The end of summer vacation came too quickly for Harry's liking; true, he was looking forward to returning to Hogwarts, and Luna and Ginny's exuberance at starting their first year seemed infectious as even Ron began to grow more excited as September neared. But, at the same time, Harry was nervous about returning; try as he might, Harry just couldn't seem to get Dobby's warning out of his head, even though both Sirius and Dumbledore had assured him that they would allow nothing to happen to him or any of the children at Hogwarts.
On their last evening, Mrs. Weasley invited the Lovegoods to join them and conjured up a sumptuous dinner ending with a mouthwatering treacle pudding. Fred and George rounded off the evening with a display of Filibuster fireworks; they filled the kitchen with red and blue stars that bounced from ceiling to wall for at least half an hour, making Luna squeal happily as her mother watched on with an admiring eye. Then it was time for a last mug of hot chocolate and bed.
"Will you sit with me tomorrow?" Luna asked Harry as she gave him a final hug.
"Of course!" Harry replied with a smile, "I'll save you a seat!"
Luna's face seemed to split in two before she gave another hug and left with her parents.
"Alright, Weasleys!" Molly called out as the group began to climb the stairs, "Now, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow, so I want all of you in bed! No reading, no talking, just sleep, understand?"
"Yes, mum," came the chorused voices as Harry and his brothers (and Ginny) made their way to their respective rooms.
XXXX
It took a long while to get started the next morning. They were up at dawn, but somehow they still seemed to have a great deal to do. Mrs. Weasley dashed about in a bad mood looking for spare socks and quills; people kept colliding on the stairs, half-dressed with bits of toast in their hands; and Mr. Weasley nearly broke his neck, tripping over a stray chicken as he crossed the yard carrying Ginny's trunk to the car. Poor Jaya was sent tumbling down the stairs, along with an avalanche of clean laundry, when she collided with Molly whilst attempting to bring the Weasley matriarch the freshly cleaned clothes.
Harry couldn't help but shake his head as he brought down his trunk and laid it on the ground beside the car that Arthur had bought six months ago; try as he might, Harry just couldn't see how eight people, six large trunks, and two owls were going to fit into one small Ford Angelia; he was just glad that the Lovegoods were Apparating there, otherwise it would be a catastrophe.
"Harry, would you please help me load your trunk into the boot?" Arthur called out as Harry was turning to head back inside.
"Sure thing, dad!" Harry called as he turned around where Arthur was already trying to lift the heavy thing; with a heave, Harry grabbed his end of the trunk and lifted it towards the back of the car, only to almost drop it a moment later as he saw how the boot had been magically expanded so that all the luggage fit easily.
"Not a word to your mother," Arthur whispered, making Harry grin conspiratorially.
"Not a word," Harry replied with a wink before turning and running back into the house to see if he had forgotten anything.
When at last they were all in the car, Molly glanced into the back seat, where Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Percy were all sitting side by side comfortably, and said, "Muggles do know more than we give them credit for, don't they?" She and Ginny got into the front seat, which had been stretched to resemble a park bench. "I mean, you'd never know it was this roomy from the outside, would you?
Mr. Weasley started up the engine, and they trundled out of the yard, Harry turning back for a last look at the house, where Jaya was happily waving goodbye. He barely had time to wonder when he'd see it again when they were back; George had forgotten his box of Filibuster fireworks. Five minutes after that, they skidded to a halt in the yard so that Fred could run in for his broomstick. They had almost reached the highway when Percy shrieked that he had forgotten his Prefect badge. By the time he had clambered back into the car, they were running very late, and tempers were running high.
As they were sitting in a traffic jam, Arthur glanced at his watch and then at his wife,
"Molly, dear…"
"No, Arthur."
"No one would see; this little button on the dash is an invisibility booster that I installed myself! That would get us into the air then we could fly above the clouds! We could be there in ten minutes, and no one would be the wiser!"
"I said no, Arthur! Not in broad daylight!"
