The professors who were to be Lindsay's instructors were gathered in Dumbledore's office waiting for her to arrive. Minerva McGonagall had gone to fetch her and was due back at any moment. Everyone was sitting and chatting and drinking tea, except for Snape, who stood stock still at some distance from everyone else looking sour and put-upon. At last, they heard McGonagall's voice as she entered the room with Lindsay in tow. The headmaster moved to greet them while the rest of the faculty stood and formed an informal line.

"Hello, Professor Dumbledore, it's so good to see you again."

Snape eyed her as she chatted casually with the headmaster. His eyes slowly moved over every inch of her, taking in every detail. She had long, dark-red hair, fair skin, and large, vivid blue eyes. She was large in other places too, specifically on either side of her chest. She had a lean build, slim round hips, and a small waist. She wore a light-blue silk blouse with no collar and a low neckline. He surmised that her choice of dress was designed to make a favorable impression on her male instructors. She wore fitted gray trousers that outlined her long slim legs. She was very tall and wore low-heeled black dress boots. Dumbledore escorted her over to introduce her to her teachers, and Snape had to raise his eyes a little to look at her.

Remus Lupin, out of the corner of his eye, noticed something odd about Snape's posture, and turned his head to look at him. He was troubled by the force of Snape's gaze and the rigidity of his body. His concern deepened as an oddly indignant expression crept into Snape's features. It was as if Snape was bracing himself against something. The girl appeared not to notice or, at least, not be bothered by it. She smiled warmly at Snape as Dumbledore introduced him to her. Snape flinched, almost imperceptively, when she extended her hand, but accepted it. His cheeks reddened and he dropped his gaze when she laid her other hand over the back of his. The girl clearly saw and understood his reaction, and softly patted his hand before releasing it. Lupin managed to quell the laugh that desperately wanted to erupt from him, but couldn't prevent a mischievous smile from taking over his features. As Snape brought his eyes back up, he noticed Lupin observing him. Snape's eyes narrowed into a hate-filled glare, and his mouth curled into a sneer. Lupin winked at him.

The girl was next introduced to Flitwick. She modestly placed her left hand over the front of her blouse as she bent down onto one knee to speak to him, and placed it there again as she rose to greet Lupin. Each of her professors were greeted with the same warm smile and extended hand. Snape watched her carefully as she was introduced to Rubeus Hagrid, curious to see her reaction to the half-giant.

"Professor Hagrid," she said as she extended her hand to him. Her bearing gave no indication that Hagrid appeared unusual to her. Judging by her demeanor alone, one would think Hagrid's height and proportions were commonplace.

"Jus' Hagrid."

"Okay, Hagrid, it is. You're the one I've been most anxious to meet. I'm very fond of animals, though I admit that I've had little experience with them. But, I promise you, I'm not afraid of hard work or getting my hands dirty." Hagrid beamed with pride and immediately invited her tea, which she accepted. "Yes, I'd very much like that."

Lupin leaned toward Snape and whispered, "Pretty, isn't she?"

Snape glared at him. "To some, perhaps."

"Now that everyone's been met, I think it's time to show you where you'll be staying," said McGonagall. Lindsay followed her out of the headmaster's office toward Gryffindor Tower. "Now remember to pay attention to the staircases; they have a tendency to move." Lindsay's eyes were wide with disbelief. Staircases moved by themselves, ghosts greeted her, and the most bizarre thing of all, the portraits not only moved, but spoke. McGonagall spoke to a noisy aggressive portrait, which she identified as Sir Cadogan. The portrait then moved to let them pass. "This is the Gryffindor common room. That staircase leads to the boys and girls dormitories. Due to your age, I've decided it would be best for you to have more private quarters." McGonagall looked about and muttered, "Hmph, all boys," then spotted two girls sitting together and talking. "Oh, Miss Granger, come here please…and you too Miss Weasley. Follow me girls."

They passed through a large oak door to another hallway. "At the end of this hallway are my quarters, should you need me. You'll be staying in here." Lindsay followed McGonagall into a cozy little sitting room. A long couch flanked by two well-stuffed chairs surrounded a table that sat in front of a small fireplace. There was a good deal of space behind the couch, and plenty of room for Lindsay's painting supplies, which were already laid out for her. Her easel stood with a blank canvas upon it. Her guitar and violin were still in their cases and leaned against the wall next to a spacious oak desk. At the far end of the room was kitchenette, next to which was a closed door. "Through there is a washroom and your bedroom." McGonagall turned to look for the two girls. She spied them standing uneasily in the hallway and invited them in. "Come in girls. I'll introduce you properly in just a moment. Now, Miss Gray, students normally have a curfew, but because of your age I've chosen not impose one on you. That freedom will be revoked, however, should you prove yourself to be irresponsible. You may wander the castle at will, but I must ask that you do not walk the grounds after dark; this is for your own safety. Also, no student may leave Hogwarts' grounds unless escorted by a teacher; this is also for your own safety. Do you understand everything so far?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good, make sure you're well acquainted with the school's handbook." She waved the two girls closer. "This is Hermione Granger and Ginny Weasley. They will show you about the castle and help you get settled in. Do you have any questions?"

"No, ma'am," answered Lindsay.

"Excellent, I'll be leaving you in their capable hands then." Professor McGonagall wasn't gone a full ten seconds when two red-heads appeared in Lindsay's doorway.

"May we come in?" they said in unison.

"Yes, of course," said Lindsay as she walked toward them to introduce herself. "I'm Lindsay."

