Chapter 10

Divided We Fall

They woke to chaos. Again.

Somehow, and none of them were quite sure exactly how it all worked out, the Marauders were even more chaotic than the Weasleys. Especially first thing in the morning. As a result, they were quickly getting used to waking up to chaos. Not that that made them any less annoyed about it.

Harry sleepily extracted his arm from under the sheets. Using his newly liberated arm, he reached behind himself to smack at Ron.

The redhead let out a groan and an incoherent mumble, rolling so that he was face down in his pillow.

"Gotta get up now," Harry slurred, vocal chords not yet ready for the day.

Ron lifted his head only enough to be able to speak. "Nope, don't hafta." He then dropped his face right back into the pillow.

That was technically true. In a fit of maturity, their trunks had been packed (and repacked by Hermione) the night before. All they had to do this morning was get dressed and eat breakfast. But, despite Ron's protests, they weren't going to get back to sleep, and it would probably be best to get started sooner rather than later.

A sudden yawn took Harry aback, but also left him even more awake than he had been. Sitting up, he leaned over to poke at Ron's shoulder. "C'mon. Time to get up. You can have the bathroom first, I'll wake Hermione."

He continued to groan and grumble, but he did roll out of bed, so Harry counted that a win. He spared a fond smile for his best friend's grumbling before turning to where his sister still slept peacefully on his other side.

"Hermione!" Harry called in a soft sing-song voice. "Time to get up!"

"No," she mumbled, sleepily shaking her head, "too early."

For all of her obsession with productivity, Hermione was not a morning person. While she was perfectly able to come awake and alert when they were in danger, she did not wake up willingly or well in other situations.

"C'mon, 'Mione. We've got to get to Hogwarts today." He started stroking her tightly braided hair. Maybe it was time to start trying to bribe her into getting up. "If you get up now, I'll brush your hair and you can read while you do it."

"Fine," she grumbled and rolled out of bed. Literally.

"Ouch," she complained in a monotone from her new position on the floor. "I don't like mornings."

Harry stifled a laugh as he climbed out of bed and gave her a hand up. Ron was just coming out of the bathroom, so he shoved the clothes she had laid out the night before into her hands and guided her to the bathroom, pushing her in and closing the door behind her. She went with minimal resistance and didn't seem too upset about it.

Exchanging fond grins with Ron, Harry quickly pulled on his own clothes and, with Ron's help, stripped the bed. Euphemia had told them not to worry about it, but they didn't want to make things any harder for her, and if leaving the bedsheets in a pile by the door instead of on the bed made her laundry day a little easier, then that is what they would do.

Hermione emerged from the bathroom still yawning, and with her brush, comb, and book in hand. She shoved the former two at Harry and then proceeded to turn her desk chair backwards, straddle it, and open her book on her desk.

"Hello, Hermione. How are you this fine morning?" Harry asked cheerfully as he started to undo the braids she had slept in.

"You," she grouched, "are too much of a morning person."

"I'm really not. I just look like it next to you and Ron."

Ron laughed from where he had plopped down on their trunks. "Even I look like a morning person next to Hermione."

"Laugh it up, idiots. You are so funny." Hermione groused sarcastically, not even looking up from her book.

Harry paused in detangling her hair to lean forward and drop a kiss on top of her head. "But you love us anyway!"

"Yes, for some reason, I do. Now shut up and let me read."

Harry went back to brushing her hair. When he had finished brushing it, he used the comb to part it down the middle, and quickly french braided each side down to just level with the center of her ears. Then, with a combination of brush, comb, and sheer determination, he wrangled it all into a pony tail. Tightening the hair tie and smoothing down the rest of her hair, he declared her hair done.

"Now," he announced brightly, "what are we going to do about mine?"

Ron and Hermione both groaned.


They finally made their way downstairs with pajamas, combs, and brushes packed away, trunks quadruple checked, and light jackets in hand (In terms of temperature, the Hogwarts Express was one of the most unpredictable places they had ever encountered. So layers it was.) Remus and Fleamont were sitting at the table, both dressed and ready for their days. Fleamont had taken the morning off of work to see them all off. As such, he didn't have to have anything ready; all he had to do was be dressed and awake when it was time to leave. Remus, like Harry, Ron, and Hermione, had packed his trunk the night before. It had been a very good decision, because James, Sirius, Peter, and Euphemia were currently running all over the place looking for everything that had been scattered around the house. It was quite chaotic, and they really didn't want to be trying to do their own packing in the midst of all of it.

