Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Harry Potter.

Chapter 29

Ariana carefully shut the wooden door behind her, the lock of the sizeable structure emanating a satisfying click as it ensured the privacy for the ensuing event, one of which was taking place in the middle of the sweltering summer afternoon.

When she was then beckoned over by an older woman that was sitting on her bed, she noted curiously upon drawing closer that the other's face was contorting slightly, as if intensely debating about something in her own mind of a topic unknown. After settling down comfortably beside the other woman and receiving only silence after what seemed like an eternity, Ariana couldn't help but voice her concerns at the odd situation.

"Mrs Potter, are you okay?" she blurted out breathlessly, "Is there something you need me to do–"

"Thank you for your concern, my dear," Dorea interrupted calmly, slightly jumping as the sound of a foreign voice broke her out of her own mindscape, "But there's nothing to be worried about."

Ariana visibly relaxed, "Why did you call me up here anyway?" she then asked curiously, her desire to know everything and anything overpowering all her other feelings – as always.

Before she could get another word in, Dorea shuffled just an inch closer, her straight posture and determined look on her face signalling that whatever she was ruminating about before, she was ready to say now.

"Miss Peverell, back in Scotland, did your parents ever give you... you know, The Talk?" was what came forth with a controlled voice.

Ariana pulled her head back slightly and frowned at the uncharacteristic usage of formality, her mind sending off warning bells as it kicked into gear at the question.

Talk? What sort of talk is she referring to?

I mean I never had parents when I was growing up, so I wouldn't know of any…

Perhaps… it's for the usage of magic outside of school?

She bit her lip nervously, opting to respond with a harmless lie, "Yeah, I think so. My parents told me that underage magic should –"

"No," came the instantaneous reply, "I meant the sex talk."

Ariana's world grinded to a halt. Her eyes and mouth opened wide and stayed frozen in an expression of stunned shock as the cogs in her brain refused to turn. Rendered speechless, she sat limply where she was, like a mute, flaccid Flobberworm.

"Judging by that reaction, I guess not," Dorea muttered decidedly to herself. She then refocused her attention, "Have you had your first period yet? Do you even know what that is?" she continued with an outwardly calm face.

Still too horrified to even comprehend what was going on, Ariana unconsciously nodded in response.

"Okay, great," Dorea breathed with a small sigh of relief, "At least that's out of the way."

The older woman tried her absolute hardest to keep her cool amidst a situation she'd never really been in before, adopting a casual air in all her motions in an effort to make the other occupant of the room relaxed as well.

"Now, we are going to go over some physical changes that will happen to you," Dorea patiently listed out, taking control of the situation as she counted with her fingers, "After that, we will discuss feelings of strange urges that…"

Ariana's mind had enough; the circuits in her brain had finally overloaded, for the last thing a recent teenage boy wanted was a Birds and the Bees talk that was meant for the opposite sex.

However, though the vast majority of her life was spent as a male, her new body was now flooding her with an abundance of female hormones, changing the very essence of who she was day by day, just minuscule enough to be unnoticeable. What she really needed, was one final push to realize who she truly was in this new world, for the past was now all but a distant memory to her, nothing tangible left apart from the ugly and jagged scars that carried over on her fragile body.

"Ariana, are you listening? This next part is extremely important," came a voice, the tone firmer than usual.

"I-I'm still listening," the adolescent stammered in a mortified and highly flustered voice, her eyes looking everywhere but at her grandmother as she tried her hardest to suppress heat that stubbornly sat on her cheeks.

Dorea chewed her lip as she thought how to properly explain the next subject matter, the mask on her face breaking for the first time during the conversation as her brow furrowed slightly. After a slight pause, she then carried onwards on a task that was largely at the request of her son.

"Now, the topic which is absolutely crucial for you to know is…" she began in a light tone, her mask of calmness sliding back into place. Little did she want the young witch to know that she was terribly flustered as well.

"…pregnancy."

Without giving the younger witch time to react, the Potter matriarch quickly pushed forwards, nonverbally summoning an old anatomy chart that she had found in one of her spare rooms and commanding it to unfurl and float in the air in front of them.

