A Note to Readers: This story isn't planned. There isn't going to be a schedule. I'm rolling them out as soon as I finish them. I'm working on an original novel right now and this is going to be my escape from that. I also have a lot of questions about life right now. The war happened, but how did the characters we fell in love with recover from that? What changed? And what stayed the same?

Thank you for joining me on this journey. See you on the other side?

The Divide

Chapter 1

The sight of the Hogwarts Express filled her with dread. The scarlet engine waited at the platform, ready to take another batch of students to the magical school. Gone were the days where it represented safety, home. As Daphne looked around the platform at King's Cross, she noticed the sombre mood. No one raised their voice. Little children clutched their mother's hand as the women stared at the train, tears in their eyes. The students pushed their trollies to the train as if going to a funeral.

The observation wasn't wrong. The Final Battle was fought at Hogwarts. It didn't matter which side you were on. She would bet her entire vault that every student knew someone who had died on the battlefield. They were being forced to return to the place of their nightmares, Ministry mandated.

"Be safe," her mother whispered into her blonde hair as Daphne hugged her goodbye. She tried to memorize the comforting scent of vanilla before releasing her mum. The absence of her father felt more acute here. But she would not dwell on it. Refused to.

Daphne tried to smile. "Of course."

"Watch out for each other," she said to both sisters.

"We will," Astoria answered that time, stepping into her mother for a hug.

Daphne grabbed her trunk and with a last look at her mum, she boarded the Hogwarts Express. Her sister was right behind her. Though Astoria was two years younger than her, the two had grown close following the war. It was a relief having her at her side, so she didn't have to face this alone. Though the two didn't look like sisters. They were often compared to Bellatrix and Narcissa. Astoria resembled their mother with her long, dark hair and dark green eyes. Daphne was blonde, blue-eyed like their father.

Nothing could have prepared her for boarding the train. It had always been chaos. Children running across the aisle, wands out after a summer of no magic. People shouting at each other about summer plans and the latest rumours. It was madness. It was innocence. Their childhood had slipped out of their fingers like sand. No matter how hard she tried to hold on to hers, it was futile.

She felt self-conscious of rolling her school trunk down the aisle. The silence was overbearing. The sound of her footsteps echoed down the train, causing people to turn and look at her. Daphne wasn't used to the attention. She had always been a wallflower. She was known as the pretty Slytherin girl and that was enough for her.

Fear was present in every gaze she met. It was disconcerting to see people so open with their emotions. Daphne hurried on until she found an empty compartment. Their feelings were contagious and it was too much. The grief was still fresh for everyone. They had all lost someone in the war and she couldn't help but think that going back to Hogwarts was a terrible idea. They weren't ready. Maybe they'd never be ready.

With a wave of her wand, Daphne carefully put her and Astoria's trunk away. Neither sister said a word. There was comfort in their silence, so different from the quiet train. They were away from the world for a moment. Every day she was grateful that her sister had made it through the war unscathed. The sacrifices Daphne had made had been worth it.

Pansy stormed into their compartment, the compartment door slamming behind her. "What's wrong with everyone? It's like someone died."

That was Daphne's best friend in a nutshell. Leave it to her to be unsympathetic while the world was still grieving.

"Going back to Hogwarts isn't easy," Astoria snapped. "You should show some compassion."

"So we can wallow in grief? The world is moving on and we should move on with it," Pansy said.

Astoria quickly said goodbye and left the compartment. Daphne wasn't surprised. Her best friend and sister couldn't stand each other. They rarely lasted longer than a couple of minutes in each other's presence. Pansy thought Astoria was too sensitive. Her sister believed the other witch to be selfish. Daphne had tried to get them at least somewhat civil, but her efforts had been fruitless. It just wasn't meant to be. She'd have an easier time getting Draco and Potter to get along.

"What's her problem?" Pansy said, taking the seat across from her.

She sighed. "Don't start."

"Am I the only one looking forward to returning back to school?"

"Probably. If I never had to go back to Hogwarts, it'd be too soon."

Pansy rolled her blue eyes. "Bad things happened there, but it was also our home first. I'm not going to let anyone take that away from me."

"Can we not talk about the war?"

"Why not?" She asked. "The war happened. Everyone's trying to act like it didn't and I'm sick of it. How can we move past it if we don't talk about it?"

"Pansy, leave it," Blaise Zabini said joining them. Theodore Nott followed closely behind. "Have you seen Draco?"

The girls shook their head. The boys flopped on the seats, Blaise next to Pansy and Theo next to her. Daphne smiled as she looked at her friends. A year ago, she never would have pictured this. It had seemed foolish to hope that they would be alive at the end of it all and impossible to return to Hogwarts. But here they were.

Daphne rested her head on Theo's bony shoulder. "I'm happy to see you."

"How was your summer?" He asked, wrapping his arm around her.

"Alright," she said. "Yours?"

"Alright."

They both knew their answers were a lie. None of them had met up during the summer. The only time their paths crossed was at the funerals they attended. Their lives were put on hold while the Ministry ransacked their houses and put their families on trial. Survival was the name of the game.

It wasn't long before Draco joined them, a thunderous look on his face. He threw his trunk on the rack and sat next to Blaise. "I can't believe I have to return to this shithole."

"Nice to see you too, mate," Blaise said.

Daphne wanted to groan. It was too early for this. She often wondered how the two men were still alive. Draco had always been a bit conceited and self-involved. Blaise had made it his mission to be the constant thorn in the blond's side. How Draco hadn't killed him was a mystery. Yet, they were best friends. Not that the two men would ever use those words.

"What happened?" Pansy asked.

"The regular bullshit. For being the fucking 'light' side," Draco said using his fingers to emphasize the words, "they're fucking brutal."

Theo sighed. He took off his glasses and cleaned the lenses with his shirt. "It's going to be a long year."

"You too?" Draco asked.

He nodded.

"What am I missing?" Daphne asked.

Blaise winced. "The shit Draco doled out for the past seven years is going to come back tenfold."

She could almost taste her fear at his words. The boys didn't have to explain further. Draco's trial had been a public affair. Everyone was privy to all his dirty laundry. There were no skeletons in his closet. No secrets left. The Ministry had stripped Draco bare - all the Death Eaters and their families went through this - until there was nothing left. The Malfoy name was now tainted. Though it was Lucius's fault, not Draco's, in Daphne's opinion.

Everyone in this compartment had fallen from grace. They were being judged by everyone and it fell on the younger generation to pull their family reputation from the ashes. They were only eighteen years old. It was too much to ask.

"It's not fair," Daphne said, though she felt naive saying it. "There's a reason we're not in Azkaban. We were proven innocent."

"Good luck with that, Daph," Blaise snorted, though his dark eyes were sympathetic. "Prepare to have Death Eater whore thrown your way. Returning to Hogwarts is our sentence for being born to terrible fathers."

Draco pinched the bridge of his nose. "Where's the firewhisky?"

"At least we're together," Pansy said firmly. "We'll get through this."

If anyone disagreed, they knew better than to voice it. Daphne stared at the passing landscape, letting the motion of the train soothe her. She hoped that her friends were wrong. But the blonde knew that they were right. Returning to Hogwarts was going to be difficult for everyone and her and her friends were probably going to suffer for it.

May Merlin be with them.