The midsummer air was thick and sticky, even during 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 visited with Ron. She had been spending most of her time isolated from her family, shortly after 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 hadn't known at the time. The truth of that slowly came to fruition, until it exploded 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 Weasleys, 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 everything 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 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 as it was before. 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 guilty 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, housed by people who couldn't care less about him, who hated him. Truthfully, the situation Harry was in could only be described as abusive. Her twin brother was actively being mistreated 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? Had he known how terrible they were? 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 Dumbledore had reasons for his choices. To her mother and father, he was someone to marvel at, someone to mimic… someone who could do no wrong. She supposed that only fueled her avoidance. She didn't feel as though she could talk about any of her questions and concerns with them. However, she knew she needed to express at least something. They had likely figured out that she was feeling misplaced, and she wanted, or rather needed, 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 have been wrong for her to disregard the people who selflessly raised her.

Instead, she continued to avoid them. She had to learn how to deal with her own emotions before she dared share them with her family. 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 first-year spell stances and movements, and deny Molly and Arthur any requested bonding time… but the hardest, and most painful, was having to hide from 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 every 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 her new, singular bedroom unless called for chores. After her true lineage was outed, Molly Weasley thought it best to separate her and Ron. There was thought to put her with Ginny, but Molly insisted that Aralynn needed privacy. Sometimes, she wondered if her mother was thinking differently of her… thinking that she was no longer her daughter and wanted her separate from her real children. The thought, while likely untrue, made Aralynn sob into her pillows on more than one occasion. When Ron would come knocking on her door, she would ignore him. When he just barged in, 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. She was sure that 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. 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 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. 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 from him, 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 realistic for him to 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 late one 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 time 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 stressed me 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 any opportunity possible to cause some havoc. What better 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 one of you is amazing and loving and welcoming… even Percy. As a baby, I was placed with the perfect, most ideal family anyone could dream of… but Harry… well, Harry wasn't. Harry was given to our aunt and uncle who are awful, and hate him, and treat him like he's an unwanted rodent. That doesn't sit well with me at all. Why was I given such privilege while Harry had all his taken? Is it not enough that our parents were murdered? Did an abusive home have to be added on top of that? Not to mention, he has to live with knowing that I was placed with people who love me while he was placed with people who despise him. How am I supposed to deal with that? How am I supposed to live with that knowledge?"

It didn't seem like Ron knew how to respond. He was quiet while he processed her words, while he turned over the facts in his mind. He seemed equally as lost as she felt. "Well, there must 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 needed. 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 safer for it. Maybe if he hadn't done that, one of You-Know-Who's followers would've come round to kill you."

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

Suddenly, the freckled boy perked up and arrogant pride washed over him. "Blimey! I outsmarted you?! I outsmarted Aralynn Weasley?!"

She rolled her eyes. "Potter, technically."

"Oh," he frowned. "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." After several minutes of silence, he asked, "Are you talking to me again? Honestly, Ara, holiday has been miserable without you. It's weird enough to sleep alone, but it's worse not to have you around at all. I miss you."

Aralynn grinned, stood up, and offered her hand to him. "Come on. I should become part of the family again, don't you think?"

"Mum will be thrilled," he said as he pulled himself up with her hand. The two linked elbows and began walking back to The Burrow. "She's been worried about you. She doesn't understand why you've been avoiding 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 keep planning, 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."

"That's your birthday, too."

"Right. 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 the 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 supper. Ron took a seat next to Percy and glanced, not so subtly, between Aralynn and Molly.

She 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. 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 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 tousle 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. "Doing my holiday coursework, some reading, some letter writing."

"To Harry?"

"Harry and Hermione," she nodded. 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 to rummage through the pantry. Ron and Aralynn took that as an opportunity. They both leaned close to the twins. "Hey," Aralynn called quietly. The dangerously low volume of her voice told them that something interesting was afoot. It immediately drew their attention.

"What's going on?" asked George.

"Sounds risky," said Fred.

"Sounds spooky," 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. Being silly and goofy, as they always were.

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

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

"Nor spooky," agreed Fred.

"We haven't heard from him all summer," explained Aralynn. "I'm pretty sure something happened. I can just feel it—"

"—Ah, twintuition," said George.

"Never fails," added Fred.

Aralynn ignored them and continued. "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 wickedly 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 last summer," 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 was 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.