Chapter 1
It was warped.
Hera didn’t know why or how, but the brick was warped. She stared, confused. Her head tilted to the side as the rough surface moved rhythmically in front of her eyes, emanating a soft blue glow. Eyes stared at the scruffy girl studying the wall intently as they passed on the busy pavement but she remained uncaring, her eyes solely focused on the anomaly. Staring, her foot scuffed on the pavement as she stepped nearer, heart thudding in her chest. She knew she should probably be wary but something inside of her was urging—screaming—to go forward, to reach out, to touch.
So she did.
Her hand slowly went forward, her fingers braced for the impact. But as they met the brick it wasn’t the rough surface she had been expecting to feel. No, her hand instead went straight through, tingles trailing up from her fingertips as the blue glow wrapped itself around her hand. Her brows furrowed, head turning to people passing to see if they were seeing what she was but their eyes suddenly glazed over her like she wasn’t there.
Strange. Was she doing that? She knew she could make things happen. Odd, freaky things. But, she had never done something quite so unintentionally. Usually, she had to will her strangeness—her magic—into action. Turning back to the bricked wall, she moved her hand, feeling the oddest feeling of rightness as the warped wall let her hand flow through it like water. She pushed her arm forward until it was up to her elbow, testing how much of her would go through and the glow followed. When nothing outwardly bad happened she took a step forward before taking a deep breath and pushing her head through the strange wall.
Her eyes were pinched closed, but when a chill washed over her body she peered them open. They widened at once as she spotted an empty alleyway that she was sure she had never seen before. How was this here? She debated internally for a moment if she should turn around and go back or take the leap forward. In the end, her curiosity won out. Hera’s heart raced in her chest as she braced herself and took a brave step in front of her.
Noises immediately reached her ears. Muted chatter flowed through the walls of a building in front of her and she curiously stepped toward the rustic-looking door, body shivering as the brick reformed behind her.
“What the hell is happening?” She breathed to herself as she looked back at the seemingly now normal brick wall behind her. She shook her head with a disbelieving laugh and looked back at the door, her hand reaching out automatically. With bated breath, the hand turned and the door was pulled open. The smell of food mingled with her nose as the noises increased tenfold. Her stomach grumbled.
She hesitantly entered the building and peered into the dimly lit room. Her brows furrowed instantly. The place was full, people eating and drinking and conversing amongst themselves in hushed whispers. That wasn’t what was strange. No, what was strange was that every person inside the building was dressed in long robe-like attire. Hera stuck out like a sore thumb, dressed in second-hand jeans and a cropped black tee. She tugged at her shirt, avoiding eye contact with the people speaking and walked forward. Once she reached the bar she awkwardly sat on a stool as someone made their way toward her.
“Hello, Miss. What can I get for yo-” He looked up at her then before pausing abruptly as she brushed her hair out of her eyes. “Blimey, you’re- you- you’re Hera Potter!” He shouted and Hera’s hackles raised instantaneously.
She stood up and backed away in suspicion, eyes studying the man before her. “How do you know my name?” She asked, her fists clenched by her sides. She didn’t notice as dozens of eyes fell on her and whispers erupted around them.
“We thought you were dead,” he said in lieu of responding.
Hera backed away from the strange man, her suspicion doing nothing but growing, and bumped into another person who was standing behind her. She turned sharply, seeing a large man eyeing her with unconcealed interest. Her feet shuffled back, trepidation rising under her skin. “Hera Potter,” he breathed into her face, whiskey on his breath. Only now did she notice the group crowding around her, all seemingly knowing who she was.
“She’s here to save us!” Someone wailed.
Hera continued to back away from the multitude of people that were now circling her, some with relief in their eyes, some with unconcealed hatred.
“You’re coming with us,” a man said with a wicked grin and hopeful eyes as he shot his companion a greedy glance. His hand reached out to Hera quickly but Hera jumped back.
“Don’t touch me!” She shouted. But he continued to advance on the girl. As his fingers dug into her bare arm a scream erupted from her throat and he was thrown back into a table, the chairs clattering to the floor.
A hush settled along the room, wary eyes looking at the frightened girl. She stared for a moment at the people who had seen her do something so unnatural before rushing out the door, pushing past the shocked patrons. She rushed outside and was met with the stifling summer air as she stepped onto the unfamiliar bustling street. She ran down it, weaving through groups of strangely dressed people, searching for an escape. Her eyes darted behind her, warily looking if anyone was pursuing her.
A sigh of relief flowed through her when she saw no one from the pub but it was soon replaced with a grunt as her body collided with a solid surface. Her head whirled back forward as her body fell, splaying across the ground. She saw a handsome man with a face set in stone, dressed in all black. He looked down at the girl as she looked up at him and suddenly his eyes widened as he stared at her forehead.
“Are you a fool?” He hissed and she barely had time to scoff indignantly before he was pulling her up and taking out a black stick.
“Let me g-” She yelled when she heard a pop and felt an uncomfortable squeezing sensation in her navel as the world around her spun. She unceremoniously dropped on the ground again when the world stopped spinning and she looked around, finding herself in front of a large house. “What the hell,” she muttered as she looked around. She felt a hand on her arm again as the man grasped her but she yanked it back, scooting away from him on the ground. “Don’t touch me!”
He raised his hands in surrender, staying in place where he stood. “Why were you on the street like that? You could’ve gotten killed.”
She scoffed. “I think I can handle myself.”
He looked at her flatly, “The Dark Lord would kill you in an instant if he saw you. You should’ve remained hidden wherever you’ve been all these years.”
“Hidden?” She questioned. “The Dark Lord? What the hell are you talking about?”
That had him pausing as he looked at the scruffy girl on the ground. ”Potter,” he began slowly, “What do you know about the wizarding world?”
“The wizarding worl-” She cut off. “How the hell does everyone know my name?”
“Fuck,” he groaned into his hands. “You’re our hope of defeating him?”
“Who?” She nearly screamed.
“Voldemort!” He returned loudly, hands raising up from his head.
“Who is that?” She was standing now, shouting at the tall man that had taken her. “Who are you?”
He tensed like he was about to throttle her for her ignorance before letting out a breath and answering. “I’m Theo and you, Hera, you’re our only hope.”