Ron sat down right away, tossing his jacket over the back of his chair, and grabbing a muffin from the middle of the table. Since the morning was always so chaotic, they were having more of a Continental breakfast than the sit-down meal they preferred. Harry and Hermione also draped their jackets over the chairs which had, in the last weeks, become theirs. After saying good morning, Harry moved to the kitchen to ask the elves to bring their trunks to the car, and Hermione went to find Euphemia to tell her that they were ready.


Finally, after getting everyone in the car and four additional trips to retrieve a forgotten object, they were on their way. They made it to the platform with plenty of time. When they got there, they found Lily standing in the middle of the crowd, looking a little bit lost.

"Hey! Lily!" Hermione called out to her, waving one arm in a wide arc over her head.

The red-head perked up at hearing her name, looking around until she found them and started waving herself. She quickly gathered her stuff, and started wading through the crowd to get to them.

As they took off to get to her, Euphemia called after them, "Don't forget to come say goodbye before you all leave!"

"We will!"

When they reached Lily, they all exchanged hugs, handshakes, and fist-bumps. "Hey Lily," Harry greeted. "Do you have somewhere you're planning to sit?"

Lily's smiled. "Yeah. I usually sit with Sev."

Harry nodded understandingly. "I was going to invite you to sit with us. Though," he looked around at their group, "I don't know how well eight of us would have fit in one compartment. It's probably for the better that you aren't trying to squish in with us."

At this point, Remus broke in. "Well, Lily and I have prefect duties, anyway, so I won't be there the whole time, either. It might get a little cozy, but we can probably manage."

"I think we can manage cozy," Hermione said decisively, "any objections?"

A small chorus of agreements came, and so the octet set off for the train. They were early enough that there were still empty compartments, so they found one and put all of their trunks but Lily's on the luggage rack and their bags on the seats. James and Sirius whined about not having enough space, but Hermione put an end to that by offering the alternative of separate compartments. Neither wanted that, so they quieted down and accepted it. Lily saw Severus passing by the compartment, so gave them hugs and rushed after him.

With all of their stuff situated, they had about ten minutes until the train was set to leave, so they made their way back to the platform to say good-bye to Fleamont and Euphemia.


James and Sirius were in the middle of an argument about who the best Quidditch player was when the compartment door slid open.

"So the Bloodtraitors have collected more Mudbloods," the intruder drawled from the door. He had dark hair and a very thin face. Based on the robes he had already changed into, he was a Ravenclaw, and he looked to be about the same age as the Marauders. Behind him were a boy and a girl, both in Slytherin robes. Harry would have compared them to Malfoy's Crabbe and Goyle, but they seemed less the type to be bodyguards, and more the type to worry about wrinkling their robes while looking down their noses at everyone.

"Charlie," Sirius sneered, "how's your darling mother doing?"

"Still serving tea for the Dark Lord like a common servant?" James added, his tone mockingly sweet.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged a look. This was striking a very familiar chord.

The boy, Charlie Sirius had called him, was thrown off guard, but quickly regained himself. "Well, at least my family cares for me. I hear yours cast you out. Burned off the tapestry, were you, little Gryffindor?"

Sirius lunged at him, snarling, and it was only through James and Ron's quick movement that they held him back. Harry stood and turned to face the intruder, twirling his wand between his fingers. The look on his face was friendly, but so obviously false that it was a warning in and of itself. "I don't know who you are, or what you want, but I would suggest that you remove yourself from this compartment before something happens that we both regret."

Charlie didn't seem to know whether to retreat or fight back. Harry was a new element in all of this, and therefore not a predictable one.

"I have more important things to do than deal with a bunch of Bloodtraitors and Mudbloods," he eventually sneered, turning for the door, "We'll settle this later, Black."

The door whooshed back into place behind him, leaving the six inhabitants of the compartment in uneasy silence.

