Great update but its a cliffhanger! Really really looking forward to what the letter contains. Ive mixed fdeelings abt buffys father if it becomes remus. There will be issues no doubt as well as a degree of discomfort with the fact that both men involved with lily if this comes to pass, are good good friends. Hmmm but this happens in real life too so hey not really a stretch so itll be ok for me. If remus is buffys dad, itll really be niceif they can have the chance to bond. Buffy has longed for and deserve a decent dad after the douche bag hank summers. So it will be nice if you can have that too. Do update soon!

Oh dear now I'm confused. Now I'm thinking Remus is her daddy but that would be eugh. Not that I don't like Remus but he was James best friend and friends can't do that to each other. Well they could but I wouldn't like it one bit. I would hate him, her in my case, for it.

Sooo I'm still hoping for Snape because he was the enemy to James and it would be easier to bear if you ask me then a friend you trust.

But I'm patient(not) and wait until you reveal it.
Can't wait until the twins get rid of Umbridge. I really loved that part. That woman really hits my nerves. I also hope that Buffy saves Faith fast because the longer she stays with Voldy the harder it will be for Faith to heal and get rid off the guilt. Faith could be lost forever. Voldemort is much worse than the Mayor at least Wilkens loved Faith.

great update by the way.

There does seem to be a consensus now among reviewers that it's either Remus or Snape rather than James... In part I believe because of people doing the maths and figuring out that she was probably conceived before Lily and James were an item. Considering that we have seen that Lily had a rather strong dislike of James only a year before it seems strange to me that she would take your blame for any actions prior to their relationship.

Well the twins unfortunately are now gone and so cannot continue their battle against Umbridge but there are others continuing to cause her trouble. Ultimately, as in OotP, the reason she was able to take over at all was due to the wizarding community's refusal to admit Voldemort's return. What we need now is a confrontation which will confirm that beyond any doubt and, as you say, give a chance at saving Faith.

Interesting.

In a good way I hope?

well, you have confused the father issue and added more possibilities. poor Buffy.
good chapter, thanks

Well as long as I'm consistent in my causing confusion... Though for Buffy, who had no way of knowing about the discussion between Remus/Sirius, it's still pretty simple.

Thanks for reading!

So... at last, the letter! With Buffys' luck it will just be a generic ramble without giving any key info out. "Hope you enjoyed Salem Institute!" etc . heh.
Hagrid was very public about 'meet me later', one good thing about Buffy going off into the forest, doubtful anyone was able to follow her. Will she be burn the letter after reading? Otherwise Umbridge might get hold of it... Here's hoping her father is from a powerful wizarding family.
Please don't let it be Fudge.

Lol yup, finally got it back again... It was something I think needed to come back. And yeah, Hagrid being shifty probably wasn't the best thing to do when worried about his job.

I'm really glad your doing regular updates again. I can't wait for more. My sister is really happy with where the story is going but won't tell me her predations.

Thanks! I'm glad you and your sister are still enjoying it. I'll try to keep you both entertained with regular updates.

ok, after 3 long days i'm current with your tale. an you are telling it well. It looks to me that Buffy will have to look else where for a father than the potter line. the question is does the father know or did Lily hide the fact she was pregnant, the child has her name (middle makes me wonder what Snape's mother's name is) I'm looking forward to more. (very glad not to get to the end and find no update in 3 years.)
great job, thanks

Lol I hope it was an enjoyable 3 days! That it takes that long just to read doesn't bode well for me completing a re-read plus edits any time soon...

Oh and before I forget - thank you for this review and the previous one (I hope the restriction of Buffy's magic use was explained to your satisfaction in the story?). I've realised that I got so involved in responding to you that I failed to be appropriately grateful for your taking the time to point that out!

The middle name makes you think of Snape huh? Well it is rather romanesque... although Severus isn't the only roman style name in the series... Augusta (as in Longbottom) for one is most definitely roman in origins... as is Minerva (McGonagall) to name a couple. The wizarding world always seemed to me to be rife with roman words/names, just look at most of the spells!

