs Malfoy running forwards to comfort Anna while Draco gave his shoulder for her to cry on.

"Little girl, do you ever think we would willingly let you go? We love you far too much for that and you're as much a part of our family as you are a Potter. We're so glad to see you safe and sound," said Mrs Malfoy.

Harry felt exhausted. It had been an afternoon of information overload, but he was lighter for knowing what had happened. He felt better in how he'd dismissed Dumbledore and was content for that to be the end of things for a while. He knew that the next few days would be crucial. He'd talked about things that he'd been thinking about but hadn't voiced to anyone outside of Luna, Hermione and Neville. He realised he needed to be proactive in claiming his inheritance for both the Potter and Black family. He needed the remaining two Malfoy's to know they were welcome in this new family they were forming. What they needed was a family sit down together and what Harry needed was permission to be out of school.

Actually, that last bit was a lie. As an eight-year, he had the ability to travel on the weekends, but he saw it as common courtesy to inform his head of house McGonagall of his plans. Especially since on this occasion, he needed weekday time off.