As he returned to his seat, Harry again exchanged heavy glances with his best friends. It seemed that Hogwarts was in no better shape in the seventies than it had been in the nineties.


Walking into the Great Hall behind the herd of eleven-year-olds, the trio's reactions almost matched those of the firsties. Where the kids were marveling at the ceiling and the candles and the people and everything else that was surrounding them, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were being struck by waves of reminiscence and homesickness. Tears gathered in their eyes, and they clutched at each other's hands.

"We were so young," Hermione whispered, and Harry squeezed her hand.

They stood and held onto each other for a few moments lasting years, each caught up in memories, before Harry started laughing. It was the quiet and breathy laugh that is accompanied by tears and comes more from emotional exhaustion than true humor, but Ron and Hermione joined back in, each of them smiling again. The incoming First Year directly in front of them looked back at them a little confused and taken aback, but they smiled at the child, and she turned back around, brushing off the weirdness of older teenagers.

Ron moved so that he was standing between Harry and Hermione, and put an arm around each of them, pulling them close. Hermione leaned into him, resting her head on his chest, and he pressed a kiss to her hair. Harry dropped his head onto Ron's shoulder, already exhausted after only a few minutes in the castle. Ron gave him a worried look, but Harry smiled reassuringly at him.

They were cut off from saying anything else to each other by the Sorting Hat beginning to sing.

"Each year I sing a pretty song

And split you all in four

My job it's been since long before

Any of you were born.

Still sometimes I wonder

If it doesn't do more harm

To cleave and cut and hew and lop

You once and then again.

But still I must, it is my role.

So to your house you'll go

The brave, the daring,

Those with chivalry and nerve,

Will dress in red and gold

To Gryffindor they go.

And those with wit and cleverness

And hunger for new learning.

Will don the bronze and blue

And trek to Ravenclaw tower.

To green and silver Slytherin

I'll send the cunning folk,

The power-hungry, and the pure,

Most ambitious of the lot.

And finally the just and loyal,

Hard-workers unafraid of toil,

Take on the black and yellow

Of noble Hufflepuff's house.

And so you're split,

But hear me out,

And hear with solemn hearts.

Too long this school has

Drawn stark lines,

Too long been afraid to unite.

It's caused you weakness

And soon you may break

'Less you find a way to end this soon.

Again I say:

You must not let the schism hold.

For if you stand divided

You surely will fall."

The looks being exchanged all around the Hall were as alarming to the trio as the Hat's message had been. Many were scoffing at the mere idea of unity, looking across the Hall at their peers and sneering. Only very few of them were taking the warning at all seriously.

Harry's gaze was drawn specifically to the section of the Gryffindor table where the Marauders, Lily, and her friends were. Lily was looking serious and her gaze kept moving between the Marauders and the Slytherin table. Following her gaze, Harry saw Severus Snape. The young teen was drawn into himself and he wasn't making eye contact with anyone.

Returning his attention to the lions, Harry observed the Marauders. Remus was looking similarly solemn to Lily, but the other three were not doing well. Sirius was openly sneering at the Slytherins, James not much better, and Peter following their example.

As if he felt eyes on himself, James looked over and met Harry's gaze. The dark and grave look in his eyes gave James pause, and he seemed to reexamine his actions and thoughts. He broke eye contact, ducking his head, almost embarrassed. His eyes flickered back to Harry for a split second, and he elbowed Sirius, saying something too quiet for Harry to hear.

"Everything okay?" Hermione whispered from across Ron.

"Fine," Harry reassured, refocusing his attention on what was going on. Professor McGonagall was beginning the sorting, calling the first small child.

"I'm not sure I can believe we were ever that small," Ron declared in an undertone, prompting Harry and Hermione to laugh.

"It is hard to believe. Especially about a giant like you," Harry teased Ron.

"Hey! I thought you were supposed to be the nice one," Ron complained, pinching Harry's arm.

"Nice? Harry left a trail of people afraid of him in his wake," Hermione said incredulously, causing Harry to reach around behind Ron's back and swat at her, while Ron himself pouted.

They quieted down after that, applauding as each child was sorted into a house. They were to be sorted after the first years, so they had the entire list to wait.

