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My life flashes before my eyes, and I wonder just how I got here, and how I got to this point...
"Is that true, Will?" Astoria says, voice muffled in our embrace.
"Um," I say intelligently. My eyes are still closed as I await my death at the hand of an undoubtedly furious raven-haired beauty.
"We are his family," Daphne says in a small voice.
"What?" I ask suddenly, opening my eyes incredulously.
I realize by the other now-visible faces that I'm not the only one flabbergasted by that statement, and I realize I wasn't the only one who asked that question.
Luna must be the only one who isn't surprised, because she's humming happily.
Daphne turns her body sideways and tilts her head up to the ceiling. "That's what you told father, isn't it? He asked if your family was going to see you over the holiday, and you said...you said your friends are your family."
She lets out a breath that almost sounds like a start of a chuckle. She turns her head toward me and opens her ice-blue eyes, which are far softer than I expected.
"You were telling the truth...you meant every word."
I feel a lump in my throat that grows as Hermione sniffles behind me and then Astoria sniffles against my chest. Then Hermione's arms wrap around me and Astoria, followed soon after by Harry clapping my shoulder and squeezing.
"Oh! C'mon Neville," Luna says happily. I turn my head back to her and almost laugh, if I could trust myself to not let out a sob the second I open my mouth, as she drags Neville over.
She squeezes herself under my arm next to Astoria, on the other side from Hermione.
Blaise scoffs and walks toward the sitting area, followed soon after by a rather uncomfortable Ron who mumbles something inaudible before he goes.
Astoria turns and reaches an arm out to her sister.
Daphne snorts and turns her head away, but makes no move to follow Blaise. Tracey is still standing near Daphne, watching us with a smile.
Hermione drops the hug and nudges me toward the elder Greengrass sister.
Luna gives me one last squeeze before she follows suit, and in a moment I'm free to walk slowly toward Daphne.
"I guess I have a bit of Seer blood in me after all," I say uncertainly, hoping she isn't going to change her mind and reducto me into a thousand pieces.
"What was it you said when we first met? I think it was something like, 'you will not be speaking to me like that,' wasn't it?"
She chuckles. "It was, and you said 'of course not, because I don't love you.'"
"Yet," I finish for her.
"You are still just as ridiculous now as you were then, you know that?"
"If it helps, I didn't plan for it to turn out like this," I say, opening myself for a hug if she wants to take the last step.
She shakes her head and smiles, then steps into the hug, wrapping her arms around my chest in the most natural hug she's ever given me.
"You must have forgotten that I no longer believe you when you claim to wing it. Who else but you could have turned half a room trying to hex you into a group hug?"
I laugh at that. "A one time thing, I'm sure."
She shakes her head. "It's not. By all rights we shouldn't even be friends, let alone...be this close." She pauses a moment, and I can't help but wonder what she was going to say. "Looking back, I still can't believe you did all this."
Suddenly we're wrapped in Astoria's arms, causing Daphne to stiffen briefly before she sees her sister.
"What are you doing?" Daphne asks, not unkindly.
"You're hogging the hugs," her younger sister says, "and you wouldn't join us over there so I came to you. I love you, too, you know, Daph."
"Stori..."
Tracey comes over and gives us a quick squeeze as well. "I'm glad to see you so happy, Daph. These might be Gryffindors, but I like them better than our so-called friends in Slytherin."
Our hug breaks up soon after, but nobody is sure what to say at the moment.
"How do you feel, William?" Hermione finally asks.
"Warm and cozy and loved!" I gush.
Daphne pretends to gag, and most of the others laugh at her reaction.
I laugh along with them. "I still need a while to get back to full power, but why don't you guys practice? Personally I think you should teach Stori and Luna the Stunner if they don't already know it, then see how many Harry's Shield can take." I smile evilly at him.
"Git," Harry says, but he's smiling as he says it. He does just that, helping Daphne and Hermione teach the two younger girls.
Neville nervously asks if Harry can help him, too, and as Tracey, Blaise, and Ron come over to practice, I head over to the sitting area and smile as I realize I'm seeing flashes of the future DA, except with Slytherins included this time.
Luna gets it quickest, followed shortly after by Astoria. Neville gets it, but he can't seem to get any power behind it. I can't remember if it's in canon or in fanfiction, but...
"Neville," I say, "is that one of your relative's wands?"
He flushes with embarrassment. "It was my father's."
I nod. "I mean no disrespect to you or your father, but you might be having trouble because it's not a good match for you. I know that many wizards and witches match fairly well with family members' wands, but it doesn't mean anything bad if it doesn't."
Daphne trades with Astoria and they quickly find out that Astoria can hardly use her sister's, though Daphne does fairly well.
"Mine is maple and phoenix feather," Daphne explains, "which is the hardest core type to master, while Stori's is applewood and dragon heartstring. The latter is the least picky of the cores, so often others can pick it up and use it fairly easily."
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Hey guys if u like the fanfic and want to read ahead by 27+ chapters or just want to support take a visit on my patreon.
(P).(A).(T).(R).(E).(O).(N)
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