stardust ⋮ george weasley

eighty-four :

E I G H T Y - F O U R

⋮✰⋮

The final train ride to Platform 9 and 3/4s in June was a bittersweet moment for Adeline, Estelle, Melanie, and Ophelia. Leaving Hogwarts had already been an emotional event for all of them, especially Adeline. She had to hold back tears as she left the castle that had become her first ever proper home over the seven years she had been a student there.

It was also difficult for Adeline to face the fact that she wouldn't be seeing her friends every single day from now on. For seven years, she had been waking up in the same dorm as Estelle nearly every day and had hung out with Melanie and Ophelia as well. But now they were heading off into different careers where they didn't have the chance to see each other every day. While Melanie and Estelle were staying in London like Adeline, Ophelia was moving all the way to Romania to start working with dragons in the same place as Charlie Weasley.

Estelle was starting at a job in the Department of Intoxicating Substances at the Ministry of Magic. While she wasn't passionate about what she was going to do, she still didn't mind what her job would entail and figured she would work there until she found a job she was truly excited to do. Plus, she figured that it would likely entail work with potions, so at least there was something there Estelle was interested in.

With her Herbology skills and knowledge of magical properties Potion ingredients, Melanie was going to work at the Apothecary. Like Adeline, she was more happy that she would be able to move out of her parents' home and into a small flat on her own in Diagon Alley.

On the train, Estelle turned to Ophelia as she began unwrapping a Chocolate Frog. "So...when do you start up with all your dragon training?"

"I'm traveling to Romania next week," Ophelia answered.

"Dragon training sounds so badass," Estelle sighed in awe. "I think I would get burnt to a crisp if I even try."

"Well let's hope that I don't," Ophelia laughed. "I think the weirdest part is that I'm going to be so far away from my family and all of you."

Adeline gestured over to the owl cage sitting on top of her trunk. "Well it's a good thing Cecilia can fly long distances really well."

"Adeline, I will be using Cecilia to send letters so I don't have to pay those ridiculous postage prices across long distances," Melanie said.

"Both you and Estelle are able to send letters with Cecilia whenever she's available. We can even organize and send all our letters together so Cecilia doesn't have to go back and forth so much."

"So concerned for the health and well-being of your owl, how very much like you Adeline," Estelle laughed.

Adeline's eye rolled as she threw a Bernie Bott's bean at her best friend's head. "Well, excuse me for not wanting my owl to suffer from exhaustion."

Ophelia then changed the subject, saying, "Wait, now that we're graduated and official wizarding adults out in the world, can I ask you about something?"

Adeline sat up straight, confused as to where Ophelia was leading to. "What do you want to ask me about?"

"That strange secret group you spent the summer with," Ophelia started in a quiet voice, worried about the potential of someone listening in. "Are you able to tell us about it now?"

Adeline pursed her lips together, then nodded. But first, she made sure the door to the cabin was tightly shut and she had cast a spell to soundproof the room to make sure no one who shouldn't be hearing it couldn't. Adeline then sat down on the bench once more and began, "It's called the Order of the Phoenix."