The Early Extraction

by ThrawnCA

Summary:

Dom just shrugged. "You don't need to fully switch back. The only really illegal part of what you're doing is going to Hogwarts."

Harriet Potter realises that there's another way out of the identity swap.

Chapter 1: Harrigel

It started with a simple suggestion.

"Have you considered giving up the game altogether? It's better to quit while you're ahead sometimes, you know."

"We can't switch back now. It's too late. There's no way we could explain all the changes to the people on either end who know us..."

Dom just shrugged. "You don't need to fully switch back. The only really illegal part of what you're doing is going to Hogwarts. You could both go to America, and the danger would be gone."

Harry frowned. "We couldn't do that, because Sirius wouldn't…" Her voice trailed off. Three years ago, Sirius wouldn't hear of Archie going to AIM instead of Hogwarts. But now? When he thought that Archie had just been through a highly traumatic experience at Hogwarts?

Could it be that simple?

"Actually - maybe that could work. If Archie told him that he really wanted to get away from Hogwarts, after...this past year…" She would not think about what it was like, she would not… "I think Sirius might say yes."

Did she want to do that, though? "But I still have further to go," she said quietly. "Snape is going to teach me free-brewing this year—Rigel, not Harry Potter." Her desire to learn free-brewing was a slow-burning fire in her gut. "Maybe after this year I'll reevaluate, but for now…the ruse isn't in immediate danger. You're just not used to it yet, so it seems unthinkable. It's worked for years, though. There's no reason to back out when we've come this far."

"It might be that you're too used to it. I doubt this façade is as stable as you think." At her frown, the jewel shrugged. "I'm just a figment of your mind, now, what do I know?"

The conversation moved on, but a seed was planted. As the summer progressed and she met with Professor Snape to explain Shaped Imbuing, a meeting where he came dangerously close to exposing her, Harry couldn't help but remember that there was a way out. A safe way, much safer than trying to keep the ruse up for another four years, and then trying to swap back afterward.

A way that would give Archie everything he wanted. He would have his Healing course, he could stop lying to his dad, and to Hermione. Even Harry herself could stop lying.

She just wouldn't be able to learn free brewing from Professor Snape. She would be stuck in the sub-par AIM Potions classes. She wouldn't see Draco and Pansy again, except maybe over summers - and that would bring back all the complications again.

Would continuing be selfish? Or would giving up now be cowardly?

In the end, she decided, she would have to consult Archie. She couldn't just ignore the idea, not when it would give Archie everything he wanted from the ruse, but she didn't want to just give up Hogwarts so easily.

It would be up to him.

Brewing Seifer's Solution with Leo settled her turmoil, as Potions always did. But then meeting with Hermione while delivering it just stirred everything back up again.

"I certainly won't look the other way, you idiot! If I'm not looking, I can't help you. I can't promise to keep my mouth shut if I disagree with you, Harry, but I will never betray you. If you do something you think is morally questionable I want to know about it, so I can help you figure out another way, if there is one, or support you, if there isn't. Now stop being dramatic and just tell me what's going on."

This girl…no wonder Archie liked her so much. And he had to lie to her every day. Knowing that there was a way to end the lying, didn't she have a responsibility to take it?

She could be my friend too, Harry realised. She would lose Draco and Pansy, if she ended the ruse, but she would have Archie and Hermione. A new trio, without the weight of lies and secrets.

It was so tempting. Part of her wanted to just blurt everything out to Hermione and be free of it all. But that would be premature. Maybe Hermione would be safe to tell once the ruse was over, but for now, nothing was set in stone, and she was really Archie's friend rather than Harry's.

As she watched Hermione get herself a job at the Maywell Clinic, though, through sheer optimism and selflessness, Harry couldn't help but wish they were proper friends already.

She mostly ignored the issue over the following month, as she fought her way through the Lower Alleys tournament. The Alleys were always a place where she could just be Harry. Whatever she decided about the coming year, she could still come back there as herself.

And then July ended, and she found herself in her room after her birthday party, staring at a blank mirror that would connect her to Archie. This was it. If she wanted to take the plunge and pull out of the ruse, she only had to call him and set the ball rolling.

She just sat there, her thoughts churning. On one hand, Rigel's apprenticeship with Professor Snape. Her friends at Hogwarts. Free-brewing. On the other hand, an end to the lies and the danger. Just being herself again. New friends, who she could be honest with.

She wasn't even sure she still knew how to be herself for an entire year. With a jolt, she realised that she had never once stepped inside a school under her own name.

She shook her head. This is silly. I can't decide this on my own, anyway. Archie has to have his say.

"Archie? Are you there?"

It took a minute before he answered, but eventually her cousin's face appeared in her mirror, looking just like hers. "Hi, cuz. What's up?"

For a moment she choked on the words, then forced herself to continue. "I… Had an idea. After you get home from your internship… What if you… Asked Sirius whether you could transfer to AIM?"

