Chapter One: Who is she?

Five years have passed sine the last war, and life has slowly begun to turn back to normal. Wizards and witches of all ages began coming to turns with the deaths that occurred over the last few years. The Weasleys' still mourned the loss of Fred. Time slowly passed by as their grief slowly relinquished day by day. It took George months to come out of "their" room. He couldn't part with his twin, his brother, his other half, his best friend was gone. A full year passed before George could step a foot into the shop that he spent so much time with his brother. Day by day, the existence of the shop started to feel more normal. In the memory of his long lost twin, George felt the connection to create the mayhem that once was in Hogwarts again. Each of new ideas crafted the memories that he shared.

By accident, Mrs. Weasley would call for Fred only to feel the aching of her heart for he had gone before her. The sadness and pain that she felt echoed through the Burrow. She tried as hard as she could to act like she was back to normal, but Mr. Weasley knew better. When the house was silent, and everyone was asleep, is when he would cling to her, letting her cry on his shoulder. Hermione, Ron, and Harry returned to Hogwarts to finish their last year. Of course, Hermione was Head Girl and passed the final year with the highest scores in the history of Hogwarts. Harry and Ron did alright with her help as usual. After that year, Ron and Harry went on to be Aurors and Hermione decided to put her knowledge to the test and became a Healer at St. Mungo's. It was not long after they started their careers before Ron and Hermione started to date, and Harry and Ginny got back together.

Everything was starting to look up for everyone, and life was going to be normal. Or so they thought.

Today marked the fifth anniversary of the last battle and the anniversary of Fred's death. Mrs. Weasley has been working in the kitchen all day, preparing for the family dinner. Everyone was going to be home tonight. Charlie was coming home from Romania. Bill and Fleur were coming along with their new baby that was born two months ago. Percy had sent his regards, and would not be joining them in dinner tonight for he had been called into the Ministry for an assignment.

Hermione and Ginny walked into the Burrow from the garden, carrying baskets of flowers and vegetables. Hermione had matured in the best possible way. Her hair finally became less fizzy, and had soft curls. Those brown eyes held the wisdom that was above her years. Ginny had also changed. Her long red hair was darker, and her bright brown eyes could see through lies and deception. Yet, Ginny had bruises on her arms from her dangerous work for the Ministry. Over the hardships from the last few years, Ginny and Hermione grew more to than friends; they were sister. After all, Ron and Hermione are now engaged, and Ginny married Harry not that long ago.

Mrs. Weasley turned and looked at the girls, giving them a smile, "Is everything set up in the garden for tonight?"

"Yes Mum." Ginny stated as she put down the basket before falling into a chair. "All the tables and chairs are set up."

"Good. Are Ron and Harry going to be late tonight?" She asked as she waved her wand around, moving the food onto the plates from the pans.

"No they should be-" Hermione started but was interrupted by two loud cracks. Ron and Harry apparited right in the middle of the kitchen. Both their robes were covered in dust and mud. Harry grew up to look just like his father to a T, except for the eyes of course. Ron, however, he looked just like his older brother Charlie; tall and muscular. Mrs. Weasley gave them a quick look which Ron and Harry knew all too well. Smiling sheepishly, they darted upstairs to get cleaned up before they got an ear full.

Laughing softly, Hermione shook her head and waved her hand. "See, they were almost on time."

Ginny shook her head and grinned as her mother asked the girls to begin to set the food outside on the table. Pulling out their wands the two lifted the food from the counters to move it to the garden. The garden had a very long table that would fit everyone comfortably and then some. Hermione and Ginny had orbs of light surrounding the table, and some scattered around the garden. The orbs of light shimmered against the flowers and the herbs to give it more of a home feel to the area around them. Charlie appeared with Mr. Weasley just as Ron and Harry, wearing clean clothes, walked outside to help with set up. Fleur and Bill walked out of the house just as Mrs. Weasley finished putting the last of the food on the table. Mrs. Weasley walked over to Fleur and Bill, giving them a hug, and took the baby, the first grand baby, from Fleur's arms. Mrs. Weasley snuggled the baby as she softly hummed to him. After a while, she put the baby down in a bassinet, and let the bassinet gently rock.

