chosen - harry potter

Chapter 1 - Break from Azkaban

"The basilisk slayer!" Will said as Cassia met up with him with their parents at King's Cross Station as they departed from the train.

Cassia said nothing, smiling and suppressing a laugh as her parents hugged her tightly, thanking her that she was okay.

Her parents didn't seem very amused by the situation. In fact, their first dinner together once again as a family was extremely tense. The tension, however, faded as soon as it arrived, and the family was laughing, sharing stories from the past year with joy.

Cassia's parents felt that they were now old enough to stay on their own at home, for the Weasleys won a trip to Egypt, making it the only option.

One day, shortly after summer break had begun, Cassia was called into the main room by her mother. She walked lazily from her bedroom, her dark hair, which had grown to reach her mid back at this point, tied up sloppily. As she reached the room, her mother and a man she didn't know were sitting in two armchairs next to each other. The man had an old set of robes, repaired in several places, and looked quite ill and exhausted. He looked rather young, but his hair was spotted with gray in several places.

"Hi, Cassia," her mother beamed. "I'd like to introduce you to Remus Lupin. We were good friends when we were in school, and he'll be your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for next year."

"Hello," the man said politely.

"Nice to meet you," Cassia said, smiling, suddenly embarrassed of her messy appearance in front of her newest professor.

"You as well," Lupin nodded, smiling.

Her eyes darted to her mother. She nodded at her smiling, and Cassia walked awkwardly back to her room.

𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣𖥧

The summer, as a whole, was very peaceful. Harry and Hermione sent letters to Cassia all the time, and Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny were away in Egypt. It was the first time she had to write to Ron in her life.

Cassia had changed in several ways over the summer. She grew a little taller, and her face seemed to finally etch itself out of the baby fat that she had had on her cheeks. Her hair reached the middle of her back, and it had begun to curl in soft ringlets in a way it hadn't previously. Her features were sharp, her dark eyebrows and eyes structuring her face beautifully. She felt as though her figure resembled more of that of a woman's, as well, rather than a child's as it had before. She looked much like her mother, save her hair being much darker and her features sharper.

Her physical appearance wasn't all that had changed, however. She had begun to pay more attention to the way that she looked, taking extra care to feel her best. Her strong attitude had only grown stronger, and her quick wit only quicker.

𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣𖥧

Her birthday rolled around once again, and she once again had a small party. The Brights and Hermione all met at Cassia's house, and her mother made a fabulous cake.

Her presents were a mixture of clothes and candy, all of which Cassia loved very much. Her favorite present that she received, however, was her letter from Harry.

She received it that night, Hedwig dropping it at her window and nipping her fingers for food, as she had each time Harry sent her a letter. She dropped a bit of owl food, and went to open the letter.

Dear Cassie,

Happy Birthday! I wish I could've come to celebrate with you, but there was no way the Dursleys were going to let me go. I hope it was wonderful.

I'm really looking forward to going back to Hogwarts. I miss you and Ron and Hermione. If only our birthdays weren't during the break, we could celebrate together.