Echo | Harry Potter - George Weasley

Chapter 35: Home for the Holidays

For the first time since starting at Hogwarts, Shaye was finally heading home for the holidays. She was excited to get to see her family and have a traditional Christmas but it also felt weird not to be staying at the school with her friends. It felt odd to be heading to the Hogwarts Station in the middle of December, almost like the year had ended early and she wouldn't be returning until September. 

No matter how odd the feeling or how much she secretly wanted to stay at school, however, Shaye didn't have much of a choice in the matter. She had told her parents she would be coming home for Christmas and after two years of backing out of her promises, she really didn't have any room for negotiation anymore.

This year, however, both Ron and Hermione were heading back as well, which meant that Harry would be alone for Christmas. The three made sure to say their goodbyes to Harry and wish him well—with the added promises of a group gift-exchange when they got back—before leaving. Harry assured his worried friends that he would be fine and saw them off.

On the trip back into London, Shaye bounced some ideas about where to go about looking for Hattie Carter off of Ron and Hermione. They gave her some good ideas to pursue while at home but by then, the mystery of where Shaye's sister had gone off to had sort of dulled in comparison to the other challenges they were constantly up against. Shaye couldn't blame anyone for feeling that way though because if she were being honest with herself, she often felt the same way too. Sometimes she would go days without even thinking about her sister. 

Shaye was worried she might be losing interest but she reasoned with herself by deciding that forgetting hurt a whole lot less than remembering. She knew it was wrong ... but it was easier.

When the Hogwarts Express pulled into King's Cross Station and let out a loud whistle as it slowed to a stop at platform nine and three-quarters, Shaye looked out the window and spotted her parents among the sea of other parents, waving happily.

Suddenly, all of Shaye's doubts about spending Christmas at home had vanished. Nothing sounded better than a quiet holiday at home with her parents and extended family. Saying goodbye to Ron and Hermione, Shaye hopped off of the train, grabbed her things, and hurried over to her parents. 

"Hello, darling!" Elise pulled her daughter in for a tight hug; this one somehow even tighter than the one she had given when Shaye was leaving for school at the start of the year.

"It's good to have you home." Dorian smiled as he took Shaye's trunk and owl cage from her. "We've missed having you with us for the holidays."

Shaye grinned wide as the family of three pushed through the crowd of reuniting families. "It's good to be home," she said.

After loading her things into the family car and crawling into the backseat, Shaye shared some of the best stories from her first term of third-year with her parents. The one that really got her parents excited—especially her dad—was the story of how she had gotten to ride a hippogriff.

Dorian had been so entranced by the tale that he had nearly missed the turnoff for their street and by the time the three had piled into the house, he was still asking questions. 

"What was it like?" Dorian was full of amazement and curiosity. "They can be quite dangerous, you know. Did this one seem dangerous?"

Shaye was usually annoyed by the tidalwave of questions that she was asked after returning from school, but this time, she was more than happy to answer all of her parents' inquiries. Dorian was, of course, very interested in hearing how Shaye's Care of Magical Creatures class was going, and she took great joy in telling him how the hippogriff had put Lucius Malfoy's son in the hospital wing. Dorian gave a hearty laugh at this. Elise, on the other hand, was more interested in hearing about how Shaye's friends were doing.