Trigger Warnings:

Suicidal thoughts

Schizophrenia-like symptoms

They made it to Platform 9 with plenty of time - for a change. The Ministry Officials had been efficient but reserved. Hermione had likened them to some taxi drivers, whatever they were. The goodbyes with Mum and Dad were still brief and Ginny noticed her Mum's eyes linger on her a bit too long when she warned her children to be good. Ginny rolled her eyes, tucked her braid behind her ear, and hoisted her trunk onto the train. Her eyes darted to the side spotting Dad take Harry off for a quiet discussion. More information that she was apparently too young to hear.

Mum was watching Dad and Harry intently, blind to the rest of her party. Percy had already shot off to welcome the new prefects. The twins had found Lee and appeared to be planning mischief huddled near one of the carriages and Ron and Hermione were already halfway down the train with their trunks. Ginny sighed and started dragging hers in the opposite direction, it didn't look like she would get any help from her family anytime soon.

Luckily she didn't have to drag her shabby trunk for long before Colin ran up behind her.

"Ginny! Luna's got us a carriage. Come on I'll help you" he chattered grabbing her trunk without waiting for a response. Ginny was glad to see that nothing had changed. Colin was still... Colin. Between them they make short work of the trunk and it didn't take them long to reach the compartment where Luna was waiting. In a joint effort, they hoisted the trunk on top of Colin's and sat down panting.

Luna looked at her serenely.

"Hello Ginny, it's good to see you're doing better. The sand can do wonders for the mind" she said knowingly.

Ginny broke out into a genuine smile.

"It's good to see you too, Luna".

"So what happened over the summer?" Colin asked "We invited you over to Luna's but didn't hear anything from you until your letter from Egypt".

"Your family can be very short-sighted" Luna added "It's the wackspurts".

Ginny laughed, she loved Luna's frank honesty.

"Almost definitely!"

Luna leant over and clasped Ginny's hands in her own and spoke more seriously in an almost whisper.

"I'm so glad you're doing better. You still have some wackspurts but some of them have turned into something... else" she cocked her head to the side, puzzled by her own reaslisation. Ginny wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

They spent the first part of the journey happily catching one another up on their summers. Ginny very briefly explained the torturous start to her summer. Her friends subconsciously leant closer to her, filling her with warmth. She didn't supply many details but it was enough for Luna's eyes to lose their serenity and for Colin's arm to tighten around her shoulder. She felt a little lighter after the heaviness of the night with her family. Bill felt so far away but at least she had her friends now.

Her friends also filled Ginny in on the dramatics of the summer in Britain. Infamous murderer Sirius Black, who had sold out the Potters to the Dark Lord and killed a street full of muggles has broken out of Azkaban. He was the first person to do so and theories had been flying wild throughout the summer. Luna however, had insisted on a different spin of events.

"Daddy says that Stubby Boardman is innocent. It was Pike Peterman who framed him. He never got much attention as part of the band and was really jealous of Stubby and the rest of the group. Daddy never liked Pike. He had far too many wackspurts and they only ever got worse" Luna stated "You always have to watch out for wackspurts. They can be dangerous if untreated" she said solemnly.

Ginny wasn't entirely sure what to think of Luna's take but she wasn't about to question it. As long as Luna didn't end up running into Sirius Black, which at Hogwarts was quite unlikely, she would be in relatively little danger believing he was innocent.

Drama aside, Luna and her Father had spent a large part of their summer looking for obscure creatures in Latvia. They didn't have much success but she was insistent that her Father had found a lead and they knew exactly where they needed to look next summer. Colin had gone muggle camping in Wales with his family which sounded quite interesting to Ginny. She hadn't really gone camping of any kind, her Mum was not the outdoorsy type. Luna and Colin spent some time comparing the difference between the two and she sounded enthralled by the idea of muggles creating fire with sticks and stones. She knew she sounded like her Dad but they really were ingenious. Colin suggested that they all go camping together one summer and they could really compare the two. It sounded fun. Aside from camping, Colin had also visited Luna a couple of times. He spoke excitedly about the shape of her house which dissolved into an animated debate about the different shapes you could make your house with magic.