Archie went silent for a minute, thinking through what she was really asking. Then a small smile crept onto his face. "You know, I actually think that might work. Dad's been really concerned about what happened at Hogwarts last year. If I talked up how much I'm enjoying my time here and how I know I'm meant to be a Healer… He might just say yes. We could both go to AIM, and that would be it, no more ruse. Huh." He frowned. "But what about you? Is that really what you want?"

Harry hung her head. "I'm not sure. I mean, it's the safest option. Much safer than waiting the full seven years. We'd be done with the lies, and no one would have any reason to suspect anything. And I wouldn't be giving up everything. Harry Potter is still Professor Snape's apprentice - assuming he doesn't cancel that if Rigel walks away." She winced at the thought. "I've still learned loads from him, and I don't think he'll give up on being part of Shaped Imbuing. I figured I needed to talk to you about the possibility, anyway. I mean, it's a great opportunity for you. You could stay in your Healing program and not have to lie to anyone any more. It would have been selfish for me not to bring it up."

Archie nodded slowly. "Thanks for thinking of it. You're right, it would be fantastic for me. I'd pretty much get everything I wanted from this, with no more hiding. I think it has to be your call, though, cuz. You're the one taking the bigger risks, and it's you who would be missing out on the education you wanted. If you really want to end it now, then I'll definitely back you 100% and be thrilled about it, but I'll support your decision either way."

Harry managed a small smile. "Thanks, Archie. I'll try and decide by the time you get home, okay?"

Archie shrugged. "That's fine. I wouldn't be approaching dad about this in a letter, anyway. Take your time and be sure about what you want."

Harry was anything but sure. "I'll try not to keep you waiting too long."

----

The attack on the Quidditch World Cup left many people worried and confused. For Harry, though, the worry was more personal.

What if something goes wrong at Hogwarts again, and I'm not there to stop it this time? Even as she thought the words, they felt foolishly arrogant. She was just a single student. What difference would she make? But the fact remained that without her, the Sleeping Sickness wouldn't have been cured in time for Draco. The Diary-construct might not have been defeated. Pettigrew might have continued to prey on wildlife and students until he mastered the Jewel and became a real danger. Were those just coincidence? Was she some kind of trouble magnet for fate, drawing problems there? Or would leaving be selfish?

What was the right thing to do? What did she want to do?

----

When Archie finally arrived home, Sirius fawned over him for days.

"It's like he didn't expect me to come back," he said, tracing invisible patterns in his green bedspread. "He keeps looking at me like he isn't sure I did come back. I haven't changed that much, have I?"

The thought of how their decision affected Sirius was like a knife to her heart. He should be able to be honest with Sirius. But the ruse was the reason Archie didn't really go through all those horrible experiences. But if they went through with ending it, neither of them would be in that danger any more.

"Maybe we need to be honest with him this year, then." Harry ignored the pang in her heart at the very thought. She carefully did not consider why it was not her potions career that flashed through her mind at the thought of abandoning their pretense, but Draco and Pansy, Rosier and Ginny, Professor Snape.

Archie gave her a small smile, though there was a twist to it. "We can, but you still don't have to. No matter which name I go by this year, I'm still going to give my all. I just… I want to do more, Harry. I'm going to take on another specialty this year. Advanced stage disease treatment is still my passion, but I want to learn a wider, more applicable field as well. I want to help as many people as I possibly can. Our ruse has given me this opportunity, but I haven't been taking full advantage of it."

Harry closed her eyes. "I… I'd still like one more year. Sirius will probably still be willing to talk about you transferring then, right? One more year, and then I'll have learned to free-brew, and I'll have properly established my Shaped Imbuing partnership with Professor Snape. Then we can quit. If we have to, at that point, we can tell Sirius about the ruse and insist on getting me out. Just a bit longer." She opened her eyes and looked at him for his answer, feeling incredibly guilty.

Archie looked at her seriously, and nodded. "Alright. Let's make this year count." Then he cracked a smile, dispelling some of her guilt, though not all of it. "Hey, with the mirrors, it should be easier than ever. We've got this."

Harry smiled back, but her heart was heavy. Just one more year, she told herself. They could come clean after that.

She didn't have to walk away from everyone quite so soon, right?

----

The Saturday after Archie returned, Rigel Black was cordially invited to Malfoy Manor for a mid-afternoon tea on the veranda. Archie gave Harry as thorough a debrief on the subject of his internship as possible, but Harry still felt underprepared to answer detailed questions about the experience. If pressed, she would intimate that she was uncomfortable talking about the suffering she'd witnessed. It felt cheap, but she was not above it.

Seeing Draco again was a balm to her soul, sorely needed with the way she was feeling torn inside. Staying close to friends can't be all bad, can it? She tried not to think too hard about how it was just pushing their separation back a year.

Then she saw him sitting at the Malfoys' table. Tom Riddle. The ultimate source of all the difficulties she'd faced at Hogwarts. He shook her hand, and she was startled to feel a resonance between their magic. She heard him talk about his plans for the year, and how she and Draco would be getting a surprise.

