She was covered in soot upon arrival, and was saddened at the thought of ruining her new clothes. Flora had never had anything new before, and she wanted to keep them as new and beautiful as she could; she didn't want to disrespect anyone by messing up her new clothes. But then in the blink of an eye, the mess was gone and Snape was calling her forward.
She took a few hesitant steps into the room, and Snape introduced her to the rest of the Weasley's. Molly had gone off towards the kitchen and was making a lot of noise in there. As for the other Weasley's, there were so many of them! And they all had brilliant red hair, just like her. Uncle Vernon had hated Flora's red hair. He'd said it was unnatural and sickening to look at. But here was an entire family just like her. She was so happy to be with people who looked like her; she'd stuck out like a sore thumb with the Dursleys, but here she could disappear into the crowd.
Out of all the Weasley's, only two were quiet. There was the boy that was around her age, Ron, and an older one that was still at Hogwarts, but Flora couldn't remember his name. The other kids were loud. The twins were running around and throwing things at each other that exploded on impact, while the only girl Weasley was shrieking and trying to avoid the exploding things while simultaneously trying to throw her own. The quiet older boy was attempting to scold them but his heart wasn't in it, and he eventually sank back into his book.
After the introductions, Molly came out of the kitchen and shuffled Flora to a table, then shoved a plate full of food in front of her.
"You can have as much as you like, dear," she said with a smile.
While eating, the tallest of the bunch came to sit with her, introducing himself as Bill. He told her that he worked at the bank, and that he'd already heard about her visit from the goblins.
"You made quite the impression," Bill was saying, "They aren't used to wizard children showing them such respect."
Something exploded just then in the other room causing Flora to flinch instinctually, and Molly was yelling. Then she came back into the kitchen and started scolding Bill for not helping.
Bill only laughed and said, "They're not my kids."
Snape and the father came back into the dining area then, and now Molly was scolding the him. She seemed to enjoy scolding people, but no one else seemed to take her very seriously. And she made a lot of threats but didn't follow through with any of them. That would take some getting used to, every time Flora got yelled at she also got hit, but these didn't seem like the kind of people that would hit their children. And the kids didn't seem to be scared of the adults at all.
"Potter," Snape said, "Follow me." He led them outside away from the others before continuing. "I have matters to attend to at the school, so I'll be leaving now. But I've left the potions you'll need with Arthur, and you need to take them when he tells you too. I'll send more when those run out. Do you understand?"
Flora nodded, and they went back inside. Snape said a general good-bye to announce his departure, and then he was gone. His absence filled Flora with anxiety. She had wanted to eat more, but found that she no longer had an appetite, and pushed her plate away. Bill picked it up and took it into the kitchen.
"George!" Molly yelled, "You stop that right now!"
"I'm Fred!" the boy yelled back, and kept doing whatever he was doing.
Molly threw her hands up in defeat and came back to the table.
"You'll be with Ginny, dear," she told Flora. "It's not big, but it's home. Please do make yourself comfortable here."
Flora nodded and the young girl grabbed her hand and rushed her upstairs to their shared room.
It was bigger than Flora's cupboard, and that was really all that mattered. The girl's red hair was a lighter shade than Flora's, and it was straight where Flora's was a wild mess. She began showing Flora all her toys, giving hurried explanations about what they were and what they did. Then she shoved a doll in Flora's hand, and the two began to play. Flora had never played before, and the whole ordeal felt awkward. But Ginny was smiling and laughing, so Flora thought she must be doing something right.
After a while, two boys poked their head into the room and invited them out into the backyard for something called 'quidditch'. Ginny got really excited, and dragged Flora outside.
"You've never ridden a broom before, right?" Bill was asking.
Flora shook her head and looked at her feet.
"It's nothing to be embarrassed about," Bill told her. "Lots of kids don't ride a broom until they get to Hogwarts. We'll put you on a training broom for now, just to make sure you don't accidentally hurt yourself."
The training broom was a lot of fun, even though it only hovered two feet off the ground. Ginny was on a training broom too, so she didn't feel so alone. Molly called everyone in for lunch a few hours later and the Weasley's crowded around the table. Flora was by the door watching as they took their seats and all began fighting over the food. Bill noticed her in the doorway and called her over.
"We're a loud bunch, but you'll get used to it. Come sit by me, I'll make sure you get enough to eat."
After Bill did, in fact, ensure that she got enough food, Flora decided that Bill was her favorite. At one point, he'd seen her eyeing what was left of the chicken carcass and gave her some off of his own plate. She'd tried to decline, but he was insistent, saying that he'd already gotten enough.
