You Set Me Free – Chapter 3

            After the banquet, Adrianna followed her new house out of the Great Hall. As she walked out of the huge wooden doors, a hand caught her arm. Adrianna's eyes followed it upwards to a stern looking woman, whose sharp features were softened only by the smile he wore. The woman waited until all of the students were starting up the stairs. At the foot, Harry waited, giving her a questioning smile.

            "Go upstairs Harry. Adrianna will be alright." The woman said and waited until Harry hesitantly made their way up the stairs. The woman then turned to the Adrianna." Adrianna… you've grown since I've seen you last. I'm your Aunt Minerva."

            "Aunt Minnie?" the younger woman asked in disbelief. She had pictured her aunt as a short, plump woman not unlike her Aunt Pru. On an impulse, the girl hugged the older woman, who received it very uncomfortably.

            "Yes. Follow me and we can talk." With Professor McGonagall in the lead, the pair made their way to the Deputy Headmistress's office. There, the Professor settled down in an overstuffed armchair near the fire and gestured to her niece to do the same. "There are some things that you need to know about, and it'll be easier if I can just tell the story with out interruptions, so I get everything out that I need to say."

            Adrianna nodded as her aunt took a breath and began her story."

~*~

            "Your mother, Serenity, was my youngest sister and a very talented witch. She was a Ravenclaw here and Head Girl of her class. You father, Aaron, was talented too, but he hung around with James… Potter, Harry's father, and they and the rest of his friends got into trouble quite often with their little schemes. But he was handsome and charming, so it was very easy to see why your mother loved him so much.

            In their final year of school, Voldemort began to come into power. Thankfully, you were not alive when the violence was at its peak, but I'm afraid that you will experience it again soon.  Your parents got caught up in the war, and after graduation they both trained to join the Aurors, which are like the police force in the magical world.  They both worked here for a year or so, and then Voldemort was defeated the same night Harry's parents perished. [Here Adrianna gasped. Suddenly she understood why Harry seemed to know exactly what was going through with the loss of her parents. It's because he did. But her aunt continued.] That's what left the scar on Harry's head. But I digress. Voldemort's followers, called Death Eaters, dispersed without their leader, and the Auror task force wasn't needed in such high numbers anymore. So your mom retired and had you."

"2 years later, the agency got word that there was a Death Eater cell in Maine and they were training a new Lord to take Voldemort's place.  Your parents relocated to there, and against our better judgment, took you with them. Unfortunately, they were going undercover in the Death Eater cell, and their lives were being closely watched by spies.  So you could not know anything about their magical life, lest you let something slip.

 So each summer, your Aunt Pru and I had you visit us in England, and we would train you in the magic you'd need to know for later in life.  You don't remember it because we used a little known memory spell on you. Eventually, your parents cover was blown and they were killed by the Death Eaters. It was staged to look like an explosion at their office, but in reality, Death Eaters performed the Death Curse on your parents, and then blew the building up, making it look like an accident.

 You were still under suspicion, so Pru came to America to take care of you until the agency could be sure that you were safe. They recently determined that the cell had no knowledge of you, and allowed for you to come to Hogwarts.  You have the knowledge of a Seventh Year Student here, give or take a few things, which I'm going to unlock now."

Professor McGonagall proceeded to explain the memory recalling procedure to her niece and when the girl's questions were answered, began the difficult spell. Adrianna bit her lip and closed her eyes as her Aunt stood above her, and murmuring something in a foreign language, and waved her wand in a strange pattern. Suddenly, Adrianna felt lightheaded, and pictures began to flash before her eyes, too fast for her to get a good grasp of them. But she got the impression these were the lost summers. When it was over, she shakily opened his eyes.

"Okay... everything went according to plan.  But I'm just going to ask you a few questions," Aunt Minnie explained. Adrianna nodded, pressing a hand to her temple to ward off the wooziness. "First, what's the name of my home in Wales?"

"Highland Moors. Next,"

"Too easy then. But you could have heard that from your parents or Pru. So lets delve into some magic knowledge.  What's your wand made of?"

"Mahogany with a heart of unicorn hair. Where is my wand by the way?"

"I have it. You can have it later. Okay, something a bit harder, what are 3 uses for Beetle Eyes?" McGonagall asked, crossing her arms across her chest.

Adrianna answered the question hesitantly, unsure of herself. Her aunt looked at her for a moment, and then broke into a slow smile.

            "Very good. And now, here's your wand." The older woman produced a narrow box, and handed it to the younger, who opened it eagerly and lifted it out.  "Just give it a few swishes to make sure that there weren't any complications with the spell."

