Chapter 2

Once Sherlock was out of sight, Evalane began to search for a way to the mysterious Platform 9 and ¾. There were only ten minutes until her train left, so time was not on her side though she would manage. However, before any type of deductions could be made, a voice broke through the air and managed to catch Evalane's attention.

"C'mon George! We only have ten minutes until the train leaves!" A flash of orange flew past Evalane, and another immediately following.

"Right behind you, Fred!" The other voice laughed, struggling to keep pace with the first. "Mum is going to kill us!"

The voices belonged to two teenage boys, twins from what Evalane could tell. Both had the same blinding red hair and warm brown eyes, almost 2 meters tall, and had goofy grins glued onto their faces. Evalane believed them to be about fourteen or fifteen years old, and by their conversation, she could deduce that these boys would be able to get them to the platform safely.

"Excuse me," Evalane gingerly tapped one boy's shoulder. "I was wondering if you two were going to Platform 9 and ¾? I am having a bit of trouble getting to a seemingly nonexistent train."

The boy gave her an odd look but smiled warmly. "Sure thing, M'Lady." He bowed sarcastically, and his brother snickered and mimicked the silly action. "Your carriage awaits!" The twins spoke at the same time and gestured to the brick wall separating Platforms 9 and 10.

"I do not appreciate the mockery, firstly," Evalane placed her hands on her hips in annoyance. "Secondly, if you can't help me, then I will find the Platform myself." She began to turn away from the twins, but they both reached out to her.

"No, we're sorry!" The first twin laughed.

"We just"

"Aren't used to"

"Someone being so"

"Polite!" Evalane's brain struggled following the back and forth speech of the twins, but she recalled this was a commonality against twins because of the similarities between their brain chemicals and structure.

"All is forgiven," Evalane allowed a small smile to escape her lips.

"Name's Fred Weasley, and this is my brother George." Fred spoke with the same charm as George, but his voice was slightly deeper while George's had a more singsong tone. There was an almost unnoticeable freckle beneath George's right eye, and Fred's smile always opened just little bit wider than his brother's. Placing these differences into her mind palace, Evalane knew she would never be able to confuse the two brothers.

"Evalane Knaggs," She extended her hand, remembering the "basic manners" Mycroft tried to drill into her and Sherlock's minds. "Though I suppose there's no need to go by that name anymore."

"Nice to meet you, Evalane," Fred accepted her hand to give it a firm shake, George immediately following suit.

"What name would you go by then?" George asked.

"Potter. Evalane Lily Potter."

Silence. A silence that could freeze time and stop the blood in one's veins. The twins' eyes darted from Evalane to each other at an unbelievable speed, and George put his hand up to his mouth in complete disbelief.

"You're joking," Fred stared at the girl in front of him, a girl who should not even have existed.

"I can assure you, I'm not," Evalane's eyebrow arched in confusion. "That is the name my parents gave me, I have just been unable to…use it…for some time now."

"Bloody hell." George breathed, looking around the station like someone would jump out to reveal it all to be a ruse.

"Shit, we have to go!" Fred nearly jumped when he glanced at the clock on the wall of one of the brick pillars. The large hand was about three minutes away from reaching the top of the hour.

"We only have"

"Three minutes"

"Until the train"

"Leaves!"

"How far is Platform 9 and ¾? I haven't seen any platform like that anywhere." Evalane drummed her fingers on the straps of her backpack anxiously. There was no way for them to make it to the train with only three minutes until it leaves, and then she would have to go back to her life of abuse with Todd.

"You're looking at it!" The twins gestured toward the brick wall like it was a brand new car on the set of a game show. "Just watch us!"

Before she could protest, Evalane watched both boys look around at the sea of random civilians bustling through King's Cross Station and then briskly walk towards the brick wall without any sign of stopping. She let out a gasp as the twins strode through the wall with ease, as though it was nothing more than air. Her eyes darted around her, searching for another who had witnessed the sorcery, but the London crowd focused only on their own lives and schedules and were far too busy to have noticed the boys' disappearance. The clock hanging on the opposing wall revealed that Evalane had exactly sixty seconds before her train left forever, so she filled her lungs to their capacity and took a rapid three steps towards the wall.

Much like the experience of the twins, Evalane found that she was able to walk through the bricks with ease, but what she found on the other side of the wall truly took her by surprise. Hundreds if not thousands of families with their children were gathered around a monstrous black and red train. The hustle and bustle of the crowd swamped Evalane's mind with anxiety and panic, and the sound of excitement from children and worry from their parents clogged her ears. Evalane quickly regained sight of the twins, who waved for her from the steps of the train. A sigh of relief escaped her lungs upon seeing the familiar faces, so she readjusted her luggage in her hands and made quick strides toward the massive train.

