POV of Ariana Prewett
I was very happy James and Par succeeded in helping our Quidditch team to victory! However, as it was already afternoon, I said goodbye to Hermione and walked alone across the grounds. I purposefully headed towards Hagrid's hut, where I was invited for tea. When I stood in front of the large wooden door, I knocked, and it didn't take long before it opened and a cheerful Hagrid greeted me. He invited me in and immediately offered me a cup of tea. I gratefully accepted and sat down at the table in the middle of the room. As I sat there, I looked around a bit: The hut was quite small for such a huge person as Hagrid, but otherwise designed for his size. In one "corner," if you could even say that about a nearly round hut, stood a huge bed. On the opposite side of the room was a fireplace, which he apparently used for making tea and cooking. Next to it, curled up on a blanket, lay his boarhound Fang.
Just as I was wondering what to say because an uncomfortable silence had arisen, there was a knock at the door, which Hagrid then opened. Curious, I turned to the door, as I was sitting with my back to it. To my surprise, quite a few people seemed to be standing at the door, who now all came into the hut. First, I saw a woman and a little girl. The red hair seemed somehow strangely familiar to me until I understood why: Behind them, Ron and three older redheads entered, one of whom I recognized as the prefect Percy and the other two as the Beaters of our Quidditch team. So it was no coincidence that they looked so similar to me! Their mother greeted me so warmly that I first looked at her in confusion. When she noticed my confusion, she asked me to sit down and introduced herself as Molly Weasley. She explained to me that my father, Fabian, had been her brother. Just as the question arose in my head why I hadn't grown up with the Weasleys after my parents' death, she already answered it: 'We had no idea until Hagrid informed us recently that there was a Hogwarts letter addressed to you. After your parents' death, Muggles were the first at the scene. They must have found you and taken you to the orphanage when it became clear that you no longer had parents. If we knew you were alive, we would have taken you in back then.' 'Molly,' Hagrid interrupted the now completely distraught woman, 'Don't blame yourself, you had your hands full with your own children back then anyway. It's strange that no one knew about Ariana and the letter still appeared, isn't it? I've never understood the magic by which future Hogwarts students, especially those from Muggle families, are located.'
'Well, Ariana,' Mrs. Weasley began. 'I think you've already met your cousins?' In response, I nodded to her with a shy smile, which seemed to encourage her to continue: 'I can understand, of course, if you prefer to continue living with your adoptive parents, but I still want to offer you to live with us at the Burrow.' When she noticed that I was looking at her with big eyes, she quickly added: 'Of course, you don't have to decide right away! But I want you to know that you're always welcome if you want to spend your holidays with us.'
I still didn't quite know what to say. I had only known for a few minutes that I was related to the Weasleys, and they were directly offering to take me in! How could I refuse? After all, even now, although the school year had just begun, I had a stomach ache at the thought of having to return to my adoptive parents in the summer, where I felt so out of place. 'I would like to live with you Mrs Weasley,' I answered shyly. 'Oh, my dear, you don't need to address me formally, I'm your aunt!' the woman replied, shocked. 'Call me Molly, okay? Oh yes, and this,' she pointed to the girl next to her, 'is your cousin Ginny, she's coming to Hogwarts next year.' The girl then smiled at me kindly, which I returned. 'Arthur, your uncle, unfortunately has to work today, otherwise he would have loved to come along. But you'll meet him during the Christmas holidays.'
Slowly but surely, the ice was broken, and the Weasleys told me a lot about the Burrow, as they called the house in the countryside where they lived. They also talked about my two older cousins, Charlie and Bill, who had already graduated from Hogwarts. After a while, it occurred to me that the Weasleys must be a rather poor family, as they kept mentioning on the side how many of the school supplies, including Ron's wand, were not newly bought but passed down from the older sons to the younger children. Suddenly, I felt bad for immediately agreeing to live with them. Feeding and equipping another child with school supplies would not exactly improve the family's financial situation. After a while, I dared to express my concerns: 'I don't want to be a burden to you…' I began and was immediately interrupted by Molly. 'You're not. Don't worry about money, we've already secured all that.' Seeing my questioning look, she added: 'Your parents left their savings to you. Since it wasn't clear for all these years who the money would go to, as no one knew about you, their vault at Gringotts remained untouched. There should be enough in there so that we don't have to worry.' When she said it so convincingly, I couldn't help but believe her and feel immensely relieved. In the evening, after my cousins and I had said goodbye to Molly, Ginny, and Hagrid, I was happier than I had been in a long time. It was as if I had only now fully arrived at Hogwarts.