"Now that you know how your body functions and what will happen to it in the future, we can explore the act and consequence of sexual intercourse," she articulated clearly, the only signs of distress the small and uncontrollable twitches of her left eyebrow, "Firstly, when a male and female…"

The things she was uttering were in such a high level of visceral detail that she never noticed that the younger witch was squirming and shuddering ever so often as she dived into the more sensitive and graphic topics.

"…and through that process, a baby is finally born," she ended after a full five minutes of discourse.

Ariana had grown quiet and contemplative at the onslaught of new information, most of which she'd no clue about to begin with. As she ruminated away, a lone thought suddenly struck her like a thunderbolt, its significance creating a physical backlash as she sat up violently. Horror now began to creep through her body, diluting every fibre of her being as her ever-expressive eyes turned impossibly large.

"Wait," the adolescent whispered as realization slowly dawned upon her, her hands unconsciously curling and cradling her lower stomach, "II can… actually get… pregnant?"

Dorea raised an eyebrow in response, "I don't see why not, my dear."

As if cold water was suddenly poured over Ariana's head, a flurry of thoughts erupted from the top of her mind, jumbling over each other in a tangled mess as scenarios and memories of the recent past assaulted her senses. And as if a torch was sudden lit in the dusty recesses of her mind, a light now suddenly shone on things that were previously a total mystery to her. After all those months she'd spent in this new, strange world, she finally realized something: she was a real girl.

And with this new knowledge emboldening her thoughts and actions, she did a thing that most people would normally do in situations like these.

She promptly fainted.


"ANA, YOU IN HERE?" a voice called out loudly through a narrow crack in a doorway, the sound slipping through the gap and dancing around a darkly lit room.

After a few seconds of silence, a hazel-eyed teenager shut the door to the obviously empty room with a sigh of exasperation.

"Damn it, why in Merlin's name are you doing this?" James muttered in consternation as he paced on the spot, temporarily ignoring a black-haired boy that was languidly leaning against the wall and staring at him in amusement.

It was almost nightfall, and the two Gryffindors still hadn't found the youngest of their trio. They had no idea why the young witch was still hiding, or why she hid in the first place, but they'd been charged with finding her at the behest of Lady Potter.

It apparently had something to do with 'girl stuff', as the dignified woman succinctly and unhelpfully put it.

They began in their task of systematically searching every room in the expansive manor that was Godric's Hollow and as a result, their boredom quickly peaked. Unable to handle the monotonous job any longer, Sirius began to sing – badly, really badly. An unholy amalgamation of two popular wizarding songs that would drive any listener mad if exposed to for more than a few minutes.

"Padfoot, knock it off kindly?" James grumbled loudly after putting up with it for awhile, now placing his hands over ears in a feeble attempt to blot out the unearthly noises that were emanating from his friend.

Sirius paused before giving a grin full of mischief, "Only if you join in, Prongs."

"No."

"Yes."

"No– OKAY, FINE," James yelled in panic, quickly acquiescing when he noticed Sirius was advancing one step closer with a glint in his eye each time he refused him.

And thus, they continued in their merry hunt, one willing – and one not-so-willing – participant meandering through a brightly lit mansion in the crisp coolness of a midsummer's night, elbows interlocked as they sung tunes that would cause many an ear to bleed if listened to.

Halfway into their spirited prancing, James abruptly froze mid-step as an inkling of an idea dawned upon his mind. He then slapped himself on the head with his free hand as an audible sound of exasperation escaped from his lips, his actions causing Sirius to look at him quizzically.

"Oh Merlin, how could I've been so dumb," he groaned loudly, "I know exactly where our missing companion is."

The doors of the Potter Library swung open with a noisy bang as two boisterous young men entered, each one calling out a single name loudly. Eyes quickly scanned over designs that harkened back to the Victorian era, over polished wood chairs with carved backs and splendidly proportioned cabriole legs, over dignified mahogany writing desks, and over all other manner of unique softwood and hardwood.