"Wait, this thing can fly?" Harry said excitedly, "That's brilliant! Mum, can we please?"
"No!" Molly growled, "If someone sees, your father could be arrested for breaking the law! Now, I don't want to hear another word about it from anyone!"
The car sunk into a tense silence for the rest of the trip at that as no one wanted to test Molly's clearly decaying patience; they arrived at Kings Cross at quarter to eleven, and Arthur nearly dove out of the car as he ran to find trolleys for the kid's trunks.
Harry had caught the Hogwarts Express the previous year. The tricky part was getting onto platform nine and three-quarters, which wasn't visible to the Muggle eye. What you had to do was walk through the solid barrier dividing platforms nine and ten. It didn't hurt, but it had to be done carefully so that none of the Muggles noticed you vanishing.
"Percy first," Molly said as she nervously looked at the clock overhead that showed they had five minutes before the train left; Percy briskly strode forward and vanished a moment later, followed immediately by Arthur with Fred and George.
"I'll take Ginny, and you two follow us!" Molly told Harry and Ron, grabbing Ginny's hand and setting off; a moment later, they both disappeared, leaving Harry and Ron alone by their trolleys.
"Let's go," Ron said, glancing at the clock, "We've only got a minute left!"
Harry ensured Hedwig's cage was safely wedged on top of his trunk and wheeled his trolley around to face the barrier. He felt perfectly confident; this wasn't nearly as uncomfortable as using Floo powder. Both of them bent low over the handles of their trolleys and walked purposefully toward the barrier, gathering speed. A few feet away from it, they broke into a run and….
CRASH
Both trolleys hit the barrier and bounced backward; Ron's trunk fell off with a loud thump, Harry was knocked off his feet, and Hedwig's cage bounced onto the shiny floor, and she rolled away, shrieking indignantly; people all around them stared, and a guard nearby yelled,
"What in blazes d'you think you're doing?"
"Sorry," Harry gasped, clutching his ribs as he got up, "Lost control of the trolley."
Ron mumbled a quick apology to the guard before rushing to pick up Hedwig, who was causing such a scene that there was a lot of angry muttering about cruelty to animals from the surrounding crowd.
"Why can't we get through?" Harry hissed to Ron, once they had gotten their trolleys back up,
"I dunno!" Ron replied as he looked around wildly; a dozen people were still staring at the two of them, "The gateway's sealed itself. We're going to miss the train!"
As Harry looked up at the clock, he couldn't help the sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach as their time ticked down. Ten seconds…. Nine seconds….
Gritting his teeth, Harry wheeled his trolley forward cautiously until it was right against the barrier and pushed with all his might, yet the wall remained solid.
Three seconds….. Two seconds…. One second….
"It's gone!" Ron cried, sounding stunned, "The train's gone! What do we do?!"
"How in the bloody hell should I know!" Harry replied, trying hard not to panic; he'd promised Luna that he would save her a seat. Never mind how panicked his parents would be that Ron and Harry hadn't come through the barrier. Another worrying thought came to Harry as Ron pressed his hand on the stone pillar.
"What if mum and dad can't get back to us?" Harry asked, making Ron turn to him and pale at the thought.
"Have you got any muggle money?" Ron asked, making Harry laugh mirthlessly,
"You're kidding, right? I haven't had any pocket change since…."
The two of them went silent at that, following their age-old agreement to never mention Harry's life before the Weasleys had adopted him.
Quickly, Ron pressed an ear against the cold barrier as Harry watched anxiously,
"I can't hear a thing," Ron said tensely, "What are we going to do if mum and dad can't get back through?"
A sudden screech from Hedwig made Harry look around to see that he and Ron were still being watched by a few curious people; unconsciously, Harry felt sweat begin to form on his brow.
"I think we should go wait by the car," Harry whispered, "We're attracting too much attention!"
"The car? The car!" Ron cried excitedly as he jumped to his feet, "Harry, you're a genius!"