When the food trolley arrived Colin bought everyone a pumpkin pasty and a cauldron cake, courtesy of his Mum. After some questioning of the trolley lady, he bought some animal-product free varieties. Ginny thanked him profusely and fished her squashed corned beef sandwiches out of her bag. Colin threw them promptly in the bin seemingly disgusted that her Mum had packed Ginny meat when she clearly didn't eat it. Luna also wrapped him in a hug and asked him how he knew. He just shrugged "I thought you'd be vegan. It's nice that wizards have vegan convenience food, muggles are still far behind in that regard".

Ginny and Luna had never heard of the term and Colin briefly explained the difference between "normal" eating, vegetarians and vegans. Luna confirmed that she was definitely vegan then.

"Daddy always says that if we can eat without interfering with other creatures then we should. We never take from animals unless it's gifted. One spring a lovely little goat came to us and gifted some milk. They refused to take it with them so we baked it into some cookies. It tasted better knowing that the goat was happy for us to use it – you know?".

Ginny thought it made sense. Since the incidents of last year she hadn't touched anything with meat and she supposed it wasn't that much of a leap to stop eating all animal products. The falafal and hummus Bill had taught her didn't include anything from an animal and it was still delicious. Luna begged Ginny to teach her when she explained and Ginny agreed with laughter. Luna was so excitable sometimes, it was no wonder her and Colin got along so well. Colin said that he and his family had also started eating vegetarian over the summer, their cousin had come back from America singing praises about a vegetarian diet and they thought they would give it a try. He and Ginny agreed that they would try being vegan too. It would be nice to do something together and they couldn't see a reason not to. Luna explained how the house elves would make sure she has some food she can eat wherever she sat, they were awfully kind. Luna also said that it can be hard at first so the best way was to take each day on its own and be kind to yourself. Ginny said she would also contact Bill and ask if he had some other recipes they could use to Luna's delight. Perhaps the elves would be willing to branch out. Colin looked confused at the second mention of elves but rather than explain Luna took his hand and said she would show him at Hogwarts. He seemed happy enough with that.

Before long the attention turned to the second half of Ginny's summer. Luna remembered Bill with fondness, he always used to include her in any games or stories if she wandered over while she was there and he never told her she was wrong about the creatures she had learned about. Colin said Ginny's braid was awesome and Luna had nodded in agreement. Ginny told them all about the training she had been doing with Bill, how he had let her stay with him all summer and how she had been accepted by the curse breaking group. Both Colin and Luna were in fits of laughter when she explained the duel with Mike. The laughter broke when she explained that the start wasn't so good. Ginny spoke of Ron's insensitivity and how she had gotten lost in a sandstorm when a large bubble surrounded and protected her. Colin's eyes were wide but Ginny thought she could see a slight smirk playing on Luna's lips.

"Woah!" Colin exclaimed when Ginny revealed it was her who had created the bubble all along.

Luna however, nodded as if it were expected "The wind always played around you" she added.

Fair enough, Ginny thought. She explained how she hadn't had much luck since and they all agreed to practice together. Colin was excited about the physical training. Apparently "PE", whatever that entailed, was his favourite subject at school and he was surprised that they had no exercise classes at Hogwarts. Ginny found herself eager to start training with her friends.

They were happily discussing the characterisation of their new defense teacher, favourites included a werewolf with an insatiable lust for chocolate (Luna), a pirate with a peg leg shaped like tentacles (Colin) and a vampire with a coffee addiction (Ginny), when Ginny was overcome with a sense of dread. Something was decidedly not right. Tom, who had been blissfully quiet during the reunion was laughing. It started quietly at first but was growing louder and louder. Then, the lights started to flicker rapidly. Tendrils of ice snaked up the window panes as they started to frost over. Was that her fault? Was she doing this? She turned to Luna to ask but the petite blond was staring wide-eyed at the door. Colin was talking, looking increasingly panicked, but she couldn't make out what he was saying. His voice was muffled as if she were lost underwater. It was too cold. Her breath was catching in her chest. The breath that did manage to escape was visible in front of her before fading away. When did it get so cold?

Tom was talking to her now. His voice dripping in venom.

You thought you could escape me Ginevra Weasley? I am a part of you now!

