Can Things Change

“The Journey From Platform Nine and Three-Quarters” Ron was bouncing in his seat as he read the title.

“Yes we are finally getting to the good stuff,” Sirius exclaimed.

Aurora’s last month with the Dursleys wasn’t fun. True, Dudley was now so scared of Aurora he wouldn’t stay in the same room, while Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon didn’t shut Aurora in her cupboard, force her to do anything, or shout at her — in fact, they didn’t speak to her at all. Half terrified, half furious, they acted as though any chair with Aurora in it were empty. 

Luna got up from her spot and came and sat on Aurora’s lap, giving her a hug. “I always see you,” she said.

Aurora squeezed her back, and laughingly said, “And not just in the seer way.”

“That way too,” she replied, getting up and going back to Neville.

Although this was an improvement in many ways, it did become a bit depressing after a while.

Aurora kept to her room, with her new owl for company. She had decided to call her Hedwig, a name she had found in A History of Magic. Her school books were very interesting. She lay on hers bed reading late into the night, Hedwig swooping in and out of the open window as she pleased. 

“That sounds relaxing actually,” Hermione and Lily said.

Aurora loved reading her potion’s books, it was looking to be her favorite upcoming class. 

Ron had to stop reading for a moment, he couldn’t contain his laughter. 

“That didn’t last long did it Ro,” Draco asked sarcastically.

“Why not,” James wondered, “Slughorn is a great teacher, if you can get over him picking his favorites for his ‘Slug Club’.”

“Slughorn retired in ‘81.” Fred said. “His replacement is a great potionier, but not the best teacher.” 

She couldn’t wait to try out some of the spells in her other books. She was learning a lot from her Defense against the Darks Arts books. Reading her theory books she learned that magic was more intent than it was saying spells and waving your wand.

“Well done, Miss Potter,” Dumbledore pronounced. “It can take some people years to learn that.”

“She’s been able to do wandless magic since she was at least 14,” Amice boasted.

Her etiquette books that she had picked up taught her a lot about proper dress and hair style for a young witch, as well as how to greet people. One of the books talked a little about the Sacred Twenty-Eight, and in this book she learned a little more about the Potter family, as well as the Black family. If she really was the heir to those two families, she couldn’t wait till she was older and could read their grimoires. Her family histories sounded so interesting.

“You really wanted to learn about the Black family,” Sirius asked. “Based off of what was said in a book bought in Diagon Alley.”

“Yea,” Aurora shrugged. “Dark or not, they are still my family, and if we want to change the perception of the family we have to know where we come from.”

“Besides, it’s how you use magic that really matters, not if the spell is light or dark. Technically the killy curse was a light spell at creation. It was used to put animals and the suffering patients at hospitals out of their misery.” Luna added airily.

“It was an advisor of Caesar that tweaked the spell just a little that caused it to become a dark curse,” Hermione advised. 

“I guess I never thought of it that way,” Sirius mumbled.

Then there was the letter that she had taken from her vault. It was a letter from her parents, telling her about her Uncle Sirius, who was also her second father, and who was supposed to raise her if anything happened to them. She learned all about her Uncle Moony. 

“Everything,” he whispered. Aurora nodded affirmatively, a wide smile on her face.

“It never mattered to me.”

It talked about her Aunt Alice and her Uncle Frank, and their son Neville, who before they all went into hiding was like her old brother - if you counted one day as old enough to be a big brother Aurora thought. They also told her that she was in charge of her own life, and no matter what anyone said, no one but her decided her own fate. She read this letter every day.

She lay on her bed reading late into the night, Hedwig swooping in and out of the open window as she pleased. It was lucky that Aunt Petunia didn't come in to vacuum anymore, because Hedwig kept bringing back dead mice. Every night before she went to sleep, Aurora ticked off another day on the piece of paper she had pinned to the wall, counting down to September the first.

“I always did that too,” Sirius said. Lily, Severus, Neville, and Peter nodded their heads in agreement.

On the last day of August she thought she’d better speak to his aunt and uncle about getting to King’s Cross station the next day, so he went down to the living room where they were watching a quiz show on television. She cleared her throat to let them know she was there, and Dudley screamed and ran from the room.

 “Er — Uncle Vernon?”

 Uncle Vernon grunted to show he was listening. 

“Er — I need to be at King’s Cross tomorrow to — to go to Hogwarts.”

 Uncle Vernon grunted again.

 “Would it be all right if you gave me a lift?”

 Grunt. Aurora supposed that meant yes.

“I wish you had told me you spoke troll,” Hermione grumbled.

“It would have made things much easier,” Rod added, while the non time travelers looked concerned.

 “Thank you.”

 She was about to go back upstairs when Uncle Vernon actually spoke.

 “Funny way to get to a wizards’ school, the train. Magic carpets all got punctures, have they?”

“No, the Ministry banned them,” Amelia said. “Said they were a threat to the Statute of Secrecy.”

Aurora didn’t say anything.

 “Where is this school, anyway?”

“I don’t know,” said Aurora, realizing this for the first time. She pulled the ticket Hagrid had given her out of her pocket.

“I just take the train from platform nine and three-quarters at eleven o’clock,” she read.

His aunt and uncle stared.

“Platform what?”

“Nine and three-quarters.”

“Don’t talk rubbish,” said Uncle Vernon. “There is no platform nine and three-quarters.”

“I’m not going to like this at all am I?” Lily asked, looking more mad than worried.

“It’s on my ticket.”

“Barking,” said Uncle Vernon, “howling mad, the lot of them. You’ll see. You just wait. All

right, we’ll take you to King’s Cross. We’re going up to London tomorrow anyway, or I

wouldn’t bother.”

“Why are you going to London?” Aurora asked, trying to keep things friendly.

“Seems rather pointless,” Alice stated. “They seem determined to dislike you no matter what you do.”

“Taking Dudley to the hospital,” growled Uncle Vernon. “Got to have that ruddy tail removed before he goes to Smeltings.” 

The Marauders, and Fabian and Gideon snickered.

Aurora woke at five o’clock the next morning and was too excited and nervous to go back to sleep. She got up and pulled on her jeans because she didn’t want to walk into the station in her wizard’s robes — she’d change on the train. She checked her Hogwarts list yet again to make sure she had everything she needed, saw that Hedwig was shut safely in her cage, and then paced the room, waiting for the Dursleys to get up. 

“A bit keen there?” Peter asked.

Two hours later, Aurora’s huge, heavy trunk had been loaded into the Dursleys’ car, Aunt Petunia had talked Dudley into sitting next to Aurora, and they had set off.

They reached King’s Cross at half past ten. Uncle Vernon dumped Aurora’s trunk onto a cart and wheeled it into the station for her. Aurora thought this was strangely kind until Uncle Vernon stopped dead, facing the platforms with a nasty grin on his face.

“That bastard!” Lily, Alice and Marlene shouted.

“True, but I never would have gotten my trunk onto a cart without him,” Aurora said.

“Well, there you are, girl. Platform nine — platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don’t seem to have built it yet, do they?”