"Is everyone here?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she looked around.

"We are still waiting for George..." Ron said softly as he stood next to Hermione.

"No, no. I am here." George said as he walked in the garden, sniffling softly.

George looked like he had been crying again. His hair was pulled in every direction while his eyes were blood red. Mrs. Weasley walked over to her son, and gave him a tight, bone breaking hug. Today, everyone knew that this was an extremely hard day for George. Mrs. Weasley released George after a few moments, who was trying to pull himself together to be stronger than he looked. Everyone took their seats, leaving one chair empty. Looking at the chair beside him, George still believes that Fred would appear in that chair, laughing that they really believed that he was dead. Clearing his throat, Harry stood up, holding his glass in one hand while he held his wife's hand in the other.

"Five years ago today was the day that we got our freedom from Voldermort. It was the day that we lost an important member of our family. There is not a day that goes by that Fred is not on our minds, and there is not a day that goes by that I know that he would not want us to be sad. He would want us to stop crying over his death, and start to remember all the good that he had done. I bet for a fact that if he was here, he would have pranked each and every one of our chairs, making it impossible for any of us to actually sit or so we wouldn't leave them in the end," There was a small bit of laughter that went around the table. Ginny looked up at Harry with tears in her eyes while she cling to his hand, "From everyone that we lost that day are still missed terribly. It is hard to realize that there are so many that are not here. And we have to live with that pain every day, giving the chance to move on. Let us take comfort to know that they did not die in vain, they created what we have now. They gave us the freedom to be happy and to have a future. Let us raise our glasses to those we have lost. Especially one of the best men that I had ever known that is missing from our table."

Everyone's voice rang out Fred's name while the glasses chimed around the garden. Harry leaned over and gave Ginny a kiss on the lips before he sat back down in his chair. A few moments later, the garden was filled with conversation and silverware clicking against plates. Charlie, Bill, and Mr. Weasley were having a very heated discussion about the new Seeker for the Ireland Qudditch team. Charlie was convinced that he was going to be hard to train because he was still in his school years. But Bill countered that that is why he was going to be good for the team; that the seeker had a raw talent enough to get on the team in the first place. Between the two of them, Mr. Weasley interjected that the new seeker would be put through a lot of hard times that the team is going to put him through. Laughing, Bill and Charlie would pay anything to see that.

Down the table some, Harry and Ron have been trying to get some information out of George about the new line of products that he was inventing for the shop. The new line of products was the ideas that Fred had made when he was in Hogwarts. To George's surprise, he had only just found the notebook that Fred had left behind in the shop. The new line was going to be a surprise to everyone, but George was going to need some test subjects. Smirking to his brothers, George told them that they would be the first to see the new line, if they agree that they would be the test subjects when he got the product done. The smirk alone made Harry and Ron shudder at the thought to be test subjects again. The last time they, "volunteered" Harry somehow got cat ears and a tail, and Ron grew a fur coat over his body. The effects to that test lasted two weeks, giving Hermione and Ginny plenty of time to get pictures. The embarrassment flashed on both their faces while thinking about. A moment passed before both Harry and Ron gave the okay that they would be test subjects. Grinning even more, George leaned in and gave the boys a hint on what the new line might have.

It was at the end of the table that Hermione, Ginny, Mrs. Weasley, and Fleur were talking about Hermione and Ron's upcoming wedding. Originally, the wedding was going to be to a small get together, but it was after the making of the list that both Hermione and Ron knew that it was not going to be small. Everyone in Ron's family was invited, plus all their friends and colleagues from work were all excited to come. Even Aunt Muriel was happy to come, but of course in the same breath she was already complaining about the day of the wedding, saying it was going to be too cold or too hot. Most of the complaints that Aunt Muriel were ignored.

Hermione told Mrs. Weasley that the dresses would be ready soon, and that they need to pick a day that they could go get them. A day with Mrs. Weasley is always special for Hermione; it was like going out with her own mother. Hermione's parents, even though she erased their memories of ever having a daughter, were not speared by the Death Eaters. Somehow they were found and killed, and it had taken Hermione two years after the war to find out this information. After losing her parents, Hermione spent as much time as she could with Mrs. Weasley. She really loved that mother bond that she got from Mrs. Weasley, it was like having her own mother back.

