"This is the book you've been learning from?" Harry- her dad- asked.
Lily looked down at her feet. "It was all I had." She said. She'd always struggled with the sorcerers' form of magic. Wizarding magic had felt right. She could feel the buzz of magic when she'd first hold her wand in her hand. She'd had far more success with wizarding spells than with sorcery, but even then she'd struggled. Maybe he was disappointed, as all her teachers were. "I'm probably not very good."
"Lily." He said, shaking his head in amazement. "These are all Owl and Newt level spells. And this was the first magic you learned, by yourself, in a few months?"
"Yes?" Lily said tremulously. "Is that… good?"
"Good? You're a natural!" Lily beamed under his praise. "Many would have a lot harder time learning much simpler spells with a proper teacher." She could scarcely believe it. She spent so much time being worried that she wasn't good enough, that she was dead weight, with no talent. The assurance that not only she wasn't, but that she was gifted, was hard to accept.
"Are you sure?" She asked.
Her dad chuckled. "Positive. Look, I'll prove it to you. Let's run through some first year spells. You up for it?" Lily nodded. "Okay, brace yourself." He waved his hand, and on the floor in front of her, appeared a feather. Her dad demonstrated the spell, carefully enunciating the incantation "Wingardium Leviosa." As he swished and flicked his wand. The feather dutifully rose in the air. Then he had her practice the wand motion, and emphasized the importance of state of mind.
"Self-doubt kills magic." Harry told her "More often than not, if you don't think you can cast a spell, then you won't be able to. If you believe you can do something, and can picture it happening in your mind, your magic will work for you." His eyes grew distant "When I was your age, I struggled all year with this spell called the 'Patronus Charm'. I could never get it to work properly. Then, through some weird time travel magic, I saw my future self cast it. Once I realized that, I could cast it no problem, because I knew I could do it."
"Right." Lily nodded, torn between trying the spell and interrogating her dad about his story. He was like that, she'd realized. His stories were amazing and impossible, and she always wanted to hear more. Why was he time travelling that time? Did that have anything to do with the state of the world now? What was a Patronus Charm? Those could wait. "I can do this. Its just a feather. It doesn't stand a chance." She told herself.
"That's the spirit." He smiled. His confidence gave her confidence. She didn't think she'd ever felt more sure of herself. Before doubt could creep back in, she closed her eyes and pictured the feather in her mind. She imagined it lifting off just as her dad had done. Swish. Flick. "Winguardium Leviosa."
Lily braced herself and screwed her eyes open. Her dad's proud smile awaited her, and she belatedly realized the feather was floating.
"What did I tell you, Lils? A natural."
-----
"She's amazing." Harry said, beaming. They had once again fallen into bed and were basking in the afterglow. It hadn't even been his intention, he really had just wanted to talk to Nat about their daughter… but they had a habit of letting things get out of hand.
"Isn't she?" Natasha smiled into his chest. "I won't lie. I'd be happy to forget most of what happened in this life, but… not Lily."
For the first time, he felt a pang of loss. He'd been so overwhelmed with the fact that she was alive and here, that he hadn't contemplated just how much he had missed "I wish I could have been there."
"Me too." Nat said "But… that's what we're here to fix." Harry took that thought and held it close to his heart. He'd do anything to give Lily a normal childhood. She'd been so happy today, but he knew that this was a rarity. It was just one more reason to fight, to fix all of this.
"Yeah. We'll fix this." Harry nodded. With Natasha on his side and with the help of the Sorcerers, it felt much more doable. He wasn't stranded alone in the wilderness, but there were many more people he needed to bring into the fold.
"Let's talk about Ginny." Natasha pivoted.
"Sure." Harry sighed "Look, I'm just concerned. You barely know each other. I don't want either of you to commit to something you regret. All you know for sure you have in common is me." Nat nodded thoughtfully, letting him say his piece "I think you two should get to know each other a little more, before jumping into this."
"There's one problem with that plan." Natasha said gently "Generally, ex-girlfriends aren't too happy to be making friends with their partner's current woman." Harry winced "She probably feels like she missed her chance with you. She's going to try to distance herself from us so she can get over it."
"Right." Harry sighed, feeling like a bit of a berk "It wouldn't be fair to her to keep her in limbo like that."
"It is a good idea for us to get to know each other, but she needs to know the score." Natasha said, coaching.
"Assuming she even wants to join." Harry added.
"She probably will." Natasha explained "Wizarding society, as far as I can tell, is different from your original world."