He was quite right, of course. There was a big plastic number nine over one platform and a big plastic number ten over the one next to it, and in the middle, nothing at all.

“Have a good term,” said Uncle Vernon with an even nastier smile. He left without another word. Aurora turned and saw the Dursleys drive away. All three of them were laughing. Aurora’s mouth went rather dry. What on earth was she going to do? She was starting to attract a lot of funny looks, because of Hedwig. She’d have to ask someone.

“Need to have someone on the lookout for muggle-borns,” Alastor mumbled. 

Seeing the anger on her parents' faces, Aurora soothed them, “Trust me, everything worked out for the best.”

She stopped a passing guard, but didn’t dare mention platform nine and three-quarters. The guard had never heard of Hogwarts and when Aurora couldn’t even tell him what part of the country it was in, he started to get annoyed, as though Aurora was being stupid on purpose. Getting desperate, Aurora asked for the train that left at eleven o’clock, but the guard said there wasn’t one. In the end the guard strode away, muttering about time wasters. 

“Well that was rude,” Pandora sighed. “You are obviously a child on your own and are lost, he should be a little more patient.”

“I think he thought I was pranking him.”

Aurora was now trying hard not to panic. According to the large clock over the arrivals board, she had ten minutes left to get on the train to Hogwarts and she had no idea how to do it; she was stranded in the middle of a station with a trunk she could hardly lift, a pocket full of wizard money, and a large owl.

Hagrid must have forgotten to tell her something you had to do, like tapping the third brick on the left to get into Diagon Alley. She wondered if she should get out her wand and start tapping the ticket inspector’s stand between platforms nine and ten.

At that moment a group of people passed just behind her and she caught a few words of what they were saying.

 “— packed with Muggles, of course —”

Aurora swung round. The speaker was a plump woman who was talking to four boys, all with flaming red hair. Each of them was pushing a trunk like Aurora’s in front of him — and they had an owl. 

“Molly to the rescue!” Fabian and Gideon cheered.

“Yes she is,” Aurora said fondly, smiling at Molly and Arthur.

“My mum is the best!” Bill exclaimed.

Heart hammering, Aurora pushed her cart after them. They stopped and so did she, just near enough to hear what they were saying.

“Now, what’s the platform number?” said the boys’ mother.

“Nine and three-quarters!” piped a small girl, also red-headed, who was holding her hand, “Mom, can’t I go…”

“Ickle Gin-Gin,” Fred teased.

Ginny pulled her wand out, and Fred blanched. 

“You’re not old enough, Ginny, now be quiet. All right, Percy, you go first.”

What looked like the oldest boy marched toward platforms nine and ten. Aurora watched, careful not to blink in case she missed it — but just as the boy reached the dividing barrier between the two platforms, a large crowd of tourists came swarming in front of her and by the time the last backpack had cleared away, the boy had vanished.

“Fred, you next,” the plump woman said.

“I’m not Fred, I’m George,” said the boy. “Honestly, woman, you call yourself our mother? Can’t you tell I’m George?”

 “Sorry, George, dear.”

“Only joking, I am Fred,” said the boy, and off he went.

“Oh, I always hated it when you two do that,” Molly exclaimed, looking at her brothers.

“Now you’ll have -”

“You’re own set -”

“When we aren’t with you anymore.”

His twin called after him to hurry up, and he must have done so, because a second later, he had gone — but how had he done it? Now the third brother was walking briskly toward the barrier he was almost there — and then, quite suddenly, he wasn’t anywhere. There was nothing else for it.

“Excuse me,” Aurora said to the plump woman.

“I’m so proud of how polite you are,” Lily said.

“Hello, dear,” she said. “First time at Hogwarts? Ron’s new, too.”

She pointed at the last and youngest of her sons. He was tall, thin, and gangling, with freckles, big hands and feet, and a long nose.

“RO!” Ron exclaimed, while the other time travelers laughed. He rounded on them quickly, scowling, “Wait until she meets you, and we’ll see what she thinks then,”

“Yes,” said Aurora. “The thing is — the thing is, I don’t know how to —”

“How to get onto the platform?” she said kindly, and Aurora nodded. 

“Not to worry,” she said. “All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Don’t stop and don’t be scared you’ll crash into it, that’s very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you’re nervous. Go on, go now before Ron.”

“Er — okay,” said Aurora.

She pushed her trolley around and stared at the barrier. It looked very solid.

She started to walk toward it. People jostled her on their way to platforms nine and ten. Aurora walked more quickly. She was going to smash right into that barrier and then she’d be in trouble — leaning forward on her cart, she broke into a heavy run — the barrier was coming nearer and nearer — she wouldn’t be able to stop — the cart was out of control — she was a foot away — she closed her eyes ready for the crash —

It didn’t come… she kept on running… she opened her eyes. A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign overhead said Hogwarts’ Express, eleven o’clock. Aurora looked behind her and saw a wrought-iron archway where the barrier had been, with the words Platform Nine and Three-Quarters on it. She had done it.

Smoke from the engine drifted over the heads of the chattering crowd, while cats of every color wound here and there between their legs. Owls hooted to one another in a disgruntled sort of way over the babble and the scraping of heavy trunks.

“It is a rather amazing sight the first time,” Ted mentioned.

The first few carriages were already packed with students, some hanging out of the window to talk to their families, some fighting over seats. Aurora pushed her cart off down the platform in search of an empty seat. She passed a round-faced boy who was saying, “Gran, I’ve lost my toad again.”

“Round-faced boy?” Neville asked looking amused at Aurora.

“Oh, Neville,” he heard the old woman sigh. She hoped this was her god-brother, she would have to go looking for him later.

 A boy with dreadlocks was surrounded by a small crowd.

 “Give us a look, Lee, go on.”

The boy lifted the lid of a box in his arms, and the people around him shrieked and yelled as something inside poked out a long, hairy leg.

Ron shuttered a little.

Aurora pressed on through the crowd until she found an empty compartment near the end of the train. She put Hedwig inside first and then started to shove and heave her trunk toward the train door. She tried to lift it up the steps but could hardly raise one end and twice she dropped it painfully on her foot.

“Want a hand?” It was one of the red-haired twins she’d followed through the barrier.

“Yes, please,” Aurora panted.

 “Oy, Fred! C’mere and help!”

“You boys are good boys,” Arthur praised.

“We like a good prank, but you and mum raised us to always help someone in need,” Fred said. “Plus have you seen how cute she is, who wouldn’t want to help her,” he added, pulling Aurora into his side, kissing the top of her head.

With the twins’ help, Aurora’s trunk was at last tucked away in a corner of the compartment.

“Thanks,” said Aurora, pushing her sweaty hair out of her eyes.

“What’s that?” said one of the twins suddenly, she thought it was George, pointing at Aurora’s lightning scar.

“Blimey,” said the other twin. “Are you —?”

“She is,” said the first twin. “Aren’t you?” he added to Aurora.

“What?” said Aurora.

“Aurora Potter.” chorused the twins.

“Oh, her,” said Aurora. “I mean, yes, I am.”