After a few seconds, through the gloom of the room, James was just able to make out what seemed like a mountain of books that resembled a towering fortress from a distance. He blew out a noisy sigh of relief as he recognized the tell-tale traces that a certain young witch would often leave her wake. He wanted to quickly get to her and escort her downstairs, for his parents had informed him out of the blue that they wanted a late night meeting.

The teenagers' footsteps echoed softly through the large room as they ambled through it, the noise created by their feet tempered into silence by the overabundant presence of wood that surrounded them, the material absorbing the sound and gradually muting it until there was almost nothing left.

"Hey, kiddo," James called out loudly when they'd reached speaking distance to an edifice that was largely comprised of paper and leather, "What gives?"

A small frown crossed his face after receiving not a single word in response. Getting more baffled as each second passed, he rounded the corner of the constructed barrier and true to his predictions, the young witch was sitting in the eye of the scholarly vortex, curiously holding up a rather heavy book that covered every inch of her face.

"Lady Peverell," he began mock-sternly as he wagged his finger, "What are you… you…" he trailed off, not finishing his sentence as he oddly noticed that no matter which way he angled himself, the young witch would continuously use the book she was holding in both hands to block him from her sight, as if in a never-ending dance.

She had never displayed any behaviour like this to him before.

A weird feeling twisted in James' heart, causing him to step back and nervously ruffle the untameable mop of black hair that sat atop his head. After looking at Sirius for guidance, and receiving only a shrug in return, he pressed forwards.

"Ana… are you okay?" he finally uttered after a silence that seem to stretch on and on.

A small, muffled voice came from behind the book, "J-James… Sirius…"

Wary eyes that were the colour of deep forest pools peered at them over the top of the book as she lowered it just enough so that there was the barest minimum of eye contact.

"Are… are you guys…"

Her voice lost confidence, decreasing in volume until it resembled nothing much more than whisper of a faint breeze.

James was not deterred.

"C'mon, spit it out," he encouraged in a gentler voice, wanting to get to the bottom of what was distressing the obviously unsettled girl, "Whatever it is, no one will get mad, I promise."

The sound of his mellow voice seemed to do the trick, for Ariana then fully lowered the book that she'd been hiding behind this whole time to expose a face that slightly tinged with hints of redness. After a few quiet seconds, something flashed across her face too quick for them to notice, but whatever it was, it gave her enough confidence to speak.

"Are you guys okay with me being a girl?" Ariana spoke quickly, almost breathlessly.

James and Sirius looked at each other briefly with a blank look before turning back to the seated adolescent, "What?" they chorused in unison, their confused expressions mirroring each other perfectly.

Ariana audibly gulped and took a deep breath, as if to calm her down. "Are you guys okay with me being a girl?" she repeated in a slightly louder voice, her electrifying eyes never leaving their faces even for a second, as if keenly searching for something.

James gave a loud hum and he tapped his chin as he contemplated the oddly phrased question, "I think that… that… err…–"

"Oh, of course we are, you scamp," Sirius cheerily interrupted with a wave of his hand as he took over his stammering friend, hopping up and sitting on the wooden desk in a casual manner, "Frankly, I don't quite understand what you're implying, but we both…" he motioned to James and himself, "… are one hundred percent okay with the way you are right now," he continued strongly.

His metallic eyes sparkled in the dim candlelight as he learned closer, as if sharing a closely-guarded secret, causing something strange to stir in her stomach. The only thing he then did was to tilt his head, wink mischievously and say one, single line.

"Never change, pup."

Ariana's eyes widened comically from the nickname, one she'd been never called before by the Sirius of this world, but only by the one of the past. Tears prickled at the corner of her eyes against her will as memories of both worlds, past and present, of joyful and melancholic, of friend and family, of this particular young man in front of her, collided together into one swirling mass and overwhelmed her mind, the sudden blow temporarily inundating her senses.

It was awhile before her brain was able to reorient itself and think clearly.

Suddenly conscious of what was happening, she hastily wiped a few stray tears that had meandered down her cheek, ignoring the alarmed faces of the concerned wizards that had caught sight of sudden teardrops.