"You'll be sorry for that," said Ginny.

Fred took Lindsay's hand and shook it vigorously. "I'm Fred." As Fred released her hand, George grabbed it and did precisely the same thing. "And I'm George."

"We're twins," they said in unison.

"Really? I would never have guessed. Come in, make yourselves at home." Ginny winced.

"Quite nice," said Fred looking about the room.

"Just you, is it?" asked George.

"Yes, it's just me," answered Lindsay.

A three-leaved picture frame sat open on her desk. Ginny noticed it, and picked it up to see three generations of an uncommonly handsome family. "Is this your family?"

"They were, they're all gone now," answered Lindsay. Ginny blushed and apologized as she set the pictures back down. "Oh, it's alright. It was a long time ago. Amazing how quickly time passes." Lindsay picked the photos up and said, "I always keep them with me, but I never set them out or I end up staring at them for hours."

She lowered her hands and opened the hinged leaves for everyone to see. "Both sets of my grandparents are in the middle frame. I was about six when that photo was taken, and they were already well into their eighties." She pointed to the man in the front. He was seated in a plain chair as was the woman, presumably his wife, who was next to him. The other couple was standing behind them. All of them looked strong and youthful for their ages, as if they had remained athletic throughout their lives. "You can't tell because his hair is white here, but he's the one that gave me my red hair. Everyone else in my family was blond. His name was Henry, but most people called him Big Red."

Lindsay strongly resembled her grandfather. They both had the same vivid blue eyes and the same pleasantly mischievous expression. "He's sitting down in almost all of the pictures I have of him because it was the only way to fit him in with everyone else. He was so tall, he just towered over everyone. It still seems strange to see him that way since he was always so active. He was never still even at that age."

She then pointed to the photograph on the right. "That's me at fourteen with my sister, who was twenty-two, and my brother, who was twenty-four. This picture was taken just before we moved to England." All three were standing. Lindsay's brother stood behind her with his hands on her shoulders; her sister stood next to her. Her brother wore a well-tailored navy suit. Their sister wore a conservative burgundy dress, and Lindsay wore a light green dress, her long hair neatly braided. "My sister's name was Melody and my brother's was Noble. We called him Nob. He hated it. And, lastly, here are my parents with my sister and brother. This was taken before I was born. My mother was actually pregnant with me when this photo was taken, but she didn't know it. I was an unexpected gift." Lindsay smiled and folded the picture frame, placing in the desk's top drawer. Two more framed photos, one of an elderly woman and another of an elderly man, also sat on the desk. Lindsay placed them in the drawer on top of the other photos.

"So what happened to them?" asked Fred. Ginny elbowed him.

"Well, my grandparents all died of natural causes long before we moved out of the country. My parents and siblings died in a car accident. They were on their way to work and got broadsided by a drunk driver. I then went to live with a family friend. He died unexpectedly, and I wound up living with his mother. Sweet woman, quite aged, I was fond of her. She suffered terribly from rheumatism. She passed away right before I went to college."

"Where are you from originally?" said Hermione. "Your accent sounds a bit American."

"I'm from Baltimore, Maryland."

"I suppose it was a shock for you-to live in a different country, I mean," said Ginny.

"Not at all, I was accustomed to travel by a very young age. I can settle in anywhere."

"So they all worked at the same place," said George. "Is that typical for Muggles?"

"Typical for what?"

"Muggles," said Hermione. "That means non-magical people."

"Some people do; some people don't. They all played in a classical orchestra. My mother and sister played the violin. My father and brother played the viola."

"So musical talent runs in the family," said Fred as he opened Lindsay's violin case. George did the same with her guitar case. "Do you play in an orchestra too?"

"No, I'm not nearly good enough."

"No need to be modest with us," said George with a broad smile.

"Not modest, just truthful. I would describe my playing as above average, but their skills were prodigious. It took me years to learn to play well. They took to their instruments immediately."

"Do you play anything else?" asked Ginny.

"I also play piano. Guitar is my favorite instrument, but the violin is my best."

"Let's see…what else can we ask you?" said Fred.

"I'll help you out," said Lindsay. "I'm six feet tall. My favorite color is blue, light blue specifically. I like to sing. I took dance classes from age five to seventeen. At which time, I was told that I'm far too tall to be a dancer. I suspect that was my instructor's way of nicely telling me that I wasn't good enough to make dancing a career. I'm a Pisces and I talk a lot, sometimes too much. How's that?"

"Not bad," answered Fred as he moved to snoop around the kitchenette.

"You mentioned going to college?" asked Hermione.

"Oh, here it comes," said Fred.

Hermione ignored him. "What did you study?"

"I have degrees in music theory, art history, and medicine," answered Lindsay.

"You have a medical degree?" blurted Hermione excitedly.

"Careful there," said George. "Granger will be drooling in a minute."

"Did you study all that at the same time?" asked Ginny looking more than a little skeptical.

"Yes," answered Lindsay, who was accustomed to the question. "I have an eidetic memory. Most people call it a-"

"-photographic memory," blurted Hermione. "Sorry."

"It's okay," laughed Lindsay.

"Since your cupboards are completely barren, and we have no interest in letting Granger start talking about bookish things, George and I will be delighted to show you to the kitchen," said Fred as he offered Lindsay his arm, which she took.

"Not without us," warned Ginny. "You two aren't getting her into trouble on her first day."

"Honestly, Ginny, you're starting to sound like Mum," said George.

"So what brings you to Hogwarts?" asked Fred.

"Long story, I'll explain on the way to the kitchen."