"I'd gathered." Harry snorted. That was putting it lightly- Dumbledore and Grindelwald ruling with an iron fist was a bit of a tip off.
"One of the differences is the sex ratio." She said "Because the magical population centers are so protected, its much rarer for magical civilians to be targeted."
"And almost all wizards go into the military." Harry finished for her. "So…"
"So, its very common for a wizard to take several wives or mistresses." Nat completed seamlessly "My only concern is…"
"How her experiences from my world come into play." Harry frowned thoughtfully "If anyone knows what she's going through there, it's you."
Nat looked pensive "It's difficult." She said, finally "I know its affected me, remembering everything. I'm different now, than before I met you, but… better." Harry patiently waited for her to sort out her thoughts. He'd been worried about how she, and Ginny, had been coping with having two sets of memories. They seemed to be functioning well, but both his girls tended to tough their problems out " I like who I was better, in our world." She said, smiling faintly "Being with you, it made me a better person. But it's not like there's two people in my head fighting for control. I can't just forget everything that happened in this world, its a part of me now, too."
They lay together thoughtfully for a few minutes. Finally, Harry said "I'll talk to her."
"No, we'll talk to her." Natasha's eyes sparkled mischievously.
-----
Their plan, such as it was, had to be put aside as soon as Harry and Nat ventured out of their room. The Ancient One was ready for them. As eager as Harry was to talk to Ginny, he knew it could wait.
"Thank you all for joining me." The Ancient One opened, as if she had invited them all to tea. There were no conference rooms in the sanctum, so they had all piled into a training room and were sitting on the floor in circular formation.
"Of course." Harry said. "We have a lot to talk about." There were murmurs of agreement. Harry's haphazardly assembled crew – Ginny, Neville, Ron, and Peggy, were joined by Natasha and Lily, who sat between her parents. The Ancient One had also invited one other sorcerer, and man Harry recognized- Wong.
He wondered if there was a Stephen Strange in this universe. It was his plan, guided by the time stone, that had eventually led Harry to this point, after narrowly skirting disaster several times. He wondered if Strange had foreseen this, or if Deaths' machinations had gone over his head. He wondered if he'd ever get to ask him.
"Master Wong is aware of the nature of this reality, but remarkably, his knowledge is out of date." Wong raised a curious eyebrow "And I find that to be as good a place as any to begin. Imagine, for a moment, that you've broken two vases. You take the pieces, and reassemble them into one vase. What would the result be?"
"A kludged together mess." Ron snorted.
"Indeed. That is the world we live in." The Ancient One said "There are glitches, inconsistencies. Effects without causes." Her eyes lingered on Lily.
"So does that mean… I'm some sort of glitch, or mistake?" Lily whispered. "I shouldn't even exist, should I?"
"No." Harry said fiercely.
"You're real, Lily. You existed in our world." Natasha told her "If the universe hadn't blown up, we would have raised you together."
She didn't look like she fully believed them, but easily folded herself into Harry's arms. He marveled at how natural it felt, how comfortable they both were at the contact. There was nothing more abhorrent to him than the suggestion that Lily might be a mistake. "You're no accident, Lily." Then he snickered "Okay technically Nat and I weren't planning to conceive…"
"Oh my god." Lily groaned, detaching from the hug to chuckles all around "I get it, I'll stop moping." She pouted.
"It isn't a question of whether someone is real or not." The Ancient One assured "This isn't a question of reality, merely causality. Lily's conception never occurred, as far as this universe is concerned, and yet…"
"_____ mentioned something like this." Neville said, grimacing as he realized that Riddle's fidelius charm was limiting him.
"Voldemort." Harry supplied "A very powerful, psychotic wizard who's working behind the scenes." The Fidelius didn't allow anyone to link Riddle's name to anything incriminating, but Voldemort? That was a pseudonym that didn't exist in this universe, and so Riddle couldn't have accounted for.
"Yeah." Neville said "He showed me. I didn't know precisely how my parents had died, until he questioned me about it. Its'... freaky."
"To those with insight, this is not news. But this knowledge of the world leaves as many questions as it answers." The Ancient One continued "Care to ask?"
"How the universe was broken, and how its being held together now." Wong said succinctly.
"Last night, I found the answer to both those questions." She looked at Harry, her expression inscrutable. It almost felt like being back in Dumbledore's office as the old Professor dispensed tidbits of wisdom to him.