In a blink of an eye, her mood then dramatically shifted, for a brilliant smile now blossomed across her face. The smile however, was like no other the two young men had ever seen before. For a split second, their worlds stopped. The sincere smile pierced through them, making home in their hearts, was filled with such emotion, it seemed to take all the bad out of in their lives and feel as if all was well again.

"So, how was your trip to Diagon Alley earlier today?" Ariana brightly burst out in a show of exuberance as her hands flailed animatedly in the air, discarding and leaving the old topic behind in the dust.

Her mercurial tendencies, one which just cycled through a spectrum of emotions in mere seconds, were not in the very least a surprise to two young men, for it was merely part and parcel of the quirks and quiddities that defined the young girl's very being.

James cleared his throat noisily, being the first one to recover in any given situation – a valuable trait he had learned from his farther. "The day went spiffingly, if I do say so myself," he responded in an overly refined voice, the corner of his lips curling upwards as he realised that everything now was back to normal – well, normal in regard to a peculiar young witch. He then regaled her with the many escapades the Marauders went on in the short time they were together whilst buying the supplies they needed for their final year at Hogwarts.

"Hold on," Sirius rudely interjected as he addressed the young witch, unable to wait for the Potter heir to finish telling his stories as a stray thought suddenly struck him, "Why didn't you come with us to get your stuff for the new semester?" he asked quizzically, ignoring the glare James was giving him at the interruption, "At the very least, you'll need new textbooks for your classes."

"Good question, Snuffles," Ariana nodded, jumping up and sitting on the mahogany desk beside the Black heir, "Professor Dumbledore buys all my things for me since I don't have any money of my own," she continued informatively with a small shrug.

Sirius eyed her weirdly, "Even your, err… clothes?"

Ariana gave the tall teenager beside her an equally weird look, "Oh yeah – I'd forgotten that magically resizing clothes is a really hard thing for Professor Dumbledore to do," she dead-panned.

The Black heir snorted in amusement as the dryness of her comment and was about to respond but the other wizard in the room cut him off.

James gave a loud clap as he remembered the purpose of this hunt, "Sorry guys and gals, but it's a wrap," he said with a commanding voice, acting as if he was in charge of Muggle film making, "We've got to head on out, let's go people," he finished with shooing motions.

And so, the trio then trundled through the sizeable mansion in complete harmony with one another, with the young girl walking in between the two older wizards that escorted her in a protective manner.

"By the way, what brought this on?" James asked inquisitively after a minute, clearly alluding to what just happened. He was glad that the bizarre episode was over but was still incredibly curious of its trigger.

The young witch shifted her eyes side to side in response, as if checking if the coast was clear. Once satisfied, she looked back up, and replied oh-so innocently.

"Your mum just gave me the sex talk, can you believe that?"


Ariana nearly jumped out of her skin when Sirius gave a high-pitched screech of panic and bolted away immediately upon hearing her utterance, leaving James and her alone in the brightly lit corridor, the red carpet they were standing on muffling the racket that was still emanating from the retreating teenager.

Initially that afternoon after that fateful talk, her mind had cruelly betrayed her, forcing her to imagine scenario after scenario that involved Sirius, her father and her, completely against her will. The depths of her imagination knew no bounds as it conjured up all sorts of depraved possibilities, no matter how many times she'd repeatedly hit her head with a book in an attempt to blot the disturbing scenes out.

But once she'd spoken with both of them and realized that their eyes held only the noblest of intentions toward her, the raging storm within her heart quelled, for she realized no matter what form she took, she'd still be accepted among them.

She then gave a confused frown as she assessed the situation, looking between the spot at where Sirius had just vacated and back up at James, who looked just like a fish out of water, his mouth opening and closing without any semblance of sound coming out.

Why are they acting like that? Didn't we just go through this just now?

The young girl it seemed, though now intellectually informed, was still as clueless as she was in her previous life about matters relating to this particular topic. While it is normal for her to discuss things like these with Ron and Seamus in the privacy of their dorm when she was a boy, she failed to realize that it was not the same when discussed between different sexes, no matter how close she felt to the other.

