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Chapter 6: The Girl from Salem
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Adrienne had no problem finding her row and, to her delight, found it to be completely empty. She walked past her seat, 7B, and settled into the one next to the window, placing her bag under the seat and directing her attention to all the Muggles filing past her. In no time the same cheery blonde was instructing them on how to fasten their seat belts and reminding them that their chair cushions could be used as floatation devices. Adrienne's eyes flashed to the rock-hard empty chair next to her.
"Right, that's it," she muttered sardonically.
She leaned back in her chair, looked out the window, and wondered exactly how the plane was going to get off the ground, preferring to think about this instead of her other pressing question: How on Earth was it actually going to stay up in the air.
* * * * *
Meanwhile, two rows back, Harry Potter was straining in his chair to get another look at Adrienne. Hermione popped a stick of cinnamon gum in her mouth and handed a piece to Harry.
"Ron doesn't seem as nervous this time around," she whispered.
Harry suppressed a laugh. "That's because he's a little occupied," he replied.
This was true. Ron had discovered that if he pressed his left cheek to the window and squinted just so, he could see the profile of the girl looking out the window two seats ahead of him.
Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Do you think he'll find his tongue this year? He couldn't even talk to Fleur last year. How does he think he'll be able to get up the courage in one night before this Adrienne girl disappears from his life forever?" whispered Harry.
Hermione cast a sidelong glance at Ron and then turned back to Harry. "You know, obviously she's a witch, and she's about our age. What do you think the chances are that she's going to Hogwarts?" Hermione asked.
Harry shook his head. "Then why haven't we seen her before?" he questioned.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "She's probably a transfer from Salem," she said.
Ron's head whipped around. "A transfer? You mean she's going to our school?" he asked, a very serene smile engulfing his face. "I can't wait till we get to Hogwarts!"
With this, Ron replastered his face to the window.
Harry leaned as far back in his chair as he could and shut his eyes. He didn't share Ron's enthusiasm. Sure he wanted to go back to Hogwarts, but returning also meant confronting last year's events. Harry shook his head. This trip had been exactly what he needed: It had taken his mind off dwelling on the fact that Cedric Diggory had died because of him.
"Harry, what are you thinking?" asked Hermione, gently tapping his shoulder.
Harry opened his eyes and looked at her. Hermione looked much different than she had four years ago he realized. Her face, which had once looked so young and angelic, had matured into that of a gorgeous young woman, and her smile was stunning now that she had shrunk her teeth. Her hair was definitely not as bushy anymore, but was laced with graceful ringlets. Harry smiled.
"What?" asked Hermione confused.
"You just look so different from when we were first years, that's all," commented Harry.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I should hope I still don't look like I'm eleven! And no changing the subject."
"I was just thinking ... about things," he said, looking down.
Hermione smiled an encouraging smile and patted his hand. "It wasn't your fault Harry. It wasn't your fault. You can't change it now, so don't dwell on the past."
"I have a bad felling though, Hermione, a really, really bad feeling," he whispered, shaking his head.
Hermione just squeezed his hand, not wanting to admit that at that very moment, she had a very bad feeling too.
* * * * *
Adrienne opened her eyes and looked out the window, smiling from ear to ear, congratulating herself on not having a nightmare for the first time in years. However, what Adrienne didn't know was that she had had one, and the reason she probably didn't remember it was that sometimes the mind blocks out traumatic events; and in her latest dream, the person tied to the gravestone hadn't been the boy, but it had been her. Adrienne watched contently for a moment as the sun reflected off the beautiful ocean, then she looked at her watch, grabbed her bag, stood up, and walked towards the lavatory, passing Row 9 where a curly haired girl had her head on the shoulder of a boy whose face was hidden behind a mop of black hair.
"How cute," she whispered.
* * * * *
Adrienne ran up through the air-bridge and burst out of the gate, searching frantically for her professors.
"Adrienne!"
Adrienne turned and there, to the right, stood Mia and Joe, who was carrying her owl, Hecate, in a cage.
"Ok, so it worked! Professor, let me guess, your wife picked out that ensemble!" laughed Adrienne.
Joe glared at her. He was wearing a maroon shirt and khaki shorts. "I don't like it," he mumbled.
"You just don't want to admit Professor Hartel can dress you better than you can yourself," Adrienne exclaimed through giggles.
"Sounds like your flight went well, Adrienne," said Mia, hastily changing the subject as they walked towards the luggage area to retrieve her trunk, Joe stomping on ahead of them.
Adrienne shrugged. "I slept the entire time. But I guess you're right: I didn't die, so it wasn't that bad."
"Of course not dear. Look at Joe!"
Adrienne looked around for her potions master, and to her amazement, he was walking on the conveyer-belt towards her trunk, yelling at it to stay still.
"Now there's something you don't see everyday," said Mrs. Granger as she handed a suitcase to her husband, who looked like he'd rather be on the conveyer-belt with the yelling man than just standing on solid ground handing suitcases to the three kids behind him.
* * * * *
"Oh my goodness, dear, I've missed you so much!" came Mrs. Weasley's voice over the chatter of the crowd in King's Cross Station. Mrs. Weasley quickly navigated her way across the thick crowd and pulled her son into a tight hug.