"There you are Evalane!" Fred smiled. "We were beginning to worry that"

"You were going to miss the train!" George quickly chimed in as the trio entered the train. The twins guided her through the halls of the train with ease, dodging young children, candy cart ladies, and rambunctious teenagers every step of the way.

"This one's empty!" Fred opened the door for his companions, and the three new friends were able to settle themselves in the small compartment. The Weasley's had enough luggage to fit inside the higher storage space and under the seats, while Evalane was able to keep her small bag on her lap throughout the trip to Hogwarts. Once the baggage had been secured, Fred took a seat next to their new friend and began to drill her with a seemingly endless amount of questions.

"So where have you been all this time?"

"Yeah, why are you starting Hogwarts now? And not when you were eleven?"

"They say fifth year is the most difficult"

"But would you technically be a first year?"

"Are you still going to have to take the O.W.L.s this year?"

"Have you met Harry yet?"

"Slow down boys," Evalane grinned at the banter between the twins. It was like watching a ball bounce between two walls, constantly moving back and forth. "Well I have been staying with my…adopted father for the last twelve years. My letter had been unknown to me until recently when I stumbled across it in the basement of my father's home, which is why I am starting at fifteen rather than eleven years old. I suppose I would technically be a first year, but I'm hoping that they will allow me to test out of the last four terms. I'm a rather good student, so I do not foresee myself having any difficulty catching up to the level of my peers. I'm not sure what these O.W.L.s are, but if all goes well, I suppose I will be able to take them when the two of you do. Wait, you know Harry? As in, my little brother Harry? He's alive? Where is he?"

"Whoa there!" George threw his arms in the defeat. "Look who needs to slow down now!"

His brother grinned but allowed seriousness to take the stage on his face for the sake of his new friend's sanity. "Evalane, what's the last thing you remember about your brother?"

Evalane scoured her mind palace for a moment, the moment. The moment where her life changed for the worse. The screams of her mother and father, Harry's cries, the green light blinding her, the darkness of the wardrobe consuming her for hours. Growing up, she would try to tap into this corner of her mind to maybe figure out what had really happened that night or where her brother may be, but the memory would paralyze her with fear and anxiety. There was an occasion where she went too close to the green light, and she could not move for almost two hours. After a few years, she gave up trying to focus on the past and began to find answers in the real world. She and Sherlock would search libraries and newsstands for any signs of a Harry Potter or any mention of the Potter family, but they never seemed to have any luck. Eventually, Sherlock lost interest in the seemingly wild goose chase, but he would always be by Evalane's side as she analyzed every article from three cities over.

She explained that dreadful night as best she could to Fred and George, keeping the details as vague as possible. Not because she could not remember the memory as though she were living it as she spoke, but because she knew speaking about the incident could potentially prevent her from moving from her seat ever again. The twins listened to her story with such intense concentration that one would think time stood still in their small compartment.

"Bloody shit" Fred breathed when Evalane caught them up to the present. "That was really"

"Intense! Blimey, you really have some catching up to do!" George leaned back in the seat and looked up to the ceiling as though some answer would be there to greet him.

"Well, we should probably get you to Harry! He's going to lose his mind when he sees you!"

"Are you sure, Fred?" George gently nudged his brother.

"What on earth do you mean?" Evalane shot back. "I have been in the dark about my brother for going on twelve years now. If you think I'm going to just sit here when he's somewhere on this train, you are quite wrong."

"I'm just saying that's a lot to dump on the kid right now," George calmly replied. "Especially with everything that he's been through the last couple of days…"

Fred gave his brother a friendly slap on the shoulder and let out a laugh. "I don't there's anything that could surprise that kid at this point!" George reluctantly nodded in agreement, even let out a pitiful smile. The twins stood up, and Evalane eagerly followed suit.

"Well c'mon! I'm sure the buggers are around here somewhere!" The trio then strolled through the car of the train, with the twins glancing in the compartments as they went along. Suddenly, the brothers came to a quick stop; George motioned Evalane to stay back, and Fred opened the compartment door.

"The bloody hell you want?" A voice came from the compartment. It faintly resembled the deepness of Fred's, even if it was a bit more rough, like it was more than familiar with the art of profanity.

"Well hello to you too!" Fred laughed. "We just…"

"Had a surprise for Harry!" George chimed in over his brother's shoulder.

"What is it?" That voice...That was the voice of James Potter himself. Of course, Evalane knew that was not possible, but the resemblance sent a shiver down her spine. The twins looked over to her and motioned for her to go inside.