Thanks again from your comments and I hope to hear more as this continues... which barring anything untoward occurring, will be in a couple of weeks.

stories been great so far, just a comment; she 17, no trace for under age magic, no restrictions on her wand that does not expose the world.
looking forward to more. thanks

The trace on underage wands is something included in later Harry Potter books and therefore not part of my canon. But yes she is still restricted in her magic use despite her being 'of age' due to her lack of training. This will be more fully explained later and has to do with my theories on comparing the different treatment of Hagrid and the Twins on leaving Hogwarts.

Huh... am I just being blind or is any restriction not mentioned in this chapter (43)? I know in the coming chapters it is... but can't spot anything when skimming through it (though I did see a typo).

Argh How stupid can you be. Faith has blood on their hands because they didn't let Buffy know what was going on. They didn't want tor reveal Buffy to Voldemort well having Faith with him he probably know now. If Buffy wanted to collect Faith they could have put a charm on Buffy so she wouldn't be recognized. Now there are people dead because they didn't know what they were facing. They should have asked Buffy how to deal with this case but nooo they are adults so they know best. They forgot what a Slayer stands for even the Watchers always forgot and they controlled Slayers longer then they ever have. Buffy is the only one who knows what a real Slayer is capable of being a Slayer herself.

They also forgot that Buffy isn't a normal teenager. She is a teenager who made decision they never had to make to keep the world save. She is more mature than the teenagers they are dealing with at their school or the Slayers the council ever raised. She is one off the chosen ones and the one chosen by the powers to live even when her death was prophecies-ed. Xander could have used CPR as much as he wanted but if it was her time to be dead she would have been dead but she lived to kick ass. Buffy is a warrior even more than those wizard and the watchers will ever be because of her experience. They should use her knowledge and insight instead of keeping her in the dark.

The same goes for Harry. they are keeping things from him while his life is on stake. What gives them the right to decide what is best for you if you are the one who is gone die. Giles tried that and what good did that bring. Nothing only distrust.

Remus and Sirius can say all they want but bullying somebody because he is different is never good. And they started it the first they lay an eye on Snape and the "fun" begun. It became worse when James fell in love with Lily. Snape and Lily were always friends and James hated it. When they bully me I bully back and more worse then they would. You can count on that. To me action gives an reaction when you get hit you normally hit back. So they can make up as much excuses as they want but they never can say that Snape started it, they did.

Well I really hope they learn their lesson and become more open to each other because having secrets is never a good thing especially when something this big is involved. So a good talk is what I'm hoping for and I'm of course curious what Sirius and Remus will tell Buffy.

Good update by the way but I think you already know after my vent.

Can't wait for the next update.

The point (which I evidently failed to make clearly) was that they didn't think Faith would be the one sent to collect the mirror - unlike the other 'ingredients' it is something that would have been far easier for a wizard to retrieve. The goal in sending Aurors was to re-capture some of the escaped Death Eaters (and through their capture potentially prove Voldemort's return) not in any way connected to Faith. If they had believed that she was likely to go they would have done things differently. Perhaps they still wouldn't have sent Buffy, but they definitely would not have sent wizards to capture a slayer.

It's impossible for us to know (at least from the earlier books as I haven't read the last two as much) who ultimately started the James/Snape fighting. I'm not trying to absolve James' actions... but I think that it's naive to believe that Snape never gave back as good as he got. Ultimately by choosing to continue to attack one another both parties are at fault - however righteous revenge might feel, retaliation just makes both sides as bad as the other. This is why I suppose I never saw that scene as absolving Snape, instead it merely brings the heroic image Harry held of James down to the same level. In the memory we are shown in the pensive, yes, he is set upon by James/Sirius without provocation but we have no way of knowing what Snape might have done previously to James et all... at some point in their early school years I imagine some insult was made by one party or the other and over time it escalated to humiliating one another any chance they got.