All the time that was happening, she could feel her gorge rising, as she realised a simple truth.

He's going to ruin it all.

Whatever hopes she had for this year, for studying with her friends and learning Professor Snape's greatest art and keeping her head down, Tom Riddle would find some way to disrupt it. She would never be able to be the student she wanted to be at Hogwarts, not while Riddle was around.

She stumbled through answering their questions, and came home as early as she could.

"Archie? I want out."

----

Chapter 2: Archarry

Growing up in a family and extended family of Marauders meant learning at least a few tricks of the trade. Harry had shown that. But Archie didn't just adapt to the pranking lifestyle, like she did; he wholeheartedly embraced it.

And one thing he'd learned is that you can make a story much more convincing if you include as many true statements as possible. Especially ones you can put genuine emotion into.

"Dad, can we talk about something?"

Sirius must have felt a tremor at such an ominous opening, but there was no sign of it on his face. "Sure, Arch. What's on your mind?"

"While I was away this summer, I got to thinking about something. I can see why you wanted me to go to Hogwarts. The past three years have been great. Even with how last year ended...I wouldn't have changed it..."

The 'but' was obvious. "But you don't want to stay there?"

"It's just… That internship felt right. Going into a place that desperately needs help, and knowing what to do for them. I don't know exactly how many lives we saved, but it was a lot. I know that's who I'm meant to be. Who I want to be."

Sirius looked understanding, but crestfallen. "And going to Hogwarts is holding you back."

"It really is a great school, Dad. The teachers for Transfiguration and Charms are fantastic, and Dumbledore himself teaches Alchemy. He's brilliant. And this Potions apprenticeship with Professor Snape - it's an amazing opportunity, and really generous of him. It's just… I can tell what matters the most to me, and Hogwarts just doesn't teach much Healing."

Sirius nodded slowly. "Honestly, after what happened to you last year, I've been thinking about whether I should pull you out. It sounded like you'd put down roots there, though, and I didn't want to take you away from your friends there."

Now it was Archie's turn to hang his head. "Yeah, I get that. It's the people who are the hardest to leave behind." It wouldn't be himself who would be losing friends, but he knew Harry would miss them - even the ones who were uncomfortable when she used her real name. She was like that. "You know me, though, Dad. I can make friends wherever I go. And I can still stay in touch with Draco and Pansy by owl. And honestly, the friend I most want to have around this year is Harry." For Harry's sake, rather than his own, but Sirius didn't need to know that.

Sirius's gaze softened at that. "You okay, kiddo?"

He didn't like to play on his father's sympathy, but even though he hadn't really been through that ordeal, Harry had, and she would need support. "Yeah, I am. I just want to keep family close this year. I think I get why you wanted me to stay in the same country, now."

Sirius crushed him in a hug. "I love you, Arch."

"Love you too, Dad." He held on for a long moment, then stepped back. "I guess we won't get to use those mirrors so much."

Sirius barked a laugh. "Don't worry about that! James and I used to use them when we got separate detentions. I'm sure you'll think of things you want them for, even within the same school."

"So…that's a yes to transferring, then?" It's working! It's actually happening!

Sirius nodded. "Yeah, alright. I'm sorry Hogwarts didn't work out so well for you as it did for us. Back when I went, there was none of this life-threatening drama every year…"

Archie winced, even while trying to swallow his elation. "I'm not sure Riddle is done yet, either. At the Malfoys', he talked about a surprise for Draco and I this year. Seems like a good time to get out."

Sirius' eyes widened. "I may have some idea from James of what he's talking about, but I don't like the sound of Riddle specifically involving you, Arch. From what I've picked up, his little tournament will be dangerous."

"Tournament?"

Sirius just nodded. "Yeah. I probably shouldn't say more than that, and honestly, with you leaving, it shouldn't be a big deal. I'm glad you came to me about this, though." He paused, then grinned. "So, you'll be in the Potions track, then?"

Archie grinned right back. "Of course. I shall put Harry to shame with my amazing brews, and watch her blood pressure rise as I wax lyrical about how the fourth years will be moving on to Boil-Cure Potions soon." They both laughed, and he continued, "Seriously, I'll probably just take all the same classes as Harry for now. They're the ones I've studied up on the most." Much, much more than Sirius knew. "I guess we'll see what she chooses to do next year, but for now it'll be good to stick together."

Sirius looked pleased by that. "Have you talked about this with her?"

"Yeah, I did." Sirius would probably be a bit saddened about Archie talking to Harry before himself, but he was determined to cut down on the lies as much as possible. "She's looking forward to it. Between us and Hermione, it should be fun times."

Sirius shuddered. "Let's hope the school is still standing in a year's time." Then he slapped Archie on the back. "I'm proud of you. You know what you want and you're going for it. It might not be what I originally wanted for you, but I can't fault you for wanting to heal people."

