**Authors note: anything in italic represents thinking
Disclaimer - see chapter one**

Part three – the path to Hogwarts

The first of September rolled around before anyone knew it; The Burrow was a hive of activity

Molly Weasley was rushing around fussing and worrying as was the usual thing to happen when the children went off for another year at Hogwarts.
She stopped suddenly as a loud squeak and hiss erupted from Ginny's bedroom.
"Crookshanks, get off Ginny," a loud female voice yelled.

"Oh dear," she thought, and then started up the stairs to Ron's room. She hoped that the two boys had finished packing.
Opening the door to the bedroom, Molly faced a scene of utter chaos. All the boys' clothes where everywhere and Ron and Harry where running around trying to catch Ron's owl.

"Get back here, you stupid bird." Ron jumped off his bed trying to catch Pigwidgeon, and failed horribly.

"What on earth are you doing, Ron Weasley?"

"Trying to catch this stupid bird, Mum, he won't get in his cage." Ron leapt at the bird as it was perched on the window sill, catching him; he held the little owl tightly as Harry opened the cage.

"Well now that you have him would you please pack your cases. We will be leaving for Kings *Cross soon and I don't want to be late." Molly turned and left the room, closing the door behind her a little more forcefully then she'd intended to, which made the boys jump, and made Pigwidgeon start flapping around his cage,* loudly hooting.

"Oh, cover him up will ya, Harry, I can't stand it when he goes off like that."


******

Running as fast as her feet could take her, Star sped across the bridge and down to the entrance of the train station. She couldn't believe she'd slept in, today of all days.

The force of her running was a lot quicker now that she wasn't wearing her usual robes, just normal Muggles clothing.

The clunk of her heeled boots kept pace with the loud beating of her heart; she really didn't want to miss the train.
Running faster through the small crowd of people, Star sprinted across to platforms 9 and 10. She noticed a few wizarding families milling around, talking, before pushing though the barrier to the Hogwarts platform.

Still running, Star noticed a gaggle of red headed people talking and laughing, there was also a brown headed girl and a dark brown headed boy, who, to Star's shock, looked so much like….

Star started to skid, her boots sliding across the concrete, her eyes wide and her mouth about as wide, her hair fanning out. As she spun slightly, she whispered a name as she slid straight though the barrier.

"James. "

*~*~*

"Now,* Ginny,* dear,* have you got everything? I won't be pleased to find you've left something behind like last year." Molly Weasly fussed around her little girl.

"Ron you too.* I really don't want to be owling you things when you remember something."

"Geeze, Mum, I have everything, honest." Ron looked at Harry and rolled his eyes. As much as he loved his mother to death, she fussed way too much.


"So, Harry, you got everything?" Ron laughed doing a bad impression of his mother, which earned him a nudge in the ribs from Hermione.

"Oww, what was that for, Mione?" Ron rubbed his stomach, looking at his friend with a slight pout on his face.

"Your being a pain, Ron, now give it a rest." Hermione stared at him and then looked at Harry; he had been looking at the barrier.

"Gawd, would you look at what is speeding down the ramp," Ron pointed at the black clad Muggle running at full speed towards them.

"She looks like she's had fashion advice from Snape." Ron laughed.

Harry noticed the woman dressed all in black turn slightly and look at the group. He saw she was heading straight for the barrier that led to the Hogwarts Express.
The expression on her face was that of shock, as she turned slightly, and skidded into the barrier and disappeared.

"Umm, I wonder if that was meant to happen," Harry spoke up after they had watched her disappear.

"Mum can Muggles get though the barrier?" were the first words out of Ron's mouth.

"Don't be silly, Ron, of course they can't, they wouldn't know where it was to begin with." Mrs. Weasly looked at her youngest son.

"Hmm, that's what I thought. Looks like we might have a new teacher at school this year. " Hermione smiled, and wondered who the newest teacher would be.

*************

"If you ask me, the idea of another Defence professor being any better then last year's, is about as likely as Potter being able to defeat a hundred Death Eaters,"
Draco Malfoy laughed as he entered the train cable and sat down.
Following closely behind him were his usual shadows, Crabbe and Goyle. The two louts looked at each other and shrugged, not really getting the joke. They both laughed a little too stiffly, just to make it look like they knew what Draco was on about.

Standing a bit behind them Pansy Parkinson smiled. "Oh, Draco, I hear you made Prefect this year. My mother was telling me the other day." She fluttered her eyes sweetly at him, feeling very proud of "her" Draco.

"Well, of course I did, Pansy. My father can be thanked for that. He does have the way with certain school Governors. He saw it was only fit that a Malfoy be a Prefect. And, like it or not, my father does have the best interests of the school in mind."

Draco puffed out his chest a little, as he seated himself near the window of the cabin, his eyes turning to look out of the window, not really listening to the prattle that Pansy had started spouting about her summer break and what her parents said and did.

