The secrets of Rowan Khanna (Y6 spoilers)

Old ties (Chapter 12)

Another three weeks passed. Rowan was steadily improving.
She still found going out a struggle, sleeping alone was not an option, but at least she was walking around the house again, even being persuaded to go for a long stroll through the trees with her family. They weren't as scary anymore, when she was with them.
Her parents were so proud of her for improving so much and so was Hazel.
She was fine now, but bummed that she had missed the last few days of elementary school.
Though, today she didn't think of it at all.
The Khannas would be going to Diagon alley to get Hazel's things for Hogwarts, which made her incredibly excited.
"We need to get you a new wand as well." Ophelia told Rowan while the family was having breakfast. "And your books of course. Maybe a few new cloaks... Your last year of school. Oh my little girl is all grown up..."
Rowan played with the waffles on her plate, pushing them from side to side.
She didn't want to go back to Hogwarts, but she wasn't sure how to tell her parents that. Or even worse.. Hazel. Hazel was so excited to attend Hogwarts with her big sister, how could Rowan take that away from her?
But... she really didn't want to go back.
Everybody knew what happend, they all knew she was a traitor...
How could she look anybody there in the eyes again?
She couldn't imagine just going back to normal, sleeping in a dorm with her roommates like nothing had ever happend... like she hadn't betrayed them for all these years.
Maybe they thought that she had ever only hung out with them to use them... but she had truly cared for them, viewing them as her best friends, even a little bit like family...
"Their little Hufflepuff family". That's what Penny had called it. They had been inseparable...
But Rowan had betrayed them. No, she would never be able to look any of them in the eye again... Going back to school was not an option.
A few months ago the thought of never going back to Hogwarts had made her heart ache, but now... she thought that maybe it was for the better.

"Look Rowan, look!" Hazel said, jumping around Rowan with her brand new wand. "Look how cool it is!!!"
She had made quite a mess in Ollivanders shop before finally finding her wand. It was a flexible nine inch wand made out of dogwood with a core of unicorn hair.
Hazel was incredibly happy with it, especially with the Unicorn hair core. And the wood it was made out of matched her personality well, as wands made of dogwood usually looked for an owner that is playful and interested in getting into mischief.
"Settle down Hazel, you have just gotten better." Ophelia said, trying to calm her younger daughter. She felt excited too, seeing as Hazel would finally go to Hogwarts... she had fought so hard to be healthy enough to achieve that...
Rudra put a hand on Rowan's shoulder, telling her that it was her turn. She needed a new wand as well after all.. her first one had been taken by R when she had been abducted, and even after Aurors did a thorough search of R's hideout, it hadn't been found.

Still not sure how to tell her family that she wouldn't go back to Hogwarts, Rowan stepped up to Ollivander, that asked her to please not make as much of a mess than Hazel did.
Her little sister just giggled, but then appologised.
For a moment Ollivander reminisced about Rowan's first wand, the one that had been lost to R, but then quickly moved on to having her try out new ones.
The stack of wands next to her grew steadily, there didn't seem to be one for her. She was about to give up and to break the news of staying home to her parents, when Ollivander handed her a 10 1/2 inch wand made from willow wood with a core of unicorn hair.
As soon as Rowan grabbed it, sparkles enveloped her. She had found a wand after all...
"He who has the furthest to travel will go fastest with willow." Ollivander said, giving Rowan an empathetic look. Of course, R's arrest and Rowan's kidnapping had been all over the wizarding world news. Everybody knew about it...
Rowan looked at her new wand.
Willow...

Soon after, the family stepped out of the store.
Hazel was happily swinging her wand around, even after being reprimanded by her parents that she was was not to use it yet.
Rowan just kept staring at hers, thinking of what Ollivander had said. "He who has the furthest to go..."
Next they went to Madam Malkins to get Hazel her cloaks. She was so excited... Rowan sat next to her while she got her measurements taken. Their parents had just quickly gone to get all the potion ingredients the sisters would need for the new school year.
"Hazel..." Rowan said. "Would... would it be a huge problem for you if I... didn't go to Hogwarts..?" she asked. They were alone, it was a good time to ask...
Hazel looked at her. "But.. But you have to! You wanted to be Hogwarts' youngest teacher!"
Rowan sighed, saying that that dream was dead. She couldn't go back there, she could never go back there. Everybody was aware of what she had done. Hazel argued that it wasn't her fault, that she was forced to spy, forced to betray them... Rowan shook her head, saying that it didn't matter. She had betrayed them, and people would remember that. They would never be able to trust her again, so she just shouldn't go back.
The sisters kept up their discussion until their parents came back who after figuring out what was going on also tried to tell Rowan that it was alright. Nobody at Hogwarts was going to hate her for it, nobody would treat her differently.
But... she knew that this wasn't the case. People would keep seeing her as a criminal.
It ended with Rowan just leaving, just walking out of the store, away from them.
Usually her parents would probably be upset because of her just leaving like that, but at the moment... they were happy she did. The past few weeks, she had refused to go anywhere by herself...