The midsummer air was thick and sticky, even in the dead of night. Aralynn Potter had snuck out of bed and tiptoed through every awkward and lopsided level of the Weasley Family's beloved home. She slipped silently outside, through the tallgrass prairie surrounding the house, and into the small clearing that she often went to with Ron. She had been spending the majority of her time isolated from her family since the summer holidays began. It wasn't that she didn't want to be around them. It was more so that she felt guilty every time she was. Everything about her life changed completely the moment she received her acceptance letter to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, only she didn't know it at the time. The truth of that slowly came to fruition, until it exploded out all at once when she joined Harry in trying to stop Lord Voldemort from stealing the Philosopher's Stone. It was down in that chamber where Aralynn learned that she was not another member of the Weasley, and twin to Ron, as she had been raised to believe… no, instead she was a Potter, and twin to Harry. It was down in that chamber where Aralynn learned that every single thing about her entire life had been an utter lie… where she learned that her birth parents were dead.

She had spent the school year feeling completely wrong—out of place. Once she discovered why, she thought that she would start to feel better. That ended up being a very foolish thought. In fact, she began to feel progressively worse. Enjoying the summer holidays proved impossible for her. The only thought in her mind was Harry. The nightmares that she had during her first year at Hogwarts returned. Only, they were much more aggressive. She often found herself lurching awake in the deep of night; drenched in sweat and hyperventilating. The constant anxiety she suffered was nothing like she had ever experienced before. Her family—the Weasleys—tried their best to calm her; to have things go back to the way they were… but they knew, as well as she, that nothing could be the same. Having their day-to-day lives go back to 'normal' was a thing of the past, as there was no such thing as normal anymore.

The Weasleys were still her family—absolutely nothing would change that. They were the people she was raised by and with, and she would never discredit that. However, she continued to feel increasingly guiltier that they were her family. She was grateful to have such wonderful people taking care of her, but she couldn't stop herself from thinking of Harry… thinking of the awful situation he was in, being housed by people who couldn't care less about him. In truth, the situation Harry was in could only be described as abusive. Her twin brother was being abused by their maternal aunt and her husband. It didn't seem fair that she was placed with the most loving and inviting family thinkable… while Harry was placed with people who would likely let him die if they didn't have a legal and moral obligation to keep him alive.

Often, Aralynn found herself questioning Headmaster Albus Dumbledore's motives. Why would he place her with a great family, but Harry with a horrible one? It didn't seem fair—it didn't seem right. If she were to discuss these issues with her family, she knew that Molly and Arthur would quickly dismiss her concerns and tell her that she should never question Dumbledore. To her mother and father, he was the ultimate figurehead—a knowledgeable scholar who knew the best thing to do at all times. She supposed that was another reason why she had been avoiding them. She couldn't feel that she could talk about any of this with them. However, she knew she needed to express at least something. They had likely figured out that she was feeling out of place, and she wanted to reassure them that they were still her family—that Molly and Arthur were still her parents, regardless of having no blood relation. It would be wrong for her to completely overlook the people who raised her.

Instead, she continued to avoid them. She knew that she wouldn't be able to share her emotions with her family until she learned how to deal with them herself. The only way she could think to do that was by isolating herself—which proved itself to be a lot of work. She constantly had to dance around Fred and George asking her to test their new fireworks with them; had to duck by Ginny whenever she wanted to practice her future spell stances; deny Molly and Arthur any requested bonding time; but the hardest and most painful one to hide from was Ron. Being raised as his twin meant that they were close—closer than they would be with anyone else. The pit of her stomach wrenched with pain every single time she rebuffed his attempts to spend time with her. The look on his face made her want to cry. She had never seen him so disappointed… so sad.