Feeling ready to burst with excitement, and glowing with his dad's approval, Archie smiled back. "You know, until this summer and the internship, I would have said that the best thing I've done in the past three years was when Harry and I saved Tiberius Ogden. I never wanted to be the boy who killed a basilisk, or 'got kidnapped and you should see the other guy.' And the Sleeping Sickness was basically a fluke. But being able to intervene and put someone back together in an emergency like that - even though it was a horrible situation, it still felt amazing to know that I could do that, that I'd just saved a life."

Sirius smiled. "Well, looks like we have paperwork to do."

Archie groaned. "Can I go back to being quarantined and surrounded by a deadly plague instead?"

----

As it turned out, though, with "Rigel" having maintained stellar marks for years, and being the heir of the Black house, the paperwork to transfer from Hogwarts to AIM was relatively easy.

Less easy was contacting Professor Snape to tell him that "Rigel" was ending the apprenticeship. Sirius would write to him to formally end it, but Harry insisted that they should write to him separately, and Archie couldn't fault her logic.

"We can't try to persuade him that Healing is your true passion," Harry had pointed out. "He's known me for years. If we try to tell him that Rigel would rather be a Healer than a Potions Master, he'll know something's up straight away. He'd probably assume that Sirius is forcing you into this. The last thing we want is him coming to Grimmauld Place demanding answers, and talking to Sirius about how you're single-mindedly set on the noble art of Potions."

"What if we emphasized the safety angle?" Archie replied. "It's even true, in a different way."

Harry's lips twitched into a small smile. "Looks like there's a lot of that going around."

They wrote it together, in the end. Harry knew best what Rigel should sound like, but Archie wanted to be able to sign his own name to the letter instead of making her lie again.

Dear Professor Snape,

We're saddened to inform you that Rigel won't be able to continue with his apprenticeship next year. We appreciate your generous and dedicated efforts on his behalf, and we will both treasure your teachings. Unfortunately, in light of recent and impending events at Hogwarts, we have decided, jointly and in conjunction with Lord Black, that it would be best and safest for Rigel to transfer to another school. This will also be an opportunity for the two of us to spend more time together, in the aftermath of last year's events and during our engagement.

Thank you for taking a chance on someone you had every reason to dislike and mistrust, for the sake of the art. You have been the very best part of Hogwarts, and wherever we each go from here, we're sure that your teachings will have been instrumental.

Warm regards,

Arcturus Rigel Black

Harriett Potter

PS Harry would still like to meet with you about Shaped Imbuing, but would understand if this development is upsetting to you.

----

Mr Black,

I have received your recent letter and your father's. While your decision is regrettable and a waste of your talents, in light of recent events, I will respect your and his desire for your safety. You should, however, be aware that your decision to leave Hogwarts and Britain will have repercussions beyond your own safety and education, and other parties may be less than sanguine about it.

I will expect to hear great things of you, Mr Black, or I will be quite disappointed.

Yours sincerely,

Severus Snape

Well, that wasn't ominous at all.

----

It was an odd experience, Harry reflected, to pack a trunk for herself that she actually intended to use. She'd spent years packing "her" things for Archie. But now, she was choosing the robes she would wear, the books she would bring, and they were going into her own suitcase, under her own name. Odd, but with a great sense of relief.

A relief that she couldn't show. Her parents couldn't know that this year was any different from the previous ones. She could excuse a certain amount of change, more textbooks and Potions journals, by saying that with Archie coming to study Healing himself, she could branch out a bit. But ultimately, she didn't want to draw too much attention to how different "Harry" would be this year. So long as everyone was looking at Archie, they should be fine.

----

Archie, meanwhile, was taking the opportunity to start his wardrobe over from scratch. What better way to look like a newcomer, in a school he'd been attending for years, than to literally look completely different? A few words to Sirius about "a fresh start" and "making a splash" and he was fully on board with it. Archie just hoped he'd have enough space for everything; it would be a shame to have to pick and choose which items to bring.

(Part of him also revelled in seeing his dad throw himself into really helping Archie prepare for school, rather than unknowingly helping Harry. He didn't begrudge her that, but it was special to have his dad fully at his side again.)

----

Hermione was both easier to write to than Professor Snape, because she had less expectations of "Rigel", and harder, because they needed to find the best (and safest) way to tell her about the ruse. Archie was a bit surprised by how willingly Harry agreed, after years being the more cautious one, but he supposed there was a certain catharsis in being able to let the secret out. In any case, it was necessary. They might still look similar, but there was no possible way to fool Hermione about which of them was which, and Archie really didn't want to try.

That didn't mean they would put everything in a letter, though. It was better to keep some things face to face - ideally inside privacy wards. In the end, they just wrote to her that Archie had his dad's permission to transfer to AIM, so they'd both see her at the airport, and that they had a lot of news for her.