"It won't be long now" Ginny said as she grinned at her soon to be sister in law.

"No, it won't be." Hermione said smiling, "I can't wait, though I wish I didn't have to take off work."

"Only you, 'Mione, would complain about taking time off work" George's voice chimed in making everyone laugh.

"Seems like everyone is in high spirits this evening"

Everyone turned their head to see the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, standing at the gate of the garden. His smiled, looking on upon the family. Mr. Weasley jumped up and raced over to the gate, opening it for him.

"Kingsley! I mean Minister, what a surprise." Mr. Weasley said, keeping his cool "Are you here for pleasure or business?"

"It is always a pleasure for me to see my friends, but today it is all business I am afraid." Kingsley said as he walks into the garden. "Arthur. Molly. I have a favor to ask of you and your family."

Mrs. Weasley stood up as she asked, "Would you like a cup of tea, Kingsley?"

"A cup of tea would be great." He said as Mr. Weasley made an extra chair appear, and he sat down.

Mrs. Weasley got up and went to the kitchen for the cup of tea. Kingsley looked around the faces of this family, and couldn't believe that it had already been five years. Sure, he seems Harry, Ron, and Mr. Weasley at the Ministry, but in this kind of setting was relaxing. Just as he was about to talk to the family about the favor, Mrs. Weasley came back with the cup of tea.

"Ah yes, thank you Molly. I hope it was not a problem to make a cup." He said as he took the cup from her. Kingsley took a sip of his tea before he set it down, "Right. Yesterday, I was approached by a witch from the Department of Security. She informed me that a young girl was brought in by a few Aurors early this morning wandering the streets of London. Now, this girl had a ministry case file with her, and the case inside that file just happened to have her name on it. The file looked like it had been made, maybe a week or two ago, but was not dated. After being brought in, she refused to speak as if she was in shock. She wouldn't eat the chocolate that was brought for her. She just sat there, staring blankly at the wall," He sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. "After she ignored anything that we asked or try to ask her, we looked into the file for her first interview. The interview was mostly blank. The only word that was written on the interview paper was that her crime was one that she did do. In order to save her, they sent her here. But rewritten on the side of the paper is another handwriting which said that she is from alternate world."

"What was the crime?" Hermione asked as she leaned towards Kingsley.

"That is the thing..." Kingsley said, "The crime was stealing a few books from Hogwarts. She knocked the first Aurors that had appeared. It was only when she was cornered that she taken into custody."

"She stole a few books?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she raised an eyebrow, "This girl was punished for stealing a few books?"

"I was just as surprised as you when I read the file." Kingsley said before clearing his throat, "Then the sentencing for the girl was the most I have ever seen before. They had decided that as a punishment she would live with the Weasley family. That only Molly and Arthur Weasley could be the ones to watch over her."

"Us?" Mr. Weasley stated as his eyes went wide. "Why us?"

"The file did not give a reason why. It just stated that only you two are supposed to watch over her... I understand if this is problem, but I wanted to ask if you two were alright taken this girl in..." Kingsley said as he lowered his head. He felt like there was no other choice but to follow the mysterious file.

Mrs. and Mr. Weasley looked at each other. They had no idea who this girl was nor if it was safe to let her come into the house. Sure, stealing books was hardly a crime, but that could be just a cover for another crime. Still, she was just a child, and she did need a place to stay. Mrs. Weasley looked back at Kingsley.

"How long would she have to stay here?" She asked.

"Mum! You are not seriously thinking about letting a theft stay here!" Ron yelled across the table as he banged his hand hard on the table, sending food onto his clothes.

"Ronald, watch your tone." She warned him as she glared down at him. "And yes. She needs somewhere to go, and according to her file, only we are supposed to take her in."

Mr. Weasley admiring his wife grinned before looked over at Kingsley and nodded, "Yes, we will take the girl in, Kingsley."

Kingsley sighed in relief, "I am glad, my friend."

