Aralynn wondered if mornings were peaceful for average families. She wondered if they gathered around the kitchen table, or even lounged in the living room, drinking hot tea, and eating breakfast pastries. She wondered if mornings were quiet and tranquil. She thought of people with families like that as both lucky and unlucky. They were lucky to be able to wake up and simply wait for their energy to kick in, but also unlucky to have an uninteresting family. Sometimes Aralynn wished she could laze around until she felt lively enough to start her daily routines. However, she wasn't granted such privilege—especially not on the day the family was to leave for King's Cross Station.
The Burrow was absolute chaos. Everyone was running around, finishing up their last-minute tasks, and triple-checking to make sure their essentials were safely packed in their trunks. Aralynn had packed and ensured her belongings were in order weeks before. Therefore, she sat on the couch, and watched her siblings frantically dash back and forth. Harry soon joined her in the living room, his eyes also following the darting Weasleys. When Fred collided with Percy, they shared a laugh.
"Is it always like this?" Harry asked.
"Usually," Aralynn answered. "Especially since we're leaving for Hogwarts."
"Are you excited?"
The girl shrugged. "For the most part, but not entirely. I'm still uneasy about how everyone might treat me now. I don't want anyone to think I'm a different person just because I have a different name."
"I don't see why anyone would. You're still you."
"I know that, but I'm sure people will still whisper."
"Well, if they do, just ignore it. Nobody gets to tell you who you are. Only you do."
Aralynn smiled at her brother. "Thanks, Harry."
Harry nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Anytime, little sister."
Aralynn furrowed her eyebrows. "Little sister? We're twins."
"Well, I'm pretty sure I was born first."
"Oh, yeah? We'll see about that."
"Are you going to go out of your way to find out who was born first now?"
"Yes. I absolutely am."
Harry laughed. "Tosser."
Aralynn grinned at him. "You know you love me."
Harry playfully rolled his eyes. "That might be true. Who's to say?"
"I don't think it's much of a secret," Aralynn laughed.
Ron came trudging down the stairs, dragging his clunky trunk behind him. Each thud down the stairs was agonizingly louder than the last. Once he was on the ground floor, he abandoned his trunk directly in front of the stairs. He then shuffled tiredly over to the couches and threw himself across the empty one.
Aralynn cocked an eyebrow at him. "Ya alright there, Ron?"
"I hate packing for Hogwarts," answered his muffled voice, as his face was buried in a pillow.
"You wouldn't hate it so much if you were better prepared."
"Well, now I hate you."
Aralynn shrugged. "What else is new?"
Harry drew in a concerned breath. "Oh, Ron, you might want to move your—"
Percy, Fred, and George were running down the stairs—rushed and under the pressure of dwindling time as Harry was speaking. He failed to finish his sentence before they collided into the trunk and the entire scene became brutal wreckage. Percy's impact with the luggage flung him across the room, while his feet elevating rapidly into the air upper-kicked Fred in the chin, and Fred's knockback sent George hurdling backward and into the wall.
Ron's fatigue seemed to suddenly dissipate, as the devastation caused him to shoot upright with his jaw agape. Harry and Aralynn sat looking just as shocked, but it wasn't long before the three of them burst into wild, and untamed laughter. Percy forced himself to his feet, looking angrier than anyone had ever seen him before. His face was as red as a kidney bean. Fred and George stood behind him in solidarity, looking equally infuriated. They began charging after Ron like bulls. Thankfully, Ron had been bright enough to begin fleeing as soon as he saw the rage in Percy's expression.
Harry watched them scramble around the house. "This is absolute madness."
"This," Aralynn shrugged, "is family."
King's Cross Station was blaring with the hustle and bustle of everyday life. The new year at Hogwarts was surely contributing to the volume of people in the building. It was easy to recognize other witches and wizards among the sea of Muggles. Magical families always had large, detailed trunks on their trollies, unique caged animals, and sometimes colored scarves poking out of the luggage. Another signifying factor seemed to be the apparel. Non-magic folk dressed much more casually; much more mundanely—while wizarding families wore long, billowing robes and colorful cloth. Aralynn found it amusing that they stuck out so sorely, and yet, the Muggles were none the wiser. They somehow consistently failed to notice the flashes of vibrancy soaking into their black and white lives.