When he actually saw her standing there with her parents, though, it was all Archie could do not to break character and run to take her in his arms and tell her everything. Instead, he impatiently waited and watched as Harry greeted her, while Hermione looked between the two of them with slight puzzlement.

"And this is my cousin Archie."

Hermione was still looking back and forth between the two of them with a slight frown on her face, but she put out her hand to him anyway. "Pleased to meet you, Archie. Or do you prefer Rigel?"

"Archie, please. I think my Rigel phase is over." And in this moment, that was such a tremendous relief.

"I've heard a lot about you from Harry. You wanted to come to AIM from the start?"

"Yes, very much so. Hogwarts is a great school, but it just doesn't have a good Healing program, and everyone knows AIM is the best at that."

Hermione smiled a bit at his praise of her school. "Yes, it is. I was originally a bit disappointed not to be able to go to Hogwarts myself, but Harry persuaded me that AIM is in many ways a better option anyway. If you're interested in Healing, I think you'll like it."

"I'm very much looking forward to it. As Harry said, though, we have a lot to tell you. Shall we talk more on the plane?"

Chapter 3: His Mione

When she saw Harry and his cousin at the airport, Hermione thought at first that there might be a prank going on. She'd heard from Harry that they both looked very similar, but this…they were practically twins. And not only that, but Archie almost looked more like Harry than Harry did. She honestly wasn't certain which of them was which until Harry stepped forward to greet her.

At least Archie (and what happened to preferring Rigel?) seemed pleased about transferring to AIM. It would be odd, being around Harry's mysterious and talented cousin this year, who was so close to Harry, but if he was happy about the move, that was something. She wasn't sure whether she would ever have done the same thing, if she had been permitted at Hogwarts to begin with.

And then they sat together on the plane, and Harry wandlessly put up silencing spells around them (and when did he learn to do that?), and Archie visibly relaxed in a way that was just so Harry, and what was going on? She would have jumped to her feet, but they were already strapped into their seats, so she settled for glaring at them. "Is this a prank? Because I'm not finding this very funny, Harry - whichever one of you Harry actually is."

Harry - or the one who'd been calling himself Harry, at least - just gaped at her, while "Archie" stared for a moment and then started chuckling. "You always were too clever for me, Mione. But actually, it's both yes and no. No, it's not a prank. But, yes, we have swapped identities." He swallowed. "The thing is - we didn't swap them just now. We did it three years ago, and we've just now switched back."

Now it was Hermione's turn to stare. "That's -but what- so who are you, then?"

The boy attempted a sort of half-bow from his seat. "I'm Arcturus Black - but I've also been your classmate for three years. And I'm very sorry for lying to you all that time."

Hermione's mind spun, rapidly putting pieces together, and she whirled to look at "Harry". "Then you must be - but you've been at Hogwarts all this time? As a half-blood?" It was just as well Harriet (because that's who this had to be, and she would have words for…Archie…very soon about his gender claims, but there were other priorities) had silenced their conversation, because Hermione didn't feel like keeping her voice down, and what had Harry Archie been thinking?

Harriet nodded. "Yes - and please keep that to yourself, or it's Azkaban for both of us. But yes, I've been at Hogwarts, while Archie has been going with you to AIM."

Hermione fell silent for a moment at the mention of the terrible wizarding prison. She wasn't happy about being lied to, but that did at least go some way toward explaining why Har-Archie had said nothing about it. Their lives, possibly even their souls, were on the line if this got out.

One question leapt to the forefront of her mind, though. "Why?"

Archie answered her first, with a grimace. "Well, we were eleven, and we weren't happy with the education we were being offered, and we thought we were clever enough to do something about it. We thought it would be seven mostly quiet years and then we'd swap back. We didn't count on Harry here -" at which he tousled Harry's short hair, eliciting a scowl "- curing an incurable plague, defeating a basilisk, and attracting the personal attention of Lord Riddle."

At that, Hermione took the opportunity to nudge him in turn. "Just like you didn't count on anyone checking Harriet Potter's gender, hmm?"

At least he had the decency to look embarrassed. "Ah, that. Look, I really am sorry about lying to you. I didn't like to, but it was Harry's soul on the line, and I didn't want to take any chances. You have the right to be angry at me, for as long as you want." He shrugged. "But, Harry did stay safe. And, that's over now."

"So… What changed? You just decided to stop?"

Harriet spoke up this time. "It was a few different things. I didn't want Archie to have to keep lying to his dad." She didn't mention her own lies, though. "I was worried about Riddle continuing to interfere at Hogwarts, and what that would mean for us. And - there was an opportunity. After what happened to 'Rigel' last year, I thought Sirius might agree to let Archie transfer here. And, he did."

Hermione couldn't help but remember, at that point, that Rigel - Harriet - had been sorted into Slytherin, house of the cunning and ambitious. This is a girl to watch.