During the day, she spent her time locked away in the bedroom she shared with Ron unless her mother requested some sort of chore from her. When Ron would come into the room, she would leave and go to the clearing in the tallgrass. Then, after everyone was asleep, she would sneak outside and return to that clearing. Every single night, she wrote a letter to Harry. She was desperate to speak with him. It seemed like she had sent him hundreds of letters, but she had never received a single piece of correspondence back. Frankly, it was starting to scare her. Was he angry with her? Was he disappointed that, out of everyone, she was the one who ended up being his twin? Did he hate her? Not knowing—not hearing from him at all—was adding to her swelling anxiety. He promised to write. She remembered hearing him say that. Yet, he hadn't written a single letter. Not even a note. Had something happened to him?

While she sat in the clearing, she took a moment to look up at the moon. She wondered if Harry was looking at it with her. She sighed softly and returned her gaze to the piece of parchment in her lap. She hadn't written anything. She couldn't think of anything else she could say to him, but she knew she couldn't stop. One day, hopefully, she would hear back. She put the quill back to the parchment, trying to force any words out of her hand.

'Dear Harry,

I miss you.

Love, Aralynn'

That was all she could manage to write. Anything else she could have said to him, she had already said in prior letters. She wondered if he had been writing to anyone at all. She couldn't recall Ron getting any letters, and she knew that Hermione hadn't heard back, either. He was either ignoring them, or the Dursleys had done something to him… and it didn't seem likely that he would ignore his twin sister and closest friends. Something had to have happened. She needed to find out what it was. It was in that moment, in the dead of night, buried within the tallgrass, that Aralynn Potter began to devise a rescue mission.

About a week had passed by the time she figured out what she was going to do. It was nearing the end of July, and she refused to let Harry stay with their terrible aunt and uncle for another birthday. She also thought it was only proper that she celebrate her true birthday with the person she shared it with. She was sitting in the clearing of the tallgrass in the late afternoon, writing down the plan when she heard footsteps rapidly approaching her. After a few moments, Ron came barreling through the grass. Aralynn nearly jumped out of her skin. "Bloody hell!" she exclaimed. "Ron, you scared me half to death!"

"GOOD!" Ron hollered. "I'm glad! Now, Ara, tell me what in Merlin's Beard has been going on with you! You haven't spoken to any of us at all this summer! You've been avoiding us! Listen, Ara, I know you're going through a hard with this Harry thing, but you can't completely ignore your family! We're all here to help you, that's all we want to do. I mean, c'mon, you know I love you, you dunderhead, and—"

"RON!" Aralynn burst. "Take a breath and let me explain, okay?"

Ron, surprisingly obedient, went silent.

"Thank you," said Aralynn, exasperated. "Yes, I've been avoiding everyone this summer. You're right that this situation with Harry has had me stressed out, but probably not for the reasons you think. Anyway, I'm really sorry about everything. I promise I'll explain it all, but I'm going to need your help with something."

Ron furrowed his eyebrows. "Help with what?"

"Have you heard from Harry at all this summer?"

He frowned. "Come to think of it, no."

"Doesn't that seem weird to you?"

"Well… well, yeah, actually."

"Exactly," said Aralynn. "I'm worried about him. I think something might have happened. So, for the past week or so, I've been planning a rescue mission."

"Count me in!" he exclaimed. "Wait... how?"

"That's the tricky part," she said. "I have an idea, but it's risky."

"Tell me the idea."

"We take the car."

"The car? Dad's car?"

Aralynn nodded. "Dad's car."

"Do you even know how to drive it?"

"No… do you?"

"Kind of," Ron said, then frowned. "Not well."

A grin spread across Aralynn's face. "I have another idea."

"I don't know if I like the sound of that considering the evil smile on your face."

"Fred and George," said Aralynn.

Ron thought for a moment, and then he shared her evil grin. "Fred and George."

"It's perfect! They're always looking for an opportunity possible to break the rules. What better of an opportunity than stealing your father's car to go on a rogue mission to rescue a friend being held, essentially, in a prison?"

"I can't think of one. They'll love it."

Aralynn grinned. "Just as I thought. Which is why I thought up this brilliant plan."

"It's a good one, I'll give you that," agreed Ron with a chuckle. "You know you'll have to talk to Mum and Dad, right?"