As the Weasleys, and Harry, followed Molly and Arthur through the crowd, Aralynn fed small rodents to Amete in her cage. The owl ruffled her feathers gratefully and gave Aralynn's finger a gentle, grateful nip. They were fighting their way to Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters, trying to make it there before the clock struck eleven. By then, it would be on its way to the school. Through the faces, Aralynn caught sight of Parvati and Padma Patil. When they looked at her, she gave the girls a friendly wave. They both gave her a brief and cordial nod before swiftly turning away. Aralynn frowned, realizing that her public change of lineage was definitely going to affect her friendships, and experiences, at school. She found herself wishing she could rewind time and change history so that her true identity had never been revealed. At that moment, she did not want to be a Potter. Things were simpler when she was nothing more than one of the eight Weasley children.
Stop it, she thought. Stop acting like a spoiled little girl. Be grateful for who you are, and what you have. This isn't the end of the world. She drew in a deep breath, held it, and then slowly exhaled. Everything is going to be okay. Just breathe.
As they approached the platform, Molly realized that the children were on the verge of missing the train. She ushered them all along and went with Arthur to escort Ginny through the barrier. Ron, Harry, and Aralynn were the last ones. They realized the urgency of the situation and tried to hurry after the family. They took off running for the barrier in a single file line, with Ron in the lead, Harry in the middle, and Aralynn in the back. They were ready to pass through the platform, until they realized they couldn't. The events unfolded rapidly, all at once. Ron was the first to crash his trolley into the column. The impact was so forceful that he went rocketing into the brick. Since Harry and Aralynn were following so closely, their trollies crashed into one another, and they ended up linked like a train itself. The Potter twins also went flying, into the column, and in the end, the three of them were piled atop each other.
The Muggle working the station came marching over to them. "Oi! What the hell are you three doing? Have you lost your minds?"
Harry stood and rubbed his neck uncomfortably. "No, sir," he said, "just lost control of the trollies."
The man cocked an eyebrow. "All three of you? Are you taking the piss?"
Harry had to think on his feet. "Well, you see, I cut this girl off suddenly and ended up knocking into the back of his. It just became a whole disaster. It's my fault, really. Apologies."
The Muggle rolled his eyes. "Open your eyes, eh? There're people here besides you."
Harry nodded. "Yes, sir. Absolutely. I'm sorry. Won't happen again."
The man eyed Harry before wandering away. The three of them stood up and stretched their now aching joints. Ron approached the barrier and pressed his hand to the barrier, only to be met by solid brick. "The barrier is closed!"
"Is that uncommon?" asked Harry.
"Very," said Aralynn breathlessly. "It's never closed." The clock struck eleven and a melodic chime rang through the station. "Well, we've missed the train. That's great."
Ron was frowning. "What are we going to do?"
Harry shrugged. "Maybe we should wait by the car for your parents."
Suddenly, Ron looked alarmed. "D'you think Mum and Dad are locked in?"
Aralynn shook her head. "I don't know. Harry is right, though. We should wait in the car. Maybe they'll be back soon, and they can help us figure out what to do."
The three children made their way back to the Ford Anglia parked outside. Ron and Harry sat in the front two seats, with Aralynn in the back with Amete, Hedwig, and Scabbers. She reached through the bars to gently pet the feathers on Amete's head with her index finger.
They waited in the Ford for twenty minutes before realizing that Molly and Arthur weren't coming back anytime soon. They didn't know whether they had simply gotten caught up talking with other parents, or if they were indeed trapped on the other side of the barrier. What they did know, however, was that they had to figure out how they were going to get to Hogwarts or miss the year entirely.
Harry looked stressed. "What do we do? I'm going to have to go back to the Dursleys if we don't manage to get to Hogwarts. That can't happen."
Aralynn tapped her knee thoughtfully. "We have to find some other way."
Ron perked up. "Well, we are in the car. Couldn't we just drive to Hogwarts?"
"Do we even know how to get there?" asked Harry.
"We could follow the tracks," Aralynn suggested. "Until we find the train, and then we could just follow that."
"It's our only option," agreed Ron with a nod. As he was the one in the driver's seat, he turned the keys hanging from the ignition and the car rumbled to life. He changed gears, it soared into the sky, and he turned it towards the train tracks.
