~ I've gone over some typos in the last chapter, and hopefully made it flow a little better. Some fluff for you now, let me know what you think ~

~ The Road To Cuckoo ~

Freya stared at the vintage trunk at the foot of her bed, thinking how sad it was, that a person's life could be packed away into such a relatively small object. It hadn't taken long either, even without help. Her mother had offered her assistance, of course, but Freya wanted to do it herself, hoping that the act of packing might finally steady her nerves. She hadn't even left for Hogwarts yet, and she was already feeling homesick.

"Only you left to pack up, Jinx." She smiled softly, gazing at the black cat that had laid himself across her bed.

Running her fingers gently through his fur, Jinx arched his back against her touch.

"I'm counting on you, you know?" She warned him, sitting down, and pulling him into her lap. "We've got to stick together. I suppose there's a chance that we might like it there, right?"

He blinked up at her twice, his face said it all.

"Well that's not very positive, Jinx." Freya scolded affectionately. "And we've got to be positive. We've promised, for Mum and Dad's sake."

He continued to look very unimpressed, but that might have just been because he was a cat, and cats tended to look that way most of the time, anyway. She yawned, sliding him carefully back from her lap, and moving to change into her nightdress.

As Freya pulled the garment over her small frame, she caught sight of her features in the looking-glass, and cringed. She looked ill. She still hadn't fully recovered from what happened over a week ago.

Diagon Alley.

She barely remembered her mother leading her out of the crowd, but she knew it hadn't been easy. To get home, they'd been forced to use the Floo Network, and her mother hated travelling that way, played havoc with her allergies, she said.

Freya huffed loudly.

If only those stupid boys hadn't gotten her all riled up, then none of it would have happened. As it was, members of the public were forced to intervene when the wizard who had touched her proceeded to set his wife's hat on fire, which wouldn't have been that bad, only she was still wearing it at the time. No one got hurt luckily, and through it all, Freya remained blissfully unaware, but still, it wasn't nice to hear about. To know you had caused something so destructive, even if it was really a small thing, was not an empowering thought.

Freak, she thought, staring into tired blue eyes. She looked like a ghost standing there in her long white night dress, and matching snowy tendrils. Her hair was far too long for her height, which was why she would often plait it. Freya supposed she could have just cut it all off, but she had always had long hair, and she was a creature of habit.

Besides, there was something oddly comforting at the thought of always having something you could hide behind.

"Time for bed, love. Big day tomorrow."

Freya turned, spotting her father's face, as he poked it happily through the doorway.

She smiled. "I know, was just making sure everything was packed."

Nathaniel Ravenwood, Freya's father, eyed her trunk thoughtfully.

"You have your robes?"

"Yes."

"Wand?"

"In my coat pocket."

"Books?"

"Of course."

"Parchment, quills, scales – "

"Everything is packed, Dad." Freya giggled indulgently. "My organisational skills have yet to see defeat by another, so trust me when I say, everything is ready to go. Well, except for Jinx. He's not going to like travelling all that way in his basket."

"He'll cope, I'm sure." Nathaniel smiled, stepping eagerly into the room. He gazed around it fondly. "You know, this place hasn't been decorated for a long time. How about we give it a bash, you know, when you get back? What do you think?"

Freya nodded. "Sounds like a plan. I think, I've had those stars since I was four." She noted, eyeing her purple wallpaper with some thought. She frowned. "Or was it five?"

"Merlin if I know." Her father laughed, running a hand through his receding hair line. "I forget what I've had for breakfast most days."

"Today you had bacon and eggs." Freya noted, eagerly pulling back her bed covers, and clambering on in. "Followed by fruit cake, and a sneaky shot of Fire Whiskey."

Nathaniel's smiled widened. "Ah yes! Today's was a bit of a treat. Especially that cake, it was a belated birthday gift from your Auntie Rhona."

"Auntie Rhona does make nice cakes."

"That she does. I'll wrap some up for you to take on the train tomorrow, if you'd like?"

The mention of leaving, had made Freya's stomach unexpectedly sink, and she nodded silently.

"You know," Nathaniel began gently, perhaps noting his daughter's sudden change in mood. "When I first arrived at Hogwarts, I made a complete fool of myself. I had absolutely weeks of name calling, and that was just from the teachers."

He tittered happily at his joke, and Freya looked up from her lap, intrigued. "What did you do?"

"Well you see, I wasn't the confident, sweet piece of toffee you know, and love today. I was a shrimpy looking thing, always stuttering my words, and tripping over things."

Freya suppressed a giggle. "And this little concoction made you, what, exactly...?"

"Well, we had only just entered the castle, and this boy – I don't remember his name – had been winding me up about the sorting ceremony, and I got so nervous, that by the time my name was called, and I'd walked up to the Sorting Hat, I just stood there and vomited in front of the entire school."

"Oh my." Freya laughed. "You made an impression, then?"

"Yes. Though I would have thought, not a very good one." Nathaniel clapped his hands together enthusiastically. "Still, it all worked out, I was sorted into Hufflepuff where I met your mother, and the rest, as they say, is history."

"She decided to date the child who threw up in front of the entire school? Such a martyr"

"I had a certain charm. This was a few years later, mind. I had time to turn her head, as it were."

Freya rolled her eyes. "Such the player. So. What house do you think I'll be sorted into? Any tips for getting the right one?"

"Try not to worry. Whatever house you get will be the right one for you, and they all have their own little perks, anyway."

Freya tilted her head at her father. "Why do I feel like your being overly nice?"

Nathaniel raised his hands defensively. "Would I? Besides, whatever house you get will be all the better for having you in it, now lie down."

Again rolling her eyes, Freya consented, snuggling down as her father drew up the covers. She smiled. "You know, as a sixteen-year-old, I'm probably a little old for you to be tucking me in."

"Nonsense. Besides, I'm not going to be able to do it for a while."

"I'll be back before you know it."

"I know." He held her gaze for a moment, and Freya thought she saw something other than a worried father looking back at her from those eyes, but then he blinked, and it was gone, and then he was bending low, to press warm lips tenderly against her forehead. "Be safe, Freya. Remember, we're only an owl away."

She frowned up at him disappointed. "Aren't you coming tomorrow?""

Nathaniel sighed guiltily, straightening up quickly from the bed. "Sorry, love, I have to be at work. Your mothers taking you when she gets back from her shift. I'm sure she'll fuss enough for the both of us."

"I guess." Freya frowned, trying not to look too upset. She hadn't expected this to be goodbye.

"Sweet dreams." Her father murmured softly, hesitating in the doorway. He turned back to her. "You're going to be fine, Freya. Honestly, I think you're really going to love it there."

She smiled. "Thank you, Dad."

He nodded, his gaze lingering on her for a few more seconds, before he carefully pulled the door shut, and she heard the latch click softly into place. She sighed, Freya could already hear Jinx's snores rumbling up from the bottom of the bed, and she soon found herself more than ready to join him, as her eye lids got heavier, and heavier with each passing exhale.

Tomorrow was going to be an long day, after all.

R&R!

Hope you're enjoying, not many reviews, but I suppose it's early days, and this is just a fluff chapter. You're not writing to tell me it's terrible, so that's always good.

Thank you to 'nicsnort' who reviewed :)