----

Over the next hours, Hermione learned about a side of her best friend she hadn't seen before, about years of swapping back and forth and covering his tracks. His own father didn't realise where he'd been going to school for years. Still didn't know. And that father was Sirius Black, not James Potter.

She learned that it was the real Harriet who she'd met in the Alleys, and heard about why she was there so much. The backup cover story, which wouldn't be used now. From the sound of it, though, Harry spent much more time there than she needed just to keep up the story, and that fitted Hermione's own observations of how the girl interacted with the Alleys. She was comfortable there.

She learned about why Archie had wanted to steal all that Polyjuice Potion, and how Harriet had later found a way to change the recipe so that it lasted a full year. And that it could make you not just look like another person, but like someone who didn't exist. That would probably be worth a Potions Mastery all on its own, and Harriet was using it just to get started. In a way, she'd been right when she saw them at the airport and suspected a prank; this wasn't their real appearance. Harriet had apparently taken another dose before leaving, so that they would look similar for another year while untangling their swap back, and Archie was using his gift (because of course, it ran in the Black line) to match her.

"I wasn't born with it, though, actually. Harry brewed me a Potentialis Potion -" Hermione immediately felt a bit envious, and made a mental note to talk to Harriet later about whether she had any insights to share about the brewing process "- that didn't just reveal the gift, it unlocked it."

Harriet looked a bit unsure, but said something about her magic doing odd things sometimes, and the conversation moved on, talking about basilisks and kidnappers and even (horror of horrors) being blackmailed into helping someone cheat on his homework! Clearly the Ruse (with a capital 'R', she was told) had been a bad influence, and she was glad they were ending it, confused though she currently was.

As the flight wore on, she asked for some time to rest and think, but unsurprisingly, she didn't sleep at all. Her quick mind was spinning, turning over the things she'd heard, noticing how they filled in so many gaps and explained so many little quirks, mulling over what they meant for the coming year…

When she had achieved no real rest, but what felt like some measure of equilibrium, she quietly used her own wand to put up another privacy charm so she could speak to just Archie. He had his eyes closed, but she suspected that he too wasn't actually sleeping.

"I think I understand why you did it, but I'm still upset that you lied to me for so long."

Archie's eyes popped open at the first word, and looked pained. "You have every right, Mione. If it was just about me, I would have told you before now, I promise, but Harry wanted to take no chances. I didn't want to overrule her when she was taking the bigger risks. I do trust you, but I realise that it might not feel like that right now."

"If you do it again, I won't forgive you so easily."

Hope flickered in his eyes at that, and he reached out for her hand. After a moment's thought, she let him. "I won't. I promise. Next time Harry and I risk our lives and souls to go to school, you get full disclosure." He chuckled, and squeezed her hand. "Maybe you'll even be able to talk us out of it. Although, if we hadn't swapped in the first place, then you and I might not have even met. So, I can't say that I regret that."

Hermione flicked him in the forehead with her free hand. "Flatterer. Anyway, I'm willing to help you out, but I also want you to do something."

"Sorry? What help do you mean?"

"You were going to ask for my help in successfully swapping back, weren't you? The teachers might not know you as well as I do, Har-Archie, but they'll still notice if Harry is acting completely different and 'Archie' is acting like 'Harry' used to. Yes, I'm willing to help you, because you're my friend - but speaking as your friend, I want you to tell your father about this."

Archie was silent for a moment. "That's…fair, I guess. I don't like the thought of disappointing him, but he does have a right to know, especially now that the danger is largely over." He sighed. "Do I have a time limit?"

Hermione shook her head. "This isn't tit for tat, Archie. I trust you enough to want to help you pull this off safely regardless. I'm just telling you, as your friend, that I think telling your father what you've done is the right thing to do. Just like telling me was right."

After a moment, Archie nodded. "I'll give some thought to figuring out the best way. And I'll try to persuade Harry first, if I can." He grinned. "If we're lucky, once he calms down, he'll have a good laugh at what we did. I mean, in a sense, we're just upholding the Marauders' legacy of keeping illegal and dangerous secrets for years to help a friend get an education. He might feel like he needs to do something to one-up us."

Hermione shook her head in exasperation. "Really? You think he'll see it as a joke?"

Archie frowned. "Not right away, but eventually…well, no one was really hurt by it. Thumbing our noses at the Pureblood establishment is something he'd applaud us for, if we hadn't put ourselves in so much danger to do it. I imagine he'll come around. Though…maybe it's best if Uncle James doesn't find out. He's the Head Auror now; he might feel obligated to do something about it. I don't want him to feel divided between his family and his career."

Hermione shook her head again. "I'll leave that one up to Harriet. So. We need a plan for how to swap you back without anyone becoming suspicious."

"Well, I did have a few ideas about that…"

Chapter 4: Who Even Knows

Professor Willoweed had been teaching Harry Potter for three years. He was an excellent student when he wanted to be - and spending so much time around Hermione Granger, he would pretty much have to be, that girl was something else - but frankly a menace if he ever got bored.