"Me?" Harry ventured a guess.
"The story you told me last night put the pieces together." She chuckled "Quite literally, it would seem."
"The time stone was caught in a feedback loop during my battle with Voldemort and Hela." Harry said "That's what broke everything. I tried to fix everything, but…"
"You only did so partially." The Ancient One nodded "To be fair, it was a tall order. You became the shatter point, Harry. Your timeline, and both universes, reassembled around you."
"What do you, mean, around me?"
"Do you find it odd, that in a world where events turned out so differently, you just so happen to be running into all of your old friends and enemies?" The Ancient One pressed "Ginny, Neville, and Ron. Voldemort. Natasha. Lily. Carol Danvers. Quite the string of coincidences, isn't it?" Harry rubbed his forehead, fighting back the dizziness.
"And what about the time stone?" Natasha asked, well aware of how important it would be for their plans.
"Well, it's a bit obvious in hindsight." The Ancient One mused "After all, where did you find Harry originally?"
"At the very center of the time vortex in London." Ginny breathed. "He wasn't even affected by it."
"And when you touched him?" None of them needed to answer. Both Ginny and Nat had recovered their memories from him, in a flash of green light. "The time stone, or whatever was left of it, was absorbed into you, Harry. If you can find a way to channel it…" In hindsight, it did make a lot of sense. He wasn't sure how he hadn't realized it before. In fairness, he'd had a lot on his mind.
"Whatever was left of it?" He asked.
"Well, tell me Harry. How did it feel, when you absorbed it, do you remember?"
"Like..." He stretched his mind. "Like shards of glass, burning inside of me."
The Ancient One nodded in satisfaction. "Perhaps this is why its behavior seems so erratic. Its possible the Time Stone was damaged- shattered, if you will- when it was caught in the feedback loop."
"Could he use it to fix everything?" Peggy asked. "That seems too easy."
"No." Harry shook his head "The Time Stone isn't enough. We need more." The Ancient One nodded in agreement.
"Wielding even a single infinity stone is almost unheard of." Wong said "But several at once, let alone all of them?"
"I've seen it done." Natasha said bluntly. "Carol Danvers can do it."
"You mean Binary?" Ron grimaced "The Hydra superweapon?"
"My friend." Harry said "If I can bring her back…" Maybe with the time stone, he could bring her memories back, but he wasn't sure if that would be enough to break Hydra's conditioning. He had so many people he needed to find. Wanda, at least, seemed to be safe. Skye was a mystery to him, but the Ancient One's words had assured him that she was out there somewhere. Hermione and Luna weighed heavily on his mind, but while he had some thoughts about where the Order might have taken them, he had nothing solid to go on. Then there was-
"The conditioning isn't unbreakable." Natasha reminded "Shuri managed it, with Bucky Barnes." Peggy's eyebrows rose at the familiar name, while Harry's thoughts stumbled. Wait…
"Who's Shuri, again?" Ginny asked.
"Princess of Wakanda." Natasha explained "Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure Wakanda will shoot first and ask questions later, if any of us try to visit."
"Nat." Harry said, his voice strained "Shuri was… At the end, Shuri was…"
No one else followed, which was fine. Harry wasn't in the mood to explain the exact nature of his and Natasha's relationship just yet. "Oh." Nat's eyes went wide, as she too realized. Shuri had been pregnant. She hadn't yet decided whether to keep it, hadn't had time to before everything went to hell. If Natasha had had Lily, that might mean… "Oh my god."
-----
It didn't hurt as much as she'd thought- seeing Harry with Lily. She knew it was everything Harry had ever wanted. She could see his happiness, the awe in his eyes, just like a father holding his newborn child. She wished she could have been the one to give that to him, but she couldn't regret his joy. Still, Ginny did her best to avoid Harry and Natasha, but it was easier said than done. Harry had followed her after the meeting. She'd had an excuse on her lips, but it had died when Harry had looked at her so earnestly, hopefully, and said "Ginny, could we talk?"
She couldn't say no to him, not when he was looking at her like that, so she nodded, and let him lead her away, to an alcove. The room was small, intimate. It reminded her of the nooks in Hogwarts that students would steal away to snog in. "I'm sorry about the way I went about this. I wasn't expecting to meet Natasha, or for us to reconnect so quickly."
Ginny's spirits sank, it was this talk. "You don't need to apologize, you don't owe me anything." They were even, technically, broken up when they had last known each other, and she wasn't egotistical enough to expect his fidelity in his situation.