"A-Ariana," James started with a shaky voice, "Is… is this what you were meant back in the library?"

The young girl stared at him as if he had just sprouted Hippogriff feathers from his head, "Of course?" she replied slowly in an obvious tone, "What else could I've been talking about?"

James cleared his throat noisily for the umpteenth time that night and plastered an obvious look of fake brightness on his face, staring off into the far distance as he refused to make eye-contact with the young and clueless girl. "A-Anyway," he recovered with an unnaturally large smile, one which seemed too big for his face, "Let's get going, Mum and Dad are waiting for us down by the parlour," he ended with an oddly chipper attitude, abruptly taking off without a look back.

Ariana then cast all previous thoughts aside as she too set off behind him, struggling to keep up with the long strides of the Potter heir, "What's… this… about?" she asked between breaths, looking up suspiciously at the tall young man.

"No clue," James casually shrugged, his eyes still fixated on something far away.

The young girl looked around owlishly for their missing companion, "What about Sirius?"

James gave another nonchalant shrug. "He'll be back."

And with that unspoken end to the conversation, the result of the journey continued in silence. As they neared their destination, Ariana made out a bright lit room at the far end of a corridor. Upon reaching the doorway, she was greeted with a room that held a rather rustic and homely look.

A lone antique couch stood on the far end of the room beside an ashen fireplace, its still smouldering hearth accompanied by rich velvet and bronze wing-chairs on each side, standing beside it akin to sentries in vigil. Thick velvet curtains hid long windows across granite walls, just leaving a shy peak of the world beyond. The paintings and faded tapestry panels on the walls seem to nod at Ariana as she entered, as if warmly greeting her like an old friend.

The atmosphere in contrast, was altogether different. An observer with a keen eye would notice that Charlus was pacing on spot with his hands clasped tightly in front of his stomach and constantly fiddling with his knuckles, his fingers weaving in and out of each other in a palpable sense of nervousness. Dorea while seated, had her slender fingers pressed into the skin of her forearms slightly too hard to be considered natural as a strange anticipatory look sat on her face.

Ariana, being ever-watchful of her surroundings, immediately picked up the subtle signals her grandparents were displaying. Her mind sent off loud warning bells in her head, causing hundreds of theories and hypotheses to thunder through her mind as it assessed the situation, the rapid mental straining causing the first signs of sweat to break out at her corner of her brow.

Dorea instantly lost the previous expression she was wearing – as did Charlus – once she spied the expected young man and girl entering the room, "Hello there, darlings," she greeted warmly, beckoning them over to the yellowing couch, "Come and get yourselves comfortable."

James donned an affectionate grin towards his beloved mother and trotted obediently over to her, eager to know what this was all about, for it was rare for the Potters to partake in planned gatherings amongst themselves.

Ariana on the other hand, was terrified.

Was I caught? Did they see me in the kitchens with the potion? Was it a house elf? What if…

Her mind refused to stop as more and more scenarios, each more bizarre than the next, flashed across her waking eyes, accelerating with such intensity that it almost trapped her in a never-ending loop of thoughts.

She was fortunately broken out of her all-consuming mindscape when two gentle hands rested themselves upon her small shoulders, causing her to violently end her train of thoughts and stare blankly up at her saviour for a few seconds as her mind reset itself.

"Dear, are you well?" her grandmother's hazy voice floated down melodiously towards her.

The mist on Ariana's thoughts then cleared as she nodded absently in response, rubbing her eyes before giving a timid smile to the kind and nurturing woman that seemed to understand her so well.

When they all got comfortably seated by the hearth, where a crepitating fire curled and swayed hypnotically as it sent out its warmth and light far out into the room, Lord Potter was the first to speak.

"Miss Peverell," he boomed, seemingly unable to lower the naturally jollity and volume of his voice in any given situation, "Tomorrow marks the day where you depart back to Hogwarts for your new year of schooling," he continued as he angled his head towards the respective young witch, "Have you enjoyed your stay? I hope we've been accommodating enough."