The two boys gawked at her, and Aurora felt herself turning red. Then, to her relief, a voice came floating in through the train’s open door.

“Fred? George? Are you there?”

“Coming, Mom.”

With a last look at Aurora, the twins hopped off the train. She heard the second twin say to his brother, “She sure was cute. I hope she’s in Gryffindor with us, I wouldn’t mind looking at her every day.”

“You heard that!” Fred exclaimed. 

Aurora giggled and nodded her head, giving him a swift peck, “I think you are rather fetching too, and I enjoy looking at you every day. Especially at night.” Fred, and Ron, turned a bright pink. Ron already knew too much about his best friends sex life, before and after his brother, he didn’t need to hear more.

“Nope!” Sirius yelled. “I do not need to hear that!”

James growled at Fred softly.

Aurora sat down next to the window where, half hidden, she could watch the red-haired family on the platform and hear what they were saying. Their mother had just taken out her handkerchief.

“Ron, you’ve got something on your nose.”

The youngest boy tried to jerk out of the way, but she grabbed him and began rubbing the end of his nose.

“Mom— geroff” He wriggled free.

“Aaah, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nose?” said one of the twins, it sounded like Fred.

“You just met us, and you can tell us apart?” Fred was shocked. People he and George had known for years still had difficulties telling them apart, and George was missing an ear.

“Your voice hadn’t finished changing at 13, so George’s was a little lower,” Aurora said. “Plus when you’re near your magic feels different from George’s, and you have more freckles than he does.”

Everyone looked at her in amazement. Alastor chimed in, “You’d make a fine auror with those observation skills you got there lassie.”

“I thought about it,” Aurora replied.

“Shut up,” said Ron. 

“Where’s Percy?” said their mother.

“He’s coming now.”

The oldest boy came striding into sight. He had already changed into his billowing black Hogwarts robes, and Aurora noticed a red and gold badge on his chest with the letter P on it.

“He changed already,” Remus asked, shocked. “You’ve only been there for like five minutes.”

“Can’t stay long, Mother,” he said. “I’m up front, the prefects have got two compartments to themselves —”

“Oh, are you a prefect, Percy?” said one of the twins, with an air of great surprise. “You should have said something, we had no idea.”

“Hang on, I think I remember him saying something about it,” said the other twin. “Once —”

“Or twice —”

“A minute —”

“All summer —”

“Oh, shut up,” said Percy the Prefect.

“You two,” James laughed.

“I love it,” Sirius finished.

“How come Percy gets new robes, anyway?” said one of the twins.

“Because he’s a prefect,” said their mother fondly. “All right, dear, well, have a good term — send me an owl when you get there.”

She kissed Percy on the cheek and he left. Then she turned to the twins.

“Now, you two — this year, you behave yourselves. If I get one more owl telling me you’ve — you’ve blown up a toilet or —”

“Oh Molly,” Lily sighed, smiling at James, “You never give a prankster ideas.”

“Don’t know what I was thinking,” Molly sighed, shaking her head in exasperation.

“Blown up a toilet? We’ve never blown up a toilet.”

“Great idea though, thanks, Mom.”

“It’s not funny. And look after Ron.”

“Don’t worry, ickle Ronniekins is safe with us.”

“Shut up,” said Ron again. He was almost as tall as the twins already and his nose was still pink where his mother had rubbed it.

“Must you notice everything, Ro,” Ron sighed, rubbing his nose, glaring at Aurora.

“Hey, Mom, guess what? Guess who we just met on the train?”

Aurora leaned back quickly so they couldn’t see her looking.

“You know that black-haired girl who was near us in the station? Know who she is?”

“Who?”

“Aurora Potter!”

Aurora heard the little girl’s voice. “Oh, Mom, can I go on the train and see her, Mom, eh please…”

“Awww…. Little Ginny has a crush,” Sirius teased.

“You’ve already seen her, Ginny, and the poor girl isn’t something you goggle at in a zoo. Is she really, Fred? How do you know?”

“Thank you Molly,” Lily said.

“Yes, thank you.” James added. “I have a feeling we’ll be thanking you a lot over the course of these books.”

“You never have to thank me for looking out for a child,” Molly blushed. 

“Yea, mum loves looking after people,” Ron said.

“Besides, she practically adopted Ray from this moment right here,” Fred elaborated. “Her being Ron’s best friend just gave her an easy reason to show it.”

“Asked her. Saw her scar. It’s really there — like lightning.”

Aurora shifted her hair to hide the scar.

“Poor dear — no wonder she was alone, I wondered. She was ever so polite when she asked how to get onto the platform.”

“Never mind that, do you think she remembers what You-Know-Who looks like?”

Their mother suddenly became very stern.

“I forbid you to ask her, Fred. No, don’t you dare. As though she needs reminding of that on her first day at school.”

“Well Fred never asked,” Aurora laughed.

“All right, keep your hair on.”

A whistle sounded.

“Hurry up!” their mother said, and the three boys clambered onto the train. They leaned out of the window for her to kiss them good-bye, and their younger sister began to cry.

“Don’t, Ginny, we’ll send you loads of owls.”

“We’ll send you a Hogwarts’ toilet seat.”

“Never did get that,” Ginny grumbled.

“We sent it to a more worthy recipient,” Fred said, causing the Marauders to laugh and the teachers to sigh, between the Prewitt twins, the Marauders, and now the Weasley twins, they were never going to get a year without pranksters. Who knows what happened between the years either.

“George!”

“Only joking, Mom.”

The train began to move. Aurora saw the boys’ mother waving and their sister, half laughing, half crying, running to keep up with the train until it gathered too much speed, then she fell back and waved.

Aurora watched the girl and her mother disappear as the train rounded the corner. Houses flashed past the window. Aurora felt a great leap of excitement. She didn’t know what she was going to — but it had to be better than what she was leaving behind. 

“It really was,” Aurora sighed happily.

The door of the compartment slid open and the youngest redheaded boy came in.

“Anyone sitting there?” he asked, pointing at the seat opposite Aurora. “Everywhere else is full.”

“You are such a liar,” Amice laughed, “Cedric and I passed several compartments that had empty seats looking for Aurora.”

Ron blushed, “Unlike you I didn’t have a reason to sit with her though and that was the first thing I thought of.”

Aurora shook her head and the boy sat down. He glanced at Aurora and then looked quickly out of the window, pretending he hadn’t looked. Aurora saw he still had a black mark on his nose.

Ron rubbed his nose again.

“Hey, Ron.”

The twins were back.

“Listen, we’re going down the middle of the train — Lee Jordan’s got a giant tarantula down there.”

“Right,” mumbled Ron.

“Aurora,” said the other twin, “did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then.”

“Nice introduction,” Sirius laughed.

“Bye,” said Aurora and Ron. The twins slid the compartment door shut behind them.

No sooner had the twins left than the door slid open again.

“Hello again, Aurora,” Cedric said, walking into the compartment, his sister, Amice, trailing behind him shyly. “And hello again, Ron.” Ron just nodded hello in return.

“H-h-hi Ced,” Aurora stuttered, stumbling and stuttering over his name, no even able to finish it.