Harry glanced down at the confused onlookers below. "Uh, Ron… I've got to tell you—flying cars aren't really… normal in the Muggle world."
Ron's ears reddened while Aralynn leaned forward and pressed the button for the invisibility mechanism. "There," she said. "All fixed."
"Except for whoever saw us," Harry said while chewing nervously on his nail.
"Maybe nobody noticed," Ron blindly suggested. It was a true shot in the dark.
Aralynn shook her head. "That's highly, highly doubtful, Ronald."
The boy sighed sharply. "Well, we can't worry about that now. We must find the train."
As they drove into the countryside, they noticed the invisibility adapter was flickering. It continued to flash until it failed completely. Ron poked at the button several times, to no avail. "Must be busted."
Aralynn looked around outside. "It shouldn't matter. There's nothing around anymore."
"All that's left to do is find the train," Harry said. It was clear that he was feeling extremely uneasy about their predicament.
Aralynn reached out and put a supportive hand on his shoulder. "It's going to be okay," she assured. "We're on our way. We'll figure this out. I'm sure Dumbledore will understand the circumstances."
Harry looked back at her. "If he doesn't?"
She gripped his shoulder gently. "Then you can live with us. I'm sure Mum and Dad wouldn't mind. They don't want you to be with the Dursleys any more than you do."
"Do you really think they would let me stay?"
The girl smiled at her brother. "There's no doubt in my mind. They love you. You're family, remember? They said it themselves."
"I appreciate that they've been so welcoming. You have a great family, Ara."
"I sure do," she agreed proudly. "It's perfect now that you're part of it."
Harry smiled at her, but then frowned. "I never thought I would have a family. Mum and Dad are gone, and I never knew them, so I didn't think it would happen. The Dursleys aren't exactly family. Not really, anyway."
"Well, you have me—you have us."
"Thank you, Ara. Really."
Ron made a noise of disgust. "If you two are done being all sibling-y, I think we're getting close to the train. I can hear it."
Aralynn laughed at his comment and pat Harry's shoulder. "See? We're figuring it out."
The black-haired boy grinned. "At least we can put all the worry behind us. We'll make it to Hogwarts just fine at this rate."
Aralynn peered out the window, watching hills and trees and farmland rushing by in colorful blurs. "There was nothing to worry about after all. I'm still wondering why the barrier was closed, though."
Ron looked over towards them. "Enchantments on the fritz?"
Aralynn shrugged. "You'd think that would happen just after casting, not decades later."
Ron hummed. "Suppose it could be a lot of things, really. I'm sure it'll be fixed before long."
Aralynn looked guilty. "D'you think Mum and Dad have realized that the car is gone?"
Ron gulped. "Probably. I'm sure Mum's having a fit."
Harry was looking around. "Hey, guys? How close do you think we are? It's getting loud, don't you think?"
Aralynn furrowed her eyebrows. "Y'know, you're right. It is loud."
Ron squinted ahead, trying to spot the scarlet steam engine. "I can't see it anywhere. Bit weird, if you ask me. It's a massive train! It's hard to miss!"
Right as Ron was finishing his thought, they heard the blaring horn of the train. Oh, it was close—only, it wasn't in front of them. The three of them turned around to see the Hogwarts Express swiftly approaching the back of the car. They glanced between one another, silent and pale as sheets—before the frantic screaming began. Ron panicked and jerked the steering wheel as hard as he could. He hadn't thought about how the car would react to the sharp movement—his only thought was to get away from the train as quickly as possible.
The Ford Anglia rolled several times in the air before hovering on its left side. The door swung open, and Harry went sliding out of the car. He latched onto the handle and held on with all the strength he had.
"Harry!" cried Aralynn. She lurched forward and outstretched her arm for him. Unfortunately, she couldn't reach him. If she moved from her seat, she would be in the same dilemma as he was.
Ron held onto the steering wheel, reached over, and grabbed Harry's hand. However, they kept losing grip.
"You're all sweaty!" Harry called.
"Can you blame me?!" hollered Ron. "We almost got flattened with a train and now you're dangling to your doom!"
"RONALD!" Aralynn yelled. "Now is not the time for exposition!"