"How was your trip?" she asked, kissing Ron on the cheek.
"Mum!" he groaned, trying to wipe off the lipstick stains she had left, "you're embarrassing me!"
Mrs. Weasley ignored this and kissed him again. "The house has been so different without you, Ron!" she said, tears welling in her eyes.
"And Harry!" she said, enveloping him in a suffocating hug. "How are you getting along?" she asked, worry lines creasing her face.
"Better," he replied, smiling, "Thanks for getting our school things from Diagon Alley for us."
Mrs. Wesley waived an impatient hand. "It was nothing dear, my pleasure. And here's Hermione! It was so good of you, sweetie, to invite them! My goodness, you've grown over the summer. The boy's will be chasing you this year, dear."
Hermione blushed, not exactly knowing what to say.
"Mum! The train leaves in twenty!" came Ginny's familiar voice across the crowd.
Fred and George had stacked Ron's, Hermione's, and Harry's trunks atop of each other, and now Ginny was standing atop them, waving frantically over passing heads.
"Ginny! You get down from there right now!" yelled Mrs. Weasley, rushing over to her now six-foot taller daughter.
* * * * *
It started to rain just as Adrienne, Joe, and Mia climbed out of the cab in front of King's Cross. Joe hoisted her trunk into the air and the three ran across the street and into the crowded and noisy station. Adrienne hadn't been in a train station either and now, as she followed Joe and Mia, nervousness was settling into her stomach. All around her people stood with their packages and knapsacks, chatting quickly, often in a foreign language. A girl atop a pile of trunks attracted her attention; Adrienne turned her head, wide eyed, and consequently ran headlong into Professor Glenn, who had stopped in front of the barrier between Platforms 9 and 10.
"Ouch! Adrienne, forget to turn your eyes on this morning?"
Adrienne pushed her way between her two teachers, deciding to ignore Joe's comment. "Why are we stopped here?" she asked, staring blindly at the barrier.
"It's like the entrance to the Gallows, you just walk right through," whispered Mia.
"In front of all the Muggles?" Adrienne asked, raising her eyebrows.
"Just try and be discreet, Adri," whispered Joe, giving her a slight nudge forward with the trunk.
Adrienne shrugged her shoulders and walked towards the divider. In a second, she was on another platform, and in front of her was a large scarlet steam engine.
"Keep walking Adri; you can't stop right in front of the entrance, ya know," said Mia as she appeared behind her.
Adrienne stepped to the side. All around her kids in black robes and Muggle clothing were wandering around, some kissing parents and some kissing each other. The air was full of chatter and the hoot of owls.
"Well, kid, this is it," said Joe, setting down her trunk. Mia set the cage atop it.
Adrienne turned around and looked up at her professors, forcing back the flood of tears that were trying so hard to escape.
"This is it," Adrienne said, smiling weakly.
"Only one semester and then we'll have the entire winter vacation together, and you can tell us every wonderful thing that happened," said Mia, who was having a harder time trying not to cry than Adrienne.
"Ok, kid?" asked Joe, pulling Adrienne into a strong embrace.
"I think," she replied.
"We believe in you, Adri. Remember though, focus on what you're doing and you can do anything. I mean it. Just don't go flipping your wand about absentmindedly," said Mia, wiping away tears.
"And you better make your house Quidditch team," added Joe.
"And Adrienne, follow your heart, you have a good one in you; it won't lead you wrong, trust yourself," said Mia.
"And remember what I said about Snape."
"No, forget that part," said Mia sharply.
The train's whistle sounded and students started piling onto the train.
"You have to go now," said Joe, pulling out his wand and enchanting her trunk to make it feather-light. Adrienne nodded, reached up, and embraced him.
"I'll miss you guys." She let go and hugged Mia.
"We'll miss you too honey."
Adrienne smiled, picked up her trunk, and walked towards the train, not looking back because she knew she'd cry. She walked towards the back and chose an empty compartment. She stowed her trunk and then sat down next to the window to wave at Mia and Joe, but they had already disapparated. Adrienne wiped a tear from her eye.
"This is it," she said, standing up.
"If you don't mind my asking, what's it?" asked a girl behind her.
Adrienne turned around: The curly-haired girl from the plane was standing in the doorway, struggling to hold her trunk.
"You mind if we sit in here with you?" she asked.
"No," said Adrienne, moving into the corner of the compartment so the girl could come in. Two other people followed her.
Once they put their trunks in the overhead compartment, the three turned to Adrienne. Adrienne quickly sat into her chair, her hand over her mouth. Standing right in front of her was the boy from her dreams.
"Oh, him, yep, he's Harry Potter," said the red-head rolling his eyes. "And I'm Ron Weasley and this is Hermione Granger."
"Am I supposed to know who Harry Potter is?" asked Adrienne quietly, clearly understanding that Ron had thought her to have gasped upon realizing she was standing face to face with the Harry Potter. Ron's jaw dropped.
Adrienne laughed. "Joking," she said smiling.
'It's just a coincidence,' she thought. 'He just looks like that kid in my dreams, there is no possible way they could be the same person.'
