A/N: This seems to be one of my more successful pieces, so I'm going to try and take this as far as I can while making it interesting. One thing I am specifically looking for feedback-wise, is your feelings on the new character, Lilah Darling. How do you like her? Does she seem like a plausible character? Does she seem distinct enough? We should all know by this point that the basis of this entire story is her relationship with Harry, but would you want to perhaps have her pursue a close friendship (very sisterly relationship, if you will) with Hermione, like the female BFF she never truly got in the books/films? (with some due respect to Ginny).

If you have thoughts on her, feel free to leave a review or a private message. I will do my best to respond to all of your questions.

The next morning, all the students congregated back at the Great Hall for breakfast. Lilah sat at the Hufflepuff table next to Susan Bones, whom she had befriended the night before. Susan found Lilah's easy smile and sweet nature infectious, and they spent a couple hours whispering in their dormitory before finally falling asleep. They talked about anything and everything - their families, their hobbies, gossiping about some of the other children they met on the train or at the banquet, especially Harry.

As Lilah was munching on a sausage, a fleet of school owls fluttered into the Great Hall, dropping off post for students. One of the owls dropped a rolled-up parchment next to Lilah's plate.

"Lucky," said Susan to Lilah with just a hint of jealousy. "Your first full day and you've already got post." Lilah simply smiled and shrugged.

Lilah unrolled the parchment. This was not unexpected, as she did talk to the prefect Marcia last night about meeting with the head of Harry's house.

"Miss Darling,

Thank you for reaching out to me about your concern for Mister Potter. You must be a very kind witch indeed, to be this caring about a student outside of your own house. If you would like to speak to me regarding his welfare, you may visit me in my office tomorrow afternoon during your free period. It is located on the first floor. I will have tea and biscuits if you'd like to partake.

Sincerely Yours,

Professor M. McGonagall"

A huge smile crept on Lilah's face. Susan couldn't help but notice. "You look like you've just passed your end-of-year exams, Lilah," Susan commented.

Lilah giggled. "Even better. I'm going to talk to Harry's head of house tomorrow afternoon during our free period. She says that she can help me out with my concerns. At the very least, it'll be good to get this off my chest."

Susan gave Lilah a little nod. "If you want, you can go visit Harry at the Gryffindor table for a little bit. Just don't take too long, because we have our first class coming up."

Lilah beamed at her friend. "A few minutes is better than none at all. And I do believe we do share at least a couple of classes with the Gryffindors, so I'll get to see him there too." Susan smiled back at Lilah.

Lilah practically skipped over to the Gryffindor table. "Hiya, Harry," she exclaimed.

"Lilah!" Harry stood up and the two friends embraced each other warmly. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes! I'm glad you came over, I missed you."

Hermione stood up and gave Lilah a hug. "Good morning, Lilah," she said. "You really made Harry's day."

Lilah beamed. "Thank you... Hyacinth, was it? I am so sorry, I know your name is not a common one and I should have been more keen to remember it."

Hermione giggled. "Hermione. Her-my-uh-knee," she corrected with a silly grin. Her face scrunched ever so slightly, her usual 'tell' before she pitched her already-high voice in an even higher know-it-all tone. "By the way, you have a truly lovely name, Lilah. It means 'purple'. Did you know?"

"Thank you, Hermione. And yes, I did know that." She giggled slightly. "Believe it or not, people mix up my name a bit too. Plenty of people have addressed me as 'Lily' or 'Layla'." She shook her head in mock frustration.

She smiled again. She closed her eyes and wiggled her neck, as if adopting an aristocratic air. "If I'm being honest with myself, I rather fancy being a Lilah. Not too many girls have my name." She beamed at Hermione. "And Hermione is like Lilah... also uncommon, but also lovely," replied Lilah.

"Well thank you, Lilah. I didn't really like my name much when I was younger, but I appreciate it much more now. And not to be technical, but 'Lilah' is actually derived from old Persian, meaning 'bluish'. I believe their culture considered purple a shade of blue," replied Hermione.

She then looked into Lilah's gorgeous icy blue eyes. "I'm sorry for rubbing it in, Lilah. I know I have a bad habit of showing off, and I don't mean to sometimes. I wasn't trying to make you look stupid; quite the contrary - you give me the impression that you're a very smart girl, one I can have deep conversations with. You're just less... nerdy than I am," she giggled.

Lilah smiled at Hermione. "I took no offense to that at all, Hermione. In fact, I'd love to be your study partner sometime. I know I can learn a thing or two from you, and perhaps, you might even learn something from me," she said with a wink.