Ron reached for Harry's hand again. Once their hold was secure, he wrenched the car to its other side so Harry would come flying back in. Once he was safely inside, and the door had closed, Ron leveled the car.
They sat in silence for a long time, doing their best to process what had just happened.
"Well…" began Ron, "bit of a close one."
Harry looked incredulously at his friend. "You think?"
Aralynn looked down at the train they were now following. "At least we found the Hogwarts Express."
Harry nodded. "Back to school."
Ron chuckled. "Back to normal!"
They continued following the train through rural Scotland. Even though they had missed the train, and their entire day had been thrown off course, they were still thankful to be able to enjoy the stunning sights of vibrant green grass, thousands of tall trees, and mountainous ranges. Half of the fun of returning to Hogwarts was the scenic trip. They only wished they could be comfortable in a compartment with their closest friends, snacking on delicious Pumpkin Pasties and Jelly Slugs.
The closer they got to Hogwarts; the more suspense grew. There was no saying what would happen when they showed up on Hogwarts' grounds in a flying car. The pressure was so heavy that, if it were tangible, it surely would have crushed them. They wouldn't be leaving the train with the rest of their schoolmates, so they wondered how they would manage to sneak inside the castle. Would they even be able to make it appear as though they were on the train, as they should have been? Would they have to shuffle through the castle's back corridors, hoping to go unnoticed on their journey to the Great Hall?
Finding a way to Hogwarts gave them the belief that trouble was behind them. They hadn't even considered how they were going to get inside. With the question in their minds, they became antsy. The latter of their adventure was proving to be the trickiest part of it all. They could only hope they would think of a solution—a successful solution, at that.
Upon arriving at Hogwarts, Ron hovered around aimlessly for a moment. He was looking around and tapping thoughtful fingers on the wheel. "I don't know where to… y'know—park."
Aralynn clicked her tongue. "I guess just anywhere on the grounds."
He looked back at her. "Okay, and the car? What then? We just leave it in the grass all year?"
Aralynn shrugged. "This was your idea, Ron. Not mine."
"It was a plan," clarified Ron. "I never said it was a good plan."
"Well now would be the time for more improvisation, Ronald."
The boy threw his hands up. "I'm a one-time wonder, Aralynn. You can't expect miracles from me."
"Apparently not," Aralynn muttered.
"I don't hear you coming up with any ideas!"
"I just suggested something!"
Harry threw his hands up. "Guys! This really isn't helping. Let's just park and get inside. We've already missed the crowd from the train."
Ron began pulling the car towards the ground. He was aggravated and muttering under his breath, mocking Aralynn as he did.
Though he couldn't see her, she was glaring at him. "Ron, if you don't shut up, I'm going to smack you upside the head."
"Yeah. That's you. Always resorting to violence."
"When it's warranted!" Aralynn shot back.
"Blimey, why don't you two just get married?" said Harry. "You already act like it!"
"We would be divorced so fast," Aralynn replied. "Being married to him would be an absolute nightmare."
"Me?!" snapped Ron. "You're the nightmare!"
"I swear to Merlin, Ronald. You're making me nutty! Keep it up, and I'm going to—"
Before she could finish her sentence, the car began to sputter and whine with protest. It had a long flight, possibly the longest it had ever taken, and it was ready to rest.
Ron stared, wide-eyed, as it began to rock and totter, the engine cutting out occasionally. He patted the dashboard. "There, there," he said. "Just looking for somewhere to land."
"Uh, Ron?" Aralynn said, noticing that the engine had stalled entirely, and the lights had gone out.
Ron swallowed hard. "Uh-oh."
The car began dropping fast from the sky. Ron tried to regain control, but the Anglia wouldn't hear of it. He turned the key and jerked the wheel, but it remained unresponsive. The three of them began screaming. Ron withdrew his wand, tapping the steering wheel. "Stop!" he cried. "Stop, stop, stop!"
Nothing happened. The car continued to plummet, further and further down, until they landed in a large tree. Their bodies settled with a great jolt. Harry was rubbing his neck, now sore from all the jerking. "We're alive, at least."
"That's a relief," Aralynn said.
Ron was smacking the car. "Why did you do that?! You nearly got us killed!"
Aralynn sniffed. "Maybe if you had landed earlier."