"When will she arrive?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"She will be here in a few minutes. I'll send word for Percy to bring the girl to the house" Kingsley said as he sent his patronus to Percy.

Mrs. Weasley smiled when she heard that Percy was the one bringing her. That would mean that Percy would be here to get something to eat after all. Standing back up, Mrs. Weasley asked the girls to come and help put together Ginny's old room together for the new guest. Hermione, Ginny, and Fleur (including the baby) walked into the house following Mrs. Weasley. As soon as the girls were gone, Ron clicked his tongue and leaned back while looking at Kingsley.

"Kingsley, do you really think that this girl is from an alternated world?" He asked as he rolled his eyes. "Seriously, what do you think?"

"I have no doubts about this. The file looked identical to ours, but I can tell that it is not from our world. The main handwriting that is in the file is no question mine. But I never wrote this file nor have I ever seen this young girl before. This kind of crime, I would never force a student or a child for that matter to a punishment such as this." He said softly.

"Could the file be a fake?" Mr. Weasley asked.

"We checked with all the enchantments that we had to our disposal. The handwriting is one-hundred percent mine. The other handwriting I believe that it belongs to the girl because the ink looked fresher than the reports within the file." Kingsley said.

"How old is she..." George inquired softly as he leaned back into his chair.

"16" Kingsley said

"16? That is really young. Even for her to be punished in that manner does not make sense." Charlie said as he couldn't believe it.

"I agree.." Kingsley said.

"Now, is she supposed to go back to Hogwarts here?" Harry asked

"The file indicates that she had already graduated Hogwarts this year. But when she went back, she must have grabbed the books. In fact, this file makes it sound like being sent to the Weasley's was the only option that was available." He stated.

Before anyone could say anything Mrs. Weasley and the girls returned. Fleur walked over to Bill, handing him the baby as she sat down next to him. Mrs. Weasley stood behind Mr. Weasley, putting a hand on his shoulder while she looked back at Kingsley.

"Is there anything that we need to know before she gets here?" Mrs. Weasley asked Kingsley.

"Like her name?" Charlie stated.

"Her name is Lyra. There was no last name in the file. As she graduated Hogwarts, it says that she had the highest marks that they had seen since Hermione Granger, and that she loves to read," Kingsley replied.

Everyone was quiet for what it seemed like hours before they heard a car pull up to the house. All eyes were on the garden gate, waiting to see Percy and the girl to appear.

"It will be alright" Percy's voice carried in the night while the sound of a car door opening and closing. "My family is the best there is. They will not hurt you."

Moments later, Percy came out of the darkest, and into the light of the garden. He looked tired and older, as the years have not been good to him. Bags under his eyes showed that he was not sleeping as well. Percy waved to his family as he walked into the garden. Behind him, a girl followed him silently. All eyes fell on her, and those eyes were filled with surprise. Lyra's long, dark red hair seemed to glow from the orbs of light that was around the gardens. Her surprising bright cerulean blue eyes, filled with shyness and nervousness, stared at the ground, without taking in the people or the situation around her, while she bit down on her lower lip. She was tall for a 16 year old, tall and willowy. The clothes that she was wearing, one could see that she seemed smaller than a normal teenager should be.

"Ah, thank you Percy." Kingsley said as he stood up. He walked over to Lyra, and gently put a hand on her shoulder. "Everyone, this is young Lyra. Lyra, this is the Weasley's."

Lyra's body tensed up as Kingsley was introducing her. Instead of saying hello or a greeting, Lyra bowed her head very fast, and then returning her eyes down to the ground. Mrs. Weasley felt so sorry for the girl thinking that she was scared, but also that she looked so small and helpless. Slowly, Mrs. Weasley walked over to Lyra and put her hands on the girl's small shoulders.

"Hello there, Lyra." She said softly to the girl. "Welcome to the Burrow. Come; let us get you settled in. Your room is all ready for you."