"I'd love that too, Lilah," squeaked Hermione with giddiness. "This may not surprise you, but I very nearly got sorted into Ravenclaw last night, if you can believe it."

Lilah giggled. "I was strongly considered for it myself... and that blasted hat even toyed with the idea of placing me in Gryffindor. I think I would have been quite happy in any house save Slytherin. But I think it's my empathy and sense of duty that put me in Hufflepuff."

Hermione nodded. "You seem to be a very warm and caring person. While I wish you were a Gryffindor, I do think you are in the right place. And despite what others may think," she said, giving Ron a look, "Hufflepuff is a perfectly fine house to be in, and I would not have been upset about being placed there, personally. I might have taken the train back home had it placed me with those blasted serpents, however."

Harry smiled at his two pretty friends. He put his hand on Lilah's shoulder. "Someone's birthday is coming up... I'd like to do something nice for you," he said.

Lilah's eyes flicked back and forth horizontally a couple of times, and her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. "Harry, please..." she said quietly.

Hermione gasped. "Really? When? I have a birthday soon too!"

Lilah sighed. "In two days. September the 4th."

"It might not be much, but we'll do something nice for you, Lilah. You've been an angel," squeaked Hermione.

Lilah blushed. "You really don't have to, but thank you. And when is your birthday, by the way?"

"In just a couple of weeks. September 19th," replied Hermione.

"The nineteenth," Lilah repeated, making a mental note. "I promise that I will remember your birthday much better than I remembered your name, her-my-uh-knee," she giggled.

"I would certainly hope so, Lily," Hermione said with a snicker.

Hermione's face suddenly turned serious. She cupped her hand slightly on one side of her mouth and whispered softly into Lilah's ear. "Thank you for being so kind and patient with me, Lilah. You're only the second real friend I've ever made, after Harry. I know my 'clever-clogs' persona is a lot to handle, but you truly see me for something other than a 'bossy teacher's pet'. You're a sweetheart of a witch. You're welcome to come to our table anytime." She hugged Lilah warmly.

"You're a very sweet little witch yourself," Lilah said softly. "And you and Harry can visit me at the Hufflepuff table anytime. Thank you for being my friend."

Harry cleared his throat, noticing some students starting to grab their bags. "Um, Lilah, I hate to cut this short, but you might want to head back to the Hufflepuff table in a minute or so, it looks like it's almost time to leave for class."

"You're kicking me out so soon? You little prat," Lilah squeaked with mock indignation, swatting Harry on the arm. "

"It did me so much good to see you, Lilah. Maybe we can meet you at your table for lunch? Maybe even meet some of your friends?" asked Harry.

"That would be terrific, actually. I've only made one so far - Susan - but she's a nice girl. I think you'll like her," Lilah replied. "I guess I'll just trudge on over to the Hufflepuff table and get my stuff and pretend to pay attention in class today," she said with a wink.


Several hours later, classes were dismissed for lunch. After Harry and Hermione finished eating, they went over to the Hufflepuff table to spend a few more minutes with Lilah, and perhaps even get to know some other Hufflepuffs.

"Hiya, Lilah," said Hermione cheerfully.

"Hi there, Lilah," added Harry with a big smile.

"Harry! Hermione! So good to see you," Lilah said with a radiant smile of her own, embracing her two Gryffindor friends at the same time. "How was class this morning?"

"We had Transfiguration and History of Magic," said Hermione. "I like Professor McGonagall. She has been very up-front and told us that she expects much from us, but she's also very kind and patient. I'm sure you'll feel the same way. And Professor Binns is hard to listen to. I think reading a telephone directory would be preferable."

Lilah arched an eyebrow. "Telephone directory? You must be muggle-born too. I had a suspicion that you were when you sang that silly Beatles song after I told you my name yesterday."

"Guilty as charged," Hermione admitted with a smirk. "Maybe I was being a bit of a stinker on the train, but you are true to your namesake, you really are a darling," she said with a gentle smile.

"Well, thank you," replied Lilah. "So what do your parents do? They definitely raised you right, whatever they do."

"They're dentists, if you can believe it," answered Hermione. "Yours?"

"Funny you should mention that. I could use some dental work... perhaps more specifically, orthodontics," sighed Lilah. "But maybe now that I'm a witch, all I need is some magic. Who knows... Oh, sorry - my mum is a social worker, and my daddy is a draughtsman."

"Ah," replied Hermione. "It takes a very special kind of person to be a social worker, you must be very proud of your mum."

Lilah smiled appreciatively. "I am very proud of her. I don't see what happens behind the scenes because her cases are so sensitive, she's technically not even allowed to discuss them with her family. I know that some aspects of her job have to bother her to no end."