Ron turned on her. "How in the blazes d'you think we were going to explain an enchanted Muggle car just hanging about the grass, Ara?! Honestly, are you thick?"
"Thick? At least I turned the invisibility booster on! If we weren't going to be expelled before, we very well might be now because of you!" Then, there was a great, aggressive smash on the back of the car.
Ron jumped. "What the bloody hell was that?!"
"You crashed," Aralynn grumbled. "You and your wonky driving. The tree is probably falling apart on us now."
Ron spun around and glowered at her. "Aralynn."
"Turn your fat head around."
There was another impact to the car, more violent than before, to the point where the car teetered onto its front wheels. Ron whipped back around to see a large fist-like tree branch against the trunk. "The tree is falling apart!"
"Could be," Harry agreed. "Hogwarts is ancient, isn't it? Who knows how long these trees have been here."
"Hermione, probably," replied Ron.
"Guys?" interrupted Aralynn, who was pointing out her window to draw attention to another fist-like branch headed right for the glass. It punched through, then withdrew again.
That was when the consistent beating started. Branches were coming down like roaring drums of thunder. They were being attacked by a tree. Ron tried to drive away from it, but as soon as they were airborne, the tree snatched them and pulled them in. Numerous branches and twigs were piercing through the glass and stabbing through the body of the car. They could hear the screeching of wood cutting into metal. At that moment, they believed they were going to die.
Then, the car seemed to fight back. The lights began flashing, the wheel started turning, and the horn was honking. The Anglia was acting as wild as the tree itself. It began moving without Ron's direction, swinging around erratically; trying to push its way through the branches so hard that the wood was snapping.
The three of them were screaming bloody murder. Aralynn was clutching onto the animal cages with all of her might so that they wouldn't go lurching around. Ron withdrew his wand from his pocket and began tapping the wheel. "Stop, stop, stop!"
The vehicle, however, did not stop. It continued to writhe and wriggle like a worm trying to fight off a bird. The more Ron tried to control it, the harder he smashed his wand against the wheel. Eventually, it snapped. He sat, jaw ajar, just staring at the broken pieces of wood, the tip of which was merely hanging by the unicorn hair core. "My wand! Look at my wand!"
The tree seemed to grow angrier the more the car fought and was becoming increasingly vicious. However, the vehicle soon freed itself and went zipping so quickly across the grass that it was tearing the lawn apart in its path. Their throats were raw and aching from all the screaming they had done in a matter of hours. Just before entering the Dark Forest, the car came to a sudden halt, threw its doors open, and forcibly ejected the children and their belongings. It then went speeding through the trees.
"Wait!" Aralynn cried after it. "Go back home! We weren't supposed to take you!" However, it was gone. She knew their actions were going to incite hell from Molly Weasley.
Ron was still staring at his wand. "I can't believe this! Look at it! Look at my wand!"
Aralynn glanced over and exhaled shakily. "It could be worse."
Harry swallowed. "Be thankful it's not your neck."
"How am I supposed to do magic now?!"
Aralynn rubbed her face with her hands. "Ron, you can get a new wand. What's important now… is figuring out how to explain why we weren't on the train, why we're late, and why the grounds are imprinted with tire tracks."
"Right," responded Ron absently. "Right—priorities."
"We need to get inside," Harry told them. "Let's go, before this gets any worse."
They changed into their uniforms and quickly put their belongings with the rest, before beginning to make their way through the halls. They weren't sure if they would make it to the Great Hall in time. At the very least, they could be thankful that they were still alive and had made it to Hogwarts at all.
As they were climbing the stairs, Ron let out a sigh of relief. "Thankfully nobody has noticed. We aren't going to get caught!"
"That is not something I would count on, Mr. Weasley."
They stopped in their tracks to see Severus Snape standing at the head of the staircase. The darkness of his overall being made him seem like the Angel of Death, ready to bestow punishment with one swift motion. Of all the staff who could have caught them; the Potions professor was undeniably the worst.
The man turned and swept away, and they followed, because they knew they had to without being told. There was no question whatsoever about their impending expulsion. They may have had a chance with another professor, but doom was certain with Snape.