Breaking Draco out of his little daydream, Crabbe pointed to something out the window.
"Hey, look, it's Potter and his fan club."
Draco looked over to where the boy was pointing and saw a small group milling on the platform, passing luggage to the porter.

Draco stared at the image of Ginny hugging her mother goodbye and sighed inwardly. "Shame she's a Weasley. " He shook that thought away and stated with his usual sneer, "At least they made it to the train this year." They all laughed at his comment, remembering what happened in their second year.

Draco went back to watching the group, his mind wandering, his eyes locked on the youngest Weasley.

*****
"Now hurry up, children, the train will not wait for you." Molly Weasley fussed around the children as they finished loading their trunks into the luggage compartment.
After they where finished,* she walked with them over to the door which lead to the seating cabins and gave each of them a goodbye hug.

"Goodbye, Mum. " Ginny hugged her mother and received a kiss and a big hug in return.

"Bye, Mum," Ron squeaked as his mother hugged him and mumbled something about not getting into trouble.

"You have a good time, Hermione, dear." Molly squeezed the dark haired girl as she left to get on the train.

"And, Harry, please try and not get into trouble this year." Harry nodded and crossed over the doorway of the carriage.

"C'mon, let's get a cabin," Hermione called to the other three, as she walked down the narrow corridor.

"Hi Harry, Ron, Hermione," the voice of Neville Longbottom stopped the three of them as they walked. He was leaning out of a door half way up the corridor.

"Hi, Neville," the three of them called.

"You haven't seen Trevor?" The boy looked at them sheepishly.

Hermione groaned. "Honestly, Neville, can't you keep control of that toad?" She looked at Neville then huffed softly, turning to look in though the door of a cabin. Seeing it was empty, she pushed open the door and walked in.

"Gee, what's her problem?" Seamus Finnigan whispered to Ron and Harry as he stood behind them having seen Hermione's display happen.

Both Harry and Ron just shrugged their shoulders at him then joined Hermione in the cabin.

"You alright?" Harry looked at his friend, Hermione seemed a little stressed.

"Yes, I'm ok, just getting tired of how childish some people can be."

As they began to settle in, the train started to lurch and the whistle blew. They all leaned out the window to give Ron's mum one last wave before the train left the station and started the long trip to Hogwarts.

"I wonder if we'll see the new teacher on the trip," Hermione closed up the window they had just used as Harry and Ron sat down again. They both looked at her.
"Not likely, Harry, she would have gone straight to the teachers' carriage," Hermione replied, as she settled herself in her seat and started to rummage though her bag for a book to read.

"Do you think she will be working with Professor Lupin this year, as I'm sure the Defence class is the only one without a teacher." Ron opened up his bag and pulled out his pack of cards.

"He didn't mention having an assistant, apart from Snuffles." Hermione remembered the chat she had with Remus while they where at The Burrow, and didn't remember him saying anything about a female helper.

"Then I wonder what class she will be doing. That is, if she is a teacher. You never know, she could just be a guest of Dumbledore." Harry held up the cards Ron had dealt to him and started to organize the pairs.


The carriage lurched again as it picked up speed the landscape started to blur as the train sped along the tracks.

"Well, who ever she is," Hermione looked up from over her book, "we will, I'm sure, find out at the welcoming feast." She bowed her head again and went back to reading her book.

****

"Oh my, this place hasn't changed a bit," Star smiled as she walked slowly down the long corridor or the train carriage, her hand brushing over the smooth wood panels of the wall. It's amazing how much history these walls had seen. Star could feel the memories held within each panel.

"I hope Snape is a little nicer this year," a small female voice interrupted Star's thoughts.
"You've got to be kidding, Snape is never nice. He'll never change so you'd better keep on dreaming," a second, this time male, voice replied.

"The only time Snape will ever be nice is if someone spikes his coffee, and I don't see that happening. No-one would dare do that if they valued their life," a third voice added with a touch of sarcasm.

"Hmm, spiking teacher's drinks. I remember that old trick."

Star smiled inwardly. She could remember that happening while she was a student, but now that she was a teacher, nothing that childish could pass into her thoughts.

Snape. Now, where have I heard that name before? Star mentally mumbled. Not really remembering where, she shrugged and kept walking.

After a few short minutes, Star came across a group of what she guessed were first years. They had the usual look of scared witless and excitement on their faces.
Giving them a smile as she walked past, the group looked at her and then fled when they guessed she wasn't a student.
They all hurried in to a nearby cabin and the door slammed shut.

"Great, that didn't go to well. Scaring first years and I want to be a teacher."
She rolled her eyes and kept walking.
The noises coming from the cabins were starting to give Star a headache. She rubbed at her temples slowly, willing the pain down, and reminding herself that she had better go see the Mediwitch as soon as she got to school.
This type of pain was something Star didn't really like to put up with, and having lived with it and knowing the treatment she felt a little better, but the pain was a bit of a pain in the neck so to speak.

"Would you like something from the cart, dear?"
An elderly voice started Star out of her thinking again; She turned around and noticed that the tea lady had stopped behind her.

Star looked at the cart the lady was pushing, seeing it filled with lots of goodies.

"Hmm, a caldron cake wouldn't go astray." She smiled at the older women as she removed some money from the pouch in the bag that was still slung over her shoulder.

"You wouldn't happen to have any orange juice?" Star asked, hoping but not counting on it.

"Sorry, dear, I only carry pumpkin juice," the tea lady handed Star her cake and the change.
"Oh, that's ok, I didn't think you would, but it didn't hurt to ask"

Star smiled and let the lady pass. it was a great thing being a witch at the best of times, but not when you're allergic to pumpkin juice.

"Oh, excuse me," Star called after the lady remembering something important she'd nearly forgotten.
"Yes dear?" The lady looked back at her

"You wouldn't happen to know where the teachers' carriage is, I'm a bit lost.*"

"Oh, yes, of course, dear. You're heading in the right direction, just keep going down the way you're headed til you reach the end of the carriage. There will be a red wood door. It should have a sign on it saying Teachers Only."

Star smiled, thanking the lady for her help, and then started back on her way towards the end of the carriage.


As she walked down the corridor, having dodged a few students as they ran between cabins, Star stopped when she overheard a conversation that sounded rather unusual for students to be having.

"So is your father still wanting you to join up when your 18? I know my father does. He said he'd be so proud that I'd be a member of our Lord's forces against the Ministry and their Muggle loving members."
The voice was male and sounded very weak.
"Yes, Crabbe, my father does and I cannot wait to wear the mark of our Lord."

"His Lord, they can't mean Voldermort, surely". Star stood still trying to listen to what else the students in question had to say about that mad man.

"Draco, Draco you awake?" a female voice piped up, sounding just like the yap of a small dog.
"What is it, Pansy?" a sneering male voice responded.

"Has your father let you go to any of the meetings yet, you did say he might this year?"

"Not yet. Father doesn't think I'm ready, but he did say he might let me go while I'm at home this Christmas," the voice Star guessed was Draco answered.

"Hey, where's the food cart, I'm hungry!" another voice started, but it didn't sound very intelligent.
Star could hear the door to the cabin start to open; she closed her eyes and started to fade slightly, blending into the wood panelling.

Crabbe looked down the corridor for the lady with the food. Seeing she was up the other end, he grunted and went back into the cabin.
He didn't even notice that Star was standing right near him, totally invisible.
When the door closed again, Star reappeared, breathing heavily. She knew it took a great amount of energy to keep blended like that, and was glad the boy hadn't stood outside for too long.
After deciding that being a snoop was not the best thing to do for now, Star walked a bit of the way back from where she had just came from, then turned around and walked past the cabin that the boy had leant out of, making it look like she was just walking past.

Draco looked up from the scroll he was reading. The sound of the door closing had brought him back from his own private thoughts. He looked at Crabbe, thinking that the boy would never stop eating
A few seconds later he noticed a woman walking past, dressed in black, her brown hair falling down to the middle of her back. She was beautiful. Draco had seen many women before, some with very beautiful features, but this woman had a beauty that, for a better word, could be mystical.

Putting his letter in his bag, Draco stood up and went to the door.

"Draco, where are you going?" Pansy asked as he past her.

"For a walk if it's any of your business," he sneered back, opening the door quickly and heading in the direction of the mysterious woman.

Draco walked quickly, trying to make as little noise as possible; he had caught sight of the woman's black dress as she swept down and around the corner.
When he hit the end of the passage all that was in front of him was the door leading to the teachers' carriage. What was she doing in there? He hadn't heard of any new teachers being at Hogwarts this year.
If she did go through the door, she must have done it very quietly as he had not heard the opening or the closing of the door.
Scratching his head, Draco turned around and headed back the way he had come from, as quietly as he had been before. This woman intrigued him, and was looking forward to finding out more about her.

Star let out a deep breath; she swayed slightly as she returned to solid form and leaned against the part of the wall that she had been hiding in. For the second time in twenty minutes she'd had to blend in and this hadn't made her headache any better.

"I wonder what he wanted?" Star said out loud. She blinked and shook her head. The room had stopped spinning slightly, and she was glad she'd bought the caldron cake when she did; she guessed her blood sugar level must have dropped after her little disappearing acts.

Slowly walking towards the door that marked some quiet time for her trip, Star pushed her way in to the teachers' cabin and, seeing that it was empty, flopped down very ungracefully on to the nearest couch. Pulling out a flask of orange juice from her bag, she started to eat the cake.

*****

Chapter four