"I am?" Harry asked, bemused,
"We can fly the car to Hogwarts!"
For several seconds, Harry simply stared at Ron before finally crying out in a loud voice that caused several people to look at them,
"Have you gone mad?!"
"What?" Ron retorted, "We're stuck, right? And we've got to get to school, haven't we? And even underage wizards are allowed to use magic if it's a real emergency! Section nineteen or something of the restriction thingy!"
"And what happens when mum and dad return and find their car missing?" Harry hissed back, turning to ensure no one was listening, "I don't know about you, but I don't fancy facing mum's wrath when she finds out we stole the car and flew it across the bleeding country!"
"Okay, so let's hear one of your ideas, smart guy!" Ron spat back angrily, "Cause I'm all out!"
"I think I have an idea…." Harry replied after a moment, "But we need to go somewhere without any witnesses, come on!"
As quick as he could, Harry led Ron to the nearby bathroom; after a quick check to make sure that they were all alone, Harry called out,
"Jaya!"
Instantly, the little elf popped into the bathroom between Ron and Harry, making Ron jump before a broad smile appeared on his face.
"Jaya! Oh, thank God!" Harry cried as he wrapped his arms around the surprised elf,
"Master Harry called for Jaya? Does master Harry need something?"
The barrier to the platform sealed itself!" Harry replied, letting Jaya go, "Ron and I missed the train, and we don't know if mum and dad can get back to us! Is there some way that you can let them know what's going on? See if they know what we should do?"
"Jaya is on it, master Harry!" The diminutive elf said quickly before popping away,
"How did you think of Jaya?" Ron asked, once they were alone, "I never would have thought of that!"
"House elves are linked magically to their master," Harry explained, "Sirius told me a few years ago, so if anyone could get to the platform, it would be her!"
Before Ron could reply, Jaya popped back with an angry look on her face that made both boys nervous.
"There's being elf magic on the barrier to the platform, master Harry!" Jaya barked, "The bad elf is being to blame for this! Jaya is sure of it!"
"Dobby?" Harry replied in surprise, "You think he sealed the barrier?"
Jaya nodded her head quickly, making Ron turn pink with anger,
"When I get my hands on that little git, I'm gonna-" Ron began before Harry cut him off.
"It doesn't matter right now. All that matters is what we do next!"
Turning to Jaya, Harry continued speaking,
"Did you find mum and dad?"
"Mistress Wheezy was most distressed when Jaya told her what happened!" Jaya said quickly, "She being telling me to tell you to go to the car and stay there! She and master Artie will Apparate there and be meeting you!"
"Got it," Harry replied happily, "Thanks a lot, Jaya!"
"Jaya is always happy to help master Harry!" Jaya cried happily,
"Mum and dad should be here soon; you can go back home if you want," Harry replied warmly.
"Jaya, be doing that!" The little elf replied happily, "You be having a good year at Hoggywarts, master Harry!" Then, Jaya popped away a moment later, leaving Harry and Ron alone.
"Come on, let's go do what mum and dad told us to do before we attract any more attention," Harry replied quickly before exiting the bathroom, Ron right behind him.
XXXX
"I just don't understand what that elf's problem with me is!" Harry exclaimed ten minutes later as he sat on the hood of the car, his trunk resting on the ground in front of him; Ron sat next to him, likewise with his trunk resting next to Harry's.
"Bloody thing is a menace!" Ron replied, "If he's not careful, he'll end up killing you while trying to save your life!"
"Agreed," Harry grimaced; a moment later, Molly and Arthur appeared, and both boys were pulled from the hood and into her arms as she fussed over them with a fine-tooth comb.
"Oh, thank goodness you're both alright!" Molly cried as she hugged them both tightly, "When you didn't come through the barrier, your father and I nearly lost our minds!"
"Jaya told us that it was the Malfoy elf that sealed the barrier," Arthur added, "I'll be informing the Ministry about this, mark my words!"