He led them through the halls and into his office. It was a dark, unsettling room full of dusty jars of herbs, and other questionable items. Aralynn swore that she had seen a fetal cat in one of them. There was a strong floral scent that Aralynn recognized but couldn't quite name.
He shoved three chairs towards them and took a seat behind his dark wooden desk. He stared at them silently before lifting an issue of the Daily Prophet and flashing its face. There, in bold print and a moving photograph, they saw Arthur Weasley's car outside of King's Cross Station. The headline read, 'FLYING FORD ANGLIA MYSTIFIES MUGGLES'. The word was out, and they were damned.
"Tell me," began Snape with his thick voice like tar. "Why would an enchanted vehicle registered to one Arthur Weasley be spotted, plain as day, flying through a highly populated Muggle city?"
They were stumbling over their explanations when Harry spoke. "We missed the train."
Snape snapped his attention to Harry. "So, you thought it wise to take a joyride rather than inform an adult simply because your errant tardiness caused you to miss the train?"
"No," Harry argued. "The platform was blocked. We weren't late."
"How convenient for you that the platform was mysteriously blocked, even though you were on time." The man sneered hatefully at him. "You always seem to have an explanation or excuse for your misdeeds. I find it incredible how similarly arrogant to your father you are."
Harry grew angry. "No! We—"
Snape slammed the paper down. "YOU WERE SEEN BY NO LESS THAN SEVEN MUGGLES! DO YOU REALIZE THE DANGER OF YOUR IDIOCY? YOU HAVE ALERTED THEM TO OUR WORLD! THIS IS BIGGER THAN YOUR EGO, POTTER! MORE THAN YOU EXISTS ON THIS PLANET!" He then paused. He was no longer screaming, but his voice was still dangerous. "Lest we forget the damage you've caused to the Whomping Willow, a valued tree that has been on this property longer than you've been alive!"
Ron was astounded. "The damage we did? That tree nearly killed us!"
Snape's lips curled, his teeth baring like a rabid wolf. He opened his mouth, fully prepared to berate them again.
Aralynn had had enough. "Professor, I understand the recklessness of our actions, but the platform was blocked. We did the only thing we could think of at the time. We may not have been very careful, which was our mistake, but we had to get here somehow. As for the tree, I couldn't care less. Ron's right. That tree is dangerous and almost killed us. We're sorry about the article, but we did what we had to do."
Snape was silent for a long time. He stared at her with no response, but soon turned back on Harry. "I am deducting fifty points from Gryffindor from each of you. If I were your Head of House or even Headmaster, you would be expelled before you could even leave this room."
"You're not Headmaster or our Head of House, though," Aralynn pointed out.
Snape stared at her. He ripped himself from the chair, heading for the door. "If any of you so much as move a muscle, I will use every ounce of my power to have you thrown out of this institution."
When the door slammed, the three of them winced.
"We're doomed," said Ron gloomily.
Aralynn exhaled shortly. "We might not be. He has to get Professor McGonagall. She and Dumbledore are the only ones who can expel us."
Ron stared at her. "Is that supposed to make me feel better? McGonagall isn't known for her leniency."
"She is, though," said Harry. "Not known for it, but she is lenient. Much more than Snape, anyway."
Ron scoffed. "Did you read that headline, Harry? D'you really think McGonagall is going to let that one slide?"
Harry seemed to shrink. "No," he said. "I suppose not."
Moments later, Minerva McGonagall came sweeping into Snape's office. She flicked her wand towards the empty, cold fireplace, which erupted with warm flames. They were freezing at that point, but the woman leered down at them, and they didn't dare move closer. She stepped around the desk, taking a seat in the chair. She was silent as she made a point to show each one of them her nasty scowl. Aralynn wasn't sure she had ever seen McGonagall so angry before.
"Explain," the professor finally said.
Ron was the first to try and explain why they had taken the flying car, to begin with, but any words that might've come out of his mouth spluttered nonsensically.
Aralynn stared at Ron before turning towards the furious woman. "Professor, the barrier to Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters was blocked when we tried to pass. We were panicked, you see, and we knew we needed to get to Hogwarts somehow, so…"
McGonagall interrupted her. "Whose brilliant idea was this?"
Ron went red. He lifted a shaking hand. "M-Mine, Professor."
McGonagall turned her burning gaze to him. "You didn't think to wait for your parents?"