I actually reflect a little on secrets in the next chapter which you might like. Yes secrets rarely have good outcomes but there are good reasons for some - not telling Harry about something he might inadvertently pass on to Voldemort as Dumbledore has been doing all year, or Remus not telling him about Buffy because she deserves to know who she is before others are told. Buffy is keeping secrets that have been hidden from wizards for centuries. Most secrets are kept with good intentions and it's almost impossible in retrospect to say how much or what difference knowing might have made. Although... I guess these kind of 'what ifs' are what fanfiction is all about.

The various secrets/mysteries are beginning to come out now... so hopefully this will help. And thanks for the vent. It's very helpful to know what my readers are thinking.

Ack! Great update! So is Buffy only a half-sister after all? Wait. No. Timing is right for full sister. Poor Faith. I hope they find her soon.

CT.

Don't worry a full revelation on all the wheres and whys relating to her parentage is coming up... soon... isn... And I do realise how mean I'm being to Faith.

Excellent chapter! Quite an emotional roller-coaster.

Thanks =D

sorry I can't help[ in the beta department, but I can tell you you are doing a wicked job with this story and to keep rolling out the chapters!
-Abby Rose

That's great to know, thank you. I'll try to keep the chapters coming regularly over the summer (and am also planning to do revisions of the earlier chapters if possible).

And after all the urging to be understanding, will Sirius be understanding about what Snape 'did' after finding them looking into his pensive? Somehow I doubt it. Marauders/Snape --- you can't really hold a grudge against someone unless you know them fairly well. And since they in effect grew up together, it's some grudge! And of course Sirius never had the chance to fully mature, emotionally he's still in his early 20s, in a way.

Sirius? Understanding to Snape? Who, what, why... never ;P

Yeah, Sirius never got the chance to grow up/get over it which we see so clearly when comparing him to Remus. But then Snape has had a decade to do so and still seems pretty bitter.

Riviting story! I am wondering if you are going to bring Angel into the story though.

Thanks! Angel will likely have some involvement later, but he will not be having a central role - as in the show, I think by this time the Buffy/Angel relationship has run its course.

Well damn. Now that was highly intense and left me speachless. Buffy's disire not to know who her parents were. Is very understandable, as its always been a sore spot for her. The fact she has so many other things on her plate. Envoling living people who need her help like Faith. Or the family thats back in Sunnydale. Simply means she's concerned for those who are still left. Buffy's pain and not being able to be there for them. Thanks to the Ministrys and wand users engeneral. Certainly doesn't endear any of them to her.

The fact Fudge and Umbridge saw her nothing as a pawn. Certainly doesn't help them any time in the future. Personal I'd let vampires eat them both. Then kill the vampires. Yeah kind of rudo. Little shocked she short of protected Harry. But Sev can be very scarry when he's angry. And he was pretty much a magical valcano upon seeing what happend. Little confused as to why Buffy mentioned her title and role as Slayer to Harry. I might have missed something there. I thought he was supposed to still be in the dark. Still nice that Faith made another showing. Voldie turly is going to know hell.

Once Buffy gets her hands on his vile little neck. At least I hope so. :) Death to Tommy Riddle for being a compleat and other waste of flesh. I liked the statement by Sev about being the sum parts of all thats gone down. Its true and its why he's so damned jaded and seraded. James Potter was a bully who needed his backside whipped hard. Sirus wasn't any better, he was worse. In the fact that he followed the family motto in reverse.

Picking on people just because they were around. Because of how they looked and other things related to his own twisted mind set. Remus would have ditched them if not for his being a werewolf. I stand by that all day and night. I'm very much looking forward to seeing the fall out. Snape isn't stupid, but can be blind when it comes to anything connected to James Potter. Buffy it seems has more Lilly's side's looks and body stucture. Oddly I thought Sev would end up being her father. Just me. But so long as its not James Potter I'm happy.

Yeah I don't like him with a firey passion. He and Sirus really short of had a lot of karmic pay back coming to them. For all the horrible crap they pulled. Yes I know it sounds vengeful of me to say that about a deadman. Plus Sir spent along lenght of time in Dementor hell hole. So yeah that kind of evens things out. Considering he didn't even do what they claimed he did. James however just reminds me far too much of people who tried to bully me in school. So I can't really forgive him for anything.