“You calling him Ced was an accident,” Amice asked, laughing so hard she was holding her sides.

“Shudup,” Aurora mumbled.

“Ced huh?” he laughed, “I like it.” Aurora blushed a bright red. “Anyway Rory, I was wondering if Amice could sit here with you.” Aurora nodded quickly, she had never been given a nickname before, she didn’t think girl or freak counted.

“Sure,” Aurora added, smiling. 

“He could have asked you for anything and you would have said yes wouldn’t you,” James asked, not really expecting an answer. He was the same way with Lily from the moment that he had met her.

Cedric gave Aurora a soft smile, before giving Amice a kiss on the cheek. “If you need anything I’m near the front with Wayne and Roger.” Amice giggled at Aurora’s sigh once Cedric closed the compartment door once more.

“Are you really Aurora Potter?” Ron blurted out.

Aurora nodded. “Of course she is,” Amice blurted out.

“Oh — well, I thought it might be one of Fred and George’s jokes,” said Ron. “And have you really got — you know…”

He pointed at Aurora’s forehead.

Aurora pulled back her bangs to show the lightning scar. Ron and Amice stared.

“Ron!” Fred yelled. “That’s so rude.”

“I’m sorry Ro,” Ron whispered, ashamed. “I really didn’t mean to stare.”

“And this was the second time for me,” Amice said, her voice wavering. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s ok guys,” Aurora reassured. “I showed you, so I expected it. It’s the others who try to look at it even when my hair is covering it that I have a problem with.”

“That sounds like it could get annoying really fast,” Peter said.

“You have no idea,” Hermione stated. “And I am just friends with her.”

“So that’s where You-Know-Who —?”

“Yes,” said Aurora, “but I can’t remember it.”

“Nothing?” said Ron eagerly.

“Ronald Bilius Weasley,” Arthur scolded, which made Ron wilt even more, and Fred and Ginny duck down to avoid their fathers anger, which ,when he was actually angry enough to use their full name, was even greater than their mothers. “You shouldn’t be eager to hear someone recount the deaths of their parents.” 

Ron nodded his agreement meekly. He was no longer excited to read about his first train ride with Aurora.

“Well — I remember a lot of green light, but nothing else.”

“Wow,” said Ron. He sat and stared at Aurora for a few moments, then, as though he had suddenly realized what he was doing, he looked quickly out of the window again.

“Are all your family wizards?” asked Aurora, who found Ron just as interesting as Ron found him.

“Er — Yes, I think so,” said Ron. “I think Mom’s got a second cousin who’s an accountant, but we never talk about him.”

Molly sighed, “He left the wizarding world when he turned 18, and asked that we never contact him again.” Arthur put his arm around his wife. “His parents were in their 80’s when they had him, and he just never developed magic. Everyone always supported him, but with his brother and sister both having magic, it was very difficult for him.”

Lily looked at the older woman with sympathy, she could relate on the opposite side, after all this woman had heard about how her sister hated her so much that she abused her daughter.

“So you must know loads of magic already.”

The Weasleys were one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight after all. Aurora also remembered reading that the Diggory’s were a well respected family as well. Ron and Amice both shrugged noncommittally. 

“I really didn’t know much,” Amice said. “Cedric said he would teach me more once I got my wand.”

“I know dad taught Bill a couple things after he got his wand before he left for school,” Ron explained, looking at his father and his older - young- brother. “Bill taught Charlie a few first year spells, and Charlie taught Percy.”

“Percy was too uptight to do magic during the summer,” Fred continued. “We asked him if he would teach us like Charlie did for him, but he just told us to ask Charlie, who said that it was Percy’s job.”

Arthur looked over at his infant son, maybe this would help him learn how to teach his middle child to not be so rule abiding. Even the one interaction they saw with him showed that he was very uptight.

“And honestly by the time Ron started, George and I forgot.”

“Ron taught me a couple things before my first year though,” Ginny said. “Besides he learned things he never would have otherwise with Ro as his best friend,” she added with a snicker.

“I heard you went to live with Muggles,” said Ron. “What are they like?”

“Horrible — well, not all of them. My aunt and uncle and cousin are, though. Wish I’d had three wizard brothers.”

“Five,” said Ron. For some reason, he was looking gloomy. “I’m the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts. You could say I’ve got a lot to live up to. Bill and Charlie have already left — Bill was head boy and Charlie was captain of Quidditch. Now Percy’s a prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they’re really funny. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it’s no big deal, because they did it first. You never get anything new, either, with five brothers. I’ve got Bill’s old robes, Charlie’s old wand, and Percy’s old rat.”

Molly leaned over and took the notebook from her husband, and turning to a new page wrote Pay more attention to all the children (Percy and Ron).

Ron reached inside his jacket and pulled out a fat gray rat, which was asleep.

The trio and Neville all stiffened in their seats. The only people who noticed the slight movement were Sirius and Alastor.

“His name’s Scabbers and he’s useless, he hardly ever wakes up. Percy got an owl from my dad for being made a prefect, but they couldn’t aff — I mean, I got Scabbers instead.”

“How old is that rat?” Kingsley asked. It couldn’t be too old, but if it was Percy’s first, he had to have been nearing the end of his lifespan.

“Older than you think,” Draco replied.

Ron’s ears went pink. He seemed to think he’d said too much, because he went back to staring out of the window.

“I don’t have a pet at all,” Amice said, trying to ease some of Ron’s embarrassment. “My parents want me to prove I can be responsible and get good grades first.”

“A very sensible approach,” Columba agreed.

Aurora didn’t think there was anything wrong with not being able to afford an owl. After all, she’d never had any money in her life until a month ago, and she told Ron so, all about having to wear Dudley’s old clothes and never getting proper birthday presents. This seemed to cheer Ron up.

“That sounds so bad,” Ron muttered. “I thought you meant that the Dursleys weren’t very well off and that we had something in common. Not that they were utter bastards.”

“I knew what you meant,” Aurora assured, “The book didn’t translate that thought well though.

“… and until Hagrid told me, I didn’t know anything about being a wizard or about my parents or Voldemort —”

Ron gasped, and Amice squeaked.

“What?” said Aurora.

“You said You-Know-Who’s name!” said Ron, sounding both shocked and impressed. “I’d have thought you, of all people —”

“We learned very quickly that Aurora doesn’t do anything the way people expect her to,” Neville stated, drawing chuckles from the other time travelers.

“I’m not trying to be brave or anything, saying the name,” said Aurora, “I just never knew you shouldn’t. See what I mean? I’ve got loads to learn… I bet,” she added, voicing for the first time something that had been worrying her a lot lately, “I bet I’m the worst in the class.”

“Not even close,” Draco drawled, “besides you haven’t met Crabbe and Goyle yet.”

“Soon though,” Aurora teased, which caused Draco to slouch in his seat.

“Are they still vying for Malfoy attention,” Lucius asked.

“Their fathers told them to keep close to me and act as protection.” Lucius just hummed in reply. It made sense, and would protect his son, he might have to grant them an audience. 

“You won’t be. There’s loads of people who come from Muggle families and they learn quick enough.”

