A/N: Okay, so here's the second chapter, let me know what you think :D
I landed on a grassy hill, I fell down, feeling totally nauseous. My whole body was still clammy and I felt like I was dying. But, just as quickly as it started, it was over.
"Well, that was different," I muttered, standing up. One of my trouser legs had come unrolled when I fell, I rolled it back up to my knee. That's when I saw it. The house I was staring at was so strange and unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was at the bottom of the rather large hill I found myself part way down. I looked up and noticed the old man staring at me with what I could describe as an amused smile. I can only guess that he was amused at my reaction to this strange building. I was aware that my mouth was hanging open and my brows had furrowed.
The old man started walking down the hill. I quickly grinned, knowing a quicker way to get down the hill. I dropped to the ground and rolled down. I didn't stay straight and when I got to the bottom I was covered in dried grass and dirt. I looked up and saw that I was rather far left of where I'd started. The kind man looked even taller to me now. He'd stopped and was staring down with an even more amused look in his eyes. Before I knew what was happening the man was stood next to me, okay, so that was the best way to get down the hill. I quickly followed him in silence as we approached the house.
I was suddenly very nervous. What was I getting into? My life had always been strange, but everything that had happened to me today had been way too obscene. I had to entertain the thought that I'd gone completely insane. But the thing that was making me so nervous was the idea that the family I was going to be staying with wouldn't like me. What if they hated me and told this kind old man to take be back where I came from?
We were very close when the door opened and more people than I thought could fit in that strange house came rushing out. The first person to reach me was a round, warm looking woman. She looked at me for a moment, shook her head and laughed. She quickly gathered me up into her warm arms. I was overheating, but the embrace felt amazing, like pure love. I could feel myself welling up with tears. I blinked them back quickly, as I looked over the woman's shoulder, I saw a group of people, a large percentage of whom had red hair.
The woman pulled me out of her embrace and held me at arms length. She was smiling broadly.
"The resemblance is uncanny," I think she was almost crying as she released me. Someone else's hands replaced hers on my upper arms. The man was also a redhead and his eyes were sparkling as he looked down at me.
I was really too preoccupied to think too much about the reactions people were having to me. A scruffy but attractive looking man with sad eyes came up to me next and stared for a while with an unreadable expression. If it is possible, it seemed his eyes got even sadder as he looked at me. The biggest man I have ever seen came up to me next. He picked me up with the force of his hug. He was larger than any other man I'd ever seen or heard of, and he was as broad as he was tall. While his appearance was rather intimidating, the warm smile and the large tears in his eyes added to the positive aura he held around him. I couldn't help but smile with him as he put me down, thankfully more gently than he picked me up.
There were other people stood around, people who didn't come and embrace me. I noticed them abstractly, not focusing on their faces. The group of people that did capture my attention was a group teenagers, much like myself. I saw a mixture of red hair, interspersed with brown and black. I focused in on one boy, who's messy black hair was what stood out from the crowd. But, more importantly, I felt something when my eyes connected with his. Some sort of memory that I didn't really remember. I felt like I was supposed to know him, like my soul knew his somehow. But, I couldn't really understand why.
As all of this was going on in my head, apparently the more adult members of this crowd had been speaking about me in hushed tones. I only really understood this, when their speaking grew louder to inform everyone that it would be wise to return indoors at this point. I agreed to myself as the heat from the sun was burning at my exposed skin. And suddenly, out of nowhere, a feeling hit me, a very intense feeling of family and of belonging. It felt like home.
I almost wanted to cry.
I was swept up in the crowd that flowed towards the door. I didn't fight it, I just let the surge of people take me with them. I ignored the fact that none of my questions had been answered. It didn't even matter anymore. I felt happiness as I was surrounded by people, who felt unmistakably, like family.
That warm feeling didn't last as long as I would've hoped. As the crowd spread throughout the kitchen area, I was guided to a seat. It seemed I was going have to answer some questions before my own would get answered.