Finally, the last child was sorted, and Dumbledore briefly introduced them as new students who were escaping the effects of the war.

They had decided on new cover stories, since they had realized that posing as all three of them being siblings would not be sustainable, and that Ron and Hermione would chafe under it. By virtue of looking slightly more alike, it had been decided that Harry and Hermione would pose as siblings, while Ron would be their long-time best friend and Hermione's boyfriend, all of which was true in some form or another.

Hermione had chosen their new surnames, since the boys didn't much care. She had found it quite funny to name Ron 'Watson,' apparently because of the fact that the world perceived Ron to be Harry's sidekick. It had more meaning to them, though, because Watson, like Ron to them, was the kind of sidekick without whom everything would be wrong. It was nearly impossible to conceive of Holmes without Watson, and it was just as hard to imagine them without Ron.

Lewis had been Hermione's mother's maiden name, and therefore a name she felt comfortable claiming and answering to. Harry had been hesitant to use it as well until Hermione told him that he was being an idiot and that he had been as good as her brother since they were thirteen, and so he had every right to every name that she did.

As Harry and Hermione's 'Lewis' came before Ron's 'Watson,' Harry was called first. With a quick squeeze to his best friends, Harry went off to sit on the familiar stool.

Interesting, interesting, the Hat said inside his head, You know I could ruin your little game right now?

Yes, Harry thought back, I am vividly aware of that, but I'm trusting that due to the fact that we have similar goals and both have an interest in the preservation of this school, you'll let me help.

I will, I will, I was just curious to see how you would respond. Now, let's see about getting you sorted.

With the experience he had in the mental arts, Harry could feel something like a gentle breeze over his memories, but it was almost imperceptible, and there was certainly nothing he could have done to stop it even had he wanted to.

Oh, this is hard. I am not meant to sort people who have reached adulthood, only children whose minds are still mostly fluid, who have not made any decisions about who they are or how they live, or learned the value of every characteristic. You, Harry Potter, are very interesting.

Wait 'til you meet my sister, Harry responded, prompting the Hat to laugh.

I see from your memories that she will also be an interesting case. But as for you, you could go anywhere, but at the same time there is only one place you could go. You know the value of knowledge, of loyalty, of hard work. You have embraced the Slytherin qualities that I have/will see in you and used them to fit your goals. But the way you have chosen to approach the world, the way you have decided to live your life, Harry Potter, is too Gryffindor for you to go anywhere else. I wish you all the best on your unusual quest, and I hope you find what you need in...

"GRYFFINDOR!"


Hermione and Ron quickly joined Harry in Gryffindor, the Marauders and Lily being the loudest in the resulting cheers. Though none of them truly expected to end up in a different house, they all breathe a sigh of relief and exchange tight hugs.

The rest of the evening breezes by. Dumbledore's Speech doesn't say anything noteworthy, and the introductions to the few new classmates that they meet that night are mostly uneventful, barring the occasional double-take at a parent who looks far more like their future child than expected. In any case, the food is wonderful, and despite all of their worries and anxieties, the evening is enjoyable.

After the feast, Lily rushes off to say goodnight to Severus, and the Marauders show them to the tower. James and Sirius make a big deal of pointing out every turn and every way they could go wrong. Remus rolls his eyes and strikes up a conversation with Hermione about one of the architectural aspects of the castle, while Peter points out a few of the more interesting paintings that they pass.

Walking into the common room is a breath of fresh air to the displaced trio. It's the same as it's always been (or will be, time travel makes verb tenses difficult), the chairs in front of the fireplace were exactly as they remembered them, as were the couches and even the light fixtures. The warm reds and golds gave the room the same aura of comfort and belonging as it had since their first time there as tiny eleven-year-olds, and the windows showed the same familiar view of the grounds. It felt, more than anything else since they had come to the past, like coming home.


Well, my chapters are getting longer and my writing is getting better. And, ten chapters in, we're finally moving into the more plotty parts of the story. I can't promise that chapters will be getting any more frequent, but I will do my best. And with COVID-19 still attempting to take over the world, I should have more time on my hands. We'll see what happens.

Thank you all so much for reading! I'd love to know what you think.

~RavenLilyRose


20.7.20 - Published