The girl sighed. "I know. It's going to be so hard to explain to them why I've been so out of sorts. I don't want them to feel the same guilt I've been feeling."

"Guilt?" queried Ron with a frown. "Why have you been feeling guilty?"

Aralynn laid back in the grass and looked up to the cerulean sky. "You guys are great," she explained. "Better than great, really. I'm not sure I could really find a word for it. Each and every one of you is amazing and loving and welcoming… even Percy. As a baby, I was placed with the perfect and most ideal family anyone could dream of. Then Harry… Harry didn't. Harry was given to our aunt and uncle who are awful and hate him and treat him like he's a rodent invading their home. That doesn't sit well with me at all. Why was I given such privilege while Harry had all of his privilege taken? Is it not bad enough that our parents were murdered? Did an abusive home have to be added on top of that? Not to mention, he has to deal with knowing that I was placed with people who love me while he was placed with people who hate him. How am I supposed to deal with that? How am I supposed to live with that knowledge?"

It didn't really seem like Ron knew how to respond to that. He seemed to be processing her words and going over the facts in his head. He seemed equally as lost as she felt. "Well, there has to be a reason, right? Dumbledore wouldn't do something like that just to be cruel."

The girl tugged at her hair, letting out a frustrated sigh. "That's what Mum and Dad will say. They'll tell me not to question Dumbledore. Maybe it's not my place, but someone should ask some questions about this, right? I mean, why did he even separate us in the first place?"

"Wasn't that because nobody knew you survived? I mean, not many people even knew you were part of the family at all."

"The world was bound to find out eventually. They did last year. So, I'm not sure I see the point of separating us if my existence was going to be revealed regardless."

"To protect you," Ron pointed out. "At the time, nobody knew you were alive or even existed, really. He probably didn't see a point of outing you before it was time to. He gave you the chance to grow up normally. Sure, you didn't get to know your brother until you were in school already, but you grew up safely because of that. Maybe if he hadn't done that, one of You-Know-Who's followers would have found you and killed you."

Aralynn nodded slowly. "Maybe. That's a good point. I hadn't thought about that."

Suddenly, the freckled boy perked up and appeared to be highly proud of himself. "Blimey! I outsmarted you?! I outsmarted Aralynn Weasley?!"

She rolled her eyes. "Potter, technically."

"Oh," he said with a frown. "Right. Still, I outsmarted you."

She playfully punched his arm. "Don't get used to it."

He grinned at her and then wrapped an arm around her. "You shouldn't feel so weird about being here. Even if you have different parents and a different last name, you're still family."

"It's not exactly that I feel weird being here," she said. "I just feel guilty about having such a good life while Harry hasn't. It doesn't seem fair."

"It's not," Ron agreed. "There isn't much you can do about it, though."

"Well, that's helpful."

His ears reddened. "Sorry."

Aralynn stood up and offered her hand to him. "Come on. I should probably make some kind of appearance to the family, right?"

"Mum will be thrilled," he said as he took her hand and stood up. The two linked elbows and began walking back to The Burrow. "She's been worried about you. She hasn't really understood why you've been avoiding all of us. She'll probably cry."

Aralynn laughed. "Well, I'll have to talk to them about it. One day, anyway. Maybe not just yet. We have a rescue mission to continue to plan, and I don't need her watching me like a hawk to make sure I'm okay after I tell her what's been going on."

"When are you planning on doing this, anyway?"

"The night before Harry's birthday."

"Isn't it technically your birthday, too?"

"Oh, yeah, I guess it is. That's something I'll have to get used to. I kind of got used to thinking that I'm already twelve since March."

"Well, you're not there just yet. Wow, I really am the old one."

Ron and Aralynn walked into The Burrow together. The family had gathered around the table to have lunch. Percy was silently reading the Daily Prophet while he tried his best to ignore the fact that Fred and George were throwing balled up pieces of bread at him. Ginny, who wasn't as innocent as everyone liked to pretend, was tearing apart slices of bread and handing the balled-up dough to the twins. Their father, of course, was at work. Molly was at the stove, preparing whatever food she had planned for the day. Ron took a seat next to Percy and glanced, not so subtly, between Aralynn and Molly.

