Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters present in Harry Potter. blah blah blah...if I did, I would be hanging around the movie set everyday fawning over Dan, Tom, and Rupert, I'd be Emma's best friend and I'd be rolling in cash...

Chapter One

Rumors were flying around the castle at top speed. Harry couldn't turn a corner without hearing murmers and whispers. He had gotten bored with the usual gossip that normally circulated through the castle, so this new development at Hogwarts was something he wanted to get a hold of. This year had been pretty uneventful. Other than the constant threat of an attack from the newly returned Lord Voldemort, who was appearing to lay low until he had a descent following, nothing of any great importance was happening.

As he headed for the Gryffindor common room, Harry ran into Ron.

"Hey Harry," Ron greated him. "Have you heard the news?"

"No, I've heard the rumors, but I have no clue what they're about."

"You'll never believe it, mate," he continued as he stepped through the whole that led into the common room. "Dumbledore's bringing in a new student."

"So, who cares about that?" Harry asked, sitting down in an armchair in front of the fire.

"Well, for one, can you remember ever having a new student after the year has started?" Ron said, sitting next to him.

"No, I guess not."

"And that's not all," he continued, a wild grin on his face. "She's from the states."

Harry stopped flipping through the history book on his lap and stared up at Ron. "No way, Ron."

"Yes way, Harry." came Fred and George's voices together. Harry looked up to see them walking towards them from across the room.

"We've seen her." said George.

"And spoken with her." said Fred.

"And you'll never guess which house she's in," came Hermione's voice from across the room.

All four boys turned to see Hermione entering the Gryffindor common room, a tall girl with long hair trailing behind her.

"Now," Hermione said to the girl. "Don't forget the password or you'll be standing out there until someone else comes by and that could be hours."

"Okay, remember the password," the girl replied.

"Emily, this is Fred, George and Ron Weasly." Hermione said, pointing all of them out individually. "And this is Harry Potter."

"It's nice to meet you all," the girl said.

"This is Emily Shane."

The girl stood where she was, not looking at all uncomfortable amongst the strangers who were gawking at her. She actually looked like she was enjoying herself. She stood in front of them and played with the hem of her jacket. Her long, dark blonde hair was pulled into a braid that fell over her shoulder.

Harry broke away from the others and offered his hand to the girl. "Welcome to Hogwarts."

"Thanks," she replied as she gently took his hand. "I've never seen any place like it."

"I'd imagine so," said Ron, who had followed Harry's lead. "Where are you did you transfer from?"

"It's kinda complicated," she replied. "There wasn't really a school like this in the states. It was kinda like a traveling circus."

"What do you mean?" asked Harry, clearly interested.

"Well, there weren't very many of us, maybe twenty or thirty. All of us were the same age and had been together for quite a while, except the adults, I guess you could say you they were our teachers. We would travel around everywhere so we wouldn't draw too much attention to ourselves. We were kind of like gyspies I guess." All of this came out in one long breath. She looked down at her shoes, embarrassed by her own ramblings.

"Well," said George.

"That's just fascinating," said Fred.

"But we are even more interesting," George cut in.

"Stick with us and all your dreams will come true." Fred finished.

"I'll make sure to remember that. Now," she said, turning to Hermione. "I'm really tired, would you mind showing me where to sleep?"

"Follow me."

"Goodnight all," the mysterious new girl said, following Hermione to the girl's dorm. The boys sat in the common room in silence, each one's head spinning with questions of their own.

Hermoine showed the girl which bed she could call her own during her stay and where to put her things. She showed her to the bathrooms and then told her the rules of the castle, where to go and where not to go. She gave her her class schedule and promised not to let her get lost. Soon, however, Hermoine found herself yawning and in need of sleep, so she excused herself and crawled into her own bed.

Emily found herself staring at the ceiling of the girl's dormitory, wide awake. So many thoughts flowed through her mind all at once. Finally, in the early hours of the morning, her eyes finally drifted closed and she fell asleep.