Tempus de novo

I remember the first day I ever met Reed Sweetleaf at Hogwarts. The day had started out with a quick breakfast in the main hall before I headed to my first class of the day: Potions.

Now, there were two things to know about Reed.

1.) Reed was a Pureblood.

2.) Reed hated Purebloods.

She was very vocal about how the Purebloods treated others and how Muggle-borns were the future. It got so bad one year that she was nearly expelled for spreading flyers around the school, something the Purebloods either thought they were allowed to do or didn’t like what was written about them in it. There were duels and sabotages in class when teachers weren’t looking and on the Quidditch field during practice/games. Their squabbles were almost as famous as the Marauders pranks and the rivalry between the houses of Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Sometimes Reed was alone and sometimes others joined when they could. Duels would become full-out fights with curses being thrown only to disband when the shout of “TEACHERS” rang out and everyone scattered. She learned very early on to hide using the passages in the school leftover from the founders and previous headmasters. 

But back to what I was saying, that day in Potions when I first saw her, filled with more attitude than a raging bull. For an eleven-year-old, she was more vocal and headstrong than anyone I had ever known and loyal to boot. She had come barging into the classroom filled with righteous fury and the anger of a thousand storms at her heels all to scathingly tear the teacher apart because of a crying first-year Hufflepuff. She breathed fire and inhaled smoke, her shadow a fierce dragon. I was struck dumb as I watched this tiny girl slam her fist down on the Professor’s table and leave a crack in the wood. 

Professor Slughorn was shocked and could do nothing as the storm that was Reed Sweetleaf swept out of the room and slammed the door so hard it got stuck and had to be taken off the hinges so our class could leave when it was over. I was starstruck and had to get to know the girl who turned the class upside down but I was unable to find her for over a week. It turns out that because of her stunt, Reed was put in detention for a month and had to clean the empty classrooms by hand and her wand was to be held by Finch until he approved of her cleaning. 

It didn’t slow her down though, she kept raising the bar with each new year and new message to the world. First-year was about making a statement, Second year was about following through and this year was about loopholes. She would study the rules of Hogwarts religiously and find as many loopholes as possible so she could defend those she felt needed it. 

Or to simply deal out as much chaos as possible.  Whatever came first I suppose. 

Whatever Reed Sweetleaf did, she did with confidence and passion to rival those of poets and heroes of the past. She did what she wanted and didn’t care if she got in trouble as long as the plan worked and everyone else involved got off scot-free. She had a rivalry with a group of boys that had taken to calling themselves the Marauders. 

James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew were a group of boys well versed in pranks and getting in trouble would often spend detention with Reed. 

It never ended well. 

By Fourth year they had been separated and dealt out different punishments to reduce the amount of fighting. Reed and James had a particularly nasty fight in the hallways outside of the Transfiguration classroom once over a comment James made of Lily Evans, a muggle-born girl who shared Redd’s dislike for the boy. Lily had made it clear to James that she didn’t like him but he was persistent and would pester her for a date. 

Reed didn’t take too kindly to James’s pursuit of Lily and attempted to make sure he left her alone for good. But James was never without his best friend Sirius so when spells started flying, his friend jumped in and it was a two-man fight against Reed. Lily went and got a teacher and as the fight drew to its climax James threw a nasty curse that hit Reed’s wand arm and nearly crippled it. 

If I remember correctly, she still has scars on that arm to this day and a grudge against the man that probably will never go away. Though James did try and apologize for that incident, he would be snubbed at every turn and Reed would chase him away with spellfire. Sirius did try and make amends himself but got the same treatment and worse sometimes because he would fight back. 

Sirius was more serious about his attempts to reconcile and I think with the duels they would get into, I suspect he might have had a crush on her. I would see him trying to get her attention and the sad look that passed over his face for a split second gave it away. Reed always thought he was just annoying. 

I knew she was hurt though, deep down. Her pride has been damaged and it was a hard year for her. Her arm eventually got better through potions and training but she wasn’t the same after that. She descended into a downward spiral of hatred and cursed each and every pureblood. She would spend less and less time outside of the dorm, other than to go to the library and class, and aside from myself and Lily, there wasn’t really anyone she could rely on. 

I think the final blow before she asked for a transfer to Ilvermory was when Lily confessed to us that she and James had been talking and Lily fell in love with him. Reed went silent that year and when the seventh year started at Hogwarts she was no longer there. Rumours spread and Reed has become the talk of Hogwarts. Lily, James and I were bombarded with questions about where she went, and who was supposed to defend the Muggle-borns now? 

James got the short end of the stick and despite his standings as Head Boy, he was the target of many angry Muggle-borns who felt it was his fault. He simply nodded along with them and tried his best to not let it get to him. Sirius and Remus would stay by him as much as they could. 

Peter Pettigrew was another story.