After the younger kids had gone to sleep, Arthur called the adults into the living room for a family meeting.
"Is this about what Professor Snape talked to you about?" Charlie asked.
"Yes," Arthur said gravely. "She needs to take potions every day for her health. She's malnourished, her growth's been stunted, her bones are brittle… the poor girl has been through a lot. Bill, I'm counting on you and Charlie to keep your brothers in line while you're with us."
"Of course, Dad," Bill agreed readily.
"There's another matter," Arthur said, but couldn't quite find the words to continue. He fumbled over a few different starts before Molly got agitated.
"Spit it out, Arthur!" Molly scolded.
"She was not aware of magic when Severus gave her the Hogwarts letter," he sighed.
An odd silence filled the Weasley home.
"What do you mean 'she wasn't aware of magic'?" Charlie asked. "She's Flora Potter!"
"I know, son, I know. But Severus says her Aunt and Uncle told her nothing. Apparently they… well the Uncle said they were trying to 'beat the magic out of her,'" Arthur told them.
Charlie stood abruptly from his seat and began pacing the room. Molly had gasped and brought her hands to her heart. Bill's head was down.
"She was told her parents died in a car accident. She knows nothing of her legacy, and we're supposed to tell her."
"I'll do it," Bill offered.
"I really think it's be better if Arthur and I did it," Molly scolded.
"She avoids you two like the plague, Mum," Bill pointed out. "She obviously hasn't had good experiences with adults, but she seems to like me."
"She does like Bill," Charlie confirmed. "Hasn't even been her for twenty-four hours but she's comfortable around him."
"That's a good idea, Bill," Arthur said. "My advice would be to wait a few days though, give her a chance to get used to magic in general before shattering her world again."
All the adults agreed to this, though Molly protested a little bit, and then they too went off to bed.
The first thing Severus did upon returning to the castle was head to Minerva's office pour himself a large glass of Fire Whiskey. His drinking buddy was already sipping at her own glass.
"This is going to be a nightmare," he told her.
"It's already a nightmare," she replied.
"He lied," Snape growled. "I've asked about her for years, and he lied every time."
"I told him those people weren't fit to raise her," Minerva revealed, causing Severus to sit up a little straighter.
"You did?" Snape asked.
"Yes, I watched them for a whole day before Albus dropped the child off. I did not leave with a good impression of the Dursley's, but I never thought they would abuse her."
"There were three locks on the cupboard they kept her in. They couldn't have given her more than one meal per day, it's a miracle she's even alive."
"Poppy is of the same opinion. I've never seen her so mad at Albus," Minerva told him.
"Where is she now?"
"Fuming in the infirmary. She yelled at Albus a bit more after you left, and went to restock her supplies." She took another large sip of the Fire Whiskey before continuing. "She's not going back to that house, I meant it when I said I'd resign."
"Of that I have no doubt," Severus said. "Have the rest of the faculty be informed of what to expect?"
"Not yet, but Filius knows something is amiss. We'll have a meeting about it before term starts. I'll admit that I'm not sure how we're going to teach a student that doesn't speak."
"She'll need to be given some leeway on the practical application of magic until she can cast silently."
"And how long will that take? Most seventh years can't do it. Even I can't cast all spells silently."
"Perhaps private tutoring is in order," Snape suggested. "We ran into the Malfoy's in Diagon Alley."
"Huh," Minerva scoffed. "And how did that go?"
"Draco seems friendly enough with her, it's Lucius that concerns me. He may not have willingly followed the Dark Lord, but he's still a Slytherin. If he can use her to protect Draco, he will."
"I've never bought his story about being imperiused," Minerva said.
"It may not have been advertised, but he was interviewed under veritaserum."
"He was?" McGonagall asked, astonished at the confession.
"I thought Albus would have told you," Snape replied. "It was in December of that year, in front of a small collection of Wizengamot members. Lucius paid a ridiculous amount of money to ensure that the press kept quiet about it. Willingly submitting to veritaserum is still seen in a negative light by most purebloods. They believe their word should be taken at face value." He waved his hand in annoyance at pureblood customs and continued sipping his drink.
"That is certainly a surprise. The Malfoy's have always voted dark."
"Lucius definitely leans dark, though Narcissa has always been more gray. They agreed with many of the Dark Lords goals, just not his methods. And Draco's birth affected him more than he'll ever admit."
After processing the new information Minerva asked, "Who did it? The imperius?"
"His father."
The sat in silence for a few moments, sipping at their drinks and contemplating the year ahead of them.
"What house do you think she'll be in?" Minerva finally asked.
"I haven't spent enough time with her to truly know. I have a feeling she'll surprise us though."