As Maya inhaled the crisp evening air, she felt a surge of delight from the pumpkin aromas that filled her senses. She stepped on the fallen leaves that carpeted the path, enjoying their crunching sound and vibrant colours. She couldn't take her eyes off the dazzling displays of carved pumpkins that lined the way, each one more intricate and creative than the next. Damon, Mio, and Muneeba had surprised all the kids with tickets to the Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze at Van Cortlandt Manor, and it was the best gift ever. Maya admired the skill and artistry of the carvers, knowing how hard it was to make even a simple Jack O'Lantern. She was amazed by the elaborate scenes they had created with pumpkins, from a Ferris wheel to a planetarium to a carousel.

"This is wonderful. We have nothing like this in Japan."

Maya nodded in agreement with Sora's statement, she'd never seen anything like this in Britain either. Even if there had been something like this, she would never have been allowed to go. Halloween was a forbidden word in the Dursley household, not even Dudley had been allowed to go Trick-or-Treating. He was usually given a bowlful of sweets to make up for it though, which is all Dudley really wanted.

For Maya this time of year had usually coincided with increased disdain and punishments from the Dursley's. On Halloween night, Vernon had always made sure to beat Maya soundly before locking her in her cupboard, whether she'd done anything to warrant such a punishment or not. It wasn't until Hagrid had revealed the truth to her that Maya had realised Vernon was punishing her for surviving and being given to them.

Last year's Halloween had been the first she could remember without the Dursley's, but it hadn't been any better. People had spent the entire day giving her sympathetic looks and whispering about her behind her back. There had also been the whole troll incident, which really hadn't done anything to temper Maya's negative opinion of Halloween. It might have cemented the friendship between Hermione and Ron, but that was about the only positive thing that had come out of it.

This year though had been a billion times better than anything that had come before. The Samhain festival and rituals at the academy last night, had lifted Maya to a blissful state. She still felt the soothing and serene sensation, meditating with the ancestors at night's end had given her. Their love embraced her still, as if all of her family were by her side, embracing her, affirming that she was adored. That even though they were not with her in the flesh, they would always be with her in spirit.

"It's amazing. The designs, not just the scenes they've created which are awesome, but the individual carvings on each pumpkin, they're superb."

"I love it here. Ammi brought us the year they opened and every year since; she must have been the one to mention it to Damon and Mio. It's so great to be here together."

Maya could understand why Muneeba would bring Kamala and Aamir here every year. Everything about the walk was enjoyable, the autumn breeze, the dazzling pumpkin sculptures at every turn, the crunch of the leaves underneath their feet. The atmosphere created by everything was magical, even without being actual magic. If Damon wanted to make this an annual tradition as well, then Maya would be all for it.

"Good Morning Maya."

"Hi Sam."

"What have you been up to since we last met?"

Aside from the first session, all of her meetings with Sam had followed the same pattern, after greeting Maya, Sam would ask what she'd been up to since they'd last seen each other. Maya wasn't sure if this was a standard thing for therapy, or if Sam was just trying to help her relax before they started talking about other things. Sometimes, like today, a simple statement on Maya's behalf would lead straight into talking about those other things.

"Um we had a school dance, just before we broke up for half term."

"How was it?"

"It was fun, I've never been to a school dance before. They never held one at Hogwarts."

"What about at Little Whinging Primary, did they not hold any dances there either?"

"They held one in year six for the leavers, but I didn't go."

"How come?"

"Um, my Aun… Petunia and Vernon didn't let me, I was being punished when it was on."

"What were you being punished for?"

"Um, my cous… Dudley's birthday is in June. Last year on his eleventh birthday they were going to go to the zoo, and I was supposed to stay with Mrs Figg for the day."

"But you didn't?"

"No. Mrs Figg broke her leg, and they couldn't find anyone else to take me for the day so I had to go to the zoo with them, because they didn't want to leave me in the house on my own all day in case, I damaged it, and Vernon wouldn't leave me in his car all day for the same reason."

"Okay, what happened while you were at the zoo."

