Verity's sense of panic grew as she looked up at the people surrounding her. She was sure that she didn't know a single one of them, though the red haired one looked vaguely familiar. They were all dressed very strangely: black robes and, for the older ones, pointed hats. This only served to heighten her anxiety. 'Are these people some sort of cult?' she wondered.
"Who the hell are you people?" Verity finally asked, her voice not nearly as steady as she would have liked.
"Ah, forgive us." The old man said gravely, though there was a humorous glint in his eyes. "This is Professor McGonagall, Madame Pomfrey, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasly, and Harry Potter. I am Professor Dumbledore, Headmaster her at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Now, would you be so kind as to tell who you are?"
"Verity Rasmussen." She replied automatically, then "What! Hogwarts school of Witchcraft…is this someone's idea of a joke?" She stared at the faces around her in disbelief.
"Professor McGonagall, please take Misters Potter and Weasly and Ms. Granger to their dormitory." As they left, Madame Pomfrey retired to what appeared to be an office, leaving Verity with the eccentric looking Professor Dumbledore.
"My dear," Dumbledore began, "Can you tell me how you happened to come here?"
"I-I'm not sure. I was just holding my grandmother's pendant, then I must have passed out, or something. I felt like I was spinning and falling. Maybe the pendant…" she looked reflectively at the palm of her right hand where she could see the small cut, then a thought occurred to her. "My pendant! Where is it?" she looked around wildly, desperately. "Grandma told me not to lose it!"
"Calm down, Ms. Rasmussen. Is this the pendant you are speaking of?" Dumbledore reached into his robes then held up a silver chain, on which the crystal pendant was sparkling merrily.
Verity smiled gratefully, and Dumbledore began to speak as she secured the delicate necklace around her neck.
"Your crystal is very unusual, Ms. Rasmussen. You said your grandmother gave it to you?"
Verity nodded wryly, not sure where this was going.
"Can you tell me where she got it from?"
"I'm not sure, Professor. She's always worn it. She gave it to me this morning, right before she-she died." Tears began to escape her eyes again. She gratefully took the handkerchief offered and dabbed at her eyes. As she looked up, she was surprised to see tears in Dumbledore's eyes, as well.
"I'm sorry to hear that she's gone. Your grandmother was a good woman."
"You knew my grandmother?" Verity asked incredulously.
"Yes, of course. I knew Leonora quite well. In fact she sent me an owl just last week telling me to expect the arrival of her granddaughter. I didn't quite expect such a dramatic entrance, however. I can show you the letters, if you would like."
"An owl? I'm sorry, sir, but I'm very confused. Why did my grandmother want me to come here?"
"For now, I believe that we should concentrate on explaining exactly where you are. But first…" Out of nowhere, a long sheet of parchment and a quill appeared. Verity blinked. Surely she hadn't just seen that?
Dumbledore scrawled something on the paper. Then, summoning Madame Pomfrey, he asked her to send the message straight away.
When they were alone once again, Dumbledore started to tell her about Hogwarts. Verity listened in growing disbelief, but resisted the urge to interrupt-or laugh hysterically.
"So you're saying," Verity said carefully, that I am in a school full of witches and wizards who are learning to do magic."
"Yes." Dumbledore said simply.
"Then why did my grandmother want me to come here?"
"Because you are a witch, of course."
"But…What!"
"When you were eleven," Dumbledore explained, "a letter was sent to you, telling you of your acceptance to Hogwarts. However, your parents decided that they wanted you to live as a muggle, that is, a non-magic person. Your grandmother was not very happy with their decision, but it was theirs to make. Things have changed, however."
"How is that?"
"Well, as your parents died last year, your grandmother was made your guardian. It was now her decision where to send you for schooling. Still, she was unsure of what to do. Your parents had not chosen magic for you, after all. Last week, she finally made her decision. And here you are!"
"But whydidn't grandma tell me all of this?" Verity asked.
Dumbledore opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, the door opened and a plump, smiling woman ran over to her bed and enveloped her in a giant hug.
"Oh, my, poor, dear, girl! We just received the news about Leonora! Arthur is on his way right now. He was working when we got the news. Oh, he's very upset. Leonora was his favorite aunt of mine, you know."
"Um, I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?"
"Oh, of course you don't know who I am! My name is Molly Weasley. Your grandparents were my aunt and uncle. Your father and I were cousins."
Now that she mentioned it, Verity did seem to remember her grandmother mentioning that she had cousins on her father's side. They had never met due to some falling out that had happened before Verity's birth. Somehow it was comforting to have this woman here. Even though they had only just met, it was nice to have a connection with someone else.
When Verity had a chance later that evening to look back on the day's events, she was overwhelmed with emotion. Sadness, of course, was at the forefront, but also, and most strangely, love.
Shortly after Molly had arrived, her husband and four of their children came in. One of the boys was Ron, the boy she had met earlier. Fred and George were twins (apparently they owned their own joke shop) and Ginny was the youngest and only girl. She learned that Ron, who was the same age as her, and Ginny both attended Hogwarts. The twins had left last year (Ron promised to tell her the story later).
It was strange, the way that she thought of the Weasleys as her family already. She hadn't even known them this morning, but it just seemed right to her. A perfect fit.
A/N: This is my first story (posted, I write all the time), so I'm still trying to get a hang of everything. Verity is a character that I couldn't seem to get out of my head, even though I know she's probably a Mary Sue of some sort and the story isn't exactly cannon. Oh well, that's why I'm writing it, not JKR.