Observing all the packed things, I couldn't help but let out a laugh. The "lair" and the "nest" had many more belongings that could easily be considered mine, implying that I would have to carry a comically excessive number of suitcases.
The time has come; we are leaving the castle. We received our grades, and I must say we did quite well, if not excellent, at least in our particular group.
The girls got fairly high grades, and thanks to my help, they managed to reach a higher level than they would have normally achieved. I'm not saying their excellence is solely because of me, but I certainly contributed to enhancing what they already knew and providing support in areas where they had weaknesses from the start. In summary, our group ended up with several O's and E's, very few A's, and some P's, although the latter factor is due to circumstances such as Snape's intimidation in their exams, something I couldn't intervene in... although I would have liked to...
Anyway, it doesn't matter, I'm digressing as I prepare to leave... although I plan to return to the castle in secret; I still have a date pending with a certain beautiful ghost.
Speaking of ghosts, I could see Myrtle's face sticking out at the top of the wall, waving as if to say "call me" or something similar. I suppose I should, otherwise, she might end up coming to look for me at the burrow. I provided her with a lot of entertainment material, and due to our agreement, I was the only person she could talk to about it. Without me here, she probably won't be able to share her new hobby with anyone and will have a hard time. So I'll have to stay in touch with her, and next year I plan to tell her that she can also talk about those topics with Gemma.
I can't say I get bored with our conversations. At least, thanks to the years she's been a ghost, she's told me many stories about her accidental encounters with passionate students. It's interesting how interested this ghost is in sexuality and perverted topics after meeting me, although it's somewhat understandable given the age at which she died.
After giving a slight nod to Myrtle, I continued walking until I caught up with the others. Now, all the first years were together, heading towards the dock. It turns out that at least during the first year, both arrival and departure are done via boats, although it's not the case in the following years. The boat I took was the same as before, with Hermione and the Patil twins.
We arrived at the other shore and walked once more until we reached the Hogsmeade station, from where we would take the train. My group was a large one, and not all of us could be together, so we decided to split into groups and occupy adjacent compartments.
We stowed our luggage in the compartment compartments and sat down, waiting for the journey to begin. Although I mentioned we were a large group, we were actually smaller than might be assumed, as the Slytherin girls were missing, who kept some distance from us. Pansy was upset, and her friends accompanied her, thus separating from our group, although they weren't far on the train.
The train started moving, and the chatter among the girls resumed, although it would be more accurate to say it continued what had been talked about throughout the journey. They talked about their grades, their plans for the holidays, their families, or that notice from the Ministry that prohibited us from doing magic outside of school.
The journey was interesting; from time to time, girls from other compartments came and went, or I myself moved between them. There were moments when, being in other compartments, the girls asked me about my "relationship" with Hermione, and I answered as best I could.
Gemma also passed by to greet, with the excuse that, as a prefect, she wanted to make sure we were all okay, although she really wanted to talk to me without anyone noticing, even though everyone knew she was part of our inner group. I noticed her special interest in the topic of my relationship and the questions she asked, at least until she left the compartment with complicated emotions and without looking back.
I would have liked to know what was going on, but even after sending her some [messages], she still didn't reveal what the problem was, or so I thought. She was noticeably emotional, and all I could manage was to agree to meet secretly during the holidays.
Another interesting event was when Tracey asked me to speak privately in the hallway. All the girls were curious, especially when they noticed that the Slytherin girls had stepped aside, but I didn't allow them to listen to our conversation. I stepped out and prepared to listen to what Tracey had to tell me.
"... and that's why Pansy is very sad and angry with you. She liked you, and she went crazy when she found out that Hermione is now your girlfriend," she explained in detail.
"I understand..." I nodded understandingly, I was already aware, but I let Tracey explain it. "And what do the rest of you think?"
"Well, friends come first, so I have to stand by Pansy on this, although I don't think we should control your life," she sighed. "Look, I don't know what's best. We all saw that Pansy felt something for you, and you knew that well. I think you should have shown more consideration and at least given her a chance. I know your relationship with Granger came first and all that, but as a friend, I have to support Pansy. Although I don't think I should force you into anything, I hope you reconsider. Daphne is neutral, she has no opinion, but she's comforting Pansy, and Millicent is completely on Pansy's side, saying you shouldn't be with Granger." (Tracey)
"Alright, thanks for telling me." (Red)
"Don't mention it, I don't want to lose my new friends over this. Lair gatherings would be awkward if it continues like this. I hope you do what's best. See you next year, and I hope this gets resolved... and bring cupcakes to make up for these grievances," she turned around but didn't forget to demand at the end.
I tried to visit the Slytherin girls' compartment after that, but they shut the door in my face, and I couldn't see them. I could only shake my head at this and plan for later.