The tears started to fall from her eyes before she even saw him. He looked so much like their father. His hair was as dark as night and more ruffled than a field of wild grass. His skin was pale but clear, and he wore round glasses that, judging by the overall untidiness of his school robes, had been broken and repaired multiple times. She noticed how prominent his cheekbones appeared, like he had struggled with getting enough to eat. In fact, his whole frame was particularly small for a thirteen year old boy. Maybe his home life was not too great, much like her situation, which worried her. Then, she saw his eyes. The brilliant green that shone in not only her own eyes, but the one and only Lily Potter. Evalane felt the wind being knocked out of her chest when her eyes traveled further up her brother's face and abruptly stopped on the lightning bolt scar.

"Hello," The boy nervously spoke, like Evalane was an animal that would attack him if he moved too quickly. "I'm Harry. Harry Potter." He stood and offered her his hand. She stared at it, looked him in the eye, and slowly pulled him into a tight embrace.

Harry was unsure how to react to this random girl hugging him without so much as an introduction, but there was something about her that drawed him to her. He looked over to the twins, and they both nodded in encouragement and approval. He gently returned the girl's embrace, but after a moment slowly pulled away. He immediately noticed- through the bloodshot tears -the girl's green eyes, so eerily like his own.

"Who are you?" The question slipped from his mouth, but the girl simply laughed at Harry's lack of restrain.

"I'm...I'm your sister. I'm your sister, Harry." Evalane barely choked out the sentence before Harry took a step back. "It's me, Harry. It's Evalane!"

"My what?" Harry's confusion shone on his face like the headlights of a car in the dead of night. Evalane felt like he had slapped her in the face.

"Sister. I'm your sister, Harry."

"I have a sister? No one ever mentioned a sister."

"You're Evalane Lily, aren't you?" The other boy in the compartment chimed in. He had the same flaming red hair as Fred and George. His face was long and covered in freckles, and his body was growing too quickly for his coordinative skills to keep up. "How are you even alive?"

"Ronald! Honestly, do you think at all before you open your mouth?" There was a girl with bushy brown hair and slightly bucked teeth sitting next to the red-headed boy, whom Evalane assumed to either be the boy's girlfriend or at least secret admirer judging by how the two sat closer to each other than friends yet far enough to not be romantically involved. The boy's torso had been turned towards the girl ever so slightly before they had entered the compartment, and while the girl's words had been harsh, there was an underlying tone of kindness that made their mutual attraction to one another so painfully obvious.

"Blimey Hermione, do you even know who that is?"

"Of course I know who Evalane Lily Potter is Ron! Unlike some people, I actually utilize my weekends gaining more knowledge rather than sitting around playing with that dreadful rat of yours." The girl's nose scrunched up in disgust at the small rodent sitting in the boy's lap.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both," Evalane chuckled at the two young teenagers bickering.

"Could someone please tell me what the bloody hell is going on?" Harry's cheeks felt as though someone had pressed Aunt Petunia's clothing iron on them as anger swelled up inside him. "No one has ever mentioned I may or may not have a sister, so I want to know who you really are!"

It felt worse than being slapped in the face. There was no sign of trust in her baby brother's eyes, but she knew she could convince him if she could just talk to him. "Why don't we sit in our own compartment? I can explain everything if we just…"

"Anything you say to me, you can say in front of my friends."

"And apparently whoever this guy is…" Ron nodded towards the man sleeping in the corner of the compartment, hidden under his stained and rather worn jacket that was most likely around fifteen years old.

"That's Professor R. J. Lupin." Hermione spoke up matter of factly.

"How is it that you seem to know everything? How could you possibly know that?" Ron shot back with a miniscule stroke of admiration in his voice.

"It may be because it's on his suitcase," Evalane offered, pointing to the equally worn, leather briefcase in the storage space above their seats. "No major deductions, just simple observations." Hermione warmly smiled at Evalane and then glared at Ron, who slumped sheepishly in his seat.

"You guys have some catching up to do," George laughed, and began to move out of sight. "Evalane, we will see you…"

"In the Great Hall!" With that, Evalane's two new friends went off, leaving her with a brother who had forgotten about her entire existence, his two friends that looked ready to slit her throat if she said anything that threatened Harry, and Professor Lupin, who's name tickled Evalane's brain; however, she would scour her mind palace later. Now was the time to sit and remind Harry of a simpler and happier time.

Author's Note: Another chapter done! Thank you so much for giving this a read! Feel free to leave a review, I would love the feedback! xx