While they had been talking, the train had carried them out of London. Now they were speeding past fields full of cows and sheep. They were quiet for a time, watching the fields and lanes flick past.

Around half past twelve there was a great clattering outside in the corridor and a smiling, dimpled woman slid back their door and said, “Anything off the cart, dears?”

Aurora, who hadn’t had any breakfast, 

“You need to eat more,” Andromeda grumbled. She had seen how much the girl had eaten at breakfast, and after hearing about being starved as a child, it was a wonder at how strong her magic was if most of it that hadn’t been blocked had been sustaining the girl through her childhood.

leapt to her feet, but Ron’s ears went pink again and he muttered that he’d brought sandwiches. Aurora and Amice went out into the corridor.

She had never had any money for candy with the Dursleys, and now that she had pockets rattling with gold and silver she was ready to buy as many Mars Bars as she could carry — but the woman didn’t have Mars Bars. 

“Mars Bars are my favorite too,” Lily said, wishing for one, when suddenly a pile appeared on the table in front of her, causing her to squeak in surprise. “Oh I like the new packaging.”

“I do love this room,” Luna sighed.

What she did have were Bettie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans, Drooble’s Best Blowing Gum, Chocolate Frogs. Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes, Licorice Wands, and a number of other strange things Aurora had never seen in her life. Not wanting to miss anything, she got some of everything and paid the woman eleven silver Sickles and seven bronze Knuts. Amice also buying an armful as well.

Ron stared as Aurora brought it all back into the compartment and tipped it onto an empty seat. 

“Hungry, are you?”

“Starving,” said Aurora, taking a large bite out of a pumpkin pasty.

Ron had taken out a lumpy package and unwrapped it. There were four sandwiches inside. He pulled one of them apart and said, “She always forgets I don’t like corned beef..”

“Write that down Arthur,” Molly whispered.

“Swap you for one of these,” said Aurora, holding up a pasty. “Go on —”

“You don’t want this, it’s all dry,” said Ron. “She hasn’t got much time,” he added quickly, “you know, with five of us.”

“It wasn’t that dry,” Aurora said, “he just doesn’t like corned beef. It's the one thing he won’t eat.” Hermione laughed, agreeing.

“Go on, have a pasty,” said Aurora, who had never had anything to share before or, indeed, anyone to share it with. It was a nice feeling, sitting there with Ron and Amice, eating their way through all the pasties, cakes, and candies (Aurora had tried a sandwich and it was one of the best things she had ever eaten, but this one time she wanted to stuff herself with junk food rather than something good for her).

“I hope you didn’t make a habit out of this,” Lily said. “I understand, as you’ve never had the opportunity though.”

“Nah, next year we ate the sandwiches,” Aurora said, her and Ron laughing.

“What are these?” Aurora aske, holding up a pack of Chocolate Frogs. “They’re not really frogs, are they?” Shee was starting to feel that nothing would surprise her.

“No,” said Ron. “But see what the card is. I’m missing Agrippa.”

“What?”

“Oh, of course, you wouldn’t know — Chocolate Frogs have cards, inside them, you know, to collect — famous witches and wizards. I’ve got about five hundred, but I haven’t got Agrippa or Ptolemy.”

“Cedric has two Ptolemy,” Amice offered smiling, “I could see if he would trade with you.”

“He didn’t have a Hufflepuff, so we traded next summer,” Ron explained. The Weasley and Diggory parents just beamed that their children were turning out to be such good friends.

Aurora unwrapped her Chocolate Frog and picked up the card. It showed a man’s face. He wore half-moon glasses, had a long, crooked nose, and flowing silver hair, beard, and mustache.

Underneath the picture was the name Albus Dumbledore.

“So this is Dumbledore!” said Aurora.

“Don’t tell me you’d never heard of Dumbledore!” said Ron. “Can I have a frog? I might get Agrippa — thanks —”

Aurora turned over her card and read:

ALBUS DUMBLEDORE

CURRENTLY HEADMASTER OF HOGWARTS

Considered by many the greatest wizard of modern times, Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon’s blood, and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel. Professor Dumbledore enjoys chamber music and tenpin bowling.

Hermione grabbed one of the pillows off the couch and started hitting Aurora over the head with it. “You are the absolute worst!” she exclaimed. “You can remember the most obscure potion and Defense facts, but you couldn’t remember this!”

Aurora chuckled, hiding her head under her arms, “Oops.”

Aurora turned the card back over and saw, to her astonishment, that Dumbledore’s face had disappeared.

“He’s gone!”

“Well, you can’t expect him to hang around all day,” said Ron. “He’ll be back. No, I’ve got Morgana again and I’ve got about six of her… do you want it? You can start collecting.”

“Picture’s move around in the wizarding world,” Amice explained. “Some portraits can also talk. And if done right, not simple frog cards, the pictures have a little bit of the person’s personality too.” Aurora stared at her, wide eyed, that sounded amazing. She had never had her picture taken before, and it would be interesting to see a wizarding picture of herself.

Ron and Neville laughed, “Colin’s picture next year…”

Severus however was thinking, ‘There’s the Potter conceit.’

Ron’s eyes strayed to the pile of Chocolate Frogs waiting to be unwrapped.

“Help yourself,” said Aurora. “But in, you know, the Muggle world, people just stay put in photos.”

“Do they? What, they don’t move at all?” Ron sounded amazed. “Weird!”

“You are so much like dad sometimes,” Ginny laughed, and Arthur blushed.

Aurora stared as Dumbledore sidled back into the picture on his card and gave him a small smile. 

Ron was more interested in eating the frogs than looking at the Famous Witches and Wizards cards, but Aurora couldn’t keep her eyes off them. Soon she had not only Dumbledore and Morgana, but Hengist of Woodcroft, Alberic Grunnion, Circe, Paracelsus, and Merlin. 

“Do you still collect?” Remus asked.

“Naw, I had other things on my mind,” Aurora said cryptically.

She finally tore her eyes away from the Druidess Cliodna, who was scratching her nose, to open a bag of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans.

“You want to be careful with those,” Ron warned Aurora. “When they say every flavor, they mean every flavor — you know, you get all the ordinary ones like chocolate and peppermint and marmalade, but then you can get spinach and liver and tripe. George reckons he had a booger flavored one once.”

“I got a belly button lint flavored one once,” Amice gagged.

Several people shuttered in sympathy.

Ron picked up a green bean, looked at it carefully, and bit into a corner.

“Bleaaargh — see? Sprouts.”

They had a good time eating the Every Flavor Beans. Aurora got toast, coconut, baked bean, strawberry, curry, grass, coffee, sardine, and was even brave enough to nibble the end off a funny gray one Ron and Amice wouldn’t touch, which turned out to be pepper.

“Potter luck,” Sirius grumbled. He always got all the weird flavors while James got all the good ones.

Neville laughed, “The only time she ever has good luck is with Bertie Bott’s beans.”

This of course just made Aurora’s parents even more worried.

The countryside now flying past the window was becoming wilder. The neat fields had gone. Now there were woods, twisting rivers, and dark green hills. 

