Summer Skeletons

Initially, Darla had been disappointed Harry's parents decided to do their Diagon Alley shopping alone as a family. However, she realized it was for the best in the end. Their family was going to draw far less attention than they would have should the Crosses have taken Severus up on his offer of chaperoning Harry's trip. Everyone would have figured out very quickly Harry was Harry Potter (Cross) then. By going with just his own family, they looked like a rather regular Muggle family taking their wizard-son for his first shopping trip.

That didn't mean Darla wasn't watching, of course. Face hidden behind the hood of her robe, she silently tailed them on their trip. She wasn't supposed to be away from the castle today and if Severus (or, rather, Edie, who was finally up and puttering around their quarters— Even if she still seldom left them) discovered her absence he might actually slap her in an attempt to knock some sense into her after he found her.

She was confident, however, they wouldn't. Darla only wanted to watch them a little to make sure they were going to be alright doing the shopping without a local to assist them. As she stared at the family, she saw Harry point at Eeylop's Owl Emporium and put on a pleading expression. Mr. Cross looked reluctant to go in, but then his wife placed a hand on his arm and he relented. Excitedly, Gail and Harry ran in ahead. Meanderingly, she walked over to the store and peered into its window.

Harry was mooning over a pretty white owl while his sister cooed at some others a little ways away from him. His parents leaned on one another, simply basking in each other's company and the sight of their joyful children. Harry turned to look at his parents and she could tell he was asking for the owl from the eager set to his grin. However, his face drooped a moment later as she saw the back of Mr. Cross's head shake in a negative motion. Darla stepped away from the window when she saw the family turn around to leave a minute later.

When they walked through the door, an idea came to Darla. She would buy the owl for Harry as a belated birthday present. He would be delighted when he received it on the train to Hogwarts. A skip to her step, she went into the shop and straight to the clerk, and cousin of the emporium's owner, behind the counter. "Hello, I would like to purchase that white owl there. How much is it?"

-o-O-o-

Darla had taken herself to the train station on her own for the past two years. Severus had last-minute preparations to make for the incoming students and while Edie could take her, Darla had told her sister not to bother. She would see her in a day or two— Unlike the majority of Hogwarts's students who wouldn't see their families again until Christmas. She didn't even have to take her school trunk with her when she went, she just called the House Elves to come and take it to her dorm room.

The tricky part of leaving was not getting caught by her brother or any of his fellow professors on her way to the Owlery to retrieve Harry's owl. They would all want to know why she was going there when she ought to be heading for the Headmaster's office to use his fireplace to travel to King's Cross. Like when she went to ghost the Cross family during their Diagon Alley trip, the stars aligned and Darla had no trouble getting to the Owlery to retrieve Harry's owl.

It was a bit trickier going to the Headmaster's office and she had to hide once or twice from a professor, but she made it to the office unaccosted and drew her wand to put a shrinking charm on the owl and its cage before going inside. Loosely, she held it in her hand as she entered. Darla breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Headmaster Dumbledore was nowhere in sight. Perhaps if Darla hadn't been so concerned with getting away with her disobedience she would have wondered why the old man wasn't in his office; typically, he was there to see her off and welcome her back the few time she decided to ride the train away from Hogwarts.

But since she was, she thought nothing of it as she re-sized the owl and apologized to her for the disorientation it surely caused her. Once done with her cooing, Darla grabbed a fistful of floo powder and called out her destination.

-O-

With a single-minded determination, Darla searched the compartments of the Hogwarts Express looking for Harry. A few of her fellow students gave her nasty looks when she opened the doors to their compartments, interrupting whatever it was they were doing, and she had to apologize more than once for bumping into someone in the corridors, but Darla didn't let it bother her. She had one goal in mind and she was going to accomplish it if she had her way.

Finally, after what felt like eternity, she opened the door to a compartment and found Harry inside with a freckled, redheaded lad, who she easily identified as the youngest Weasley boy. She was in the same year as one of his older brother's, Percy, and while she found him to be a bit of a bore, she knew the Weasleys were a varied lot. The twins were jokesters that set her brother's teeth on edge and the oldest two, Bill and Charlie, had been both dashing and affable fellows to know.

"'Lo there, Harry," she chirped, stepping inside.

He grinned back at her. "Hi, Darla. Are you going to sit with us?"

She waved off the question. "Sorry, I already promised my friend Stephen I would sit with him," she told him in a truly contrite tone. "Before I did, I wanted to give you this!" Darla held out the caged owl for him.

Harry's eyes blew wide. "Wicked!" he exclaimed. "Is it really for me?"

Darla laughed. "Yes, it's a bit of a belated birthday present." Putting the owl in his lap, she asked, "D'you like her?"

"She's perfect," Harry replied, eyes not leaving the owl. "I saw one just like her when I was back-to-school shopping with my family, but Dad said we didn't have the money for it and maybe next year…"

"How interesting," Darla said while she winked at the youngest Weasley boy. Who, in response, furrowed his brows with perplexment and stayed silent. "I saw her while I was shopping and just knew she was perfect for you." Reaching a finger between one of the spaces in the wires, she gave the owl's back a stroke, causing her to twist her head around to stare at Darla. She chuckled. "What will you name her?"

"Owl," Harry replied. "After the owl in the Winnie the Pooh books?" he added at their blank stares.

The name did ring a dusty old bell in the back of Darla's mind, but the sound was still too muted for her to remember much beyond a faint recollection of a story she was once read that involved an almost obsessive focus on honey. "That's lovely," she told him all the same.

Harry hummed. "Gail loved Winnie the Pooh when she was small. Their names were the first English words she learned when Mum and Dad brought her home from China."

"I'm sure she'll be overjoyed when she hears what you named this owl, then," she remarked.

He smiled. "Without a doubt," he agreed.

"Alright, I must be going. I wouldn't want Stephen's ex-girlfriend to find him before I do." Darla looked side to side as if she was searching for a sneak. Leaning in, she whispered, "Here's a tip for you lads, never ever break things off with a someone over a letter. It leaves them thirsting for blood."

They nodded dumbly and she laughed. "See you soon, Harry. Just know if the Hat won't place you in Gryffindor, Slytherin would gladly have you!" she proclaimed as she turned heel and left.

As the door closed behind her, she heard the Weasley boy ask, "Who was that?"

"Darla. The potions professor's sister?"

"That's her? My brother told me she's an odd Slytherin, but I didn't believe him since it was Percy saying it, but–"

She shook her head and giggled. Oh, that poor little Weasley boy. He had no idea. Darla was more than odd, she was eccentric compared to her fellow reserved, mannerly Slytherins (and downright saintly next to the outright standoffish and menacing Slytherins). He was going to soon find that the stories he had been taking with a grain of salt from his elder brothers were more factual than fantastical; Darla hoped she was there when it dawned on him. His face was surely going to be a Patronus-worthy sight.

I hope this last chapter doesn't feel too lackluster. I know I hit a fair amount of stations from canon, but I hope it's easy to see still that Harry's first year is going to be fairly different from what happened in the books/movies. How did you like Darla being the one to gift him Hedwig (now Owl)? Final thoughts on Summer Skeletons?

Heads up to everyone the next story in the "Family Branches" series will be posted friday. It's a one-shot called We're On Our Way and is once again Darla and Harry-centric with a good helping of the rest of the Golden Trio and some other yearmates of Harry too!

Thanks for reading!