"Well, we did…" Ron quavered. "It was taking a long time, so…"
"—So, you decided to fly an enchanted car in broad daylight!"
Ron shriveled. "We didn't know what else to do, Professor."
McGonagall looked hotly between Harry and Aralynn. "I believe the both of you have owls. Why didn't you send a letter to Professor Dumbledore, or even me, immediately?"
Harry looked pale. "We… we didn't think…"
McGonagall sniffed. "Yes, Mr. Potter. You've made that quite clear." She stood from the chair, grabbing her wand from the desktop.
"Go on, then," Ron muttered.
The woman paused. "I beg your pardon, Mr. Weasley?"
Aralynn looked at Ron, who seemed to be choking on his own words. "You're going to expel us, aren't you?"
McGonagall pressed her lips into a thin line. "I ought to," she said, then exhaled sharply. "I won't be. However, you should know just how serious your misjudgment has been. This is going to take weeks for the Ministry to clean up! You each, however, will be receiving detentions. I would also like to gravely stress that even a single thought of breaking the rules will have you expelled on the spot. Am I understood?"
They nodded.
"Very good," said McGonagall sharply. With a wave of her wand, a large plate of sandwiches appeared on the desk. "You will eat in this office, and the very second you are done, you will head straight for your dormitories."
"Yes, Professor," they said.
Before she left, she turned to Ron and Aralynn. "I thought you might be interested to know that Ginny was sorted into Gryffindor. Good evening."
They ate from the self-replenishing sandwiches silently. None of them were feeling very good about their encounter with both Snape and McGonagall. In fact, they weren't feeling very good about the day altogether. Once they had finished eating, they trudged up to the Common Room. Outside, however, they realized they hadn't been given the new password. The Fat Lady merely stared at them expectantly, and when they said nothing, she huffed and resumed brushing her hair.
"Well, now what?" Ron said exasperatedly. "We can't even get into the Common Room. If anyone finds us out here, we're going to be expelled."
"We could try and find Professor McGonagall," Aralynn suggested.
Ron laughed humorlessly. "I'd rather be beaten to death by the Whomping Willow."
Just then, Hermione came rushing up the stairs. "There you are! Where have you been? I was worried sick!"
Aralynn sighed. "It's a long story, 'Mione."
"What's the password?" asked Ron.
Hermione decidedly ignored the question. "There's been rumors that you arrived in a flying car! That you were spotted by hundreds of Muggles!"
Aralynn blinked. "Information doesn't traverse this school well."
"Well?" Hermione demanded. "Is it true?"
"Kind of," said Aralynn.
Hermione looked angry. "Have you lost your minds? It's a miracle you haven't been expelled! Spotted by hundreds of Muggles… what were you thinking?"
"Technically, it was only seven Muggles," Harry corrected. "That we know of."
Hermione glowered at him. "Seven, or hundreds, it doesn't matter! What you did was incredibly stupid!"
"Hermione!" Ron shouted. "We'll explain everything tomorrow. We just want to go to bed. What's the password?"
The brunette girl bristled. "It's 'wattlebird,' but I haven't quite finished!"
"Yeah," said Ron tiredly. "Well, we have."
After Hermione spoke, the portrait swung open. They stepped inside the Common Room, where Harry and Ron rushed off as quickly as possible before Hermione began lecturing them again. Aralynn looked at her, at the fire in her eyes, and groaned. "Please, Hermione," she said. "Save it for tomorrow."
"I'm very disappointed in you, Aralynn," she said as she led the way up to their dormitory. "You know better than to take a flying car through London."
"I know," Aralynn responded. "We had no other choice, Hermione."
"I find that hard to believe," Hermione huffed.
"Tomorrow," Aralynn said again. "We'll explain tomorrow."
Hermione blew her nose at her but said nothing else.
They both changed into their pajamas and slipped into their four-poster beds. Aralynn stared exhaustedly up at the ceiling while she recounted the day's events. She was still trying to determine how the barrier could have been blocked, but there wasn't a clear answer. She was also too tired to care. More than that, she had spent her entire first year questioning everything there was to question, and she didn't want to spend her second year the same way. Shoving her curiosity away, Aralynn turned onto her side and closed her eyes.