There was a knock on the door of their compartment and the round-faced boy Aurora had passed on platform nine and three-quarters came in, she remembered his grandmother calling him Neville, and Aurora wondered if this was her god-brother. He looked tearful.

“Sorry,” he said, “but have you seen a toad at all?” When they shook their heads, he wailed, “I’ve lost him! He keeps getting away from me!”

“He’ll turn up,” said Aurora. “I can help you look if you want.” She scrambled to get to her feet and follow the boy.

“Yes,” said the boy miserably. “Well, if you see him…”

He turned to leave, and “I can help you look if you want.” She scrambled to get to her feet and follow the boy.

“Oh I hope you guys are close,” Alice muttered.

“She’s the best sister I could ever ask for,” Neville replied, a huge smile on his face.

"So," she decided to get straight down to business, "Which way did you come from?"

Neville pointed from the left so Aurora started walking right. The corridor’s weren’t very large, but that didn't bother Aurora that much as she was very skinny. "Do you like toads?"

"They’re really helpful in a greenhouse," the boy mumbled. "And I’ve been helping Gran with hers for years. I’m really looking forward to Herbology at school, so Gran bought me Trevor, but he keeps running off."

“Herbology is my favorite too,” Frank said.

Neville started, “Gran always said your favorite was Defense.” Augusta just let out a soft huff.

Frank glared fondly at his mother, “Alice is better at Defense than I am. I prefer Transfiguration and Herbology.” Neville smiled, as much as he hated always being compared to his father growing up, finding out that a lot of that wasn’t true, but also that he had a lot in common with his father made him feel good. It also explained why his grandmother didn’t put up much of a fight when he talked about Herbology, and was always buying him new plants.

"That's nice, I brought an owl, she's very pretty." Aurora leaned into a cabin and asked about a toad.

"I saw her, she is very pretty," the boy muttered, and Aurora beamed back at him. She was very proud of Hedwig, and so grateful to Hagrid for getting her for her.

"What's your name?"

"N-Neville Longbottom."

Aurora turned around, throwing her arms around him in a hug, 

“The first time I ever initiated a hug.”

“I was hoping you were when I heard your grandmother call you Neville. I’m Aurora Potter, and you are my god-brother.” Aurora was so excited, the letter from her parents made her want this boy to be her brother as they should have grown up as.

"No way!” Neville exclaimed, “You’re Aurora Potter?”

Aurora playfully crossed her arms across her chest, "Well technically Potter-Black."

“When do you start going by Potter-Black, not just Potter?” Regulus asked.

“I started really using it the summer before third year, but it wasn’t well known until fourth year.”

"OH NO! I didn't mean to offend you-" Aurora cut Neville off by laughing, she placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I was joking Nev-" the boy's cheeks turned red "-want to be friends?" she asked shyly, hoping that she hadn’t offended the boy with her teasing.

"Y-You wa-want to be friends with me?" he asked in disbelief.

“Why is that so surprising,” Augusta demanded. “You are a Longbottom, and if your father is indisposed, you are the next Lord Longbottom.”

"Well actually I’m going to call you my brother! But you can just call me your friend if you want." Aurora clapped her hands together.

"Uhm, sure," said Neville, not believing that the Aurora Potter would want to be friends with him, let alone call him her brother.

Aurora got up and went over to the couch Neville was sitting on. Luna just moved over to make room between herself and Neville for Aurora. “You were always meant to be my brother, and I hate that you doubted that for even a minute,” she said softly to him.

Aurora squealed and then wrapped her arms around his neck again, "Yay! Neville and Aurora, Hogwarts won't know what hit them. We’ll be more infamous than the Marauders. That was the name of my dad’s group of friends when he was at school,” she explained at his confused look.

She nodded on the door to the last compartment in that car and it slid open, Cedric stood on the other side.

"Oh, hi Cedric" Aurora exclaimed, surprised, her cheeks flushing. "We're looking for a toad."

“Sorry Rory, but I’ll keep an eye out for you?” he said, asking for Neville’s name

Neville looked at Aurora for a moment before answering, “I’m Neville. Neville Longbottom.”

“Hello Neville, I’m Cedric. And I hope you and Aurora find your toad then Neville. She’s a good friend to have.” Cedric’s friends in the compartment all turned to stare at her, trying to catch a glimpse of her scar.

Seeing how awkward Aurora felt with people staring at her, he pushed her slightly behind himself, hiding her from view, “The best there is. She’s my sister!” he exclaimed. “Thanks for your help Cedric.” Even Cedric blocked Aurora from view after he saw how his friends were staring at her.

“He’s never even blinked at your fame has he,” Columba asked. She didn’t know all that happened, but she could almost infer based on Aurora's reactions to some of the mentions of him, as well as the fact that she was with Fred and not her son, and yet she knew that Cedric wouldn’t regret anything if the two of them got involved. Her husband however she knew would push for Cedric to stay away from the girl once he either figured it out or found out in the books.

“Never,” Aurora answered. “I’ve never been Aurora Potter, The-Girl-Who-Lived, to him. I’ve just always been Rory.” Her hand once more grabbed her necklace, the others in the room this time able to catch a glimpse of what looked like a locket and another charm. Neville pulled Aurora closer.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t find Trevor,” Aurora said as they arrived back at her compartment, Ron and Amice were sitting together talking.

“That’s okay, he’ll turn up eventually. Thank you for your help.”

Aurora ducked back into the compartment and plopped back down on the seat next to Amice.

“We saw your brother,” Aurora said cheerfully, trying to fight the blush from creeping back across her face when she thought of Cedric.

“You’re fighting a losing battle,” Peter, Remus and Sirius laughed. James just stuck his tongue out at his friends.

“Don’t know why he’s so bothered,” said Ron. “If I’d brought a toad I’d lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can’t talk.”

The rat was still snoozing on Ron’s lap.

Ron shuddered in memory of all the places he had let Scabbers sleep. 

“He might have died and you wouldn’t know the difference,” said Ron in disgust. “I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn’t work. I’ll show you, look…”

He rummaged around in his trunk and pulled out a very battered-looking wand. It was chipped in places and something white was glinting at the end.

“Unicorn hair’s nearly poking out. Anyway —”

“Oh dear, that doesn’t sound very safe,” Sprout said, worried for her future student.

He had just raised his wand when the compartment door slid open again. Neville was back, but this time he had a girl with him. She was already wearing her new Hogwarts robes.

“Back so soon, Nev?”

“Has anyone seen a toad? Neville’s lost one,” she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair, and rather large front teeth.

“We’ve already told him we haven’t seen it,” said Ron, but the girl wasn’t listening, she was looking at the wand in his hand.

“Oh, are you doing magic? Let’s see it, then.”

She sat down. Ron looked taken aback.

“I would too,” Barty said. “She’s rather imposing.”

Hermione just crossed her arms with a huff.

“Er — all right.”

He cleared his throat.

“Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow.” He waved his wand, but nothing happened. Scabbers stayed gray and fast asleep.

Fred burst out laughing, “You really fell for that?”