The girl shot him a dark look and went to her mother's side. "Hey, Mum."

Molly looked at Aralynn, seeming surprised that she was talking to her. "Aralynn!" she exclaimed. "I didn't expect to see you down here."

Aralynn grinned at her. "Well, I'm here."

"It's nice to see you out and about again. You've been holed up in that bedroom of yours for far too long."

"I'm sorry about that, Mum. I haven't been feeling well lately, but I think it's starting to clear up finally. I've missed you guys." She then moved to hug her. Then she realized just how much she had been missing her family. She found herself not wanting to let go of the woman who had raised her. She never thought she could miss affection or physical touch so much.

Molly hugged her back, tightening it before she let go. "We've missed you, too, love. I've been so worried about you. I'm glad to hear you're feeling much better now."

"Well, don't worry. I won't disappear again," said the girl with a chuckle. She moved to the table and sat next to Fred. He reached over to rustle her hair before returning to hitting Percy in the head with bread.

"What have you been up to while you've been away?" asked Molly as she tottered over to the table and placed a large roast beside the boiled potatoes.

Aralynn shrugged. "Not much. Doing my holiday coursework, some reading, some lettering writing."

"To Harry?"

"Harry and Hermione," she said with a nod. Clearly, nobody had told Molly that Harry had been completely absent this summer. "They're well. Hermione already completed her coursework. She's been reading, too. As she always does."

"Will we be seeing her in Diagon Alley?"

"We will. She'll be with her parents."

"Ah! The Muggles! Well, someone best tell your father. He'll be absolutely delighted. I have no doubt he'll pester them with endless questions!"

Aralynn laughed. "I'm sure they'll be happy to answer any questions he has."

"If they know what's good for them. Your father is known to be a very persistent man."

"Anyone who doesn't know that has clearly never met him."

Molly was chuckling as she wandered away, likely to get some more food. Ron and Aralynn took that as an opportunity. They both leaned close to the twins. "Hey," Aralynn called out in a quiet tone. The dangerously low volume of her voice told them that something interesting was afoot. It immediately drew in their attention.

"What's going on?" asked George.

"Sounds risky," said Fred.

"Sounds menacing," added George.

"We're in," they said together.

Ron furrowed his eyebrows. "You don't even know what it is!"

"Hear that, Fred?"

"We don't know what's going on, George! How could we ever agree?"

"Madness, truly."

Aralynn was trying to stifle laughter. "Boys! Please! At least hear us out first."

They both leaned close, sticking their ears in their direction. Always being foolish.

"We're going to get Harry," said Ron.

"Well that doesn't sound risky at all," said George.

"Nor menacing," agreed Fred.

"We haven't heard from him all summer," explained Aralynn. "I'm pretty sure something happened. I can just feel it. We aren't planning on telling Mum or Dad about this. We're planning to get him the night before our birthday. The dead of night. With Dad's car."

They smiled together. "Excellent."

"You know how to drive, right?" Ron queried. "I sort of do, but not enough. Not for this."

"We both do," said Fred.

"Dad taught us when we were thirteen," said George. "Sure he'll do the same for you two."

"Perfect," Aralynn smiled. "Okay, so, on the thirtieth, when everyone is well asleep, we'll go. We have his address. We can help guide you there."

The twins gave each other devilish smiles. "Wicked."

Knowing that Harry would soon be safe at her side made Aralynn feel immensely better. Of course, she still harbored that lingering shame, but she knew that she could not change the life he had been given thus far, but she could change the life he could have in the future. Or at least influence it. Which is exactly what she decided to do. Nothing was going to keep them apart. She was going to rescue him from the Dursleys by any means necessary. There was no way she could go to his house and leave without him. She would even participate in some illegal use of magic outside of Hogwarts if she had to. By any means necessary. All that was left to do was to enact their mission.

Harry, she thought. I hope you're well.