Dumbledore didn't stay still for even one more day after learning the news. The truth at the moment was singular: Sirius Black had escaped, and it was necessary to protect not only Harry Potter but also Sarah, especially Sarah. Could he have done something to her? Find her? No, it wasn't possible; action needed to be taken sooner than expected.
Dumbledore soon paid a visit to the girl, despite past promises. It was a hot August day, so hot that no one could go outside. Sarah hated July, hated summer, and everyone who saw anything positive in that season. Heat, sweat, mosquitoes, fatigue. She preferred the warmth of a blanket, a lit fireplace, and a cup of hot chocolate in her hands for comfort. It was the summer leading to her thirteenth birthday, nothing exciting for her.
She was in the living room when she heard her parents talking to someone in the kitchen. Strange, no one had come through the front door, she thought. She stood up, leaving her things on the floor, and walked slowly toward the kitchen. Opening the door, she found herself facing a tall man in a faded blue robe with a beard that seemed well-groomed but too long to manage, in her opinion. Sarah stared at him while her parents invited him to sit on a chair in the large living room, and her mother and father urged her to go upstairs to her room. "Oh no, I prefer Sarah to stay with us. This concerns her, especially her."
Timidly, the girl approached the seated man. "Who are you?" Her eyes shone with curiosity. Dumbledore smiled; the same eyes as Marlene's, so dark yet so full of emotion. "Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of one of the most renowned schools in the magical world and... an old friend of your parents." He glanced at the couple standing without blinking. Sarah looked at him for a long time, magic?
It was a long day for the girl; absorbing so much information in such a short time was destabilizing. They perhaps kept the most important thing hidden from her: her real family. Telling her the truth abruptly would have been too difficult to handle and accept, according to Dumbledore. Sarah simply thought she had a rare, unique gift that had emerged from nowhere since her family had no such magic.
On the other hand, her parents were not happy. Dumbledore told them the truth about Sirius's escape and his concerns. "And are you sure Hogwarts is the right place? How will she catch up on 2 years? She needs all the supplies too. And she has never been away from us." Miriam was full of questions, her hands in her hair, pacing back and forth. Dumbledore smiled, "There's no safer place than Hogwarts; I will personally guarantee Sarah's protection. As for everything else, she will have all the necessary supplies, and I will accompany her to buy them. To catch up on the two years, well, she will have to work hard. We'll assign her a tutor at the beginning of the year."
He already had names in mind: Hermione Granger and Tom Riddle. The best students of their year, perhaps one less inclined to help her, but he would accept. Sarah was scared, excited, eager to leave but also wanting to stay home with her family.
A few days later, she had the chance to visit Diagon Alley for the first time and gather all the necessary items for the new school year. The first stop was, of course, Ollivander. The old man was handling a wand in his hands, his eyes quickly darting to Dumbledore. "Headmaster, I wasn't expecting a visit from you so... soon." The old wizard smirked and stepped aside, showing the twelve-year-old who was looking around. Ollivander was struck; the girl was already there. He moved quickly among the shelves.
"Her, she needs this one? No, too simple for a witch like her? Or this one?"
Sarah found herself holding the first wand she would try that day. "Give it a wave," Ollivander said matter-of-factly. A shelf to her right opened, sending a thousand papers flying into the air. The girl stepped back, almost throwing the wand onto the table. Ollivander looked around, moving his bony hands to a long box. "Phoenix feather, 12.9 inches," he handed it to her. As soon as she had it in her hands, she felt a jolt down her spine and smiled. She knew, she knew it was the right wand. Ollivander moved aside, satisfied but also curious, toward the headmaster. "It's the same wand as S-" He didn't finish speaking; Dumbledore moved towards the girl who was still enchanted. "A wand is the most important thing for a wizard; without it, they are nothing." Ollivander watched them leave his shop. A new celebrity was about to arrive at Hogwarts after Potter. By the end of the day, she had all the necessary items for her arrival at the school of magic, including a snowy white owl that watched her, turning its little head.