“How did you ever think that was a real spell,” Ginny asked, laughing as well.

Ron just shook his head, “I thought they were trying to teach me something, I didn’t think it was another prank.”

Fred looked down, a little ashamed that instead of helping his younger brother before he went to school, he and George gave him a prank spell.

“Are you sure that’s a real spell?” said the girl. “Well, it’s not very good, is it? I’ve tried a few simple spells just for practice and it’s all worked for me. Nobody in my family’s magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it’s the very best school of witchcraft there is, I’ve heard — I’ve learned all our course books by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough — I’m Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?” 

Ron finished reading this, huffing out a breath. “Merlin, ‘Mione. How do you talk that fast?”

Barty flushed a little, remembering his earlier comment.

Lily looked at her amazed, even she hadn’t learned all her course books by heart before she left for Hogwarts.

She said all this very fast.

Aurora looked at Ron and Amice, and was relieved to see by their stunned faces that they hadn’t learned all the course books by heart either. The non course books that she had picked up on the other hand she had memorized no problem.

“I’m Ron Weasley,” Ron muttered.

“Amice Diggory,” Amice answered.

“Aurora Potter,” said Aurora.

“Are you really?” said Hermione. “I know all about you, of course — I got a few extra books, for background reading, and you’re in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century.”

“Please tell me you didn’t really believe everything in those books,” Draco asked.

“Oh she did until she got to know me,” Aurora said.

“She has a bad habit of believing anything in a book is the truth,” Ron added.

“Oh I hope that doesn’t last too long,” Pandora exclaimed.

“No, I learn very quickly that people can print whatever they want in books and the news.”

“Am I?” said Aurora, feeling dazed.

“Goodness, didn’t you know, I’d have found out everything I could if it was me,” said Hermione. “Do either of you know what house you’ll be in? I’ve been asking around, and I hope I’m in Gryffindor, it sounds by far the best; I hear Dumbledore himself was in it, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn’t be too bad… Anyway, we’d better go and look for Neville’s toad. You two had better change, you know, I expect we’ll be there soon.”

“You have got to take a breath,” Ron gasped again.

And she left, taking Neville with her.

“Whatever house I’m in, I hope she’s not in it,” said Ron. 

“Ron!” Molly snapped.

Hermione quickly came to his rescue, “It’s okay Mrs. Weasley, I wouldn’t have wanted to be in the same house as me at the beginning of my first year either.”

He threw his wand back into his trunk. “Stupid spell — George gave it to me, bet he knew it was a dud.”

“What house are your brothers in?” asked Aurora. 

“Cedric is in Hufflepuff, and so was dad,” Amice said. “Mum is Greek so she went to Beauxbatons.”

“My brothers are in Gryffindor,” said Ron. Gloom seemed to be settling on him again. “Mom and Dad were in it, too. I don’t know what they’ll say if I’m not. I don’t suppose Ravenclaw would be too bad, but imagine if they put me in Slytherin.”

“There is nothing wrong with Slytherin,” Regulus defended.

“A few bad people have given it a horrible reputation,” Alastor agreed.

Aurora looked down, she had nothing against Slytherin, and the hat was right, she probably would have done well in the house, the only reason she was against it was because of Malfoy. She wondered for a second what it would have been like if she had been Black-Potter, not Potter-Black.

“That’s the house Vol-, I mean, You-Know-Who was in?”

“Yeah,” said Ron. He flopped back into his seat, looking depressed.

“You know, I think the ends of Scabbers’ whiskers are a bit lighter,” said Aurora, trying to take Ron’s mind off houses. “So what do your oldest brothers do now that they’ve left, anyway?”

Aurora was wondering what a wizard did once he’d finished school.

“Charlie’s in Romania studying dragons, and Bill’s in Africa doing something for Gringotts,” said Ron. 

“Oh they are so far away,” Molly complained.

“Bill moves back home at the end of our fourth year,” Ron reassured her.

“I’m going to break into Pharaoh's tombs mum,” Bill piped up.

The time travelers laughed before Ginny explained, “He’s a curse breaker for Gringotts. He was assigned to Egypt for a couple years on a team that searches old tombs.” This caused everyone else to laugh as well. Even at 7, Bill knows what he wants to do.

“Did you hear about Gringotts? It’s been all over the Daily Prophet, but I don’t suppose you get that with the Muggles — someone tried to rob a high security vault.”

Aurora stared.

“Really? What happened to them?”

“Nothing, that’s why it’s such big news. They haven’t been caught. My dad says it must’ve been a powerful Dark wizard to get round Gringotts, but they don’t think they took anything, that’s what’s odd. ’Course, everyone gets scared when something like this happens in case You-Know-Who’s behind it.”

Aurora turned this news over in her mind. She was starting to get a prickle of fear every time You-Know-Who was mentioned. She supposed this was all part of entering the magical world, but it had been a lot more comfortable saying “Voldemort” without worrying.

Several people agreed with her.

“What’s your Quidditch team?” Ron asked Aurora; he and Amice had argued for years about the Cannons and the Falmouth Falcons.

“Er — I don’t know any.” Aurora confessed.

James looked horror stricken.

“I know them now, and I’m a Puddlemere fan.”

“Aren’t we all,” Fred said, talking about all the people who were on the same team as Oliver.

“What!” Ron looked dumbfounded. “Oh, you wait, it’s the best game in the world —” And he was off, explaining all about the four balls and the positions of the seven players, describing famous games he’d been to with his brothers and the broomstick he’d like to get if he had the money. He was just taking Aurora through the finer points of the game when the compartment door slid open yet again, but it wasn’t Neville, or Hermione Granger this time. 

“Oh who is it this time,” Marlene said. Couldn’t Aurora just enjoy a trip on the train without all the comings and goings.

Three boys entered, and Aurora recognized the middle one at once: it was the pale boy from Madam Malkin’s robe shop. He was looking at Aurora with a lot more interest than he’d shown back in Diagon Alley.

“Is it true?” he said. “They’re saying all down the train that Aurora Potter’s in this compartment. So it’s you, is it?” He then noticed Amice in the compartment as well and added, “Hello Diggory.”

“Real polite Draco,” Amice laughed at her boyfriend.

“Yes,” said Aurora. She was looking at the other boys. Both of them were thickset and looked extremely mean. Standing on either side of the pale boy, they looked like bodyguards.

“Oh, this is Crabbe and this is Goyle,” said the pale boy carelessly, noticing where Aurora was looking. “And my name’s Malfoy, Draco Malfoy.” Aurora recognized the last name.

Ron gave a slight cough, which might have been hiding a snigger. Draco Malfoy looked at him.

“Think my name’s funny, do you? No need to ask who you are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford.”

“This is your influence,” Narcissa scolded Lucius.

He turned back to Aurora. “You’ll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don’t want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there.”

She really didn’t like how this boy was behaving, but every etiquette book she had read, and the lessons from Mrs. Figg, said that to not shake his hand was one of the worst insults. So she stood and with gritted teeth said, “Heir Malfoy, I’m glad to make your acquaintance. I am Heir Potter-Black,” as she shook his hand. “I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks,” she added coolly, dropping his hand and stepping back next to Amice.