That and one could claim, that James only pulled Snape out. Of the path of the wolfed out Remus. Was that he was actual thinking about what could happen. If Remus had killed young Sev, Lupin would have been put down. Sirus and James would have likly been questioned at least a little about there "firend". Dumblore would have had to do something in responce to the murder. Or at least Sirus having used Lupin as a murder weapon. Not that it would have saved poor Remus at all. James was the red and yellow wearing Draco Malfoy with more skill of his day.

While others can forgive him, because he decided to go all noble and fight old Tommy. I will never change my opinon of him. He pushed too many people in a direction. That lead them to do vile amounts of evil. Yes the choice was there. But they had some help getting to it. Sev at least had no other support group than the future death eatters. And they treated him like crap. Daddy was a abusive piece of crap. This mother was broken by years of abuse. Dumbledore and Minnervia carry a lot of the blame for allowing the bullying. There should have been a effort made to stop it compleatly. Yet they never cracked down on it. This isn't even counting the bullying Sirus, James, rat boy and Remus's little group did.

As one other person mentioned the person making the deposits who I must have missed darn it. Seems to be the one with the answers. Or at least some of them.

Oddly I'm wondering if old Lucis Malfoy steeped out on his wife. Yeah its kind of reaching considering Buffy isn't a natural blondie. Still it makes a woman wonder. Because the wizarding world is very very expensive. So there has to be someone with a lot of money envolded. If its not Malfoy senior, then I'm a little at lose for who it could be. Maybe Remus, but that really doesn't do anything for the plot. Unless there's a really really huge twist coming. Something tragic and possible vile evil in nature.

Guessing whats left of the vile things with in the Forest are soon to be burnt toast. Buffy's going to have some major hate issues going on for a while. So they are all going to die. That or she's off to the training room for a weekend and several nights in a row. Perhaps she could get in a quick visit to or from her Salem friend. That could be helpful. Eaither way now she needs a new potions teacher. Unless she can talk Sev into helping her out still. Really good read. Plots great, flows good. Over all a very fun read.

Still this was a very fun read and I thank you for posting this. I'm going to go back and re-read the earlier stuff and see if I missed anything. Thanks again. :)

Re-read things and yes I see where things came out. So several of my questions got answered. FYI way to go for having Buffy kill a Dementor. I've always wanted to see one or more of them taken out. :) Also enjoyed the heck out of Prof Flitwick giving Umbridge hell for trying to tell him how to teach. Good to know at least one teacher got to give her flack back. After all what would the parents say if the kiddies flunked there Charms OWLS? Hopefully Buffy can get threw this, and find Faith. Without that pink toad getting in her way.

I think the thing to remember about Snape, Sirius and James is not only that they were all cruel to one another as children. I have no doubt that Snape did similarly humiliating and degrading things to the Gryffindors, probably through more 'underhand' means (or that might seem more so from the perspective of the Marauders) - ambushing them alone with a spell or putting something in their bags - we are told a number of times after all that Snape is a loner and so he would be unlikely to succeed in the public attacks Sirius and James can put on. But also that they have all in their various ways changed their characters to atone for their actions. Depending on how you choose to look at the books, any of them could be argued to be the most cruel of the three... or it could be claimed that Remus really was the worst of the lot for letting it all happen while in a position to prevent it - he was a prefect after all, could have stood up to them like Lily did.

Something to think about is that it isn't necessary to like someone in order to save them. Snape saves Harry multiple times in the earlier books but could never be said to have liked them. James hated Snape and chose to save him from meeting Remus as a werewolf when they were children. Buffy in Sunnydale saved Clordelia despite disliking her. Saving people is just what the good guys do.

A re-read might help revise some of your other points and give a clearer idea of what this might be heading towards. I hope you enjoy trolling through this epic again. Thank you for taking the time to comment.