She worked hard to ensure that all her classes remained engaged until she sent them out the door, leaving the slower and duller parts of their courses to be done as homework. But still, whenever they had a revision class (which Potter and Granger didn't really need), or when a topic was a bit too introductory or easy, she would notice his toes tapping, or his fingers drumming, and she would start to grow uneasy about where his energy would go instead. Mostly it was limited to small things, like essays that would change colour every time her marking pen touched them, or that would fight their way to the top of the pile and demand to be marked first. Her chair had once sunk under her weight, slowly enough that she wasn't hurt, but low enough that she was almost on the floor. From what she heard in the staff room, though, she got off lightly. There were other professors who had found their voices becoming high and squeaky, or who had developed mysterious stains on their clothing and hair in hard-to-notice places, or their classroom supplies went missing and only returned after they'd been replaced, leaving them with twice as much of everything as they needed. Never anything really harmful, but enough to send a class into laughter and disrupt a lesson for several minutes.

When she saw two copies of Mr Potter walking into her classroom, however, flanking Miss Granger on either side, she decided that he'd reached a new level.

"Mr Potter?"

Both of them turned toward her. "Yes, Professor?"

Their voices weren't quite the same, but they were close enough that she couldn't quite pick which one was the real one. "Which of you is the real Harry Potter?"

One of them looked down at himself, then at his two companions, then pointed. "I'm fairly sure you're looking for him, Professor."

"No, Professor, I'm not Harry, this is definitely Harry."

"I thought we agreed that I'd be Harry next week. I can be Harriett if you want, and you can be Harry."

"How about you can be Harry Black, and I can be Harry Potter?"

By this point, both boys had reached their seats, still on either side of Hermione. "Miss Granger, could I call upon you to clarify this situation, please?"

Hermione looked apologetic, but there was a twinkle in her eye that Willoweed didn't trust. "Sorry, Professor. They confuse me too. However, I can tell you that one of them is Harry's cousin, Arcturus Black."

That was a name she recognised. He'd been added to her rolls at the last minute, a transfer from Britain, with rumours going around about how he'd pulled the Sword of Gryffindor out of the Hogwarts Sorting Hat and used it to draw a deadly plague out of the students, then cut the head off a basilisk. One of the boys was shaking his head, though. "I don't like going by that name."

The other was following suit. "Neither do I."

"Archie is less pretentious, I think."

"Or Rigel."

"Rigel works, but I think Archie sounds better."

"You would."

Professor Willoweed started to feel the beginnings of a headache.

(Naturally, when she took the roll, both boys responded "Present" to both names.)

----

By the end of the week, Professor Willoweed wasn't sure whether to laugh, sigh, applaud the boys, or give them separate detentions and try to work out which was which. Both of them were models of good class behaviour, though, apart from stubbornly refusing to let her know who they were. They took copious notes, their answers showed that they understood the materials, they asked insightful questions in turn…but if she called on "Mr Potter" or "Mr Black" to answer, she had no idea which one would respond.

(She never did work out that Hermione was choosing which of them should answer, and nudging either Harry or Archie each time.)

Eventually, though, she found the key. They didn't quite look identical; one of them had green eyes, and the other grey. Since she was fairly sure that Harry had green eyes, that would let her put an end to the mystery. She didn't immediately call them out on it, though; better to wait until the new week to pop their bubble.

----

Hi, Dad!

Our first week at AIM together has been a blast. Thanks so much for letting me be a part of this. Harry and I have put our similar looks to good use, by which I mean that all of our teachers are second-guessing themselves, trying to work out which of us is which. They can't do much to us, though, because between the two of us and Hermione, the classwork is a breeze. That girl is even smarter than Harry said, and she's keeping us on our toes, so we can mess with their heads while being perfectly behaved and learning loads. Chaos and subtlety all in one!

I think Harry appreciates the extra company, too. She and Hermione can both be a bit studious if not properly supervised. Clearly, intervention from a magnificent prankster is needed. I shall endeavour to care for their senses of humour as best I am able, but if you have any advice for handling multiple academics at once, please pass it on.

Love

Archie

PS I think I'm done with 'Rigel' for now. That can stay as part of Hogwarts.

PPS Can we have a serious talk when I'm home for Christmas?

PPPS Yes, I know that you always have Sirius talks.

----

The next week, Harry Potter and Arcturus Black both came to class with grey eyes, and Hermione was sitting just behind them, instead of in the middle.

At that point, Professor Willoweed decided, professional pride required her to beat their attempts. She would feel absurd teaching two students without knowing their names. Nonetheless, her efforts proved futile. A silent and surreptitious casting of Finite Incantatem at each of them did nothing; their eyes remained grey. They had a double class, lasting well past an hour, and neither of them tried to drink anything that could be Polyjuice. Trying to trip them up with questions that only Harry, with longer experience at AIM, should know the answers to, proved fruitless; both of them were apparently up to the task. Sighing internally, she conceded this round to them and focused on her lesson.