“That was very well done Aurora,” Regulus praised.

Sirius grinned, “Not how I would have handled it, but your way might be better, cause now he can’t claim insult.”

Draco Malfoy didn’t go red, but a pink tinge appeared in his pale cheeks.

“I’d be careful if I were you, Potter,” he said slowly. “Unless you’re a bit politer you’ll go the same way as your parents. They didn’t know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riffraff like the Weasleys and that Hagrid, and it’ll rub off on you.”

“Oh Draco,” Narcissa sighed. “No matter how much we dislike people, we must be polite when among our betters, and like it or not, Potter is a Noble and Most Ancient house, and she is also Heir Black.”

Draco nodded, “I don’t do a very good job living up to the Black name for a long time, and I apologize mother.”

“It’s okay Cissy,” Aurora defended. “Draco turns out to be a great friend once he gets over his snobbishness.”

“In other words until fourth year when I knock some sense into him,” Amice added, getting a scowl from Draco.

Amice, Aurora and Ron stood up, it was one thing to insult her, she was used to it, but Aurora wouldn’t let anyone insult her friends.

“Say that again,” Ron said, his face as red as his hair.

“Oh, you’re going to fight us, are you?” Malfoy sneered.

“Unless you get out now,” said Aurora, more bravely than she felt, because Crabbe and Goyle were a lot bigger than her, Amice or Ron. “I’ve usually been on the receiving end, but I will stand up for my friends.”

“You would do very well in Hufflepuff, Miss Potter,” Professor Sprout said.

As much as Aurora loved Cedric, she disagreed with her professor, for touting loyalty, Hufflepuff’s were very quick to turn on her, except for Cedric and Amice. They were the only two that stood by her in her second and her fourth year, and they were almost turned against by the rest of their house for it. 

“But we don’t feel like leaving, do we, boys? We’ve eaten all our food and you still seem to have some.” 

Goyle reached toward the Chocolate Frogs next to Ron — Ron leapt forward, but before he’d so much as touched Goyle, Goyle let out a horrible yell.

Scabbers the rat was hanging off his finger, sharp little teeth sunk deep into Goyle’s knuckle — 

“Only good thing that rat ever did,” Aurora mumbled. 

Crabbe and Malfoy backed away as Goyle swung Scabbers round and round, howling, and when Scabbers finally flew off and hit the window, all three of them disappeared at once. Perhaps they thought there were more rats lurking among the sweets, or perhaps they’d heard footsteps, because a second later, Hermione Granger had come in.

“What has been going on?” she said, looking at the sweets all over the floor and Ron picking up Scabbers by his tail.

“I think he’s been knocked out,” Ron said to Aurora. He looked closer at Scabbers. “No — I don’t believe it — he’s gone back to sleep.”

And so he had.

“Sounds familiar,” Remus teased, causing Peter to flush.

“Very,” Hermione whispered angrily to Ron and Aurora.

“You’ve met Malfoy before?”

Aurora explained about their meeting in Diagon Alley, while Amice explained that their fathers did business together, so they had spent some time together.

“I’ve heard of his family,” said Ron darkly. “They were some of the first to come back to our side after You-Know-Who disappeared. Said they’d been bewitched. My dad doesn’t believe it. He says Malfoy’s father didn’t need an excuse to go over to the Dark Side.” He turned to Hermione. “Can we help you with something?”

“You’d better hurry up and put your robes on, I’ve just been up to the front to ask the conductor, and he says we’re nearly there. You haven’t been fighting, have you? You’ll be in trouble before we even get there!”

“Scabbers has been fighting, not us,” said Ron, scowling at her. “Would you mind leaving while we change?”

“All right — I only came in here because people outside are behaving very childishly, racing up and down the corridors,” said Hermione in a sniffy voice. “And you’ve got dirt on your nose, by the way, did you know?”

“Oh Hermione,” Lily laughed, “you are going to want to loosen up a little, people are acting like children because they are children.”

“I know,” Hermione sighed. “I was always told I was mature for my age, I never had any friends in primary. I really wanted to make friends at Hogwarts, but I didn’t really know how to relate to other people my age, so I went about it the wrong way.”

“That’s ok we saved her,” Aurora laughed at the double meaning.

Ron glared at her as she left. Aurora peered out of the window. It was getting dark. She could see mountains and forests under a deep purple sky. The train did seem to be slowing down. Ron went to the men’s bathroom while Amice and Aurora changed into their robes. She smiled as Amice helped her tie her tie. She had a feeling that her parents were watching her, and would be proud no matter where she was sorted.

“Of course,” James said. “We will always be watching over you.”

“And it doesn’t matter where you get sorted,” Lily added. “You’ll be an asset to whichever house you join.”

Aurora just beamed. Sirius had told her the same thing many times, and that he would have been proud no matter what house also, but it was something completely different to hearing it herself.

A voice echoed through the train: “We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes’ time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately.”

Aurora’s stomach lurched with nerves and Ron, who had come back in as soon as he was given the all clear, she saw, looked pale under his freckles. The three of them crammed their pockets with the last of the sweets and joined the crowd thronging the corridor.

“Alice forgot all hers one year, and complained the whole feast that she had left her sweets on the train,” Lily said, while Marlene laughed.

The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out on to a tiny, dark platform. Aurora shivered in the cold night air. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Aurora heard a familiar voice: “Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here! All right there, Aurora?”

Hagrid’s big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads.

“C’mon, follow me — any more firs’ years? Mind yer step, now! Firs’ years follow me!”

Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Aurora thought there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke much. Neville sniffed once or twice.

 “Yeh’ll get yer firs’ sight o’ Hogwarts in a sec,” Hagrid called over his shoulder, “jus’ round this bend here.”

 There was a loud “Oooooh!”

Everyone who had seen it before sighed. There was no better sight than Hogwarts lit up at night, ready for the start of the school year.

 The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.

“No more’n four to a boat!” Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Aurora and Ron were followed into their boat by Neville and Hermione. Amice was in a boat with a curly haired boy, and two females, one with blonde hair and the other with brown.

“Justin, Hannah, and Tracey,” she said to Draco who looked confused. Then for the others in the room she elaborated. “Justin Finch-Fletchley, he’s a muggle born. Hannah Abbott and Tracey Davis.

“Everyone in?” shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself. “Right then — FORWARD!”

And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, which was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.

“Heads down!” yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbor, where they clambered out onto rocks and pebbles.

“Oy, you there! Is this your toad?” said Hagrid, who was checking the boats as people climbed out of them.

“I still have no idea how he got there,” Neville grumbled.

“Trevor!” cried Neville blissfully, holding out his hands. Then they clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid’s lamp, coming out at last onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.

They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.

“Everyone here? You there, still got yer toad?”

Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door. 

“I thought that chapter would never end,” Ron complained. “Can we have a snack before we read more?”

As soon as he said snack, everyone’s favorite snack items appeared on the tables in front of everyone. 

While they were digging in, Lily took the book. “I am going to read my daughter’s sorting.”