"Why on earth did you leave the foster family?" The scruffy man still looked vaguely upset. But this time, it was mixed with fear, possibly even fear for me.
"What Remus means, is why did you feel the need to run away?" The old man looked into my eyes kindly. I still didn't really feel like telling this room full of strangers what had happened to me.
"I thought you were looking for me?" I paused, peering at them, "That implies that you didn't know where I was," I looked at them questioningly.
"You are quite right," The old man laughed warmly, "When you were a baby, you were put under a protective charm. As long as you were within family, you would be protected and safe from any who would do you harm," he explained with a knowing look.
"Unless those who would do me harm were members of the family," I shrugged dejected. The one person I really needed to be protected from was Ian Walters. Where was my protective charm there.
"What did they do to you?" A gruff voice called from the masses. A man stepped forward. The sight of him made me want to hang my jaw open. He had one eye, the other was made of what could possibly be glass. The eye swivelled about all on it's own. His hair was long and thin, it was very light, kind of blonde. His face was scarred and his face was angry.
"N-nothing at all." I shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant. Inside I was remembering all the nights Ian would sneak into the room I shared with the girls and pull me down into his den. The sofa bed was always primed and ready. I tried hard to suppress a shudder at the memories.
"They hurt you," It wasn't a question, the man they called Remus put his hand over mine, "that's why you had to leave," again it wasn't a question, and the small caring gesture cause the back of my eyes to burn with tears. I blinked them back as well as I could. But one single tear leaked through. It made my eyes sting.
"I'm protected again though," I muttered wiping away the tear with my free hand.
"What makes you say that dear?" The cuddly woman said, putting her hand on my shoulder in a very mother-like gesture.
"It's just a feeling, like I'm finally around real family," I half shrugged, not wanting her to move her hand.
"Well dear, that is somewhat true," she smiled a teary smile.
"How long had you been living with those people?" the one eyed man spat out in disgust.
"Almost four years," I bit my lip, "They took me in not long after my disastrous tenth birthday," Saying it out loud, it didn't feel like very long, but when I was living in constant fear of rape and abuse, it felt like a lifetime, at least.
"And they hurt you all that time?" It was only a half question I could tell, Remus knew the answer, I could see it in his eyes. Still, I couldn't trust my voice to speak, so I just nodded forcefully.
The room seemed to chill, which should have been a relief from the sweltering heat, but was actually just uncomfortable. It seemed everyone was formulating their own ideas about what happened to me for the past 4 years.
I only briefly caught someone's gaze brush along my back. I heard the sharp intake of breath. Apparently no one had noticed the scars that were visible around my vest top, not until now.
"Honestly, that's not the worst of it," I spun round, my voice came out more harshly than I really intended. But I was feeling really uncomfortable with everyone staring at me and judging my life. I saw the redheaded boy blush bright red. He looked about my age, and very cute, I instantly felt bad.
"Sorry, it's just...ya know," I knew no one in the room could possibly know, but I felt bad enough to not care. For one second I was looking right into his eyes, I saw something there, something I'd never seen before. I saw a future. I quickly looked away.
The room was quiet, too quiet for the amount of people it held. I quickly busied my hands, so I didn't feel like so awkward. I pulled the hair band out of my hair and tousled my long dyed hair. My hair was dyed so many different colours it was hard to say what colour it really was. My hair was dark brown naturally, but over the years, I dyed parts of it red and blonde and black and blue and purple. Right now it was mostly a golden blonde with orange and red. The black was only near the ends.
I moved my side swept fringe out of my eyes. Everyone was looking at me. I felt their eyes adding to the warmness of my pale olive skin.
"I have so many questions," I sighed, looking around the table at which I sat. It was big and made of a dark wood, it felt warm and homely.
"I can understand how strange this all must be," The old man smiled, "As I said there is much I must tell you, but first, I believe introductions are in order," He looked around the room and then began his introductions.