Harry was telling himself roughly the same thing as he took a seat opposite from Adrienne, setting Hedwig's cage gently onto the floor.
"We saw you on the plane coming here," said Ron, who had obviously gotten over his brief shock.
"Oh, well, I think I saw you guys too ... sleeping," Adrienne replied. She looked at the curious faces around her and laughed. "You guys look like you're talking to an alien," she said.
"You went to Salem?" asked Hermione.
"Yep, I did, until now," replied Adrienne, feeling much more at ease now that she had convinced herself that she had not been dreaming of Harry Potter for four years.
"And Salem has freed house elves?" asked Hermione, who was still a little angry at the fact that Ron and Harry had flat out refused to let her even get within one hundred yards of the Salem entrance gates.
"Yep, they're real nice, but a little slow," said Adrienne, "and they don't take to accepting help that well."
Adrienne giggled, remembering the sight of all the house elves walking around complaining of aches and pains and looking for their teeth while Professors Glenn and Hartel had argued over which counter-charm would be the most successful.
"Do they like being free?" asked Hermione eagerly.
"I dunno," replied Adrienne, turning her attention to the train window. She sat and watched the countryside fly by, wondering exactly what Hogwarts would look like.
"So, um, what's your name again?" asked Ron, blushing slightly.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you, Adrienne Miles."
"Adrienne's a real pretty name," said Ron, earning him very odd glances from Hermione and Harry.
Adrienne smiled at him, trying not to laugh. "And so is Ron," she said, miraculously keeping her face straight. "So, tell me about Hogwarts. I don't know anything."
"What exactly do you want to know?" asked Harry.
"I have a book called Hogwarts: A History, although I am starting to doubt it's unbiased ability... " started Hermione, standing up to pull out her book from her trunk.
"Like, do you have houses? Salem doesn't; we just are in dormitories according to grade and alphabetical order ... seven kids per room," said Adrienne.
"No, we have four houses," started Harry, and he continued to explain everything from the house history to the sorting.
"Interesting," commented Adrienne when Harry had finally finished. Ron dumbly nodded his agreement.
"You have Prefects there?" Adrienne asked.
Hermione smiled importantly. "Yes and I am one of them."
"Great, just great, now they're making mudbloods into Prefects," came a drawling voice.
The compartment door opened and Draco Malfoy walked into the compartment, flanked, as ever, by Crabbe and Goyle.
"Get out, Malfoy," hissed Harry, standing up quickly, reaching for his wand. Draco smirked and looked around, his eyes falling onto Adrienne. He cocked his head, and his eyes drifted from Harry to Adrienne.
"Is this your twin, Potter?" he asked snidely.
"No, this is Adrienne," said Harry shortly.
"You two look a lot alike," said Draco thoughtfully.
Adrienne looked at Draco curiously."Yeah, we must have one of those faces," she said.
"Ugly ones."
Adrienne smiled, "Thanks for the comment, Malfoy, is it?"
"Draco Malfoy, Adrienne," he spat.
"Well, Draco Malfoy, we were having a private conversation, and I'd really appreciate it if you would kindly remove yourself from this compartment so we can finish," said Adrienne sweetly, her eyes sparkling. She had found in the past that she could often get her way if she acted charmingly. This wasn't the case with Malfoy, as he stood glaring at her, obviously not quite ready to leave yet.
"And what if I don't want to," he drawled, casting an amused glance over his shoulder to Crabbe and Goyle, who were cracking their knuckles menacingly. Adrienne cocked her head to the right, miffed at not being able to charm this Malfoy character out of the compartment."I'll make you."
"Hear that boys, Miss I-Want-to-Look-Like-Famous-Harry-Potter is going to make us leave," laughed Malfoy. Crabbe and Goyle laughed stupidly.
"All right, Adrienne, try and make us leave," said Draco. Adrienne just smiled; she didn't move. "I knew it: She's afraid of us."
"I'm more afraid of flobberworms than you, at least their IQ is greater than one," said Adrienne, her voice still remarkably void of hostile emotion.
Draco's jaw tightened. "All of you don't know who you're dealing with, you know that?" he shot, "I'm not afraid of you."
With that Draco grabbed Adrienne by the arm just to prove she didn't intimidate him. It happened too fast for Harry to make out clearly. All he saw was Draco fly backwards into Crabbe and Goyle as Adrienne's foot met his face.
* * * * *
Adrienne sat quietly in the horse-less carriage with Ron, Harry, and Hermione. The train ride had been rather uneventful after the eviction of Draco and his cronies, and now Adrienne was looking forward to dinner. The rain had slowed to a sprinkle, and the peaceful tapping on the roof had just about lulled Adrienne to sleep when the carriage halted and Ron opened the door. As Adrienne stepped out of the carriage, her mouth dropped open. Standing majestically in front of her was the largest, most splendid castle she had ever laid eyes on. Adrienne stood at the foot of Hogwarts' gargantuan stone steps, her new black robes whipping in the wind, and as she struggled to remember to breathe, something deep within her, some reasoning beyond her comprehension, told her that she was finally home.