He had started to hang out more with some of the darker Slytherins, ones who would later pledge themselves to the Dark Lord, Voldemort, and drifted away from his friends. Not that they noticed, Sirius Black has sworn that he would never date a girl that wasn’t Reed Sweetleaf and James was devoted to Lily. Remus was having troubles coping with his werewolf side, an incident a few years back had shaken him to his core and he wasn’t the same since. 

What that incident was, no one knew. He kept it tight to his chest and spoke not a word to those outside his group towards the end. 

As for Reed, she sent me one letter saying she was okay and that she had found a new home in America. I sent a few to her over the year but never received one back since that initial letter. I had a feeling that it would be a long time before I saw that girl again. Even as the war came and lives were lost she never came back. For three long years, I listened to the wizarding scream, cry, and beg for someone to save them. 

Reed was right, the Purebloods were the problem. Their ways of life needed to change but I wanted nothing to do with it. I stayed away and shut the news off. 

It was both the best and worst decision I had made. I turned my back on them and I knew it would hurt some of my old friends from Hogwarts but for my husband and me, it was the only choice. I ignored Owls and Patronus charms begging for help. I spent my time teaching in a Muggle school and pretending magic was nothing but a myth. 

It was only when I met a little boy, starving and craving for the love he didn’t get, did I finally turn back into the world and realized that I had made a huge mistake. 

Harry Potter was a sweet, smart and downright polite boy who had lost both his parents to a power-hungry insane man with a grudge against the world. He had lost his home, family, and any sense of love he had ever had. His own Godfather was locked up in Azkaban under charges I never thought possible. Even Remus Lupin had gone into hiding and Pettigrew was dead. He had no one except his magic hating Aunt and Uncle. His cousin was no better, the little brat would throw a temper tantrum over the smallest thing and demand he gets his way. 

I knew I had to do something, but I had burned bridges I never intended to. Many I had known were no longer amongst the living and I had no doubt they were cursing me from their graves… 

But Harry was so sweet, he needed a home. He needed to be with someone who could help him heal and would love him like their own. There was only one who sprung to mind but I hadn’t spoken to Reed Sweetleaf in years now. There was no way she would be willing to take a child in, let alone James Potter’s son, the very son of a man she hated with everything she had. I didn’t even know how to start the letter to her. 

Did she even live at the same address anymore? Did she remember me? Was she still angry to this day? Had she heard the news? I didn’t know and it left me feeling scared. There was no way I could take the boy in, the wizarding world would never allow it. They would rather fight over who got to raise the boy rather than let him choose. He might even end up with a Pureblood family. 

I shudder to think what the boy would be like when he grew up in any of their households. 

So… I mustered up the courage and sent Reed a letter. It ended up being 5 pages long and filled with every thought I had. I don’t think I will ever regret sending that letter to this day. Her single page reply of 

‘Dear Betty,

Ge the boy ready for me, I’ll be there next week to take him.

P.S I forgive you even if you never forgive yourself. It’s okay to feel bad, just don’t let it consume you as it did me. 

I’ll see you soon… Old friend.

Sincerely, 

Your Best Friend

Reed Sweetleaf.’

“Oh, Reed~… You always were a good person. ” I smiled and hugged that letter like it was my lifeline. I still have it, years later, that letter. Tucked away in my desk. 

Maybe I’ll read it to my daughter when she’s older, let her know about the woman who saved us all and her son Harry James Potter.

Or as the world grew to know him,

Damian Sweetleaf. 

“What if they don’t like me…?” Harry managed to choke out in a small voice. I watched as he curled into himself, his arm held close to his chest. I couldn’t help but feel his pain. I was a squib to most, having had many problems performing magic even while attending Hogwarts. I knew what it was like to be treated like he was. Made out to be a freak and that I was no good. 

But I had one thing Harry did not, I had Reed. Who would defend me from bullies and cheer me up when I struggled to even cast a simple switching spell. I gave it all up and chose to put my wand away when I left Hogwarts. I knelt down and pulled the young boy into my arms. He lets out a small sob as a few tears fall down his face. I rub a hand up and down his back giving some comfort to the distraught child making cooing noises while he calmed down from his fit. 

“Oh honey, it’s okay, I promise you.”  My heart ached, seeing him cry, knowing that it was because of the horrible muggles he lived with. “Reed’s a little rough around the edges but she’s a good person. She’ll love you, Harry, you’re a good boy. There’s no doubt about it.” I reassured him and Harry looked up at me with tears clinging to his lashes. I could see the trust he had in those green eyes of his. So much like his mother’s own pair. It felt like all those years ago when the three of us first met. 

“Okay...” He said in a small voice. I offered him my hand and gave his small hand a light squeeze before we moved to the door and I swung it open after knocking. 

Harry stared at the woman in front of him with awe.