"I didn't tell you all the personal details about my time in the other universe." Harry pushed on "Some of it is painful, but a lot is just… awkward."
"Is this going anywhere?" She said shortly, letting her temper get the better of her "Because I don't want an apology. I don't want you to feel bad for finding happiness with someone else."
"Nat and I are poly." He blurted.
What? "What?"
"Nat is bisexual, and we had a few other lovers in our world." The words kept on coming, and they were perfect English, but Ginny couldn't make sense of them. Was he saying… what she thought he was saying? "I hope you don't take this offer the wrong way. If you're not interested, I fully respect your decision. But, Ginny, I love you." The declaration took her breath away "If you're interested in continuing things, of joining me and Nat… well, take your time with deciding, but I'd really like to give things a proper go with you."
"Is Natasha okay with this? She doesn't even know me."
"Sure." Ginny startled at the older woman's voice as Natasha sidled into their little alcove. Had she been there all this time?
Natasha's presence only made the room feel smaller. Ginny could easily see how Harry had fallen for her. She wasn't just beautiful- though she absolutely was, even battle hardened and scarred, she could put the most pampered pureblood heiress to shame- she was talented, capable, and confident. She wasn't cocky, but she had such a complete self-assuredness, a comfort in her own skin that few people embodied so well. She was…compelling, Ginny could see that even after just meeting her. The thought of… exploring things with Natasha Romanoff was not a distressing one in the slightest. She just wasn't sure what the woman saw in her.
"We've only just met, its true, Ginny, but you're underestimating just how much Harry talks about you." She shot Harry a sly smile, and he huffed slightly. "I know that as a kid, you snuck out at night and rode your brothers' brooms, because your parents wouldn't let you. I know that you've had a crush on Harry for as long as you've known him. I know that at eleven, you spent a year fighting the mental control of the most feared dark lord of the century on your own. At fourteen, you stood by Harry's side fighting against evil wizards, when almost no one else would. Your favorite spell causes bats to crawl out of people's noses and attack them. You were the best chaser on Harry's quidditch team, and the second-best seeker. I know you refused to work for the Order in this world, and when Voldemort attacked Harry just the other day, you were the first person at his side. Most importantly, I know Harry loves you, and you love him."
Ginny shook her head, oddly flattered. "You really just told her my entire life story, didn't you Potter?"
Harry shrugged "What can I say? I loved you, and I missed you. Natasha was patient enough to listen to me ramble about you all."
"The point is. Even though we've never met, you're someone I respect. You're strong, resilient. You've seen some terrible things, but you didn't let that destroy you. You still know how to have fun, to laugh and joke, and love. That sounds like someone I'd like to get to know better."
"Oh." Ginny breathed. When she put it like that, it felt almost one-sided. What did she really know about Natasha Romanoff? Very little. "You have me at a disadvantage, then." She said "Where does that leave us? What if we go through with this, and we just don't have chemistry?"
At that, Natasha's lips curved upward- it was unfairly alluring. Suddenly, she was right in front of Ginny. Very deliberately, she took hold of Ginny's shoulder's and pressed her into the wall. Touch starved as she was, that simple touch made her shiver. Ginny was transfixed as Natasha leaned in, her eyes drawn down to her lips. "Well." She said, her voice a sultry purr "Lets test that out, shall we?" Ginny jerked her head in a nod, and Natasha's lips claimed hers. Ginny squeaked as they made contact, and whined as Natasha's tongue sculpted out her mouth. When she pulled back, Ginny was left breathless.
"I don't think chemistry is a problem, do you?"
"No. I reckon not." Ginny murmured, touching her lips absently. In the corner of her eye, Harry seemed nearly as affected as she was. His lips were parted just slightly as a flush graced his cheeks. Most strikingly of all, his eyes burned, and Ginny felt herself heat under his gaze.
"Harry never did tell you our story, did he?" Natasha asked, and Ginny shook her head.
"I met him about two years after he was stranded there." She said, shaking her head "He was wonderful, but I was an idiot and threw him away. By the time I realized the mistake I'd made, he was with another woman- Skye."
"Then how did you end up with him?"
"I was lucky. Skye, it turned out, was nearly as attracted to me as she was to Harry. And she wasn't particularly committed to monogamy. She gave me- us- a chance, and we never regretted it. So, Ginny-" Natasha took a step towards her, and her seductive smile was just unfair "Do you want to take a chance?"