----

Despite needing to mostly hang around with Archie and Hermione, to reinforce the idea that no one could confidently tell them apart, Harry still made time to pay a visit to Professor Tallum. Not that she would consider transferring to the Potions track, as Archie had told her the professor wanted. That would raise too many questions at home, and honestly, after three years of accelerated tuition from Professor Snape, she doubted that she would learn enough for it to be worthwhile. However, perhaps if she told him more about Shaped Imbuing and made a good impression, he'd be willing to set aside a lab for her to do some independent brewing and research.

Plus, she had ended the lease on her apartment, but she still wanted to brew for Krait. The Lower Alleys were a part of her life that she didn't want to let go just because the Ruse was over. And having some spending money never hurt.

----

Dear Mum and Dad,

Sharing a school with Archie is definitely a different experience! I swear he thinks that all of life is a game. He loves studying here, though, and it's nice to have him around. I think he might actually try to steal Hermione away from me, but I won't give her up; I need her magnificent brain around to help me keep up my marks! He makes her laugh, though, which is good for her.

Love

Harry

PS Since Archie can't pass on anything more from Professor Snape, I might do a bit more independent Potions study this year. Don't worry, I'll make sure it's properly supervised!

She wasn't fully supervised. Even before the Ruse, she'd never been entirely honest when it interfered with brewing.

----

In the third week of the term, Professor Willoweed entered her classroom and stopped dead.

Hermione was already seated. On either side of her, though, were apparently two girls, each with a mass of curly hair; not quite as bushy as Hermione's own, but looking decidedly feminine, as was the cut of their robes and their body shape. One was black-haired, and the other red. And both had green eyes.

The professor closed her eyes and massaged her temples for a moment, then opened them again. "Miss Potter and Miss Black, I presume?"

The red-haired one answered first. "That sounds about right, professor."

"Speak for yourself, Miss Black."

"Clearly your head is blacker than mine, Miss Black."

"Fair point. You can be Harriett Potter today, then."

"I'm pretty sure you're meant to be Harriett this week."

"I'll flip you a Knut for it after class. Heads, you can be Harriett, tails, you can be Harry."

(If Archie weren't her very best friend, Hermione would have backed out by now. Hair-management charms were not her specialty. But Archie had persuaded her that it was important to lay the groundwork for Harry being a girl without raising undue suspicion, and when faced with the two of them looking at her like their hearts were in their eyes and everything depended on her, she caved.)

----

At the start of week four, Archie took Hermione on a date.

It wasn't anything spectacular, just a picnic lunch by themselves, with a few extra treats that he'd somehow managed to acquire, like two bottles of butterbeer. But it was officially a date. Hermione had seemed startled when he asked her, and triple-checked that this was not, in any way, part of their cover-up, or influenced by their cover-up, or anything less than completely sincere. Once suitably reassured, though, she blushed a little and accepted.

Not nearly as much of a blush as she had when they came back afterward, though. Archie, meanwhile, was grinning from ear to ear.

Harry smiled. "Date went well?"

Archie could only nod. "We're going to a cinema next week." He turned thoughtful. "You could probably come if you wanted to. I don't think you've been to one, have you?"

Harry almost turned him down, but decided that it would seem out of character for her not to go wherever Hermione was going - especially as they didn't plan to advertise Hermione and Archie dating. "Alright. I'll just make sure to stay out of your way so you can enjoy your evening together."

Perhaps some normal teenage complications would be just what they needed. Working out who's dating whom, having fun, only worrying about marks and exams, with no scheming politicians or life-threatening dangers.

----

Dear Mr Black,

As you may or may not be aware, Hogwarts will be hosting the True Triwizard Tournament this year. This prestigious event is intended to let young witches and wizards from around the world prove themselves on a world stage, with substantial prizes.

I write to recommend your participation, with Lord Riddle's full approval. Should you require further assurances of his eagerness to see you compete, I am sure that a face to face meeting can be arranged. Much may hinge on the outcome of this competition.

I await your owl, and hope to see great things of you.

Professor Severus Snape

Notes:

Th-th-th-that's all, folks!

Yes, it intentionally ends on a cliffhanger. There were just so many ways that the story could go from here. Will Hermione compete for AIM, to prove a point for muggle-borns everywhere? Will Harry take the opportunity to visit Hogwarts again, and try to beat Riddle's tournament as a half-blood? Will Archie go, to keep Riddle off their backs without expecting to win the political victory Riddle wants? Can one school send candidates in multiple blood categories? What will Riddle do if 'Rigel' doesn't compete? Will Harry find a way to block Riddle from detecting the magical resonance, without Dumbledore's assistance? What would Riddle do if he discovered that she is Rigel, without the credibility of the Tournament being on the line? There are so many paths it could explore. Perhaps someone else will decide to pursue them.

For now, though, the plot bunny is content and I've written the story I wanted to write. I hope you enjoyed it!