"Ron suggested we 'borrow' the car and fly to Hogwarts, but I suggested a different approach to our problem," Harry said quickly, causing Ron to throw a dark look at him as Molly rounded on Harry's brother.
"Borrow the car?! And just what would you have done if you had been seen?" Molly raged, "You were lucky that Harry managed to talk you out of it!"
"Way to rat me out," Ron growled as Harry tried to look apologetic, "I'll do you for that one, count on it!"
"I already sent a message to Dumbledore," Arthur said loudly as Harry opened his mouth to respond, "So, you won't be in trouble at least."
"So what do we do?" Ron asked,
"Grab your luggage," Arthur replied, "We'll quickly Apparate the two of you to Hogsmeade, and we can make our way up to the castle from there. Of course, you'll be a few hours early, but at least you'll be at Hogwarts, and that's the important thing."
"But what about the car?" Harry asked in bemusement, "We can't just leave it here, can we?"
"We'll come back for it," Arthur replied, "The important thing is getting you two to school, now grab your trunks and let's get to it."
Quickly, the two boys seized the ends of their trunks with one hand while their parents took each of their hands in the other; a moment later, Harry was forced to endure the unpleasant feeling of being sucked through a straw before the feeling ended and he was standing next to his mother in front of The Three Broomsticks Inn.
"I hate Apparation," Harry groaned as Molly let go of his hand, and Harry fell to his knees as he tried to keep his breakfast down,
"You and me both," Ron replied as he, too, fell to his knees.
"Oh, for goodness sake, you two!" Molly said in exasperation, "It is not that bad!"
"Says you…" Harry mumbled, hoping she wouldn't hear him as he rose shakily to his feet.
"Molly, you take the boys to the castle," Arthur said with a smile, "I'll go back and get the car. And you two behave yourselves this year, understand? No adventures, no sneaking about, just keep your noses in your own business."
"Yes sir," Harry and Ron chorused as one, making Arthur wink at them before spinning on the spot and disappearing in a flurry of robes.
"Come along then, boys," Molly said as she took out her wand and gave it a wave; instantly, Harry and Ron's trunk rose into the air and followed behind her as she made her way towards the castle.
XXXX
A few hours later, Harry and Ron sat with the other house members; they had spent most of the day in Gryffindor's common room after being let in by Professor McGonagall when they arrived. They had spent most of the day playing chess or making last-minute checks on their summer homework, much to Ron's disgust at having to do schoolwork before school even began.
As soon as the others strode into the Great Hall, they made a beeline straight for Harry and Ron and demanded they explain why they weren't on the train; even Rhea made her way over to see why Harry wasn't on the train.
"Poor Luna was simply beside herself with worry!" Hermione scolded, "I found her all alone in the corridor; no one would let her sit with them!"
"Not even Ginny?" Ron asked in surprise,
"Ginny was with me!" Hermione retorted, "She's the one who asked me to let Luna sit with us when we saw her pass our carriage, close to tears!"
Harry suddenly felt terrible at having broken his promise to Luna and couldn't help but let his head droop before he began telling what had happened to him and Ron.
"I wouldn't worry too much, boys," Fred said warmly, "Luna's a very forgiving person."
"I'm sure once you tell her why you weren't on the train, she'll forget all about it." George added with a smile; the twin's words seemed to give Harry hope as he seemed to sit a little straighter.
"I must apologize for Dobby's actions," Rhea said softly, "I will make sure that you both are properly reciprocated for my elf making you miss the train."
"There's no need for that," Harry said quickly, "Did you find out why he wants to save my life so badly, though?"
"I think we should wait until we are alone to have that particular conversation," Rhea said as she looked Harry in the eye until he nodded that he understood.
"Then, I hope to speak to you again soon," Rhea said with a nod before she turned on her heel and strode away back to Slytherin's table.
