Picking up the Pieces

Chapter One

Everyone knew the story of Harry Potter. It was one that had become such a huge hit that even those who didn't care for the fandom knew about it. The truth of this was also in how so many fans around the world wished to be in the world that J.K. Rowling had created.

In truth, I was even one of them from the moment I had gotten into the movies first as a teenager after my sister had nagged me enough to look into it.

But this isn't what I had thought would happen in the least.

"Holy shit," I breathed out in confused fear as I had only just gone to bed after a crap day at work and now, I seemed to be in some type of dark room with a bleeding child. "What happened to your arm kid?!"

The child, a girl around the age of twelve or thirteen, only grimaced with a shuddering breath at my question while clutching at her right forearm. I had a right to worry considering a huge ass tooth was embedded into her forearm and was currently bleeding while she kept losing color.

"I can't die," rasped the girl with tears streaming down her green eyes as she looked toward me with a pleading look. "Harry needs me, I'm all he has."

"Breathe," I soothed even as I rushed forward only to freeze as I was unsure where to put my hands or how to even help. "Can you tell me your name and how you got like this?"

"Haley Potter," whimpered Haley with a sniffle before her eyes seemed to glaze over before dimming as she looked to me. "Promise me."

"What?" I asked with a blank look even as I began to run my hands through her hair as she leaned into my front. "We just gotta find a way out and we'll get you help."

"No," whispered Haley with a watery laugh as she nuzzled closer to me. "It's too late for that now, basilisk venom is deadly with no cure known."

Basilisk?

Was she talking about that over sixty-foot snake with killer eyes in Harry Potter?

"You have to promise me," continued Haley with a sob as she twisted to look up at me while I tried to find a way to comfort the child. "Promise that you won't let him be alone, Harry won't be able to move on or live his life if we aren't there."

We? This child wasn't making any sense and when I went to pull away so I could stand and pick her up, because there had to be an exit somewhere, I found that I was stuck in place.

Now I could feel the fear overwhelming me.

"What's going on?" I breathed out even as I tried to keep calm as I had a frightened and wounded child in front of me.

"You're taking my place," answered Haley making me pale in complete horror as I knew the other completely believed that. "I'm not mad or upset, I understand that it's my time and I'll get to be with Mum and Dad."

None of this was okay. How could it be when this child was going to die right in front of me, and with how easily she was accepting that fact.

"We need to leave," I said with a shake of my head even as tears began to burn my eyes as Haley's eyes began to flutter and her hold on my shirt became weak. "You can't die on me kid, didn't you say that your brother Harry needed you?"

"You'll be there for him," answered Haley voice going soft and low as she slumped forward further against my front as we both began to glow. "You're me after all, even if an older different version of myself from another world. Please, be there for him for me."

I could only clutch the child closer to me as tears fell from my eyes while a sob broke free as I knew the child in my arms had died. There hadn't been anything I could have done as we had been stuck on the floor unable to move or leave this place.

It didn't help that her last words continued to overwhelm me and burn through my mind.

Then came the pain as I blacked out for a millisecond.

"Haley," wailed a familiar and yet not voice as someone began to shake my shoulders until I jerked into a sitting position as best I could. "Oh, thank Merlin. You're alright!"

Then the one who had wailed was hugging me allowing me to realize that I had somehow shrunken since the one hugging me was a child from what I could see. But then I remembered what had happened minutes before this and a sob left me again.

Because I had somehow taken the place of a child, a little girl named Haley Potter, and that wasn't fair in the least. It was hard to accept what I knew was truth of this now being my reality since it meant I was somehow now in the world of Harry Potter.

Likely as his twin sister or that of his younger sister considering Haley's age.

Her promise never left my mind even then.

Even as I somehow followed Harry, who had gone to wake up Ginny Weasley and have her come with us, back to the caved entrance where Ron was waiting with Lockhart, I couldn't wrap my head around this new reality.

How could I so easily accept, or be excited, to take the place of a little girl who would never get the chance to grow up now?

"Do you still have your wand?" whispered Harry later that night after we had been dismissed from Dumbledore's office where Harry tricked Lucius Malfoy into freeing Dobby with his sock. "I didn't see you use it or pick it back up after Tom summoned it."

My wand?

Right, because as a witch I would have one of those. I took a shuddering breath before patting down my front and reaching into my school robe to find said wand.

It was a pretty thing that caused a whisper of a thought to race across my mind.

'Ten inches, pliable, cherry wood with a dragon heartstring.'

It wasn't until I had dragged myself, almost without thought, to the dormitories and collapsed on a random bed that I realized I had done so without thinking about it.

Then I was yanked from that place, almost physically it felt, and back into that same dark room as before. There standing before me once more was Haley Potter, only this time she wasn't alone. No, this time she was with two other people.

"I'm so sorry," I choked out while rushing forward to Haley who was now my identical twin as I now had her face, it was confusing to think about. "If I could fix this, I would."

"It isn't your fault," soothed the woman beside Haley as she reached out to tug me into her arms and into a tight hug. "You had no choice in this, neither of you did."

Lily Potter, for who else could it be, was an amazing woman. The next hour I listened as Lily, and James Potter, both went over what they were allowed to share with me.

It seems that a higher power was meddling and had pushed me into Haley's place since she had always been meant to die at that moment in the Chamber of Secrets.

Because of this a part of Haley would always live on as she helped me access her memories of the last twelve years of her life that she could remember.

In this moment I was able to fully get to know the one who I had merged and replaced.

It would be for her that I would keep the promise she had asked of me while living this life to the fullest. Not for anyone else, as no one could possibly understand what had happened or taken place that night. This would be the only way I could even begin to make up for my part in this.

Haley's Wand: