Dear Diary,

The four of us have been watching our parents for almost 2 weeks. At this point, I'm going to just have to force an introduction as they are far too engrossed with Voldemort to even notice any new people. I'll figure out a good excuse & bump into one of them. I just wonder which one is the best choice. Dad and Uncle Ron are out…they're too suspicious. Mum's no good…I don't want people to see us together just yet. Aunt Hermione's just too smart…Luna is a possibility, but she's in a different house. Hmmm…I guess that leaves one person—

"This is a bad idea, Wren," Pat warned as I hugged a big stack of herbology books.

I rolled my eyes in return. "No, this is a great idea. At least, it is an idea. The rest of you seem content to just sit around and do homework we'll have to turn around and do again when we return."

"It will be easier to do the work this way."

Exasperation punctuated my sigh. "I don't care about homework, Pat. I know you have a one-track mind, but I don't. I'm trying to figure out six different plans of attack, while the rest of you are trying to figure out what to do when we get done. You know, Etta and David think this idea will work."

"Well, if David thinks it's a good idea…" Pat muttered darkly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I snapped.

"Nothing."

I stopped dead in the hallway and glared at Pat, who happily glared back at me. I would have argued the point further, but just then Neville Longbottom came around the corner.

"If you don't like it, then leave me alone," I hissed at Pat before stalking away-and running straight into Neville.

"Sorry," he immediately apologized as we fell in a pile of books.

"No, it's my fault," I replied, which oddly earned me a surprised glance. "I should have been watching where I was going instead of arguing with Pat."

I adjusted my glasses; silver ovals with clear lenses that Headmaster Dumbledore made to separate me from my mother. Neville smiled.

"You look familiar," he informed me. "Do I know you?"

I held out my hand. Wren Emerald, I'm new this year."

"Neville Longbottom," he returned, shaking my hand and gathering my books. "You like Herbology?"

I shook my head. "I'm no good with magical plants, I think I have a black thumb. I'm better with magical creatures. There's a class I'm good at."

We finished stacking the books and stood. I saw Pat stomp away toward Gryffindor tower and sighed. Nothing to do but march on.

"I'm sure I'm never going to pass this class."

Neville laughed and walked with me after Pat up the halls.

"Hey, I passed. I can help you. Herbology is my specialty."

"Thanks," I thanked him genuinely. It crossed my mind that he was going to be a magical researcher finding new uses for magical plants in potion work. His help in Herbology would really be useful. "Any other subjects you could tutor me on?"

Neville grinned wryly. "Not exactly. If you need a tutor, you should meet my friend, Hermione Granger. She's just about the smartest witch in the school."

"I've heard of her," I admitted as we neared the portrait. "I haven't had a chance to meet her yet. Is she the red-head?"

"No, that's Ginny Weasley. Hermione's the one with the bushy brown hair."

"Oh," I nodded. "So who's Ginny?"

It felt so strange to be playing this part, asking about my mum like she was a stranger. I knew I had to though. It was the only way to get into that closed circle.

"Well…you know who Harry Potter is, right?" Neville asked. At my nod, he continued, "His best friend is Ron Weasley and Ginny is Ron's sister."

"Password?" the fat lady demanded.

"Aphrodite," Neville said without thinking about it. "You should meet them."

"Oh, I'm really very shy," I begged.

"Don't worry. I promise not to let them hurt you."

I really wasn't prepared for introductions so quickly, but Neville dragged me toward the fire where the four other Gryffindors sat quietly.

"Hey guys, this is my new friend, Wren. She just moved here and I just ran over her in the hall."

I held my breath as the four most important people in my life stood and stared at me. They may have been twenty-two years younger, but they were still Mum, Dad, Uncle Ron, and Aunt Hermione. I forced a smile and waved.

"Hi."

(A/N: just so confusion is somewhat allayed, Wren's age originally was 13, but I changed it after it occurred to me that a 13 year old and a 16 year old would not just hang out in a war. Wren needed to be closer to Ginny's age for the story to work.)