"The morning was fine, but after lunch we visited the reptile house and there was this snake. Dudley and Piers got bored because it didn't move even when Vernon rapped on the glass, so they all walked away, and I started talking to the snake. He was telling me that he'd been born in the zoo."

"The snake spoke back to you?"

There was nothing in Sam's tone to indicate what she was thinking, she was just as neutral in her replies as ever, but Maya couldn't help but think that Sam was surprised by what she had just said.

"Yeah, well not really. I asked him if he missed Brazil and he sort of jabbed his tail in the direction of the sign that said he'd been bred in captivity. He talked later though, I'm pretty sure of it."

"Okay, you were talking to the snake, what happened next?"

"Well, I was talking to the snake, and he was answering my questions and Piers saw it and he shouted at Dudley and Vernon to come over and look, and when Dudley came over, he pushed me so hard that I fell and hit the ground. I guess I did magic because the glass disappeared, and Dudley and Piers fell into the enclosure and the snake escaped and as it went past, I thought it said thanks. On the way home Piers told them I was talking to the snake. Petunia and Vernon were really angry, they locked me in my cupboard, and I wasn't allowed out until after school had finished."

"So, to summarise. You went to the zoo for your cousin's birthday, discovered you were a Parselmouth –"

"What's a Parselmouth?"

"A Parselmouth is the name for a wixen with the ability to communicate with reptiles, it's considered to be quite a rare gift in most countries."

Sam's smile was kind as she explained yet another facet of the magical world that Maya had no idea about. The more time she spent in the magical world, the more she realised how much she still had to learn. It wasn't how to use magic that was the biggest learning curve, it was the culture, all the simple things that those who had grown up in the wixen world took for granted. All the things they just knew because they had been raised learning them. Maya had missed out on all that growing up the way she did, and she felt like she was forever playing catch-up.

"Most countries?"

"I believe there's quite a sizeable population of Parselmouth's in India, it's a very celebrated gift there. Your professors will be able to tell you more, or guide you to the correct books."

Maya nodded and made a mental note to speak to Professor Mephisto tomorrow before Homeroom.

"Okay so summarising, you discovered you were a Parselmouth, you were seen communicating with the snake and Dudley pushed you to the floor. You performed accidental magic, the glass disappeared, the snake escaped, and then you were punished for doing magic by being locked in a small cupboard for weeks."

"Yeah."

"Okay, let's take this step by step. Petunia and Vernon didn't want to take you to the zoo, do you think that was reasonable?"

This was the part Maya didn't like about talking to Sam, it made her feel hot and squirmy inside when she had to think about the Dursley's. It never felt like Sam was judging her and Maya knew Sam was just trying to help her work through things and understand them. She still didn't like how it made her feel most of the time though. Like now for instance.

Maya had lived with the Dursley's for ten years and they had never taken her anywhere with them unless there was absolutely no other option. She wasn't there daughter though; she might have lived with them but that didn't mean they had an obligation to take her anywhere. And this is exactly what she told Sam, who just hummed slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with what Maya had said.

Sam never openly agreed or disagreed with Maya about anything. If she had any opinions, she kept them to herself. Instead, just guiding Maya towards her own conclusions.

"Do you think that was fair of them?"

No, it hadn't been. But Maya was intimately aware of just how unfair some things could be. Like her parents being murdered when she was just a baby, for instance.

"No, but they didn't have to be fair to me. I wasn't there daughter."

Sam hummed again.

"If they had left you at home alone, or in the car all day, do you think that would have been right for them to do?"

Maya bit her lip and tried to think it through like Sam wanted her to. Honestly, Maya wouldn't have minded being left on her own at Privet Drive, as long as she hadn't been left in her cupboard. A Dursley free day had always been something to celebrate as far as Maya was concerned. Being left in the car though would have sucked, nothing to do but sit there until the Dursley's returned. Maya didn't think that was what Sam meant by her question though, she hadn't asked how Maya would have felt about it, she'd asked if it was right for the Dursleys to have done that.

She didn't know how to answer that question. The Dursley's had thought nothing about leaving her at the house without them, usually locked in her cupboard. They'd never left her for an entire day though, just a couple of hours at the most, if they were going to be gone longer then they usually made arrangements for Mrs Figg to babysit her.