"Molly and Arthur Weasley, this is their home," he smiled at the cuddly woman and the red haired man. I nodded at them, I assumed they were the parents of all the red haired children. This was confirmed by the old man's next words, "And their children Ginny, Ron, Fred and George, sadly Charlie and Bill couldn't be with us today," I felt someone was being missed out, which seemed to be confirmed by the look that was shared between the Weasley children.
"This is Remus Lupin," I looked into his eyes for a second, I saw something burning within them. There was something familiar and magical that I saw.
"Werewolf," I only really processed the word after it slipped form my mouth, but as I did I felt the rightness of it. Somehow I knew this man was a werewolf, as crazy and impossible as they seemed.
"What?" He blanched. I shrugged, looking away guiltily. "How could you know?" His voice seemed to force my eyes to meet his again.
"It's in your eyes," I bit my lip, "it's just I recognise it, I think maybe it means I recognise you," I nervously chewed on my lip as he seemed to accept what I had said.
"So much like your mother," he sighed, looking away. I wanted to ask him how he knew my mother, and if he knew where she was, but the old man interrupted our conversation. It was then that I really realised that the whole room had been witness to our little exchange.
"Well, we also have Alastor Moody," He gestured to the one eyed man, who grunted in response. I nodded with a smile. This man seemed as comfortable as I was with being the centre of anyone's attention. I could feel his pain.
"Ah, and here's our lovely Tonks," he smiled as a youngish looking girl with bubble gum pink hair came into the room. I smiled quickly at her. I really liked her hair, what could I say. She quickly smiled at me, then before I knew it, her hair looked remarkably like mine, which was almost impossible. I gasped in affectionate surprise. I officially really liked her. As I turned back, I saw her hair return to the striking pink.
"And Sirius Black," the man smiled down at a dog, that I hadn't noticed before because he was hiding behind a kid's legs. I looked up and saw the kid with the messy black hair. I looked back down and saw the massive black dog turn into a man. I felt my eyes get wide and I had to clench my jaw shut to keep it from popping open. The man stood straight and smiled, he had long messy black hair. He was attractive, in an old man kind of way.
His eyes were dark, and I saw a sadness in them, that was so deep that it would never go away, no matter how happy he was now. I couldn't help a tear slide down my cheek at the sight of such pain. It more than equalled my own. His smile didn't waver as he stood there, I wiped my tears away and looked back at the old man who's eyes were still looking at me.
"We are but a few of the family that you recognise," the man smiled widely, "I am Albus Dumbledore, I am the headmaster of Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry," I only looked at him blankly for a moment.
"Witchcraft and Wizardry?" I looked at him disbelievingly, I'd seen a lot of strange things, but this felt hard to accept.
"Look within yourself, and you will see that you know the truth," Dumbledore hadn't dropped his smile. I really couldn't say what there was to be all smiley about.
I took a deep breath. I knew in my heart that what he said was true, I was a witch, but it was all so much. My life so far had been full of abandonment and disappointment. My mind was battling with itself, part of me wanted so desperately to believe this was really happening, part of me was sure I had finally cracked after years of abuse.
"I have one question," I paused, Dumbledore simply nodded, "If I was actually in a nut house heavily drugged and suffering a psychotic break, you'd tell me right?" The room seemed to erupt in gentle laughter.
"I would most definitely tell you," Dumbledore wasn't laughing, his face was serious, but his eyes were still smiling, "But, you have nothing to worry about, this is very real, I assure you,"
My rational mind wanted to remind me that if this was a delusion, the figments of my imagination wouldn't know they weren't real. But, then I thought to myself, that if this was a delusion, I wouldn't know it was a delusion, would I? I decided that either way, it souldn't hurt to play this out.
"Okay," I nodded, trusting the wise old wizard in front of me. And also trusting the room full of people around me.
A/N: It is quite a dark story, as you may have guesses. It'll also probably get a little graphic in places. Be warned. Let me know what you think xD