Talynn laughed happily as she sat with her 3 best friends in the small train compartment. Alyssa and Mary sat across from her and Gabrielle. They were all drinking some bottled water and having fun chatting about all the strange people they'd seen.

"But, hey, Talynn. I heard from that little chunky redhead, Mariss, that there was a seventh year asking about you!" commented Mary, eyeing Talynn with a raised eyebrow. "Aren't you a little young for a seventh year?"

Talynn laughed and pondered this. She and her friends might have acted a few years older than her age, but why would a seventh year have been looking at her? She briefly wondered if it could have been Alex, but then dismissed the idea as fast as it had come. He was an American, he wouldn't be going to Hogwarts. "What can I say, I'm legendary already," she laughed.

A soft rapping on the door broke their conversation. The four girls all looked at the door. "Yes?" called Talynn.

"Is there a Talynn Rose in there?" came the deep muffled male voice. Talynn looked at her friends, confused. They didn't know any boys old enough to have a voice that deep, or that American and it sounded much too young to be an adult.

"Yes, I'm here," Talynn replied. Her friends all looked around at one another and broke into whispers saying things like "who could it be?" and "maybe it's that seventh year".

"May we come in?" came the voice again. Talynn considered this a moment, looking at Gabrielle questioningly. Her friend nodded enthusiastically.

"Alright, come on in," she answered. The door slid open revealing four older boys standing in the aisle. The eldest seemed strangely familiar to Talynn, with his dark brown hair and blue eyes, he was quite reminiscent of herself. She looked at the intruders questioningly. They were all staring at her intently and it was making her rather uncomfortable. She shifted slightly in her seat and sat up straighter as she had been taught to in the presence of guests.

"May we help you?" she inquired the disbelieving boys. Her friends stifled a quiet laugh. Talynn ignored them and kept her eyes fixed firmly on those of the leader boy. Long seconds passed with the two of them only looking at one another. His eyes haunted Talynn, but she didn't dare show it, for fear that she appear rude to this stranger.

The dark haired boy slowly extended a large rough hand. A soft smile came across his lips and warmed his eyes. "Hello. I'm Alex Rose," he simply said. To Mary, Gabrielle and Alyssa this meant nothing, but to Talynn it meant the world. She dropped the water she was holding and it spilled across the floor. Her blue eyes opened wide, and, forgetting her manners, Talynn's jaw hung loose.

She blinked several times and tried to speak, but could not make the words come out. Alex only smiled down at her. Talynn looked at the other 3 boys, searching their faces for something familiar, something that she would remember. Flashes of the day she left kept coursing through her head.

"No! Tally, don't go!" Nick called, holding his blanket and crying as his family stood in the airport terminal with his sister and grandmother. He looked up at his mother. "Mommy, Tally can't go! Who will I play with?" he looked back at his sister as the tears streamed down his cheeks.

Jake merely stood quietly by his brothers and parents, watching his sister, trying to memorize her so he'd never forget. He played with his glasses and gently touched a small wooden box in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at it in his palm. He'd carved the tiny pine box himself. The rough, sloppy carving across the top said 'Talynn' and inside the lid, it merely said 'Remember'. He squeezed his fist shut tight and walked up to his sister. Not one for words, he opened her tiny palm and placed the box there. Talynn looked at him, confused, but then, somehow, understood and put the box in her pocket.

Mike looked on as his shy little brother Jake gave Talynn something. "Wow, he's really going to miss her," he thought. "But I never knew they spent time together." Mike thought about all the times he'd ignored his little sister. She wasn't really someone he could relate to. He scratched his head, thinking hard. He knew he had to do something special to say goodbye to her. He walked over and picked her up, swinging her around a bit and hugging her. She giggled happily.

"Tally," he said, "You're the best kid sister ever!" She looked at him wide-eyed and thrilled.

"Really?" she asked, excitedly. "Wow!" Mike laughed a little bit and set her down. Then he walked back beside his parents.

His mother and father gave Talynn a heaping bag. "A present," said Amelia. "Open it when you get to Grandma's," she smiled sadly at her daughter. Tears burned at the back of her eyes and a permanent hole began to work it's way into her heart. She looked quickly away, down at Danny. The little baby was smiling happily and looking at Talynn. He reached out a tiny hand.

"Eeeh!" he cried, "Taalll-eeee" he burbled. Amelia looked down at her baby, shocked. He had spoken. She knew it was the perfect moment. She ventured a short glance at her daughter, who was looking like she'd just gotten a pony. "How ironic" thought Amelia, "That on the saddest day of my life, my daughter should be so happy,".

Finally it came to Alex. Talynn looked up at him expectantly. He walked over to her, gave her a long hug and said "Remember." Talynn was entirely confused. She'd expected more from this brother, the one who was supposed to love her the most. She hadn't seen him slip the pendant and letter into her bags and she wouldn't find them until after a few days in England and her new life.

As the final boarding call came, Elaine gently put a hand on Talynn's shoulder. "It's time to go, sweetheart," she said. She picked up Talynn's carry-on bag and took her hand. As they reached the gate, Talynn turned around and looked at her family one last time. Not knowing she would never see them again, Talynn had smiled happily and waved.

"Bye!" she'd called happily and the turned away and walked onto the plane, leaving her broken-hearted family standing in the terminal. A renegade tear escaped Alex's eyes as he watched his precious sister skip joyfully down the terminal away from him. He mouthed the words remember. Then he turned on his heel, gruffly brushing away the tear, steeling his heart and preparing for the hard years to come.

Talynn gently touched the small rose pendant around her neck that Alex had given her on that day. "Alex?" she managed to say. He nodded. Every ounce of her being wanted her to simply jump up and dive into his arms. But her years at the English prep school held her back. She tilted her head sideways and smiled. "It's nice to see you again," she told him.