"I don't know."

"That's okay, let me rephrase the question. If something had happened, if something had gone wrong while you were left alone, would you have been safe, or would your being alone have meant you were unsafe?"

"What could have gone wrong?"

"What if you fell and hurt yourself? Or there was a fire? Or someone had broken into the house? If any of those things had happened whilst you were on your own, would you have been safe or unsafe?"

She understood what Sam was saying. If any of those things had happened, then she wouldn't have been safe on her own. She just didn't think the Dursley's would have cared.

Her falling and hurting herself wouldn't have mattered to them, they were perfectly happy to hurt her themselves. They'd probably have cared if there was a fire or someone had broken into their house, but not about Maya, their concern would have been for their house and their belongings. If such an eventuality had happened, they probably would have ended up blaming Maya for it.

"I wouldn't have been safe if any of those things had happened."

"With that in mind, would it have been right for them to leave you alone for an entire day?"

"No, but they wouldn't have cared if something had happened to me."

"That fault lies with them, Maya. Not with you. You aren't responsible for how other people treat you and they were wrong to treat you the way that they did."

Maya nodded. It was something that Sam had repeated in each of their sessions so far. The Dursley's were wrong. They shouldn't have treated Maya that way that they had. She wasn't responsible for how they had treated her.

It was a very alien concept to Maya. She still didn't believe it in truth. Logically she knew that most people didn't treat the kids in their care the way the Dursleys had treated her. Sam had stressed that what Vernon and Petunia had done to her was illegal, here in America and back in Britain, in most countries in fact.

So logically, Maya knew what Sam was telling her was true. Knowing it in her head and feeling it in her heart were two completely different things, however.

"Okay, let's keep going, shall we?"

Maya nodded again. Therapy was hard and it made her feel uncomfortable a lot of the time. But it was worth it.

Hopefully.

Damon chose to watch Maya's reaction to the musical he'd brought her to watch rather than the musical itself. The Little Mermaid was not a show that Damon had ever expected to find himself watching. But Maya had adored the stage show of the Lion King so much when he'd taken her in august, that he had decided to see what else was on Broadway that she might enjoy.

He felt a rush of satisfaction at the excited gleam in Maya's eyes as the current musical number reached its crescendo. Clearly the visit to Broadway was going over just as well as the visit to the Great Jack O'Lantern blaze had done the previous night. He really needed to find a way to thank Muneeba for inviting him and Maya to join her and her kids at the event. Maya had loved it, and had excitedly described every aspect of it to Stefan when they'd arrived home.

It was wonderful to see how much Maya had blossomed since she had first arrived on his doorstep. She was no longer the withdrawn, sad, little kid who's only hope was a man she'd never met who lived a thousand miles away from her. She had become a lively, happy, young girl, who was already showing glimpses of the woman she would one day become. A woman with a kind and loving heart, generous, caring, and intelligent. Damon couldn't believe that he'd been given the gift of Maya in his life, the daughter he would never have. He loved her more than he had ever thought possible, and he would sit through a thousand Disney shows if that was what made her happy.

As the curtain fell on Act I of the show, Maya launched herself at Damon and hugged him as tightly as possible. After a second Damon returned the embrace, smiling at Maya's mumbled litany.

"thank you, thank you, thank you."

"You're enjoying it then?"

Maya pulled back slightly, nodding enthusiastically.

"It's wonderful."

"Better than the Lion King?"

"Not better. But just as good. Ariel's so pretty, and Sebastian is really funny."

Damon hadn't tuned in enough to the show to know who Sebastian was, but he'd read the Little Mermaid, and he knew who Ariel was.

"You're prettier and I bet I'm funnier."

Maya shook her head and bestowed an incredibly mischievous grin on Damon that made his heart clench with love and wistfulness. He'd seen that same grin on generations of Potter faces, but this was the first time he'd seen it on Maya's.

"Nuh-uh."

"You're definitely prettier than Ariel. You're the prettiest person in the world."

Maya laughed joyfully.

"You're not funnier than Sebastian though."