Adrianna did as told; eliciting a shower of gold, magenta, and cobalt sparks from the tip of the wand. She grinned as she rested the wand back in the box.

"Perfect. When do I get to do more spells?"

"Hold on a minute. You may have some magical knowledge, but you're still only at a 5th year level Did you meet Hermione Granger? She's a friend of Harry's, and I believe is dating Ronald Weasley." Minerva continued  as Adrianna nodded in affirmation. "I'm going to see if she can tutor you. She's definitely up to the task, but the question is, will she take the time to do it.  But Ms. Granger never does things the easy way, so I'm almost positive she will." Adrianna smiled. She had gathered that Hermione was somewhat of an overachiever as she described her very stressful course load at the banquet. It seemed her intuition was right. Minerva stooped behind her desk and came out with a box.

"Your arrival was a bit strange, so I took the liberty of gathering up the basic school supplies you'll need. There's a caldron, a good storage of ingredients, all of your books, parchment, and quills. I also got you two school robes. I had the tailor estimate your size from the last picture you sent me, so they may be a strange fit. We'll go tomorrow evening to Diagon Alley to get the rest of your things. I have a Floo Connection there from my house in Hogsmede.

The younger woman followed her aunt through the magical halls of Hogwarts, to the Pink Lady portrait. McGonagall uttered the password (Braveheart), and Adrianna was amazed as the portrait swung open to reveal a door, which the two passed through.  Harry was sitting in the common room, staring into the fire. He looked up expectantly as the door closed with a clang. Adrianna smiled at him, and then stared in awe at the majestic sight of the common room.  Minerva on the other hand, stared disapprovingly at Harry before tugging her niece up the stairs to the girls dormitory. At the top, Adrianna paused.

"Goodnight Harry," she called to him. Harry had been making his way up the stairs to the boys dormitory, and stopped midway.

"Goodnight then, Adri," he said giving her a crooked smile. Adrianna smiled back, and then at her aunt's insistence, allowed herself to be lead to her room.

~*~

She was pleased to find that she was sharing a room with Ginny, and a nice girl she met named Lavender. She soon learned that Hermione was Head Girl, sort of like a magical valedictorian, and had her own room adjacent to the girl's dormitory.  And she was also amazed to find that her things were not only in her room, but unpacked to the exact locations she would have picked. At first she thought that Ginny was kind enough to do it, but soon learned different. After changing for bed, she sat at her vanity brushing her long mane of auburn brown hair. As she allowed herself to be lulled into a trance by the methodical brush strokes, she was startled by a voice coming from her armoire.

            "I hope you like the way I fixed your room dear.  If I put something in the wrong place, feel free to change it," the wardrobe spoke in a kind voice. It was easy for Adri to picture the furniture as a stately old woman, not unlike Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast, her favorite Muggle movie. 

            "Oh no, everything is perfect. Its set up just as I would have done it. Thank you," Adrianna answered.

            "You have lovely hair, dear," the mirror piped up. And such pretty features. You strongly remind me of a woman who used to go here, about 20 years ago. You look just like her, too.  She had such a pretty name too, Serenity it was."

            "Serenity?  Serenity McGonagall?" Adrianna asked, hopeful. Could it be possible that her mom once lived in this room?

            "Yes! That's it! How'd you know?"

            "She's my mother."

            "Well, bless me! What a coincidence! How is she then?" The wardrobe asked. Adrianna's face fell. The pain of losing her parents was still great, and the wound was reopened by her aunt's reminiscing tonight.

            "She… she passed on last year," Adrianna answered quietly, wiping a stray tear from her eyes. The mirror made what can only be described as a sympathetic clicking noise.

            "You poor dear! Your father must be taking this hard as well. I remember your mother telling me about him. His name was Aaron, wasn't it?" The mirror answered. It could have been Adrianna's imagination, but she could have sworn the mirror lost its brightness for a moment and turned grey in mourning.

            "Yes, his name was Aaron; Aaron Greene.  He died too. The same night as my mom," Adrianna said flatly. The wardrobe gasped.

            "Oh dear! You poor thing! If I had arms right now, I would hug you. If you ever need to talk, we're here alright, dear?" The armoire said. Adrianna nodded glumly, and put her brush down.

            "I'm going to bed now. Goodnight." With that, the girl crawled under the covers of her four-poster, and fell into a sleep filled with images of her parents."

~*~

That's Chapter 3.. what do you think? Chapter 4 should be up before the weeks end