Anna Black, The Girl Who Lived, Book 1 (UNDER CONSTRUCTION)

11: A New Home

"You don't have to be so harsh about it," muttered Anna with a sniffle. "I didn't 'do' anything. They just hate that I'm magical. They said I'm 'less human' than them. Now I don't have anywhere to live."

"Oh Merlin, that's rough," said Ron awkwardly, standing behind them. He looked as if he was thinking harder than ever before. Then, he gasped. "Bloody hell, I should've thought of this earlier!"

"What?"

"You can live with me and my family," he suggested.

Anna shook her head immediately. "No, I couldn't do that. You guys already have a big family and I don't want to be a burden-"

Ron laughed. "No, my mum would be fine with it. She's always wanted a daughter anyway. We'll make space, we could just make a sixth floor! Or we could even share a room I bet."

"So it's like a sleepover everyday?" joked Anna. "Also you have five floors already? Do you live in a mansion or something?"

"Oh, definitely not, I've never seen a mansion before," said Ron, his cheeks dusting red as he remembered how humble his family had to be. "Anyway, do you wanna live with me?"

"Of course! Thank you, Ron, you're honestly the best!" squealed the girl, getting up and giving him a huge hug. The boy's face became even redder, but he said nothing as he hugged her back.

Harry looked at them, feeling a bit dejected. Of course he was happy for his best friend to have found a way out of homelessness, and even better, he was beginning to realize how genuine Ron was. Still, he wished he could have an escape from the Dursley's. Sometimes he would hope they would kick him out just so he didn't have to deal with them.

As if she could read his thoughts, Leah hopped up next to him, nudging his hand and rumbling with purrs, as if she was letting him know that he was understood and allowed to feel this way.

His eyes caught onto the clock, noticing it was almost one in the morning. "Hey guys, I'm gonna go to bed. I'm happy you got this figured out."

Anna gave a slight frown upon seeing the smile not quite reach his eyes. She gave him a hug, saying, "Thanks so much for always being there for me, I don't know what I'd do without you."

When they let go, Harry just gave a small smile and wave before heading up to the boys' dorm.

Anna and Ron talked about more about what to expect living at the Burrow. Then they followed suit, heading to bed for the night. They both fell easily into a peaceful sleep, excited for what was to come.

~=~

The next morning, although she didn't get much sleep, Anna was as happy and refreshed as she could be. Hermione lightly shook her awake, remembering the girl's attitude the previous night.

She groaned from exhaustion, but quickly smiled. "Goodmorning, Hermione!"

"Oh, um, hi. Are you feeling any better? What even happened?" asked the bushy-haired girl.

"I'll tell you over breakfast. Well, let's get going, we don't want to be late!"

The two girls got ready and met up with the boys in the Great Hall. Ron immediately flashed Anna a smile upon seeing her. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, I feel great!" said Anna cheerfully, piling food onto her plate.

"Well, what happened? You said you'd tell me!"

Anna quickly swallowed her mouthful of food and took a deep breath, recounting the previous night's events. "Okay, so last night I got a letter from my uncle. He basically said that I was weird and not even human. So, he said to never go back home and to figure out somewhere else to live."