Damon gave an overly dramatic gasp and clasped at his heart as if she'd mortally wounded him.

"I'm not."

"Nope." Maya's eyes twinkled with delight. "Enzo is though."

Damon couldn't help but laugh at Maya's teasing. Something she wouldn't have dared to do just a few months ago. It really was delightful to realise how much she'd changed and come out of her shell in just a few months.

"I love you kiddo."

"Love you too Damon."

She leaned forward and brushed a kiss against his cheek and hugged him once again. Damon figured it was a good thing he was a vampire, otherwise he wouldn't be able to survive the delighted dance his heart was performing inside his chest. It was only the second time she'd said it, and it meant the world to him.

Dear Maya,

I miss you! It's weird not having you around to talk to all the time, especially in the dorms! Parvati and Lavendar have been really great about trying to include me in things now that you're no longer here. Which is nice and can lead to some very interesting discussions, they once spent an hour teaching me different hair charms and we had a very long discussion about the evolution of hair charms, from Ancient Egypt to the modern day. I do miss our late-night conversations though, Parvati and Lavendar's always seem to revolve around the same few topics, and there's only so many times a week I can stand to talk about boys!

Ron and Neville have been great, hanging out with me in the common room, and coming to the study club Draco and I started for second years. Luna and I have been spending time together at the weekends as well, the conversations/debates that we have can be very lively, it's great to have another girl around who can think about more than boys, cloths, boys, make-up, boys, hair, and boys! Parvati and Lavendar aren't really that bad, it just feels like it sometimes.

The Academy sounds amazing. Your schedule is much busy than ours and you have so many different classes. How are you managing to fit it all in? I'm glad that you like it there though, and I agree a school where you don't nearly die every other week must be wonderful, and, I imagine, quite relaxing after last year. Lady Malfoy was kind enough to let us know that the Lord Voldemort situation had been resolved, which I must admit was a relief to know. I'm sure you feel the same way.

I'm pretty sure that the staff know something about it as well, at least Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, and Professor Dumbledore. Professor Snape made us (myself, Ron, Neville, and Draco) stay back after class last week and asked some pretty pointed questions, and Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore have been giving us some very odd looks. There inter-house unity project seems to have kicked off a notch, they've started partnering up the third and fourth years in classes as well. Plus, they're apparently going to be holding dances for the lower school and the upper school just before the Christmas break. I'm not sure how involved Professor Dumbledore is in their project though; he seems to be gone more often than not these days.

Our current Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher is perfectly useless. You may have heard of him, he's an author who's written several books about his apparent heroic deeds. If he's done even half of what he claims, I'll run naked through the school! He's the main reason Draco and I started our study club, some of the other professors have agreed to spend an hour a week teaching us the spells we should be learning, but the theoretical stuff we're having to do ourselves. Pretty much every second year has joined our club though, and I think some of the other years are planning to create their own if they can make similar arrangements with the professors.

Other than Professor Lockhart setting a cageful of pixies loose, school has been pretty tame this year. If you don't count the Weasley twins or Peeves, but even their chaos doesn't match up to trolls, dragons, cerberuses, or You-Know-Who! The most exciting thing that happened this week is Neville managing to crossbreed a venomous tentacular with a mandrake. Professor McGonagall gave him detention and Professor Sprout confiscated all his saplings, I'm not sure if that was to throw them away or to keep them for her own greenhouse, and at this point I'm afraid to ask. Neville was quick to assure me that it was worth it, and he had more cuttings at home to try again with. The Weasley twins now seem to be considering forming some sort of alliance with Neville and I fear for all of us if this should happen!

Your information about the Samhain ritual you attended was very interesting and I've been talking to Draco and Luna about the traditions. We have to be careful though because they're frowned upon over here, but Draco lent me a book to read and I'm going to see if I can find more when I'm home over Christmas break.

Good Luck with your Quidditch match next week, I'm sure you'll do brilliantly. Write again soon! We all miss you loads, but we're glad how much better everything is for you.

Love Hermione.

P.S. Please don't give the Weasley twins or Neville anymore ideas, they really don't need your help!