Mrs. Weasley, shielding Lyra's view of the family, guided her into the house. Lyra let her body be guided into the kitchen and up the stairs. As she was being guided, her eyes were looking around the kitchen. It was cramped with so many different things that it made the room seem smaller, but somehow still warm and loving. Her blue eyes looked at the woman that was guiding her up the stairs. Lyra noticed that Mrs. Weasley's aura made her feel like everything was finally going to be alright. This place was warm and inviting, nothing that she had ever been to before in her world.

Maybe I will be okay here…Lyra thought.

"Here we are my dear." Mrs. Weasley said as they got to the second landing of the house, and she opened the door, "I am sorry that it's not much,"

Lyra shook her head as she walked into the room. Slowly, she looked around the room. The room was painted a soft white, and had some notions that there had once been posters on the walls. One large bed was in the corner with a beautiful blue blanket on top of it. Across of the bed, on the other wall, was very used desk. Ginny had written all over the desk during her years going up, using a permanent spell on the ink. Lyra looked over at Mrs. Weasley and gave a small bow in thanks which Mrs. Weasley gave a smile in return.

"I will send one of the boys up here with your bags, if you have bags. Also, I will send up a plate of food for you, my dear. I bet you are hungry." She said softly, "Oh before I forget. The bathroom is right down the hall to the left. If you get hungry, you can always go down stairs and get something to eat. And if there is anything that you need, you can always ask me and my husband. Well, I will let you get settled in."

Mrs. Weasley smiled at the girl one last time before she walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Lyra took a deep breath of relief that she was finally alone. Slipping off her shoes in mid step, Lyra jumped onto the bed. Snuggling into the pillows, she wrapped her arms around them, closing her eyes. The bed felt so soft and warm that Lyra could have started to cry. With everything that happened, Lyra noticed that her body was so tired, but she was also very hungry. Groaning softly, she turned over, fighting with herself to stay awake. But the fight was one that she was slowly losing.A knock on the door had Lyra opened her eyes. For a second, she had forgotten Mrs. Weasley had said that someone was coming up to bring her her bag and food. Lyra got out of bed, and opened the door to come face to face with George. Her eyes blinked as she looked at him in surprise. He was carrying a tray of food along with her backpack. Their eyes met for a good few seconds, both of them captivated by each other's blue eyes. George shook his head a bit before grinning at her while he walked in.

"Here is your bag, and the food that my mum made.' He said as he put the bag next to the bed, and the tray down on the desk.

Turning towards her, he really studied her. Up close he can see that her hair was actually curly and thick, making him think how Hermione's hair was during Hogwarts. Also, her body was small, but he could bet that she could handle herself. What really got to him were the eyes. That pair of eyes filled with nervousness as well as exhaustion seemed to be so familiar to him. It was as though he had seen these eyes over a million times before, yet they were so strange to him.

Who was this girl? George thought awhile he continued to study her. Lyra bit her lip while conscious that George was studying her. Then she held her hand making a motion to the door

"Oh, sorry." George said as he laughed and rub the back of his head, "I didn't mean to stare or impose for so long. Anyways, leave the dishes on the desk, and my mum will get them later."

With a final glance at the girl, he waved goodbye. Once outside the room, he shrugged, thinking that he was crazy to think that she seem familiar to him. It's time for that drink. He thought as he walked down the stairs back towards the garden.

An hour later, Mrs. Weasley walked up to the second landing, and knocked on the door to Lyra's new room. She didn't hear any movement inside the room as she waited. Slowly, Mrs. Weasley knocked on the door as she opened it.

"Lyra?"

Looking in the room, she noticed that the food on the desk was eaten. Turning a bit, Mrs. Weasley saw that Lyra, with an arm over her eyes, and a foot hanging off the bed, was asleep.

The poor girl was just so tired…Mrs. Weasley thought as she walked over to the bed. Carefully, she moved Lyra's leg onto the bed. Groaning softly at the touch, Lyra turned over her body, wrapping herself into the blanket. Chuckling at Lyra, Mrs. Weasley brushed her hair out from her face, and smiled. She sleeps just like Fred did when he was younger….

Mrs. Weasley smiled at the memory of her son while she picked up the tray, turned off the lights, and walked out of the room closing the door behind her. The door closed leaving Lyra sleeping, happily dreaming.