Ariana's eyes widened, "O-Of course!" she spluttered loudly, her vigorous nods causing dark locks of hair to dance like waves upon her shoulders, "I loved every second of it," she emphatically declared as she audibly thumped her fist in her hand, eliciting small giggles in response to her dramatic motions.

"It's much nicer here than back in Hogwarts," she added as an afterthought.

"Whatever do you mean?" Dorea curiously asked as she swiftly took over from her husband, "Surely, Albus would've gotten you comfortably ensconced in some snug room overlooking a beautiful vista. That old and rather endearing habit of his is quite unrivalled amongst the members of the gentry," she ended fondly, alluding to the fact that she knew the young girl had private living quarters in her school.

"Well, Hogwarts is nice and all to stay… but I do get lonely sometimes," Ariana admitted.

"How so?"

Ariana hid a frown.

Where is this conversation going? Am I in trouble?

"Well, Albus is always busy with paperwork, as are all the other Professors," she started slowly and carefully, "And I don't personally know anyone else who stays back at Hogwarts for the holidays."

Dorea leaned forward just an inch, "What do you do to pass the time then? It surely must be very boring all by yourself."

"Not really," Ariana readily disagreed as she brought up her fingers in a counting motion, "For starters, I read in the restricted section of Hogwarts' Library, study medieval manuscripts, cross-examine magical journals, deconstruct ancient rituals and… OH, I also–"

Dorea interrupted her with a soft laugh, "Ever the bookworm, my dear," she fondly grinned, knowing that the young witch's list was nearly unending when it was related to the pursuit of knowledge, "Makes one wonder why you weren't sorted into Ravenclaw instead."

Ariana blushed and stopped her rambling.

If the Sorting Hat sorted me into another house, I would've promptly hexed it on the spot. There is no way I'm going into a different house other than the one my parents are currently in.

Her eyes then glazed over as she modelled a hypothetical scenario in her head.

Hmm, actually, I wonder what would actually change if I was shoved into Ravenclaw instead? Maybe I…

"Ariana, dear," came a voice, breaking her out of her musings, "My husband and I have something quite important that we want to say to you. Is that okay?"

Ariana refocused and nodded warily after she replayed the sentence once over in her mind, still unsure what the crux of this discussion was and wondering if she was in an unknowingly precarious position.

"Can any and all questions wait until we finish?" Dorea's motherly voice requested a second later.

After seeing a cautious and hesitant nod, Lady Potter began to speak.

"Professor Dumbledore came to us last year with a rather… exotic proposition, once of which I can finally disclose to you both," she revealed evenly, noting that the young witch and her son perked their ears up inquisitively at her announcement.

"Ariana, back then, Albus told us all the current situation about your living status and your current state of well-being," she paused and tilted her head, "Which the latter has obviously changed since we last time we met."

Noticing that the young witch has visibly brimming with a multitude of questions in those large, green eyes of hers, she knew she had to push forward or she'll quickly get barraged with ever-ending questions. Just as she was about to speak, Lord Potter fluidly took over.

"Miss Pever–… no, Ariana," Charlus corrected himself, garnering shocked looks as he used her first name for the very first time, a break in formality a rarity from the dignified patrician, "From what we garner, you've currently no place to call your home, Hogwarts accommodation notwithstanding."

A look of pity crossed his face, "Although many of us – the Purebloods – were delighted to hear that the ancient line of Peverell had resurfaced for being absent for decades and decades, we were then saddened to hear that only one member was left," he motioned the Ariana, speaking with uncharacteristic softness, "You, my girl: Lady Peverell, the last of her bloodline."

"With no inheritance due to Scotland's obscene laws on hereditament, with no money nor physical properties to call your own, you still pushed on despite all the odds," Charlus pressed forward.

"Were you of age to legally emancipate with the aid of Gringotts, we wouldn't be in this position right now," he continued, "But the reality is, you are too young to be fending for yourself out there in the world."

Charlus then hesitated, "Albus also did tell us about… other things."

