Zephyr Potter, a boy who deserved nothing, was facing his sister, a girl who deserved everything. This was a belief formed throughout his life until now. A belief only reinforced when he was gazing upon her gaunt face, highlighted by the light emanating in the deserted Hogwarts corridor they were standing in. Her normally well kept black hair was in disarray, and dark circles were under her green eyes, which were duller than the last time he saw her.

“Are you okay?” she asked him, her voice laced with worry. She sounded far more composed than he thought she would be.

Zephyr could not comprehend such a question. He should be the one asking. “Why are you even asking me that? Let’s be honest here, Camellia, I was never as close to him as you were.” He said, not looking the least bit bothered about it. “And you were the one out there, experiencing the events firsthand, and being in danger… again.” He said, now sounding bitter.

Hearing that, Camellia frowned as she shook her head. “This again? Stop beating yourself up for something out of your control! And Sirius loved you. He just…”

“Had trouble dealing with the fact that his godson is a dying cripple?” Zephyr said, the corners of his mouth upturned. Yes, his relationship with his godfather Sirius Black was distant, but Zephyr didn’t mind it. He understood Sirius’s awkwardness since they met for the first time. Being stuck into a madness inducing prison for years, while being innocent, just to break out and find his godson dying while being closer to a squib than a wizard. How could someone be asked to deal with that? Zephyr realized that and distanced himself from his godfather to let him heal and enjoy his time with his other godchild.

Which proved to be the right decision. The poor man did not get to live long after attaining freedom.

Camellia’s eyes tightened. “How many times did I tell you this? You are not going to die… ever. I’m going to fix this.” She said calmly, but he could feel her annoyance.

Zephyr squashed his urge to chuckle. He felt blessed by his sister’s love, the only person who loved him unconditionally in this world, but he had to disagree with her. She may be used to causing miracles as the girl who lived that survived several encounters with the dark Lord Voldemort, but miracles were finite. If even Dumbledore, the most illustrious wizard of recent times, could not make heads or tails of his mysterious sickness, so what could an inexperienced 15-year-old girl do? Nothing, no matter how much of a genius she was, she was still just a child on the cusp of adulthood. So he never allowed himself to gain hope from her words. He did not deserve a miracle anyway, or anything. The Dursleys made sure to remind him of that every time they could.

Though Zephyr understood that this was just her way of coping, so he simply said while chuckling: “Well, I look forward to my salvation then.”

Camellia looked momentarily shocked, but quickly bounced back with a wide smile. “Oh my, what happened to the gloomy brat I’m used to? Are you finally growing up? I’m so proud!” Her smile turned into a mock frown. “Wait, is this really a good thing? What if you suddenly tire of your older sister? I don’t know what I would do if you reject me. I think I would die!” She cried out dramatically.

He rolled his eyes at that, while inwardly hoping she was joking. “I don’t know. How about focusing on your own life for a change? Maybe finally get a boyfriend? I’m starting to feel worried.”

Camellia snorted at that. “Why would I need some stinky boyfriend when I have you?”

“Sorry to disappoint you, sis, but I’m not into incest.”

“You..” Camellia grew incensed at that. “That was not funny! Also, you are one to talk. Having fewer interactions with girls than Neville, with your looks? Do you know what the girls of my dorm have to say about your face? No, seriously! The amount of times Hermione had to hold me back from wringing the necks of those sluts after they sullied you in their depraved talks, is staggering. Especially those two whores, Lavender and Parvati!”

“Whoa…”, Zephyr took a step back, “calm down, will you?” He didn’t know how their talk took such a turn. He was just teasing her a bit, and now she was seething.

He was aware of what his sister was talking about. He would have to be oblivious to not see the… special interest many girls in Hogwarts took in him. And he knew why. If you looked at Zephyr and his sister, you would be hard pressed to guess their blood relation. Sure, they had similar features. The jet black colour of their hair and the shining green eyes were the same. Though their similarities ended there. Where his sister had untamed hair, his was silky and straight. While his sister’s face was certainly beautiful, taking after their mother, his was otherworldly… almost unnatural, with no resemblance to both his parents.

And the oddities didn’t stop there. Unlike his sister, Zephyr was never skinny, despite having as much of a poor diet as her. Even though he injured himself frequently through his life, his skin showed no blemishes. People even claim that he shines from time to time! Save to say, people (mostly guys) accused him of undergoing rituals to look like that. Though most of the Hogwarts population were more levelheaded and discarded those rumours after seeing his skills at magic, or more like the lack of it.

So they just made up different ones! Like him being a male veela (which did not exist), a long-lost son of a love goddess, or the most absurd one, being some ancient powerful and handsome vampire, posing as a student to feast on the blood of all the maidens here. Most girls looked quite eager while discussing that particular gossip.

While his looks were interesting gossip for others, it was quite the cause of concern for Zephyr. For a time, he feared Camellia was not truly his sister. But luckily a blood test proved him wrong, so he accepted that he simply looked unique.

No… He actually knew someone that looked like him.

Since he was little, he was receiving those odd, recurring dreams. Dreams about the life of a young boy that looked exactly like him. Living his days with a mother that shared similar features with him until his end. And not just any mother. Claiming that she was the most beautiful woman he ever saw would not be a lie. Blond hair, blue eyes, a face and figure that could cause wars. And a pair of humongous breasts… No, seriously, Zephyr never knew breasts could be that big!

At first, he thought those dreams were just a manifestation of his desire to have parents. But it was odd how realistic and elaborate those dreams were, and even after he saw pictures of his actual parents, they never stopped. Coupled with the fact that he looked more like the mother in his dreams than his true parents, Zephyr couldn’t stop himself from thinking about a weird possibility…

“Enough with your incessant babbling! People are trying to sleep here.” Zephyr’s attention was drawn by a portly wizard in a portrait near them. His moustache was shaking in indignation, not unlike uncle Vernon. “By Merlin’s beard, kids these days! No consideration for the elderly.”

“Can it, old fossil!” Camellia said, still pissed off.

Zephyr shook his head. “I think it’s time to leave, sis. Until tomorrow.” He said, while turning away.

“Are you going for a walk? You know curfew is soon, right?“ Camellia said, finally calming down. “Also, you should not roam the castle alone at times like these. Let me come with you!”

“Nah, it will be fine. You can check on me with the map if you are worried.” He dismissed her as the sound of his steps went further away from her. “Goodnight!”

“Ugh, goodnight idiot.” She sounded displeased but still conceded, as she made her way back to their common room.

- - -

Zephyr was deeply conflicted as he was walking through the now deserted Hogwarts corridors. Another near death experience for his sister at the hands of Voldemort. And again, he was not even aware of his sister’s dangerous activities this year. Of course he was not! Why would his sister confide him in her problems? With his condition, he would only be useless weight anyway. It was the logical choice of action, but that didn’t mean he liked it. He was sick of being unable to help his sister. Having to impotently watch her getting screwed over by fate again and again, while praying that she won’t die this year. If only he could ease her pain. If only he could take her place. If only…

“If only I could be powerful.” He whispered into the empty corridor.

“Zephyr Potter…” His head jerked towards the woman that addressed him with a monotone voice from one portrait near him. Her blank stare was unnerving him.

“If you seek a solution for your plight, make your way to the seventh floor.”

“W-What?” Zephyr questioned her, but never she answered him. She just kept staring at him with the same blank look. Zephyr now realized she wasn’t the only one. All the portraits in the corridor were staring blankly at him.

“How creepy!” Zephyr, of course, was freaked out.