"I'm sure they do," agreed Hermione. "And your parents really did raise a wonderful little witch." Lilah blushed.

"What classes did you have this morning, Lilah?" asked Harry.

"Oh, I'm sorry - I didn't mean to ignore you, Harry," giggled Lilah. "I had a double class of History of Magic - yes, Professor Binns is every bit as interesting as a telephone directory, but it's even worse since it's longer. And I had Transfigurations as well, so it looks like our courses are flip-flopped."

She gestured to a couple of empty spots beside her at the table. "I'm so sorry, where are my manners? Please, have a seat."

She then tapped Susan's shoulder. "Hi Susan, got a moment? I wanted to introduce you to my new Gryffindor friends, if that's okay."

Susan smiled at Harry and Hermione, offering her hand to shake. "Hello. I'm Susan Bones. I've heard good things about you two."

"Hi Susan," said Harry appreciatively as he took Susan's hand. "I'm Harry Potter. It's nice to meet some new students outside our house. Lilah told me good things about you as well."

"Hello, Susan," said Hermione as she shook Susan's hand. "I'm Hermione Granger. I'm pretty sure I saw you on the train yesterday. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself until now, but it's good to finally meet you. Lilah says you're a good friend of hers."

"She seems to know her way around fairly well for a firstie," said Lilah.

Susan shrugged. "I grew up in a magical family. I already knew some of the people here before I even attended, so I guess having connections does help a bit."

"So you're a pure-blood then?" Harry asked, genuinely curious.

Susan smiled. "Not quite, I'm what you call a 'half-blood'. Most of my relatives are witches and wizards, but some of them are 'muggle-born'. It doesn't really matter to me, though."

"I'm a half-blood too," replied Harry. "My father was pure-blood, and my mum was 'muggle-born'."

Susan's face took a more sympathetic look. "I've heard about you, Harry Potter. You're the boy-who-lived, aren't you? I'm really sorry you never got to really know your parents, I know that has to bother you."

Harry smiled, shaking his head. "I get that a lot. But really, I'm just Harry from Surrey. I might as well be muggle-born because I don't really know much about my heritage, it was basically hidden from me."

Susan stood up and hugged Harry. "For a famous wizard, you're humble. That's... refreshing." She gave him a cockeyed grin. "A small request, if you don't mind?"

Harry shrugged slightly. "What's up, Susan?"

"Would you mind showing me your scar? The one... The Dark Lord supposedly gave you? It is real, isn't it?"

Harry turned his head away slightly, with an abashed grin on his face. "I don't mind." He swept a strand of hair away from his forehead, revealing a zeta-shaped scar.

"Thank you, Harry. Does it hurt sometimes?" Susan asked.

"Umm... it did last night at the banquet, actually. Someone from the faculty table gave me a funny look, and then I felt something like a white-hot stick pressed against my forehead. I can't explain why that is... strange, really."

Harry turned around to face Lilah and Hermione. "I don't think I showed you this, did I?"

"I don't think I saw that before, Harry," said Hermione. "But I did see you wince a bit last night, like a really nasty hornet stung you. So that's what that was. Do you remember which teacher it was?"

"I don't recall his name, but he was the pasty-looking fellow dressed in black," replied Harry.

"That's the potions master, Professor Snape," said Susan. "I've heard that he's an absolute joy to be around," she added sardonically.

"Do you mind if I see your scar, Harry?" asked Lilah. She smiled shyly at Harry. "This might sound weird, but I'd like to... well, touch it, if that's okay."

Harry gave her a little grin, and nodded. Lilah slowly placed her index and middle fingers on Harry's forehead, and gently traced the outline of the lightning-bolt shaped scar. Harry actually found her cool, delicate fingers to be quite calming and soothing on his forehead.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" Lilah asked sweetly.

Harry smiled warmly as he shook his head 'no'. "You didn't hurt me one bit, Lilah. In fact, I felt a very positive sensation when you touched it. I'm not sure how to properly describe it - perhaps peaceful."

"I think we need to start heading back to our table, Harry. We need to get ready for our afternoon classes," said Hermione. "I do believe we share a class with Lilah and Susan this afternoon - Charms, if memory serves. Maybe we can try and coordinate something so we can all sit together?"

"Cheers," said Susan. "Lilah was right about you two, you seem like good company. I'll see you then."

"See you two in a bit," said Harry. "We'll do what we can to save you some seats."

"Great! Ta, Harry and Hermione. It was good catching up," Lilah responded.