"Before you came to us, we were doubtful of your state of mind – no matter how much he tried to assuage our concerns," Charlus confessed with slight shame lining his voice, referring to the venerated wizard. His words were then careful, as if not to bring up a certain topic, "For even if the body is strong, the mind is not so easily healed."

As he paused to take a breath to speak, Dorea once again took control the reins, "In regard to that," she continued, slipping back into the flow of the conversation effortlessly, "I can say with undying certainty that you'd won us over from the very second you stepped into the house. The kindness and fullness of your heart put all of ours to shame," she gently murmured, delicately reaching over and taking one of Ariana's hands in hers.

"It's quite unnatural really, how you fit in so perfectly with us," she added fondly, "Your day-to-day interactions with James, that rascal Sirius, our merry group of house-elves… everything really."

Ariana's breath hitched, an inkling of an idea rising to the top of her mind.

Are they… going to offer me a roof over my head, just like they did with Sirius when he got kicked out of his house?

What was said next however, was something young Ariana did not expect in her wildest dreams.

Dorea took a deep, deep breath.

"Would you… would you like to become a Potter?" she asked quietly.

For the second time that day, Ariana's world stopped.

The comment was so bizarre, so far from what she expected, that it almost dealt a physical blow to her. As if an impact had knocked every wisp of air from her lungs, she sat wordless where she was, struggling to inhale, to exhale, to do anything.

All her thoughts came crashing down upon her a split second later, as she then blushed a deep beetroot red and grabbed a cushion off the couch and shoved it into her face at the speed of light, embarrassment burning deep into her soul as she misconstrued the words.

"I'm…I'm still too young for that," she cried out in a muffled voice, glad that her red face couldn't be seen through the transient cover the cushion provided, "Y-You said so yourself, Mrs Potter."

"I said… what?" Dorea exclaimed loudly as her face twisted in confusion, all the nervousness in her system replacing itself with complete and utter bafflement.

Ariana refused to drop the soft case of stuffed duck feathers that hid her face, her hands curling tightly on its satiny edges.

This is it. This is my life right now. I'm about to be married off to my own father.

"I can't m-marry James," she spluttered, her voice taking a higher pitched tone, "I-I don't know what Professor Dumbledore said but… but…–"

Before she could finish her sentence, she heard a chorus of loud groans and a sound that resembled three hands slapping their foreheads respectively.

Her source of safety was suddenly wrenched from her hands and a figure out of the corner of her eyes lunged at her. Her brief sliver of distress vanished when the certain someone gave her an all-encompassing hug, one which made her feel inexplicably safe, warmth seeping through her skin and flesh down to her very bone. A tender voice then floated towards her ears, causing her to lift her head up and break out of her comfortable position.

"You precious thing, you," Dorea murmured fondly as she squashed the now flailing girl against her ample bosom, "Let me rephrase myself."

"Would you like to be part of the Potter family? Not as a daughter-in-law, but as a daughter."

And thus, for the third time that day, Ariana's world stopped.

As if a beam of light had pierced through her body and soul, she quivered violently, causing her limbs to lose all their strength as she flopped numbly back onto the older witch that was softly embracing her.

Then, it came.

Like the golden rays of the sun finally peeking out from behind a dark cloud, Ariana looked up and broke out into the most radiant smile, an image that would forever etch itself into the hearts of people in that room.

And so, the smile stayed, eternally stained upon her lips even after she broke down and wept as she said yes, over and over again, until they begged her to stop.

Her joy, her love, her laughter, her cheer. All these reached the ears of those who had forgotten the warmth of such harmonies. She shared it all, playing life's song, a swelling symphony that sought to mend any heart and nourish any soul.

Thus, one chapter of Ariana's life had just come to an end.

And so the next, began.


A/N: A dream come true for Ariana, she's finally a Potter again. With her first year in Hogwarts completed and her holidays concluded, she's prepared for another year in the wizarding world! But can she handle the dangers and mysteries that her very presence has created?

Many stories left untold soon will come to light in ways which one would never expect.

P.S Thanks everyone for your support! Have a great day/night!