V.

Harry left early the next morning with Arthur Weasley. Anxiety fell in rivulets out of the pores of his forehead. The suit jacket he wore was poorly fitted and nearly swallowed him whole, further cementing the fact that he was in way over his head. It was clear from the conversations had the previous night that the Ministry had it out for him. We all knew that there was way more missing from the picture, but, for now, we'd just have to make it through the day.

"So…" I started, looking pointedly at everyone else sitting around the dining room table. "How fucked is he?"

Hermione's eyes widened, just as a gasp fell from Molly's mouth. The rest of the Weasleys looked at me in various stages of disbelief.

"That bad, huh?"

"No, no, no. He's not…he'll be fine," Molly sputtered out, eyeing me awkwardly. "Dumbledore will make sure this gets sorted out and you'll all be headed off to Hogwarts by the evening."

"Hogwarts…" I allowed myself to get lost in thought, having no concept of what to even expect. "What's it like?" Molly's face eased into a smile.

"I think it's best to not ruin the surprise."

…

The minute we entered Kings Cross station, wisps of magic floated past my head, distracting me from whatever terrible joke the twins were bouncing off each other. Ron nudged me with raised brows, a question on his face.

"You alright?" Ron squeezed my hand briefly, before casting a quick glance at Hermione and letting go. A smirk made its way onto my face as I followed his gaze.

"She is very pretty," I whispered to him as we walked side by side, trailing behind the others. I shot him a knowing look the second he opened his mouth to protest. "Go ahead. Lie to me."

"Well," he started, clearing his throat. "I guess, as a girl, she's not awful to look at. Oh, shut it, Dani." He rolled his eyes as I began to laugh.

"I can't believe I almost missed this part of your life," I grinned up at him.

"To be honest, I'm really glad you didn't show up last year. It was a bit of a mess." He stared down at his feet for a moment as we turned onto the platform. "Isn't it strange?"

"Strange? Whatever do you mean?" The sarcasm caused the faintest uptick in the corner of his mouth.

"I just mean this feeling. We both basically forgot the other existed and somehow it feels like –"

"Like you love me?"

"Yeah." Ron looked me directly in my eyes as he said this. It was surprising, his candor. So surprising, in fact, that it even caught him off guard.

"Yeah." A long look passed between us, full of understanding and something else I couldn't quite place. Before I had the time to ponder what that thing was, the wisps of magic came back into view and diverted my gaze.

They flowed through the air like smoke from incense, winding and swirling around. Just as Harry stepped out of the station's waiting room, I passed by, slightly knocking into him. I muttered a quick apology, making my way ahead of the group past Moody and Tonks, before stopping in front of Platform 9 ¾. It was a peculiar sight. Clearly, it had been charmed from muggle detection, but how could another platform exist within the pillar?

"Magic is so fucking cool," I stated, as the group caught up to me. The wrinkles on Mad-Eye's forehead creased deeply as he looked over me.

"How did you know where to go?" He inquired, eyeing me suspiciously.

"What? The magic, obviously. Not to mention the train is clear as day." Despite the fact that it had been a near constant occurrence since I had arrived at Grimmauld Place, I don't think I'll ever get used to so many eyes staring at me.

"What are you talking about, Dani?" Harry asked, tilting his head at me. "You can't see the train. You've got to walk through the wall first."

"You guys seriously can't see it from here?" Bile rose up in my throat. The more I spoke, the more it was apparent that I was a damn anomaly.

"Well, we know it's there," Fred started.

"But it's just a brick wall." George finished.

The adults exchanged a look with each other before ushering the rest of us through. Even though Molly smiled reassuringly at me, concern settled into the lines on her face.

"I'm so glad you're finally here. And I'm so glad you get to experience this part of your life. Despite…everything, I know your mother would be proud." She held me close, a gentle hand resting on the back of my head. "I'm so sorry we couldn't find you. You missed so much."

She waved me off with tears brimming in her eyes before Arthur ushered her away. The others had already entered the train by the time I caught up with Harry. He stood motionless in the middle of the platform, his chest heaving like he was about to pass out. I placed a hand on his shoulder and turned to stand in front of him.

"Harry? What is it?" He was afraid. I shook him slightly and his eyes snapped from wherever he was looking, back to me.

"It's nothing. Just gone mad, is all," Harry said in a low voice, devoid of emotion.

"How kind of you," I quipped.

"Kind?" He asked, genuine confusion replacing the sour face he had on.

"Yeah. If you're mad, then I feel right at home." Harry rolled his eyes, trying to fight the smile that pulled at his mouth.

"That charm of yours is starting to get annoying," he chuckled, pulling her onto the train. A line of first-years rushed past, forcing them to press up against opposite walls.

"You think I'm charming?" A blush crept on his face as we stared at each other, waiting for the kids to clear out. The only response he gave was an irritated groan as he turned to walk toward the cabin Hermione and Ron sat in. "I'm not hearing a no," I sang out, earning me a fake glare from over his shoulder.

We sat down in the cabin and settled in. Harry immediately took to disassociating, while Hermione mused about my placement.

"I'm not even sure what they would do in this case." She furrowed her brow, considering. "Logically, you should start learning with the first years. There's so much you have to catch up on."

I grimaced at the thought.

"Yeah. Exactly. I can help, of course. But even I don't envy the amount of coursework you're going to have to do this year."

"Well, this has been fun," I stated as I stood up to exit the cabin. Ron's hand grabbed my bicep before I could open the door.

"You can apparently set yourself on fire, but you're afraid of homework?" Hermione asked incredulously before breaking into fits of laughter. Ron and I joined her, a warmth brewing in my belly at the ease of it all. The feeling didn't last long as I glanced over at Harry, who was so far away from where his physical body sat, that he didn't even register our conversation.