I returned to my compartment with all the other girls, who interrogated me to know what was going on, but I didn't tell them anything; it was something I would resolve later. Luckily, Fred and George appeared to distract them. They had come to chat for a while and joke around with me.
Their arrival made me think again of my next big challenge: meeting my parents...
We arrived at King's Cross station shortly after changing our robes for Muggle clothes, and despite being very confident, the girls didn't start changing until I left the compartment.
Groups of children and teenagers disembarked from the train at platform 9¾. My group gathered once more to start saying goodbye from there, as we could only leave in groups of two or three to avoid alerting the Muggle world; there was a guard to ensure that.
I hugged each girl and wished them happy holidays, promising that we would see each other soon and keep in touch. I had to wave from a distance to the Slytherin group, and the only one who didn't return the greeting was Pansy, who quickly turned her head with a snarl when she saw me. I also waved from afar to Penelope, who returned the greeting awkwardly, and to Gemma, who gave me a brief gesture back while lost in her thoughts.
After that farewell, I stepped out into the Muggle world, and there were quite a few people, but it wasn't hard to spot my family, partly because they were a notable red-headed group. As I bid goodbye to the girls, Fred, George, and Percy had already disembarked and joined my parents, Ginny, and Luna, who had come to greet me.
I also saw Ron off to the side with Harry, and they saw me too. Our family approached me, and I could sense a certain anticipation in my parents' faces, but before we could proceed with that, I had to catch Ginny in mid-air as she had jumped towards me to hug me, or rather, hang onto me. Despite having seen her not long ago, she seemed happy to see me back.
"Red, it's so good to see you back," my mother said with her usual demeanor, ready to come and hug me. But before she could do so, she scolded Ginny: "Ginny, let go of your brother, you're smothering him." Although her words weren't very harsh, there was a clear maternal love for her favorite girl.
"Red..." my father also began to greet me, but he suddenly stopped upon hearing me.
"Hi, Dad, Mom. I missed you both a lot..." I said with a sigh, shoulders dropping, not knowing how to proceed. My words made my parents freeze.
I might have said it normally, perhaps with some nervousness, but the way I did it was not normal for my parents. Both of them widened their eyes upon hearing my tone and seeing my body language, so different from when they brought me to this station for the first time.
"Hi..." I tried to smile awkwardly, raising my hands slightly to the sides, searching for some way to break the ice, aware of the reason behind my parents' reaction.
"Red!" my parents exclaimed and hugged me tightly, holding me in their arms while they looked at my face, detecting the slightest expression.
The same and incomparable," I replied. "A big change, don't you think?"
"I... I can't believe it," my mother said, excited to the point where tears could be seen in her eyes.
"But we told you," Fred interjected.
"We sent you several letters about it," added George.
"Yes, but this is..." my mother struggled to find the words, overwhelmed by emotion.
"Incredible!" my father said excitedly and started firing questions continuously as if trying to understand how and make sure it's not an illusion. "Red, how do you feel? Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine, Dad. Thanks for the concern," I replied, making the arms around me tighten more. "You see... I'm sorry, for earlier... for being a jerk to you both. I..." I began to clumsily open up the pains of my heart as I felt the love I didn't reciprocate in the past.
"SHHH! Quiet, that doesn't matter now," my mother stopped me. "By Merlin! I'm so happy!" she couldn't help but cry.
Ron, who approached after seeing how Harry left with Vernon, saw the scene and felt embarrassed seeing his parents crying amidst the crowd at the train station. My parents also saw him and included him in their hug, then called the rest of the family, forming a red-headed bunch that caught the attention of the people around.
"Let's go home, we'll talk there," my father ended the family hug.
"Yes, there's a lot to talk about," my mother continued, but she still kept a hand on my shoulder all the time.
"Let's go home," said Ron, eager to get out of here.
As that happened, not far away, another family gathering was taking place, although not as emotional as ours. Mr. and Mrs. Granger were there along with Hermione, who was visibly blushing because Lavender Brown, who was close to her, had mentioned whether she "wasn't going to meet her boyfriend's parents?".
Hermione blushed under her parents' gaze and looked at me with panic at the situation. She didn't expect to reveal this relationship to her parents, partly because she didn't know how to do it and partly because it was too early to think of a way to explain it. Luckily, I sent her a message after noticing her expression of terror from a distance.
Hermione pushed her parents, telling them she would explain things at home and that I, Red, would visit them during the holidays. She managed to get them out of that situation, and we more or less saved ourselves from an awkward meeting at that moment.
We set off on our way home as my siblings told my parents about their year, mostly about me, although they also joked saying things like, in addition to having expressiveness now, I was also part of a gang and addicted to certain substances. My mother scolded them for that, although for a second she turned to me with fear asking if it was true, which I denied. Then, she sighed with relief before scolding Fred and George again.