Not long after that, the line of first years strode into the Great Hall, led by Professor McGonagall; Ginny and Luna trailed near the end, and Harry waved a hand at the pair, only to lower it awkwardly when Luna ducked her head sadly, and Ginny glared at him angrily as she wrapped her arm around Luna.
"How am I ever going to make this up to her?" Harry whispered sadly as Luna passed him by,
"She'll forgive you, mate," Ron replied as he patted Harry's shoulder, "Just make sure and tell her what happened the first chance you get."
Harry anxiously bit his lip as the hat gave its traditional song and the sorting began; Harry clapped robotically along with the other students as each new student was placed where the hat thought they should be, but he hardly paid attention to anyone as the only students whose sorting Harry cared about waited their turn.
"Luna Lovegood," Professor McGonagall called out, making Harry sit straighter as the little girl shyly stepped forward and the hat was dropped over her eyes; as the hat covered her, Harry found himself holding his breath anxiously.
For several moments the Great Hall was silent, and it seemed like Luna was actually arguing with the hat; what's more, it appeared Luna was becoming very agitated based on how tightly she was gripping the sides of the stool she sat on.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the hat opened its mouth and shouted out,
"RAVENCLAW!"
Luna's shoulder's slumped, and it seemed like she was walking towards her own execution as she made her way towards the table where her new house sat; Harry couldn't help but sigh sadly as she sat down.
He had been so hoping that she would be sorted into Gryffindor, but it seemed like the hat had other ideas; Ginny's sorting went as expected, and she was promptly placed into Gryffindor, and the Weasleys all clapped and congratulated their newest addition.
Just as the sorting hat was taken away, the doors boomed open and everyone turned to see who had entered; Harry felt his jaw drop open when a smiling Gilderoy Lockheart strode past him and took a seat at the head table, next to a sneering Snape.
"Oh, please, God no…." Harry whispered in growing horror,
"We're not THAT unlucky, are we?" Ron added,
"Unfortunately, it looks like we are, brother dear," Fred said sadly as Dumbledore rose to his feet and the Great Hall fell silent.
"Welcome to another year, dear students," Dumbledore called happily, "Before we begin what I can only assume will be a very delicious feast, I have a few start-of-term announcements to make. First, I would like to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, Gilderoy Lockheart." Immediately, Lockheart rose and bowed extravagantly; Harry smiled as he realized that almost all those clapping were witches while the wizards were sneering or glaring contemptuously.
"Second," Dumbledore continued after a suitable amount of time, "Mr. Filch has added a few new items that are hereby banned at Hogwarts, all of which can be found nailed to the door of Mr. Filch's office. The Forbidden Forest, once again, is banned to all students, and hopefully, that will stick this year." Polite laughter followed this before Dumbledore spoke again, "Now, without further ado, let the feast begin."
The tables instantly filled with food of every kind, and Harry happily began to fill his plate as the Great Hall began to echo with voices and laughter.
"So, Lockheart?" Ron asked the table,
"Poor bloke," Fred said with a creepy grin,
"Yes," George added with a similar creepy smile, "I almost feel bad for the bugger."
"What are you two talking about?" Harry asked in bemusement,
"No Defense teacher has ever lasted a year," Fred said with a laugh, "Been that way since our parents went to Hogwarts."
"It's the curse of the Defense position," George added in a creepy voice, "And sometimes the professors leave in boxes, like Quirrell!"
Harry instantly paled at that, and his hair turned white, causing the twins to freeze in place as they paled in, realizing what George had said.
"Harry…I'm so sorry, I didn't think," George said as Harry tried to regain control of himself; a moment later, Harry felt Ginny grip his hand. Nodding at his little sister in gratitude, Harry finally managed to slow his breathing; it had been a long time since his last panic attack, and Harry was afraid of how close he had just come to having another one.
"It's okay, George," Harry replied softly, "I know you didn't mean it. Let's just finish our dinner and forget it, okay?"
The rest of the Weasleys mumbled their replies, and though the table tried to joke and bring cheer, the tense, dark mood stayed for the rest of the feast.