She clamped her hands over her ears but it did little to help the voice echoing inside her head.

You're going to hurt them, Ginny. The poor, stupid fools. They should have left you alone like you deserve.

The lights stopped flickering and the carriage was plunged into darkness. She squeezed her eyes shut. No, no, NO!

You should have died. You're pathetic. Why not save everyone the trouble and do it yourself?

"Shut up!" She screamed. Someone was shaking her but she couldn't think.

Maybe some fresh air would help? Tom whispered.

The feeling was getting worse. The desperation took hold, she was helpless. She couldn't do anything. Tom stood up, or she stood up, she didn't really know anymore. The closer to the door she got the colder it became. The cold was seeping into her bones. Tom was encouraging her further. Her hand froze on the handle.

Ginny is yanked back deeper into the compartment and lands painfully on top of someone. Tom is laughing again.

Oh Ginny, Ginny, Ginny. You're still my little puppet. Did you think you could escape so easily?

She screams in a pitiful attempt to block him out, but he was always stronger.

You know how to make this stop, Ginny. The only way to protect your friends. I'm a part of you. If you die, I die.

No, no, no...

Tom just laughs manically.

Was it her imagination but was Tom getting quieter?

Was that her screaming?

Someone was shaking her. Was it Colin?

Ginny opened her eyes. The room was lit by Colin's wand casting an eerie glow across his face.

"Colin?" She chokes out, throat raw.

Her engulfed her in a hug. Why was she on the floor? She looked around to see Luna huddled in the corner eyes staring but unseeing.

"She's been like that for a while" Colin supplied " come on".

He helped her shuffle back so she is leaning against the chair next to Luna. Then plonked down next to her. He felt warm.

Luna reached over and grabbed her hand. Ginny winced in pain but didn't flinch. During the episode her nails had dug into her palms drawing blood. She didn't even remember that happening.

"Daddy says they are horrible but I didn't quite believe that anything could be quite so unpleasant" Luna said shakily.

Ginny hadn't seen them but she knew what Luna was talking about. Dementors.

Ginny wasn't sure how long they sat huddled up before the lights came back on. The feeling of dread hadn't quite faded and the cold still caught in her chest. All three of them jumped as the door opened. Colin pointed his wand at the entryway.

"Ginny? What are you doing on the floor?"

Percy? He was with the curly-haired blonde woman who Ginny spotted him kissing last year. She also had a head badge pinned to her robes. The woman in question elbowed Ginny's elder brother in the ribs.

"Right, um, sorry Ginny". He entered the compartment and crouched down in front of her.

"Here eat this. If you eat it all, it should help". He placed a slab of chocolate onto her knee.

In the corner of her vision she could see Penny and Colin helping Luna to her feet. Ginny held the slab of chocolate between her teeth and allowed Percy to help her to her feet.

Once she was seated next to Luna, Penny came over and took her hands healing with an intricate wave of her wand. Ginny nodded in thanks and she headed out, presumably to help others. Percy didn't dally and quickly made excuses to follow. Ginny rested her head on the back of the seat slowly chewing through the chocolate. Luna and Colin pressed tightly on either side drawing warmth from each other. The chocolate was helping but she still felt faint. Colin, at least, seemed pale but otherwise unharmed. They didn't speak much the rest of the ride.

When they finally reached the castle, the feast seemed to drag on forever. Her eyelids felt heavy and despite Colin's warmth she felt somewhat lonely without Luna's presence. After finally being reunited with the blonde it was strange to be apart. Tom would also not shut up. He seemed invigorated by the dementors presence and snarled and mocked Harry ,the so-called Boy Who Lived who had apparently fainted on the train. She could strangle Malfoy – if she had the energy. At least she didn't have the energy to think on Tom's cutting remarks about herself either. Colin forced and extra slice of chocolate cake on her plate. She felt overly full but the extra chocolate did curb the numbness just a little. She felt herself nodding off during the Headmaster's speech, head lulling onto Colin's shoulder. He practically carried her up to bed.

We are now heading into the Prisoner of Azkaban storyline. I've basically got the whole year drafted. Things are going to start deviating more from the cannonverse as we progress. I hope you continue to enjoy!

~ Fiona