The month passed, and September 1st came too quickly. They arrived in London the day before, resting most of the evening. Looking outside, Sarah soon felt overwhelmed by a thousand emotions. Everything was happening too fast, as if she hadn't even had time to reflect. A wizard, I have an owl, a wand. This was clearly the plot of a book she had read recently, right?
After saying goodbye to her siblings, Sarah headed towards the London station. Her parents were more tense than ever, following the headmaster's instructions from earlier, looking left and right. Standing in front of the wall that would be the passage to the station, Sarah turned to her family. "Do I really have to... run-?" A silence filled only by the chatter of people enveloped them. They looked at each other, Sarah sighed, now looking behind her. "Well, I guess I should... go then." She hugged her still-shaken parents, took her things, took a deep breath, and ran, ran like never before, until she almost felt time around her stop for a second. She opened her eyes immediately when a deafening noise brought her back to reality. A scarlet-red train rumbled before her, boys and girls with their families walking and saying their goodbyes.
The doors were open; she took her trunk and her owl and boarded the train. Red inside too, Sarah began walking, looking for a free seat. Her eyes darted left and right, sweat drops falling down her back. She walked until she saw an empty compartment, or at least, there was only one person inside.
"Excuse me, can I sit here?" No response. Sarah was too tired to find another place, so she brought her things in and sat down. She looked out, sighing, but soon the door opened again, and she turned her gaze to a voice speaking to her. "Excuse me, may we sit here? The train is full." A boy with fiery red hair and freckles scattered across his face looked at her almost desperately. Sarah felt embarrassed, as if she had forgotten how to approach people. She smiled and replied, "Sure, come in."
But he wasn't alone; two other people followed him. The girl was holding a cat, tall but not too tall, with a sweet face that immediately calmed her. The boy, on the other hand, seemed to be thinking about something else, rather, he was definitely thinking about something else. Round glasses, green eyes, but it was the scar that caught her attention. "I'm Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter," Sarah smiled as the boys took their seats, careful not to wake the man sitting by the window. "And you are? We've never seen you around."
Sarah smiled, "Well, I'm new, Sarah Settimini. I'm not from here, but I have to start the third year." They were surprised; it was rare to see new arrivals, but the girl, after gathering a bit of courage, talked to the three about her family and her story. At the same time, the three, or rather Hermione, gave her information about Hogwarts. "I hope you get into Gryffindor; it would be a great loss for us to see you in other houses, or worse, Slytherin," but Ron was forced to stop when the train came to a sudden halt. The lights went out, and the four began to feel extremely cold. Their breaths were heavy and soon quickened. A large black figure was opening the door; Sarah couldn't quite identify the person or rather the thing. It opened the door with its almost bony fingers and moved first towards Hermione and Ron, then bent towards Sarah and Harry.
And then, absolute nothingness.
They were woken up shortly after.
Sarah and Harry were lying on the small train benches with Hermione and Ron sitting on the floor. Both got up slowly, accepting a piece of chocolate from a hand extended in front of them. Lupin looked at them with a concerned smile; his gaze lingered on Sarah for longer, as if he were studying and memorizing her face. "What... what was that," Harry said, looking at the exact spot where, what they would later discover to be a Dementor, an Azkaban guard searching for Sirius Black, had been. Lupin apologized and left them alone shortly after, giving them more chocolate.
The four remained silent for a while until Sarah spoke, "For a start, I've already made a great memory."
They laughed, but in their hearts, they knew something bigger awaited them at Hogwarts.
YOU ARE READING
𝘋𝘈𝘕𝘊𝘐𝘕𝘎 𝘞𝘐𝘛𝘏 𝘖𝘜𝘙 𝘏𝘈𝘕𝘋𝘚 𝘛𝘐𝘌𝘋/𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦 (English version)
Fanfic"𝙞'𝙙 𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙞'𝙙 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙞𝙛 𝙞 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣" [Tom Riddle...
